Craft beer bar coming to downtown Springfield’s Worthington Street in former Naismith’s space
A new craft beer and pretzel bar is opening in downtown Springfield. The Springfield Business Improvement District (BID) has confirmed with MassLive that a new business, The Pub and Pretzel, is coming to the former Naismith’s space, located at 211-213 Worthington St. this spring. According to city records for the property, the space was purchased in late 2016 by Edale…
Report: Holyoke Community College an Economic Powerhouse
Students who graduate from Holyoke Community College (HCC) with an associate degree will see an average increase in annual earnings of about $10,000 a year compared to those with only a high-school diploma, according to a new report that calculates the total economic impact of HCC on the Pioneer Valley at nearly $215 million annually.…
Bay State Business Link – Greentown Labs Event – February 15
Last year, I was proud to join Dr. Emily Reichert, CEO of Greentown Labs, to announce that Greentown Labs Manufacturing Initiative would be opening an office in Springfield. By opening in Springfield, Greentown Labs is exemplifying the spirit of the Bay State Business Link. To support Greentown’s efforts in expanding the circle of prosperity beyond…
East-West rail study’s inclusion in MassDOT plan a ‘major breakthrough,’ Sen. Eric Lesser…
On Friday, MassDOT released a draft of its 2018 rail plan, which among other priorities includes a feasibility study of expanded rail service between Springfield and Boston — a priority for Lesser which has faced roadblocks each time he has introduced it on Beacon Hill. “Given the lack of consensus on the appropriate type of service…
CTrail: How New Haven to Springfield line will work, cost to build it, ticket prices, train schedules and its MBTA connection
Anyone who has hit traffic jams at the junction of interstates 91 and 84 in Hartford, Connecticut, at the wrong time and seen the highways coagulate into parking lots has probably thought: “There must be a better way.” Connecticut transportation planners say CTrail is that better way. CTrail is a 62-mile high-frequency rail line that…
MassDevelopment President to Address Springfield Regional Chamber
SPRINGFIELD — Lauren Liss, who was recently appointed president and CEO of MassDevelopment, the state’s economic-development and finance agency, will be the Springfield Regional Chamber’s Pastries, Politics and Policy speaker on Tuesday, Feb. 13 from 8 to 9 a.m. at the TD Bank Conference Center, 1441 Main St., Springfield. Read the source article at BusinessWest
Willys-Overland Property Might Become a Growth Engine
Chuck Irving says the property at 151 Chestnut St. in Springfield — known to the well-informed as the Willys-Overland Building because the long-defunct car maker had a showroom on its first floor and a 1,000-car garage above — caught his attention some time ago, after it was damaged and then abandoned after the natural-gas explosion…
Chicopee Chamber announces annual Shining Stars award winners
This week the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce announced its Shining Stars awards. Interstate Towing was named business of the year; Dawn Creighton was named citizen of the year; Karen Hansmann is volunteer of the year; and Valley Opportunity Council is nonprofit of the year. Every year the Chamber honors businesses and individuals who are outstanding…
Springfield’s $14.4 million preschool grant saving lives, educators tell Massachusetts’…
The $14.4 million federal Preschool Expansion Grant the city received four years ago is saving children and family’s lives, preschool leaders told Massachusetts’ top early education official Friday. Doreen Malone, of Headstart, told Ted Weber, commissioner of early education and care, told the story of a preschooler whose violent behavior and vulgar language was making…
New MassDOT plan includes East-West rail study, after years of legislative struggle
A newly-released draft of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s 2018 rail plan includes a proposal to study ways to connect Boston and Springfield with passenger rail, following a years-long struggle by Longmeadow Sen. Eric Lesser and other Western Mass. legislators to pass such a study through the State House. In the plan, MassDOT has designated East-West rail…
Northampton planning board approves affordable housing project in Village Hill…
The Northampton Planning Board voted Thursday night to approve the second of two mixed-income apartment buildings that will be built in the city’s Village Hill neighborhood. The developer behind the project, The Community Builders (TCB), is a nonprofit based in Boston that specializes in development of affordable housing for low- and middle-income families. MassDevelopment selected…
Skechers footwear store coming to West Springfield’s Century Center
Skechers, the California-based global footwear company, is opening a 10,000-square-foot store at Century Center, the 285,000-square-foot shopping complex on Memorial Avenue in West Springfield. The store is set to open in March, according to Andrew M. Cohen, owner of Century Center, the region’s first strip mall. “We are excited to have the No. 2 shoe brand in the…