By Matt Rocheleau, Town Correspondent

A popular longstanding bicycle shop in Allston has closed. Bicycle Bill’s final day of business was Saturday, ending a 38-year run.

Paul Sager said Monday that he was shutting down the shop at 253 North Harvard St. to retire. He said he and his roommate opened the store in 1975.

Management announced the closure late last week on Facebook, where photos from the shop’s final hours were posted.

Sager, reached by phone at his shop, declined to comment further because he said he was busy taking care of some final work. He ended the conversation before being asked what will happen to the property.

City land records show Sager owns the 2,598-square-foot property at the corner of N. Harvard and Bayard streets. The city lists the address as 261 N. Harvard and assesses the property as being worth about $270,000.

State land records show Sager bought the property in 1996 for $100,000.

E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
--
For the latest Allston-Brighton updates:
Follow @YourAllstonBri on Twitter, here.
And connect via Facebook by clicking the "Like" button on the top right hand corner of the Allston-Brighton homepage, here.

By Brock Parker, Town Correspondent

The City of Cambridge estimates that a record-setting 10,000 people attended the annual dance party in Central Square Friday.

Traffic was halted along a portion of Massachusetts Avenue for the Cambridge Dance Party Friday night in front of City Hall.

The large crowd left "dancing room only" for annual event.

"If you missed it, you definitely missed out," the city posted on its website.

Storify courtesy of Saul Tannenbaum and NeighborMedia

(Ruth Rieffanaugh / Unbound Visual Arts)

By Matt Rocheleau, Town Correspondent

They often hide, tucked under a windshield wiper blade, cruelly waiting to show themselves as that poor driver approaches. The mere sight of those bright orange envelopes is enough to ruin the day for many.

But an artist from Allston hopes people will be able to find some beauty in Boston parking tickets.

Ruth Rieffanaugh has used parking tickets – some her own and others she found discarded on the street – to create colorful skyline scenes of Boston and Cambridge.

An exhibit of her work, called "Parking Ticket Blues & Other Rediscovered Uses" will debut at the Massachusetts State House on July 10, according to Unbound Visual Arts, Inc., a nonprofit that is sponsoring the exhibit. A public opening reception is scheduled from 3:30 to 5 p.m.

The exhibit, which includes other art she has created using discarded newspapers and other paper materials, will run through July 31, open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Room 34 of the State House.

"After moving to Boston, the artist started receiving several parking tickets and she also found many parking tickets discarded on the streets," said a statement from the sponsoring organization, which Rieffanaugh is a founding member of. "In order to capture her feelings and emotions in her new city, she decided to use the tickets to create things of beauty."

"The parking ticket art as well as her other artwork are about ideas and for Ruth those ideas emerge as enigmatic imagery," the statement added. "Drawn from personal experiences, the work grapples with the very personal yet universally personal – that nameless realm of feelings that blend the passionate and pleasurable, the angst and anguish, the uncertain and unsettled – often evoking a moment in time, a meaningful place, a despairing loss or a sudden discovery."

Rieffanaugh lives in Allston where she also works in her art studio. She also works as the director of the Dorchester Alternative Youth Academy and teaches drawing at Boston Architectural College. She received a masters in art education from Lesley University and a bachelor's in fine arts from the Art Institute of Boston.

"As a group, her paintings reveal uncertainty and barriers for the mind. She challenges the mind to confront those limitations and she presents us with the concepts that 'change is constant' and life 'is what it is.'"

E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
--
For the latest Allston-Brighton updates:
Follow @YourAllstonBri on Twitter, here.
And connect via Facebook by clicking the "Like" button on the top right hand corner of the Allston-Brighton homepage, here.

(Ruth Rieffanaugh / Unbound Visual Arts)

(Ruth Rieffanaugh / Unbound Visual Arts)

By Jarret Bencks, Town Correspondent

Somerville police are trying to locate an elderly Somerville man who went missing Sunday night.

Ralph Hergert, 66, was last seen at about 5:30 p.m. Sunday when he left his home at 9 St. James Ave. to take a walk, police said. He is described as about 5' 9" and 200 lbs with gray hair and blue eyes. He was last wearing a red and blue plaid shirt, grey shorts and sandals. Hergert suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

He often walks on main streets in Somerville, Medford and Cambridge. Police received a report Monday morning that Hergert may have been spotted in Kendall Square Sunday night, Deputy police Chief Paul Upton said.

