End of an Era for Somerville Board of Aldermen

The Somerville Board of Aldermen will meet Thursday, likely for the last time in 2013.

It will be the last meeting for several long-serving aldermen, and when the Board of Aldermen reconvenes in 2014, nearly half the members will be new.

Ward 7 Alderman Robert Trane has sat on the board since December of 2002, serving for 11 years.

At-Large Alderman Bruce Desmond was first elected to the Board of Aldermen in 2001, and before that, he served on the Somerville School Committee, a body he was elected to in 1993.

And then there's Ward 3 Alderman Thomas Taylor. He joined the Somerville Board of Aldermen in 1986, and he served on the Somerville School Committee before that.

As Taylor told Somerville Patch in June, he was, at the time, the longest-serving elected official in the city. That honor will fall to Alderman At-Large John Connolly, who's served on the Board of Aldermen since 1984, after Thursday's meeting.

All three outgoing aldermen decided not to seek reelection this November.

Also leaving the Board of Aldermen after Thursday's meeting will be Ward 1 Alderman Maureen Bastardi and Ward 5 Alderman Courtney O'Keefe, who were appointed to their positions in 2012 and 2013, respectively.

On Thursday, the Board of Aldermen will pay tribute to these outgoing aldermen. In 2014, the face of city government will be different.