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CT Business Expo

The 2009 CT Business Expo, staged June 4 at the Connecticut Convention Center, featured several hundred exhibitors, including many from Western Mass., and thousands of visitors. Above, representing the event’s main sponsor, Comcast Business Services, and its Western New England region were, from left, John Howlett, sales manager; Thomas Rausch, business account executive; Jeffrey Freyer, vice president of Business Services; and James Robinson, business account executive.

ERC5 Annual Meeting

The East of the River Chamber (ERC5) recently staged its annual meeting at Hampden Country Club. Attendees heard a keynote address from John Regan, above, executive vice president for Government Affairs for the Associated Industries of Mass. At left, Joseph Lawler, right, treasuer of ERC5 and a benefits manager for the Wilbraham-based Gaudreau Group Insurance and Financial Services Agency, presents a plaque to David Leslie, controller with the Longmeadow-based retirement community Glenmeadow, recognizing his work as the first chairman of the ERC5.

Cabinet Meeting

BnC Kitchens in Enfield recently staged grand-opening ceremonies at its showcase on Moody Road. The event was catered by Max’s Tavern, which used one of the custom kitchens to prepare appetizers. From left are Mike St.Germain, president of Atlantic Woodcraft; William Sullivan, vice president of commercial lending for PeoplesBank; and Bob Villeneuve, vice president of sales for BnC Kitchens.

OPINION

By
Opinion
Addressing the Crisis in Math and Science

The U.S. owes a great debt to the makers of Sputnik 1. The Soviet Union’s 1957 launch of the world’s first earth-orbiting man-made satellite challenged our national self-image of leadership in mathematics and science. Within a year, Congress passed the National Defense Education Act, and by the time Apollo 11 landed the first humans on the moon in July 1969, American mathematics, science, and technology were the envy of the world.

Our nation’s leadership in mathematics and science is once again at risk, and a new congressional act of similar scope is needed. According to the recent National Mathematics Advisory Panel report, “American students have not been succeeding in the mathematical part of their education at anything like a level expected of an international leader.”

Changing this will take teachers with a dedication to math and science — and the knowledge to match. But the data suggest that we are in a feedback loop, with today’s ill-prepared students becoming tomorrow’s teachers. This week’s announcement that nearly three-quarters of aspiring elementary school teachers failed the math section of the state’s licensing exam is the latest example.

Last June, the National Council of Teacher Quality, a nonpartisan research and advocacy group, reported that the average 2007 mathematics SAT score of high-school seniors planning to major in education in college was 32 points below the national average for all college-bound students. And colleges themselves are too often not helping. The council surveyed 77 education schools, and it rated 37 of them as “fail on all measures” in preparing elementary teachers to teach math. The situation in science is no better — a 2007 report of the National Academies described the scientific knowledge of K-8 teachers as “limited” and “often quite thin.” Since teacher knowledge significantly affects student learning, this should give us pause.

The nation is not producing enough well-qualified teachers of math and science. And too many of the ones it does produce are leaving the classroom after a few years. We cannot continue to lead in math and science without substantial and immediate changes nationwide.

To break the feedback loop, we need a new Mathematics and Science Education Act. Its principle points should include:

  • Financial incentives to attract mathematically and scientifically able students to become teachers. It should provide low-interest college loans for top math and science students who want to become teachers, with debt forgiveness for those who remain teachers for a certain period of time.
  • A focus at colleges and universities on developing math and science content knowledge along with teaching skills. We must ensure that new teachers know these subjects thoroughly — the why, not just the what. This will require new classes, taught by mathematicians and scientists, who must take greater responsibility for preparing the next generation of teachers.
  • Professional expectations and opportunities for teachers. We need to re-envision teaching as a profession with a ladder of steps, progressing from novice to expert. Teachers should be subject to rigorous licensing requirements and periodic recertification. They should also be offered opportunities for substantial professional development leading to additional intellectual engagement with their subject areas. In particular, teachers in mathematics and science must be offered a regular sabbatical so that they can stay up to date and add to their knowledge with college or graduate-level disciplinary courses. And we must pay for those courses.
  • Increased salaries for mathematics and science teachers. The law of supply and demand cannot be avoided. We need this expertise, and we should be willing to pay for it.

    • The implementation of such an act will require a good deal of effort and is likely to trigger some controversy. But its long-term impact and benefits would far outweigh any growing pains.

    Sputnik included a radio beacon audible every 96 minutes. It became a clarion call to change. If only we could hear it now.

    Solomon Friedberg is a professor and chairman of the Mathematics Department at Boston College. He is a member of the Mass. Board of Education’s Math-Science Advisory Council and an editor of the book series Issues in Mathematics Education.

    Springfield’s Priority: Attracting Private Investment

    By
    Opinion
    Springfield’s Priority: Attracting Private Investment

    Springfield has a new director of economic development. John Judge, a real-estate developer in Boston and former director of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Boston, was introduced last week, and he’ll be on the job full-time in a matter of weeks.

    Judge will have a number of challenges to meet and priorities to address — from finding a new use for the York Street Jail site to following the script laid by the authors of the Urban Land Institute report; from filling the former federal building to infusing some life downtown.

    Perhaps the broader challenge, though, and one that touches on all the others, is the need to generate private investment in Springfield. We’ve said on many occasions that the city, and the region to a lesser extent, is becoming far too dependent on public investment for economic development, and that there must be greater balance if the city is to achieve significant growth and vibrancy.

    If one were to look around, it would become quickly apparent just how much public-sector investment has taken place in the city: the MassMutual Center, the new federal courthouse, the infrastructure work on State Street, and more has all been funded with federal or state dollars, or both.

    On the horizon are a backup data center, to be built at the site of the former Technical High School on Elliott Street (a state project), and the long-stalled revitalization of Union Station — there is a revised plan being shaped called ‘Union Station 2’ — that is predominantly a federal project. And now, all eyes are on federal stimulus dollars and projects that can be funded with them, which is understandable.

    It would be fair to say that Congressman Richard Neal has been more active in economic development in Springfield — he won money for the courthouse, Union Station, and State Street, and pushed hard for the data center to be placed at Tech — than any other party.

    And in the larger scheme of things, this isn’t good for the City of Homes, which, historically, has prospered not through government-backed jobs projects, but entrepreneurial ventures ranging from MassMutual to Smith & Wesson.

    The various public projects described above were undertaken with the intention of spurring private investment. The term people use when they seek such funds is that they can ‘leverage’ private projects. Thus far, there hasn’t been too much leveraging going on — in the area near the MassMutual Center, on State Street (although there is some promise there, certainly), or anywhere else.

    There have been pockets of private-sector development — the riverfront and the broader Columbus Avenue corridor, for example, as well as Baystate Health’s new ‘Hospital of the Future,’ which has been delayed by the downturn in the economy — but there obviously needs to be more.

    How can it be generated?

    This will be Judge’s main assignment, and he won’t be alone in that challenge. Indeed, there are many other communities in this region and across the state that are trying to catch the attention of the development community. How does Springfield prevail with such vast competition?

    It can start with more-aggressive marketing designed to introduce or re-introduce the city to developers and business owners. There has been some, but certainly not enough, and nothing on a consistent basis.

    Meanwhile, there should be a renewed emphasis on small businesses and stimulating more entrepreneurial opportunities. Economic development isn’t just about big, high-profile projects like the jail site or Court Square or Chapman Valve. It’s also about long-neglected blocks off Main and Dwight streets and trying to bring them back one by one.

    And perhaps another place to begin is with the arts. Other older industrial cities, such as Pittsfield and Lowell, have made artists and the small businesses that support them a key component of economic development.

    Judge will have a long, detailed job description to go along with his new position. At the top of that list should be spurring private-sector development, because it will be the key to growth and prosperity down the road.

    Work, Earn, and Learn

    By
    Michael Chechette and Kathryn Kirby
    Features
    Stimulus Money Gives a Real Boost to Summer Jobs Programs

    Michael Chechette and Kathryn Kirby

    Michael Chechette and Kathryn Kirby say federal stimulus money will greatly increase the number of area young people able to secure summer jobs.v

    Unemployment levels may still be at the highest levels in decades here in the Bay State, but this summer presents a golden employment opportunity for area youth.

    Two programs, both getting a huge boost from federal stimulus money, are targeting lower-income and at-risk youths from Hampden County. The days of summer days leaning on a broom, however, are gone. With an infusion of federal funds, Hampden County youths have additional opportunities to find jobs that aren’t just roles for a warm body. Rather, there is an additional focus on education, social programs, and the possibility that the summer job might turn into a career.

    And while the two programs have big aspirations this summer, their foundations go back as far as a decade. The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 was a broad-based employment initiative with assistance on many levels. Within that bill has always been a component focused on summer jobs for youths. In Hampden County, those finding employment through that program have numbered around 200 annually.

    WIA is a high-support, high-intensity program. Youths that qualify for it have tremendous mechanisms in place to support them, whether it’s training to assist them in getting their GED or staying in school to help through the MCAS tests.

    This year, big stimulus money jump-starts the WIA Summer Jobs Program by adding an additional $1.4 million to an annual budget for a summer program that hovered around $200,000, said Michael Chechette, manager of Youth Programs for the REB. He pointed proudly to what difference the stimulus money has made.

    “Because of the president’s summer jobs initiative in the stimulus, we here in Hampden County have come into a substantial dollar amount. With our WIA year-round program and our stimulus jobs program, we are in a position right now to place around 1,100 kids in both programs.”

    But it doesn’t stop there.

    Kathryn Kirby, youth-employment coordinator for the REB and one of the managers of another state funded program, called the YouthWorks Summer Jobs Program, said the YSJP initiative plans to place 472 youths in meaningful jobs for the next three months.

    Unlike the WIA program, which is open to youths from across Hampden County, the YSJP specifically targets the cities of Springfield, Chicopee, and Holyoke, she said.

    In this issue, BusinessWest looks at the bright prospects for youths and summer jobs, and what the programs mean for the bigger picture of economic development in the region.

    Work in Progress

    From Palmer all the way west to Blandford, the WIA summer jobs program begins on July 6. The needs-based aspect of this initiative requires that applicants be at 70% of the poverty level. The ages range from 14 to 21 for the regular WIA SJP, while the federal-stimulus side of the WIA SJP stretches that up to age 24, also placing a prioritized requirement to hire veterans and children in foster care.

    In Hampden County, the REB was chosen as the existing structure utilized to streamline the pipeline of stimulus funds. “The REB literally approves every work site,” said Chechette. “We are the fiscal and administrative entity above all else. The WIA stimulus is massive. It’s just a great volume of people. In order to place 1,600 kids in the WIA SJP, we will probably put out 4,000 applications, and we will interview about 2,200 youth.

    “On the stimulus side of the SJP,” he added, “we have to have hundreds and hundreds of work sites, meaningful work sites. There has to be due diligence; we have to make sure that child labor laws are addressed … there are just a lot of details in this.”

    From the REB, the next link in the chain is a series of what are referred to as ‘vendors,’ in this case the entities to get youths into the jobs. For the WIA SJP, the vendors are the Holyoke Public School Department, the Mass. Career Development Institute, New England Farm Workers’ Council, New North Citizens Council, Pathfinder Vocational High School, and the YWCA of Western Mass. YouthWorks’ vendors are the MCDI for Springfield, the Valley Opportunity Council in Chicopee, and the city of Holyoke, which will handle all employment there.

    “All roads start here and end here,” Chechette explained, “and we’re the ones that make sure all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed.” He explained what is keeping everyone in the REB offices busy these days.

    “The way it works is that the kids go in for an academic piece in the morning, maybe for an hour or two, and then they would transition for a few hours into the field on the job. The total funding going to those contractors is $1.4 million; that’s on the stimulus side. We have an additional $200,000 roughly going to what we call support services. To help with transportation, we will pay for van transport, and for the very first time, bus passes through PVTA are going to be supplied.

    “Transportation is a big issue,” he continued. “The bus pass costs $45 a month, and with the president’s initiative, they want us to be very aggressive getting the money into the kids’ hands. We will be giving a bus pass to every one of them coming through our program. We want to get that money that they will be earning out into the markets, to give them the means to disseminate that back into the economy … for shopping, for their parents, but we want them to be able to travel and get out there, too.”

    Kirby was quick to address that these jobs have substance, and are ideally going to address longer-term impact for the youths.

    “This year under the YouthWorks program, there are a few priorities that the vendors are looking at and focusing on,” she said. “A lot of the employers will be working with the Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan, which is an excellent evaluation tool. After two weeks into the job, the youth is evaluated. At the end of the job, they are evaluated again on all their skill sets.”

    The program will involve dozens of area companies, from larger employers such as Big Y Foods, MassMutual, and Baystate Medical Center down to small businesses with fewer than 10 employees. The common denominator is providing young people with not just a paycheck, but real learning experiences, exposure to the world of work, and, in some cases, a good start down a career path.

    To illustrate such tangibles and intangibles, Kirby pointed to the efforts of one employer and long-time participant in summer-jobs initiatives.

    “A nice example of substantial jobs is the contribution I’m working on with George Gomez,” she explained. “He is the president and owner of nine McDonald’s in Massachusetts and Connecticut, and he is going to hire 20 youths through the YSJP. Then, at the end of the program, he will hire on the youths during the school year.”

    Chechette was quick to point out that these are not just run-of-the-mill employment opportunities. “Just to clarify, these are for management positions; this is not bringing kids in to work the counter. He wants to cultivate the youth at a higher level, that maybe they can look at this as a career path.

    “This is kind of new for us, that we are also very aggressively pursuing the private sector,” he continued. “Historically, because we are federally funded, we would stay away from the for-profit entities. This year, we will pay for the youth to work in the for-profit companies, but they will provide the kids with the supervision, obviously. However, what we are looking for come September is that, because we extended that courtesy of providing them with the paid-for employment, they might look to hire those kids for after-school employment, or they might offer older youths the opportunity to work with them in a full-time job.”

    Kirby added, “in addition to the private sector, we have a number of community-based organizations that have opened their doors, particularly this summer with the stimulus money. It’s a win-win situation for the youth, the employers, and the community.”

    For the 472 youths that are guaranteed placements through the YouthWorks program, she said, “we’re confident that we can not only meet that goal, but surpass it. Many of the vendors are very creative with their dollars. For instance, they’ll say to an employer, ‘if we give you two youths, can you hire an additional one or two?’ In that way, we can get more bang for our buck. All the vendors are on board with that kind of creative leadership, trying to expand the opportunity.”

    The Job at Hand

    Late last month, Gov. Patrick announced further spending to secure youth-based summer job programs. In a press release from Beacon Hill, he said he plans to commit more than $30 million over the next two years to create more than 10,000 jobs across the state.

    “Summer jobs keep young people engaged in something constructive and safe,” said Patrick. “Thanks to this innovative combination of state and federal recovery funds, we can give more kids than ever a chance to work, earn, and learn this summer.”

    Congressman John Olver expressed similar sentiments. “Providing our young people with the opportunity to earn money while gaining work experience, skills-oriented training, and career exposure is a smart investment,” he said. “In this struggling economy, jobs are hard to come by for everyone, including young adults. We cannot afford to have an entire generation missing out on the many lessons learned from a summer job. Our economy’s health in the future depends on investing in programs like this today.”

    In Springfield, Chechette and Kirby are glad to see the usual high-minded talk from elected officials become reality.

    “I’m really happy that Hampden County got this extra money,” Kirby said. “The two programs complement each other very well, in taking care of all the kids that have this need. If one isn’t a fit for them, the other is another great opportunity to get them a good summer job with some real opportunities for the future.”

    Chechette agreed. “I’m excited about this, and I think the dividends are going to be huge. The kids will have good structured time, and ultimately, they will have a place to go. I’ve been doing this for a long time now, and this is a good chance for them to move forward.”

    Body of Work

    By
    Charles Redmond
    Sections Supplements
    Springfield College Facility to Focus on Wellness, Research and Making a Difference on Quality-of-life Issues
    Charles Redmond

    Charles Redmond says Springfield College’s new Center for Wellness Education and Research will become a clearinghouse of information on the broad subject of wellness.

    Charles Redmond says the mission statement for Springfield College’s new Center for Wellness Education and Research, due to open in September, is still very much a work in progress.

    There’s nothing down on paper yet, said Redmond, dean of the college’s School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, and certainly nothing approved by college administrators. But some wording is being rounded into shape.

    “We want to create a center that, through a focus on research and education, will explore various elements of wellness and, in the process, improve quality of life for people across the lifespan,” he said. “If can make a difference in trying to keep people healthier, whether through public policy or a domino effect, we would then be contributing to the bigger picture.”

    These are ambitious goals, but, in Redmond’s mind, realistic ones as the college advances plans for the center, which will, according to those plans, conduct groundbreaking research, become a national source for the latest wellness information, and design and present public wellness-education programs and conferences.

    “There is so much information on wellness or health, fitness or nutrition available today,” he explained. “The public gets bombarded with information, some of which I would suspect is really good stuff, and some that I would suspect is not very good stuff. How does the public sort all of this out? We’d like to be a place where people can go to ask questions and to clarify things.

    “And if we’re in a position to answer that or get that information,” he continued, “we’re making a major contribition to quality of life, because people wouldn’t have to rely on that infomercial or flyer they got in the mail. We want to be a clearinghouse for information that is grounded in science.”

    Putting things another way, Redmond said the new center will take a number of things that the college has focused on since its inception in 1885 — such as focusing attention on the importance of fitness, research (including a current study on diets and their impact on muscle mass in men losing weight), and the concept of wellness (even when that word wasn’t being used) — and bring them to a higher, better-coordinated level.

    “One of the reasons we’ll be successful in this center is that we now have things centralized in one location, enabling us to do more collaborative research,” he explained. “Before, we were scattered across campus. It’s not that we couldn’t collaborate before — it’s just much easier to do it now.”

    In this issue, BusinessWest takes an indepth look at the new center, to be housed in the college’s new exercise science and wellness facilities, how it will develop, and how it will go about meeting that mission-in-formation of ‘making a difference.’

    The Shape of Things to Come

    When asked for how long faculty and administrators at Springfield College had been discussing and shaping plans for the new center, Redmond, who came to his current post just over a year ago, said they’d been ongoing since before he arrived and accelerated after he came to SC.

    But in some ways, the college has long been a type of center for information and research on the broad subjects on health and wellness, he continued, citing the work of Russian-born Dr. Peter Karpovich, a longtime faculty member and director of health education at SC, founder of the American College of Sports Medicine in 1954, and widely considered the father of American exercise physiology.

    “It might be a stretch as to whether he would accept the title ‘grandfather of wellness,’ because ‘wellness’ wasn’t a term back then, but that’s essentially what he was,” joked Redmond, noting that, in many respects, the new center pays homage to Karpovich’s work, continues it, and brings it to a higher plane.

    In many ways, the center will call attention to the fact that, while the college’s main mission — “educating students in spirit, mind, and body, and service to others” — hasn’t changed over the past 124 years, the manner in which that mission is carried out, and the names given to aspects of this field, have.

    Indeed, where once the school’s sole purpose was training YMCA directors and was later broadened to mostly training physical educators, it has evolved further, especially over the past few decades. “When I did physical education, it was learning sports skills — you learned how to play tennis, basketball, and so on,” Redmond explained. “We’ve reached the point where it is as important to teach people skills and activities as it is to get them interested in physical activity, or valuing physical activity.

    “Over the years, we’ve evolved and developed new academic programs, such as exercise science, health sciences, sports psychology, and sports performance,” he continued. “These are all a spin-off of our history in physical education but focus now on things that are beyond the activities themselves.”

    The new wellness education and research center is a part of that evolutionary process, he said, and the concept is not exactly new. There are already a few such programs in existence; the University of Rhode Island has one, as does Texas A&M, among others. What Springfield College wants to do, said Redmond, is join those other institutions, and perhaps work with them, in building a critical mass of information on wellness that runs across the spectrum, or “lifespan,” he said, meaning people of all ages.

    “If we’re going to make a major impact, we would like to look at the prevention side of the equation,” he said. “Let’s do research to explore how we can make behavioral changes so that we don’t end up with people with these chronic diseases; let’s keep them healthy on the front end.”

    And by this, he meant working with individuals, especially young people, to stress the importance of fitness and physical activity, and, eventually, to help control or minimize the incidence of obesity.

    And as he talked about the scope of the work that could be undertaken in the facility, Redmond said the possibilities are seemingly limitless, and include the broad issues of obesity, nutrition, physical activity, and many others, all with a focus on quality of life and prevention of disease as much as treatment.

    Returning to the concept of collaborative research, he said the work undertaken by the new center and the School of Health, Physical Education & Recreation may eventually involve a number of different schools and programs at the college, including psychology, sociology, the School of Health Sciences & Rehabilitation Studies, and the School of Arts, Sciences & Professional Studies, which includes anatomy, chemistry, physiology, and other fields.

    “We’ve been doing a lot of these things all along,” he said, “but we’re going to take the various pieces and put them into a whole. We’re going to continue the research we’re doing, but now we’ll can grow the research; we’ll be a better position to do our own research locally, but maybe facilitate research in other areas, and maybe leave the campus and collaborate with other institutions or organizations.”

    The center will be housed in the college’s new $22 million wellness center, field house, and athletic training/exercise science complex, and take full advantage of its specific facilities, said Redmond, who pointed them out as he gave BusinessWest a detailed tour.

    These include a two-story, 47,840-square-foot wellness center that features cardio and weight-training equipment, a climbing wall, several multi-purpose teaching/activity spaces, fitness-testing facilities, and faculty offices; a 93,830-square-foot field house that includes a six-lane running track surrounding four multi-purpose courts, as well as strength and conditioning facilities; and an athletic training/exercise science complex that includes classrooms and state-of-the-art laboratories and research space for the study of all aspects of human performance.

    The center is slated to formally open on Sept. 1, but work that would come under the scope of its mission is already being conducted, said Redmond, citing, as just one example, a study investigating the impact of carbohydrate weight-loss diets on muscle mass in men aged 50 to 70.

    Begun last fall and led by Richard Wood, a assistant professor of Exercise Science at SC, the study puts men in that age category through a 12-week program of supervised dieting along with supervised resistance-training exercises for some of the participants.

    “Research has confirmed that there is more than one way to reduce body weight and improve risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes,” said Wood, who plans to study men in 12-week groups through the end of the this year. “Muscle mass is key to our metabolic health. However, it is not clear whether one diet is better than another in preserving muscle mass during weight loss. It is my hope that this research will yield information that that could benefit the greater population of persons with metabolic syndrome.”

    Body of Work

    Moving forward, Redmond said there are a number of ‘next steps’ for him and others at the college to address as they mold the new center shape.

    There is staffing, the eventual naming of a director, and creating a job description for that individual — several models are being looked at — as well as exploration of funding for the research that will go on at the facility. There should be large volumes of federal money available for programs, considering the gravity of the issues at hand, said Redmond, but also considerable competition for it.

    And then, there’s that mission statement. It’s still a work in progress, as he said, but it comes down to one central purpose — making a difference in the overall health and well-being of people across the region and around the world.

    George O’Brien can be reached at[email protected]

    Shedding Some (Sun) Light on the Problem

    By
    STCC’s second photovoltaic installation will be one of the largest in the state.
    Sections Supplements
    STCC Expands Its Solar-power Capacity with a Second Photovoltaic Installation
    STCC’s second photovoltaic installation will be one of the largest in the state.

    STCC’s second photovoltaic installation will be one of the largest in the state.

    Springfield Technical Community College’s Building 20 is one of the largest and busiest on campus. It houses 14 health programs that run day and night, as well as the bookstore. There is a steady stream of traffic in and out of the building, even in summer, but few of those visitors are seemingly aware of its latest claim to fame.

    That’s because it sits on the roof.

    Specifically, it’s a solar-power array, believed to be the largest in the region and one of the largest in the state, comprised of 272 photovoltaic panels that will soon be turning sunshine into electricity.

    At 82.9 kilowatts — 2.5 times larger in overall energy production than the first installation the school put in three years ago across the street in the Technology Park at STCC — the array will further reduce the school’s carbon footprint and continue a program of expansion into alternative energy sources at the school.

    Solar panels are not particularly economical to install, which is why the school funded the $663,000 project with a $407,000 grant from the Mass. Technology Collaborative and $256,000 worth of zero-interest clean renewable energy bonds (CREBs) from the IRS.

