Home 2013 (Page 15)

Year: 2013

Building Permits

By
Building Permits Departments

The following building permits were issued during the month of April 2013.

AGAWAM

David St. John
441 Silver St.
$35,000 — Exterior renovation

Joseph Walz, DMD
302 Suffield St.
$3,000 — Siding repair

Pioneer Tool
40 Bowles Road
$33,000 — Re-roof

RHM Realty
207 Bowles Road
$10,000 — Renovations

AMHERST

Amherst Presidential Village, LLC
950 North Pleasant St.
$8,000 — Insulate attic and weather stripping

Bank of America
1 South Pleasant St.
$35,000 — Provide new ADA compliant ramps and sidewalks

IAT Partnership, LLC
49 Boltwood Walk
$5,000 — Interior renovations

CHICOPEE

Fannie Mae
607 Burnett Road
$12,500 — Strip and re-roof

IB Investments, LLC
64 Ames St.
$19,000 — Replacement windows

Our Lady of Elms
291 Springfield St.
$388,000 — Duct system for new science center

Van Guard Consignment
450 New Ludlow Road
$12,800 — Install new roof

River Valley Council Inc.
247 Exchange St.
$70,000 — Renovation for new mental health office

HADLEY

Justin Hoehn
206 Russell St.
$7,500 — Replace roof

Stephen Smith
367 Russell St.
$10,000 — Install new storefront

HOLYOKE

Holyoke Hospital
6 Isabella St.
$9,000 – Bathroom renovations

Mass Housing Finance
346 Maple St.
$10,000 — Replace windows

NORTHAMPTON

518 Pleasant Street, LLC
518 Pleasant St.
$50,000 — Replace roof

Atwood Drive, LLC
8 Atwood Dr.
$240,000 — Build out third floor

Chamisa Corporation
25 Main St.
$10,500 — Renovate Veracruzana loading dock

Coolidge Center, LLC
47 Pleasant St.
$47,000 — Renovate second floor

Serio Cosimo
69 State St.
$7,000 — Strip and shingle roof

SOUTH HADLEY

Pioneer Valley Photo Voltaics
11 Parker St.
$42,000 — Install solar panels

SPRINGFIELD

Freedom Credit Union
1985 Main St.
$67,000 — Tenant fit out

JRH Realty Inc.
1673 Main St.
$8,000 — Minor renovations for take-out restaurant

Robert Allen
1819 Page Blvd.
$71,000 — Build out front offices

Steve’s Alignment
170 Taylor St.
$16,000 — New roof

The MRI Centers of NE
3640 Main St.
$48,000 — Interior remodel

United Bank
1946 Wilbraham Road
$1,020,000 — Construction of a new bank branch

Yukon Group, LLC
101 Wason Ave.
$683,000 — Interior fit out for new tenant

WESTFIELD

Falcone Retail
66 Main St.
$9,000 — Interior renovation

FHB Realty
36 Elm St.
$18,000 — Renovation

WEST SPRINGFIELD

1275 LLC
1275 Elm Street
$49,000 — Renovate 2,450 square feet of office space

Bertera Fiat
657 Riverdale St.
$965,000 — New 12,054-square-foot pre-engineered steel building

Mercier Carpet
1343 Riverdale St.
$279,000 — Rooftop mounted solar array

Ventures and Adventures

By
Sharon Styffe
Sections Women in Businesss
Network of Women Entrepreneurs Educates and Inspires Budding Women Business Owners

Sharon Styffe

Sharon Styffe says the Network for Women Entrepreneurs fills a need in the region for a resource to assist those looking to start or grow a business.

Sharon Styffe, dean of Workforce and Professional Development at Holyoke Community College (HCC), says that coming up with a successful new business concept is a challenge that comes in two parts: having a good idea, and identifying a market to buy that idea.
“It’s one thing to do what you’re good at,” she told BusinessWest, “but its quite another thing to find something you’re good at — and that the market will buy. You can’t just sell something that’s your passion; it has to be someone else’s need — because otherwise it’s just an organized hobby.”
These are just some of the many thoughts she tries to impress upon the growing number of participants in something called the Network of Women Entrepreneurs, which meets every other week at the Kittredge Center on the HCC campus.
As the name suggests, this initiative, which Styffe created last fall, is indeed a network, one in which ideas are exchanged, common issues and problems are discussed, and people leave the room with more to think about than when they arrived. It is intended for those already in business, those who would like to be some day, and those who need to decide if being in business for themselves is the correct career path to take.
Mary Kearney is actually in two of those categories — sort of. She already has one operating enterprise, called CleanScape Inc., a commercial cleaning service she founded 18 years ago, as well as a fledgling enterprise still mostly in the hobby stage — a niche graphic design company for women’s clothing — that she would like to make her primary business pursuit.
“Although I’m an entrepreneur, cleaning has never excited me as much as the arts,” she explained, “especially since that’s where my skills are.”
Kearney’s desire to grow her graphic arts enterprise brought her to the Network of Women Entrepreneurs, but discussions within that group, and her own due diligence, have brought her to the conclusion that her concept might be too cost-prohibitive. However, further introspection — and help from the group — may eventually lead to the acceptable alternative of folding some aspects of that dream into her cleaning venture (more on that later).
Nancy Fields, president of Fields Graphic Design in Leeds, is another participant in the network who said the informative, interactive sessions have given her new perspective on what it means to be in business and serve customers.
“One of the speakers was a former marketing person and she was an eye-opener for me,” she said, “because she made me see that I’m not just a person doing a job for someone else. I’m actually running a business and I really have something to offer here.”
Currently the group consists of business owners involved in writing, Website and graphic design, food production, commercial office cleaning, accounting, hair design, radio talent, healthy food preparation, end-of-life care, publishing, and home organization.
Each venture, and each entrepreneur, is different, but there are common denominators that include everything from clearing the many hurdles involved with taking a concept from the drawing board to the marketplace, to the difficulties women face in finding a balance between life and work.
For this issue and its focus on women in business, BusinessWest took in a session of the network Styffe facilitates to see how it helps members juggle the many balls they have in the air and take their businesses to the next level.

Life in the Middle
Before she came to HCC from a large community college in Ohio last October, Styffe, a single mother and full-time working professional with experience in education, banking, and workforce development, did some extensive research on Western Mass.
And that due diligence led her to conclude that it was a “hot bed” for small-business development.
Looking deeper, and calling on her own background, she recognized a need within the community for a resource for women business owners and those with entrepreneurial urges, one that would provide information, inspiration, and, perhaps most importantly, dialogue between such individuals.
Thus, she launched the network, which is based on a program she created at Montgomery County Community College in Pennyslvania. One of the main reasons to target women, she explained, is their continuing roles as nurturers and caretakers, which makes them “natural multi-taskers.”
“It doesn’t matter how far up the career ladder one goes, that nurturing quality is still something that is ingrained in you from when you were little,” she said, “and that makes you perfect for creating a business, and a program like this captures that spirit.”
Styffe has a number of initiatives she wants to launch at HCC, but the Network of Women Entrepreneurs is the first, and a place where women business owners can form a new community of learning in an accepting environment.
Just a few weeks ago, one of the women attendees presented her company and her products, explaining to the other women how she got to the that point with all her struggles, including FDA approvals, and she brought her newborn baby with her.
“Her husband was working that night,” Styffe said. “And everybody completely understood.”

Information Overload

WomenNetworkMembers

Donna Bliznak, left, recently addressed the network on the broad subject of commercial lending, providing insight for members, including Mary Kearney, center, and Nancy Fields.

At a recent Tuesday evening session, guest speaker Donna Bliznak, vice president of Commercial Lending for PeoplesBank, presented a comprehensive inside look at the lending process, and at what banks want to see and hear from business owners as they consider loans for various purposes — starting up, next-level expansion, or simply weathering economic downturns.
Other speakers have presented on such topics as legal issues involved in getting started, personnel recruitment, branding and marketing, and access to common capital.
The scheduling of the session topics is based loosely on the plan one should follow if they are just starting up their business. In between the expected topics, other presentations are also booked for the rest of the year, based on what the attendees want to learn.
But one of Styffe’s concerns is that attendees not get overwhelmed.  The sheer volume of information packed into some of the recent sessions can burn them out.
“The topics have been really great and the speakers haven’t relaxed it at all,” Styffe said. “Some of these women haven’t had financial training; they’ve been consumers, but with a business, it’s a whole new ball game.  You have to be prepared to talk to someone to sell them on the long-term prospect of what you do.”
Which leads her to the importance of creating an effective business plan.
While Styffe has seen some people get their ventures off the ground without a business plan, one is needed to help the entrepreneur set goals and create effective strategies for reaching them. An up-to-date plan can also help determine possible course changes for businesses experiencing growing pains.
Fields, for example, was doing graphic design work for 20 years when she lost a major client, forcing her to step back and look at where her business was and how to take it where she wanted it to go.
“I have to look at what I’m doing and why I’m doing it,” she said, adding that her business plan is addressing such questions. “I have to look at money, and now start really thinking of my work as a business.”
In Fields’ situation, Styffe talked about the importance of developing a pipeline of customers, a client network of current and future customers to draw from, which enables a business to weather downturns and not be dependant on one or a few clients.
Fields said she started attending network sessions upon realizing not only that she needed to create this pipeline, but that hard work and effective networking would be needed to create such a prospective client list.
“I know I need to network now, especially for online marketing and to refresh my brand,” she said.
Kearney’s CleanScape has fluctuated between 17 and 33 employees during various economic ups and downs, but remained generally stable.
“At times I couldn’t find enough employees to keep up with the work,” she said, “and other times, doctors’ offices would hire their own staff to clean, just to save money during the tough economy.”
But, despite her relative success in a competitive field, something was missing — a passion for the work. And that’s why she desired something in what she would consider her chosen field — art.
An early love of murals eventually turned into a hobby centered on illustration, and then a very small start-up venture called ArtWear Gallery, which offers Kearney’s upscale illustrations on women’s shirts, blouses, and casual- to business-style tops. As a weekend graphic designer and illustrator, Kearney wanted to turn ArtWear Gallery into her primary business focus. This was the mindset she took to her first network sessions, but further examination of the concept changed her outlook.
“I found that in this country, our technology with dyes isn’t as advanced as overseas, and because my company would not be able to buy the volume of garments initially, like plain tee shirts are bought in bulk, it just wasn’t going to be affordable.”
She reluctantly shifted her hopes and dreams away from ArtWear Gallery and back to commercial cleaning, but with more services and the assistance of a local contractor. Now, in addition to routine, detail, and specialty cleaning, she’ll offer space-organizing services, window and carpet cleaning, composite tile floor refinishing, building repairs, remodels and renovations.
But something even more exciting has happened, thanks in part to the HCC group. Kearney is now considering merging her expanded commercial cleaning company to include different forms of her passion for art.
“Now, I’ve added wall painting, including contemporary faux textures and effects, personalized logo and original mural design,” she said, adding that all this allows her to satisfy that artistic passion that she was missing for years in the cleaning business.

Guiding Light
Styffe said she isn’t surprised that people like Kearney and Fields are able to make important career decisions through the help of the network.
She told BusinessWest that this is what happens when people with common dreams and similar challenges come together to learn and, in some cases, teach.
Over time, she believes the initiative can help enable a number of ventures to thrive, add jobs, and perhaps inspire new ideas to meet recognized needs.
After all, that’s what a successful business does.

Elizabeth Taras can be reached at [email protected]

Engaging Concept

By
Dora Robinson, left, and Kathy Dube
Sections Women in Businesss
Local United Way to Form Women’s Leadership Council

Dora Robinson, left, and Kathy Dube

Dora Robinson, left, and Kathy Dube say the timing is right for creation of a Women’s Leadership Council in Greater Springfield.

