Gas leak on Weir Street; Taunton voters OK safety complex: Top stories
Before we begin the new week in earnest, we're taking a look back at the week that was, and the stories that led the news with Taunton Daily Gazette readers.
Top stories this past week included:
William Perez, 21, of Taunton was arraigned in Taunton District Court on Monday, May 1, in connection with the kidnapping and attempted rape of a jogger at Taunton's Mayflower Hill Cemetery. He was arraigned on charges of kidnapping, indecent assault and battery, attempted rape and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. He was ordered held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing on Friday, May 19. Since the incident, harrowing details have emerged from the police reports, which say that the victim was running in the cemetery when the suspect, a stranger to her, attacked her, armed with a boxcutter and possibly hedge clippers.
Our All-Scholastic picks for superlative Greater Taunton area boys indoor track athletes who stood out among the crowd.
The latest Greater Taunton real estate report, featuring an oversized cape in Berkley that sold for $795,000. The Berkley Street home has a large open kitchen, a sunken living room with a fireplace and loft, and a primary suite with an attached office. Check out all of the other features this house boasts, as well as other recent top-selling properties.
These were the Top 5 stories of the past week, according to Gazette readers:
'Sounded like a jet plane': Residents describe gas leak on Weir Street in Taunton
John Rodriques, of 446 Weir St., had to evacuate his home with his family due to a reported high-pressure gas leak on Weir Street Tuesday morning.
He said "The whole thing sounded like a jet plane flying."
According to Senior Media Relations Specialist for Eversource Christopher McKinnon, the gas leak occurred when a construction crew on Weir Street, working on a waterline, accidently struck an adjacent gas line, somewhere in the vicinity of 431 Weir St.
'Sounded like a jet plane': Residents describe gas leak on Weir Street in Taunton
Taunton votes yes on new public safety complex. How will the debt exclusion work?
The special referendum vote proposing to pay for a new public safety complex for Taunton's police and fire departments through a 30-year debt exclusion was a "yes" for Taunton voters.
According to unofficial results from the city's Elections Department, the measure received 65.64% of the votes cast.
Now that the votes are in, take a look at the proposed project, and how the debt exclusion will work.
New public safety complex: Taunton votes yes on new public safety complex. How will the debt exclusion work?
Massive overhaul of Route 138 slashed, new plan is a 'Band-Aid'
Raynham Selectman Joe Pacheco says MassDOT is not carrying out long-held plans to restructure and resurface important parts of the town’s portion of Route 138.
The project scope under the original plans included things like widening most of the road to include new lanes, doing a deep, in-depth repaving of the roadway, installing new pedestrian and traffic features, and water main improvements.
Raynham officials say it appears the most important aspects of this project have been removed, with the rest of the scope is still to be determined.
'Wasted money': Massive overhaul of Route 138 slashed, new plan is a 'Band-Aid'
2023 Taunton Girls Softball League Opening Day
The Taunton Girls Softball League recently held Opening Day ceremonies.
Gazette Sports Reporter Cameron Merritt was there as the teams took to the field and local coaches and officials celebrated these young athletes.
Play ball: 2023 Taunton Girls Softball League Opening Day
Fields of vibrant tulips, golden sunflowers and corn are popping up at new Berkley farm
Golden Hour Tulips on Jerome Street in Berkley is one of the "few farms in the United States that grow more than 30,000 tulips," according to owner Derek Nedell.
The 20-acre farm recently delighted visitors with more than 40 types of tulips, and they might be on a break now but they've got some big summer plans:
They'll be offering colorful sunflowers and sweet corn.
Successful season: Fields of vibrant tulips, golden sunflowers and corn are popping up at new Berkley farm
Taunton Daily Gazette/Herald News copy editor and digital producer Kristina Fontes can be reached at kfontes@heraldnews.com. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Herald News and Taunton Daily Gazette today.
This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Taunton Gazette Top 5 gas leak safety vote Route 138 softball farm