    The new installation will save the school an additional $19,000 a year. It’s only a nibble (about 1.7%) out of the school’s $1.1 million annual electricity bill, but STCC president Ira Rubenzahl calls the move toward renewable energy “socially responsible,” and one of many the college is undertaking.

    Quick Study

    The system will eventually pay for itself, although the school estimates it will take 18 years, maybe less if energy prices go through the roof (no pun intended). But according to Rubenzahl, in addition to reducing the school’s carbon footprint, the system offers other benefits.

    Namely, it adds value to the school’s academic program. The earlier installation on Building 101 in the Technology Park was not easily accessible to students. In contrast, the college designed the installation on Building 20 (also known as the health sciences building) as a demonstration project. Anyone can walk up to observe the system firsthand.

    What’s more, the Building 20 installation is hooked up to a Web-based data-acquisition system, which students can easily access to monitor the system and get readings on ambient temperature, power output, and accumulated energy. And because the system stores data for five years, students can compare output year over year.

    Rubenzahl said that, increasingly, individuals and institutions such as STCC that plan to go into building design and construction need to understand renewable energy systems.

    “We already have a program where we train technicians to install photovoltaic systems,” he said. “Now we’re looking at injecting components of this class into other programs in architecture and civil engineering.”

    Another benefit of the installation has to do with the local economy. Rubenzahl believes that green projects on campus increase the potential of renewable energy companies taking root in the region.

    “We think clean energy is a fertile area of economic development,” he said. “The more we do with it on campus, the more it helps us to build relationships and plant the seeds for new companies.”

    ‘Tinkertoy’ Installation

    Once STCC gathered approvals for its new photovoltaic installation, the rest was easy. Eric Ness, STCC’s vice president of campus facilities, called it a “Tinkertoy” installation.

    The 305-watt panels, made by SunPower Corp., arrived in boxes. Assembly essentially involved taking the panels out of the boxes and running the electrical cables.

    “We started setting up at the end of April, and I’ve never seen more than two to three workers on the roof at a time,” said Ness. “It was just a matter of bolting the things together and setting them out on the roof.”

    Silent and unobtrusive, solar panels produce clean energy. A panel contains an array of photovoltaic cells that use semiconductors to convert sunlight into direct current. The cells produce energy even on overcast days. An inverter, located in the basement of Building 20, converts direct current into alternating current to power lights, air conditioners, and other appliances.

    The STCC campus is an ideal place for photovoltaic installations, said Ness. Its natural elevation and tall buildings with flat roofs ensure the solar panels get plenty of sunlight.

    Meanwhile, the school picked Building 20 for its latest installation because the structure has a new roof. Solar panels have a 30-year lifespan, and users don’t want them going on an old roof that needs replacement in the near future.

    Compared to the previous Tech Park installation, which is fix-mounted to the roof with bolts, the newer installation on Building 20 simply sits on the roof without damaging the roof’s membrane. In fact, the school did not even need a building permit for the installation.

    More to Come

    With plenty of flat roofs on its campus, STCC has room for more photovoltaic installations down the road. At the same time, the school is tracking new developments in ground-powered arrays and arrays that concentrate sunlight with the use of parabolic mirrors.

    “A lot can be done in improving the efficiency of collecting light energy and transmitting it into electricity,” explained Ness.

    Until then, STCC is taking things one roof at a time.

    Taking Lessons from History

    By
    The principals at the Dowd Group, from left, Bob Gilbert, John Dowd, and David Griffin.
    Sections Supplements
    Dowd Agency Builds on a 110-year Legacy of Relationship Building
    The principals at the Dowd Group, from left, Bob Gilbert, John Dowd, and David Griffin.

    The principals at the Dowd Group, from left, Bob Gilbert, John Dowd, and David Griffin.

    In the front lobby of the offices of the Dowd Group in Holyoke hangs a framed copy of the citizenship papers of the company’s founder, James J. Dowd, circa 1871.

    There’s a portrait of Dowd on another wall, as well as some pictures of his descendents, subsequent presidents of the firm he started in 1898. In the conference room, there’s another portrait of Dowd, a few pictures depicting early 20th-century Holyoke (this company’s only corporate home), and a painting depicting the coastline of Ireland, from which the patriarch emigrated with the rest of his family in 1865.

    The walls are so decorated to convey history and continuity, two things those with the Dowd Group are quite proud of, said John E. Dowd, fourth-generation principal, specifically executive vice president, of the James J. Dowd & Sons Insurance Agency. But while the company likes to talk about its past, it’s certainly not living in it, he told BusinessWest.

    Indeed, the landscape in insurance has changed almost as dramatically as the scene in downtown Holyoke over the past century and a half, he explained, and the company has responded accordingly. It has expanded well beyond its Holyoke roots, with offices in Southampton and Amherst and clients across the Northeast and beyond, and it has diversified, with products now ranging from insurance to financial service to employee benefits. And it continues to be both innovative and entrepreneurial.

    The latest example is a venture called WestMass Professional Insurance LLC, a recently created company led internally by Dowd principal David Griffin that is, in effect, an insurance wholesaler specializing in helping smaller agencies bring more options to customers and thus remain viable in a highly competitive market.

    “We see this as a great opportunity for us to generate new business,” said Griffin, noting that WestMass was born as a way to co-broker the products sold by provider Promutual. But there are myriad opportunities for an agency like Dowd to serve smaller players in the market — with everything from insurance and financial services products to IT support — and the firm intends to take full advantage of them.

    Innovation coupled with strong customer service and solid relationship-building efforts have been the keys to Dowd’s growth over the years, said Bob Gilbert, president and treasurer, who came to the company in 1975 and has seen it grow from just over $1 million in sales then to more than $40 million now.

    “When asked how the company has achieved such growth, Gilbert, who joined it as a principal in 1975, said the formula is fairly straightforward, and the key is execution.

    “You hire good people, you train them well, and you know your product better than the competition,” he explained. “It’s comes down to knowing your business, paying attention to customers’ needs, and learning how to listen.”

    With his background in commercial sales, Gilbert has guided the company to what he called a 180-degree transformation, from an agency specializing in personal-lines products a quarter-century ago to one that now has 85% of its portfolio in the broad category of commercial work.

    Moving forward, he wants to build on the company’s legacy of relationship-building, and take that ability in new directions, thus spawning new and different opportunities.

    In this issue, BusinessWest looks at a company that is rich in history, and eager to write some new chapters to the story.

    Irish Eyes

    John Dowd says he enjoys talking about the company’s history, which is good, because there’s plenty of it, passed down by subsequent generations of the family. There are many singular events and circumstances, he told BusinessWest, which combined to give this agency its start — and to remain in business for more than a century.

    It all starts with Dowd’s great-great-grandfather, also named James Dowd, who, when hard times hit County Kerry Ireland in 1865, came to America with his wife and 14 children. It was one of those children, James, who would eventually create the firm, although insurance wasn’t his original career pursuit or passion.

    Instead, he started in retail (he bought the small grocery store he worked at) before becoming an assessor in Holyoke — the start of work in public service that included several terms in the state Legislature — and eventually board chairman. That was a post he lost when he and a colleague and eventual business partner, Jeremiah Keane, refused to bow to pressure from the mayor of the city and assign a modest assessment to the property of one of the mayor’s friends. In September 1898, they started Keane and Dowd, an insurance and real estate business, in Room 32 of the Ball Building, later known as the Holyoke National Bank Building.

    James Dowd’s son, James J. Dowd II, attended Holy Cross College, as many members of this family have over the past century or so, and played baseball there. A pitcher, he was good enough to earn a contract from the Cincinnati Reds for the then-lucrative amount of $2,200 a year.

    But a year later, in 1916, he gave up a promising career in baseball to take over the family business, then named James J. Dowd & Son after Keane left the firm to return to the assessor’s office following his father’s unexpected death.

    “My great-grandmother called him and told him he had a choice to make,” Dowd told BusinessWest. “She said, ‘you’ve got the agency your father started and worked hard to build or your professional career — what’s it going to be?’ Obviously, he chose to quit baseball.”

    Fast-forwarding through the company’s history somewhat, John Dowd said the company grew and prospered through the 20th century, moving several times (always staying in downtown Holyoke, though) to accommodate this growth, while successive generations of the family, as well as industry veterans such as Gilbert (in 1975) and Griffin (1998), have assumed leadership roles.

    In 1947, the third generation of the Dowd family, James Jr. (John’s uncle), joined the agency, followed by his brother, John (John’s father), a few years later. They took the helm in 1960 when James J. Dowd II passed away. In 1974, John’s father passed away unexpectedly, leaving the company in the hands of his uncle; his cousin, James Dowd III, who joined the agency that year; and, a few months later, Gilbert.

    By All Accounts

    He had been working for Aetna, essentially teaching independent agents (including those at Dowd) how to sell commercial products — workers comp, liability, property insurance, bonds, and more — when he was approached by James Dowd Jr. about joining the agency in a leadership role.

    “He offered me an opportunity I just couldn’t pass up,” he said, adding that, with his background in commercial products, the firm soon started gravitating in that direction.

    It has been an effective growth formula. “The opportunities to grow a business are there in commercial, because you can write a couple of commercial accounts, while it may take you 40 personal-lines accounts to reach the same number. And it takes a lot of time to gain 40 new accounts.”

    In the ’80s, the Dowd agency expanded geographically, first into Southampton with a venture now called the Dumont-Dowd Insurance Agency, and then into Amherst with the Cray-Down Insurance Agency. These ventures, along with the original Dowd agency and Dowd Financial Services, comprise the Dowd Group.

    Through its existence, the company has always thrived through its success in relationship-building, said Gilbert, noting that early relationships were mostly with families and businesses in Holyoke, and that, in latter years, they were defined by a much-wider geographic area and a much-broader range of businesses.

    It was relationships — those John Dowd forged when he was in college (St. Michael’s in Vermont, not Holy Cross) and later in Boston that helped the Dowd agency earn the business of Suffolk Downs in the ’80s and ’90s. Dowd remembers going to the track on many occasions. “I’d bring friends, we’d sit in the owner’s box and act like big wigs, while placing our $2 bets.”

    And it was similar relationships, as well as some effective bidding, that helped the agency gain a lucrative contract with the University of Mass-achusetts, one it kept for 15 years, to insure buildings at its then-three campuses.

    “We eventually lost that contract to politics,” said Gilbert, adding quickly that the company’s portfolio remains large and diverse, with clients ranging from the Eastern States Exposition to Sullivan Trucking to dozens of general contractors.

    The challenge at hand is to continually expand that portfolio.

    And as he talked about how to go about doing that, Gilbert returned to the matter of relationships, noting that the ability to maintain them and forge new ones is critical to continued growth in a region typically defined as a low-growth area, meaning one with little if any residential and commercial growth.

    Gaining larger market share in the insurance realm, as in banking, to a large degree, comes through customer service, finding ways to distinguish oneself, even when many of the products and services being offered are similar in nature, and finding new avenues for growth and revenue, he continued.

    Agents of Change

    One such avenue is WestMass Professional, a venture that grew out of the necessity for Promutual, a writer of medical and professional liability coverage, to secure what’s known as a co-broker to work with smaller agencies to renew existing policies and write new ones.

    That co-broker became WestMass Professional after roughly a year’s talks, said Griffin, adding that the new venture could lead to new and similar opportunities for co-brokering products, especially with changes in the automotive market from managed competition to open competition, in which consumers can effectively shop for lower rates.

    “In Massachusetts, 85% of the personal-lines business was being written by independent agents, but because we were in a non-competitive state, there wasn’t a lot of product you could sell, per se; all you were really selling was your services,” he explained. “We recognized very early on that there would be a lot of smaller agents that would be limited in their competitive ability because they represented only one or a few carriers, and there might be an opportunity to wholesale to some smaller agencies so they could expand the portfolio of carriers they could represent.

    “We broached this idea with our carriers first, to get their blessing,” he continued, adding that most of them gave it. And from there, the discussion of wholesaling certain products was expanded from personal lines to commercial products as well.

    Eventually, three ‘portals of opportunity,’ as Griffin called them, emerged from this wholesaling concept: medical and professional, personal lines, and commercial.

    Soon, other potential portals came into focus as those at Dowd anticipated other needs among smaller agencies. One such need is the ability to sell financial-services products — Dowd has a separate division that could make such products available — while another is for assistance with what Griffin called agency-management services, meaning everything from accounting to IT support — and Dowd has its own IT-support department.

    And there are more opportunities on the horizon, he continued, listing everything from help with succession planning, or selling or agency, to help understanding and then coping with new privacy-of-information laws that were originally slated to take effect May 1, have been pushed back, but will soon become reality.

    “These will impact an insurance operation in many ways,” said Griffin. “Our IT person is fully conversant on the law and how to come into compliance, and he’s knowledgeable on all aspects of the measure.”

    The sum of these portals is a large opportunity to create a large and reliable stream of new revenue, said Gilbert, adding that the business plan for these ventures is still in progress. Several agencies have been approached concerning these services, and at least five have signed on, with the potential for many more over the coming months. There is already limited competition in the wholesaling realm, and the possibility of much more, but those at Dowd believe they have an attractive model, one that leaves participating agencies with desired levels of flexibility and control.

    “With some models, you’re selling yourself to the devil, lock, stock, and barrel,” he explained. “Our approach is a little more hands-off, where you can use us in any of those disciplines that you want, but it isn’t a requirement that you use us for all of them.”

    Dowd agreed. “The agencies get to maintain their identity, or their sovereignty, if you will,” he said, adding that the arrangement entered is a true partnership, or relationship — there’s that word again — that benefits both parties.

    Overall, Gilbert said Dowd will continue to be imaginative and entrepreneurial in their approach to finding new business opportunities, personality traits that will be needed in a new era for the insurance industry, one defined by opportunities, but also heightened competition.

    Traditions — at a Premium

    When the Dowd agency turned 100 in 1998, the company marked the occasion in a number of ways. It printed a commemorative booklet telling the history, for example, and several members of the Dowd family paid homage to the founder at the Holyoke St. Patrick’s Day parade that year.

    “Several of us dressed up as Irish immigrants,” John Dowd recalled, adding that the plan was to get a horse and Irish trotting buggy and ride it down the parade route.

    But things didn’t go according to plan.

    It snowed heavily the night before the parade, and the owner of the horse to be rented for the day decided it was too dangerous to send the animal out on the slippery streets. So members of the Dowd family walked.

    “My three-year-old daughter cried for most of the three miles,” said Dowd, adding quickly that the march has become a small part of family lore.

    There is a great deal of history at Dowd — on the walls, in the family scrapbooks, and in decades worth of Holy Cross yearbooks. But while there is immense interest and pride in the past, this is an organization firmly focused on the present and the future.

    And on making some more history.

    George O’Brien can be reached at[email protected]

    Head Games

    By
    Dr. Ellen Deibert, center, pictured with two staffers of Berkshire Medical Center’s Comprehensive Brain Injury Program
    Sections Supplements
    Concussions and Other Brain Traumas Can Pose Serious Risks to Athletes
    Dr. Ellen Deibert, center, pictured with two staffers of Berkshire Medical Center’s Comprehensive Brain Injury Program

    Dr. Ellen Deibert, center, pictured with two staffers of Berkshire Medical Center’s Comprehensive Brain Injury Program

    For many parents, says Dr. Ellen Deibert, youth sports can be a headache.

    “We deal with a lot of kids out there who are active in sports. A lot of them play soccer year-round. I feel bad for their parents,” she said with a wry smile.

    As a neurologist who runs the Comprehensive Brain Injury Program at Berkshire Medical Center, however, Deibert knows that the real headaches occur on the field, when players’ heads collide with the ground, equipment, or other players.

    “Right now we’re taking care of a soccer kid with a fractured temple bone. You can get seriously hurt out there,” she said.

    According to the Journal of Sports Medicine, the medical community generally places the total number of sports-related traumatic brain injuries at about 300,000 per year nationally. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated this year that the actual number is likely between 1.6 million and 3.6 million, and most of these injuries are concussions.

    That speaks to the difficulty in diagnosing concussions, said Deibert; in fact, even if an athlete is taken to the hospital, there’s no way to scan for a concussion with any consistency.

    “With concussions, the scans are always normal, but the kids are not normal,” she explained. “We do know that in youth sports, recovery takes longer than in college or professional sports. Why, we don’t understand yet, but the data looks pretty solid, and from my experience, that seems to be true.

    “I have a snowboarder who got hurt early in 2008 who’s still coming around from a concussion,” she added. “Sometimes, you can get somebody with a concussion better in seven days, and someone else takes months recovering. It really depends on the situation — the forces applied to the brain, and what the kid’s history is.”

    Fortunately, “neurosurgeons as a group have really taken this seriously, both on the research side and the public-health side, in terms of campaigns to include helmets and head protection during athletic events,” said Dr. Kamal Kalia, a neurosurgeon with New England Neurosurgical Associates. “There are a lot of good papers out there regarding head injuries and athletes.”

    Specifically, he referred to the work of Drs. Julian Bailes and Robert Cantu, who released a landmark study on the topic in 2001, determining that about 9% of all injuries related to sports and recreational activities are head injuries. Actually, Kalia explained, the preferred term in neurosurgical circles these days is MBTI, or mild traumatic brain injury, which spells out with more clarity what a concussion actually does.

    A concussion, Kalia explained, is an immediate and temporary impairment in neural function, affecting vision, equilibrium, and other responses. But not every concussion is equal, and doctors grade them on a three-part scale.

    Grade 1 concussions, the mildest type, involve no loss of consciousness, but some confusion or alteration in mental status that clears within 15 minutes, with no long-term effects. Typically, an athlete may safely return to play during the same event. Grade 2 also features no loss of consciousness, but the effects last longer, and the athlete should be pulled out for at least that day. Grade 3 involves loss of consciousness, and these athletes should be transported for further evaluation, Kalia said.

    “These injuries can occur in football, soccer, skiing, equestrian sports, skateboarding, all sports,” Kalia said — and participants in many such activities don’t wear helmets. “Internationally, there are about 200 million soccer players. There is great risk for concussion related to that event.”

    The challenge is teaching coaches to recognize when it’s time to sit an athlete, and Kalia says most seem to take that evaluation seriously. “I think there has been a big effort to make sure they are aware.”

    Deep Impact

    Some efforts specifically target coach and trainer education around head trauma, such as the ImPACT program that Deibert oversees in the Berkshires.

    That acronym stands for Immediate Post-concussion Assessment and Cognitive Training, and it’s a tool to help coaches and trainers recognize when a player might have a brain injury, even when the outward signs aren’t obvious, and determine whether or not he or she may safely return to play.

    The key is the establishment, before the sports season even begins, of a baseline cognitive level for each player. Athletes are tested in short-term memory, attention span, reaction time, and other tasks to demonstrate what cognitive abilities they have off the field. Deibert has brought ImPACT into area schools at the start of each season, administering the baseline test to athletes and training coaches in recognizing when to sit a player or seek further medical attention.

    “One of the biggest concerns in coaching is being able to diagnose a concussion,” Deibert said, particularly in fast-moving, high-impact sports like football or ice hockey where violent collisions aren’t out of the ordinary.

    “I get very worried about ice hockey; I know those kids are getting hit, but we didn’t see a lot of ice-hockey players in the clinic this year,” she told The Healthcare News. “Some kids have said the coach held up three fingers, and they went back out on the ice. But a repeat concussion during the symptomatic period can be very dangerous.”

    Deibert is sympathetic to the challenges faced by coaches, who, after all, are not medical professionals. “Coaches have a lot to do; I get that,” she said. “They’re watching not just one kid, but a number of kids. But they need to take the time to evaluate kids. It’s not their job to diagnose how sick someone is, but whether they’re sick enough to be pulled out and seen by a professional. That way, the coach can’t get blamed for further injury.”

    Referring to the baseline results from ImPACT testing is important, she said, because many young athletes seem to ‘shake off’ symptoms easily — or simply desperately want to get back to the action — when a closer comparison with the baseline behaviors would belie that enthusiasm. “We know some kids can take a bad hit and clear, but in many cases, they shouldn’t be put back in until they’re seen by a professional.”

    Kalia cited the long-term damage incurred by many athletes who sustain repeated concussions. One condition common to boxers, characterized by Parkinson’s-like symptoms, even has an appropriate name: dementia pugilista.

    Other athletes have also served as living — and sometimes not — warnings to others. Andre Waters, a former defensive back with the Philadelphia Eagles, took his own life at age 44 a few years ago; doctors attributed his depression to head trauma that caused his brain to resemble that of an 85-year-old man.

    Former Patriots defensive lineman Ted Washington, whose brain shows dementia-like symptoms, has accused the team of having him run full-contact drills while in a concussed state. And many former football players, from quarterback Steve Young to running back Merril Hoge, have decided to leave the sport early after repeated concussions rather than risk further damage.

    Deibert ticked off a wide range of sports and recreational activities that could be considered high-risk for head injuries, from obvious choices like football and hockey to lacrosse, skiing and snowboarding, motocross, snowmobiling, even cheerleading.

    “Common sense says that any high-speed sport where kids are at risk of hitting another kid — or a pole, or the ski slope — that would be considered high risk for head trauma,” she explained.

    Although not every risky activity merits a helmet — some might imagine the gear out of place on cheerleaders, for example — Deibert leans toward extra caution in most cases, supporting helmets in sports such as soccer and lacrosse.

    “The thing about lacrosse is, girls do not wear helmets, and boys do,” she noted. “They tell me it has to do with the rules — girls are not supposed to carry their sticks as high — but that depends on how well-coached the team is and how well-refereed the game is. We get some serious lacrosse injuries in the clinic, as well as soccer.”

    Soccer brings a wide range of injury possibilities, she said, with the head prone to collide with the goalpost, another player’s head, or the ground. “When the ground is frozen, even natural grass can turn into hard turf when the cold weather arrives,” she said. “Soccer has developed headbands that some kids are wearing, but they haven’t been mandated by the U.S. Soccer Federation yet. I do think these kids need good training, good coaching, and good refereeing.”

    And that goes back the baseline tests and why they are so important, Deibert explained. “A lot of people think that, because their scans are OK, they’re OK,” she said. “We do scans not to look for concussions, but for things like fractures. Kids who have delayed functional outcomes, memory problems, things like that are picked up with ImPACT and other neuropsychological tests. That’s how you find out how sick a kid really is. People need to understand that they shouldn’t ignore their symptoms, but seek help.”

    Sudden Death

    In terms of sheer numbers of concussions, Kalia said, football leads the way among all sports, and the average number of deaths in the sport related to head injuries — roughly four per year — hasn’t changed in three decades. The danger used to be worse; not only has helmet design improved over the years, but starting in the 1970s, the NFL and NCAA instituted rules penalizing the use of the helmet in tackling, which has doubtless prevented many serious head and spinal injuries.

    Sometimes, the story is not one of long-term, sustained damage, but of a life snuffed out instantly, as in the case of actress Natasha Richardson, who recently suffered a head injury and died while skiing — without a helmet. But Kalia was quick to note that just wearing any helmet isn’t enough.

    “You have to choose the right helmet and make sure it fits properly,” Kalia said. “If you’re out on the slopes and 80% of your forehead is exposed, with your helmet resting like a beanie on your head, that’s not a properly fitting helmet.”

    Kalia recalled when he was a child, and kids rode bicycles helmet-free and wriggled freely across the back seat of the family automobile without a carseat — and that was considered normal. He prefers the caution of today’s world.

    “Maybe there’s some loss of freedom with all these things,” he said, “but then you see how devastating these injuries can be.”

    After all, freedom means little when you’re battling a severe head injury — or when you’re no longer alive to fight it.

    Joseph Bednar can be reached at

    [email protected]

    What’s Your Function?

    By
    Loren Isler-Wallander
    Sections Supplements
    What’s Your Function?
    Loren Isler-Wallander

    Loren Isler-Wallander uses an ultrasound device that employs heat to promote healing, one of the many modalities available to today’s physical therapists.

    Cathleen Bastible remembers the day several athletes from a local college wound up in Noble Hospital after practicing too long in the heat, and the day a local police academy made the same mistake. And, for that matter, the time she stood in the vault of a local bank, showing its employees how to properly carry heavy bags of coins.

    In her 14 years with Noble Hospital Sports and Rehabilitation Center, Bastible, the center’s executive director, has seen a wide range of injuries stemming not just from sports, but the hidden hazards of daily life — hidden, that is, until patients are made aware of their lifestyle mistakes.

