Daily brief · Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA
Half Shell closes after 28 years on Mass. Ave.
September 17, 2026
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Half Shell Closes Today After Nearly 30 Years on Mass. Ave.
Thursday is the last day of operation for Half Shell, the Lagoudakis family's pizza and sub shop on the stretch of Mass. Ave. between Harvard and Porter squares, which they have run for 28 years. Longtime customers said the family decided it was simply time, and that they wanted to see more of their grandchildren. It is unclear what will replace it; city records show the business incorporated in 1991, and its closing leaves Harvard House of Pizza, open since 1973, as the area's last old-school holdout.
Cambridge Day
Free CPR and AED Training Today in Harvard Square
Cambridge Fire Department and Avive Solutions offer free drop-in CPR and AED training Thursday, Sept. 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Smith Campus Center, 1350 Mass. Ave.
City of Cambridge
Caleb Klauder and Reeb Willms Play Club Passim Tonight
Country and roots musicians Caleb Klauder and Reeb Willms perform at Club Passim Thursday, Sept. 17; doors open at 7 p.m., music starts at 8 p.m.
Club Passim
Fresh Pond Master Plan Advisory Board Meets Tonight
The board holds its quarterly public meeting Thursday, Sept. 17, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Walter J. Sullivan Water Treatment Facility and online via Microsoft Teams.
City of Cambridge
Trans Sanctuary Working Group Meets Tonight
The Cambridge LGBTQ+ Commission's Trans Sanctuary Working Group meets Thursday, Sept. 17, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. in the Cambridge Public Library's Rindge Room and via Zoom to review policy and housing initiatives.
City of Cambridge
Ash Center Kicks Off 'Bagels & Ballots' on Vote-by-Mail
Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center hosts its fall opener of 'Bagels & Ballots' Thursday, Sept. 17, from 9 to 10 a.m. at 124 Mount Auburn St., discussing the trade-offs of vote-by-mail systems.
Harvard Kennedy School
Spring Street Campus Eyed for Amigos School Relocation
Cambridge Public Schools presented three options for the vacant 158 Spring St. campus on Sept. 16 — relocating Amigos School, creating a preschool hub, or merging upper schools — with a School Committee vote expected by Oct. 20.
Cambridge | Somerville Independent
Harvard Math Lecture Series Continues Today
Mohammed Abouzaid delivers the second Ahlfors Lecture, 'Complex Bordism and Hamiltonian Fibrations,' Thursday, Sept. 17, at 4 p.m. in Science Center Hall A.
Harvard University Mathematics Department
Kiosk Advisory Committee Meets Tonight in Harvard Square
The Cambridge Kiosk Advisory Committee holds a public meeting Thursday, Sept. 17, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Isaacson Room at the Smith Campus Center.
City of Cambridge
Nadia Murad Discusses Memoir at Brattle Theatre Tonight
Nadia Murad talks about her memoir 'I Choose My Beginning' with Robin Young at the Brattle Theatre Thursday, Sept. 17, at 6 p.m.
Harvard Square Business Association
NEJC Orchestra Celebrates Debut Album at Arrow Street Arts
The New England Jazz Collaborative Orchestra celebrates its debut album 'Tributaries' with a performance at Arrow Street Arts Thursday, Sept. 17, at 7:30 p.m.
Harvard Square Business Association
Emily Harding Book Bash at Lovestruck Books Tonight
Lovestruck Books & Cafe hosts Emily Harding for a conversation about her novel 'Thank You for Remembering' Thursday, Sept. 17, from 7 to 8 p.m.
Patch
Drop-in Crafting Pop-Up at Smith Campus Center Today
The Shiny Shop hosts a free drop-in crafting session on creative expression, community care, and transportation safety Thursday, Sept. 17, from noon to 2 p.m. at the Smith Campus Center.
The Shiny Shop
City Council Votes to Support MIT Graduate Student Union
MIT graduate student union members brought their contract fight with the university to the council's Sullivan Chamber, and the council voted in their support.
Cambridge Day
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