Kathy Dube says that talk of creating a women’s leadership council within the United Way of Pioneer Valley (UWPV) has been ongoing for some time now.
There was never any doubt about the benefits to creating such an organization, both within the community and for the women taking part, she explained, noting that there are now 130 such councils operating across the country in partnership with United Way chapters. And they have been effective in reaching out to women leaders in the community to engage and involve (the two words you see most often with respect to such groups) them in meeting the most pressing needs in a given area through donations of time, leadership, and financial support.
No, the only question facing the UWPV was whether a WLC, as they’re called, would duplicate the efforts of other women’s organizations in the area, such as the Women’s Fund of Western Mass. and the Professional Women’s Chamber of Commerce, said Dube, senior vice president and private banking officer with TD Bank and current chair of the UWPV board of directors. And some due diligence has determined that this would not be the case, she told BusinessWest, noting that while those groups and others do some of the things a leadership council would, they don’t do them all, and a council could fill what she described as a critical void.
“I felt there was a missing link between the professional women’s groups in Greater Springfield and the nonprofit world,” she explained. “And this is the perfect solution that pulls it all together. I don’t think there was a group that was doing all that a council does — fundraising, but also mentoring women in the process and getting actively involved in a key community need, and helping to put together a plan that solves an issue that we may have in Springfield.”
Thus, a 20-member “design team” is taking the concept for a leadership council from the drawing board to reality, said Dora Robinson, president and CEO of the UWPV and a member of that team. Some of the next steps in the process, and there are many, include everything from recruitment of members to creating an awareness campaign, to initiating discussions about possible projects for the council to undertake.
And there are intriguing examples to consider from across the country. In Cincinnati, for example, a WLC got directly involved in the plight of homeless women, doing everything from raising money for a new housing initiative to actually decorating the apartments. Meanwhile, the council affiliated with the United Way of Greater Chicago is involved in a partnership with the Young Women’s Leadership Charter School, and specifically an initiative known as its middle school academic intervention program, designed to ensure that girls stay on track to graduating from high school. And the council affiliated with the United Way of Northern New Jersey is helping to improve quality of live for those whose situation is described by the acronym ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed.
In each case, the initiatives involve the three pillars of leadership council activity — financial support, volunteerism, and mentoring, said Dube, adding that the UWPV’s group will do the same in this market.

An Involved Process
Dube and Robinson both said that the catalyst for moving forward with the WLC came at a United Way conference in Nashville roughly a year ago.
One of the workshops was on women’s leadership councils, how they’ve evolved, and the many intriguing issues they were involved with, said Dube. “I left there thinking, we have to do this in the Springfield area.”
The reasons for doing so are obvious and many, she went on, but they come down to two: a strong base of professional women who want to get directly involved in the community, and an abundance of issues that could be addressed through donations of money, time, and talent.
“The timing is right for something like this in the Springfield area,” she told BusinessWest. “There are many issues to be addressed here.”
Robinson said the number of councils nationwide is growing steadily, primarily in response to national trends involving women, wealth, philanthropy, and effectively harnessing that power and influence. Among those trends:

• The Internal Revenue Service reported in 2010 that 2.5 million (38.8%) of the top wealth holders in the U.S. were women. These individuals had a combined net worth of almost $4.2 trillion. As of 2011, 50% of top wealth holders were women;
• In 2010, the Center for Women’s Business Research found that one in 10 women in the U.S. was a business owner, and their companies continue to grow at twice the rate of all firms; and
• Women live longer than men, meaning they will end up in charge of much of the $41 trillion expected to pass from generation to generation in the next 50 years.

“Given the fact that no two communities are alike with respect to the affluence and influence of women, the number of women-owned businesses, and opportunities for women to give and be involved, UWPV has a unique opportunity to build on the success of the national Women’s Leadership Council framework,” said Robinson. “We are committed to developing, designing, and implementing a program that is fitted to our local needs.”
And by that, she meant a council that can not only address recognized needs in the community, but also get women engaged and involved (there are those two words again) in not only creating a solution to a problem, but carrying it out.
Here’s how a women’s leadership conference works:
First, professional women are recruited to join. Membership involves an annual monetary donation, with those funds used to help finance projects the group will take part in. These donations vary with the market, said Dube, adding that while some councils assess $2,500 or more, the group in Hartford started with a few hundred dollars, opting to gradually increase that amount, a model that will likely be followed in this market.
Recruitment efforts are already underway on an informal basis, said Dube, adding that the design team will provide a solid base on which to build. One key to membership, she noted, is to make the council large enough to enable it to be effective, but not so large that members cannot be directly involved in a specific initiative.
“We want to make sure we know what we’re doing before we open it up to too many people,” she explained, adding that the initial goal will be 50 to 75. “But we have to make sure that those 50 to 75 are actively engaged in what we’re doing.”
The next big consideration is deciding what to do with the funds that are raised, or how to get the membership involved in the community it has been tasked with serving.
Existing councils are involved in a wide array of initiatives, as those examples from Cincinnati, New England, and Chicago clearly show, said Robinson, adding that a small yet effective council in Greenfield has been active with the broad issue of literacy and putting books in the hands of children.
And the Springfield-area group will be diligent in selecting projects that are impactful, but will also directly involve women in the group, said Dube, adding that many endeavors involving councils focus on helping women break from poverty.
“There have been discussions about doing a scholarship program for women who want to re-enter the workforce and need to go back to school to do that,” she noted. “And at the same time, we would weave into that mentoring and financial literacy training; that’s one possibility.”
The council will obviously look to avoid duplicating efforts already underway, said Robinson, noting, for example, that early childhood literacy, while an important issue, is being addressed by other groups, especially the Irene E. and George A. Davis Foundation.
“Initially, we’ll be looking for a project that has a start and a finish, so we can have some success,” Dube explained, citing the initiative in Cincinnati as one to emulate in that regard. “What was great about that project was that they recognized a need for housing, they went out and raised the money for it, and they did it — there was a start and an end, and now they’re moving on to another project.
“I think we’ll also try to find a project where we accomplish some objectives in a relatively short period of time, maybe a year,” she went on, “and then move onto another project that might be entirely different.”
Whatever direction the council takes, mentoring and direct involvement will be part of the equation, said Robinson, because those on the design team, and others who have expressed interest in the council concept have indicated that they want to do much more than write checks.
“There has been a fairly consistent theme around mentoring,” she noted. “Women want to be involved with other young women or girls in mentoring relationships. How that gets crafted into what we’re doing will be determined over the next few months.”

Impact Statement
The unofficial timeline for the council calls for a public launch sometime this fall, with planning and recruitment to take place in the months preceding.
But already there is considerable momentum for this initiative, which organizers believe has enormous potential to harness the desire among professional women in this region to donate more than money (although that’s certainly an important part of the equation) to the task of addressing some of the deeply rooted issues in area communities.
And addressing them by getting these women engaged and involved.

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

Dare To Recharge Your Wardrobe

By
Sections Women in Businesss
It’s Time to Make Some Colorful Statements with Your Attire

By Kate Vishnyakov
When it comes to clothing for the professional woman, practicality wins over trendiness every time. With that said, regardless of profession and what you are able to wear for work, this season’s obsession with color can help brighten up your look.
If you’ve been flipping through magazines, watching news networks, or taking in a fashion show, you’ve seen that the big, bold, color is everywhere. Vibrant color palettes range from fuchsia pinks to sea foam greens, lemon yellow, citrus oranges, and deep Laguna blues — remember “the bolder the better” is the season’s mantra.
So one may wonder why local offices, banks, and law firms are full of the proverbial ‘women in black’? The endless uniform of un-color is on the streets, at coffee shops, meetings, and more. The safe, ubiquitous black is everywhere. In a day and age where blending in is not highly desired, the row of black jackets, dresses, and suits hanging in your closet are not helping you stand out.
Adding a splash (or even a smidge more) of color can help you stand out, while still having a professional, polished image.

A Crash Course in Color
Are you wondering what the secret is to successfully pulling off a bright look without looking like a fashion victim? One simple and easy step is to go bolder with a color similar to what you usually wear. For example move from black to navy. If you regularly wear navy or gray try cobalt blue and indigo. If most of your wardrobe is brown, take a look at coral. And last, but not least, trade in the power red for the very ‘in-season’ fuchsia pink.
Other suggestions include keeping the rest of your outfit neutral and accessories minimal. Use a light color shell or a blouse. And for shoes and bags, consider light brown, tan or camel color.

Go Bold, or Go Home
If wearing bold color head-to-toe is too big of a leap, keep bright colors close to your face and wear darker colors on a bottom. Color combinations that work well together include navy and green, coral and tan, golden yellow and gray. The safe proportion is 75% of one color to 25% of another in any outfit. Remember, you don’t need to be an extravert or attention seeker to wear color to stand out a bit.
Seek out jewel tones on your next shopping trip. Some call them “the grown-up way to wear color.” As Kelly Ayotte, U.S. Senator from New Hampshire says, “wear a pastel jacket and you might look too girly, wear a bold primary hue and it can be too brash. But opt for a rich, saturated jewel tone like amethyst/orchid shade, and it’s hard to go wrong.”
Another important key to wearing color is a fit. The slim silhouette is important when you wear bold colors or print. Straight, slim leg pant, preferably an ankle length, or a pencil skirt will go well with a longer jacket-and-pants look, or a shorter one-button jacket with a skirt. This rule will work for both petites and fuller women. Keep the volume on a top or on a bottom, but not both to avoid the kitschy look.

Dresses Mean Business
Meanwhile, have you noticed a plethora of brightly colored, arm-baring sheaths on many powerful women? From the likes of First Lady Michele Obama to ABC’s Dianne Sawyer, to the head of International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde, it is clear that dresses are ‘in’ at the office.
Stylist and blogger Susan Wagner of WorkingCloset.com says, “black dresses are usually too ‘date night’ for the office, but in other colors, frocks are fabulous. Once you find the silhouette that works for you and your office’s atmosphere, you will love the ease of wearing a dress.”
Just remember keep the fabrics and formality consistent with your work environment and observe conservative to-the-knee hemline and classic fit.

What’s Top 10 Now
1. White Blazer
2. Pencil, full, A-line skirts
3. Day dresses in bold colors
4. Slim leg pant
5. Silk button-down
6. Large black and white mod-style looks
7. Candy-colored leather as a day jacket
8. Pointy-toe shoes
9.  Neutral wedges
10. Bright tote bags
All good things in fashion recycle themselves. More or less, everything is “in.” Sparkling dresses from the Art Deco ’20s, mid-calve lengths from the ’30s, the ’40s’ chunky heels, full skirts of the ’50s, the ’60s’ mod dresses, ’70s’ hippy chic, ’80s’ suits, and ’90s’ grunge.
Each day you can live your decade of choice and wear what pleases you the most. There are endless ways to add color and style to your life this season. Please do it. Let’s make the world a more beautiful place… one woman in a time.  Here’s to a season filled with beauty, growth and fresh possibilities.

Kate Vishnyakov is owner of Kate Gray in East Longmeadow; (413) 525-2895.

PictureThis

By
PriorAward
Departments Picture This

Send photos with a caption and contact information to:  ‘Picture This’ c/o BusinessWest Magazine, 1441 Main Street, Springfield, MA 01103 or to [email protected]

A Living Treasure

PriorAwardThe annual Dorothy Jordan Pryor Award and Lecture at Springfield Technical Community College honors a “living treasure” such as Pryor, the former English teacher, Affirmative Action officer, and trustee. The 2013 recipient, Setta McCabe, retired director of Public Relations and Publication and current WTCC-FM board member, spoke on the history of the college and the radio station.

Sports Minded

GSCVBThe Greater Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau (GSCVB) recently launched the new Western MA Sports Commission, which will purse, attract, and support sporting events and sports-related business opportunities that positively impact the Western Mass. economy. During ceremonies at the MassMutual Center, a new logo was unveiled, and John Heaps, president of Florence Savings Bank, was introduced as chairman of the commission, Other members of the board, seated from left, are: Thomas Burke, Granby High School Coach; Steve McKelvey, associate professor and graduate program director at UMass Amherst; Shannah McArdle, director of sports marketing for the Mass. Office of Travel and Tourism; Louise Hines, director of sports and event marketing for the MassMutual Financial Group; John Doleva, president and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame; Paul Dinn, president of Dinn Brothers Trophy, Inc.; and J. Adam Filson, general counsel of Jiminy Peak Family of Companies. Other commission members not pictured include Kenneth Sinkiewicz, deputy director, of the Mass. Convention Center Authority, and Henry Thomas III, president & CEO of the Urban League of Springfield.

Naming Rights

EDnamedforGrinspoonandTrodermanBaystate Medical Center’s adult emergency department recently benefited from a  $1 million gift from local philanthropic leaders Harold Grinspoon and wife, Diane Troderman. In appreciation, the Level 1 adult trauma facility’s new name will be the Harold Grinspoon & Diane Troderman Adult Emergency Department at the Baystate Medical Center Emergency & Trauma Center. It joins the Sadowsky Family Pediatric Emergency Department as the two named elements of the new Emergency & Trauma Center at Baystate, which opened in December 2012. The Emergency & Trauma Center encompasses more than three times the size of the hospital’s former emergency room, with twice the number of private, adult patient-care spaces. Grinspoon established the Harold Grinspoon Foundation in 1993 in Springfield, and Troderman has been his active partner in all of his philanthropic activities. Pictured (from left) during the announcement event are: Mark Tolosky, president and CEO of Baystate Health; James Sadowsky of the Baystate Health Board of Trustees; Grinspoon; Troderman; John Davis of the Baystate Health Board of Trustees; Dr. Benjamin Liptzin, chair of the Department of Psychiatry, Baystate Health; and Dr. Richard Engelman, chief of Cardiac Surgical Research at Baystate Medical Center.