    “We’ve seen an uptick in tendinitis due to the setup of people’s computer workstations, things like that,” she said. “We do a fair amount of education. Some people lift for a living, and we teach them about body mechanics. Or their chairs aren’t adjusted properly. There are so many daily tasks we’re doing wrong. And we’re passing it on to our kids — they’re using computers four times as much as we are. We could be raising a generation of people with wrist and arm problems, and I’m convinced we’ll all be deaf from wearing iPods.”

    The educational component is critical for everyone who comes through the door, said Bastible, whether it’s giving a pregnant woman exercises to help her manage back pain or showing athletes how to stay injury-free. It’s no coincidence that most sports-related visits occur early in the season, when players aren’t always properly conditioned. “We work with coaches on drills that help stave off problems.”

    “Neck and back injuries are the most common,” said Keith Riedy, one of Noble’s physical therapists, “but we also see a lot of joint replacements; knee, hip, and shoulder problems; tennis elbow; hand and wrist injuries; and we’re the only clinic in Westfield that has an occupational therapist.”

    True to its name, the center handles its share of sports injuries, including athletes from Westfield State College and the city’s public schools. But its services are far more extensive, encompassing gait deficits, or problems with walking, as well as balance issues, general weakness, recovery from strokes and amputations, Parkinson’s disease, and wheelchair evaluations, just to name a few.

    “Let’s say you hurt your back,” he said. “You’d have a comprehensive evaluation to determine whether you’d benefit from pain modalities, electrical stimulation, heat and ice, etc. The general focus is on flexibility, strength, and function, and our goal is to get you back to your previous level of function as soon as possible and resolve your pain. Typically, people are here 10 to 12 visits — two or three times a week, depending on the severity of the injury.”

    Riedy has been in the field 23 years and has seen technology advance, but he takes an old-fashioned approach when describing the core of physical therapy. “These are still the best tools,” he said, holding up both hands.

    For this issue, BusinessWest visits the rehabilitation center, located in downtown Westfield, for a look at how those hands — and generous doses of common sense — are helping patients reduce their pain and get back to daily life.

    Bringing It Home

    Loren Isler-Wallander, a physical therapist at the center, said the field has seen some dramatic changes over the years. “It was underutilized, and there was a time when maybe it was overutilized, but I think the relationship between physicians and physical therapists is growing, and they’re beginning to understand how they can work with us.”

    What that creates is a structured continuum of care between Noble Hospital, individual physicians, and outpatient rehab, he explained. And some of those patients are being referred with serious issues that have to be resolved faster than ever because insurers are paying for fewer sessions than in the past.

    That, again, is where the education component comes in; although a patient might go in for rehab twice a week, he’s given exercises and activities to incorporate throughout the week, and needs to be responsible for his own care, both during the rehab period and after.

    “It’s no longer a passive experience,” said Isler-Wallander. “It’s a much more collaborative partnership. I give people a lot of homework. If they’re here two days a week, those other five days they’re on their own, so they’d better be doing something.”

    That said, the staff at Noble Hospital Sports and Rehabilitation Center want patient visits to be as cheerful as possible, and the design of the center, open and well-lit, reflects the upbeat attitudes of the staff, said Riedy, most of whom have been with Noble for 15 years or more. “We try to keep it animated and light,” he told BusinessWest. “When people come in here, they’re in pain; we don’t treat just the pain, but the whole person. And laughter can be the best medicine.”

    Luis Amaral finds the environment infectious, too. In a practice boasting several veterans in the field with 20-plus years of experience, he’s is a relative newcomer, joining the center in 2002.

    “It’s been my experience with people I’ve worked with that most of us got into it because we had something wrong and had to go to physical therapy ourselves,” Amaral said. “With me, I happened to injure my knee.”

    After a few doctor visits had him in an immobilizing cast, he decided to give physical therapy a shot. “They gave me some exercises and some treatment, and within a few weeks, I felt much better. I thought, maybe there’s something to this stuff.”

    So much so that Amaral began looking at it as a career. He originally intended to be a physical therapist assistant, but went on to earn his master’s degree and become a full-fledged PT. Since then, physical therapists have required doctorate-level education; current PTs are grandfathered in, but Amaral went back to school to earn his doctorate anyway.

    “Basically, they’re trying to get you better faster,” he said of the additional education necessary today. “Over the past few years, the profession has become heavily into evidence-based practices, and a big part of that is being able to design and review research and studies and apply that to your practice.”

    Isler-Wallander agreed that rehabilitation has become a much more holistic practice as the profession has moved away from what he called a “seat-of-the-pants” approach and toward scientifically based treatments that consider the whole person.

    “Physical therapy has changed its focus from just going through exercises to focusing on people’s function and how they can get back to their daily lives,” he explained. “What’s important to them, and how can we get them back to that? It’s not just treating the wrist; can they pick up a coffee cup? It’s not just reducing pain in the knee; do they like to garden? Then let’s get them back to gardening. So not only is there a more scientific basis for what we do, but we work with referral doctors as a team to focus on these functional outcomes.”

    The reward, of course, comes when a patient has a breakthrough that leads to that restored function and quality of life.

    “I love seeing people get better,” said Riedy. “Not everyone gets better, of course, but if we treat 10 people and one or two get better, they make it all worthwhile. There are people who never thought they’d walk again, and they’re walking. With other people, we just want to make them more functional within their pain tolerance, and get them back doing some of the things they like, returning to work, sports, and leisure activities.”

    Even with the additional education necessary to enter the field these days, physical therapy and rehabilitation remains a hot career choice because the need is only expected to grow as Baby Boomers get older, Bastible said.

    “They’re expected to live longer and stay more active” than previous generations, she said. “They don’t want to slow down; they don’t see themselves that way.”

    And why should they, these therapists say, when so many tools — starting with those hands Riedy talked about — are available to them?

    “The best thing is when someone who hasn’t been able to get resolution somewhere else comes here, and you help them get better,” Amaral said. “This may sound selfish, but it makes you feel good to be able to do that, to hear someone say, ‘I don’t want to live like this,’ and then at least see them able to carry on with their lives. It’s a good feeling.”

    Joseph Bednar can be reached at

    [email protected]

    Is the Worst Over?

    By
    Bob Nakosteen
    Features
    Some Statistics Show Renewed Confidence, but Economists Urge Caution
    Bob Nakosteen

    Bob Nakosteen says he and others will know the economy is improving when employment figures start to climb.

    This past month, the Consumer Confidence Index reached a new high since the recession began. Some see this as a clear sign that the nation, and perhaps the region, have hit bottom with regard to the economy and that the recovery has begun. Area economists note the positive indicators, but say it may be too early to do any celebrating.

    According to reports from the Conference Board, its Consumer Confidence Index shows that in the month of May people were feeling better about the economy, with confidence reaching its highest levels since last September.

    In a public statement, Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said that “consumers are considerably less pessimistic than they were earlier this year, and expectations are that business conditions, the labor market, and incomes will improve in the coming months.

    “While confidence is still weak by historic standards,” she continued, “as far as consumers are concerned, the worst is now behind us.”

    But is the worst recession in decades now a subject confined to the past tense? Hardly, say two area economists, who say there is danger in putting too much emphasis on one statistic, especially one like consumer confidence, and predict that there are many difficult days still ahead.

    “I am unclear why consumer confidence has had such a large increase,” said Anita Dancs, a professor of Economics at Western New England College. “It doesn’t quite match what is actually going on with the economy.”

    Robert Nakosteen, professor of Economics at UMass Amherst, agreed. The Confidence Index numbers need to be taken in context, he told BusinessWest. “That figure was not a new high in any record sense. It’s the highest it’s been in over a year, but it rose to a very historically low level. So consumer confidence is important in that it’s not falling any more, but it’s not what I would call high.”

    Six months into the second calendar year of the recession and 100 days into President Obama’s stimulus, there are certainly some positive signs regarding the economy, but these positives must be juxtaposed against doldrums in house prices, the GDP, and other hard numbers. In this issue, BusinessWest takes a mid-year look at the state of affairs with the economy, and what experts project for the months to come.

    Jumping the Gun?

    Getting a read on what’s happening in the economy these days can feel more like trying to read tea leaves. The same week that the Conference Board published its Consumer Confidence Index, reports on the nation’s GDP showed a 5.7% decline in the first quarter of 2009, hot on the heels of a 6.3% decline at the end of last year. You could say that we are on a statistical seesaw.

    “I guess I would caution against getting too optimistic with a statistic like consumer confidence,” said Dancs, “just like I would point to the release recently from the Commerce Department, where the order for durable goods is up; it’s difficult to get overly optimistic, or, for that matter, pessimistic, over one particular piece of data.”

    However, one can’t completely disregard the psychology or emotions of the nation at large in such times.

    “Obviously, if consumer confidence is up,” she continued, “that’s incredibly important. If people feel good, and they feel that their own economic future looks positive, they’re going to spend more money.”

    But is this a situation of the bad just being not as bad?

    “What’s happened now is that the rate of descent has diminished to where we may not be descending much more at all, and we’re getting some of these confidence indicators,” said Nakosteen. “The stability that we’re beginning to feel is making people feel more comfortable about the future.

    “One of the interesting aspects of the Consumer Confidence Index,” he continued, “is that consumers feel negative about what is happening at the moment, but they feel good about the intermediate-term future. Any turnaround is going to wait, and true stability … well, it’s hard to see where the growth is going to come from.”

    So, is it too soon to take the champagne out of the fridge? While increased consumer confidence can translate into increased spending, thereby starting the ripple effect necessary to jump-start other sectors of the economy, is it realistic to think that perception can, in fact, become reality?

    “The stock market has rebounded,” said Nakosteen. “Maybe that’s why people are feeling good. But that could be a bear-market rally, and could turn around. There’s nothing really fundamental in the economy that’s going to lead to a quick turnaround.

    “The banks are still unhealthy,” he continued, “foreclosures are still increasing, and now they are creeping over to the prime borrowers, not just the subprime borrowers. The only sector of the economy that’s being active is the federal government, with its stimulus package. Even the state and local governments are being very deflationary in their behavior, because they have no money to spend.”

    Dancs agreed, and wondered out loud about what rising confidence will translate into with regard to a recovery. “Wages and salaries have been stagnating for a number of years now. And consumer debt has been increasing. People at the beginning of the 21st century felt wealthy because of the housing bubble, but there’s been a trillion dollars of wealth wiped away because of that bubble, and what we’re seeing when looking at housing prices is about $400 billion a month being further wiped out.

    “So at the same time that we look at consumer confidence,” she continued, “we say ‘people are feeling good, they’re going to spend money, and that’s going to create a demand for more goods and services, and stimulate the economy.’ But at the same time, people’s income and wealth situations don’t seem to underpin a whole lot of spending.”

    History Lesson

    Past economic downturns can give one a metric by which to measure current situations. Both economists agreed that there are many systems in place today to avoid any calamities that might have been alluded to by the doomsday soothsayers of the nightly news.

    “One of the problems in economics is that true understanding of what is happening right now doesn’t take place until a few months after right now, when we get firm data,” said Nakosteen. “We won’t know when we’ve reached the bottom until we are starting to ascend out of the trough.”

    However, he did say that there is a sign that the rate of descent is decelerating, and there are a lot of people who expect employment numbers to start improving. “Not necessarily that jobs will increase, but that layoffs will start to diminish,” he said. “We haven’t seen that yet, but this is what people anticipate.”

    Dancs mentioned the role of automatic stabilizers, systems such as unemployment insurance and FDIC security, as stopgap measures to prevent any precipitous skids. “That will always mitigate a recession,” she said.

    But this time around, the stakes are a bit different. The forces that sent the nation, and eventually the globe, into such a downward spiral make this a different playing field altogether.

    Dancs mentioned the tribulations of the American auto industry having a significant role in this recession. “I think that economists have tied one in 10 jobs in the economy to the auto industry, indirectly and directly,” she said.

    “I would say that a lot of what happens to Chrysler and General Motors … well, that’s going to mean a lot more people are going to get laid off,” she explained. “There were no auto layoffs in April, but the overall cumulative effect could have a major impact for the future.”

    Nakosteen pointed to the end of the housing bubble. “Consumers aren’t in a position to help bring this economy out of a recession. The recession of the early 1990s was a bit of a delayed reaction to the savings-and-loan debacle. The amount of debt in household balance sheets is so much more than it was 15 years ago, in the late ’80s, early ’90s, when households were saving something in the neighborhood of 10% of their gross incomes. That number over the course of time into the current decade went close to zero and in some cases into negative territory for awhile.

    “People aren’t saving anymore,” he continued, “and they are carrying a lot of debt. Credit cards, mortgages that in some cases which exceed the value of their homes … they just aren’t in a position financially or emotionally to bring their wallets out and start spending.”

    Ultimately, the early 1990s didn’t see a robust climb out of the recession, said Nakosteen. “That was a pretty anemic turnaround, just like this one is probably going to be. There was a rise in consumer spending that was then maintained throughout the ’90s. We may never really go back to the spending patterns of the ’90s or the first part of this decade. We may be, in a sense, in a long-term lower-consumption society.”

    When asked what signs will lead him to feel that the worst is indeed over, Nakosteen pointed to employment numbers. “The economy was going down long before the employment numbers started to deteriorate,” he explained. “The economy is going to start up before the employment rates will be getting better. So when layoffs come to a halt, and maybe we start to see some modest increases in employment, that’s going to be a very good sign.”

    Dancs hopes Americans use this time to begin questioning their own consumer confidence, as well as their spending and saving habits.

    “One question I have is, how much consumer debt are people willing to continue carrying?” she said. “What happened over the past few decades is that people started to carry a significant amount more debt. Another aspect of today, it will depend on people being willing to continue carrying high levels of consumer debt.

    “Consumption makes up 70% of the GDP,” she went on, “so when people feel good, they spend money.”

    Shifting focus, she asked, “is our economy moving in such a way that our country will have industries that are competitive in this century? Will we be able to keep up with other countries that are, to some extent, further along to developing the key industries of the century?”

    Elaborating, she said, “the recovery of 2001 potentially tells us something about the economy. While the recession ended in November and growth resumed, job losses continued well into the recovery, and it took until February 2005 to reach the employment levels prior to the recession. At the same time, there was little new non-residential investment in equipment and buildings, and consumer debt rose. It is really strange for consumer debt to rise during a recovery. People felt wealthy — in economics, we call this the ‘wealth effect’ — but that wealth was because of inflated housing prices, and has been subsequently erased.”

    Riding the Cycle

    Nakosteen made an emphatic point that, while he can’t say the worst is over, he does sense that real recovery may soon begin in earnest.

    “I should emphasize that this economy is inherently strong,” he said. “There are things that are going to turn the economy around, and the stimulus money is going to really start kicking in next year. Inventories in business have been cut down so low that, even to sustain that low-level business that we have now, they’re going to have to increase purchases. We have an inherently vibrant economy that’s going to eventually dig itself out of this situation.

    “There is an emotional business cycle just as clearly as there is an economic one,” he continued. “And it has very tangible effects. Much of the breathtaking and precipitous decline of the end of past year had to do with people’s emotions. Their emotions translated into spending patterns. I get so angry at the nightly news — I mean, I view what is happening out there with my own perspective, and then the nightly news comes on, and they make it seem like the end of the world. It just isn’t.”

    Of course, it’s not possible to think a single statistic might be the silver bullet necessary to bolster the economy on its own, but the message is there: people aren’t as afraid anymore. The waters are still uncharted, and anyone’s guess about the economy is just that — a guess.

    While the ascent might not be robust, let’s face it — these days, no bad news is good news.

    Opening the Gateway

    By
    Larry Martin
    Sections Supplements
    State Program Will Plant the Seeds for Green Energy Jobs — and Careers
    Larry Martin

    Larry Martin says the Gateway project is expected to lead to careers, not simply jobs.

    It’s called the Springfield-Holyoke ‘Gateway to Green Jobs’ initiative, a state-financed project that has a number of goals — from job creation to helping make the Commonwealth’s homes and business more energy-efficient. The program will fund training that will enable individuals to enter a number of relatively new occupations, from ‘energy auditor’ to ‘solar hot water heating system installer.’ But ultimately, the Gateway initiative wants to place people into careers, not merely jobs.

    Bill Ward calls it “low-hanging fruit.”

    That was his way of describing a Bay State initiative, funded by the Department of Energy and Environmental Affairs, that covers considerable ground in the areas of clean energy and workforce development, and holds great promise for creating some needed momentum in both realms.

    It’s called ‘Springfield-Holyoke Gateway to Green Jobs,” a name that doesn’t say it all, but comes very close, said Ward, executive director of the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County. ‘Gateway,’ in this case, has multiple connotations — it refers to the term ‘gateway cities,’ now being used by several state agencies to refer to older manufacturing centers in the Commonwealth that are struggling to find new economic identities; there are 11 of them, including Springfield and Holyoke. Meanwhile, the program provides an entry, or gateway, to employment for unemployed or underemployed individuals.

    And ‘green jobs,’ in this case, refers to a growing list of occupations that have arisen out of regional, national, and even international efforts to make homes and commercial buildings more energy-efficient, thus reducing society’s overall carbon footprint. These include ‘weatherization technician,’ ‘energy auditor,’ ‘window insulation customer service/sales representative,’ and even ‘solar hot water heating system installer.’ These would be considered mostly entry-level positions with fairly modest salaries, but they could lead to work higher up the ladder, said Ward.

    The Springfield-Holyoke endeavor is part of a $1 million statewide initiative that encompasses five separate projects, all involving Gateway cities. The local piece is the only one that involves a regional employment board, said Ward, and it will create 51 jobs in those areas described earlier, positions that area companies attempting to capitalize on the clean-energy movement report difficulty in filling.

    But there are possibly more and greater opportunities for the long term, said Ward, noting that the program may help spark interest in this emerging sector, one that would appear to have strong growth potential. In the meantime, Springfield Technical Community College is bidding to become a regional center for programs to train individuals to enter clean-energy occupations, a distinction that would provide more opportunities for the region.

    “There is a lot of talk about whether green energy is going to be an economic driver in this region,” said Ward. “There are a number of factors that will go into determining whether it will, especially the level of private investment in new products and technology. But government investment will also be critical. The potential is definitely there for this to be an important part of the local economy.”

    The term ‘low-hanging fruit’ refers to the relatively simple way in which this program will go about addressing need for qualified workers, said Ward, and also help in the broad efforts to make buildings more energy-efficient in the state’s older urban centers, where the need for such work is great. But the components of the project have the potential to bear more fruit down the road.

    In this issue, BusinessWest looks at the Gateway to Green Jobs program and how it addresses two of the state’s primary economic-development issues at the same time.

    Windows of Opportunity

    Larry Martin, Planning and Employer Services manager for the REB, said the training to be spawned by the Gateway program is employer-driven, and the need is apparently acute.

    This was revealed at a recent focus group, or roundtable discussion, staged in Hatfield that involved 20 area businesses already in or looking to break into the emerging clean-energy sector. The session, similar to others conducted for other industry groups, including health care and precision manufacturing, was designed to gain a consensus on workforce needs and how to address them, he told BusinessWest.

    “That consensus is that there is definitely going to be a need to expand the workforce in this clean-energy field for 2009, 2010, and moving forward from there,” said Martin. “Areas identified included weatherization, insulation, energy auditing, customer sales and service of products, some manufacturing — generally across the board.”

    The Gateway program emerged in part to meet the need for skilled workers, said Ward, and in some respects the Bay State is taking the lead in such endeavors. Other cities or regions have programs — Chicago, New York, and some areas of Texas have launched initiatives, for example — but the Springfield-Holyoke project has the potential to become an effective model.

    “This was a policy decision made by Gov. Patrick, and it arose out of the need to begin to address green-energy initiatives,” said Ward. “It was determined that one of the easiest, low-hanging-fruit ways of getting out of the blocks was to create jobs in the urban areas for low-income people to do entry-level jobs with some level of training.”

    Such jobs would involve work with energy audits, conducted to identify ways to become more energy-efficient, he continued, but also in the manufacturing and installation of new products and technologies.

    “So many of the older houses and apartments, as well as the Section 8 [subsidized] housing buildings, are not up to maximum efficiency by any stretch,” said Ward. “These are properties that can, and should, be modernized and upgraded.”

    And there would be significant return on investment from such initiatives, he continued, noting lower energy bills for individuals and businesses, and, overall, less reliance on fossil fuels.

    Elected officials have recognized the importance of such efforts, said Ward, and stimulus money should put more work in the pipeline. The challenge at hand is creation of a workforce that can handle such projects, and the Gateway initiative, described as a pilot program, addresses that concern, while also creating new career opportunities for several challenged constituencies.

    Powerful Arguments

    Indeed, Martin said the program will provide a pathway out of poverty for many individuals, and will do so by providing high-quality training in the occupations of solar-boiler installation, energy auditing, manufacturing of a new proprietary window-sealing product, and weatherization technician.

    This will be accomplished by creating career ladders and so-called “lattice-training structures,” said Martin, adding that the ultimate goal is to elevate the work of the occupation from a simple job to a career, one with multiple points of entry and that holds opportunities for several constituencies, including women, youths, minorities, non-English-speaking individuals, and economically disadvantaged candidates.

    Both Springfield and Holyoke have large populations of such individuals, said Ward, and the REB put both cities together its response to the state’s request for proposals regarding the grant money, a bid that was ultimately chosen.

    As with most REB initiatives, there were will be a number of players, or partners, in this initiative, said Martin.

    They include Holyoke Community College, which will handle project coordination; other educational institutions and training providers, in this case, HolyokeWorks, Springfield Technical Community College, and the Mass. Career Development Institute; Career Point and FutureWorks, the region’s two one-stop career centers, which will recruit potential candidates for the training; Nuestras Raices, a Holyoke-based community organization that will work to recruit young people for the youth component of the project, solar hot-water heating systems; and other groups such as as the Springfield and Holyoke housing authorities and YouthBuild programs in those two cities.

    Another set of partners will be the employers that will hire the individuals to be trained. These include the Alliance to Develop Power, Alteris Renewables, the Center for Ecological Technology, Co-op Power, Greendustry Park (a green-business incubator), Environmental Compliance Services Inc., and others.

    The Gateway project is expected to create more than 50 jobs over the next 16 months, including 12 weatherization technicians, 16 solar-boiler installers, eight window-treatment installers, five window-treatment assemblers, and one machinist. These positions will carry salaries averaging $12 or $13 per hour to start, but there will be opportunities to move up the ladder to better-paying jobs, such as energy auditor.

    “People can establish their own businesses or become engineers, for example,” said Martin. “There are places to go within this industry.”

    Clean Starts

    Summing up the Gateway program, Ward described it as a common-sense initiative that could address several important needs simultaneously — especially the desire to make the state more energy-efficient and creation of a workforce that can handle that assignment.

    If all goes as planned, the individuals who will eventually take part won’t have jobs, they’ll have careers, he told BusinessWest, meaning that this ambitious project will truly provide windows of opportunity — on a number of levels.

    George O’Brien can be reached at

    [email protected]

    By
    Departments

    Ten Points About:

    Obtaining Business Credit

    By GARY G. BRETON

    1. Create a ‘snapshot’ of your company at a specific point in time. This can usually be derived from your company’s most recent financial statements, which provide a lender with a detailed and comprehensive picture of your company’s current business operations and profitability.

    2. Have a well-defined business plan. This demonstrates that you have already wisely considered your company’s strategic growth and related financial projections.
    3. Remember that you are asking a prospective lender to effectively become a partner with your company. Having the foresight to undertake sound financial and business practices is essential to obtaining necessary credit and entering such a partnership.
    4. Consider self-promotion. Clearly demonstrating that your company has established a proven track record in a particular industry can provide immediate credibility.

    5. Consider what collateral security your company has to offer. Offering your prospective lender strong, easily valued, and easily accessible collateral is critical.

    6.Provide a solid and inclusive financing application package. Doing so can assure a fair and timely review of your request for financing.
    7. Shop around. Despite the current economic environment, lenders in the Northeast generally remain well-capitalized and are looking to extend credit to solid companies. Despite their more-critical and comprehensive view, the essential building blocks to obtain requested credit remain the same.
    8. Negotiate. Although there has been a tightening of credit availability nationwide, the interest rates currently being offered are generally quite favorable.
    9. Be reasonable. Be realistic as to both your company’s real financing needs and the terms of the credit facilities based on the current lending and market conditions.

