🍦 It's here: The Mass. ice cream trail

Also: Healey signs gun bill into law; the 40-year effort to protect a tiny wild orchid [❤️ Donate]( [View in Browser](   July 26, 2024  😎 Sunny, with a high near 83. Good Morning Boston, TGIF! It's almost the weekend - and [our latest New England day trip guide is freshly published]( featuring your newsletter author's native state (😁). It's got all sorts of fun recs that even I didn't know about. Staying in-state this weekend? Don't worry, you're also in for a treat: - We all scream for: Massachusetts' first-ever "ice cream trail" has arrived. After [months and months]( of what we assume must have been backbreaking labor, state officials revealed the new guide yesterday, featuring just over 100 different ice cream shops, stands and dairy farms, from Cape Cod to the Berkshires. "We thought this was a great way to recognize and celebrate our local dairy farms as well as small businesses that are incorporating Massachusetts milk or cream into their ice cream," Ashley Randle, the state's agriculture commissioner, told WBUR's Dan Guzman. "From cow to cone." - Zoom in: It's [more of a map]( than a "trail." It divides the state into six regions, plotting all the different ice cream destinations and listing out their addresses and contact info in [a 20-page guide](. (It also includes lots of fun facts about ice cream and cows.) - Zoom out: New England's five other states also have ice cream trails of their own, including [Vermont's maple creemee trail.]( - Full steam (er, electricity?) ahead: The MBTA's board officially approved a plan yesterday to replace diesel trains on the Fairmount commuter rail line with electric trains. Officials say the $54 million plan will reduce emissions - and wait times - between South Station and Readville. "The Fairmount line serves environmental justice communities that would best be served by a decarbonized higher frequency rail service," Michael Muller, the T's commuter rail director, said yesterday. The plan will run trains "every 20 minutes, all day," down from their current 30-minute frequencies, he added. - The big picture: MBTA officials [committed in 2019 to electrifying much of the commuter rail]( over the next few decades. - What's next: The T aims to roll out the first electric, battery-powered train on the Fairmount line by early 2028. - On Beacon Hill: Gov. Maura Healey [signed an expansive new gun control bill into law yesterday]( (as expected). The legislation tightens the state's assault weapons ban, cracks down on unregistered "ghost guns," and prohibits people from carrying guns in public spaces, like government buildings and polling stations. It also allows school administrators or health care providers to petition a court to remove someone's firearms under the state's red flag law. And it bans modifications that allow semi-automatic weapons to fire more bullets. "This law will save lives," Healey said in a statement. - What's next: Gun rights groups aren't happy about the law - and WBUR's Walter Wuthmann reports the state's Gun Owners' Action League is already planning a court challenge. - Meanwhile: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu's [property tax plan]( is moving forward on Beacon Hill. The home rule petition, which needs state approval, moved out of the joint revenue committee yesterday, marking its first major step in the Legislature. - Count 'em: Secretary of State Bill Galvin has finalized the order of the five ballot questions that will go before Massachusetts voters this fall. You can [check out the order here](. - What's next: Look for a booklet in your mailbox this September with the text and explanations of all five questions, as well as arguments drafted by proponents and opponents. - Attention snowbirds: JetBlue is increasing its flight offerings from Boston's Logan Airport to popular winter getaways, including Aruba, Barbados, Cancun, Phoenix and at least eight cities in Florida. It's part of [a New England expansion]( that also includes Jet Blue's first-ever flights out of Manchester, New Hampshire. (Those begin in January, running to several Florida cities.) - Not a warm weather person? JetBlue is also launching [daily flights between Boston and Presque Isle, Maine]( this September. - Go west: [Exhibit 'A' Brewing]( is leaving Framingham and plans to open a new brewery and taproom in the Western Massachusetts town of Williamsburg. Due to the planned move, the brewery has closed its current Framingham taproom. But the business says fans can look forward to the "[incredible New England charm]( of the new facility. P.S.- Dozens of people have withdrawn plans to donate _____ to Harvard. Take our [Boston News Quiz]( test your knowledge of this week's stories. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters The Rundown [Inside a 40-year effort to protect a tiny wild orchid]( The small whorled pogonia is a rare orchid found only in the Northeastern U.S. There are just about 3,000 in the entire world, most in New England, and conservationists are weighing how to best protect them. [Read more.]