Unlimited Pride

20130411hru011220130411hru010120130411hru0105Human Resources Unlimited recently staged its annual Recognition and Fundraiser event at Springfield Country Club. Employer partners and volunteers were honored and successful program members were recognized. At top, from left, accepting the 2012 Armand Tourangeau Volunteer of the Year award is Jeff Lander, center, founder of Appilistic, flanked by (from left) Susan Smith, senior employment coordinator, Forum House; Renee Kosciusko, daughter of Armand Tourangeau; Carol Tourangeau, wife of Armand Tourangeau; and Susan Beckwith, program manager, Forum House. Middle left, 2012 Rookie Employer Award recipients (from left), Jackie Huntley, Tradewinds program member; Deb Post, HR manager, and Russell Prentiss, general manager, both of the Sturbridge Host Hotel & Conference Center; Michael Forest, program manager, Tradewinds; and Winnie Siano, senior employment coordinator, Tradewinds; Bottom, Donald Kozera, President of Human Resources Unlimited (second from right) poses with the winners of the Employer of the Year Award, representing Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Westfield. From left are: Arlie Meade, sales manager; Nathan Byrd, general manager, Ashish Patel, president, and Jacquie Clayton, guest services manager.
Photos by Paul Schnaittacher

Engineering Excellence

Tighe&Bond_MAACECAwardThe American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts (ACEC/MA) presented Westfield-based engineering firm, Tighe & Bond, with a Gold Award during its 2013 Engineering Excellence and Awards Gala in Cambridge. The annual competition recognizes recent engineering achievements that demonstrate the highest degree of merit, ingenuity, complexity, and client satisfaction. This Gold Award recognized innovative upgrades that Tighe & Bond recently completed for the town of Sturbridge’s wastewater treatment facility, which became the first full-scale combined BioMag/CoMag wastewater system in the nation. The implementation of two new cutting edge and effective treatment processes, BioMag and CoMag, have increased wastewater treatment efficiency, improved water quality, as well as reduced costs and overall environmental impact. Sharing a moment after the awards ceremony are, from left, Ko Ishikura ACEC/MA president; Gregory Morse, Sturbridge DPW director; Ian Catlow, Tighe & Bond senior project manager; Mike Becker, Tighe & Bond construction observer; Peter Piattoni, ACEC/MA Awards chair; and Shaun Suhoski, Sturbridge town administrator.

Not Just Business as Usual

DSCF0153DSCF0165The Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) Foundation hosted its fourth annual Not Just Business As Usual event on April 4 at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In celebration of 40 years of excellence in Nursing at STCC, keynote speakers included “The Three Doctors,” Dr. George Jenkins, assistant professor of the Clinical Dentistry Section of Adult Dentistry at Columbia University; Dr. Rameck Hunt, board certified internist at University Medical Center at Princeton and assistant professor of Medicine at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School; and Dr. Sampson Davis, board certified emergency medicine physician at St. Michael’s Medical Center, Raritan Bay Medical Center and Easton Hospital, and assistant medical director of the Emergency Department at Raritan Bay Medical Center. As teenagers surrounded by negative influences with few positive role models growing up on the streets of Newark, N.J., the three friends made a pact to stick together, graduate college, and achieve their dreams of becoming medical doctors. All are now well known for their work in delivering messages of hope and inspiration. Over the past two years, the STCC Foundation event has provided more than $100,000 to support college and student needs. At top (from left) Drs. Davis, Hunt, and Jenkins sign copies of their books, The Pact, We Beat the Street, and The Bond. Bottom, above, Ira Rubenzahl, president of STCC, poses with Frank Colaccino, CEO at Colvest Group (center), and John Heaps, Jr., president of Florence Savings Bank.

Court Dockets

By
Court Dockets 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
Daiana Narvaez and Maria Fuentes v. T.G. Lawler Insurance Agency and Joshua Jimenez
Allegation: Breach of insurance contract: $2,379
Filed: 3/25/13

HAMPDEN SUPERIOR COURT
Backyard Farms, LLC v. Hampden Structural Systems d/b/a Private Garden Greenhouse Systems, Joseph Michael Hickson, Jr. and Katherine Joyce Hickson
Allegation: Breach of contract, negligent performance of work, and misrepresentation: $20,758.40+
Filed: 3/11/13

Juliana Gore v. Baystate Medical Center, Stanley Access Technologies, LLC and John Doe Inc.
Allegation: Negligent maintenance of property: $28,500
Filed: 3/21/13

Law Office of Michael D. Facchini v. Joe Smith d/b/a Joe’s Remodeling
Allegation: Breach of contract for construction services: $26,000+
Filed: 3/12/13

Oil Recovery Corporation v. Responsive Trucking Inc.
Allegation: Negligent repairs: $27,000
Filed: 3/15/13

HAMPSHIRE SUPERIOR COURT
Kaleigh Ward v. Bino, Inc., BCC Realty, Inc., 265-271 Dwight Street Inc., and James and Helen Santaniello
Allegation: Negligence in service of alcohol: $540,388.86
Filed: 3/7/13

Matthew Boudreau and Shaylene Greenwood v. Affiliated Construction Services, Craig Urn and Ernie Austin
Allegation: Breach of contract for renovation services: $25,000+
Filed: 3/21/13

NORTHAMPTON DISTRICT COURT
George Robert v. Kimball’s Auction and Estate Services
Allegation: Breach of contract: $25,000
Filed: 4/5/13

PALMER DISTRICT COURT
J. D. Contracting v. Premier Equipment
Allegation: Plaintiff rented equipment from the defendant that did not work as contracted: $12,640.00
Filed: 2/27/13

SPRINGFIELD DISTRICT COURT
Jacques J. Chicoine v. Star Pizzeria and Turkmen Lac Inc.
Allegation: Negligent property maintenance causing injury: $6,508
Filed: 3/14/13

Natasha Clark, as parent and next friend of Tianna Hillman v. Springfield Housing Authority
Allegation: Negligent property maintenance causing injury: $8,793.16
Filed: 3/13/13

WESTFIELD DISTRICT COURT
Constellation Newenergy Inc. v. Mary C. Donahue d/b/a M&M Restaurant
Allegation: Non-payment of energy services: $7,814.94
Filed: 3/13/13

Agenda

By
Agenda Departments

Obamacare and Employers
April 24, May 2, May 9: Royal LLP — a law firm specializing exclusively in management-side labor- and employment-law litigation and preventative practices to avoid litigation — will join experts on the Patient Protection Affordable Care Act (known as Obamacare) in presenting an informational series of workshops that will provide an interactive, step-by-step analysis of how the act applies to both small and large employers, including what employers should be doing now to prepare for the 2014 mandates. All sessions will be held at the Hu Ke Lau in Chicopee. Session 1, which will be held on April 24, will provide a general overview of the law, including key components, potential implications, and impact on employers. Session 2, which will be held on May 2, will address the shared responsibility requirements. Session 3, which will be held on May 9, will detail the impact of the law. For more information, contact Ann-Marie Marcil at (413) 586-2288 or [email protected].

Elevator Pitch Competition
April 24: Five local community banks will sponsor a live elevator pitch competition at the awards banquet for the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation’s Entrepreneurship Initiative, starting at 5 p.m. at Log Cabin in Holyoke. Representatives from each bank — Berkshire Bank, Country Bank for Savings, First Niagara Bank, PeoplesBank, and United Bank — will also serve as judges. An elevator pitch is an overview of an idea for a new business. The name reflects the fact that an elevator pitch can be delivered in the timespan of an elevator ride. The term is used when an entrepreneur pitches an idea to a venture capitalist to receive funding. The competition will feature a student representative from each of the participating local colleges: American International College, Amherst College, Bay Path College, Elms College, Greenfield Community College, Hampshire College, Holyoke Community College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, Springfield College, Springfield Technical Community College, UMass Amherst, Western New England University, and Westfield State University. The judges will choose the top three students, who will receive cash awards. All participants will receive a stipend for participating. This is the eighth year that an elevator pitch competition will be held at the event. Other program highlights include keynote speaker Stanley Kowalski, founding CEO and chairman of the board of FloDesign in Wilbraham; an Entrepreneurs & Awardees Exhibit featuring 59 student entrepreneurs from area colleges; and the announcement of the Grinspoon, Garvey & Young Alumni Spirit Award. For more information about the banquet, e-mail Cari Carpenter at [email protected].

Strategic Investments in Owner-Operated Companies
April 25: Peter Doyle, chief investment strategist at Kinetics Mutual Funds, will deliver a presentation titled “A New Paradigm: Strategic Investments in Owner-operated Companies” at 4 p.m. at the Colony Club in Springfield. The event, sponsored by Martinelli Discenza Investment Counsel, was postponed from its original date of Feb. 25. Owner-operators are broadly defined as corporate management teams that have considerable personal wealth invested alongside their shareholders. The actions of these management teams over the past several years — actively allocating capital into attractive opportunities and engaging in various actions to enhance shareholder value — stand in stark contrast to those of agent managers, who have focused on cost-cutting measures to maintain margins at the possible expense of future growth. To RSVP for the event, call Lisa Kozak at (413) 567-8411.

EANE Management Conference
April 25: The Employers Association of the NorthEast will hold its ninth annual management conference, “Leadership and Mentorship in Action,” at the Holiday Inn in Enfield, Conn. The conference will address the direct impact of mentoring and leadership development on the growth and success of organizations. Keynote speaker Doug Dvorak, a contributing author to the bestselling book The Masters of Success, will present his popular program “The Magic of Mentoring.” Additional presenters include Ravi Kulkarni and Lynn Turner of ClearVision Alliance. A panel of representatives from area companies will discuss next-generation mentoring. Conference breakout sessions include “Leadership Behavior and Employee Engagement,” “Building Effective Teams,” and “DiSC Work of Leaders.” For more information about the conference, contact Karen Cronenberger at (877) 662-6444 or [email protected]. To register, call (877) 662-6444 or visit www.eane.org.

A Heart Healthy Toast
April 26: Whether you’re a seasoned wine enthusiast or a recreational wine drinker, you will find something pleasing to your palate at “A Heart Healthy Toast,” sponsored by the Holyoke Hospital Auxiliary Assoc. from 6 to 8 p.m. at Hamel’s Summit View Banquet House in Holyoke. The tasting will spotlight a variety of wines from around the world that have been carefully selected by Liquors 44. Everyone attending will be provided with a personal program booklet where notes can be taken for each wine, noting likes and dislikes. Vendor representatives will be available to give their tips for using all the senses to taste wine and how to call out subtle variations. The funds raised will be used toward the “Extreme Makeover” of the Work Connection located at Holyoke Medical Center. The Work Connection is an occupational health clinic located at the medical center that provides health services to local businesses in the area. Tickets for the wine tasting are $40 per person and will include a selection of Hamel’s hot and cold appetizers, fruit, and cheeses. Call Deborah Long Smith at (413) 534-2568 to order tickets.

EASTEC 2013
May 14-16: EASTEC, the premier manufacturing exposition in the Northeast will be held at the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield on May 14 and 15 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on May 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event will offer a variety of exhibitors, educational offerings, tours of nearby facilities, and much more. For more information and to register to attend, visit www.easteconline.com.

40 Under Forty
June 20: BusinessWest will present its seventh class of regional rising stars at the annual 40 Under Forty gala at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House in Holyoke. The event will feature music, lavish food stations, and introductions of the winners, who are profiled at length in this issue. Look for event details in upcoming issues of BusinessWest, or call (413) 781-8600, ext. 100 for more information.

Western Mass Business Expo 2013
Nov. 6: Planning is underway for the Western Mass Business Expo 2013, a day-long business-to-business event to take place at the MassMutual Center in downtown Springfield. This fall’s show, the third edition of the Expo, which is again being produced by BusinessWest, will feature more than 100 exhibitors, seminars on timely issues of the day, special Show Floor Theater presentations, breakfast and lunch programs, and the wrap-up Expo social, which has become a not-to-be-missed networking event. Details of the specific programming will be printed in upcoming editions of BusinessWest, and can also be seen online at www.wmbexpo.com or www.businesswest.com. For more information on the event or to reserve booth space, call (413) 781-8600, ext. 100.