    10. Ask for it! Many times business owners are reluctant to initiate a request for credit based on what they perceive are insurmountable obstacles, when in fact many obstacles may be satisfactorily addressed and overcome by working with a lender who can bring both creative and fiscally responsible alternatives to the table.

    Gary G. Breton, Esq. is a partner with Bacon Wilson, P.C., and a member of its Banking and Finance Department; (413) 781-0560;
    [email protected].

    By
    Departments

    ACCGS Annual Meeting

    June 11: The Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield Inc. (ACCGS) will hold its annual meeting at 11:30 a.m. at the Springfield Marriott, 1500 Main St. Sponsored by the Chamber Insurance Program and NewAlliance Bank, the luncheon will highlight the successes of the chamber over the past year and recognize officers and directors of the board. Additionally, Attorney Bill Rooney and Tony Goncalves will also be honored for receiving the 2009 ACCGS Richard J. Moriarty Citizen of the Year Award. Dress for Success will be honored as the Small Nonprofit Organization of the Year, and Junior Achievement will be honored as the Large Nonprofit Organization of the Year. Jeffrey Taylor, Founder of Monster.com, will give a keynote address, presenting “Motivating the Business Professional in a Declining Economy.” Reservations for the annual meeting cost $40 for members and $60 for non-members, and must be made in writing and in advance. Reservations may be made through Diane Swanson at [email protected], or online at www.myonlinechamber.com

    Wine & Microbrew Tasting

    June 12: Members of the Greater Easthampton Chamber of Commerce will host a Wine & Microbrew Tasting from 6 to 8 p.m. at One Cottage St., Easthampton. Proceeds raised from the event will benefit the chamber’s community programs. Organizers expect more than 50 wines and microbrews to be available for tasting, as well as fine food and a raffle. Tickets are $25 per person or $30 at the door. To purchase tickets, call the chamber office at (413) 527-9414 or visit www.easthamptonchamber.org.

    Trails for Nails

    June 13: After a long New England winter, celebrate the official start of the mountain-biking season by participating in the first-ever Trails for Nails, a 20-mile ride at Robinson State Park in Agawam. Whether you choose to register as a single rider or as a member of a team, this event will help raise much-needed funds for Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity. The ride features two 10-mile loops, crossing a wide variety of terrain, accommodating all skill levels. To register, riders must visit www.bikereg.com and type in ‘Trails for Nails’ in the search box. The cost to register is $45 per person through June 10. If space is available, riders will also be able to register the day of the event from 6:30 to 8 a.m.; however, there will be an additional $10 fee. Only the first 100 registrations will be accepted, so sign up early to guarantee your spot. Registered riders will receive a 2009 Trails for Nails T-shirt, a ‘swag bag,’ a water bottle, and lunch. In conjunction with the Trails for Nails ride, raffle tickets are available for a 2009 Specialized Rockhopper mountain bike, donated by Family Bike of Feeding Hills. Raffle tickets are $5 each. To purchase a ticket, contact Nicole at Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity, (413) 739-5503 or E-mail [email protected]. For more information about the Trails for Nails ride, contact Jason Tsitso at (413) 262-1257, or E-mail [email protected].

    Leadership Development & Teambuilding

    June 15: SkillPath Seminars will present a daylong conference titled “Leadership Development & Teambuilding” at the Holiday Inn, 711 Dwight St., Springfield. Workshops include: “Developing the Leader within You,” “30 Tips for Becoming an Inspired Leader,” “It All Starts with You … Discover Your Team Player Style,” and “Building a Team That’s a Reflection of You.” Also, “Leadership Mistakes You Don’t Have to Make,” “Light the Fire of Excellence in Your Team,” “Speak So Others Know How to Follow,” “Positive Feedback … the Fuel of High Performance,” “A Team Approach to Dealing with Unacceptable Behavior,” and “What Teams Really Need from Their Leaders.” The conference is targeted for managers, supervisors, team leaders, and team members who would like to learn skills to motivate, inspire, lead, and succeed. Enrollment fee is $199 per person or $189 each with four or more. For more information, call (800) 873-7545 or visit www.skillpath.com.

    By
    Departments

    The following bankruptcy petitions were recently filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Readers should confirm all information with the court.

    Amador, Manuuel
    69 Sanderson St.
    Springfield, MA 01107
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Antoine, Valarie D.
    87 Elliot St., Apt. 4B
    Springfield, MA 01105
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Badillo, Robert
    Hague-Badillo, Megan K.
    169 Conway St.
    Greenfield, MA 01301
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Beauvais, Aimee L.
    a/k/a Mominee, Aimee L.
    11 Saint John St.
    Palmer, MA 01069
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Beauvais, Scott A.
    11 Saint John St.
    Palmer, MA 01069
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Benson, Mercy B.
    656 Dalton Division Road
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Betts, Charles E.
    16 Leatherleaf Circle
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/07/09

    Bielinski, Robert M.
    57 Belvidere Ave.
    Feeding Hills, MA 01030
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Brassill, William V.
    165 Wheeler Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01118
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Briere, Dennis P.
    Briere, Jean M.
    61 John St.
    Chicopee, MA 01013
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Bristol, Seth A.
    7 Marshall St.
    Greenfield, MA 01301
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Brown, Douglas M.
    P.O. Box 715
    West Warren, MA 01092
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Burgos, Kimberly Ann
    3 Lovewell St.
    Ware, MA 01082
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/09/09

    Buteau, Robert F.
    140 Maple St.
    Agawam, MA 01001
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Cafe Koko Inc.
    Monette, Eugene Raymond
    111 Winchester Road
    Northfield, MA 01360
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Callahan, Rosemary D.
    10 Dorchester Ave.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Caloon, Thomas J.
    Caloon, Kathleen M.
    125 Bemis Ave.
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Camacho-Rivera, Carmen
    5E Westminster St.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Camilleri, Thomas J.
    155 Main Road
    Westhampton, MA 01027
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Cardaropoli, Nancy
    P.O. Box 854
    East Longmeadow, MA 01028
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Castellano, Lucy Elena
    147 Parallel St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Ciancotti, Anthony J.
    29 Dana St.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    College Tuition Landscaping
    Morrisino, Michael W.
    15 Anthony Dr.
    East Longmeadow, MA 01028
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Colon, Yadira
    573 State St., Apt. 40
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Cotto, Nicole R.
    71 Jonquil Dr.
    Springfield, MA 01119
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Cruz, Jorge
    Cruz, Nelly
    14 Parker St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Cuoco, John A.
    Cuoco, Josephine
    136 Pine Acre Road
    Springfield, MA 01129
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Cusson, Robin F.
    1447 Cape St.
    Williamsburg, MA 01096
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Cwiok, Kathleen E.
    2064 Main St.
    Three Rivers, MA 01080
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Dagenais, Joanna
    32 Sterling St
    Springfield, MA 01107
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    Dargie, Arthur P.
    Dargie, Sheila L.
    26 Kately Lane
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Davis, Penelope R.
    5 Meadowood Dr.
    South Deerfield, MA 01373
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/09/09

    Dodge, Bobby J.
    491 Franklin St. Ext.
    Agawam, MA 01001
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Dressel, Lee Ann
    16 Worcester St
    West Springfield, MA 01089
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/07/09

    Dymnicki, Eric S.
    Dymnicki, Natasha I.
    77 Sunrise Ter.
    Springfield, MA 01119
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Foreman, Jon C.
    401 Gaffney Road
    Oakham, MA 01068
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Francisco, Edgar L.
    18 Knollwood St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Garcia, Juan F.
    7 Upper Church St.
    West Springfield, MA 01089
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Garvey, Dawn Marie
    443 Wihton St.
    Springfield, MA 01118
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Gaspardi, Dianne C.
    a/k/a Marks, Dianne C.
    3 Myrtle St., Apt. B9
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Geib, Richard Vincent
    368 Houghton St.
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Gendron, Donna L.
    5 Applewood Lane
    South Hadley, MA 01075
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/07/09

    Goodyear, Mark Thomas
    Goodyear, Cindy Marie
    331 Tiffany St.
    Springfield, MA 01108
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/07/09

    Gravel, Jean B.
    45 West St.
    Greenfield, MA 01301
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Griffin, Alice J.
    15 Denette St., Apt. 1R
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Grise, Francis J.
    34 Margaret St.
    Monson, MA 01057
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Griswold, Gary W.
    9 Oak Lane
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Hadden, James J.
    Hadden, Jody A.
    12 First St.
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Hall, Jamie J.
    78 Mansfield St
    Springfield, MA 01108
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Hastie, Vera A.
    100 Brianna Lane
    Springfield, MA 01129
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Hatch, Carl N.
    Hatch, Carolyn G.
    12 Gale St.
    Feeding Hills, MA 01030
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Hebert, David B.
    Hebert, Constance R.
    478 Amostown Road
    West Springfield, MA 01089
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Hernandez, Fermin
    1831 Northampton St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Jedrzejczyk, Wieslaw
    Jedrzejczyk, Susan R.
    1150 Dunhamtown Road
    Brimfield, MA 01010
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Jones, Irving M.
    25 Dartmouth St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Joseph, Martha Y.
    33 Salem St., Apt. 2B
    Springfield, MA 01105
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Kelleher, Michael T.
    309 East Road
    P.O. Box 961
    Warren, MA 01083
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    Lamothe, Andrew
    145 Lancaster Ave.
    West Springfield, MA 01089
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Lapointe, Ramon G.
    Lapointe, Linda C.
    24 Charles St.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    		  

    Leighton, Stephanie
    a/k/a Winfield, Stephanie
    Leighton, Blake
    126 Union St., Unit 1015
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Lemaine, Dianne J.
    21 Adams St.
    Easthampton, MA 01027
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Letourneau, Alfred R.
    Letourneau, Valerie L.
    65 Pitroff Ave.
    South Hadley, MA 01075
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    Lincoln, Ann E.
    92 Commercial St.
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Lincoln, Sharon L.
    92 Commercial St.
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Lugo, Elizabeth
    a/k/a Garcia, Elizabeth
    337 Chestnut St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Matthews, Robert L.
    Matthews, Rachel E.
    a/k/a Vadnais, Rachel E.
    59 New Ludlow Road, Apt. 2C
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    Mattioli, Christopher D.
    Mattioli, Barbara A.
    47 Breakneck Road
    Sturbridge, MA 01566
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    McCormack, Thomas D.
    38 Hilltop Road
    Longmeadow, MA 01106
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/14/09

    McGregor, James
    28 Hamilton Circle
    Feeding Hills, MA 01030
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Medina, Danny S.
    Medina, Judy A.
    20 Baird Trace
    Springfield, MA 01118
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    Melendez, Brenda M.
    73 Phillipston Road
    Barre, MA 01005
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Mendez, Pedro J.
    Mendez, Carmen R.
    21 Bowers St.
    Apt. 309
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Montalban, Norma L.
    a/k/a Guerra, Norma L.
    64 Myrtle St., Apt. 21
    Indian Orchard, MA 01151
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Morf, David W.
    Morf, Mary West
    136 Dartmouth St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Moriarty, Lori Marie
    8 Noble St.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Morrison, Ralph Edmund
    Morrison, Sylvia
    768 Wheelwright Road
    Barre, MA 01005
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    New Leaf Consulting, LLC
    Ruppart, Randall Earl
    10 West St.
    South Deerfield, MA 01373
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Oliver, Lorna E.
    567 Dickinson St., Apt 2
    Springfield, MA 01108
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Oliveras, Jose L.
    P.O. Box 1365
    Holyoke, MA 01041
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Ottaviani, Stephen C.
    59 Fox Hill Road
    Springfield, MA 01118
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    P.C. Surplus
    Professional Properties
    Lynch, Chad T.
    20 Gerald St.
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Parent, Roger F.
    Parent, Teri L.
    70 Vienna Ave.
    Ludlow, MA 01056
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Peele, Shane Carson
    Peele, Dianna Lee
    86 Stafford Holland Road
    Wales, MA 01081
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Picard, Robert A.
    Picard, Kim M.
    16 Hillside Ter.
    Orange, MA 01364
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/11/09

    Pinkney, April M.
    a/k/a Jackson, April Michelle
    36 Manhattan St.
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Pou, Carmen M.
    319 Chestnut St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Prior, Theresa
    43 Derryfield Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01118
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Przypek, Mark J.
    Przypek, Robin L.
    117 Glazier Road
    Barre, MA 01005
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Pumarejo, Joel
    Pumarejo, Aurora
    1082 Plumtree Road
    Springfield, MA 01119
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Reeds Landing
    807 Wilbraham Road
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 11
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Rivera, Jesus
    Irizarry, Enid A.
    a/k/a Rivera, Enid A.
    104 Acrebrook Road
    Springfield, MA 01129
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Rivera, Jose M.
    Rivera, Julia
    156 Stuart St.
    Springfield, MA 01119
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Rivera, Vivian E.
    215 Cedar Swamp Road
    Monson, MA 01057
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Robbins, Kelly L.
    61 East Palmer Park Dr.
    Palmer, MA 01069
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Ruemmele, Ruben
    Valle, Raquel
    35 Converse St.
    Springfield, MA 01108
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Ryan, Gail Davis
    735 Memorial Dr., Lot 9
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Sadowsky, Joseph P.
    350 West St., Lot 17
    Ludlow, MA 01056
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Scordino, Vincent P.
    107 Colony Dr.
    East Longmeadow, MA 01028
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Seklecki, Joseph J.
    32 Wilson Ave.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Sheremeta, James P.
    141 Regal St.
    Springfield, MA 01118
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Sibley, Kenneth G.
    62 Elm St.
    East Longmeadow, MA 01028
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/07/09

    Smith, Joseph E.
    31 Price St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/01/09

    Spagnuolo, Judith A.
    42 Lombard Ave.
    East Longmeadow, MA 01028
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Springer, William H.
    Springer, Cynthia L.
    a/k/a Petri, Cynthia L.
    45 Willow St., Apt. 43
    Springfield, MA 01103
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Sprong, Constance A.
    1679 West Road
    Williamsburg, MA 01096
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/08/09

    Stribley, Lawrence C.
    Stribley, Laurie A.
    617 Leyden Road
    Greenfield, MA 01301
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Titenko, Sergey V.
    101 River Rd.
    West Springfield, MA 01089
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Torres, Reynaldo
    44 Worcester Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01107
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/13/09

    Vazquez, Gilberto
    Vazquez, Rosa
    69 Worcester Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01107
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/05/09

    Velazquez, Luz M.
    40 Edmund Wynne Circle
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/04/09

    Visneau, Lynne A.
    154 Victoria St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/15/09

    Vitali, Donald J.
    Vitali, Antoinette N.
    19 Elmwood Ave.
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    Warren, Garrett Andrew
    27 Trafalgar Sq.
    South Barre, MA 01704
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/06/09

    Wilson, Deborah Ann
    55 Oak Courts
    Greenfield, MA 01301
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 05/12/09

    By
    Departments

    Springfield Names Development Chief

    SPRINGFIELD — John Judge, a real-estate developer in Boston, has been named the city’s new chief development officer. He will succeed David Panagore, who left last fall to take a similar position in Hartford. Judge, 42, who was introduced by Mayor Domenic Sarno at a City Hall press conference, brings a varied résumé to his position. He’s president of Judge Co., a real estate development firm based in Boston, and previously served as director of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Boston. As he was introduced, Judge told the local press that “the challenges that Springfield is encountering right now are the challenges that America is encountering. Springfield can certainly be an incubator for innovation and ideas, an incubator in the lead, top of mind, if you will, for New England.”

    Poll: Local Firms Optimistic About Economic Recovery

    SPRINGFIELD — The recession has taken a toll on businesses across the country, and Hartford-Springfield firms are no exception: 83% report that the recession has had a direct negative effect on their business. To remain competitive, many businesses in the interstate region have postponed capital spending (48%), cut their workforce (45%), or initiated hiring or pay freezes (39%). Only a handful (9%) have raised prices. In fact, more businesses have lowered prices to boost demand, and almost half (49%) have increased marketing efforts to prepare for recovery when the economy bounces back. Those are some of the key findings in the 2009 Hartford-Springfield Regional Business Survey, released recently. Commissioned by the Hartford-Springfield Economic Partnership (HSEP), the survey was conducted by the Connecticut Business & Industry Assoc. (CBIA) and sponsored by Comcast Business Class and Kostin, Ruffkess & Co. It is a follow-up to the first survey in 2007. The survey finds that economic competitiveness, taxes, regulatory burdens, and the cost of doing business are high on Hartford-Springfield businesses’ list of concerns, while the region’s quality of life, educational institutions, and proximity to key markets rank high on the list of benefits. The majority (61%) of business leaders cited the cost of doing business as the single greatest barrier to their continued success in the Hartford-Springfield region. The sluggish economic climate overall ranked a distant second (18%), followed by the region’s demographics and skilled workforce shortage (14%). Somewhat encouraging is the fact that the proportion of businesses expecting to record a loss in 2007 and in 2009 has remained the same (23%); however, the share of businesses expecting to record a profit dropped precipitously from 71% in 2007 to a projected 41% in 2009. Perhaps the brightest news is that almost none of the businesses surveyed plan to shut down (2%). While 9% plan to sell their companies within the next five years, the vast majority (85%) expect to stay in business — and to stay in the Hartford-Springfield region. “Concerns expressed about the high costs of doing business are timely as state governments struggle with decreased revenue and flirt with increasing costs to compensate,” said Allan Blair, president and CEO of the Economic Development Council of Western Mass. “For our companies to grow when the economy improves, their costs must remain competitive. Fortunately, most businesses surveyed expect to successfully navigate these difficult times.”

    Pay Gap Between Public, Private Sectors Reaches New High

    WASHINGTON — The compensation gap between public- and private-sector employees continues to grow, according to recently released data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Overall total compensation for state and local workers in December 2008 was $39.25 per hour — $11.90, or 44%, more than in private business. A year earlier, the gap was $11.31. Public-employee benefits were 68% higher than private-sector workers — $13.38 an hour compared to $7.98. Annualized, that equates to $27,830 for the average government worker and $16,598 for the average employee in the private sector. Last year, the cost of public-sector benefits rose three times more than those in the private sector — up 69 cents for government workers and 23 cents for private-sector employees, according to the new report. The public-private wage gap has remained about the same since 2002, the report states, but for every $1-per-hour pay increase, public employees have received $1.17 in new benefits compared to 58 cents for private workers.

    Consumer Confidence Climbs in May

    SPRINGFIELD — The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index climbed 14.1 points in May, a much-larger jump than most analysts were expecting, bringing the confidence level to its highest mark — 54.9 — since last September (61.4). The gain was at least 10 points higher than economists were predicting, fueling speculation that the worst of the recession may indeed be over. Much of the improvement came from the expectations index, which measures shoppers’ outlook over the next six months. That barometer climbed to 72.3 from 51.0 in April. Consumers’ assessment of the present situation, however, was still weak, rising from 25.5 in April to 28.9 in May.

    Springfield’s Jobless Rate Falls

    SPRINGFIELD — A rise in seasonal hiring brought Springfield’s employment rate down from 8.7% in March to 8.2% in April, according to recently released statistics from the state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development. The decline mirrored a 0.4% decrease reported statewide (from 8.2% to 7.8%); however, the numbers are not quite double what they were a year ago (4.3% for the state and 4.7% for Springfield).

    Manpower Indentifies ‘Hardest-fill’ Positions

    MILWAUKEE — Engineers, nurses, and skilled/manual trades are among the nation’s most challenging positions to fill, according to survey findings released by Manpower Inc. “In the four years we have performed this research, the same positions appear on the list again and again,” said Jonas Prising, president of the Americas. “Despite the current economic instability and high unemployment, there are still skills that the U.S. workforce seems to lack.” The 10 hardest jobs to fill, as reported by U.S. employers for 2009, are engineers, nurses, skilled/manual trades, teachers, sales representatives, technicians, drivers, IT staff, laborers, and machinists/machine operators. Each of the 10 job categories on the 2009 list has appeared on the Hardest Jobs to Fill list in the past. Technicians, machinists/machine operators and sales representatives have been present all four years. Engineers, drivers, and laborers have appeared three out of four years, while nurses, teachers, skilled/manual trades, and IT staff have been present in two of the four years Manpower has performed the survey. Even with unemployment at or near record levels in many communities, Manpower’s research highlights the problem many employers are having finding individuals with the right combination of job-specific skills, experience, training, and soft skills. “It is becoming more clear that there is a talent disconnect,” said Melanie Holmes, vice president, World of Work Solutions for Manpower North America.

    Home Sales Increase in Springfield

    SPRINGFIELD — Home sales in Springfield surged in April compared to a year ago, bucking a statewide trend. A total of 90 homes were sold in Springfield in April, up 30.43% from the 69 sold in April 2008, according to figures released by the Warren Group. Year-to-date through April, there were 274 homes sold in Springfield, up 13.22% from the 242 sold in the first four months of 2008.

    By
    Departments

    Wireless Internet Access Coming to Peter Pan Fleet

    SPRINGFIELD — Peter Pan Bus Lines is becoming one of the first inter-city bus lines to have wireless Internet available to passengers through the installation of WiFi technology on its fleet. Peter Pan is in the process of installing the WiFi technology on 150 buses in its motorcoach fleet at a cost of around $75,000, not including Peter Pan’s labor to install the technology. WiFi allows local area networks (LANs) to be deployed without wires for electronic devices such as laptop computers. Wireless network adapters are now built into most laptops. WiFi has become widespread, and the addition of this technology into Peter Pan’s fleet will allow passengers to easily access the Internet while traveling. “We’re proud or our reputation for being on the leading edge of technology in the inter-city bus industry,” said Peter A. Picknelly, president of Peter Pan. “We were among the first in the bus industry to include video monitors on our motor coaches. Other technological advances such as a real-time monitoring system that records the speed and the operation of the vehicle by our operator and a GPS tracking system are routinely retrofitted into all of our coaches. Our goal is to continue to improve the traveling experience on Peter Pan and respond to customer needs and preferences. Passengers want to use laptop computers, accessing the Internet to do work or to check E-mail, and the installation of the WiFi wireless compatibility on our coaches gives Peter Pan an advantage over air travel or travel by auto. Our passengers have indicated they want Internet access, and we always move aggressively when it comes to adding technological advances ”

    Plotkin & Associates Launches New Web Site

    SPRINGFIELD — NAI Samuel D. Plotkin & Associates Inc. recently launched a new Web site. The site was redesigned with a new look and feel for increased ease of navigation. In addition to an enhanced design, the Web site offers detailed information on services, current company news, client testimonials, a blog, and several regional and local commercial real-estate resources. The site also displays its footprint of managing more than 1 million square feet of commercial real estate in downtown Springfield alone.

    Big Y Awards More Than $250,000 in Local Scholarships

    SPRINGFIELD — Big Y World Class Markets has selected more than 325 academically outstanding students from communities surrounding its stores to receive a total of over $250,000 in college scholarships for the 2009-10 academic year. Unlike most area scholarships, these awards are based on academic merit, regardless of financial need. With Big Y’s assistance, students from all over Massachusetts and Connecticut will be attending schools such as Columbia University, Elms College, Yale University, Brown University, Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, Princeton University, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute this fall. Top recipients were honored at a Scholarship Awards Ceremony held at the Big Y Store Support Center in Springfield in May. Big Y’s Scholarship Program reflects its longstanding commitment to education and is considered to be one of the most competitive in New England, with thousands of students applying each year. Since this program was founded in 1984, more than $2.2 million has been awarded to more than 3,000 students. “We are grateful to be in a position to fill a real need in the communities we serve by recognizing the hard work, dedication to excellence, and outstanding academic achievement of so many fine young men and women who are our neighbors in our marketing area,” said Donald H. D’Amour, Big Y chairman and CEO. “This exercise also serves as a humbling reminder to us all to continue to strive for excellence. My personal congratulations go out to all of our winners.” What also sets Big Y’s Scholarship program apart from others is that it is open to all customers and customers’ dependents as well as employees, and employees’ dependents. Awards are given to students in the categories of high school graduate, undergraduate, community college, graduate, and non-traditional. There is also a special category within the Big Y Scholarship program that honors dependents of the law-enforcement officers and firefighters who risk their lives every day to protect and serve local communities. This year, 17 scholarships have been awarded to dependents of police officers and firefighters.

