Archive for January 2021

Arnold’s Meats knows its wholesale customers — restaurants that order meat for their customer’s plates — are hurting, and it wants to help out with a “Restaurant Rescue.” Starting this week, and probably for all of 2021, Arnold’s is selling gift certificates from its restaurant customers at its markets on Grattan Street in Chicopee and…

AAA Pioneer Valley, which traces its roots to 1902 and as organization called the Springfield Auto Club, has merged with its larger neighbor, AAA Northeast, as of Jan. 1. The name will change to AAA Northeast, said Sandra Marsian, vice president for the Pioneer Valley Region. There are no changes expected in staffing levels in…

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The Cannabis Education Center (CEC) at Holyoke Community College (HCC) has added a second cannabis core training program to its spring calendar of workforce-training programs. The CEC will offer another round of its intensive, two-day cannabis core training program on Saturday, March 20, and Sunday, March 21. Slots also remain open for the weekend of…

Slowly but surely, we’re getting more information about the much-anticipated second round of the Paycheck Protection Program. The SBA has just released new guidance for the $284 billion program. It doesn’t tell us when the new application portal will open, but it does say the deadline for round two applications will be March 31, reports Andy Medici for the…

As the world looks to generate energy from different sources and reduce waste, a new facility just opened in Agawam that contributes to both efforts.  What looks like a plain green building on Main Street is actually a plant that converts food waste into natural gas and fertilizer. Vanguard Renewables, based in Wellesley, approached Agawam…

W.D. Cowls named Tony Maroulis its vice president for Real Estate and Community Development. A respected regional leader in economic and community development, tourism, and the arts, Maroulis brings a well-rounded blend of experience to W.D. Cowls as it continues to develop and market the Mill District in North Amherst as a premier dining, arts,…

BusinessWest and the Healthcare News will celebrate the Healthcare Heroes class of 2020 with a free virtual event on Thursday, Jan. 14 from 4 to 5:15 p.m. Join the event that day by clicking this link. This year’s heroes include Mark Keroack, president and CEO of Baystate Health; Christopher Savino, Emeline Bean, and Lydia Brisson,…

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), in consultation with the Treasury Department, announced today that the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) will re-open the week of January 11 for new borrowers and certain existing PPP borrowers. To promote access to capital, initially only community financial institutions will be able to make First Draw PPP Loans on Monday, January 11,…

BusinessWest Editor George O’Brien talks with Andy Yee, president of the Bean Restaurant Group. The two discuss the ongoing plight of area restaurants as they battle the pandemic, ever-tighter restrictions on their operations, and the onset of winter. They also discuss the various forms of relief restaurants are receiving and whether they will be enough to…