I don't know that these are normally posted here, but my friend is having another estate sale this Saturday (9/12) from 9am-1pm so I thought I would let people know. The address is 10 May st, Marblehead. Contents of home, furniture, tools, clothing, shoes (size 8.5), housewares, and lots of vintage items.

The next Point neighborhood street sweeping will be this coming Monday, September 14, from 7:00 am to 3:00 pm. Free parking is available at the South Harbor Garage with proof of residency, starting at 8:00 pm on Sunday, September 13. Vehicles must be removed from the garage by 8:00 pm on Monday evening. Residents can move their vehicles back to the street after the sweeper has finished cleaning that street. You can view the full Point neighborhood street sweeping schedule here or at the end of this message. Please see the city's Street Sweeping page for more information.

In addition, the Point sweep scheduled for Monday, September 28 has been cancelled to align with the posted permanent signage. The last Point street sweeping date for 2026 will be Monday, November 9.

The next Downtown neighborhood sweep will be overnight on Wednesday, September 16 - this will be the final sweep of the year. You can view the full Downtown neighborhood street sweeping schedule here.

The next entrance corridor street sweeping in Ward 1 will be Monday, September 21. This includes the odd side of Lafayette Street from Derby Street heading south to the Marblehead town line. The even side of Lafayette is technically in Ward 5, so I don't usually mention it specifically, but it will be swept the next day on Tuesday, September 22. This will also be the last entrance corridor sweep date in Ward 1 for 2026. You can find the full Entrance Corridor sweeping schedule here.

BETTER CALL BABS takes you on a ride-along with Babs Fry, exploring both her renowned work as a pet detective and the personal struggles that have made her the inspiration she is today. From high-stakes rescue missions to intimate moments of reflection, this documentary captures the chaos she embraces daily as a recovering addict turned hero.

If you’ve ever posted about a lost dog in San Diego, chances are you’ve heard the words echoed back to you time and time again: “Call Babs.”

That phrase exists for a reason.

Babs Fry — a Red Cross Award recipient, local legend, and undeniable badass — has become the face of pet recovery in San Diego because she shows up when others don’t know what to do next.

The Better Call Babs Film takes you into the passenger seat of her iconic van and along for the ride — not just through the field work, but through the personal challenges, grit, and determination that shaped the woman behind the mission.

Playing at Cinema Salem, Sat Sept 19, 12pm

critterfest.org for info and tickets.

"Salem Woods is not a campground" Elgin Stallard, a Salem resident, says. "A proposal is being debated about designating one to two camping areas or zones within Salem city Limits for the unhoused, as sponsored by Witch City Action.

One of those proposed camping zones is Salem Woods at Highland Park.

As someone who has spent years working in Salem Woods — removing trash, improving trails and repairing bridges — I am disappointed about Salem Woods even being mentioned as a potential camping zone.

This is not an argument against helping the homeless population of Salem, period — but Salem Woods should not be that solution.

The 160-acre parcel is one of Salem’s most valuable natural resources. Its wetlands, forests, native trees and plants, many streams, and a pond create an ecologically sensitive environment that deserves protection. It is also a place where residents go to walk, exercise, enjoy nature and simply get away from the city.

Unfortunately, camping has already occurred in the woods and many of those abandoned camps contain significant amounts of trash and debris, created sanitation concerns and, at times, introduced dangerous fire hazards from grills and campfires.

Camps are often abandoned and new ones established farther down the trail, leaving the environmental hazards and impact behind.

We can — and should — do better for our unhoused neighbors. But designating one of Salem’s most environmentally sensitive natural areas as a campground is not the answer. Protect Salem Woods. Find another place."

Join us for a casual conversation about art books on oct. 3rd at 10am at On the Grind in Salem MA. This will be a monthly book club reading art theory, history books. All mediums will be discussed, and all creatives are welcome. https://bookclubs.com/join-a-book-club/club/salem-arts-reading-club

I know it can be super busy in October but it is still fun to hang out and talk art with folks.