    Florence Savings Bank Continues Strong Growth

    NORTHAMPTON — Florence Savings Bank recently released first-quarter results that indicate a continuation of the bank’s strong growth trend. FSB’s total assets on March 31 were $1.1 billion, up $46 million, or 4.3%, from the corresponding period last year. The asset growth was the result of continued growth in the bank’s loan portfolio. Total loans ended the quarter at $688 million, up $35.9 million, or 5.5%, from March 2008 levels. The loan growth was spurred by residential mortgage loans, which increased $24.8 million, or 5.8%, allowing FSB to remain the number-one mortgage lender in Hampshire County, and commercial loans that grew $14.6 million, or 10.4%, in the year-to-year comparison. Total deposits were $761.2 million at the end of March, up $41.3 million, or 5.7%, from March 2008 levels. This deposit growth was the result of the success of FSB’s Rewards Checking program, which accounted for $31.1 million of the deposit growth.

    Tighe & Bond Moves Up on List of Top Design Firms

    WESTFIELD — Tighe & Bond was recently ranked among the top 500 design firms in the nation, according to Engineering News-Record. The company ranked 335, up from 392 in 2008. Companies were ranked based on gross revenue reported in 2008 for providing services and products to domestic and international markets. Tighe & Bond provides engineering and environmental services to public and private clients in government, industry, health care, education, real estate, and power-utility markets.

    Hampden Bank Charitable Foundation Donates $5,000 to Gray House

    SPRINGFIELD — The Hampden Bank Charitable Foundation recently donated $5,000 to the Gray House. The Gray House is a small, neighborhood human-service agency located on Sheldon Street in the North End of Springfield. In 1984, the Gray House Agency opened to provide for the civic, social, and educational needs of the people in the neighborhood. The mandate of the original founders is that “the Gray House is a place where peace is lived and learned and hope is shared.” Dena Calvanese, executive director of the Gray House, said that “the support from the Hampden Bank Charitable Foundation means so much to us, especially the children we serve. We appreciate their generosity and belief in our work.” Hector F. Toledo, vice president of Hampden Bank, added, “when I visited the Gray House, I saw first-hand all the good work they do for the community, specifically the attention they give the children in the after-school program. Agencies like the Gray House need the support desperately, and we are proud to continue supporting them.”

    Bidwell ID Shares Success at CASE Awards

    NORTHAMPTON — Marketing agency Bidwell ID, working with Emma Willard School, won five gold circles of excellence for the school’s magazine, Emma, at the recent CASE awards. CASE, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education is a nonprofit education association and awards the circle of excellence annually to recognize accomplishments that have lasting impact and deliver exceptional results. Emma magazine won five gold awards in the following categories: excellence in design, magazine publishing improvement; best articles of the year; independent schools; independent-school magazines; and a grand gold for independent-school periodicals. The judges who presided over the overall excellence category called it “a magazine I could settle in with and spend a great deal of time” and said the magazine has “great concept and execution, and inspiring writing and design.” Out of all the awards Emma garnered the most notable is the grand gold for independent-school periodicals. This award is considered the equivalent to ‘best in show.’ Award-winning editor Rachel Morton of Morton Associates, along with Bidwell ID art director Lily Pereira, are responsible for the successful redesign of Emma.

    JMP Forges Partnership with Design Professionals

    WARE — JMP Environmental Consulting Inc. announced a new partnership with South Windsor, Conn.-based Design Professionals Inc. Together, the two companies offer land-development services to meet a wide range of client needs, including civil engineering, land surveying, GIS analysis, landscape architecture, due diligence/permitting, wetland science, aquatic-wildlife and fisheries science, stream restorations, and invasive-species control.

    By
    Departments

    The following is a compilation of recent lawsuits involving area businesses and organizations. These are strictly allegations that have yet to be proven in a court of law. Readers are advised to contact the parties listed, or the court, for more information concerning the individual claims.

    CHICOPEE DISTRICT COURT

    Gilbert & Sons Insulation Inc. v. O’Bear Construction Company Inc.
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods and services rendered: $2,763.18
    Filed: 4/06/09

    FRANKLIN SUPERIOR COURT

    James Starbuck v. Goly’s Garage Inc.
    Allegation: Negligent maintenance, inspection, and service of vehicle causing injuries: $50,000+
    Filed: 5/12/09

    Joanne E. Lobik v. The Inn at Centerville Corners
    Allegation: Negligence in property maintenance causing fall: $25,000+
    Filed: 5/12/09

    Wayne Saven & Lisa G. Elliot v. Rice Oil Company Inc. and Timothy S. Rice
    Allegation: Employer failed to pay plaintiffs all wages owed: $101,631.86
    Filed: 4/24/09

    GREENFIELD DISTRICT COURT

    Country Oil v. Douglas Trucking
    Allegation: Balance due on diesel-fuel deliveries: $5,985.60
    Filed: 4/08/09

    Country Oil v. Red Rose Motel
    Allegation: Balance due on diesel-fuel deliveries: $6,110.47
    Filed: 4/08/09

    HAMPDEN SUPERIOR COURT

    Bernadine Smith v. American International College and Kimberly A. Hudson
    Allegation: Breach of contract, false documents, and creation of a hostile learning environment: $3,075,000
    Filed: 3/31/09

    Jessica Beaudoin v. Six Flags New England Inc.
    Allegation: Assault occurring in Six Flags parking lot: $21,585.89
    Filed: 4/27/09

    New England Drywall Installers v. Mountain Road Estates, LLC and David Berry
    Allegation: Non-payment of labor, materials, services, and equipment: $9,600
    Filed: 4/06/09

    The Travelers Indemnity Co. as Subrogee of Richard’s Deli Restaurant Inc. v. Spartan Brake & Muffler
    Allegation: Negligence causing fire and water damage to restaurant: $535,619
    Filed: 4/09/09

    HAMPSHIRE SUPERIOR COURT

    Florence Savings Bank v. JKZ, Inc. d/b/a The Kitchen Table and John D. Zantouliadis
    Allegation: Non-payment and breach of loan agreement: $46,667.67
    Filed: 5/11/09

    John Menard v. Genie Industries Inc. and United Rentals Inc.
    Allegation: Product liability causing injuries: $100,000+
    Filed: 5/05/09

    HOLYOKE DISTRICT COURT

    Hadley Printing Company Inc. v. Sunshine Art Studio Inc.
    Allegation: Non-payment of printing services rendered: $4,929.75
    Filed: 3/30/09

    NORTHAMPTON DISTRICT COURT

    Heritage Surveys Inc. v. W. Kulig Inc.
    Allegation: Non-payment of surveying work performed: $5,260.67
    Filed: 4/13/09

    Kayon Corp. v. Country Comfort
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $6,124.30
    Filed: 4/13/09

    PALMER DISTRICT COURT

    Capital One Bank, N.A. v. Four Seasons Cleaning Services
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered and charged on a credit account: $7,854.71
    Filed: 5/07/09

    SPRINGFIELD DISTRICT COURT

    Cameron Painting Inc. v. Optimum Building & Inspection Corp.
    Allegation: Non-payment of materials and services rendered: $18,290
    Filed: 4/17/09

    Dedicated Distribution Inc. v. Medical Specialties Group, LLC
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $22,693.73
    Filed: 4/22/09

    GMAC v. Atwater Studios Inc.
    Allegation: Default on retail installment sales contract: $4,965.41
    Filed: 4/21/09

    Molta Florist Supply Inc. v. Carley’s Florist
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $11,785.52
    Filed: 4/17/09

    One Communications Corp. v. Chuck’s Sign Co.
    Allegation: Balance due for services rendered: $4,256.20
    Filed: 4/09/09

    United Rentals Inc. v. JW Masonry Inc.
    Allegation: Non-payment of materials, equipment, and services on a construction project: $24,968.88
    Filed: 4/14/09

    Worldwide Express v. Merchamp U.S.A. Inc.
    Allegation: Non-payment of shipping services: $3,459.82
    Filed: 4/16/09

    WESTFIELD DISTRICT COURT

    Lashco Tree Service, LLC v. Carr Landscaping, LLC
    Allegation: Non-payment of tree-removal services: $2,800
    Filed: 4/03/09

    By
    Departments

    The following Business Certificates and Trade Names were issued or renewed during the month of May 2009.

    AGAWAM

    Frankies One Stop
    62 Ramah Circle
    Giarfranco Scirocco

    Look Clean Commercial Services
    325 Adams St.
    Look Clean Commercial Services

    Mark’s Lawn & Gutter Service
    273 Leonard St.
    Mark Gravel

    Moses Plumbing & Heating
    86 Spearfarm Road
    Carl Moses

    Robins Cleaning Service
    28 South Park Terrace
    Robin Easter

    Sutton Place
    191 Maple St.
    Mary Thayer

    Via Kay
    16 Lancaster Dr.
    Larry Villalobos

    The Pink Elephant
    982 River Road
    Robert G. Webb

    CHICOPEE

    Czar Energy Solutions
    50 Buckley Blvd.
    Stacy Laverta

    Galecki Tree Service
    19 Ogden St.
    Julius Galecki

    The Spa @ Stony Brook
    477 Britton St.
    Sandra Ann Barnish

    EAST LONGMEADOW

    Coughlin Appraisers
    57 Pease Road
    Joseph Coughlin

    Civil Engineering Associates LLC
    77 Smith Ave.
    Jill Cafarelli

    Emporium Newstand
    444 Main St.
    Christine Goodwin

    Mini D’s Donuts
    31 Canterbury Circle
    Martin Alan Spalding

    GREENFIELD

    Asian Buffet of Greenfield Inc.
    254 Mohawk Trail
    Sung Fo Chan

    Underdown Fine Carpentry
    33 Phillips St.
    Peter C. Underdown

    HADLEY

    Fonzie’s Beer & Wine
    103 Russell St.
    Fredy Alvarado

    Foreign Auto Haus
    12 Russell St.
    Jeremy Ober

    The Benjamin Company
    2 Bay Road
    Paul J. Benjamin

    NORTHAMPTON

    Abba Motors
    30 North Maple St.
    Stephen Brackett

    B.A.M. Painting
    170 South St.
    Brendan McGarrett

    Citizens Investment Services
    228 King St.
    Xiomara Corral

    Eguza Media
    13 Munroe St.
    Michael Jackson

    Flying Flea
    156 Grove St.
    Alison Christina Kirk Plummer

    Lano H. Service & Consignment Plus Inc.
    50 Hatfield St.
    Gary Hurley

    Piper’s Hair Salon
    99 Market St.
    Piper A. Murphy

    Rose Hill Farm
    1367 Westhampton Road
    Rose Marie Damon

    Select GIS Services
    29 Pleasant St.
    James Thompson

    PALMER

    Begley Farm Stand
    101 Wilbraham St.
    Timothy S. Begley

    PTS Properties
    2004-B Caulkins Road
    Peter Baruffaldi

    Sweet Water Farm
    29 Barker St.
    George Foskia

    SOUTHWICK

    Balance Salon
    535 College Highway
    Susan C. Manolakis

    		  

    SPRINGFIELD

    Organic Vending
    219 Memorial Dr.
    Charles N. Brinkman

    Orthofix Spinal Implants
    90 Brookdale Dr.
    Raymond C. Kolls

    Prosperity Unlimited III
    65 Breckwood Blvd.
    Patricia A. Franklin

    Purdy
    670 Boston Road
    Louis E. Stelato

    Sahara & Sahara LLC
    32 Boston Road
    Mazhar Iqbal

    Six Corner Barber Shop
    296 Hancock St.
    John Miller

    Small Smiles Dental Center
    3756 Cooley St.
    Mareen E. George

    Spindle City Precious Metals
    1655 Boston Road
    Jeffrey Erik Niedbala

    Targeted Biostrategies
    106 Bellevue Ave.
    Merribeth Joy Morin

    The Garden Doctor
    28 Parker St.
    Randolph Conway Bray

    The Hudson Group
    571 Roosevelt Ave.
    Paul Hudson

    The Kingdom Connection
    20 Gunn Square
    Hasson A. Williams

    W.C. Customs and Performance
    560 St. James Ave.
    Willi Colon

    Worthy Mini Mart
    935 Worthington St.
    Zahoor Ul Haq

    WESTFIELD

    2 Main St. Games & Collectibles
    2 Main St.
    John Krok

    Andrew M. Farrar Painting & Wall Papering
    23 Western Circle
    Andrew M. Farrar

    Apple Valley Rental
    19 Fourth Ave.
    Jeanne Wing

    Brookside Auto
    231 Union St.
    John A. McCoubrey

    Clean Up & Construction Services
    9 Zephyr Dr.
    Terrence B. Pulley

    Grindstone Mountain Trucking Inc.
    121 Wyben Road
    Erik Loiko

    Igor’s Construction & Remodeling
    134 Little River Road
    Igor Kravchuk

    Living Water Swimming Pools
    53 Old County Road
    Kyle Miltimore

    Looks NU Power Wash
    288 Little River Road
    David Collier

    Physical Therapy Partners
    65 Springfield Road
    John E. Jury

    Traveling Rosaries Apostolate
    56 Grandview Dr.
    Linda N. Gerlip

    Volition is Desire
    136 Old Stage Road
    Jason Hyde

    WEST SPRINGFIELD

    AG Assembly Services Co.
    20 Gaskill Ave.
    Andrew P. Leete

    Ashley Arms Apartments
    131 Ashley Ave.
    Mary Thayer

    Fair Deal Auto Repairs
    130 Allston Ave.
    Valery Bilik

    L.A. Nails
    634 Kings Highway
    Ninh Luu

    Mr. Sealgood
    75 Church St.
    Scott W. Gage

    Specialized Counseling Services, LLC
    380 Union St.
    Daniel Pilachowski

    Sutton Place
    131 Ashley Ave.
    Mary Thayer

    Trade Mark Construction
    43 Robinson Road
    Travis McIntire

    By
    Departments

    200 for Tea

    On May 20, more than 200 women representing business, community, local government, health care, interfaith ministry, social welfare, and education gathered at the Colony Club in Springfield to sip fine teas in support of Square One and its early-education and intervention programming for children and families. This was the third year Square One has organized the event as a fund-raising effort to support the early education and care, parenting, school-age and family support services provided daily to 1,100 children and families throughout Hampden County. The event is critical to the organization’s ability to provide tuition assistance to families who are without the financial means to access early education and care for their children. Nearly 90% of Square One’s families, while employed, are earning just $15,000 a year or less. Clockwise, from above: from left, Carol Leary, president of Bay Path College, Judy Matt, director of the Spirit of Springfield, and Carla Sarno, first lady of Springfield; Kathy Cardinale, owner of Cardinale Design; some of the 200, most sporting festive hats, gather in the courtyard; from left, Kate Kane, managing director of Northwestern Mutual Financial Network’s Springfield office, Kim Lee, vice president of Advancement for Square One, and Donna Safford Fleury, with Vinson Associates.

    Learning Experience

    BusinessWest Editor George O’Brien goes over material with Melissa Ciolek, a 2009 graduate of Holyoke Catholic High School who recently ‘shadowed’ O’Brien and others at the magazine. Ciolek, who will be attending the University of Delaware this fall and has designs on a career in communications, spent several days with BusinessWest staff members, learning about everything from interviewing, writing, and editing to sales and marketing. She also spent several days shadowing managers and staff at ABC40.

    The Only Way to Travel

    Peter Pan Bus Lines is becoming one of the first inter-city bus lines to have wireless Internet available to passengers through the installation of WiFi technology on its fleet. The company is in the process of installing the WiFi technology on 150 buses in its motorcoach fleet at a cost of around $75,000, not including Peter Pan’s labor to install the technology. Seen here promoting the WiFi service is Bob Guistimbelli, Peter Pan’s most recent ‘3-million-mile, accident-free’ driver.

    Steps in the Right Direction

    Matt D’Amour of Big Y Foods cuts the ribbon at the start of the 2009 Pioneer Valley Start! Heart Walk. More than 700 walkers stepped up for the American Heart Assoc. by participating and raising more than $200,000 to fund research for heart disease and stroke. Pictured with D’Amour are members of the 2009 Executive Walk Committee: Evan Robinson, left, a stroke survivor and Dean of Pharmacy at Western New England College, and Carlos Martins, vice president of RiverBend Medical Group.

    OPINION

    By
    Opinion
    Why Manufacturing Still Matters

    On May 13, ‘Manufacturing Day in Holyoke,’ the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce, the mayor’s Industrial Advisory Committee, and Associated Industries of Massachusetts recognized nine local manufacturers, each more than 100 years old. This celebration is a reminder that manufacturing remains a pillar of our economy and a vital step on the ladder of social mobility.

    Manufacturing does matter — for Holyoke, for Massachusetts, and for the nation. Manufacturing is evolving, and despite fierce competition both domestically and abroad (and often a lack of appreciation by government at all levels), the state’s manufacturing sector is competitive, and in some sectors growing.

    The Mass. Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP) notes that Census Bureau figures reveal a startling change: for the first time in the state’s history, small manufacturing enterprises (SMEs) are employing more people than the larger firms of more than 500 employees. In 2002, manufacturing establishments operated by companies employing 500 or more had 167,433 employees in Massachusetts, while SMEs employed 162,917; by 2006, employment by larger manufacturers declined 24% to 127,364, while employment by SMEs declined by less than 10% to 147,816.

    The numbers of establishments tell the same story: large employers declined from 738 in 2002 to 624 in 2006, but SMEs remained steady at just under 7,000. As a recent report from Northeastern University, Staying Power: The Future of Manufacturing in Massachusetts, notes, “it is remarkable, given the situation facing manufacturing across the U.S., that Massachusetts still sustains a manufacturing base that employs nearly 300,000 people.”

    So much has public opinion lost sight of the contributions made by manufacturers, however, that few in government, education, or the population at large are aware that the manufacturing sector is the largest contributor to the Massachusetts Gross State Product (GSP). As the financial-services bubble deflates, we should understand that making products produces real wealth, and recognize that we still manufacture many things in the Bay State.

    In 2007, the manufacturing sector in Massachusetts contributed $42 billion to the GSP (13.7%), as compared to real estate, rental, leasing ($40 billion), professional and technical services ($35 billion), finance and insurance ($34 billion), and health care and services ($25 billion).

    Manufacturing, moreover, has a large multiplier effect, creating economic activity and jobs in other segments of the economy. Without manufacturing, the Massachusetts economy would be about 40% smaller, we would all be poorer, and many of us would be out of jobs — or out of the state.

    We all know about the problems of the automobile industry, and the current economic downturn has hit most industries hard, but some manufacturing sectors are actually growing in Massachusetts, including pharmaceuticals with 2008 gross sales of $5.9 billion, navigation measuring and control instruments at $8.8 billion, and medical equipment and supplies at $3.6 billion. And since 2001, there has been growth in several other sectors, including food manufacturing, beverages, plastics, and machinery.

    Massachusetts SMEs have remained vibrant and competitive although our state ranks in the bottom 10 in perceived economic climate, according to the Gallup Poll, and fourth-worst in cost of doing business, in the Milken Institute’s index.

    Some of our economic disadvantages are natural; many are self-imposed. To put Massachusetts in a position to generate new jobs when the current recession abates, lawmakers should review every single Massachusetts-only cost of doing business, law, or regulation. They should focus on advancing not only new industries and emerging technologies, but established ones as well. And they should shape policy to encourage graduation from research and development to full-scale manufacturing here in our state. Such an agenda will help ensure the Commonwealth’s economic future for all of our residents.

    Meanwhile, let’s tip our hats and congratulate the nine Holyoke manufacturers who have made it in Massachusetts for more than 100 years! v

    John Regan is executive vice president of government affairs at Associated Industries of Massachusetts, an employer association of 6,500 Bay State employers. Doris Ransford is president of the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce.

    If You’re Not Logged In, You’re Missing Out

    By
    Features
    Social Media Seminar Will Show How to Tap Online Tools

    Tom Lewis says that, while Facebook has definitely expanded beyond the college crowd that spawned it, far too many business owners still believe its usefulness — as well as its inherent value — is restricted to that narrow constituency.

    This is a mistake that could prove costly, said Lewis, president of Needlemine, a marketing consultancy specializing in search engine optimization of Web site content and cost-per-click/AdWords management strategy, and especially if one’s competition fully understands how beneficial and cost-effective the free-access social-networking Web site can be in getting a company’s message across.

    “How can any business owner say that he or she doesn’t need a place where about 200 million people are actively using it and could come across that business in some way?” he said. “Whether you’re a regional business or an online business, there’s a lot of value there; it provides a forum for you to interact with your customers, it offers a community space for your own employees to communicate with each other and your customers, and the fact that it’s free is what’s so fascinating about it.”

    This is a message that Lewis has spent considerable time before the microphone trying to spread, and he’ll be back at it June 5 as one of several experts who will be sharing their knowledge of social media and how those in business can use it at a program called “Online Impact: Tapping Twitter, Facebook & Other Online Tools to Grow Your Business.”

    Sponored by BusinessWest and host of other businesses and organizations, the how-to seminar will be staged at the Technology Park at Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) from 8 a.m. to noon.

    Those presenting the program are taking the view that, while most in the audience will walk in knowing something about the social-networking sites being discussed, they generally won’t know enough about how to fully tap their vast potential, explained Gordon Snyder, director of the National Center for Informational and Communications Technology at STCC, and another of the seminar’s presenters.

    By the time they leave, they’ll know much more, he told BusinessWest, and will hopefully be inspired to continue the learning process.

    Snyder said he can attest to the benefits of incorporating social-media tools into an organization’s pre-established advertising and marketing methods. He told BusinessWest that tools like Twitter have allowed him and his colleagues to inexpensively inform the public about what they’re doing on a real-time basis. The use of these sites has also allowed the center and STCC as a whole to build a strong online reputation, and has made retrieving information about the school a quick and easy task.

    “Twitter for Business” is the title of the breakout session Snyder will lead. It is one of many, and others include: “Leveraging LinkedIn for Business,” led by Ann Latham, president of Uncommon Clarity; “YouTube for Business,” led by Dave Sweeney of the Communications Department; “This Business Sucks! — Enhancing your Business Reputation Online,” led by John Garvey, president of Garvey Communications Associates; “Facebook for Business,” led by Lewis; and “Online Advertising for Local Businesses,” led by Mary Fallon of Garvey Communications.

    The seminar will begin with a panel discussion addressing the impact that social networking has had on the Internet. Contributing panelists will include Snyder, Veronica Cintron of WWLP 22 News, and Garvey.

    For the duration of the event there will be a help desk available to assist attendees in getting online during the breakout sessions, and PCs will also be available for attendees to do their own exploring.

    The reality that business owners have to face is that these sites are not going to simply disappear and melt into the technological woodwork, said Lewis. Advertising, marketing, and networking through these Web sites may very well be the future of business, and it’s important for business owners not to get left behind.

    It is Snyder’s hope that the seminar will aid attendees in learning about social-media tools and how to use them in a way that will be most beneficial to their business or organization. After all, technology is only going to continue to grow, and there’s no better time than now for businesses to gain their technological footing.

    The cost to attend the seminar is $45, with all proceeds going to the Regional Technology Corp. To register, contact Suzanne Parker at (413) 755-1301 or at[email protected].

    The seminar is being sponsored by BusinessWest, the Communications Department, Garvey Communications, STCC, NCICT, Needlemine, Uncommon Clarity, and WWLP 22 News.

    Lean and Green

    By
    From left, Patricia Titcomb, executive assistant at Aero Fastener; James Avery; Kevin Donovan; and Michael Byrnes outside the new facility.
    Sections Supplements
    O’Leary Group Respects the Past While Tackling New Trends
    From left, Patricia Titcomb, executive assistant at Aero Fastener; James Avery; Kevin Donovan; and Michael Byrnes outside the new facility.

    From left, Patricia Titcomb, executive assistant at Aero Fastener; James Avery; Kevin Donovan; and Michael Byrnes outside the new facility.

    Horizon Solutions has offices across the Northeast, “from Bangor to Buffalo,” as Rob Barcome put it.

    So the company decided that Holyoke would be ideal for a central location that will serve as a training mecca for the electrical/industrial distributor.

    “It’s a place where we can train our customers, employees, and vendors on site, with some corporate personnel in another portion of the building,” said Barcome, the company’s purchasing and inventory control manager. The building, now being completed by the O’Leary Group, will house 50 employees and feature a demonstration lab and remote meeting capabilities, among other features.

