Somerville Police are attempting to locate and identify the subject depicted in the attached composite sketch.  On Saturday evening, October 20, at about 11:00 p.m. a 34 year old female reported that she was walking home on Franklin Street when she noticed the suspect who was crouched down near the sidewalk.  She passed him and the suspect began to follow her as she continued to walk up Franklin Street toward Pearl Street.  The suspect yelled an obscenity, calling to her in Spanish to stop/wait.  She continued to walk faster and then saw the suspect pull a knife out of his pocket as he began to chase after her.  The victim began running and screaming to call police as she ran up Franklin Street to Pearl Street.  As she ran into the intersection, she was nearly struck by two passing cars.  When she realized that the suspect had stopped chasing her, she called 911.

By William C. Shelton

(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.)

Some illusions shine so brightly that we will sacrifice our wellbeing to let them burn. Visions of prestige and economic benefit accruing to Somerville with construction of a major league soccer stadium at Assembly Square could be such an illusion.

Tim Prasil, author of The Crasher, says he had the above inspiration looking at the fence around the Somerville campus of Tufts University.

Prasil’s story joins two others for PMRP’s annual Halloween show. This year the group put out an open call for story submissions for the first time. It was quite successful, according to Chris DeKalb the Producer of Tomes of Terror: New Arrivals, with scripts coming in from around the country.

Joanne Berger-Sweeney, dean of School of Arts and Sciences, Jeffrey Hoffman, Samuel Bashevkin, and Anthony Monaco, Tufts President, proudly display the scholarship check. – Photo by Maria A. Cortes

By Maria A. Cortes

Last Friday, Dr. Jeffrey Hoffman, ex NASA astronaut and a member of Astronaut Scholarship Foundation presented one of the Tufts students, Samuel Bashevkin, with prestigious $10,000 Astronaut Scholarship. The event, held at the Alumnae Lounge on the Tufts campus, started with the short introduction by Tufts President Anthony Monaco and proceeded with the presentation of the award to Samuel Bashevkin, followed by his acceptance speech, and, finally, with Dr. Hoffman’s talk about his career as an astronaut and the future of space exploration. Guests were invited to the luncheon that followed the presentation.

More food trucks like Moe’s B.B.Q Trolly will hit the streets after a new Mobile Food Vender Ordinance is okayed.– Photo by Harry Kane

By Harry Kane

There may be a mobile food truck coming soon to a neighborhood near you.

The Committee on Legislative Matters approved the Mobile Food Vendor Ordinance after making significant modifications at the meeting on Oct. 23.

The fourth annual Joe’s Jazz and Blues Fest is returning for Fall 2012, beginning with a daylong concert at Powderhouse Park on Saturday, October 27 from noon-6:00 p.m. The festival will then make its way through local hotspots citywide through November 3, including performances at Cantina la Mexicana, Arts at the Armory Café, Sally O’Brien’s, and Johnny D’s Uptown. A full schedule and venue list can be found online at www.somervilleartscouncil.org.

The Arts at the Armory achieved a major victory last week as it persuaded the Zoning Board of Appeals to ease restrictions on a number of important issues.

By Jim Clark

Friends and operators of Arts at the Armory were thrilled, while certain neighbors of the arts and entertainment venue were dismayed, as the Zoning Board of Appeals approved the requests that were made to ease restrictions on hours of operation and alcohol consumption limitations at a meeting held last Wednesday.

The public was recently invited to attend the inaugural activities as the “Somerville by Design” initiative began in earnest.

By Cathleen Twardzik

Recently, a new initiative entitled “Somerville by Design” began. It will implement the urban design, as well as land use goals of the city’s SomerVision Comprehensive Plan.

Question 4 on the November 6 ballot seems to be something of a hot-button topic for some Somerville voters.

It asks residents whether or not the city should adopt the Community Preservation Act (CPA), initially enacted in 2000 by then-Governor Cellucci, allowing communities to create a Local Preservation Fund to raise money through a surcharge on property taxes of up to 3 percent for open space protection, historic preservation and the provision of affordable housing. The City of Somerville has proposed a surcharge of 1.5 percent, which, in accordance with the state law, will be assessed on each piece of taxable real estate in the city.

By Jim Clark

Police responded to a report of shoplifting at K-Mart last Thursday.

Officers en route were advised that store loss prevention personnel were chasing the suspected thief towards the rear of Middlesex Avenue running towards McGrath Highway.