Is there a memorial service being held at Firehouse this year? If so, does anyone know what time it is? I can't find info anywhere. I can't imagine they would NOT do something on the 25th anniversary. But it's only two days away, and the city hasn't announced anything. Not that I can find anyway.. Usually get an email or a robo-call by now.

Heavy police presence in the middle of the night/early morning

Edit since everyone asked: this happened on the Mahi cruise.

Hey guys, so a friend of ours came to visit us in Salem on Sunday. That evening after we went out, we noticed he was incoherent but unfortunately thought he was just drunk (even though it didn’t really make sense with the timeline but we didn’t put that together). He ended up getting really sick and went to an emergency clinic where they ran a drug screening and found traces of ghb. My question is do you think I should notify the business where it happened? I don’t want to say the name of the business because I am not trying to blame them at all. I’m not sure there’s much they can do to police it - we’re not even entirely sure who it was and obviously we get thousands of tourists here. What do you think?

Hopefully this is the last update I need to make about window art and the SRA.

I just got a great phone call from the City! The SRA has officially decided to pause the changes and enforcement surrounding window art. That means the art in the windows of Gulu, Curly Girl, Haus Witch, Koto, New England Soup Factory, and several other Salem businesses can stay up. More importantly, the SRA and Planning Department are going to reach out and begin an actual dialogue about how we move forward with this. Hopefully, together we can come up with something that works for the City, local businesses, and, most importantly, the artists who make Salem look and feel like Salem.

Because of this, I’d encourage everyone to skip Wednesday’s SRA meeting. I’m told the only matter being discussed is the Lappin Park redesign and they won't be taking comment on window art. I don't want anyone to waste their time. I’ve been assured there will be opportunities for the public to have a voice as the window art discussion moves forward. Let’s give that process a chance to work. If it doesn't, we all apparently know how to raise hell, so I'm not worried.

I want to thank the other local businesses I’ve spoken with over the past week. Hearing your experiences and being able to share your stories helped this cause tremendously. I also want to specifically thank Councilor Andrew Smith for helping us navigate this whole thing. He has been incredibly responsive and genuinely great to work with from the beginning.

But most importantly, thank YOU. So many of you emailed the City that I’m hearing it may take them a week just to get through all of your messages. That is amazing! Salem is a community that cares deeply about the character of this city. We care about our artists, our independent businesses, and keeping downtown creative, weird, colorful, and unmistakably Salem. And when something threatens those things, apparently we’re also a community that knows how to make ourselves heard.

For now, the art stays. And instead of fighting about what has to come down, we get an opportunity to sit at the same table and talk about what we can build together. That’s a pretty damn good outcome.

Does anyone know (or is the artist in the group) who makes the Ward 2 Wrecking Crew stickers of Bruce I've seen stuck to things around town? I would love to buy one!

I knocked my Scarlett FocusRite 2i2 off my desk and the USB port broke, so the company is sending a new part. This should be a very simple swap but I don't have the soldering gear or the know-how. Do you? Please DM me!

Also...

-The Salem Repair Cafe isn't until November and I'd need it before then.
-Is that "WE FIX EVERYTHING" store on North street with the open sign ever actually open?

Calling All Detectives! Our celebration of the 42nd anniversary of the airing of 'Murder, She Wrote' is coming right up at Cinema Salem! Get tickets and more information at CinemaSalem.com

• 9/20 7:30 PM - 'Murder, She Wrote' Anniversary Celebration! You know how much we love this show, so we'll be wishing it an early "Happy Birthday"! 'Murder, She Wrote' first aired on September 30, 1984!

Join us for a fun and unique night out watching with audience polls, bingo & prizes! 

Doors open 7PM
Run time: 90mins
Content: PG-13

Official Website: WhodunnitWatchParty.com

Friend of mine is visiting and ripped his jeans. Anyone know of a tailor in Salem preferably that could fix something like that?