    “O’Leary was able to be accommodating to us, giving us suggestions as to what would look good and not look good, responding to our changing needs,” Barcome said. “Seeing something on paper come to fruition was easy.”

    That’s the goal of every project O’Leary takes on, said Michael Byrnes, general manager of the Easthampton-based general contractor, which came under new ownership last year but continues to emphasize its reputation as a one-stop shop for design, construction, and maintenance.

    “Design-build is simply a process where the builder is the designer, and you’re able to take it from paper to brick and mortar with any changes in between,” said Kevin Donovan, O’Leary’s director of sales. “It’s a streamlined process because all the different services are in-house.”

    “That made it easy for us when we needed changes,” Barcome said. “It wasn’t a complicated process; we just got on the phone and made the changes that were necessary.”

    The project didn’t happen overnight, Byrnes explained, noting that the company first contacted O’Leary in September 2007.

    One holdup was obtaining the property, said Barcome. Once the Kelly Way site came on the market last July, Horizon Solutions bought it, and the project design began the following month. Construction started in January, and despite a series of weather-related obstacles stemming from an unpredictable winter, the building is set to open for business in June.

    “Because we can design something and build it, we know what it costs; we know what the rough budget is going to be,” said Donovan. “We do a lot of feasibility up front, and we can make changes without taking the project back to the drawing board two or three months into the process.”

    In this issue, BusinessWest takes a look at two recent O’Leary projects, why the company’s use of pre-engineered materials saves money and time, and why it’s important to stay ahead of construction trends — including an increasing focus on ‘green’ building — in order to stay competitive in a shifting marketplace.

    Under One Roof

    In 2008, ownership of the O’Leary Group changed hands, when the company was purchased by a team of three investors. “All of them have considerable construction background of 25-plus years,” Donovan said. “They basically wanted the company to do the same things it had been doing since 1955 under prior ownership.”

    That means a heavy emphasis on design-build, which essentially brings the design and construction of a project under one roof, and is becoming a more popular model in the industry for several reasons, said Byrnes, from the cost-consciousness rising from the slow economy to a tendency for customers to demand projects completed faster than ever before.

    “The nice part about the building process is, when customers like Rob come to us, we can tailor the project to meet their exact needs, and it allows flexibility for revisions during the process as a customer further defines their actual building needs,” he added. “The other thing it does is, it allows for cost control along the way, which is obviously critical in this business environment.”

    Although O’Leary can tackle any type of building, said Donovan, 95% of its projects use pre-engineered metal frameworks manufactured under the Butler name, which provides not only strength but flexibility of design and efficiency during the construction process.

    “Butler has been involved with pre-engineered building systems since post-World War II, and they’ve developed an attractive product line that’s one of the best in the pre-engineered building market,” said Byrnes, ticking off a series of benefits to property owners, from lengthy roof warrantees to state-of-the-art finishes and exterior wall treatments. “They maintain their durability over the years. We’ve got buildings still functioning well that were built in 1957.”

    “The ease of construction means more flexibility than other buildings,” Donovan added. “A pre-engineered building doesn’t have to be a metal-sided building. It can have any finish you want on the outside, from clapboard to a log-cabin look.”

    The fact that pre-engineered components arrive at the site already punched not only saves time, said Byrnes, but it ensures that every piece will have the necessary plumbness and squareness, which eliminates waste. “Because of that, you can move more quickly than with traditional welded buildings.”

    To James Avery, however, none of that mattered as much as timing.

    “The specifics of the building weren’t the key to the project; getting it built on time and on budget was,” said Avery, owner of Aero Fastener Co., an aerospace-industry distributor, which opened its new site in Westfield in mid-February — a date that was set in stone when the construction project began last summer.

    “We could not be without an approved site; all our qualifications have to be in line for us to ship our parts,” he explained. “For us to miss the completion date by a week would cost Aero $300,000. So we needed a commitment to getting the building done on time. That was an essential ingredient in picking O’Leary. And we were successful; we were operational within five business days of moving in.”

    Avery had worked with O’Leary’s previous ownership on a massive remodeling of another property, increasing its size from 10,000 to 25,000 square feet, and his recent experience was equally smooth. One of the key factors, he said, was the fact that the company’s final price hardly moved from the bid price, as it tends to do with many projects. “Other people lowball you at first,” he said.

    Byrnes said that consistency in pricing speaks to the nature of pre-engineered structures; it’s easier to anticipate changes using the Butler system, which means fewer surprises for clients.

    “Because of what they know about the business, it was an easy bid process,” said Avery. “They didn’t come back with any excuses.”

    Going Green

    Byrnes said the O’Leary Group also boasts an extensive service department to maintain buildings it has erected.

    “We’ve been constructing buildings since 1957,” he said, “and as customers’ building needs evolve and change, we provide ongoing services and products they need to maintain the function and appearance of their building.”

    And priorities in the industry are changing all the time, perhaps most notably in a growing emphasis on green building, which considers the overall environmental impact and energy efficiency of a structure.

    The Horizon Solutions building boasts several green features, including extra insulation to reduce heating costs; a white, reflective roof that keeps the structure cool during the summer and holds air-conditioning costs down; and sensory lights in many areas that automatically switch off when a room isn’t occupied.

    “Green seems to be the trend; a lot of people are asking for it, given fuel costs and operating costs,” Byrnes said, noting that all construction companies have to stay up to date on this trend. In fact, every green feature earns a company points with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System. And LEED isn’t only concerned with construction processes; it also promotes healthy lifestyles, which is why bike racks, vending machines that carry healthy snacks, and building locations along bus routes all earn points as well.

    But despite shifting trends, some priorities are timeless — and cost and speed are certainly among them.

    “Our bank told us that we should budget 10% to 15% worth of overages, and we came in at 4%,” said Avery of his Aero Fasteners project. “That was important to them because they didn’t want the mortgage to increase very much. In the end, we paid for the overruns with self-funding.

    “In today’s market, you can’t have surprises,” he added. “It’s important to know that the costs are going to be fixed.”

    Because green is important in more ways than one.

    Joseph Bednar can be reached at

    [email protected]

    Planning Ahead

    By
    Sections Supplements
    How to Save Your Nest Egg From Nursing-home Costs

    You have spent the majority of your life working and building your nest egg so that your retirement will be well-funded. Unfortunately, retirement comes at a time when the possibility of catastrophic illness is more likely.

    Of all Americans age 65 or older, approximately 43% will enter a nursing home during their lifetime. Given that the average yearly cost of nursing home care is $90,000, and that the average stay will last two and a half years, planning for long-term-care costs is crucial, as these costs will deplete your nest egg at an alarming rate. Planning ahead, which is planning several years prior to nursing-home admission, will mean the difference between spending your nest egg to finance your care and preserving your nest egg for your family.

    Long-term nursing-home care is not paid for by Medicare or Medicare supplemental insurance. While Medicare may provide benefits for a short time period, once Medicare benefits end, the nursing-home resident must find another source of payment. Medicaid benefits are available to help pay for nursing-home care, but they are available only after eligibility requirements, which include strict asset limits, have been met.

    Recent changes in Medicaid law have significantly reduced last-minute asset-protection opportunities. While there are still a few beneficial options available if you fail to plan ahead, they apply only in very specific situations and are much less fruitful than plans completed several years in advance. The only surefire way to maximize the assets protected for your family is to begin planning at least five years prior to a nursing-home admission.

    Obtaining long-term-care insurance can alleviate the draining of assets and provide increased financial stability. Most long-term-care insurance policies will pay for long-term nursing-home care, although some pay benefits only for home care. Benefits are paid according to what is specified in the contract purchased.

    A wide range of policies is available, including unique combinations of benefits and pricing structures. For example, some policies will pay for nursing-home, assisted-living, or home-health-care expenses, thus increasing one’s long-term care options.

    Some policies provide that, if long-term care benefits are not used, the premium may be refunded as a death benefit. In order to purchase long-term-care insurance, you must be insurable, which means that you must not have a health condition that would prevent the insurance company from providing you with insurance.

    Assuming you do not purchase long-term-care insurance or that you are already uninsurable, you should consider purchasing assets that will not count toward the asset limit for Medicaid benefits. Non-countable assets presently include an irrevocably prepaid funeral, a burial account of no more than $1,500, a minimal amount of life insurance, a car, and, in some cases, a home. The payment of outstanding debts, such as a mortgage or credit-card balances, can also be beneficial in some cases.

    Assuming that five years will pass before your admission to a nursing home, a gifting plan may be considered. When applying for Medicaid benefits, the Division of Medical Assistance will look at the five-year period immediately preceding the application to determine if you made any gifts. If gifts are found within this time period, a penalty period will be assessed, during which time the division will not pay any Medicaid benefits on your behalf. If at least five years and one day have passed since the date of the gift, under the current rules, the gift will not need to be reported when applying for benefits. Hence, no penalty period will be assessed.

    A gifting plan may consist of outright gifting to your beneficiaries, usually your children, or to an irrevocable trust that can continue to provide you with income until you pass away. There is danger involved in gifting, as you may be admitted to the nursing home prior to the expiration of the five-year-and-one-day period. You must plan for this possibility before beginning any gifting.

    As opposed to a gifting plan, if you are presently being cared for by one of your children, you might consider establishing a paid-care agreement with your child. Rather than gifting assets, you pay your child for the care provided to you according to the terms of the agreement. As you pay for care, you are spending down your assets to purchase the services, as opposed to gifting the assets, and you are also benefiting your child by providing him or her with additional income. These agreements must be reasonable and fair to you and your caregiving child.

    The planning strategies mentioned in this article are extremely complex and contain various benefits and detriments. Should you wish to determine which strategy, if any, is best for your situation, it is highly recommended that you seek the advice of your elder-law attorney before you take any further steps. Do so now to avoid paying later. n

    Gina M. Barry is a partner with the law firm of Bacon Wilson, P.C. She is a member of the National Assoc. of Elder Law Attorneys, the Estate Planning Council, and the Western Mass. Elder Care Professionals Assoc. She concentrates her practice in the areas of estate and asset-protection planning, probate administration and litigation, guardianships, conservatorships, and residential real estate; (413) 781-0560;[email protected].

    Back in the Q

    By
    The Qteros management team, from left: Jon Gorham, Steve Rogers, Sarad Parekh, Bill Frey, Sarah Matthews, Jeff Housthor, and Jef Sharp.
    Features
    Ethanol Pioneer Qteros Has Designs on a Strong Western Mass. Presence
    The Qteros management team, from left: Jon Gorham, Steve Rogers, Sarad Parekh, Bill Frey, Sarah Matthews, Jeff Housthor, and Jef Sharp.

    The Qteros management team, from left: Jon Gorham, Steve Rogers, Sarad Parekh, Bill Frey, Sarah Matthews, Jeff Housthor, and Jef Sharp.

    As area business writers and economic-development leaders were compiling their top stories of 2008 last December, one near the top of that list was the apparent loss of a green-energy venture called Qteros, which was working with something called the ‘Q microbe’ to revolutionize ethanol production, to the Worcester area. But while the company’s headquarters has in fact moved, Qteros still has plans for a big presence in Western Mass., with a pilot plant it wants to develop in Indian Orchard. The talk now is that Qteros isn’t a loss; instead, it’s a potential spark for clean-energy-sector growth.

    t was only a few months ago that Qteros, the company formerly known as Sun Ethanol, was also referred to as the ‘one that got away.’

    It earned that distinction after company leaders announced last December that the venture, created to take the so-called ‘Q microbe’ and use it to revolutionize production of ethanol, would be moving its headquarters from Hadley to the Worcester area. Many area economic-development leaders referred to that announcement as a sad day for the region.

    But now, Qteros isn’t simply the one that didn’t get away, it’s also the one that could produce a spark with regard to efforts to create ‘green,’ or clean-energy, jobs in the region.

    “We’re Western Mass. people,” Qteros co-founder Jef Sharp told BusinessWest recently. “The company was founded in Western Mass., the technology came from the Quabbin and UMass Amherst, and we still work closely with the university on sponsored research. We live in this area, and we want the pilot facility to be within driving distance to our Marlborough lab.”

    This sudden and dramatic change in fortunes and presence within the community came into focus last month, when the leadership team at Qteros announced their intentions to create a multi-million-dollar pilot facility in Indian Orchard at the sprawling Solutia complex. During and after that press event, attention shifted to the massive potential such a development would have in terms of giving the region some cache as it attempts to become a center for clean-energy jobs.

    Indeed, Qteros isn’t alone in looking to the Springfield area as a home base for pioneering technologies. Mayor Domenic Sarno has a commitment to his city becoming a hub for green industry, and with a multi-million-dollar investment by Qteros, the company sees this as a foundation which will be laid for others.

    Over the next several weeks, Qteros officials will be spending as much time in the nation’s capital as in the lab, with the goal of securing $18 million in Department of Energy grant money, all for advanced stages of development at that Indian Orchard pilot facility.

    Sharp said that the DOE has already been a partner of earlier Qteros projects, “and they’ve given us a couple of smaller Small Business Innovation Research grant awards. We’ve got a relationship with them that we hope will be fruitful as they review the grant applications.”

    In this issue, BusinessWest looks at how and why Qteros is, once again, a Western Mass. business story.

    In the Beginning

    Qteros’ history in the region goes way back before the company came into existence, and it all started with a walk in the woods.

    Dr. Susan Leschine, a microbiologist at UMass Amherst, was looking in the Quabbin Reservoir watershed for a microbe that would break down plant matter. However, what she and her research assistant found one day in 1996 was something of far greater importance.

    From a “spoonful of dirt,” they discovered what was later identified as an incredibly efficient microbial engine for breaking down cellulose, found in all plant and woody matter, into ethanol. The director of the National Renewable Energy Lab has termed this Q microbe (so named for its point of origin) a “holy grail” of cellulosic ethanol production.

    It would take 10 years from that day in 1996 for the company to finally launch into the big leagues of the biofuel industry. SunEthanol Inc. was the first company that Leschine and Sharp began, and before long the world took notice. By late 2008, the company had secured more than $25 million in private funding.

    Ethanol is considered to be one of the best potential replacements for gasoline, what is known as a biofuel, but the common concern heretofore has been the costly means of its production.

    Sharp explained the Q microbe’s process. “It basically consumes plant matter and spits out ethanol. We have so far scaled its productivity up 15-fold, and if we can scale that up another two-fold, there will be no question that it will be the most cost-effective solution for manufacturing ethanol.”

    “It wasn’t hard convincing the investors to invest,” Sharp told an ethanol industry journal recently. “They recognized that the industry has been searching for a microbe that could do this for some time.”

    But with that outside funding came outside influence, and by the end of that year, Qteros officials announced that they were leaving their Hadley offices and taking up residence in Marlborough, in the hot biotech corridor around Worcester.

    At the time, Leschine mentioned that the company’s needs had outstripped the resources in the Pioneer Valley, and that Worcester County had systems in place for their immediate vertical expansion. What had been a great year for Qteros was turning out to be bad news for the company’s Western Mass. roots. The migration meant a loss of both jobs and a benchmark biotech firm, not to mention the stinging blow of another homegrown industry moving east.

    But the big news this past month was that the Q is back.

    Plant Maintenance

    Actually, it never left, said Sharp, who spoke to BusinessWest from Washington D.C., where he and company CEO William Frey have been spending a lot of time recently. Qteros is in the midst of negotiations with the DOE to secure close to $20 million for the company’s expansion into Indian Orchard, at the old Fiberloid factory site on Worcester Street.

    In addition to that lump sum from the DOE, Sharp mentioned a goal for a $4.5 million matching fund requirement that Qteros hopes the Commonwealth will endorse. He said that, with such funding in place, the company can greenlight later phases of operations at the site, currently occupied only by Solutia.

    The company is the only tenant on the 250-acre site, which is the largest chemical manufacturing facility in New England, currently employing more than 700 people. Sharp thinks that the company will make a good neighbor.

    “We have a good relationship with the people at Solutia who have helped us right along,” he said, adding that “we are currently storing some feedstock for the process there.

    “We’ve had conversations with them about the different stages of the pilot programs, and they happen to have a very good location for it,” he continued. “Our engineers have looked at the site, it’s appropriate, we have permits in place there, there’s excess capacity, they have the ability to bring the biomass necessary for the Q microbe in via water and rail, and they have the ability to burn the residuals of the biomass at the power plant there.”

    However, he added, “It’s a relatively small power plant, so it’s not going to have a tremendous amount of emissions or anything like that. It’s very benign. Even if we were running one ton of material a day, which we won’t be right away, that’s like a pickup-truck load of grass. From an industrial scale, it’s a pretty small quantity, so it wouldn’t have any negative impact on the air quality or anything else.”

    There are three phases in the works for the Qteros pilot plant in Indian Orchard. The first is to put the Q microbe to work beginning later this year. Second and third phases will involve a larger, full-scale plant, depending on those all-important DOE grants. “The second phase is a one- to two-ton-per-day pilot plant that will demonstrate our technology in a much larger scale than we currently can at our labs in Marlborough,” said Sharp. He and his colleagues hope to know the future of the federal funding by the end of June.

    If all goes according to plan, the company will soon be a major employer — and perhaps serve as inspiration to other startups in the clean-energy and biotechnology realms.

    “The plant will bring at least several million dollars of a project into the city this year,” said Sharp, “and hopefully it will grow into a much larger pilot, and from there into a manufacturing facility, where instead of employing the tens of people that we do, we could employ 100-plus people. If we are successful beyond that, well, there could be the potential for a bio-ethanol facility which would be an ultimate goal for Qteros and the Commonwealth.”

    Sharp is quick to point out that the company is happy to be back in the area for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is to acknowledge the connection and contribution of its partner at UMass Amherst.

    “The university is a great partner to Qteros,” he said. “There’s work being done in a couple of labs there with the Q microbe, and we sponsor some of that research with contractual arrangements, but we also continue to be engaged with the school due to the fact that we’re their partners. We’ve licensed the technology from them, and they will benefit from a royalty stream once we start producing revenue with the product.

    “Obviously you can put a facility in Eastern Mass.,” he continued, “but the UMass campus is very strong, the talent there is impressive, and we want to be able to be closer to that talent.”

    Sarno told BusinessWest that he is thrilled to see this component to green technology coming to his city as part of his initiative to see Springfield become a hub for the green-technology industry. Mentioning the UMass Amherst/Qteros development in Indian Orchard, he said, “the idea is that UMass is really putting its footprint here. We already have great colleges in the city, and don’t want to step on their toes, but I see UMass as an economic engine on the R&D that these other colleges just can’t do.”

    U.S. Rep. Richard Neal has also been supportive of Qteros and its work in both Western and Central Mass. “Obviously I’m delighted that this is a homegrown technology, once again reminding all of us once again of just how important UMass is as a research institute,” he said. “I think that, based upon the visits I’ve had with Qteros, there’s promise here.”

    Neal said he has been active with Qteros both in Massachusetts and in Washington, and he’s confident that the company will spearhead a birth of similar ventures in the city. “I think that, for any start-up, they need a bit of a floor from which to build, and the federal government helped out here in the past and hopefully will continue to with the DOE grant.”

    Center of Energy

    Sharp sees Qteros, and Springfield, being at the beginning of something big. “We’re thinking that there’s potential for a tremendous impact for the city and the state, not to mention the entire country. We’re pretty convinced of the importance of this technology and the impact it could have.”

    He looked past the walls of his new pilot plant, though, saying, “Springfield has the potential to become a bioenergy center and a technology center. I think that Qteros siting the first pilot plant there will be the first phase of what could be a facility that could work with a lot of spin-off technologies from UMass. There are some great bioenergy technologies that are being developed in the labs there now. We’re hoping that this will encourage and accelerate those technologies.”

    Sharp said he sees no reason why Western Mass. can’t start to create the momentum needed to build upon one success and to have multiple companies, or an industry cluster. “When you have one company in a hot field, then you have more technologies coming out of the University that are in that hot area.

    “Before you know it,” he continued, “you’ve got companies that are supporting each other and having a cumulative effect of people wanting to live there, wanting to do business there.”

    The Indian Orchard plant is still a ways from becoming reality, but it already looks like a remarkable turnaround for the company known just a few months ago as the “one that got away.”

    Space Exploration

    By
    Bob Greeley
    Sections Supplements
    A Time of Challenge, Opportunity for STCC’s Technology Park
    Bob Greeley

    Bob Greeley says Building 104 at the Technology Park is unique space that should catch the attention of the market.

    After an unsuccessful bid to land the state’s backup data center and the departure of long-time tenant Springboard Technologies, managers of the Technology Park at Springfield Technical Community College have a 116,000-square-foot challenge on their hands. Re-tenanting the property known as Building 104 won’t happen quickly or easily given the current state of the economy, but those charged with that task see an opportunity to add new jobs and bring stronger fiscal health to the park for the long term.

    When the Assistance Corporation that administers the Technology Park at Springfield Technical Community College commissioned a feasibility study on what’s known as Building 104 last fall, there were several possible scenarios in play for the structure built at the start of World War II.

    Plan A, if it could be called that, would see the 116,000-square-foot facility become home to the state’s backup data center, an $80 million operation that would store and transfer information on everything from traffic tickets to tax collection and employ hundreds of people. But the tech park site was one of two being considered for the center, and the competition, the former Technical High School, or what’s left of it, on Elliott Street eventually got the nod from the state in January.

    Knowing this was a possible eventuality, the Springfield-based architectural firm Dietz & Co., which handled the feasibility study, considered other options, including a consolidation of Building 104’s long-time occupant, Springboard Technology, into a portion of that structure and subdividing what remained for new tenants.

    But when Springboard, which handled contract work maintaining and repairing computer components, and had been struggling for some time, eventually fell victim to the faltering economy earlier this year and informed the Assistance Corp. that it couldn’t remain in the park in any capacity, that essentially brought the board to Plan C. This amounts to starting with a clean slate in a building that comprises roughly one-third of the space in the ambitious, 13-year-old technology park created out of several manufacturing complexes in the old Springfield Armory.

    The timing could obviously be better for starting anew, said Bob Greeley, president of R.J. Greeley Co., which will be tasked with leasing out the space, noting that the economy has made many companies cautious about moving or expanding. But the space in Building 104 is unique, he said, in that it can handle heavy loads and features redundant power and heavy-fiber connectivity.

    This combination should make it attractive to data-center-like facilities and also some manufacturers, he said, noting that, while it may take some time to fill the space, the tech park may likely emerge fiscally stronger from Springboard’s departure. Indeed, while that company took one-third of the space in the park, it certainly wasn’t providing one-third of the revenue, said Greeley, adding that new tenants taking advantage of the building’s highest and best use — data storage and high-tech manufacturing — could yield substantially higher revenues for the long term.

    Paul Stelzer, president of Holyoke-based Appleton Corp., which manages the complex, agreed. He said that, while Springboard was a solid, long-time tenant, it was essentially underutilizing much of the space it occupied.

    “Looking forward, we see an opportunity for the technology park,” he said, adding quickly that seizing on that opportunity won’t be easy given the current economy.

    In this issue, BusinessWest looks at what will certainly be an intriguing next chapter for the tech park, which was created with the help of the state Legislature to house technology-related businesses and startups, and thus bring new jobs to the region.

    Park Place

    While giving BusinessWest a tour of Building 104, Greeley stopped at what was a $5 million clean room built by Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC) when it occupied most of what is now the technology park in the 1980s.

    The clean room, later converted for general assembly work by Springboard, is part of the facility’s long history, which dates back to the early ’40s, when the Springfield Armory used it for some manufacturing, but mostly warehousing operations. It has held that role for most of the past 70 or so years for the Armory, then Milton Bradley and General Electric, which both occupied the site for many years after the Armory closed in 1967, and later Digital, from which the Springboard operation was spawned.

    But it won’t be a warehouse in the future, said Greeley, noting that it has much more to offer than high ceilings and several loading docks. Indeed, the building’s redundant power and what’s called ‘heavy fiber’ will make it ideal for technology-related ventures, especially data storage.

    “There’s a lot of warehouse space on the market in this region,” said Greeley, “but there isn’t any other space like this.”

    And it this uniqueness that provides a measure of optimism for park administrators as they go about the task of trying to re-tenant Building 104 in the middle of the worst recession in decades.

    Tracing the history of Springboard and its influence on the evolution of the park, Greeley said the company, founded by long-time Digital plant manager Tony Dolphin, originally occupied much more space in the park, including part of what’s known as Building 111. In the late ’90s, park administrators consolidated Springboard’s operations into 104, thus opening up space to be used as a call center by RCN and, later, by current occupant Liberty Mutual, which arrived last summer.