Police are asking that anyone that may have seen Hergert call Somerville Police at (617) 625-1212.

Jarret Bencks can be reached at bencks.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on twitter @JarretBencks.

By Matt Rocheleau, Town Correspondent

The MBTA will increase security and police patrols around the system on July 4. As in years past, the T will boost subway service and will not charge fares after a certain point at nighttime, officials announced this week.

“We encourage people coming into the city to celebrate to use the MBTA and ask passengers to expect large amounts of people, and as we do every day we ask people to be aware of their surroundings, and if they see something unusual, report it immediately,” said Joseph F. O'Connor, superintendent-in-chief of the Transit Police Department.

He said, that while security is normally heightened on the holiday and for other large public events around Boston, this year there will be even more patrols than on July 4 in years past, including a “significant amount” of both uniformed and plain-clothes officers throughout the public transit system due to the bombing attacks in the city at the Marathon in April.

“We want people to feel safe,” O’Connor said. “We want to reassure the public for people who may be concerned because of the events that happened at the Marathon and in the week after.”

There will be no special restrictions on what items passengers can carry while riding the T, but O’Connor reminded riders that some items will be prohibited within a secure perimeter that will be established around the Esplanade.

He said random bag inspections, which are performed daily at strategically-chosen parts of the T, will be performed on the holiday. O’Connor also encouraged riders to download the agency’s free smartphone application which allows users to report suspicious activity by sending text and photos directly to Transit Police.

He said that Transit Police will, as they do regularly, work closely with federal, state and city law enforcement throughout the holiday.

The T also plans to institute schedule-related changes similar to what the agency has done on Independence Day in years past.

On Thursday, July 4, fares will not be collected after 9:30 p.m., subway service will run at “rush hour levels” after 2 p.m. and the last outbound commuter rail trains scheduled to leave Boston will delay their departure to allow passengers more time to board after the fireworks display at the Esplanade.

“Customers are urged to take public transportation to and from Fourth of July events and advised to check T-Alerts and mbta.com for the most up-to-date service information during the holiday,” the agency said on its website.

Officials also reminded riders that bicycles are not allowed on any subway lines on July 4. Bikes are also not allowed on inbound commuter rail trains from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. or on outbound trains after 4 p.m.

Buses will operate on a Sunday schedule. Before 2 p.m., the T’s four subway lines – the Red, Blue, Orange and Green – will operate on a Sunday schedule.

The commuter rail will operate on a Saturday schedule, until the day’s final outbound commuter rail trains, all but one of which will delay their departures from Boston until 11:45 p.m. – about 45 minutes after the city’s fireworks display usually ends. The #1173 to Newburyport is scheduled to depart at 11:15 p.m.

Quincy and Hull boats will run on a weekday schedule. Charlestown boats will operate on a Saturday schedule. Hingham boats will not run.

Passengers who use The RIDE service are asked to check directly with their contractors for specific schedule changes.

For more information, visit the T’s website, www.mbta.com.

E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
--
For more news and stories about the MBTA, follow @LifeontheMBTA on Twitter, here.
For the latest updates about your community, follow some of our local neighborhood, city and town Twitter accounts, here.

The annual Cambridge Dance Party steps into action at 7 p.m. Friday. Courtesy photo by David Kong.

By Brock Parker, Town Correspondent

Cambridge will shut down traffic in part of Central Square with its dance moves Friday, as thousands of people are expected to attend the city’s annual dance party.

A portion of Massachusetts Avenue in front of Cambridge City Hall and between Inman and Bigelow streets will be closed to traffic and will serve as the dance floor for the free party, which will run from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., according to the city.

A DJ will spin music, and after dark the party will keep going under an array of colorful lights. The dance party was first conceived in 1996 to celebrate the city’s 150th anniversary.

The MBTA’s #1 bus line will terminate in Central Square at 6 p.m. Friday and will resume at 11:30 p.m. Friday night. The city is suggesting that party goers take the Red Line to either Central Square, the closest stop, or Harvard Square to attend the party.

This year the city is also working with MassBike to offer a valet parking for bicycles near the corner of Massachusetts Ave. and Prospect Street.

By Brock Parker, Town Correspondent

Let the after-ruling party begin.

Cambridge, the first city in the nation to offer same-sex marriage licenses, will celebrate tonight in front of Cambridge City Hall the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision today declaring the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.

Cambridge’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Commission and MassEquality will host the celebration Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. and Vice Mayor Denise Simmons is expected to speak, according to the city.

