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Page 2 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, AUGUST 16, 2024 Mid-grade Regular $3.87 3.17 73  Over 45 Years of Excellence! Full Service $2.99 Order online at angelosoil.com Riverside residents voice concerns over Gibson Park project By Barbara Taormina Need a hall for your special event? The Schiavo Club, located at 71 Tileston Street, Everett is available for your Birthdays, Anniversaries, Sweet 16 parties and more? For more info, call (857) 249-7882 Dan - 1972 We Sell Cigars & Accessories! MAJOR BRANDS AT DISCOUNT PRICES! Singles * Tins Green Label Sale Buy 2 Cigars, Get One FREE! Starting at $18.95 * Bundles * Boxes Many Types Starting at $49.95 HOURS : OPEN DAIL , MON. - SA Humidor Specials! Starting as LOW as $99. Complete with Accessories Starting at $95.95 * Travel Humidors * Desk Top Humidors * Many Types of Lighters * Ash Trays * Juuls * Vapes * Glass Pipes * Rewards Program * CBD Infused Products * GIFTS UNDER $30 - GIFT CERTIFICATES HOURS: OPEN DAILY, MON. - SAT.., 9, 9 AM - 7 PM / SUN. AM - 7 PM / SUN., 9, 9 AM - 6 PM AM - 6 PM R.Y.O. TOBACCO & TUBES ON SALE! WE MAKE HOUSE KEYS! A.B.C. CIGAR 170 REVERE ST., REVERE (781) 289-4959 T crowd of residents from the Riverside neighborhood met with city offi cials to continue the ongoing discussion of the Gibson Park resiliency project at the Point of Pines Yacht Club on August 5. The meeting was hosted by the Revere Department of Planning & Community Development and Ward 5 Councillor Angela GuarinoSawaya. The sticking point for the comA munity remains the 6-foot-high vegetative berm along Mills Avenue that will protect the neighborhood from fl ooding and rising sea levels. But Riverside residents, led by Councillor Guarino-Sawaya, are opposed to the berm, which they say will limit their access to the waterfront and obstruct water views from their windows. Some families who have been in the neighborhood for generations said they are considering moving. Chief of Planning & Community Development Tom Skwierawski explained to the group Celebrating Our 52nd Year Chris 2024 that a stone berm planted with native plants is the only fl ood mitigation structure state environmental regulators will allow. The berm will slope up to the road and narrow it by several feet, another concern for residents. The slope design allows the berm to absorb the force of the ocean unlike the straightstanding sea wall that resists ocean strength and creates other problems. But Riverside residents who live with the waterfront and the landscape do not want to see that change to their neighborhood, and their way of life, despite the risk of fl ooding. The 11 access points to the water’s edge will be reduced to three maintenance access points and one guaranteed public access spot at the renovated community boatyard. There is funding available to upgrade the drainage system in and around Gibson Park to reduce fl ooding, but the money is tied to the installation of the berm. Residents questioned why the drainage improvements couldn’t come fi rst, which would allow planners to determine if the berm is necesAngela Guarino-Sawaya Ward 5 Councillor sary. Skwierawski said the berm is needed to protect residents and their homes from flooding which is increasing with climate change. Some residents said they had fl ood insurance and thus don’t need the berm. Skwierawski told residents to write to the state’s environmental agencies and explain in detail why they oppose the berm and prefer a seawall solution. He also promised the neighborhood that the city would maintain open discussions on the Gibson Park plan and they would be notifi ed of any changes or decisions. Disabilities Commission discuss wheelchair recovery plan All-Ability Day on Revere Beach this Saturday, Aug. 17 By Barbara Taormina he Commission on Disabilities spent their meeting this week discussing various state bills and eff orts of other municipal commissions that could potentially impact residents with disabilities. Working with others in the fi eld of disabilities allows them to unite and focus on services that would provide the most assistance to disabled people, services that don’t occur to ablebodied residents. This week they discussed the problem people in wheelchairs face when their chairs break down when they are out and about. They can call an ambulance to get home but their chairs, some of which are motorized and expensive, are often left behind. The Revere Commission proposed a service something like AAA that would pick up and transport broken chairs. Web accessibility and pay for personal care assistants are also topics on the commission’s agenda. At the end of the meeting, commission Chairman Ralph DeCicco announced he had accepted a job at the Massachusetts Offi ce of Disabilities as an access specialist. DiCicco said he will still stay on as chairman of the Revere commission. “ I’m still here for the residents of Revere, I just won’t be in city hall every day,” he said. The Commission on Disabilities is hosting an All-Ability Day on Revere Beach this Saturday, Aug. 17, that will highlight the inclusivity that has become part of Revere’s culture. Sponsored by the Parks & Recreation Department, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and the Department of Conservation and Recreation, the event will feature sand and fl oating beach wheelchairs to allow disabled residents to enjoy the beach. The event runs from 10 am to 2 pm at the Oak Island Bathhouse, 462 Revere Beach Boulevard. Volunteers from the Recreation Department will help run the event and all are welcome.

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