    Springboard has struggled for the past several years, said Stelzer, but the Assistance Corp. and park managers remained committed to helping it remain viable — and in the park, albeit in much smaller space.

    Springboard’s difficulties and the increasingly pressing need to find a new, more-stable tenant for 104 prompted the Assistance Corp. to propose that space as a suitable home for the state’s data center, he continued. When that two-year-long battle was lost, and when Springboard made its departure official a few months ago, park administrators quickly launched an ambitious effort to market the space.

    Until a few weeks ago, however, they didn’t have much to show prospective tenants, said Greeley, noting that Springboard was still in the process of moving out. With that work now completed, he continued, “we can expose the space to the marketplace.”

    Getting more specific, he said the target audience will be operations that store, process, and transfer information. There are already a few smaller ventures of this ilk in the park, he said. As one example, he cited Crocker Communications, which occupies 5,000 square feet, in which it operates what would be considered a small co-location facility.

    Such operations run 24/7/365 and require high levels of redundancy that doesn’t exist in most facilities, especially in Western Mass., said Greeley, adding that he’s already had some informal inquiries about the site, despite limited marketing to date.

    Stelzer told BusinessWest that, while one large tenant is a possibility for the site, it is far more likely that the space will be subdivided into four and possibly more smaller spaces.

    “There just aren’t that many 100,000-square-foot tenants out there,” he said, adding that the feasibility study indicates that the property can, and probably should, be divided into spaces ranging from 10,000 to 40,000 square feet.

    There are some potential tenants currently doing business in the 413 area code, Stelzer continued, but the property will likely be filled with a mix of businesses from this area and other regions, meaning the potential for additional new jobs for the region.

    The wild card in the equation, of course, is the economy, which is currently defined by question marks, said Greeley. “People don’t know what things are going to look like in a few months, let alone a year,” he said. “This recession is not like other recessions I’ve seen; no one can say with any degree of certainty what’s going to happen, and this has left many businesses unsure of what to do.”

    New Lease on Life

    One thing is for certain: filling the space in Building 104 is critical to the long-term success of the technology park, say those charged with re-tenanting the property.

    Yet, the assignment isn’t simply to fill the space, but to find tenants that can make the most of its unique properties, and thus provide better, more-reliable revenue streams for the park.

    Time will tell how successful Greeley and others will be in completing their mission, but they’re cautiously optimistic that they can make the most of what they ultimately view as a stern challenge and a unique opportunity.

    George O’Brien can be reached at[email protected]

    By
    Departments

    Ten POints About: Facebook Privacy

    By CHRISTINE PILCH

    1. Restrict profile access only to friends. The default is everyone, so your Facebook profile is an open book until you restrict access.

    2. Use groups. Set up groups for different sets of friends. This allows you to control specific data access by group rather than on an individual level.
    3. Carefully consider who you want to post to your wall and view posts by others. If you have a combination of personal and professional connections, you might not want everyone to see what others write.
    4. Protect your photos and videos. Avoid embarrassing photo and video flubs by restricting certain individuals and groups from seeing those you post and that others tag with your name, and remember to set album security levels too.

    5. Disable news stories about posting on friends’ walls. Nobody needs to know that you’ve written on a friend’s wall.

    6. Don’t post your relationship status or allow news feeds when your relationship status changes. If you’re happily married, that’s one thing, but if your relationship status is subject to change, you don’t need to broadcast it, thereby causing potential embarrassment.
    7. Restrict search results information. It’s great to be able to be found by everyone, but strangers don’t need to see your friends and pages you’re a fan of.
    8. Delete your public search listing. You don’t need to have the personal information in your profile accessed by search engines.
    9. Check and see how individual friends see your profile. Look at your profile with a critical eye. You will likely find that there are certain aspects of your personal life that you don’t want some friends to see.

    10. Safeguard your personal contact information. Think about who you want to have access to your address and phone numbers.

    Christine Pilch is a partner with Grow My Company and a social-media marketing strategist. She trains clients to utilize LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and other social-media tools to grow their businesses, and she collaborates with professional service firms to get results through innovative positioning strategies; (413) 537-2474; linkedin.com/in/christinepilch; twitter.com/christinepilch; growmyco.com; “Miracle Growth for Your Company.”

    By
    Departments

    Estate Planning Workshops for Parents

    May 27, June 3: Attorney David K. Webber of Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin, P.C., with offices in Springfield and Northampton, will present two free workshops titled “Estate Planning Workshops for Parents of Young Children” at the Sunderland Library Community Room, 20 School St. Workshops are planned from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., and are open to the public. Pre-registered participants will be offered the opportunity to complete a will, health care proxy, and durable power of attorney at a reduced rate. For more information and to register, call (413) 737-1131.

    Economic Illusions Lecture

    May 28: Edward Guay, principal of Wintonbury Risk Management in Bloomfield, Conn., will present a lecture titled “Recovering from Economic Illusions and Global Credit Shocks” at noon at One Financial Plaza, Community Room, third floor, 1350 Main St., Springfield. The lecture, part of the Instant Issues Brown Bag Lunch Series, is sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Western Mass. Guay is a global macro strategist. He has a long history of accurately predicting major shifts in business, financial, and political conditions. Guay specializes in the identification of those forces for change that will shape future events, either gradually or in climactic fashion, causing consensus business, investment, political, or geopolitical strategies to go awry. The cost of the lecture is $8 (bring a lunch) or $15 (tuna, turkey, or vegetarian sandwich). Reservations must be made by calling (413) 733-0110.

    Extreme Business Makeover

    June 5: The Western New England College Law and Business Center for Advancing Entrepreneurship will host an “Extreme Business Makeover” from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the TD Banknorth conference center at 1441 Main St., Springfield. The event features experts in the fields of law, accounting, marketing, and finance, offering advice on a range of issues to a pre-selected business or nonprofit group. This year’s makeover recipient is JELUPA Productions Inc. The event is free and open to the public and will be of particular interest to entrepreneurs, small-business advisors, and anyone interested in nonprofit management.

    New Energy Landscape Seminar

    June 9: The Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and Western Mass. Electric will sponsor a seminar titled “The New Energy Landscape: An Overview for Economic Development Professionals” from 8 a.m. to noon at the Kittredge Center at Holyoke Community College. The seminar is free; however, registration is required by June 1. For more information, contact Lori Tanner at (413) 781-6045 or visit www.pvpc.org.

    Wine & Microbrew Tasting

    June 12: Members of the Greater Easthampton Chamber of Commerce will host a Wine & Microbrew Tasting from 6 to 8 p.m. at One Cottage St., Easthampton. Proceeds raised from the event will benefit the chamber’s community programs. Organizers expect more than 50 wines and microbrews to be available for tasting, as well as fine food and a raffle. Tickets are $25 per person or $30 at the door. To purchase tickets, call the chamber office at (413) 527-9414 or visit www.easthamptonchamber.org.

    Leadership Development & Teambuilding

    June 15: SkillPath Seminars will present a daylong conference titled “Leadership Development & Teambuilding” at the Holiday Inn, 711 Dwight St., Springfield. Workshops include: “Developing the Leader within You,” “30 Tips for Becoming an Inspired Leader,” “It All Starts with You … Discover Your Team Player Style,” and “Building a Team That’s a Reflection of You.” Also, “Leadership Mistakes You Don’t Have to Make,” “Light the Fire of Excellence in Your Team,” “Speak So Others Know How to Follow,” “Positive Feedback … the Fuel of High Performance,” “A Team Approach to Dealing with Unacceptable Behavior,” and “What Teams Really Need from Their Leaders.’ The conference is targeted for managers, supervisors, team leaders, and team members who would like to learn skills to motivate, inspire, lead, and succeed. Enrollment fee is $199 per person. or $189 each with four or more. For more information, call (800) 873-7545 or visit www.skillpath.com.

    By
    Departments

    The following bankruptcy petitions were recently filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Readers should confirm all information with the court.

    Abad, Jose Francisco
    38 Greenleaves Dr.
    Hadley, MA 01035
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/27/09

    Amlaw, Robert A.
    61 Reed St.
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Barree, Richard D.
    5 Grandview Dr.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Berman, Mark R.
    P.O. Box 164
    Williamsburg, MA 01096
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Bezio, Edward Daniel
    P. Bezio, Janice Marie
    O Box 54
    Orange, MA 01364
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Blanco, Diana Alexis
    568 South East St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Borer, Daniel
    P.O. Box 27
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/27/09

    Bourdon, Hope A.
    376 Church St.
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    Bousquet, Dianne Marie
    71 East Canton Circle
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Boyes, Frances Kathleen
    252 Walnut St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Brennan, Mary B.
    P.O. Box 8011
    Westfield, MA 01086
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Bretta, Laura L.
    48 Brookside Dr.
    Wilbraham, MA 01095
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Brown, Martha W.
    39 Hadley Village Road
    South Hadley, MA 01075
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Burgos, Orlando
    8 Chapel St.
    Easthampton, MA 01061
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Cadorette, Laurie A.
    27 Ontario St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Cavoli, Joan Elizabeth
    611 Nassau Dr.
    Springfield, MA 01129
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Cin Design Studio
    Crooked House Designs
    Bianchi, Donald S.
    Kunz, Cynthia M.
    68 Laurel Park
    Northampton, MA 01060
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Cizek, Robert George
    46 Vadnais St.
    Agawam, MA 01001
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Clary’s Carpet
    Wager, Mark W.
    5 Crown St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Collins, Kevin M.
    57 Central St.
    Turners Falls, MA 01376
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Colon, Efrain
    191 Nursery St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Conroy, John Paul
    Conroy, Mary Ellen
    780 Suffield St.
    Agawam, MA 01001
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Coomer, Laura Ann
    46 Reed St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Cote, Diane Lynn
    38 Orlando St.
    Feeding Hills, MA 01030
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Cruz, Jesus M.
    Cruz, Luz M.
    96 Littleton St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    DelSoldato, Darlene A.
    24 South Atlantic Ave.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Demarey, John Paul
    280 Rock Valley Road
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Disley, Shawn
    275 Breckenridge St.
    Palmer, MA 01069
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Dube, Steven L.
    Dube, Luigina M.
    a/k/a Dube, Gina M.
    69 Ray St.
    Ludlow, MA 01056
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Dupre, Roy W.
    45 Spring St., Apt. 51
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/23/09

    Evans, David Andrew
    Boldea-Evans, Jennifer Louise
    18 Harriet St., 1st Fl
    Springfield, MA 01107
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Fahey, Jane Barbara
    26 Morton Meadows
    Athol, MA 01331
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Ferry, Michael J.
    a/k/a Brouillette, Michael
    P. O. Box 1352
    Northampton, MA 01061
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Fisher, Kathleen J.
    33 Kellogg Ave.
    Amherst, MA 01002
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Fortune, Joanne M.
    96 Pheland St.
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Fredette, Francis E.
    24 1/2 Hamlin St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Fuentes, Marilyn
    43 Matoon St.
    Springfield, MA 01105
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Full Circle Design
    Cooney, Roger William
    13 Grove St.
    Haydenville, MA 01039
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/21/09

    Galarneau, Denise F.
    19 Jennifer Dr.
    Granby, MA 01033
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    Grant, Timothy C.
    Grant, Jocelyn L.
    a/k/a Livingston, Jocelyn L.
    65 Fairview Park Road
    Sturbridge, MA 01566
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/27/09

    Guertin, Randy A
    Guertin, Karen A.
    29 Pine St.
    Ware, MA 01082
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    H.W. Brown Roll Off
    Brown, Nicole M.
    Brown, Harry W.
    a/k/a Fay, Nicole M.
    272 Mount Pleasant St.
    Athol, MA 01331
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Haughton, Ann Marie
    92 Buckingham St.
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Healy, Dina D.
    703 Main Road
    Granville, MA 01034
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Kaio, Lincoln K.
    Kaio, Adrienne E.
    22 Norway St.
    Longmeadow, MA 01106
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Kobis, John P.
    Kobis, Veronica M.
    22 Old Poor Farm Road
    Ware, MA 01082
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Lafond, Robert W.
    191 Pheland Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Langer, Paula J.
    56 Central Ave.
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    		  

    Leary, Thomas X.
    109 Congamond Road
    Southwick, MA 01077
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    LeClair, James L.
    316 Sheridan St.
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/21/09

    Ludlow Electric LLC
    Ketchale, Matthew Thomas
    Ketchale, Bethany Ann
    673 West St.
    Ludlow, MA 01056
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Major, Thomas D.
    881 North King St.
    Northampton, MA 01060
    Hatfield, MA 01038
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Mansfield, Stephanie D.
    284 Main St., Apt. 3
    Great Barrington, MA 01230
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Marshall, Rebecca Anne
    a/k/a Marshall, Kiki
    222 Elm St.
    Northampton, MA 01060
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Martin, Gary P.
    170 East Hadley Road
    Amherst, MA 01002
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Martin, Thomas M.
    Martin, Sandra L.
    423 West Main St.
    North Adams, MA 01247
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    May, April Dawn
    35 Mountainbrook Road
    Wilbraham, MA 01095
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    McCarthy, William J.
    101 Mulberry St.
    Springfield, MA 01105
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    McGuire, Richard
    50 Laurel Road
    Wilbraham, MA 01095
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    McManus, Robert B .
    79 East Housatonic St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Meuse, Jerilyn H.
    20 Loomis Dr.
    Chicopee, MA 01020
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Monserrate, Esteban
    108 South St., Apt. C4
    Northampton, MA 01060
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/22/09

    Montesdeoca, Brian
    21 Cottonwood Lane
    Springfield, MA 01128
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/27/09

    Moore, Carlton
    88 Cromwell Ave.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Notre, Patricia Lynn
    a/k/a Rauh, Patricia Lynn
    a/k/a Kemp, Patricia Lynn
    44 Meadow Lane
    Orange, MA 01364
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Olivares, Otilda M.
    85 South St.
    Chicopee, MA 01013
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    O’Neil, Susan C.
    44 South Silver Lane
    Sunderland, MA 01375
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Ortiz, Joaquin
    20 Sterling St.
    Springfield, MA 01107
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Osborne, Connie R.
    49 Old South St.
    Northampton, MA 01060
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Pen, Pich
    33A Parsons St.
    Easthampton, MA 01027
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/21/09

    Perretta, Wayne V.
    Perretta, Julie L.
    3 Morris St.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Reardon, Peter M.
    58 Albert St.
    Agawam, MA 01001
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Richmond, Nelson Alan
    Richmond, Charlotte Marie
    371 Main St.
    Hampden, MA 01036
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/30/09

    Rodriguez, Enoc
    79 Alvin St.
    Springfield, MA 01104
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Roe, Thomas Joseph
    Roe, Cindy A.
    59 New Ludlow Road
    Chicopee, MA 01013
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    Rose, Maureen D.
    3 Wright Place
    South Hadley, MA 01075
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Saginario, Joyce M.
    2 School St., Apt # 4-
    Hatfield, MA 01038
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    Salmond, Michael P.
    Salmond, Dawn M.
    115 Ray St.
    Ludlow, MA 01056
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Sava, Renato A.
    85 South St.
    Chicopee, MA 01013-2438
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Simonds, Michael Joseph
    Simonds, Wendy Jean
    701 Sumner Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01108
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/21/09

    Smith, Glenn Allen
    Smith, Donna Marie
    a/k/a Cummings, Donna
    178 Northampton St.
    Easthampton, MA 01027
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Smith, Holly M.
    1000 Main St.
    Wilbraham, MA 01095
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/29/09

    Souza, Penny A.
    14 Whittier Ave.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 13
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Stanton, Laura L.
    234 Brown St.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/23/09

    Stasiowski, Debra Ann
    P.O. Box 402
    Chicopee, MA 01021
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/27/09

    Studio IV
    Bogins, James E.
    26 Glory Dr.
    Pittsfield, MA 01201
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/20/09

    Talley, Nyree A.
    10 Wendell Place
    Springfield, MA 01105
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/17/09

    Tinney, Gary A.
    104 Larchley Ave.
    Westfield, MA 01085
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Torres, Ezequiel
    Velardo, Rosaly
    834 Dwight St.
    Holyoke, MA 01040
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/27/09

    True Construction
    True, William G.
    113 Oakland St., #7
    Springfield, MA 01108
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Ware, Selma J.
    321 St. James Ave.
    Springfield, MA 01109
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/28/09

    Wilson, Floyd R.
    Wilson, Lois T.
    59 Howland Ave.
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/23/09

    Yazel, John E.
    1398 Plumtree Road
    Springfield, MA 01119-2941
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/24/09

    Zaccari, Joanne
    a/k/a Garafolo, Joanne
    259 Main St.
    Indian Orchard, MA 01151
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/16/09

    Ziarnik, Joshua D.
    Ziarnik, Jacqueline A.
    a/k/a Malloy, Jacqueline A.
    25 Orchard St.
    Adams, MA 01220
    Chapter: 7
    Filing Date: 04/21/09

    By
    Departments

    Liberty Mutual Receives Tax Incentive

    SPRINGFIELD — Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. and its new customer-service center have been approved for tax incentives by the state Economic Assistance Coordinating Council. The new center, located in the Springfield Technical Community College Technology Park on Federal Street, has 124 employees. To qualify for the tax incentives, it must hire an additional 164 workers. The tax savings for the first year in fiscal year 2010 is expected to be $50,000, based on a 50% exemption on the new growth in the property’s value. Under a five-year approved plan, the exemption will decline by 10% each year, from 50% in fiscal year 2010 to a final-year exemption of 10% in fiscal 2014. Liberty Mutual is expected to invest $6 million in the project.

    Pioneer Valley Tourism Guide Has New Format

    SPRINGFIELD — The Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau (GSCVB) has published the 2009-2010 Guide to Massachusetts’ Pioneer Valley, which is now available free to potential visitors to the region, as well as local residents. The guide has been restyled as a more-portable, 5-inch by 8-inch, 98-page, four-color, glossy magazine. Guide highlights include information on the region’s top attractions, accommodations, and restaurants, all of which are GSCVB members. The guide also features useful maps of the downtown areas of Springfield, Amherst, and Northampton, and was designed by Design & Advertising Associates of Springfield and printed by Dynagraph in Canton. For more information on the tourism guide, call (413) 755-1351 or (800) 723-1548, or log onto www.valleyvisitor.com.

    Business Confidence Rises Slightly in April

    BOSTON — The Associated Industries of Mass. (AIM) Business Confidence Index added 1.9 points to 35.4 in April, its second consecutive monthly rise following February’s historic low of 33.3. Though two small gains barely constitute a trend, AIM officials have been seeing signs in its survey since February that the economic decline — now the longest of the post-World War II era — could bottom out soon, according to Raymond G. Torto, global chief economist at CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. Torto also serves as chair of AIM’s board of economic advisors. The index, which is based on a 100-point scale on which 50 is neutral, was down 14.7 points from April 2008, when it recorded its last ‘positive’ reading (50.1). The past five months have produced the five worst readings since the index was initiated in July 1991.

    Foreclosures Remained at Record Levels in April

    NEW YORK — RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosure properties, recently released its April 2009 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows foreclosure filings — default notices, auction-sale notices, and bank repossessions — were reported on 342,038 U.S. properties during the month, an increase of less than 1% from the previous month and an increase of 32% from April 2008. The report also shows that one in every 374 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing in April, the highest monthly foreclosure rate ever posted since RealtyTrac began issuing its report in January 2005. Total foreclosure activity in April ended up slightly above the previous month, once again hitting a record-high level, according to James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. Saccacio added that much of this activity is at the initial stages of foreclosure — the default and auction stages — while bank repossessions, or REOs, were down on a monthly and annual basis to their lowest level since March 2008. Saccacio noted that this trend suggests that many lenders and servicers are beginning foreclosure proceedings on delinquent loans that had been delayed by legislative and industry moratoria.

    Economy Stabilizing Despite Trade Deficit

    WASHINGTON — U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke recently reported that U.S. exports decreased by 2.4% to $123.6 billion since February 2009. Imports decreased 1.0% to $151.2 billion. Overall, the trade deficit grew 5.5% during the same time period. Locke noted that the numbers are better than many economists had predicted, and it is worth noting that the trade deficit is half of what it was in the first quarter of 2008. Locke added that, while the country has begun to see a few “promising shoots of green,” there is still much work to be done.

    Unemployment Rises to 25-year High

    NEW YORK — In the week ending May 9, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 637,000, an increase of 32,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 605,000. The four-week moving average was 630,500, an increase of 6,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 624,500. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 4.9% for the week ending May 2, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week’s unrevised rate of 4.8%. The fiscal year-to-date average for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment for all programs is 5.01 million. The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 565,395 in the week ending May 9, an increase of 27,856 from the previous week. There were 325,480 initial claims in the comparable week in 2008. The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 4.6% during the week ending May 2, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 6,166,785, a decrease of 95,837 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.1%, and the volume was 2,845,952. Extended benefits were available in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin during the week ending April 25. The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending April 25 were in Michigan (7.8%), Oregon (7.5%), Pennsylvania (6.5%), Wisconsin (6.4%), Nevada (6.3%), Idaho (6.1%), Puerto Rico (5.9%), Vermont (5.8%), Alaska (5.7%), and Rhode Island (5.7%). The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending May 2 were in Illinois (2,052), Kansas (2,025), Puerto Rico (1,781), Indiana (1,051), and Ohio (1,013), with the largest decreases in New York (13,386), Michigan (10,952), North Carolina (8,988), Massachusetts (3,705), and Connecticut (2,802).

    By
    Departments

    The following building permits were issued during the month of May 2009.

    AGAWAM

    Building Specialties
    16 Ramah Circle South
    $34,000 — Interior renovations for offices, closets, and workspaces

    MWI Inc.
    61 Industrial Lane
    $32,000 — Interior renovations

    AMHERST

    Bank of America
    1 South Pleasant St.
    $1,500,000 — Renovations including replacement of most systems

    New England Telephone Company
    20 Fearing St.
    $157,000 — Install new AC with exterior drycoder on roof

    CHICOPEE

    Bogdan Konarzewski
    333 Front St.
    $5,000 — Remodel office and basement

    Val Shvetz
    259 East Main St.
    $80,000 — Interior repairs and sprinkler system

    GREENFIELD

    Franklin Medical Center
    164 High St.
    $15,000 — Interior renovations

    Greenfield Co-Op Bank
    63 Federal St.
    $6,000 — To replace posts and handrail at main entrance

    Kathleen McIntyre Bernier
    259 Federal St.
    $7,700 — New roof

    Yeshi Gyaltsen
    10 Fiske Ave.
    $3,000 — Renovation of existing second-floor office

    HADLEY

    Alendev, LLC
    245 Russell St.
    $6,000 — Interior alterations

    Hopkins Academy
    131 Russell St.
    $40,000 — Renovation of teachers lounge and addition of accessible bathroom

    LUDLOW

    Victor Swist
    40 Ravenwood Dr.
    $60,000 — Commercial addition

    		  

    NORTHAMPTON

    Gerald Archambault
    178 Industrial Dr.
    $46,000 — Enlarge job training area

    Pioneer Contractors
    85 Main St.
    $95,000 — Renovate basement space into two offices

    SOUTHWICK

    Alan Gendron
    520 College Highway
    $55,000 — Commercial addition

    SPRINGFIELD

    Answer is Fitness
    380 Cooley St.
    $22,000 — Build a new juice bar in lobby

    City Vue Commons II
    926 Worthington St.
    $6,000 — Repair exterior brick veneer

    Eastfield Association LLC
    1655 Boston Rd.
    $10,000 — Interior renovations at food court

    Mass Mutual
    1500 Main St.
    $130,000 — Construction of a new restaurant on first floor

    WESTFIELD

    City of Westfield PD
    15 Washington St.
    $24,000 — Installation of a handicap ramp

    Dr. Mark Fisher
    48 East Silver St.
    $7,000 — Building repair

    God in Care of Christ Kingdom Church
    297 Russell Road
    $15,000 — Installation of handicap ramp

    WEST SPRINGFIELD

    Cermac, LLC
    88 Westfield St.
    $15,000 — Interior renovations to third floor

    Slavic Pentecostal Church
    2611 Westfield St.
    $1,000,000 — Renovate 30,000 square feet of space

    By
    Departments

    Credit Union Opens in Southampton

    SOUTHAMPTON — A grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Polish National Credit Union’s newest branch location was conducted April 30 at the Southampton Branch, 32 College Highway. Other locations include the main office at 46 Main St., Chicopee, as well as the Chicopee Center Branch, 244 Exchange St.; Granby Branch, 34 West State St.; Westfield River Branch, 1 Parkside Ave., Westfield; and the Mortgage Center, 43 Main St., Chicopee.