Chamber Corners: Upcoming Events

By
Chamber Corners Departments

ACCGS
www.myonlinechamber.com
(413) 787-1555

• April 24: Join us for the chamber’s annual Beacon Hill Summit, hosted by state Sen. Gale Candaras, starting at 7 a.m. Join with other members of the Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield Inc. and the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce for a unique opportunity to hear directly from top legislators and members of the Patrick-Murray administration and an opportunity to voice your opinions, ideas, and concerns during the day’s formal sessions and social events. Speakers will include: Secretary of Administration and Finance Glen Shor, Senate President Therese Murray, Stephen Brewer, chair of the Senate and Joint Committees on Ways and Means, Mass. Taxpayers Foundation President Mike Widmer, and many others. The all-inclusive payment includes continental breakfast, transportation, and lunch at the Omni Parker House with members of the local delegation, a wrap-up reception at the 21st Amendment, and all materials. Buses depart at 7 a.m. from the Plantation Inn at Exit 6-off the MA Turnpike, and return at 7 p.m.
• May 1: Business@Breakfast, 7:30-9 a.m., at the Delaney House, One Country Club Road, Holyoke. Mayor’s Forum. The monthly Busness@Breakfast series pays tribute to individuals, businesses, and organizations for major contributions to civic and economic growth and for actions that reflect honor on the region. To reserve tickets, contact Cecile Larose at [email protected].

AMHERST AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.amherstarea.com
(413) 253-0700

• April 24: Chamber After 5, 5-7 p.m., at the UMass Fine Arts Center. Sponsored by: Yankee Candle. Tickets are $10 for members, $15 for non-members. RSVP to [email protected]
• April 30: ‘Making Green Sexy’ — Chamber Brown Bag luncheon, noon-1:30 p.m., in the Woodbury Room of the Jones Library at Amherst College. The program, focused on green marketing/green business profitability, will be presented by Shel Horowitz, president of Accurate Writing and More. Using examples as diverse as toilet paper, the Empire State Building, ice cream, and a community organizing campaign, Horowitz’s presentation will look at the different message styles you need to move both green and non-green audiences to action. For more information, visit http://greenandprofitable.com/.

CHICOPEE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.chicopeechamber.org
(413) 594-2101

• May 15: Salute Breakfast, 7:15-9 a.m., at Elms College, 291 Springfield St. in Chicopee. To reserve tickets, contact the chamber at (413) 594-2101 or [email protected].
• May 22: Business After Hours, 5-7 p.m., at Berkshire Bank, 1339 Memorial Dr. in Chicopee. For more information, contact the chamber at (413) 594-2101 or [email protected].

GREATER EASTHAMPTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.easthamptonchamber.org
(413) 527-9414

• April 25: Networking by Night Business Card Exchange, 5-7 p.m., at the new Easthampton High School, 70 Williston Ave. Tour and experience this new 21st century educational facility. Sponsored by Canon Real Estate Inc., Hors d’ouevres by the E.H.S. Culinary Department; door prizes. Tickets are $5 for members, $15 for future members
• May 9: Networking by Night Business Card Exchange, 5-7 p.m., at Amy’s Place Bar & Grill, 80-82 Cottage St., Easthampton. Sponsored by Easthampton Savings Bank; hors d’ouevres; door prizes; cash bar. Tickets are $5 for members, $15 for future members.
• May 17: Wine & Microbrew Tasting,  6- 9 p.m., at Wyckoff Country Club, 233 Easthampton Road, Holyoke. Enjoy more than 50 wines and microbrews, fine food, and an extraordinary raffle. Major Sponsor: Easthampton Savings Bank; Event Sponsor: Five Star Building Corp.; Wine Sponsor: Westfield Spirit Shop; Microbrew Sponsor: Big E’s Supermarket; Food Sponsor: Log Rolling @ The Log Cabin/Delaney House. Tickets are $35 in advance, $40 at door. Call (413) 527-9414, or visit or www.easthamptonchamber.org.

GREATER HOLYOKE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.holycham.com
(413) 534-3376

• May 10: Ask a Chamber Expert Series: Hiring the Right Talent, 8:30- 10 a.m., at the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce Conference Room, 177 High St. Join us for our second ACE (Ask a Chamber Expert) event with guest speaker Peter Brunault, senior professional in Human Resources (SPHR) of Employers Association of the NorthEast. Admission: $10 for members, $25 for non-members. Price includes a continental breakfast. Call the chamber at (413) 534-3376 to sign up or register at holyokechamber.com.
• May 15: Legislative Luncheon featuring State Treasurer Steven Grossman, starting at 11:30, at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, 500 Easthampton Road. Sponsored by Dowd Insurance and Goss & McLain Insurance. Admission: payment in advance, $30; payment at door, $40. Open to the public. For reservations call the chamber office at (413) 534-3376, or register online at holyokechamber.com.
• May 20: 45th Annual Chamber Cup 2013 Golf Tournament, at Wyckoff Country Club, 233 Easthampton Road, Holyoke. Registration and lunch at 10:30 a.m. Tee off at noon (scramble format); dinner following the golf with elaborate food stations catered by the Log Cabin. Cost is $125 per player, and includes lunch, 18 holes of golf, cart, and dinner. Dinner only, $25. Winner awards, raffles, and cash prizes follow dinner. Tournament Sponsors: Log Cabin and PeoplesBank. Corporate Sponsors: Dowd Insurance, Goss & McLain Insurance Agency, Holyoke Gas & Electric, Mountain View Landscapes, Holyoke Medical Center, People’s United Bank, and Resnic, Beauregard, Waite & Driscoll. For reservations call the chamber office at (413) 534-3376 or register online at holyokechamber.com.
• May 21: Chamber Business Connections, 5-7 p.m. Sponsored and hosted by Sovereign Consulting, 4 Open Square Way, Suite 307. If you are in the architecture, engineering, or development industries, attend as the chamber’s guest, Cost is $10 for chamber members, $15 for non-members.
Presented by the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors Committee. Join your friends and colleagues for this informal evening of networking.
• May 29: Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting, starting at 5 p.m. at the Delaney House in Holyoke. Program followed by a grand reception, including Fifield Awards. Sponsored by the Greater Holyoke Chamber Corporate Leaders. Cocktails from 5 to 5:30 p.m.; annual meeting at 5:30 p.m. Dinner begins at 6. Admission: payment in advance, $30; payment at door, $40. Open to the public. The chamber will also honor chamber member retirees, Rosalie Deane, Holyoke Housing Authority; David Dupont, superintendent of Holyoke Public Schools; and John Kelley, Peoples United Bank.

MASSACHUSETTS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
(413) 525-2506

• July 22: Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament at Tekoa Country Club, Westfield. Shotgun start at 11 a.m. Cost: $100 per golfer.
For more information on registration and sponsorship opportunities, contact the chamber office at (413) 525-2506, or e-mail to [email protected].

GREATER NORTHAMPTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.explorenorthampton.com
(413) 584-1900

• May 1: Northampton Chamber Monthly Arrive @5, 5-7 p.m., at the Eric Carle Museum, 125 West Bay Road, Amherst. Arrive when you can, stay as long as you can. A casual mix and mingle with your colleagues and friends.  Sponsored by: Wells Fargo Advisors, Johnson & Hill Staffing Services, and United Bank. Admission: $10 for members; $15 for non-members

PROFESSSIONAL WOMENS CHAMBER
www.professionalwomenschamber.com
(413) 755-1310

• June 6: Women of the Year Banquet, 5:30-8 p.m., at the Cedars Banquet Hall, 375 Island Pond Road, Springfield. Join us as we honor our Woman of the Year, Jean Deliso, Deliso Financial & Insurance Services To reserve tickets, contact Cecile Larose at [email protected].

WEST OF THE RIVER CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.ourwrc.com
(413) 426-3880

• April 25: Powerful Speed Networking Business After Hours with 3 Chambers, 5-7 p.m., at Chez Josef in Agawam. Featuring the West of the River Chamber of Commerce, Westfield Chamber of Commerce , and North Central Connecticut Chamber of Commerce. Free for chamber members, $10 for non-members. (Event is open to the public; must pay at the door if you’re a non-member). For more information contact the chamber office at (413) 426-3880, or e-mail to [email protected].
• May 1: West of the River Chamber of Commerce Membership Drive, at the
Holiday Inn, Enfield, Conn. Two shifts — 9-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-4 p.m. This is a great opportunity for you to network with other members while helping to grow your chamber. More members means more opportunity to grow your business. For more information contact the chamber office at (413) 426-3880, or e-mail to [email protected].
• May 1: Wicked Wednesday, 5-7 p.m. Hosted by Holiday Inn.
Free for chamber members, $10 for Non-members (event is open to the public-must pay at the door if you’re a non-member). Wicked Wednesdays are monthly social events hosted by various businesses and restaurants. These events bring members and non-members together to social network in a laid-back atmosphere. For more information contact the chamber office at (413) 426-3880, or e-mail to [email protected].
• August 19: West of the River Chamber of Commerce 10th Annual Golf Tournament at Springfield Country Club, West Springfield. Cost: $125 per-golfer. For more information on registration and sponsorship opportunities, contact the chamber office at (413) 426-3880, or e-mail to [email protected].

GREATER WESTFIELD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.westfieldbiz.org
(413) 568-1618

• May 6: Mayor’s Coffee Hour, 8- 9 a.m., at the Holiday Inn Express, 39 Southampton Road, Westfield, MA 01085. Join the chamber and Mayor Dan Knapik for a meet-and-greet about the city. Free and open to the public. To register, call Pam at the chamber office at (413) 568-1618, or e-mail to [email protected].
n May 8: May WestNet Connection, 5- 7 p.m., at Amelia Park Children’s Museum, 29 South Broad St. Sponsor: Westfield YMCA. Cost: Members, $10, non-members, $15cash at the door. To register, call Pam at the chamber office at (413) 568-1618, or e-mail to [email protected].
n May 13: Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce’s 52nd Annual Golf Tournament, at the The Ranch Golf Club, 65 Sunnyside Road, Southwick.
Schedule: 10 a.m., registration/lunch; 11 a.m., shotgun start; 11 a.m.-5 p.m., on-course refreshments; 4 p.m., cocktail hour; 5 p.m., dinner Great Sponsorship opportunities still available. Cost: foursome with dinner, $600; tee sign, $150; dinner only, $35. For sponsorship opportunities, to register or to donate a raffle, contact Pam at the Chamber office at (413) 568-1618, or e-mail to [email protected].

YPS-Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield
www.springfieldyps.com

• May 16: May ‘Third Thursday,’ 5-7 p.m. at Lattitude Restaurant, 1338 Memorial Ave., West Springfield.

Company Notebook

By
Company Notebook Departments

Urgent Care of Wilbraham Opens Its Doors
WILBRAHAM — Urgent Care of Wilbraham, PC recently opened its doors at 2040 Wilbraham Road. The facility, owned and operated by Richard J. Freniere and Rock Jean-Guillaume, both board-certified emergency medicine physicians, provides professional medical care without an appointment. The clinic is equipped to handle a wide range of health-related issues, including aches and pains, allergies, asthma, bites and burns, bone injuries and fractures, cuts and laceration repairs, earaches, fevers, infections, pediatric illness, sprains and strains, sore throats, upper respiratory illnesses, vomiting and diarrhea, and other urgent illnesses or injuries. The facility is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, www.UrgentCareofWilbraham.com.

AIM Honors LENOX with Global Trade Award
EAST LONGMEADOW — The Associated Industries of Massachusetts International Business Council (AIM-IBC) announced that LENOX, based in East Longmeadow, is one of three winners of its18th annual Global Trade Awards, which recognize Massachusetts firms, institutions, and public agencies of all sizes that have demonstrated excellence in international trade. The other winners are Millipore, in Billerica, and Kinefac, in Worcester. The three companies will be honored at AIM’s 98th Annual Meeting on May 10 at the Waltham Westin Hotel. The event will include a keynote address by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick. Originally known as the American Saw & Manufacturing Company, LENOX, winner of the Ambassador’s Award, has been a leader in premium-performance tools such as band saw blades and power tool accessories since its founding in 1915. LENOX counts 900 employees worldwide, including over 600 in Massachusetts. Nearly half of production is exported around the world, to China and Asia, Brazil and Latin America, and Europe. LENOX has continued to grow by understanding its customers’ needs and adapting its products and services for new industries in global markets. Over the past 10 years, LENOX has invested $100 million in new capital for its only manufacturing facility worldwide, located in East Longmeadow. The company has hired more than 120 people in Western Mass. in the past two years. LENOX is part of Newell Rubbermaid, the global marketer of consumer and commercial products. “Our Global Trade Award winners are exemplary Massachusetts businesses that don’t think in terms of boundaries or borders, but in terms of opportunity,” said Richard Lord, president and CEO of AIM. “Taking advantage of all that Massachusetts has to offer positions companies like our winners for exceptional global success.”

