Here are some of the stories that made headlines nearby last week.

Original reporting by Wakefield Patch, Melrose Patch, Medford Patch and Stoneham Patch.

Man Officially Charged in Salem Street Robbery 

Wakefield Police detectives have officially charged Michael Gallella, 30, as the man responsible for robbing the Salem Variety Store in Wakefield at knife point on January 17.Gallella, who lists an address in Malden, was arrested for allegedly robbing Harrigan’s Liquor Store in Hamilton at knifepoint on Saturday. In addition to the Wakefield and Hamilton robberies, he is also suspected to be responsible for a number of other robberies in the area, including Marblehead, Reading, and Saugus.

Melrose's 2011 Foreclosure Activity Half That of 2010

Matching a statewide year-over-year decrease in foreclosure activity, both the number of foreclosure starts and completed foreclosures in Melrose dropped by more than half year-over-year in 2011, while auctions were down as well, according to the latest figures from The Warren Group.

FBI: Medford Man Touted Robbery Co-Conspirators as 'Pros' 'from Charlestown' 

A Medford man recruited two men with lengthy histories of armed robbery and bank robbery whom he touted as being "from Charlestown" to attempt to rob a Norwood check-cashing store, according to an FBI affidavit. Before his arrest on a conspiracy charge last week John Salvucci of South Medford allegedly told a confidant that his co-conspirators were "real serious guys" who would die before going back to prison, according to an FBI affidavit. But Salvucci didn't know the confidant, whom he recruited to help rob a check-cashing store in Norwood, was cooperating with the FBI and recorded the conversation. "(They will) never go back," Salvucci allegedly said in a recorded conversation. "They'll end up dead before they go back."

Will the Stoneham Middle School Project Get the Green Light from Voters? [PHOTOS]

While the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) has already approved reimbursing Stoneham more than half of the total cost to construct the proposed Middle School, voters will decide if they want to fund the project at a Special Town Meeting on Feb. 7.