Business Development
New State Voucher Program Promotes Industry Use of UMass System Research Facilities to Stimulate Economic Development, Innovation
Advanced research laboratories and equipment across the five-campus University of Massachusetts system are being made available to start-up businesses and local companies through a new, state-funded subsidy program aimed at promoting economic growth and innovation. Created with a $2 million state investment championed by House Speaker Robert DeLeo, the Innovation Voucher Program began accepting industry…
Read MoreTower Square hotel in hands of new owners; local group plans renovations and rebranding
Businessman Dinesh Patel of East Longmeadow and his partners closed Thursday on their $10.5 million purchase of the Tower Square Hotel, formerly the Marriott, in the heart of downtown. The partners plan to buy the rest of Tower Square — including the parking garage — within a few weeks, for a sum they do not…
Read MoreBusinesses Connect and Grow at the Orange Innovation Center
The movement toward innovation centers and collaborative maker spaces might be hot right now across Western Mass., but the Orange Innovation Center was on the cutting edge when it opened 20 years ago in this small Franklin County town. Under its current ownership, the complex has doubled its tenant roster over the past five years,…
Read MoreNew owner of Springfield’s Tower Square Hotel revealed as sale is set to close
Western Massachusetts businessman Dinesh Patel and his partners plan to close on their purchase of Tower Square Hotel on Thursday. Patel’s attorney, Paul M. Maleck, confirmed Wednesday that the transaction is expected and said Patel and his partners’ planned purchase of the adjacent Tower Square mall and office tower will follow in a few weeks. Read…
Read MoreWestfield submits state paperwork to create industrial park
A potential industrial park on the city’s north side is moving forward with the submission of an environmental notification form to the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. The potential park, located on 66 acres between Turnpike Industrial and Cabot roads, is a wooded area that the city purchased in 1989 with intentions…
Read MoreSpringfield Planning Board considers new office building to replace Peter Pan bus station
The Planning Board has a hearing scheduled Wednesday night to consider approving plans by a housing agency to demolish the Peter Pan bus terminal and construct an office building in its place. Way Finders, a nonprofit housing services agency that was formerly HAPHousing, is proposing the new, 23,338-square-foot building at the former bus terminal at…
Read More‘The New Springfield’: Investment in city now $3.76 billion since tornado
Public and private investment in the city since the tornado of June 2011 now totals more than $3.76 billion, Chief Development Officer Kevin Kennedy said Tuesday during a presentation at CityStage. Kennedy gave an economic development update to the Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce at his “The New Springfield: Now Arriving” program. The $3.76 billion…
Read MoreFormer Southworth building in Agawam sold; new owners plan to subdivide it for industrial use
Investors have finalized their purchase of the former Southworth Paper factory and headquarters for $1.9 million. Southworth is liquidating its assets and will likely sell its former mill in the Turners Falls section of Montague at auction. That transaction is pending in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Springfield. In Agawam, the new owners of the 146,000-square-foot…
Read More‘The New Springfield is Arriving’ progress report features Sec. Jay Ash
Encouraged by recent good news from MassMutual, Big Y and others, city Chief Development Officer Kevin Kennedy is giving another of his regular updates. The event, called “The New Springfield Is Arriving,” takes its name from Springfield’s Union Station and the new CTRail commuter rail service. The presentation runs from 4-6 p.m. Tuesday at CityStage, One…
Read MoreOwner says $41 million rehab of Paramount Theater-Massasoit property in downtown Springfield set to begin
Developer Heriberto Flores said his agency anticipates launching a $41 million redevelopment project in June of the historic Paramount Theater and Massasoit building, seen as a key component of downtown revitalization efforts. Flores, president of the New England Farm Workers Council, which owns the Paramount/Massasoit property, said the extensive rehabilitation project will begin with replacement…
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