United Bank Foundation Awards $43,000 to Area Non-profits
WEST SPRINGFIELD — The United Bank Foundation announced recently that it has awarded $43,000 to 11 non-profit organizations in the Springfield region in its most recent round of funding. The grants covered a variety of programs and initiatives throughout the Springfield area:
• The foundation awarded $10,000, to be paid over two years, to Elms College in Chicopee toward the construction of a Center for Natural and Health Sciences;
• The Gateway Education Foundation Inc., based in Huntington, received a grant of $5,000 for its “Funds for Learning Program.” The program supports school projects that fall outside of the budgets of the seven schools in the Gateway school district;
• Human Resources Unlimited Inc. in Springfield received $5,000 for its Changing Habits Transforming Lives job readiness and placement program;
• WestMass Eldercare was awarded $5,000 to fund services for low- income elders in Holyoke, South Hadley, Chicopee, and surrounding areas;
• Junior Achievement (JA) of Western Massachusetts was awarded $4,000 to expand programs in Holyoke, Northampton, and East Longmeadow;
• The Western Mass. Council, Boy Scouts of America received $3,500 for the continuation, enhancement, and expansion of the Scoutreach programs in Springfield;
• In Holyoke, the Public Library received $2,500 from the foundation to support the month-long series “Holyoke Points of View” in April;
• Springfield Partners for Community Action was awarded $2,000 for its Volunteer Income Tax Assistance and Earned Income Tax Credit Program for low income individuals;
• The Westfield Public Schools received $1,000 to fund the purchase of materials needed for the high school science fair and advancement to the regional and state finals.
• The foundation awarded $2,500 to World Is Our Classroom to fund the Westfield Manufacturing Education initiative at Mestek Inc., a collaboration with the Westfield Public Schools to offer fifth-grade students a hands-on application of science and technology in a real life manufacturing plant setting; and
• In West Springfield, the foundation awarded $2,500 to the high school to fund the purchase of the National Archery in Schools curriculum.
The United Bank Foundation has awarded more than $1.7 million in grants since it was established in 2005 as a permanent source of funding to benefit communities in United Bank’s market area. The Foundation board of directors meets quarterly to review requests submitted by 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in cities and towns served by United Bank branches. The foundation’s four primary funding areas of interest are education, health and human services, youth development and cultural programs. Foundation guidelines can be found online at bankatunited.com.

Briefcase

By
Briefcase Departments

Volunteers to Renovate 25 Houses in One Day
SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield affiliate of Rebuilding Together has announced that a unique ‘cluster rebuild’ of 25 homes, all on contiguous streets in the Old Hill neighborhood of Springfield, will take place April 27, which is the organization’s National Rebuilding Day. The homes will be renovated with an eye on improved health and energy efficiency. About 1,000 volunteers will pour onto Tyler and Quincy streets to assist in the renovations, which will include a conversion from oil heat to natural gas, with street hookups included as an in-kind donation by Columbia Gas, as well as new and proper insulation of all homes and apartments. Other work to be undertaken includes new roofs, energy-efficient windows and doors, proper ventilation, painting, age-in-place modifications, electrical and plumbing repairs, CO2 and smoke detectors, deadbolt locks, vinyl siding and ramps, and outdoor work including yard cleanup, fencing, landscaping, and shrub and flower planting. Improvements will also be made to the neighborhood as a whole, including the fixup of a neighborhood playground, the creation of a community garden for growing fresh fruit and vegetables, improvements to the Old Hill Neighborhood Council office at Eastern Avenue and Quincy Street, and improvements to the Masonic Lodge on Tyler Street. TD Bank will sponsor a cookout on Tyler Street at the end of the day. Many of the families benefiting from the renovations have seen their share of hardship; one of the residences is Oscar and Carol Granado’s home at 163 Tyler St., where they have lived for 32 years and raised a family. Carol was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012, and Oscar is still working at age 72 to pay for health insurance to cover her medical costs. Donors and event sponsors are pitching in to get the Granados a new roof; electrical, carpentry, and plumbing repairs; mold removal; and an exterior facelift. “It’s great to see everybody happy,” Carol said of the neighborhood excitement surrounding the cluster rebuild. “Everyone is having things done that they can’t afford to get done, or can’t do themselves. We will never forget this day.” Rebuilding Together Springfield is in its 21st year of existence and completed the rebuilding of 71 homes in Springfield in the past year, with help from some 5,000 volunteers.

Incorporations

By
Departments Incorporations

The following business incorporations were recorded in Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties and are the latest available. They are listed by community.

AGAWAM

New England Intermodal Services Inc., 57 Barn Road, Agawam, MA 01001. Cynthia Herring, same. Trucking company.

AMHERST

Notch Consulting Inc., 535 West St., Amherst, MA 01002. Paul Ita, same. Market research and consulting.

CHICOPEE

Kelly’s Inc., 621 Center St., Chicopee MA 01013. Leo Buono, 44 Oak Hollow Road, Springfield, MA 01128. Lounge.

Mija Inc., 95 Ward St., Chicopee, MA 01020. Michael Gibson, same. Adult entertainment web cam.

EASTHAMPTON

Molly Montgomery Painting Inc., 69 Pleasant St., Easthampton, MA 01027. Molly Montgomery, same. Painting.

GRANBY

M.R. Cote Inc., 71 Kendall St., Granby, MA 01033. Michael Cote, same. Electrical contracting and carpentry.

HADLEY

Mathematical Staircase Inc., 278 Bay Road, Hadley, MA 01035. Sarah-Marie Belcastro, same. To educate mathematically talented secondary and tertiary students.

HATFIELD

Jessica Marie Photography Inc., 22 North Hatfield Road, Hatfield, MA 01038. Jessica Marie Kacsenski, same. Photography service.

HOLYOKE

La Copa Inc., 447 Main St., Holyoke, MA. Aida Dejesus, 34 Britton St., Chicopee, MA 01020. Bar and restaurant.

Movimiento Pentecostal Poder Y Uncion, 77 Hamilton St., Holyoke, MA 01040. Organization of churches within the United States and abroad.

LUDLOW

JW Dobiecki Consulting Inc., 70 Applewood Dr., Ludlow, MA 01056. John Walter Dobiecki. Consulting services.

L&L Supply and Mechanical Inc., 399 Fuller St., Ludlow, MA 01056. Lindsay Lemek, 425 Fuller St., Ludlow, MA 01056. Equipment and materials for water and sewer mains.

MONSON

J & T Sisley Corporation, 194 Moulton Hill Road, Monson, MA 01057. Joan Lowbridge-Sisley, same. Information-technology consulting.

PALMER

M. Scott Construction Inc., 21 Wilbraham St., Office #203, Palmer, MA 01069. Michael Scott, 93 Hovey Road, Monson, MA 01057. Trucking and consulting.

PITTSFIELD

Jesters Inc., 35 Grant St., Pittsfield, MA 01201. Christina Gillette, same. Food services.

SPRINGFIELD

Julie’s Hollywood Café Inc., 374 Allen Park Road, Apt. 374, Springfield, MA 01118. Julie Ratzenberger, same. Food and beverage service — bar.

Karss Inc., 1324 Boston Road, Springfield, MA 01119. Muhammed Warasat, 30 Wyndward Road, Longmeadow, MA 01106. Restaurant.

Mamarazzi Photography Inc., 6 Kenway Dr., Springfield, MA 01104. Jacqueline Slattion, 83 McKinley Ave., Ludlow MA 01058. Photography.

Marden Homes Inc., 86 Milford St., Springfield, MA 01107. Marshal Walden, same. To buy repair and sell real estate.

Maroon Corporation, 78 Randolph St., Springfield, MA 01108. Brennan Tougias, same. Food service.

Newton Road Press Inc., 986 Allen St., Springfield, MA 01118. Daivd Karwoski, same. Books and written materials.

WEST SPRINGFIELD

New Era Inc., 39 Rochelle St., West Springfield, MA 01089. Arshad Imam, same. Gas station.

WESTFIELD

Jayco Manufacturing Inc., 121 Summit Lock Road, Suite #1, Westfield, MA 01085. Joseph Michonski, 86 Joseph Ave., Westfield, MA 01085. Manufacturing of precision aerospace parts for various local businesses.

New England Eating Disorders Alliance Inc., 7 Fairview St., Westfield, MA 01085. Viktoria Filev, same. To prevent eating disorders through education, awareness, and support in recovery.

Doing Business As Certificates

By
DBA Certificates Departments

The following Business Certificates and Trade Names were issued or renewed during the month of and April 2013.

AGAWAM

Che-Bella Salon
833 Springfield St.
Kaitlin Joslyn

Empire Music Group
33 Norman Terrace
Jermaine Norfleet

Nomnom Hunt
67 Hunt St.
Marcy Megarry

AMHERST

Fit Women
6 University Dr.
Megan Earle

Lyra Cleaning Services
170 East Hadley Road
Marise Lyra

South Amherst Family Dentistry
6 University Place
Richard Pastorello

The Good Life Collective
44 Amity Place
Kathleen Ahamed-Broadhurst

Whirlwind Fine Garden Design
29 Hartman Road
Christopher Baxter

CHICOPEE

Community Substance Abuse Center
628 Center St.
Matthew Davis

M2 Creations Balloons
51 Springfield St.
Michelle Martinez

Psychibilities
188 Chicopee St.
Kathi Munson

Quick Stop Convenience
1177 Granby Road
Maroot Ahmed

Rivoli’s
43 Springfield St.
Konrad Wargulenski

HADLEY

Botanica Ramses
206 Russell St.
Bernardo Galvez

Debra Rusenko
8 Goeffe St.
Debra Rusenko

OcteVue
6 Kosier Dr.
Mark B. Ketchen

Peter’s Farm
112 East St.
Clinton Peters

Split Excavating Inc.
8 Mill Valley Road
Brenda Fydenkevez

Spruce Hill Motors
235 Russell St.
Randy Izer

HOLYOKE

Cake Lady
123 High St.
Rosa Burgos

Carolina Bedding of Western Mass
68 Cherry St.
Daniel Wells

Charlene’s Boutique
50 Holyoke St.
Charlene Naylor

Consumer Auto Parts
239 South St.
Davio Gerry

Extreme Auto Body, LLC
170 Main St.
Porfirio Santiago

Hobby Lobby Creative Center
50 Holyoke St.
Lisa Q. Ley

Kim’s Nail Salon, LLC
98 Lower Westfield Road
Kimchi Huynh

Nextdine, LLC
330 Whitney Ave.
Gregg Hartman

Star Dancer’s Unity
671 High St.
Alexcelin Saldana

NORTHAMPTON

Born Perfect
72 Center St.
Jaye McElroy

Center for Healthy Bones
766 North King St.
Mary P. Roy

Community Substance Abuse Center
297 Pleasant St.
Matthew Davis

Heart House Studio
68 Cherry St.
Kendra Rosenblatt

Purple Run for a Cure
33 Liberty St.
Thomas McCusker

Push Public
2 Conz St.
Mauricio Abascal

Repair Collective
20 Linden St.
Timothy McNevney

SOUTHWICK

ABC Masonary & Waterproofing
32 North Longyard Road
David Turner

BD Bookkeeping
27 Honey Pot Rd.
Brian Deslauriers

FJ Auctions
58 Fred Jackson Road
Francis Jacquier

The Crack Man
13 Ed Holcomb Road
Ian Dudek

SPRINGFIELD

Lilly’s Closet
33 Fairhaven Dr.
Tonya Foggs

Mass Elite Dance Team
431 White St.
Tyrone Humphries

Mass Mobile Communication
542 Page Blvd.
Ismael Bernabel

Mei Management, LLC
90 Merrill Road
Mei N. Li

Mema’s II Family Childcare
45 Valley Road
Lakisha Marie

Mill Work Carpentry
125 Oakland St.
Jorge E. Gomez

Motivate-Educate-Graduate
79 Villa Parkway
Neel P. Abdul-Hameed

Mourad Hussein
435 Dwight St.
Hussein H. Mourad

MPS Solutions
22 Candice Circle
Christopher Decoteau

Nails Model
459 Main St.
Tran X. Nguyen

New England Landscaping
837 State St.
Chauncy Rayvon

New England Wholesalers
724 Page Blvd.
Carlos G. Dias

Olympus House
280 Sumner Ave.
Michael Schneider

Oriental Mini Market
405 Dickinson St.
Hiep Q. Ngo

Pioneer Valley Electrolysis
1188 Parker St.
Dawna L. Brisebois

Professional Handy Services
25 Barnet St.
Robert V. Tyler

Punderson Oil
80 Hannon St.
Suburban Heating Oil

R.E.D. Roofing
53 Bristol St.
Ruben Gonzalez

Rosario’s Junk Removal
60 Glenwood St.
Carlos Rosario

Samuel Cardona
31 Wilton St.
Samuel Cardona

Sherwin-Williams Company
670 Boston Road
Scott Sikon

Springfield Donuts Inc.
1761 Allen St.
Derek Salema

Talco CNC Solutions
34 Front St.
Thomas A. LeMay

Targeted Biostrategies
106 Bellevue Ave.
Merribeth J. Morin

The Detail Shop
36 Amity Court
Jeremiah Nolan

The Last Detail Complete
23 Morgan St.
Angel L. Torres

Tom Tom Painting
151 Forest Park Ave.
Thomas E. Sattal

Tyler John Inc.
28 Verge St.
Samuel J. Wilson

Universal Real Estate Services
115 State St.
Daniel D. Kelly

Visionary Investments
49 Daviston St.
Jonathan Thurrott

Visual Memories
102 Elm St.
Shannon Cigal

Western MA Marketing
903 St. James Ave.
Mary K. Garvey

Whip City Pool & Spa Service
31 Valley View Dr.
Jeffrey P. Roberts

Writeturn
161 Newhouse St.
Valentino Larese Jr.

