Somerville City Council Sustainability and Infrastructure Committee Meeting - June 30, 2026

The Sustainability and Infrastructure Committee, chaired by Councilor Jesse Clingan with Councilors J.T. Scott and Emily Hardt, met to discuss and receive public testimony on the city's draft Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) plan and an alternative community proposal. Several other agenda items were kept in committee due to the absence of key city staff. The meeting featured a detailed presentation from the Save the Alewife Brook steering committee, followed by council discussion and public comment.

Consent Calendar

• The minutes of the April 29, 2026 meeting (ID # 26-0856) were approved by a roll call vote of 3 in favor (Councilors Scott, Hardt, Clingan), 0 opposed.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Mike Lenotto (Teele Square resident, Save the Alewife Brook Steering Committee) and Kristen Anderson (Save the Alewife Brook) presented a community alternative to the city's draft CSO plan. They argued that the current plan relies almost entirely on storage (99.9% storage, 0.1% sewer separation) and fails to eliminate sewage discharges in rainy years. They called for 126 acres of sewer separation in Somerville, redirection of remaining CSO flows to treatment, and removal of the Tannery Brook regulator, with full funding from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). They stated that the difference in annual household cost between the least expensive plan and full elimination is approximately $99 per household per year across the MWRA system.
• Beth (Arlington resident and Town Meeting member) urged the council to “pick up your political power” and demand sewer separation, noting that Arlington residents are exposed to sewage from Somerville’s outfalls. She cited a 2023 photo of a child riding a bike through sewage floodwater.
• George Laite (former Arlington politician) recalled a 30-year-old promise from MWRA to complete CSO elimination as a second phase of the Boston Harbor cleanup, and argued MWRA has both the legal authority and financial capacity to fund the community plan.

Discussion Items

• Presentation of the Community Plan: Kristen Anderson reviewed the draft plan’s shortcomings, including that it achieves zero CSOs only in a “typical year” (meaning at least half of years would still see discharges), and that a single 5-year storm would release 15 million gallons of untreated sewage. She emphasized that MWRA’s expiring bonds allow $2.1 billion in new bonding capacity without rate shock, and that the city should not bear the cost of bringing the Tannery Brook outfall into compliance with the Boston Harbor court case.
• Council Questions and Concerns: Councilor Clingan asked about the $99 figure and MWRA funding mechanisms. Mike Lenotto clarified that the $99 is the difference in cost between the most ambitious sewer separation plan and the least costly alternative, spread over 20 years across 1 million households. Councilor Scott noted that the city’s Director of Infrastructure and Asset Management, Richard Raiche, chairs the MWRA Advisory Board and has not responded to the community group’s proposals. Councilor Hardt questioned whether underground capacity constraints make sewer separation infeasible, but Anderson and Lenotto disputed that, citing the city’s own 95-acre sewer separation plan for the Mystic River area. The council expressed frustration that the mayor and city staff are not aligned with the community’s ask, and that the state delegation (Senator Jehlen, Representatives Barber, Rogers, Garbelli) has been supportive but the city’s official position has not changed.
• Potential Actions: Councilors discussed submitting a policy order requesting MWRA funding for the community plan, advocating with the state delegation, and holding a future meeting with Director Raiche. The public comment period on the draft plan remains open through September 2026.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes approved (3-0).
• Resolutions kept in committee: Items 2 (water/sewer metering), 3 (portable restroom at Hoyt-Sullivan playground), 4 (tiered base rate structure), and 5 (water meter sizing) were all kept in committee due to the absence of Director Raiche, who was attending a CSO open house.
• Public Communication (ID # 26-1084) marked as “Work Completed” – the committee heard the presentation and discussion, with no further action taken at this meeting.
• Next Steps: The chair and councilors committed to drafting a policy order in support of the community plan, and to continue discussions with Director Raiche, the mayor, and the state delegation after the summer break.

Note: The official meeting date per the provided timestamp is June 30, 2026, though the minutes list June 29, 2026. This summary uses the date specified in the instructions.