( [Inside a 40-year effort to protect a tiny wild orchid]( The small whorled pogonia is a rare orchid found only in the Northeastern U.S. There are just about 3,000 in the entire world, most in New England, and conservationists are weighing how to best protect them. [Read more.]( [French high-speed rail sabotaged hours before Olympic opening ceremony, officials say]( Hours away from the grand opening ceremony of the Olympics, high-speed rail traffic to the French capital was severely disrupted Friday by what officials described as "criminal actions" and sabotage. [Read more.]( [French high-speed rail sabotaged hours before Olympic opening ceremony, officials say]( Hours away from the grand opening ceremony of the Olympics, high-speed rail traffic to the French capital was severely disrupted Friday by what officials described as "criminal actions" and sabotage. [Read more.]( [State treasurer racks up big legal bills in effort to remove cannabis chair]( Meanwhile, Commission Chair Shannon O'Brien continues to collect her full $196,551 salary while she's suspended -- representing an increasingly expensive bill for Massachusetts taxpayers as the two former allies battle it out behind closed doors. [Read more.]( [State treasurer racks up big legal bills in effort to remove cannabis chair]( Meanwhile, Commission Chair Shannon O'Brien continues to collect her full $196,551 salary while she's suspended -- representing an increasingly expensive bill for Massachusetts taxpayers as the two former allies battle it out behind closed doors. [Read more.]( [Harris says she 'will not be silent' about humanitarian toll in Gaza]( In her remarks, which came after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Harris also said she held an "unwavering commitment to Israel." [Read more.]( [Harris says she 'will not be silent' about humanitarian toll in Gaza]( In her remarks, which came after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Harris also said she held an "unwavering commitment to Israel." [Read more.]( [NASA still doesn't know when two astronauts will be able to come home]( NASA still is not sure when a pair of astronauts - including Needham's Sunita Williams - might come home in Boeing's new Starliner spacecraft. [Read more.]( [NASA still doesn't know when two astronauts will be able to come home]( NASA still is not sure when a pair of astronauts - including Needham's Sunita Williams - might come home in Boeing's new Starliner spacecraft. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - The Paris Olympic opening ceremony begins at 1:30 p.m. Here's [how to watch the four-hour event live (or catch up on it afterward)](. - Commonwealth Shakespeare Company's free Boston Common production of "The Winter's Tale" is a well-acted story of forgiveness, [WBUR theater critic Jacquinn Sinclair says in her latest review](. Catch the play by the Common's Parkman Bandstand now through Aug. 4. - Boston singer-songwriter Rijah's new track "House in Tattoos" is a showcase for her signature vocal power and her ability to write songs that have both universal and personal meanings, writes WBUR contributor Noah Schaffer. [Listen to the exclusive song premiere here](. - Jonathan D. Fitzgerald [writes in this Cognoscenti commentary]( about the Newport Folk Festival and the art of the good surprise. What We're Reading 📚 - When drugstores disappear: Why nearly 15,000 Bostonians live in 'pharmacy deserts' ([The Boston Globe]( - Now Facing Harris, Trump Backs Off Commitment to Debate in September ([The New York Times]( - How NPR's Ayesha Rascoe is changing the sound of public radio ([Current](   Tell Me Something Good [Afghan refugees on the North Shore find homes through a creative plan that could help many more]( The families moved into the church a few months after they fled Afghanistan in 2021. They and their supporters realized how difficult it would be to find large, affordable permanent housing in the area. The church's rector is leading an effort to develop a system of housing for the families and others who've been forcibly displaced from their homelands. [Read more.]( [Afghan refugees on the North Shore find homes through a creative plan that could help many more]( The families moved into the church a few months after they fled Afghanistan in 2021. They and their supporters realized how difficult it would be to find large, affordable permanent housing in the area. The church's rector is leading an effort to develop a system of housing for the families and others who've been forcibly displaced from their homelands. [Read more.]( Play: [WBUR's daily mini crossword.]( Can you keep your streak going? Before you go: [The taste test you've all been waiting for.]( 😎 Forward to a friend. 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