In a 5-4 decision, the court today struck down the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman. The Court ruled the law was unconstitutional under the equal protection clause, and the decision opens the doors for married gay couples to be eligible for federal benefits.

Cambridge was the first city in the country to issue same-sex marriage licenses in 2004. In 2011 the city was believed to be the first in the country to pay stipends to same-sex married public employees to offset what they had to pay, because of the Defense of Marriage Act, in federal taxes on the benefits their spouses received from the city.

--brock.globe@gmail.com

By Brock Parker, Town Correspondent

State transportation officials are working to get the word out about traffic shifts that will be implemented in mid-July to make way for the Longfellow Bridge rehabilitation project.

The state Department of Transportation Tuesday announced that a public information meeting will be held about the project on July 10 in MIT’s Building E 25, at 45 Carleton St. in Cambridge from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The meeting will include a presentation about the first phase of $255 million project that is expected to lead to three years of travel disruptions while addressing the bridge’s structural deficiencies and upgrading its structural capacity.

Representatives from White-Skanska-Consigli, the design and build team for the project, will discuss the traffic shifts to occur beginning in mid-July, including the closure of the west side of the Longfellow Bridge for the construction and the shift of Boston-bound traffic to the east side of the bridge.

Cambridge-bound traffic will be detoured from Charles Circle to Land Boulevard using Leverett Circle and Monsignor O’Brien Highway. Signs will guide motorists along the detour route, according to the state.

Representatives from the design and build team will also describe the traffic monitoring and management plans during the work.

The MBTA Red Line service will continue throughout the 3 ½ year project, but during there will be 25 weekends in which buses replace trains in the area. MBTA customers will ride buses between the Kendall/MIT and Park Street stations in Boston. The buses will be stopping at Charles/MGH, said Michael Verseckes, a spokesman for the state department of transportation.

This summer, buses are scheduled to replace the Red Line trains in the area of the bridge on the weekend of Aug. 10 and the weekend of Aug. 24, so work crews can install a barrier between the Red Line and the work site, Verseckes said. Buses will replace the Red Line trains during normal hours of service on Saturday and Sunday on those two weekends.

The rehabilitation project will eventually lead to a permanent reduction in the number of traffic lanes headed from Boston to Cambridge over the bridge from two to one, which will allow more space for wider sidewalks and bike lanes.

The bridge opened in 1906, and the repairs and modifications will be consistent with its historic character, according to the state.

--brock.globe@gmail.com

By Brock Parker, Town Correspondent

Cambridge Police have arrested a teenage girl who allegedly lured a man to an area where he was shot twice early Sunday.

Raveena Jaghoo, 17, was arrested Sunday afternoon at her Harvard Street home in Cambridge, on charges of conspiracy, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and armed assault to murder, according to Cambridge Police.

Jaghoo has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is due back in Middlesex District Court for a dangerousness hearing on Friday, according Middlesex District Attorney Marian T. Ryan's office.

The charges stem from an alleged assault about 4:30 a.m. Sunday, June 23, in which police said a man in his early 20s was probably shot in the area of Harvard and Cherry streets. Police said the man, who is not from Cambridge, was shot in the arm and leg and was taken to Boston Medical Center for non-life-threatening wounds.

In a press release Monday, Cambridge Police said the department believes Jaghoo, who lives near the site of the alleged assault, was responsible for luring the victim to the area where he was shot by a male suspect.

Cambridge Police spokesman Dan Riviello said police continue to investigate the shooting and are unsure about the motive or additional suspects.

Anyone with information is being asked to contact Cambridge Police at 617-349-3300. Information about how to submit tips anonymously can be found at www.cambridgepolice.org/tips.

Bicycle advisory committees in Lexington, Arlington and Bedford have issued a new map of the Minuteman Bikeway using funding from a state grant and private funding.

The free map includes the bikeway, along with major roadways, connecting trails, and points of interest along the 11-mile trail from Bedford to Alewife Station in Cambridge.

Peggy Enders, the chair of Lexington’s Bicycle Advisory Committee, said the map was created using about $6,000 of a $37,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Recreation for signage and other improvements for the path.

Enders, who managed the project for Lexington, Arlington and Bedford, said donations from Vistaprint and Friends of the Lexington Bikeway were also used for the map, which was designed by Russ Brami, of SnowyOwlMaps.com. Copies of the map are available at public buildings in the three Bikeway towns, or you can download it at www.minutemanbikeway.org.