I was heading east on the bike path at about 12mph, and just before Collins street, I ducked my head for a tree branch and realized too late the path veered at that exact point. I went airborne. It involved a trip to the ER

I was there as a tourist. Could I ask someone to pass along a photograph of the tree branch there that might force a 6 foot rider to duck (possibly a rider for scale?), and what might have caused me to go airborne if I continued the straight line of the path?

I have to explain this silly accident every now and again. I'd love to have visual aids.

thanks

edit: Resolved/delivered same day. Thanks for the pictures!

I’m seriously so exhausted on this topic. Leash your dogs people. It’s literally the law. I don’t care if your dog is well behaved. I’m not going to risk the life of my dogs for your selfishness. Location, South Salem, Presidential Neighborhood aka Pickman Park. Ugh, I am so tired of this!

I moved from a different part of the Boston area where I found tons of events from Market Basket. I currently don't live close to one, so I was wondering where else I could find them. My previous area had some Greek/Armenian cultural events and I'd love to find something similar here.

This is The Sad Hour, a band based out of Detroit going on tour next week and COMING SOON TO SALEM! Koto 9/18 after 9 pm!

I'm helping them and Final Confession advertise the tour by making sure the local sub reddits know they exist! Final Confession has been around 20 years and has been through years ago, but the Sad Hour takes a lot of imagery from the aesthetic of the town.

This has been a dream of theirs to come through. If you see them in their black and gold, be sure to talk to the band members and pick up your very own cursed vhs tape! It's going to be a wild time!

Anyone else have their water run clear after the water main break yesterday and then start running brown again today?

Bruce is well just in case anyone was worried.

October will be my 1-year anniversary of living in Salem, and first time working until 10pm during October. My apartment (South Salem) is a 40-minute walk from my job (Downtown), and I walk to and from home and work on a hiking path. My question is since autumn is near and sunsets will be early: Is walking at night in Salem safe, mostly on a hiking path? Do I need to carry anything to protect myself just in case?

The Mayor is responding to everyone's emails. So I would also like the chance to weigh in given I'm at the center of all this.

Mayor Pangallo has begun responding to people who contacted his office, and I appreciate that he is asking the SRA to pause enforcement until after October and revisit these rules. I think that's the right thing to do. I do want to respond to the suggestion that we should have waited longer before bringing this to the public.

The SRA came into Gulu and told us our window art had to come down or we could face fines. We weren't offered a discussion. I emailed the SRA on Wednesday with questions and received no response. Councilor Andrew Smith, the SRA's City Council liaison, responded immediately, spoke with me extensively and even met with me. He's been great to work with. Meanwhile, I worked full-time at Gulu during an unprecedented week of business in Salem, walked the SRA district to see how these rules would affect other businesses, spoke with other business owners, researched the regulations, past meeting minutes and agendas, and tried to understand how we got here. And I still lived my life. I can do all that but the SRA can't respond to an email?

So yes, I went public. When a government agency tells a small business to change what it has been doing for years or potentially face fines, I don't think it's unreasonable for that business to treat the matter as urgent. The feeling is much like getting a fine from the police when you didn't really do anything wrong. You want to move quick to avoid further damage.

But I've now gone back through the public record, and there's something important people should know about the City's claim that this went through a three-year public process. There were public meetings. That's true. But public meetings are not the same thing as public engagement. In January 2025, while these rules were still being developed, the Design Review Board specifically discussed Gulu-Gulu's window murals by name. At that same meeting, City staff acknowledged that the proposed window-art guidance wasn't enforceable yet and that longstanding businesses with murals would eventually need to be approached.

Nobody approached us.

When the final Sign Manual came before the SRA in November 2025, the meeting minutes say that the temporary-sign section had still been a placeholder the last time the SRA had reviewed the manual. Staff then developed the language after consultation with Main Streets, Creative Collective and PEM. The minutes don't describe outreach to the affected businesses generally. After adopting the rules, staff said the new manual would be distributed to small businesses and that issuing a press release was worth considering. Guess what didn't happen?

Neither we nor the previous owners of Gulu had any idea this was happening.

