Tune in at 3pm every Monday, Wednesday, & Friday on our Government Channel or Facebook page for an update from city officials. Past updates can be found by clicking here. At 2pm & 8pm we are also airing Gov. Baker’s press conferences.
See other COVID-19 related posts by clicking here
Statement by Mayor Thomas McGee on Illegal Firework Activity
This year we have seen a substantial increase in fireworks complaints in the City of Lynn. The number of fireworks related disturbances have begun earlier and are occurring at a much higher rate than we have seen in previous years. Residents in our community are adversely affected by the fireworks and experience real distress over the extreme noise. This is especially true for elders, families with small children or pets, veterans or others who may suffer from PTSD.
In an effort to keep the residents of Lynn safe leading up to and during the 4th of July celebrations, it is important to know that the use of fireworks by private citizens is strictly prohibited under Massachusetts Law. In accordance with state law, anyone found with fireworks by a law enforcement official during the course of performing their duties is subject to be fined and the fireworks shall be seized.
The improper use of illegal fireworks has caused critical injuries and led to severe house fires in our city in the past. Lynn is a very densely populated community and there is great danger when residents light off fireworks in heavily settled neighborhoods. The safety of the people of Lynn is our main concern, do not set off fireworks. Residents using fireworks continue to endanger our community by engaging in an activity that is strictly prohibited under Massachusetts Law.
Housing Lynn virtual panel tomorrow night
Housing Lynn will host a virtual panel discussion tonight from 7:30-9pm on the future of residential development in the city. Panelists will discuss the Lynn housing market; the relationships between Affordable Housing, mixed-income development, and market-rate development; and how different housing types and building densities can provide community benefits.
The panel will feature experts in residential development for people with a range of incomes in Greater Boston. The discussion will be conducted in English with live Spanish interpretation, with a live audience Q&A.
You can watch on our Government Channel, on TV (Comcast: 22 / Verizon: 37) or on our website (click here).
Click the images above to read full details, in English & Spanish
MBTA commuter rail updates
Yesterday the MBTA sent us two important announcements. You can read summaries of each story below, then click to read the full press releases on their website.
- The MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board approved of a four-year extension of the Commuter Rail Operating contract between the MBTA and Keolis Commuter Services, LLC, through June 30, 2026. A number of additional benefits were included, such as incentives for improved service & investments in infrastructure. Read more by clicking here.
- A new customer-driven Commuter Rail fare product pilot is set to take place beginning July 1st through September 30th. The Five-day Flex Pass on mTicket, a bundled fare good for any five days of travel within a thirty-day period. Read more by clicking here.
New window shows for Galleries at LynnArts
GALA (Galleries at LynnArts) has installed two window shows that can be viewed from the sidewalk at 25 Exchange St, Lynn, MA 01901.
“Facts of Life” is an installation by Stefanie Timmermann. The middle window is filled with flowers and plants. “For me, photographing flowers is often an invitation to delve into abstraction, curves and lines. It’s very meditative, and I can get absorbed into photographing a small plant for an hour or more. Photography in general kept me sane and functioning in the first several weeks of COVID-19 related lockdown, because it is an escape into a world I have some control over. I leave the fear behind when I put a camera in front of my eye. I have searched out flowers much more than usual, because they are uncomplicated and freely give their beauty and serenity.”
The left window is “Signage & Symbols”. Timmermann states “I do think we will get back to normal at some point. Maybe it will take a vaccine, maybe some precautions will remain. But the new normal we are living right now should be remembered when we can return to freedoms that we took for granted before. So in a way, these photos are documentary in nature. Maybe one day I’ll show them to kids during storytelling hour in the library: look, this is what life was like during the pandemic…”
The final window explores the isolation and upheaval. “The pandemic has not only led to a lot of isolation, it has also led to a deepening of the disparities between poor and rich, people of color and white ones. We live in a time of immense social and political upheaval. I wanted to document this, too, and I had the chance to photograph both an alt-right demonstration (demanding to re-open the economy), and a rally for Black Lives Matter in my hometown of Swampscott. Unlike a news reporter, though, I can take sides openly, and my heart will always be with peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters and everyone fighting for equality, inclusion and social justice.”
The Main Gallery windows will focus on an ever changing show called “Say It/Hear It” where artists have created scrolls that will hang on a rotating basis. 2020 has offered many challenges to us as individuals and as artists. GALA wants artists to show their art and how they are processing their feelings. They give a visual voice to what they, their family, our nation, and our planet is feeling. The first works hanging in the windows are cyanotypes by Sally Jacobson. Cyanotypes are an alternative photographic process most people would understand as blueprints. It is a cameraless process that allows the artist a lot of leeway for experimentation without much equipment. Sally uses cyanotype to document what she calls “the delicate and the fierce”. Jacobson’s work is her testament to the strength and fragility of the world. As new scrolls come in they will be hung in the windows and previous ones will recede behind them or be moved to the gallery walls in anticipation of re-opening.
Anyone interested in getting involved as a sponsor, artist, member of the press, or volunteer should contact galleriesatlynnarts@gmail.com
For more information and submissions, please visit www.galleriesatlynnarts.org
Share your P-EBT benefits
- Purchase food for a local food distribution effort or
- Purchase your own groceries and donate the equivalent amount to food distribution efforts in Lynn!
1) Yamila Ruiz – Yamila is a dedicated community member who is delivering groceries and prepared meals to families in Lynn.
CashApp: $YamilaKai
Venmo: @nicholas-Coppola-2
Zelle: 617-851-7796
You can also order or drop of groceries to: 50 Trevett Ave, Lynn
DONATE AT: lynnrapidresponsenetwork.org/donate-2
DONATE AT: https://www.eccoaction.org/donate to the “No One Stands Alone Fund”
From Mayor McGee’s office: The Lynn Public Health Department has confirmed that as of today, the number of active, confirmed positive COVID-19 cases is 1,041 with 2 new cases today. 2,442 Lynn residents have recovered and 95 have died. The total number of confirmed positive COVID-19 cases in Lynn since March 21, 2020, including those who have died and recovered, is 3,578. Please visit the new City of Lynn COVID-19 Data Dashboard which is updated daily.
We will continue to provide regular updates on COVID-19 through the City website (www.lynnma.gov), social media, and the Smart 911 emergency notification system (sign up at www.smart911.com).
If you have a news story that you would like to share, please contact us via email or call 781-780-9460.