WESTFIELD

551 Salon
551 North Road
Gay K. Smith

Comfort Air
21 Barbara St.
Vladimir F. Lesnik

D & D Cleaning Services
322 Papermill Road
Deborah A. Gaudette

Dynamic Fitness
77 Mill St.
Daniel Oleksak

Frugal Fashionista Consignment
1029 North Road
Jean-Marie Aubin

Humacao Auto Detailing & Floors
507 Southampton Road
Angel Villanueva

L.C. Landscaping & Property Maintenance
291 Russellville Road
Leroy Clink

Letourneau & Sons Painting
30 Crown St.
William R. Letourneau

Squid Decals
30 Bush St.
Emily Anton

WEST SPRINGFIELD

Best Painters
19 Hill St.
Daniel Santiago

Caspian Transportation
34 Craig Dr.
Seymur Musayev

Fab 247
51 Van Deene Ave.
Vanessa M. Jackson

Glam Buttons
19 Wishing Well Way
Renee Reed

J & L Medical Services
201 Park Ave.
John Loyer

Max Enterprises
35 Prospect St.
Cuong Le

Natural Nails
244 Memorial Ave.
Cam Pham

Premier Coaching
946 Amostown Road
Meiron George

The A.P. Sabourin Studio
51 Ridgeview Road
Andrew P. Sabourin

Bankruptcies

By
Bankruptcies Departments

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

Agapov, Sergei
7 Danielle Dr.
Palmer, MA 01069
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

Archuleta, David A.
70 Sroka Lane
Ludlow, MA 01056
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

Ayala, Yolanda
31 Oswego 4B
Springfield, MA 01105
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Beaudry, Matthew C.
11 Parsons St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Brown, Stephen J.
Brown, Melissa S.
216 Pleasant St.
Orange, MA 01364
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Caldwell, Ora H.
39B North Main St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/21/13

Campbell, Eileen
339 Newton St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Carrasquillo, Jorge L.
Carrasquillo, Adelaida
35 Driftwood Road
Springfield, MA 01128
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

Castro, Jason Michael
12 Chmura St., Apt. D
Ludlow, MA 01056
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Charest, Todd Michael
Charest, Kimberly Lynn
a/k/a Thoren, Kimberly L.
a/k/a Norton, Kimberly
201 Dorset St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Cintron, Alexandra R.
a/k/a Barros, Alexandra
a/k/a Cintron, Alexandra Rocio
2 Monmouth St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Colvin, Beverly M.
400 Allen Park Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Corbett Home Improvement
Corbett, Edward T.
4 Reed St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Daniels, Sarajane
a/k/a Hubley, Sarajane
P.O. Box 108
Montague, MA 01351
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Davidovich, Veronica Jean
a/k/a Lees, Veronica
404 Southwick Road #25
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Dean, Brandi L.
1231 North Hoosac Road, Apt. 302
Williamstown, MA 01267
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

DeSouza, Lorraine R.
18 Dalton Place
Springfield, MA 01109
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/28/13

Dubuque, Christopher D.
Dubuque, Brenda M.
a/k/a Lanney, Brenda M.
108 Nelson St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Earle, Diana C.
10 Riley Switch Road
Phillipston, MA 01331
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Encarnacion, Mayra D.
206 Pearl St., Apt. 4
Springfield, MA 01105
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

English, Patricia A.
25-27 Van Ness St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

ERA Classics Real Estate
Weber, Sheila R.
48 Jefferson St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Feliciano, Edwin J.
Feliciano, Chang San
20 Arlington St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Fortier, Ronny E.
81 Conz St.
Apartment 608
Northampton, MA 01060
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Fortunato Entertainment
Fortunato, John Francis
170 Parkerview St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Gamble, Tracy M.
a/k/a Steadman, Tracy M.
37 West St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Garrafa, Evelyn
25 Judson St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Guarnera, Jessica L.
62 Searles St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

Illig, Brenda K.
52 Yvette St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Johnson, Jessica C.
78 Price St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Jones, Crystal L.
33 Eckington St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Kalagher, Erin Marie
100 Hillside Dr.
Springfield, MA 01118
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Kaminski, Keith K.
74 Breakneck Road
Sturbridge, MA 01566
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/19/13

King, Kathleen R.
117 Leitch St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Leclerc, James T.
Ames-Leclerc, Tammy L.
340A Porter Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Lightcap, John C.
114 Lantern Lane
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Lucky Charm Daycare
Stebbins, Dennis P.
Stebbins, Elizabeth J.
220 Arcade St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

MacKay, Judith Ann
115 Brookside Circle
Florence, MA 01062
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Maruco, Bryce J.
45 North St., 2nd Fl.
North Adams, MA 01247
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/21/13

Matos, Janet
68 Savoy St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/28/13

Moran, William P.
Moran, Kathleen F.
655 West Cherry St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Murphy, Mary Ann
577 Pinedale Ave.
Athol, MA 01331
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Muzzy, John Robert
98 Allston Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Nash, Carole E.
a/k/a Yeramian, Carole
23 Claremont Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Nguyen, Andy
P.O. Box 80342
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

O’Connor, Ellen B.
66 Harkness Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Osborne, Bradford G.
181 Elm St., Apt. 12
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Ouellette, Stephen
1 Darby Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Peck, Jacqueline Nancy
35 Bald Mountain Road
Bernardston, MA 01337
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Peffer, Theresa M.
20 Oak St.
Gill, MA 01354
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Pellerin, Edward J.
54 Ball St.
Orange, MA 01364
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Petersoli, Kimberly
331 Bradley St., Lot 1
Lee, MA 01238
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Piubeni, Jeffrey S.
19 Pheasant Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/27/13

Pizarro, Aisha A.
Vazquez, Arleen E.
5 East Laramee Green Way
Indian Orchard, MA 01151
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Powers, Rachel Irene
a/k/a Craig, Rachel Irene
1747 Carew St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Reome, Chris
Reome, Deborah
414 Britton St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Roberts, Kenneth J.
40 Wilson Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

Rodman, Todd E.
Rodman, Nancy J.
403 Pochassic Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Rodriguez, Margarita
29 Wentworth St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/23/13

Romain, Tracy C.
PO Box 191898
Boston, MA 02119
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/18/13

Rusinque, Hector
Rusinque, Idalia
114 Hampden St.
Indian Orchard, MA 01151
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Sanchez, Jessica
131 Meadow St., Rear
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Sepulveda, William A.
Sepulveda, William B.
14 State St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Serwanski, Ian R.
Serwanski, Susan A.
a/k/a Plouffe, Susan A.
24 Hilton St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/28/13

Shepardson, Robert J.
Shepardson, Margaret A.
2154 Main St
Athol, MA 01331
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/29/13

Smith, Gerard A.
6 Bates St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/22/13

Soto, Raymond L.
138 Jasper St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Steadward, Gail M.
19 Sherwood St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

Sutter, Jason Lee
29 Worthy Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Swan, Sarah F.
507 E. Main St.
Orange, MA 01364
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/20/13

The Charles E. Talbot Building
2071 Page Blvd.
Indian Orchard, MA 01151
Chapter: 11
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Thomas, Mary
a/k/a Fitzgerald, Mary
72 Chesterfield Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 03/19/13

Torres, Teresa P.
P.O. Box 208
Pittsfield, MA 01202
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Velez, Epifanio
43 Davis St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/26/13

Wager, Jennifer R.
58 Livingston Ave.
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/25/13

Wells, Kristi L.
124 Birch Grove Dr.
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 03/21/13

Real Estate Transactions

By
Departments Real Estate

The following real estate transactions (latest available) were compiled by Banker & Tradesman and are published as they were received. Only transactions exceeding $115,000 are listed. Buyer and seller fields contain only the first name listed on the deed.

FRANKLIN COUNTY

BERNARDSTON

167 West Road
Bernardston, MA 01337
Amount: $279,000
Buyer: Scudder Bay Capital LLC
Seller: Thomas R. Scott
Date: 03/21/13

BUCKLAND

18 Orcutt Hill Road
Buckland, MA 01338
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Mark A. Amstein
Seller: Mark E. Pichette
Date: 03/20/13

70 Upper St.
Buckland, MA 01338
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Luarie M. Benoit
Seller: FNMA
Date: 03/15/13

CHARLEMONT

215 Main St.
Charlemont, MA 01339
Amount: $184,500
Buyer: Jodi M. Tanguay
Seller: Robert M. Gritzner
Date: 03/11/13

DEERFIELD

4 Braeburn Road
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $135,200
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Helan E. Page
Date: 03/18/13

34 Mathews Road
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Jaime Recore
Seller: Tsay F. Jenn
Date: 03/21/13

GREENFIELD

103 Burnham Road
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Carrie H. Dubino
Seller: Morrison, Helen D. (Estate)
Date: 03/18/13

340 Chapman St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $370,000
Buyer: Comfort Mechanical Inc.
Seller: RAM Construction LLC
Date: 03/18/13

106 Conway St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $141,000
Buyer: Darry C. Madden
Seller: Paul Ferrini
Date: 03/18/13

24 Linden Ave.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Joshua S. Breitner
Seller: Gibson INT
Date: 03/15/13

54 Oak Hill Acres
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $202,000
Buyer: Terrence P. Monahan
Seller: US Bank NA
Date: 03/22/13

4 Spring Terrace
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $147,000
Buyer: David A. Wemhoener
Seller: US Bank
Date: 03/21/13

44 Verde Dr.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Greenfield Coop Bank
Seller: Scott McCoy
Date: 03/15/13

MONTAGUE

41 Millers Falls Road
Montague, MA 01376
Amount: $159,900
Buyer: Michelle L. Lefebvre
Seller: Elizebeth A. Prasol-Tyler
Date: 03/15/13

WARWICK

91 Hastings Heights Road
Warwick, MA 01378
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: John W. Bradford
Seller: Michael J. Matilainen
Date: 03/14/13

95 Shepardson Road
Warwick, MA 01378
Amount: $132,822
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Patrick F. Warner
Date: 03/12/13

WHATELY

48 Claverack Road
Whately, MA 01373
Amount: $193,670
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank
Seller: Michael S. Snyder
Date: 03/19/13

HAMPDEN COUNTY

AGAWAM

16 Belle St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Maryna A. Shalypina
Seller: David P. McDonough
Date: 03/18/13

279 Maynard St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $202,000
Buyer: Sean P. Burke
Seller: Torino, Barbara G. (Estate)
Date: 03/15/13

17 Stevenson Lane
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $385,000
Buyer: Drew J. Smith
Seller: Alan R. Gates
Date: 03/20/13

33 Zacks Way
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $385,000
Buyer: Margaret A. McCarthy RET
Seller: T. Russo Construction Corp.
Date: 03/19/13

CHICOPEE

3 Elizabeth St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Norman P. Avey
Seller: Kenneth R. Riverin
Date: 03/22/13

63 Farmington St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $144,500
Buyer: Erick Vazquez
Seller: Doris B. Raney
Date: 03/13/13

155 Holyoke Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $253,000
Buyer: Regina L. Lecours
Seller: Karen R. Fontaine
Date: 03/22/13

25 Juliette St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $177,000
Buyer: James T. Griffin
Seller: Petro Boyko
Date: 03/15/13

20 Olivine St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Gabriel M. Liaigre
Seller: Juliette A. Guertin
Date: 03/22/13

23 Olivine St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Miriam A. Santiago
Seller: Andre Houle
Date: 03/15/13

68 State St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $125,500
Buyer: Pedro L. Olivo
Seller: Arthur Ladue
Date: 03/15/13

