By Jarret Bencks, Town Correspondent

A piece of Medford Street in Somerville will be closed off and on over coming days, according to the MBTA.

Blasting and painting the bridge that carries Medford Street over rail tracks near the intersection with McGrath Highway will close the street from July 1 to July 3, July 5, and July 6 to July 10. Widening the bridge is part of the first phase of the Green Line Extension project.

Southbound traffic will be diverted onto McGrath Highway to Cambridge Street in East Cambridge. Northbound, motorists will take a detour onto South Street, Windsor Street, Windsor Place, Webster Avenue, Prospect Street, then Somerville Avenue, which connects to McGrath Highway.

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

By Jarret Bencks, Town Correspondent

The Back in the Day 10k road race will flood western and central Somerville with runners dressed retro Sunday.

The race starts at 10 a.m. near the intersection of Willow Avenue and Cedar Street, according to an announcement from the city.

There are no expected significant traffic impacts, but there may be parking issues on residential streets near the race's starting line and minor traffic problems on the following streets:

•  Cedar Street
•  Warwick Street
•  Clyde Street
•  Broadway in Magoun Square
•  School Street
•  Medford Street from School Street to McGrath Highway
•  Hamlet Street
•  Boston Street
•  Munroe Street
•  Prospect Hill Ave.
•  Columbus Ave.
•  Walnut Street
•  Summit Ave.
•  Vinal Ave
•  Summer Street
•  Craigie Street
•  Elm Street, and 
•  Lexington Ave.

By Jarret Bencks, Town Correspondent

The rear wheels of a trash collection truck fell into a caving sinkhole in Union Square Friday, and a crane had to be called in to pull it out, according to officials.

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.
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Jarret Bencks

Firefighters outside 106 Walnut St. in Somerville Thursday morning.

By Jarret Bencks, Globe Correspondent

A fire early Thursday morning at a Somerville condominium complex has left 24 people homeless, according to fire officials.

The fire started in the basement at 106 Walnut St. at about 5:30 a.m. and spread up the three-story building through the walls, District Fire Chief Jay Keane said. It took about two hours to fully knock the fire down and check the walls for hot spots, Keane said.

Every floor received smoke and water damage, Keane said.

Mac Gross, 25, first ignored the fire alarm when it went off in his second-floor apartment at about 5 a.m., figuring it was a false alarm, he said. But then it went off again, and the power went off.

"I opened up the door to the hall, and there was a ton of smoke pouring in," Gross said. "Then I just started going around banging on doors."

Walnut Street from Medford Street to Pearl Street remained closed as of 10 a.m., as crews worked to pump water out of the basement, which was unfinished and used as storage space by some tenants.

The American Red Cross was on the scene to provide aid to the displaced residents.

A total of nine engines and seven ladder trucks responded to the fire, Keane said. Windows on all floors were smashed to provide ventilation. 

There were no reported injuries and the cause of the fire remains under investigation, he said.

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

By Kathy McCabe, Globe Staff

State environmental officials on Wednesday will meet with representatives for Wynn Resorts of Las Vegas in Everett to discuss the cleanup of heavily contaminated industrial land on the Mystic River, where Wynn proposes to build a $1.2 billion resort casino.

The meeting, scheduled for 10 a.m at City Hall, will be followed by a visit to the 32-acre parcel, the former site of a Monsanto chemical factory.  It will be the first public meeting on the project since Everett voters on June 22 overwhelmingly aproved a referendum to allow a casino to be built in the small industrial city.

"We want to make sure the site is cleaned up to a very high standard," said Chris Gordon, the project manager for Wynn.

The Wynn group already has filed an environmental notification form, a key requirement of the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act, which outlines the scope of the project.

"Once a study of the environmental impact is completed, those findings will determine what approvals are required from state agencies," said Reggie Zimmerman, a spokesman for the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, which oversees the MEPA review.

Fort Point Associates of Boston has been hired by Wynn as an environmental consultant, according to the notification form.

On June 13, Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone submitted a petition to FBT Everett Realty, the company that owns the land, to designate the land a Public Involvement Plan Site so that residents of neighboring communities would have the right to voice their opinions on how the site is developed.

Wynn is proposing to build a 19-story, bronze-colored glass tower that would include a 551-room hotel, a 24-hour casino, and upscale shops and restaurants. A winter garden and public access to the waterfront also are part of the proposal.

Wynn is one of three developers that have applied to the state gambling commission for the single license to operate a casino in eastern Massachusetts.

The environmental filing gives a glimpse into the development's footprint. The 32.4-acre site includes 8.3 acres of water, according to the filing.

Buildings on the site would reach  a height of 300 feet, and include 2.8 million square feet of space. An estimated 392,700 gallons of water would be used each day on the site, the filing states.

Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @GlobeKMcCabe.
    

By Jarret Bencks, Town Correspondent

Transit police are looking to identify two men who cut the locks and stole three bicycles in Davis Square Saturday.

Surveillance cameras capured images of the two men as they cut the locks and took the bikes from bike racks located outside the Elm Street side of the MBTA station at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday, according to MBTA police.

Anyone with information on the thefts may call MBTA police at 617-222-1050 or text information to 873873.

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

Officials celebrate the opening of the new Stop & Shop on on Route 16 Saturday.

By Jarret Bencks, Town Correspondent

A Stop & Shop grocery store is now open for business at a Somerville storefront on Route 16 formerly home to a Johnny's Foodmaster.

Officials from the company and the city of Somerville cut the ribbon on the new store at 105 Alewife Brook Parkway Saturday.

The 24,000 square foot lot is the second former Foodmaster site to re-open as a Stop & Shop. A former Foodmaster opened as a Stop & Shop in Medford in January.

The Somerville store's hours will be 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday.

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