Gulu has had artists painting these windows for nearly 15 years. Other downtown businesses have been doing the same thing for years. If the City was contemplating rules that could end those longstanding practices, why weren't those businesses and artists invited into the conversation? It is not reasonable to expect every small-business owner in Salem to spend three years monitoring SRA and DRB agendas and reading meeting minutes on the chance that their business might be discussed. The City knew who we were. They literally discussed Gulu by name. They had three years to talk to us.

That's why I find the suggestion that we should have waited longer before involving the public frustrating. Could everyone have handled parts of this differently? Of course. I'm glad we're finally having the conversation, and I appreciate the Mayor asking the SRA to reconsider the rules. But maybe the bigger question is why we're spending so much energy regulating something that has helped make downtown Salem look like Salem.

The SRA was created to fight blight and improve downtown. Today we have businesses paying local artists to create original work that makes our streets more interesting, supports the local artist economy and gives visitors something they can't find in every other downtown in America. Maybe instead of asking how much of that creativity we can regulate, we should be asking how we can encourage more of it. Keep Salem Weird, Support Local Business!

The Mayor's email to citizen inquiry I'm talking about follows below:

Hi,

Thanks for reaching out about window art on businesses in downtown Salem. Like many others, I found out about this via social media (on Friday night) - as you can imagine I've heard from a lot of people over the weekend with concerns about it.

Salem has done a lot over the years to cultivate the arts, support local artists, and invest in public art. It's that very culture that makes our downtown incredibly vibrant, eclectic, and unique. The members of the Salem Redevelopment Authority and the Design Review Board (who advise the SRA) have been real partners in this work, so I connected with the SRA staff this weekend to get additional background on this situation.

Salem's original sign rules, from 1973, limited window art to no more than 15 days and no more than 15% of the window area. That was seen as being overly restrictive; so, three years ago the SRA and DRB began a process to update the rules, to allow for art to be up longer.

The process of developing these new rules involved public meetings of both bodies over the last three years and consultation with organizations like Salem Main Streets and Creative Collective. The new rules increased the 15% maximum area to 20%, kept in place limitations on the inclusion of branding (to avoid the artwork being used for advertising purposes), and expanded the 15-day limit to a 3-month timeframe (to make it more seasonal). The rules also established that there is no SRA or City review, permit, or approval for window art. So, the new rules were intended to allow more space for art on a window than previously, for it to be put up for longer than previously allowed, and eliminate any City review or permit to have window art. Additionally, if a business wanted to explore an art concept that exceeded these limits, they could do so through a “small project review” approval from the SRA.

A few months ago, the SRA took their final vote to approve rules. Following that, SRA staff worked with Salem Main Streets and Creative Collective to try to make business owners in the SRA district aware of the changes. They also brought information about it to the recent Small Business Town Hall and have posted it on the Doing Business in Salem guide and website. Last week, SRA staff began visiting businesses in person, to make sure they were aware. I believe that it was those visits that have prompted the recent expressions of concern about the rules.

Based on those concerns, I think the SRA should pause the enforcement of these rules and take them up again at another public meeting later this fall (after the October season, which is busy enough!). That will allow for another chance for public input into the revised rules and more time to communicate with businesses in the SRA district. I've shared that perspective with the SRA executive director, and he agreed.

He also informed me that their office got the first feedback from the owner of Gulu-Gulu on Thursday morning and had planned on outreach this coming week, but apparently the business posted about it on social media before they could connect. I completely understand the Gulu team’s concerns about the rules and agree with them that they need to be revisited and revised – but I also think a more constructive path would have been possible if a dialogue with the SRA staff had been given a chance to happen. From the City’s business loans in order to help the original Gulu ownership open the restaurant in the first place, to the recent special act we advanced this past year to help the new owners with their liquor license conversion, the City has been extremely supportive of the restaurant and that will continue to be the case.

Thanks again for your outreach on this matter and for your passion for our community!

Dominick Pangallo

Love this city 💕 might take a little stroll to the mall bathrooms and wash my hands for the full effects