23 Sunset Dr.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $188,900
Buyer: Trever J. Cardaropoli
Seller: Ashtons Acquisitions LLC
Date: 03/13/13

EAST LONGMEADOW

175 Braeburn Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: James M. Adcock
Seller: Roosevelt Hill LLC
Date: 03/18/13

55 John St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Neil J. Maloney
Seller: Norman Bolton
Date: 03/12/13

71 Wood Ave.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $162,500
Buyer: Christina M. Fiore
Seller: Stone Financing LLC
Date: 03/22/13

HAMPDEN

134 Glendale Road
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Jamie L. Shepard
Seller: Richard C. Armida
Date: 03/22/13

283 Somers Road
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $850,000
Buyer: Craig J. Morel
Seller: Charles P. McCarthy
Date: 03/21/13

HOLLAND

130 Mashapaug Road
Holland, MA 01521
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Holland RT
Seller: David L. Hansen
Date: 03/12/13

154 Mashapaug Road
Holland, MA 01521
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: James H. Gagne
Seller: Richard E. Hoyt
Date: 03/14/13

HOLYOKE

355 Chestnut St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Shamika Santos
Seller: Holyoke Housing Authority
Date: 03/15/13

357 Chestnut St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Ana S. Perez
Seller: Holyoke Housing Authority
Date: 03/12/13

12 Crescent St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $375,000
Buyer: Barbieri Realty LLC
Seller: Stephen F. Bakos
Date: 03/22/13

284 High St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $143,700
Buyer: Betty Kaplowitz
Seller: Samantha J. Mjenzi
Date: 03/15/13

LONGMEADOW

62 Bliss Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Corinne Ewing
Seller: Robert M. Thomas
Date: 03/19/13

68 Fairhill Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $309,600
Buyer: Daniel F. O’Malley
Seller: Bank of America NA
Date: 03/12/13

621 Maple Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $176,000
Buyer: Gordon E. Deshaw
Seller: Tatyana Shvakhman
Date: 03/11/13

244 Overbrook Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $790,000
Buyer: Gregory S. Schneider
Seller: Denis V. Laflamme
Date: 03/12/13

450 Pinewood Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $152,000
Buyer: Leo Judge
Seller: Louis Durkin
Date: 03/11/13

7 Porter Lake Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $271,100
Buyer: Alison E. McDonough
Seller: Kenneth W. Moffett
Date: 03/12/13

Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $425,000
Buyer: Kenneth S. Ross
Seller: Mary L. Mehrtens
Date: 03/11/13

10 Wildwood Glenn
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $340,500
Buyer: Alesia H. Days
Seller: Robert J. Greeley
Date: 03/14/13

LUDLOW

145 Booth St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Henrique Baltazar
Seller: Antonio Fernandes
Date: 03/22/13

114 Chapin St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Arlindo Valadares
Seller: Bernadette Bourbeau
Date: 03/22/13

Cislak Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $152,000
Buyer: Paul R. Dias
Seller: Andrew Tomaszewski
Date: 03/13/13

135 Fuller St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $345,000
Buyer: Bruno A. Coelho
Seller: Tina M. Pellegrini
Date: 03/15/13

43 Manor Lane
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $260,000
Buyer: Jeremy M. Laduke
Seller: Timothy E. Moriarty
Date: 03/18/13

33 Marion Circle
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $182,000
Buyer: Jennifer L. Luszcz
Seller: Andrea D. Leite
Date: 03/18/13

266 Miller St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $145,664
Buyer: Vantium Reo Capital Mark
Seller: James H. Houle
Date: 03/11/13

40 Minechoag Hts.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $253,500
Buyer: Domingos G. Barroso
Seller: Jose A. Aguiar
Date: 03/20/13

126 Nash Hill Road
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $229,600
Buyer: Leslaw G. Jasinski
Seller: Bruno A. Coelho
Date: 03/15/13

15 Philip St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $209,000
Buyer: Michael E. Pietras
Seller: Jeffrey S. Pietras
Date: 03/12/13

MONSON

53 Bunyan Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $402,000
Buyer: Richard C. Armida
Seller: Roger W. Barnes
Date: 03/22/13

17 Crest Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Laurent R. McDonald
Seller: Michael A. Foster
Date: 03/22/13

32 Zuell Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: Robert L. Carlson
Seller: Wini C. Findon
Date: 03/20/13

PALMER

119 North St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Michael V. Critelli
Seller: Jeffrey A. Sansoucy
Date: 03/15/13

SOUTHWICK

1 Brookview Dr.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: William H. Berthiaume
Seller: Todd M. Wilson
Date: 03/15/13

11 Maple St.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Brittany N. Castagna
Seller: Revampit LLC
Date: 03/15/13

68 Mort Vining Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Terrence J. Welch
Seller: Terrence J. Welch
Date: 03/14/13

SPRINGFIELD

252 Corcoran Blvd.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $148,400
Buyer: Terrance O’Connell
Seller: Christopher G. Valiquette
Date: 03/11/13

99 Dewitt St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $152,500
Buyer: Claudia S. Ribeiro
Seller: Glenn M. Spadoni
Date: 03/14/13

267 Edendale St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $123,000
Buyer: Amy F. Broderick
Seller: Stephen B. Rose
Date: 03/15/13

46 Gates Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Kyle Chase
Seller: Patricia H. Clancey
Date: 03/15/13

57 Gilbert Ave.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Philip S. Cruz
Seller: Elaine C. Graham
Date: 03/18/13

11 Jefferson Ave.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $132,500
Buyer: Maria A. Colon
Seller: North End Housing Initiative Inc
Date: 03/18/13

14 Jennings St.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Deyanira M. Garcia
Seller: Kenneth Fitzgibbon
Date: 03/12/13

59 Laurence St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $173,936
Buyer: TD Bank NA
Seller: James J. Marrin
Date: 03/14/13

188 Mallowhill Road
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Orlando S. Rosado
Seller: Natalie S. Thomas
Date: 03/13/13

28 Methuen St.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $134,000
Buyer: Nelson D. Otero
Seller: James W. Fiore
Date: 03/12/13

9 Montcalm St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: KAC Props. LLC
Seller: Shu Cheng
Date: 03/22/13

308 Orange St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Rafael Vargas
Seller: Marth E. LLC
Date: 03/21/13

41 Portulaca Dr.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Brian Wood
Seller: Ricardo Gomez
Date: 03/15/13

58 Senator St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $174,000
Buyer: David Deshais
Seller: Deborah M. Tracy
Date: 03/21/13

5 Squire Lane
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $186,000
Buyer: Luis A. Gonzalez
Seller: Douglas D. Smith
Date: 03/18/13

258 Stapleton Road
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Enyoc Inv. Props. LLC
Seller: Benjamin M. Coyle
Date: 03/15/13

33 Thorndyke St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $122,000
Buyer: Robert J. Tudryn
Seller: Matthew H. Ferri
Date: 03/11/13

13 Treetop Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $227,059
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank
Seller: Jeannette Cortes
Date: 03/14/13

1241 Worcester St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Richard J. Mack
Seller: Luis N. Costa
Date: 03/22/13

WEST Springfield

95 Birnie Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Christopher W. Welch
Seller: Walter Zabik
Date: 03/14/13

297 Morgan Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank NA
Seller: Barbara A. Boothe
Date: 03/11/13

42 Oakland St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Gary P. Moakler
Date: 03/15/13

764 Riverdale St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $415,000
Buyer: John Huang
Seller: Barcomb Trowbridge 6714
Date: 03/15/13

72 Summit St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Jonathan Rosado
Seller: Sergey Savonin
Date: 03/14/13

WESTFIELD

43 Cross St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $175,250
Buyer: Kostyantyn Kozhushok
Seller: Mary A. Chamberland
Date: 03/15/13

40 Maple Terrace
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $153,000
Buyer: Ashley R. Diduk
Seller: Susan E. Hentnick
Date: 03/11/13

9 Palma Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $270,500
Buyer: Lisa M. Wirth
Seller: Tina G. Lemire
Date: 03/15/13

168 Prospect St., Ext.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $173,703
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Walter F. Osowski
Date: 03/12/13

54 Orange St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: David C. Fazzino
Seller: Anatoliy Kulyak
Date: 03/22/13

54 Otis St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $124,000
Buyer: Pamela A. Bain
Seller: Askins, Michael (Estate)
Date: 03/18/13

94 Sandy Hill Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $163,000
Buyer: Jacqueline M. Ayr
Seller: Jeffrey S. White
Date: 03/14/13

120 West Silver St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $269,925
Buyer: Elizabeth A. Butcher
Seller: Stephen C. Strebel
Date: 03/21/13

Whitaker Road #3
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Keith M. Richards
Seller: Eric F. Laizer
Date: 03/12/13

57 Woodcliff Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $255,000
Buyer: Jeffrey S. White
Seller: William D. Murray
Date: 03/14/13

WILBRAHAM

36 Burleigh Road
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $228,000
Buyer: Jon A. Rich
Seller: Susan M. Barnes
Date: 03/22/13

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY

AMHERST

38 Lessey St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $348,000
Buyer: Leslie Dubinsky
Seller: Timothy B. Soules
Date: 03/11/13

36 Morgan Circle
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $359,900
Buyer: E. S. Hopton
Seller: Servicenet Inc.
Date: 03/12/13

203 Rolling Ridge Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $425,000
Buyer: Daiheng Ni
Seller: Leonard Strauss
Date: 03/18/13

BELCHERTOWN

234 Barton Ave.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Bryan F. Hauschild
Seller: Dahila Dev. Ltd
Date: 03/19/13

111 Daniel Shays Hwy.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Beverly M. Jackson
Seller: Summer Hill Estates Development LLC
Date: 03/19/13

396 Rockrimmon St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $229,000
Buyer: Lindsay Lacoille
Seller: Andrew J. Deren
Date: 03/15/13

151 Sargent St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $174,900
Buyer: Christopher D. Carlson
Seller: Jesse A. Ritter
Date: 03/15/13
40 South Main St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $307,000
Buyer: Kenneth H. Pincince
Seller: Lou A. Sirois
Date: 03/20/13

CHESTERFIELD

17 Farmhouse Road
Chesterfield, MA 01012
Amount: $254,000
Buyer: Elizabeth A. Slona
Seller: Joan E. Slowick
Date: 03/15/13

270 Main Road
Chesterfield, MA 01012
Amount: $219,900
Buyer: Sherry D. Quimet
Seller: Michael L. Welch
Date: 03/19/13

EASTHAMPTON

25 Brook St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $370,000
Buyer: Jesse S. Harrison
Seller: Robert B. Riggs
Date: 03/15/13

25 Meadowbrook Dr.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $218,750
Buyer: Shane M. Calabrese
Seller: Alice P. Linnell
Date: 03/15/13

49 Ridgewood Terrace
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Laura F. Arbeitman
Seller: Steven Hawley
Date: 03/22/13

GOSHEN

197 South Chesterfield Road
Goshen, MA 01032
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Mary E. Witt
Seller: Thomas J. Fitzell
Date: 03/22/13

GRANBY

164 West St.
Granby, MA 01033
Buyer: Stephen F. Marion
Seller: Mitchell, Ruth E. (Estate)
Date: 03/11/13

HADLEY

70 Chmura Road
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $562,500
Buyer: Bhavnaben S. Parmar
Seller: Laxman Parmar
Date: 03/11/13

325 Rocky Hill Road
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: 325 Rocky Hill LLC
Seller: James Aronson
Date: 03/22/13

117 Russell St.
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Dennis J. Hukowicz
Seller: Edward J. Hukowicz
Date: 03/21/13

HATFIELD

151 Elm St.
Hatfield, MA 01038
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Jeffrey G. Zgrodnik
Seller: Sadie H. Kochan
Date: 03/12/13

NORTHAMPTON

69 Brookwood Dr.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $193,800
Buyer: Ronald K. Bachang
Seller: Tina Gagne
Date: 03/20/13

90 Haydenville Road
Northampton, MA 01053
Amount: $396,000
Buyer: SSTT LLC
Seller: Pierre R. Brisson
Date: 03/20/13

203 King St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $1,998,176
Buyer: G&G Real Estate Inv. LLC
Seller: Taco Bell of America LLC
Date: 03/15/13

23 Lilly St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: May C. Chan
Seller: H. G. Labrage
Date: 03/15/13

57 Longview Dr.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Robert M. Kuzmeski
Seller: Kuzmeski IRT
Date: 03/21/13

28 Maple Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Mark A. Sayre
Seller: Louise Farrelly
Date: 03/22/13

219 North Main St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $136,140
Buyer: Jonna Sciacca
Seller: Florence Savings Bank
Date: 03/20/13

18 Powell St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $188,000
Buyer: William A. Hansen
Seller: Dale W. Aldrich
Date: 03/15/13

