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What a year! As the wild and turbulent 2020 has drawn to a close, we look back on how COVID-19 sent the global economy into the worst slump in a century and focus on what to expect beyond lockdowns, the virus and the vaccine in 2021. A new year, a new way of life. 2020…

Early last March, business leaders convened for the Springfield Regional Chamber’s 2020 Outlook luncheon, what would become the chamber’s final in-person event before the COVID-19 pandemic. As I listened to excellent speeches from U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and state Rep. Joseph Wagner, assistant majority leader, I envisioned a much different future…

As the executive director of the East of the River Five Town Chamber of Commerce (ERC5), I’m always grateful to contribute to The Republican’s Outlook. However, let’s face facts: This 2021 article was a challenge. It’s more likely than not that mine is among a chorus articulating the impediments of 2020. The word “outlook” itself…

What a difference a year makes. In December 2019, the Western Massachusetts tourism industry appeared to be in its strongest position in decades. And, it was. We were enjoying a continued strong economy, stable gasoline prices and our solid inventory of one-of-a-kind attractions had been enhanced by key new investments. Fueled by newly planned and…

Small and large businesses, municipalities and residents of the Pioneer Valley have all felt the effects of our current economic situation stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, more than ever, we find the value and benefits of our local chamber of commerce. As we find ourselves in challenging times the Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce…

Joined by the town administrator from rural Buckland, Gov. Charlie Baker hosted a virtual ceremonial signing Wednesday for the $16 billion transportation bond act passed last month just as the legislative session was ending. The bond act authorizes as much as $50 million for east-west rail. The money could be used to begin design and…

Columbia Manufacturing Inc. began as the country’s first bicycle maker in 1877 and switched gears to school furniture in the 1950s, a line that became the company’s mainstay. In 1993, so it could focus solely on school furniture, Columbia authorized another company to make bicycles. “The company has a tradition of reinventing itself,” says Ali…

When the coronavirus pandemic closed college campuses in March of 2020, administrators initially hoped that some normalcy would return by the fall semester. That did not happen. Some schools that reopened dormitories had to shut them down again. Others did not reopen their campuses at all, continuing classes online. Every pandemic in human history has…

Tree House Brewing will host a COVID-19 vaccination site this week at its newly purchased property in South Deerfield, at the former Channing Bete headquarters. The clinic runs Thursday, Feb. 18 and Friday, Feb. 19. Signups are available at maimmunizations.org. There are 140 appointments available on the first day and 164 available on the second…

Sisters of Providence Ministry Corp. sold the former Mount Saint Vincent Care Center at 35 Holy Family Road for $2 million, according to deed documents filed earlier this month. The transaction had already been made public and received state Department of Health approval in December 2020. The buyer, iCare Health Network of Manchester, Connecticut, has…