Have a Sa e & Happy T anksgiving! Have a Safe & Happy Thanksgiving! Vol. 33, No.47 -FREEwww.advocatenews.net net Free Every Friday 781-286-8500 Wednesday, November 22, 2023 Patriots ready to feast on Thanksgiving Day Patriots’ surge to success: Revere football captains talk resilience and teamwork By Dom Nicastro T he Revere High School football team heads into Thanksgiving Day’s game against Winthrop with confi dence. And it has plenty of reasons. The Patriots have salvaged their season by winning four of their last fi ve games, including three in a row. That came after they opened up the season 0-5. The ultimate cap to that dramatic turnaround would be a victory over Winthrop at home on Thanksgiving morning. The Revere Advocate caught up with the captains of Revere to discuss the upcoming game and the season’s turnaround. Advocate questions: 1. Tell me about your personal season and how you feel you’ve contributed this year. 2. To what do you attribute this dramatic turnaround, going 0-5 and then 4-1 in the last fi ve games? 3. What has it meant to you to be a captain and what is your advice to next year’s captains? 4. What does it mean to you to play in the Thanksgiving Day game, and what are your thoughts on what it will take to beat Winthrop? Abbas Atoui 1. Personally, the season was very diffi cult at the beginning with all the injuries. Especially myself being out for more than half the games we played with my ankle sprain. We picked it up in the second half of the season Revere Lady Patriots sack Winthrop in Powderpuff Classic READY TO ROCK: Captains, shown from left to right: Hakim Malki, Abbas Atoui, Head Coach Louis Cicatelli, Carlos Rizo Jr. and Walter Rodriguez. winning four out of fi ve games with all our injured guys coming back. 2. I would like to think I contributed a great amount to the team on the second leg of the season with my two threetouchdown performances. But most of it goes to our o-line really stepping it up. 3. For me being a captain was always the goal going into senior year. To me it’s not just a tiPATRIOTS | SEE Page 18 Council favors new five-story self-storage construction on American Legion Highway By Barbara Taormina T he City Council held a public hearing this week on a request for a special permit from a Scottsdale, AZ based company, 1784 Holdings, to redevelop 195 American Legion Highway into a sleek, modern-looking fi ve-story self-storage facility. The site is the longtime home to a gas station and repair shop owned by the Conti family. Larry Beals, who represented 1784 at the meeting, said his client has a reputation for building high-quality facilities intended to look like offi ce buildings. "We believe this will be a substantial improvement," Beals told the council. The five-story building will have a buff ered green space and a decorative fence. Beals explained it will be a drive-through building that will allow people to load and unload belongings. "Compared to today's use, Lady Patriots Quarterback Ambra DeCicco-Clyne and Center Haley Belloise warm up prior to the start of Saturday’s Powderpuff game at Miller Field in Winthrop. See page 12 for photo highlights. (Advocate photo by Tara Vocino) there will be less traffic," said Beals adding that in addition to being quiet, the facility won't demand much water or sewer service. "We think this is a positive thing for a city that's changing," said Vin Conti. "We have all these apartments and condos. People need a place to put things away." Councillors, with the exception of Ward 6 Councillor Richard Serino, reacted favorably to the proposal noting that it wasn't a plan for residential housing. "This has been a well-regarded gas station and repair shop for a long time and they've done a great job attracting this developer," said Councillor-At-Large Dan Rizzo. "I have no problem with this. We're getting away from apartment buildings. Every time something goes down, an apartment building goes up. This will be a nice addition and it will be on the commercial tax roll." Serino acknowledged the facility would be an improvement but still expressed some doubts. "I'm concerned - all we seem to get is apartment buildings and storage facilities. I feel like we could attract more," said Serino who also said he felt the building was too large. But other councillors praised the building design and Ward 3 Councillor Anthony Cogliandro was particularly pleased that 1784 had agreed to clean up the entire area. Cogliandro also complimented the developer for their communication and openness. "When I imagine what could go there, how many apartments, this looks more favorable every day. It's everything positive that we want. We want commercial businesses. This is a good thing and it looks very nice," said Ward 5 Councillor John Powers. Councillor-At-Large Gerry Visconti asked about the relationship between the Contis and 1784. Beals again said the developer, who has built storage facilities across the country was attracted to Revere because of the demographics, or the number of apartment dwellers. "The Conti family has run a great business for many years. It's a nice gas station and repair shop," said Councillor-At-Large Anthony Zambuto. "The contrast is a winner. They will clean up an area that it's time to clean up. It's a perfect fi t." The request for a special permit was referred to the council's zoning subcommittee for review.
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