news & Updates

Winter is here and so is the start of another City Council session!  Honored to share that I have been elected and sworn in as the new City Council President for this year. And, we made history at the Somerville Midterm Ceremonies, as it's the first time in our city's history that the Council President, School Committee Chair, and Mayor are all women!

Somerville City Council President Judy Pineda Neufeld, who coauthored a resolution passed by her colleagues late last year reaffirming the city’s sanctuary status, said the directive wouldn’t change that commitment.

“I’m lucky to sit on a council where we all agree that we want to protect our immigrant families and neighbors from what’s coming,” Neufeld said.

History was made Monday in Somerville after votes by the City Council and School Committee affirmed new leadership, installing three women as the city’s top leaders for the first time.

Ilana Krepchin of Ward 2 was sworn in as chair of the committee; Judy Pineda Neufeld of Ward 7 was sworn in as president of the council, a role previously held by member Ben Ewen-Campen.

City Council President, Judy Pineda Neufeld delivers her address at the 2025 Midterm Ceremonies on January 6, 2025.

This resolution was specifically meant to support the policies outlined in the 2019 Somerville Welcoming Community Ordinance, which, according to City Councilor and resolution sponsor Judy Pineda Neufeld, is one of the strongest policies of its kind in the state.

The resolution was brought forth by Councilor-At-Large Wilfred Mbah and Ward 7 Councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld, and directs city departments to reject any federal funds that have conditions that could be used to deport residents.

City Councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld said earlier this month that the city had been flooded with concerned calls since the election.

"We are not going to turn our back on our immigrant neighbors and families and we are going to do everything we can," she said.

At that meeting the council approved a mayoral request for $68,228 more to go to the University of Massachusetts at Boston to administer the pilot program and research its impact. With the 15-month extension, the total to the school will now be $484,132, according to a draft copy of the contact.

The extension will help “understand what it would take to expand the program,” council vice president Judy Pineda Neufeld said in a call Monday.

Fall is in the air and there are lots and lots of important updates and upcoming meetings that affect Ward 7 coming up this month. Read on for more and be sure to mark your calendar for our next Ward 7 Joint Office Hours on October 19th. Details below. 

As always, there is no shortage of updates and important news to share with you about Ward 7 and all across the city. Please be sure to save the date for our next Ward 7 Community Meeting on September 24th at the West Somerville Neighborhood School cafeteria. I will be there, along with the Mayor and key city staff where you'll get to hear updates and ask questions, and most importantly, meet your neighbors!

There was a time city councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld could roll out her picnic blanket and take her toddler to her closest Somerville park relatively worry free. Now Neufeld joins her Ward 7 constituents in expressing concern around open drug use and harassment seen in Davis Square and Seven Hills Park.

Another June newsletter! There is a lot going on both in Ward 7 and across the city that I didn't want to delay in sending some updates to you all. Please read on for more!

Welcome to June... which means it's budget season on the City Council! Thanks to all who have already shared their ideas and input with me that helped to shape my budget priorities that I submitted back in March. The Mayor has now presented her budget (more on that below) and the next few weeks are filled with department budget hearings where we get to ask questions of city staff before our final cut night and vote on the budget.

Spring is here (although you wouldn't know it if you stepped outside this week!). I'm so looking forward to some more sunshine and warmer weather soon.

A huge thanks to those who joined us for our joint Ward 7 office hours recently at Yego Coffee. They are celebrating one year of being open and we were so glad to be able to host office hours there to honor one of the newest ward 7 businesses to open.

There is much going on here in Ward 7 and across the city so read on for some important updates and upcoming events and opportunities to get involved. As always, if there are questions you have about issues in our community, please do reach out. 

City Councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld, whose ward includes Teele Square, said the property is one of the topics she gets asked about the most.

It has been an incredible honor to serve the people of Somerville’s Ward 7, and I am very proud of all I have accomplished thus far in my first term.

Welcome back to our Ward 7 Newsletter! As many of you know, I had a baby in April of this year and life with a new little one has kept me busy! I have so enjoyed showing Isaac the beauty of this great city, from walking the community path extension, to visiting the West Branch library for storytime, and going to his first Fluff Festival recently.

I’m excited to introduce you all to our newest Ward 7 constituent! My baby boy, Isaac, was born on 4/10/23 and my husband and I couldn’t be more thrilled. I am spending this precious time bonding with him and getting settled into life as a new mom and will be slower to respond to emails and requests.

Happy belated Valentine's Day! This year is flying by and it's already time to start thinking about and talking about next fiscal year's budget! Once again, City Councilors are being asked to submit their own budget priorities by the end of March.

Ward 7 city councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld echoed the concerns of several community members who spoke about residents who walk to the Stop & Shop on Broadway and what increased traffic could do to an already hard-to-use intersection and crosswalk.

A Somerville homeowner attempting to rent rooms in his house to Tufts students has faced unexpected resistance from the city government on the grounds that his request to house unrelated students is unlawful. The homeowner, who requested that the Daily not identify him by name, has been appealing to the Somerville City Council for months.

Happy new year! Looking forward to another year of serving you on the Council. We're already kicking off with a busy start to the year, and I'm excited to have been officially sworn in as the City Council Vice President! Looking forward to serving alongside Council President Ben Ewen-Campen.

The City of Somerville has passed a new ordinance that expands bereavement leave for city employees to include up to five days of paid recovery following a miscarriage, stillbirth or abortion. Passage of the ordinance was led by City Council Vice President Judy Pineda Neufeld.

Councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld was sworn in as Vice President of the Somerville City Council for 2023, alongside Council President Ben Ewen-Campen. The incoming leaders were selected by their colleagues at the council’s annual caucus meeting in November, and formally voted in at today’s organizational meeting that began the 2023 session.

Happy December! I hope you and your loved ones are healthy and safe as we head into the holiday season. I wanted to be sure to start this newsletter (our last of 2022!) with a few personal and professional announcements!

Last week, we had a glass-shattering historic election here in Massachusetts! And believe it or not, it's been just over a year since I was elected to the Somerville City Council. We have so much to celebrate together and I hope you received my save the date for our end of year virtual celebration! I'm looking forward to sharing some highlights from the City Council and hopes and plans for next year.

Somerville Ward 7 City Councilor Judy Pineda Neufeld has been nominated for the 2022 Latino Excellence Awards. The awards are done by the Massachusetts State House’s Black and Latino Legislative Caucus to commemorate Latinx Community leaders and trailblazers who are moving the needle forward in cities and towns across the state.

Happy Fall! The weather has certainly changed (although we have held out on turning on our heat yet... anyone else?) and I'm looking forward to voting for nearly all women on my ballot in a few weeks on Election Day! Don't forget to vote this year! More on how to vote below.