By Jim Clark

Somerville Police received a call last week from a frantic female who was reportedly being followed by a male who was aggressively pursuing her and making lewd remarks.

Crying and upset, the woman attempted to establish her whereabouts with police over the phone, even though she had to keep moving to try to get away from the man.

By Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

As we prepare the budget for the next fiscal year, it looks as if Beacon Hill may deliver us some relief in the form of municipal health insurance reform.

We still do not know what the exact mechanics of the reform will be, but the House and Senate have both approved plans that would allow Somerville to move into the Group Insurance Commission (GIC), and the final version could get to the Governor’s desk in the next week or so. This could mean several million dollars a year back in the taxpayers’ pockets to pay for quality services in this city.

Equus runs June 10-18 at The Unity, 6 William Street, Somerville.

By Sanjeev Selvarajah

Somerville Theatre@First’s treatment of Peter Shaffer’s play Equus avoids many of the dramatic techniques contained in the script, but everything else, from plot to dialogue, is representative of its core themes of isolation and passion.

The moral seems to overlap with the French animosity towards ocularcentrism— a 70’s artistic movement that rejected obsession with visual culture. While religious iconography, television, and the literal eyesight of beasts and men feature prominently in the English play, this production is more pragmatic and relatable to modern audiences.

By Jim Clark

A man was detained by Loss Prevention personnel at the K-Mart on Middlesex Avenue last week when he was allegedly observed putting items under a coat he was carrying as he strolled through the store.

The man reportedly had secreted away two rotary power tools, four toothbrushes, one box of chocolate bars and one padlock.

Map of the area considered for the over-the-tracks development.

MBTA considers selling air rights over Porter Square commuter rail tracks

By Ashley Taylor

Owning a parcel of land is part of the fabled American dream. How about owning a parcel of air instead?  Air is less expensive and more plentiful than land.  The problem is, it’s a bit of a fixer-upper: in order to build a structure on your plot, you have to first build a deck.

Buying air rights instead of land is something developers may have the opportunity to do in Somerville.

By Carrie Stanziola

People may not associate Somerville with toy manufacturing, but in 1922, when Jennie Graves started making doll clothes out of her Liberty Avenue home in Somerville, she started a minor Massachusetts manufacturing empire.  As Evelyn Battinelli explains, the 8 inch tall Ginny doll went through several phases.  Initially, Ginny’s wardrobe was reflective of women’s roles, and she wore nursing and Girl Scout outfits.  However, her wardrobe evolved over time, offering girls a greater variety of clothes to choose from.

By Jim Clark

Somerville police officers responded to a request by Massachusetts State Police to investigate a claim of a man with a gun at a Rossmore Street residence last Thursday.

Responding officers were advised that the person calling in the tip seemed to be “covering up” their voice, and that there was a history of such calls made in the past.

By Andrew Firestone

The wheels of the Green Line Extension churned on this last Thursday, May 26, with some hope for progress in the near future. Community members met to hammer out details for working with the new design team Gilbane/HDR and were met with other funding updates.

Among the positive points of the meeting, which took place with the community Design Working Group, was the introduction of architect Michael Epp, a longtime veteran of the transit-building process across the state. Epp, who is directing the station design, said he felt “privileged” to be working on the project, a passion of his ranging on station work for the Orange, Red and Silver Lines over the past 35 years. “This is going to change people’s lives, and it’s going to change them for the better.”

Luckily, residents of the Rush Street 3-family home were not present during the fire as the building had been undergoing renovations at the time of the incident. - Photo by Bobbie Toner

By Andrew Firestone

Authorities are calling a two-alarm fire that swept through an unoccupied 3-family home on Rush Street “suspicious” today, since the actual cause for the blaze could not be identified.

“The fire is under investigation by the Somerville Fire Department Investigation Unit, the Somerville Police, and the State Fire Marshall’s Office,” said Somerville Fire Marshal Kevin Kelleher. Kelleher said the fire originated on the first floor of the house.

Good job with the Parade this year. Frank was right; this was the biggest Memorial Day Parade. A good job. The marchers did a great job and it appears that all on the sidelines enjoyed the parade as well. The local politicians passed out flags, and plenty of them were marching. Alderman Sean O’Donovan, after a leg injury recently (we hear was out getting signatures) had to ride, but at least he and most of the elected officials showed up. You can go online to our Web site and view all the marchers.

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Congratulations to Mayor Joe Curtatone who recently received his Masters Degree from Harvard University this past Friday. A full time mayor with a large family and this guy finds time to do his Masters. He is an inspiration to a lot of us here in the city. Unfortunately, he didn’t receive his diploma which was given out last Thursday evening. His grandmother passed away and the wake was Thursday night.