What is the Somerville Resilient Corridor project?
The Somerville Resilient Corridor, led by CREW and Groundwork Somerville, builds on the findings and methods of the Regional Network of Resilient Community Centers. In Somerville, a series of satellite hubs – run by municipal offices and community-based organizations, work together to form a tight network where they are able to coordinate and collaborate. From elder and immigrant services to food assistance and mutual aid support, each partner brings their unique knowledge of community and resources to the table.
How is CREW involved with this project?
This project began in 2025 with a regional effort to assess and plan a network of resilient community centers across the Lower Mystic region of Massachusetts funded through the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Action Grant from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Municipalities and community-based organizations from Somerville, Cambridge, Medford, Everett and North Suffolk worked together to envision and design community resilience centers that will offer social infrastructure to increase preparedness and equity, enhance emergency response, and support improved environmental justice outcomes. CREW greatly participated in this project and along with Groundwork Somerville, Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA), and the municipality of Somerville, took its key findings, the importance of funding, community engagement, and coalition building, to Somerville to help residents and community-based organizations form their own network.
Project Impacts & Celebrations so far
Community Engagement Community engagement is a key aspect of forming Somerville's network. Before the community dinner, Groundwork Somerville conducted outreach to speak with residents and identify the community centers they relied on and trusted the most. These places and other community partners came together at the community dinner to identify the role their organizations play and the overlap that exists.
Community Dinner In April of 2026, the community partners came together to brainstorm, identify community-trusted spaces, and facilitate conversations between community members and community partners. It was a great space to celebrate and visualize all the work currently being done in the community and how it transfers into the resilience network.
Where is the project at now? What comes next?
The participating partners from the community dinner have formed the SRC Community Advisory group. Currently, this group is exploring and applying to funding opportunities. Another key priority is conducting a communication audit and developing a centralized communication platform for the city of Somerville.
Goals and Benefits of the Somerville Resilience Network
- Collaborate during steady, disruption, and recovery conditions
- Increase social connectedness
- Provide a pathway for sustained, community self-determination
- Increased opportunity to pursue funding
- Center the needs and interests of communities most impacted by disruptions and disenfranchisement
Who is involved?
Somerville Municipal Offices: Emergency Management Division, Office of Food Access and Healthy Communities, Office of Immigrant Affairs, Office of Sustainability and the Environment, Somerville Council on Aging, Somerville Public Library
Community-based organizations: Communities Responding to Extreme Weather (CREW), Mystic River Watershed Association, Groundwork Somerville, Somerville Cambridge Elder Services, Somerville Hispanic Association for Community Development (SHA4CD), The Welcome Project, Project Soup, Connexion Church, Mutual Aid of Medford and Somerville (MAMAS), Somerville Homeless Coalition, Healthcare for the Homeless, East Somerville Main Streets, Teen Empowerment