    Springfield College Plans New Center

    SPRINGFIELD — Springfield College (SC) will open a Center for Wellness Education and Research on Sept. 1 to conduct groundbreaking research, be a national source of the latest wellness information, and design and present public-wellness-education programs. Jean A. Wyld, vice president for academic affairs, noted that SC’s intention is to be a “premier national resource on wellness across the lifespan.” Housed in the School of Health, Physical Education & Recreation, the new center will focus on research in exercise, nutrition, health, wellness and physical activity. Also participating in the interdisciplinary research and programs will be the faculty and students of the college’s schools of Social Work, Health Sciences and Rehabilitation Studies, Human Services, and Arts and Sciences. Research will include studies funded both by governmental and private grants and by the college. In addition, the center will expand educational activities at the college, particularly in its undergraduate and graduate programs in Exercise Physiology, Athletic Training, Health Education, and Physical Education.

    Hampden Bank Farmer’s Market Returns; $10,000 Grant Awarded

    SPRINGFIELD — For the second year, Hampden Bank and the Pioneer Valley Growers Coop are sponsoring a local farmer’s market at the bank’s Wilbraham branch office at 2005 Boston Road. The market runs every Wednesday, rain or shine, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. now through mid-October, with new produce, fruits, and vegetables being added as the growing season progresses. In addition, a host of locally grown flowers and plants will be available, as well as baked goods and handmade items. Hampden Bank has also opened a farmer’s market on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at its Indian Orchard office at 187 Main St. Local farmers, growers, or merchants who would like to learn more about participating can call (413) 586-6947 or (413) 452-5125 for more information. In other news, the Hampden Bank Charitable Foundation recently donated $10,000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Massachusetts. The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants wishes for children between the ages of 2 1/2 and 18 with life-threatening medical conditions.

    Agency Launches Unique Fundraising Campaign

    HOLYOKE — Charter Oak Insurance and Financial Services Co. has launched the Charter Oak Truck — a 1948 Chevy pickup to be used for appearances at charitable walks and races throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut. Charter Oak will dispense from the truck’s bed donated refreshments to walkers, runners, and other fund-raiser participants. Companies who donate their goods will be recognized on truck signage as well as in any public relations issued by Charter Oak. The agency hopes to team up with local food and beverage companies in this effort. Companies or walk coordinators interested in using the Charter Oak Truck should contact Cami Foley at (413) 539-2000.

    Ad Club Takes First Place in National Competition

    SPRINGFIELD — The Advertising Club of Western Mass. recently took first place in the Program category of the American Advertising Federation’s (AAF) Club Achievement Competition. The achievement awards are presented annually to AAF-member organizations that display exceptional accomplishments in club operations. Sixty advertising clubs entered the national competition, and 297 entries were received. The entries were judged by association professionals outside the AAF. There are five divisions of competition and clubs compete based on size. The Ad Club of Western Mass. received first-place honors for the quality of its programs in Division III, clubs with 100-249 members. All winners will be honored at the Salute to Achievers Luncheon at the June AAF national conference in Washington, D.C.

    Brattleboro Retreat Wins Award

    BRATTLEBORO, VT — The Brattleboro Retreat was recently honored with the ‘Best in New England’ Lamplighter Award at the spring conference of the New England Society for Healthcare Communications (NESHCO) in Providence, R.I. The Lamplighter Award represents the top honor among Gold Award winners in more than 50 categories. The award went to the retreat for its six-minute DVD titled “Helping People Find the Strength.” The DVD, which also won gold in the category for audio/visual presentations, was produced by Sunnyside Films. The organization also received NESHCO awards for the following marketing and communications pieces: Gold Award: Design/Printed Pieces (2009 wall calendar), Gold Award: Special Events Communications (Fundraising Event featuring the Moscow Ballet), Silver Award: Design/Logo (new clock tower logo), Silver Award: Publications/Annual Report (2007 Annual Report to Stakeholders and Friends), and an Award of Excellence: Overall Marketing Campaign (2008 overall marketing campaign). The Brattleboro Retreat credits its marketing and communications success to the Communicators Group Inc. of Keene, N.H., which was hired in early 2008 to help the hospital with a major rebranding effort.

    Big Y Foods Offers Advice to Novice Cooks

    SPRINGFIELD — Tough economic times have renewed an interest in home-cooked meals, according to officials at Big Y Foods, Inc. As more novice cooks seek advice, Big Y Foods and Fruits & Veggies – More Matters want to help. Home cooks will find easy-to-understand, healthy recipes that are quick and easy to prepare at www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org, which can be accessed from Big Y’s Web site, www.bigy.com, in the Living Well Eating Smart section.

    By
    Departments

    The following is a compilation of recent lawsuits involving area businesses and organizations. These are strictly allegations that have yet to be proven in a court of law. Readers are advised to contact the parties listed, or the court, for more information concerning the individual claims.

    CHICOPEE DISTRICT COURT

    Gilbert & Sons Insulation Inc. v. Dupuis Construction
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods and services rendered: $4,413.80
    Filed: 4/13/09

    FRANKLIN SUPERIOR COURT

    American International Recovery (Subrogee) and Kent Hicks Construction Co. v. Ragan Builders and Joseph Ragan
    Allegation: Defendants failed to carry worker’s comprehensive insurance: $206,876.37
    Filed: 4/17/09

    Barbara Martineau (Executrix) v. Joshua Garriga, M.D. and Connecticut River Internists, LLP
    Allegation: Delay in diagnosis and treatment of colon cancer, resulting in the death of a 61-year-old man: $25,000
    Filed: 4/08/09

    Lynne Gosselin v. Baystate Visiting Nurses & Hospice Inc. and Baystate Health Inc.
    Allegation: Failure to properly monitor and care for patient, causing hospitalizaton for 7.5 months: $1,379,000
    Filed: 4/15/09

    GREENFIELD DISTRICT COURT

    Capital One Bank, N.A. v. Brennan Builders
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered on credit: $6,271.78
    Filed: 5/07/09

    Dodson Associates, LTD and Turowski Architecture Inc. v. Avotu Inc. and Gorodetsky Engineering, LLC et al
    Allegation: Breach of contract for site design and construction and architectural design services rendered: $21,705.75
    Filed: 5/04/09

    HAMPDEN SUPERIOR COURT

    Bradco Supply Corporation v. REI Roofing
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $47,147.01
    Filed: 4/10/09

    Marion Rice v. Big Y Foods Inc.
    Allegation: After eating a deli sandwich from Big Y, the plaintiff suffered salmonella infection, resulting in three weeks of hospitalization: $17,524.52
    Filed: 4/06/09

    Meaghan O’Connell v. 80 Worthington Street, LLC
    Allegation: Negligence by employees of plaintiff, causing personal injury and hospitalization: $250,000
    Filed: 4/08/09

    Nancy Labrie v. John M. Zeroogian, M.D.
    Allegation: Medical malpractice: $1,108,000+
    Filed: 4/28/09

    HAMPSHIRE SUPERIOR COURT

    Montgomery Company Inc. v. Gould’s Florist Inc. and John Robert Ramsey
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $47,101.08
    Filed: 4/14/09

    Pamela A. Brown v. Service Link Inc.
    Allegation: Negligence and unfair and deceptive trade practices in home-sale transaction: $110,000
    Filed: 4/05/09

    Sandino McDonough-Sieben v. One Pearl Street Inc.
    Allegation: Assault in licensed premises, resulting in injuries: $30,000+
    Filed: 4/08/09

    HOLYOKE DISTRICT COURT

    Hadley Printing Co. v. Hallmark Institute of Photography Inc.
    Allegation: Breach of contract and non-payment of printing services rendered: $3,207
    Filed: 4/29/09

    NORTHAMPTON DISTRICT COURT

    Charlene Mitchell Lyman v. Master Mark Plastics Inc.
    Allegation: Negligence and breach of warranty requiring plaintiff to replace defective deck material manufactured and distributed by defendant: $23,384.55
    Filed: 5/11/09

    Janet M. Kopacz v. Mass. Energy Savers Corp. and Christian P. Poirier
    Allegation: Breach of home-improvement contract and fraud: $10,133
    Filed: 4/21/09

    PALMER DISTRICT COURT

    Irving Forest Products Inc. v. Northeast Wholesale Lumber Inc.
    Allegation: Breach of contract and failure to pay for merchandise received: $24,874.96
    Filed: 4/03/09

    Rockville Roofing Inc. v. Monaco Restorations Inc.
    Allegation: Non-payment of material and labor on several projects: $9,315.83
    Filed: 3/31/09

    SPRINGFIELD DISTRICT COURT

    Capital One Bank, N.A. v. Excalibur Services
    Allegation: Monies owed for credit advanced: $7,377.79
    Filed: 4/09/09

    Louis Michaelson & Son Co. v. Blue Sky Diner Restaurant
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $4,208.10
    Filed: 3/25/09

    Louis Michaelson & Son Co. v. O’Driscoll’s Irish Pub
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $6,820.55
    Filed: 3/25/09

    Sherwin Williams Cos. v. William Painting & Wallpapering
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $6,690.22
    Filed: 4/09/09

    Tangerine’s Kitchen & Bath Inc. v. New Future Development Corp.
    Allegation: Non-payment of goods sold and delivered: $4,207.71
    Filed: 4/09/09

    T.D. Banknorth, N.A. v. T.S. Mann Lumber Co. Inc.
    Allegation: Unpaid and defaulted promissory note: $19,910.90
    Filed: 4/09/09

    WESTFIELD DISTRICT COURT

    Capital One Bank, N.A. v. Creative One Services
    Allegation: Monies owed for credit advanced: $5,568.04
    Filed: 5/07/09

    City of Westfield v. R.G. Carr Civil Contracting, LLC
    Allegation: Failure to pay for off-duty police detail: $3,246.38
    Filed: 5/07/09

    By
    Departments

    The following business incorporations were recorded in Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties and are the latest available. They are listed by community.

    AGAWAM

    Don’t Poke the Bear Inc., 365 Walnut St. Extension, Agawam, MA 01001. Mark E. Watkins, 150 Southwick St., Feeding Hills, MA 01030. Restaurant.

    Lola Foote Enterprises Inc., 499 Meadow St., Agawam, MA 01001. Lola Foote, Same. To engage in E-commerce activities.

    AMHERST

    Celia’a Home and Biz Services Inc., 228 Grantwood Dr., Amherst, MA 01002. Ohmead Celia Snow, same. Residential and commercial cleaning.

    Scyler Inc., 124 High St., Amherst, MA 01002. Andrea E. Rulenko-Catlin, Same. Sotfware consulting service in the financial industry.

    CHICOPEE

    Manahil Inc., 51-D Gratton St., Chicopee, MA 01020. Faiza Bari, same. To operate a convenience store.

    Marta’s Insurance Agency Inc., 799 Front St., Chicopee, MA 01020. John P. Slosek Jr., Same. Insurance agency.

    Mitesh G. Brahmbhatt, D.M.D., P.C., 749 Memorial Dr., Chicopee, MA 01020. Mitesh G. Brahmbhatt, 305 Dutton St., Apt. 326, Lowell, MA 01854. Family dentistry.

    EASTHAMPTON

    N. B. Chicken Inc., 36 Union Street, Easthampton, MA 01027. Nasir Bary, 7 Arlington St., Easthampton, MA 01027. Fast food service.

    EAST LONGMEADOW

    AP Flooring Inc., 98 Colony Dr., East Longmeadow, MA 01028. Stephen J Silansky, Same. Installation and refinishing of hardwood floors.

    Vanguard Mold Remediation Inc., 25 Maynard St., East Longmeadow, MA 01028. Pamela A. Barthelette, Same. To provide mold remediation services and water recovery services.

    HADLEY

    Tenchi Inc., 48 Russell St., Hadley, MA 01035. Ting Jiang, 770 42nd St., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11232. Restaurant.

    HOLYOKE

    Trendz Stores Corporation Inc., 50 Holyoke St., Holyoke, MA 01040. Samantha Lantz, same. Retail clothing.

    HUNTINGTON

    Sleeping Giant Young Equestrian Fund Inc., 139 Kinne Brook Road, Huntington, MA 01050. Shirley Winer, same. To raise money for equestrians and provide education on horsemanship.

    		  

    LONGMEADOW

    T. Hurley Inc., 860 Frank Smith Road, Longmeadow, MA 01106. Timothy Hurley, Same. Retail.

    NORTHAMPTON

    Matikilock Inc., 20A Crafts Ave., Northampton, MA 01060. Jeffrey Wheelock, 54 West St., Apt. 1, Northampton, MA 01060. Retail and Internet sales, books, and gifts.

    The Sperry Group Inc., 136 West St., Suite 205, Northampton, MA 01060. Charles R. Sperry, 324 Audubon Road, Leeds, MA 01053. Consulting and product development.

    SPRINGFIELD

    Allen Restaurant & Deli Corp., 2895 Main St., Springfield, MA 01107. Yoselin A. Almonte, 50 Quebec St., Indian Orchard, MA 01151. Restaurant business.

    Fuel First Elm Inc., 592 Birnie Ave., West Springfield, MA 01089. Sanjay Patel, same. Gas station and convenience store.

    Iglesia De Dios Lazos De Vision Inc., 1119 St. James Ave., Springfield, MA 01104. Jose A. Hernandez, Same. Non-profit, preaching the gospel and working with the communities to form a bond with each other and help the needs of the families.

    J & E Edwards Services Corp., 155 Chestnut St., Springfield, MA 01104. Julio Ernesto Edwards, 84 Sylvan, Springfield, MA 01108. Community services.

    L & L Builders and Remodeling Inc., 18 Baywood St., Springfield, MA 01109. Joe C. Long Sr., same. Commercial and residential remodeling.

    Latino Food Distributors Inc., 90 Avocado St., Springfield, MA 01104. Luis A. Feliciano, 23 new Bridge St., West Springfield, MA 01089. Food distribution.

    Scope by Trade Inc., 202 College St., Springfield, MA 01109. Rory Waterman, Same. Estimating and construction consultation.

    Springfield Pic’s Hockey Inc., 340 Peekskill Ave., Springfield, MA 01129. Brian Collins, same. Organization and provision of skilled youth hockey teams to compete at an elite level.

    WESTFIELD

    Ecomat Inc., 1931 East Mountain Road, Westfield, MA 01085. Paul J. St. Pierre, Same. Operation of a Laundromat.

    Westfield Landscaping Inc., 43 Indian Ridge Road, Westfield, MA 01085. William A. Mead, same. Lawn care.

    By
    Departments

    Dawn Creighton has been named Regional Director of Member Relations for Western Mass. by Associated Industries of Mass. (AIM), based in Boston. In her new position, Creighton will work with AIM-member firms and organizations to ensure they are fully aware of the range of resources and services that are available to them, and to serve as a liaison with a number of civic and business groups operating throughout the Pioneer Valley that are concerned about the state’s economic prospects for the future.

    •••••

    Dr. Jeanne S. Steffes has been named Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students at Western New England College in Springfield.

    •••••

    Tighe & Bond in Westfield announced the following:
    • Paul Fiejdasz, P.E., LEED AP, CEM has joined the company as a Mechanical Engineer. He adds 15 years of experience in all aspects of mechanical building systems including HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection; and
    • Amy Lane, P.E., was the winner of the Young Professionals Fresh Ideas Contest for the best presentation given by a young professional at New England Water Works Association’s 2009 Spring Regional Conference and Exhibition in Worcester. Her presentation, titled “Water System Improvements in the Town of Amherst,” discussed the challenges coordinating upgrades to one of the town’s wells and its surface-water-treatment plant with the unique seasonal demand patterns of a college town.

    •••••

    Greenfield Co-operative Bank announced the following:
    • William F. Ahlemeyer has been promoted to Senior Vice President-Commercial Lending;
    • Christine M. Eugin has been promoted to Senior Vice President-Residential Lending;
    • Deborah J. Falcon has been promoted to Senior Vice President-Retail Banking;
    • Eric A. Marsh has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Treasurer, and CFO; and
    • Mary J. Rawls has been promoted to Compliance Officer.

    •••••

    Bulkley, Richardson and Gelinas, LLP has elected William E. Hart as Partner. Hart has been counsel to the firm during 2007 and 2008. He practices in the areas of estate planning and probate, taxation, real estate, and business matters, and has been named co-chairman of the firm’s Estate Planning and Administration Department. Hart practices from the firm’s offices in Amherst at 21A Pray St. and in Springfield at 1500 Main St.

    •••••

    The Women’s Partnership, a division of the Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield, has named Nancy Mirkin of Hampden Bank as its 2009 Woman of the Year recipient. Mirkin is Vice President in the Business Banking Division at Hampden Bank, where she has worked for 13 years. Mirkin has also been involved with several organizations over the years, and currently volunteers with the Credit for Life-Financial Literacy Program and Habitat for Humanity Women Build II. The annual Woman of the Year Banquet is planned for June 23 at the Log Cabin in Holyoke.

    •••••

    Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin, P.C., TD Banknorth, and Moriarty & Primack, P.C., recently co-sponsored a seminar titled “Fraud Prevention” at the Springfield office of TD Banknorth. Speakers included Michael O’Reilly, special agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Gene Griffin, postal inspector, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Susan Chamberlain, director of Cash Management of TD Banknorth, who shared the sophistication of fraudulent activities of current times and the proactive solutions to protecting personal data.

    •••••

    The American Council on Education (ACE) Board of Directors has named Evan S. Dobelle, president of Westfield State College, to serve on the council’s Commission on Effective Leadership. The national commission advises ACE and also guides the ongoing development of Center for Effective Leadership programs and directs new initiatives. It serves as a forum for member presidents to explore issues related to leadership and institutional development in higher education.

    •••••

    John R. Cristoforo has joined the Insurance Center of New England in West Springfield as an Account Executive in the personal lines division.

    •••••

    Kathleen P. Mullin has been appointed Vice President and Credit Risk Manager at PeoplesBank.

    •••••

    Lori A. Siedlarczyk-Nadeau has joined TD Insurance in West Springfield as a Sales Executive in the small-business division. She consults on employee benefit plans to small businesses.

    •••••

    Martin Kane recently completed 80 hours of training as an Auctioneer at the International Auction School in South Deerfield. He is now a licensed auctioneer in Massachusetts. Kane is also a commercial real estate broker with King & Newton, LLC Commercial Real Estate in Springfield. In addition, he is a board member of the new Realtors Commercial Alliance, and president of Sanford Management Services Inc.

    •••••

    Dr. Catherine Spath, a board-certified Orthopedic Surgeon, has joined the Cooley Dickinson Hospital medical staff in Northampton.

    •••••

    David J. Martel, a Partner in the law firm of Doherty, Wallace, Pillsbury & Murphy, has been honored with the Leadership Institute’s Community Service Award for exceptional commitment to the Greater Springfield community.

    •••••

    Adrienne M. Connolly, co-owner of Stinky Cakes in Springfield, has been recognized as one of the top 200 mom-owned businesses in StartupNation’s 2009 Leading Moms in Business Competition. VerticalResponse sponsored the competition, which recognizes the achievements of mothers across the country who run outstanding businesses.

    •••••

    Gail Young, Breakfast Hostess at the Hampton Inn Hadley-Amherst, was recently honored by Hampton Hotels with the Spirit of Hampton Award, signifying Young as a top performer within Hampton Hotels.

    By
    Departments

    Groundbreaking Event

    City leaders joined AIC students, administrators, and trustees for the official groundbreaking for new athletic facilities on May 6. John T. Short, vice president for institutional advancement, said the new facilities will accommodate the needs of AIC’s intercollegiate teams, as well as enable the expansion of intramural programs, and allow for greater student and community usage of facilities. The new construction, to total $4.3 million, will include taking out grass and installing artificial turf, lights, new grandstands, and a new press box. The project, financed by Westfield Bank, will be constructed by Mountain View Landscapes and Lawncare Inc., of Chicopee. A large portion of the funding for the project is coming from the AIC students. Darren James, president of the AIC Student Government, said students have pledged $50,000 for the new facility. “The money we donate to the capital campaign will help to facilitate the realization of our long-awaited athletic turf field and track,” he said. Pictured, from left, are Lauren Silva and Darren James, AIC students; Vince Maniaci, AIC President; and Frank Colaccino, chairman of the AIC board of trustees.

    Lamplighter Award

    The Brattleboro Retreat was honored with the “Best in New England” Lamplighter Award at the spring conference of the New England Society for Healthcare Communications (NESHCO) held May 4-6 in Providence, R.I. The Lamplighter Award represents the top honor among Gold Award winners in more than 50 categories. It went to the Retreat for the organization’s six-minute DVD titled “Helping People Find the Strength.” The DVD, which also won gold in the category for audio/visual presentations, was produced by Sunnyside Films. It was filmed on the Brattleboro Retreat campus and features interviews with many Retreat staff. The Retreat also received NESHCO awards for the following marketing and communications pieces: Gold Award: Design/Printed Pieces (for the 2009 wall calendar); Gold Award: Special Events Communications (for communications pieces in support of the December 2008 fund-raising event featuring the Moscow Ballet performance of the Great Russian Nutcracker in Springfield); Silver Award: Design/Logo (for the institution’s new clock tower logo); Silver Award: Publications/Annual Report (for the “2007 Annual Report to Stakeholders and Friends”); and Award of Excellence: Overall Marketing Campaign (for the Retreat’s 2008 overall marketing campaign). From left, Jeff Whitcomb, president of Communicators Group Inc.; Dr. Robert E. Simpson, president and CEO of the Brattleboro Retreat; and Julia Sorensen, director of Marketing and Communications at the Brattleboro Retreat.

    SBA Award

    Florence Savings Bank President John Heaps addresses a large audience gathered at a recent press conference at Northampton’s Thorne’s Market, where the bank announced its receipt of a special achievement award from the Small Business Administration for having the highest percentage of SBA loans to women-owned businesses by banks statewide. “Women-owned businesses play a major role in the local economy, and we’re committed to helping them, as well as all local businesses, get the financial resources they need,” said Heaps. The press conference was staged in front of the clothing store Jackson & Connor, one of the women-owned businesses to which the bank has given financing.

    Market Business Show

    The Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield staged its annual Market Business Show on May 13 at the MassMutual Center. Thousands of visitors took in more than 150 exhibits featuring companies and institutions across Western Mass. and across every business sector. Here, Ginny Knapp, left, president, and Teresa Utt, sales representative, with Andrew Associates in Enfield, mix and mingle at the event.

    John Prenosil, left, principal with Springfield-based JMP Environmental Consulting, and Peter DeMallie, president and CEO of South Windsor, Conn.-based Design Professionals Inc., shared a booth and a conversation at the show.

    Unveiling the new look of ERC5 — East of the River Chamber (Hampden, Wilbraham, Ludlow, East Longmeadow, and Longmeadow), are, from left: Jim White of GoGraphix and Whitestone Marketing, creator of the new graphics, branding, and booth design for ERC5; Bill Russo-Appel, director of Marketing and Public Relations at Wing Memorial Hospital and Medical Centers; Beth Pecia, with the Town Planner; Edward Zemba, principal with Robert Charles Photography in East Longmeadow; Amy Scott of the Town Planner; and Charlie Christiansen of East Longmeadow-based Peritus Security Partners.

    Helene Curto, left, owner of Wilbraham-based Distinctive Tables, draws in attendees Janet Egelhofer and Maria Burke, both with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, with one of her unique collections.

    Scott Bottino, manufacturer’s representative (second from right), stands with team members representing West Springfield-based Northeast Security Solutions; from left, Joe Jarman, sales representative; George Condon Sr., chief operating officer; and David Condon, account representative.

    From left, Edward Zemba, co-owner, and Susanna Zemba, customer relations manager, of Robert Charles Photography in East Longmeadow talk with Melissa Meites and Coty Boyer, both employees of DiGrigoli Salons in West Springfield.

    Barry Sanborn, general manager of Proshred Security in Wilbraham, staffs the company’s booth.

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