SOUTH HADLEY

7 Joan St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $186,500
Buyer: Claude D. Lambert
Seller: Jane H. Bubnis
Date: 03/11/13

31 Lincoln Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $152,500
Buyer: Michael C. Cote
Seller: Jeffrey W. Jenks
Date: 03/18/13

32 Lorraine Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $168,200
Buyer: Kevin M. Quesnel
Seller: Michaeline S. Davidson
Date: 03/15/13

3 Pleasant St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $164,000
Buyer: Sheila D. Pennell
Seller: Pleasant St. South Hadley NT
Date: 03/22/13

5 Skinner Lane
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $299,000
Buyer: Terry W. Monkaba
Seller: Mary J. Kocot
Date: 03/15/13

SOUTHAMPTON

104 Gunn Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $405,000
Buyer: William A. Tormey
Seller: James F. Boyle
Date: 03/15/13

8 Jonathan Judd Circle
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $198,000
Buyer: Ashton Acquisitions LLC
Seller: Barry J. Sullivan
Date: 03/22/13

81 Russellville Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Jason T. Millay
Seller: Ann M. Sarafin
Date: 03/15/13

5 Sara Lane
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Pawel J. Robak
Seller: Edward H. Gwinner
Date: 03/15/13

117 White Loaf Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $325,000
Buyer: Olla N. Al-Shalchi
Seller: Czelusniak Custom Homes
Date: 03/15/13

WARE

290 Osborne Road
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $205,900
Buyer: Jennifer L. Bernier
Seller: Richard B. Rose
Date: 03/21/13

WILLIAMSBURG

18 Fort Hill Road
Williamsburg, MA 01039
Amount: $430,000
Buyer: Michael M. Ban
Seller: Carl W. Rohrberg
Date: 03/22/13

In a Class by Itself

By
Patrick Goggins
Commercial Real Estate Sections
Northampton Commercial Real Estate Market Remains Resilient

Patrick Goggins

Patrick Goggins, owner of Goggins Real Estate, says the resiliency of the Northampton commercial real estate market is no accident — it results from the city’s welcoming atmosphere.

John Williamson says Northampton has a magnetic quality that draws a broad spectrum of people to its businesses, restaurants, retail shops, and entertainment venues. And that quality has allowed commercial real estate not only to weather the economic downturn, but register unprecedented growth over the past two years.
“It’s so far and away from other markets, there really is no comparison,” said the president of Williamson Commercial Properties LLC in Springfield.
Steve Jasinski agrees. “The Northampton area seems to have been isolated from the downturn in the economy, it didn’t suffer the same pitfalls that occurred in other areas,” said the broker at Delap Real Estate LLC in Northampton and Amherst, explaining that the city’s economic and social diversity, strong employment base, and unique character of its downtown have provided a formula for success that is reflected in the value of commercial property.
But Patrick Goggins, owner of Goggins Real Estate in Florence, who has been in this business for more than 40 years, says the steadiness of the market is no accident. Instead, it results from a collective commitment on the part of business owners who have devoted time, energy, and thought to creating an atmosphere that is personal and welcoming to visitors.
He told BusinessWest the reason for Northampton’s success is fairly simple. “People are doing their own thing, but many businesses on Main Street are run and managed by owners who are here day in and day out. It adds a personal touch, which brings with it personal attention and gives them a better chance of succeeding and understanding the community and its needs. They know that connecting the dots is important, so they are a very active group, and when they see something is needed, they pitch in.”
Officials at Smith College have also joined forces with business owners to keep downtown vibrant, and have played a significant role in its financial success. “The town and gown works well here,” Goggins said, adding that the college has supported the Chamber of Commerce, Business Improvement District, Academy of Music, the new fire station under construction, and other organizations that play a role in the city’s unfalteringly robust economic climate.
Brokers John Williamson, left, and Steve Jasinski

Brokers John Williamson, left, and Steve Jasinski say downtown Northampton offers people a place to shop and dine in an intimate, personal setting.

Jasinski said the five colleges and the fact that many Smith College graduates choose to return to the area, adds to the vitality.
“People leave here and talk about the diversity of Northampton — we’re known throughout the country and you can go to different parts of the world and mention the city and people recognize the name,” he noted. “But people have been key to its success and keep the economy going.”
Downtown and King Street are home to most of the commercial real estate, and two new banks, three car dealerships and other businesses recently opened their doors or are under construction on King Street. “It’s our commercial strip,” Jasinski explained. “And it isn’t just growing, it’s booming.”
Williamson agrees, and points to new developments such as Northampton Crossing, (the former Hill and Dale Mall), which sat vacant for about 20 years, but was purchased two years ago and is being re-developed into medical offices and retail shops. “King Street plays an important role in the balance of the Northampton commercial market,” he said.
Signs of vitality can also be seen at the gateway to the city, which officials designate as the area off Exit 18 from I-91 near the Clarion Hotel. A new 30,000-square-foot office building was completed there about a year ago.
“It was fully leased three months later,” said Williamson, adding that a second, similarly sized building is under construction. “There is not another office market anywhere in Western Mass that has this amount of positive absorption.”

New Frontiers
Goggins said that when he was a student at UMass Amherst, the businesses in downtown Northampton existed to serve the needs of the local community.
“In the late 60s, there were five men’s clothing shops and five hardware stores downtown,” he recalled, adding that the marketplace catered to men.
Fast forward to the early ’70s, when Fitzwilly’s restaurant opened and proved that it was possible to have a business that could cater to both college students and their parents.
“It was a new marketing concept for the area,” Goggins said, noting that it was the catalyst that changed the complexion of the downtown landscape. “But the interesting part is that it was not something that was promoted or orchestrated. There was no magic plan; it just evolved naturally through entrepreneurship. But it took people with nerve to open businesses here.”
In time, it became fashionable to have an office downtown, which led to a demand for housing there, Goggins recalled.
Jasinski said the large number of residences in and around Main Street contribute to the economy and strength of the city. “One of the key components to the success of downtown is that it is a neighborhood,” he told BusinessWest.
However, Goggins said the character of the buildings has remained the same for generations. He noted that in the mid ’70s the city council voted 5-4 against urban renewal at a time when other communities were embracing it and knocking down buildings in blighted areas.
“It was a very, very important vote and presented the base from where we have grown,” Goggins said. So, although apartments and condominiums were carved out of underutilized space on the upper floors of buildings, “they never changed architecturally, although they have been enhanced.”
He cites education as the primary economic driver in the city and said it has been a steadying force.
Jasinski concurs, and adds healthcare to the conversation. “We have great employers here, and jobs create a strong economy,” he said, as he talked about the five colleges and Cooley Dickinson Hospital. “And anyone who comes to Northampton seems to fall in love with the city due to our diversity, uniqueness, and the warmth of the community. You can walk down Main Street to Smith College and go through the gardens and greenhouse and around Paradise Pond. There is a lot to do and people are key to the success of the economy as they keep it going.”
It is also significant that rents have not risen significantly. “I am renting some spaces for the same price per square foot that they went for 10 years ago,” Goggins said.
But that doesn’t mean they are low. Downtown rents range from $25 to $40 per square foot, with locations closest to Thornes Market on Main Street capturing the high end of the market.
“The average is about $25 per square foot, which is comparable to what you would find in much larger cities,” Goggins said. “There isn’t even a close comparison anywhere else in the area.”

Changing Landscape
King Street is experiencing rapid commercial growth due to zoning changes instituted two years ago. “It was the only area where there was available land, but it was not conducive to commercial development so in the past people couldn’t take advantage of it,” Goggins said.
The change resulted from efforts on the part of the City Planning Department, the chamber, a group of residents, and a number of individuals, including Goggins, to position that area for growth.
Since that time, auto dealerships and other businesses have sprung up and continue to grow. “There are really only two parcels left that are right for development,” Goggins said. “The growth there has been a real eye opener for people.”
Williamson said King Street plays an important role in the balance of Northampton’s commercial market and allows institutions such as banks to have drive-up windows, something that’s not possible downtown. “There are two new auto dealerships under construction and Baystate Medical Center plans to have a medical clinic at Northampton Crossing. Most of the space there has already been pre-leased,” he said.
Another development that has been well received is the River Valley Co-op at the extreme north end of King Street. “It does a really bustling business,” Williamson said.
Goggins told BusinessWest that the city Planning Department is also interested in developing the corridor off Exit 18 on I-91. Cooley Dickinson Hospital is one of the primary tenants in the new office building there, and he expects the site that is under construction to be dominated by medical offices.
Meanwhile, property on Village Hill, built on the grounds of the former Northampton State Hospital, has also been in demand. L-3 KEO (formerly Kollmorgen) relocated there from King Street, a boutique hotel is being created in a building that once housed male attendants at the state hospital, and 9,000 square feet in a new 12,000-square-foot office building under construction are already under lease.
Goggins played a role in the revitalization, and said 150 of the 300 housing units planned for the site are complete and there are plans for several more buildings, which will contain a combination of office, industrial, and retail space.
The site is only three quarters of a mile from downtown, and although most tenants and building owners have been downtown for a long time, real estate opportunities do exist. The building on Main Street that housed the Mountain Goat is for sale, and a building across the street was recently sold to an individual who plans to renovate it.
“There is a lot of demand for property to lease as well as buy,” Jasinski said, adding that businesses often open on side streets, then add a second location on Main Street or eventually move there.
But real estate doesn’t come cheap. “A high end multi-tenant building in downtown Springfield that was fully occupied recently sold for $41.25 per square foot, where a similar building in Northampton would cost in excess of $200 per square foot,” Williamson said. “That really illustrates the difference between the Northampton market and other central area district markets. But the amount of availability is just about perfect, and there is just the right amount of churn. There is not so much vacancy that it is a deterrent to the market, but there is enough to satisfy the requirements of businesses as they come into Northampton for the first time.”

Bright Outlook
Williamson said the demand for commercial space indicates there will be a need for additional construction in the city. “The future bodes well for continued office development, and people can expect to see the announcement of other developments in the next year. Plus, values on Main Street will continue to appreciate at very respectable rates,” he predicted.
Goggins agreed. “The image of Northampton is consistent as it is an oasis that people like to come to,” he said. “So, the value of property has held up, which is an indication of how solid the community is. It has been able to prosper and ride out the cyclical downturns because the real estate market is directly related to the perception of Northampton from the outside in.”
Which continues to be a magnetic force that lures visitors from the local area and beyond.

John Pantera

By
Pantera-John
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Director of Franchise Support & Development and Field Consultant, Fitness Together; Owner, Elements Therapeutic Massage, age 34

Pantera-JohnIt would be an understatement to say that John Pantera achieved business success, while also satisfying an entrepreneurial urge, as an operator of two new franchises for the Fitness Together chain in Eastern Mass. As a certified fitness trainer with a nutrition license and an MBA in Finance and Economics from UMass Amherst, he helped position Fitness Together on Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500 list in 2007, its Fastest Growing Franchises compilation in 2007 and 2008, and on America’s Top Global Franchises magazine’s list in 2007.
But like most successful entrepreneurs, he was ready, willing, and able to aim higher. He sold his franchises, moved to Western Mass., and opened an East Longmeadow franchise of Fitness Together’s sister operation, Elements Therapeutic Massage, in 2009. But when he did so, the fitness-club side of the corporation wasn’t ready to see Pantera go.
A new position was created just for him to direct the network of 54 locations (globally, there are 300) in New Hampshire and Massachusetts that deliver more than $20 million in annual revenues. Pantera now supports operators in their sales, marketing, customer service, and employee relations.
Meanwhile, at Elements Therapeutic Massage, Pantera oversees 25 employees, 19 of whom are therapists, in one of the largest massage spas in the region. He said the extremely high and deeply personal level of customer service required by both the personal-fitness and therapeutic-massage industries is a perfect fit for his personality and style of business management.
“Think about it … we’re basically asking perfect strangers to come in, get naked, and trust us that we will provide them with a high level of professionalism and service,” he said. “So the delivery of the service has to be a perfect 10.”
He’s also an adjunct professor of Entrepreneurship at Western New England University, his alma mater, and is involved with the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield and Rotary International.
While doing all that, Pantera has found time to write a book titled All Diets Die: How to Win and Be Thin (for Life). “No matter your age or what condition you’re in, there are some foundational basics of a healthy lifestyle that can be permanent,” he said of the basic message. “And this is how to go about doing it.”
Balancing business acumen with a passion for wellness, Pantera is keeping plenty of balls in the air.

— Elizabeth Taras

Justin Pelis

By
Pelis-Justin
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Owner, North Country Landscapes and Garden Center, age 34

Pelis-JustinJustin Pelis was making good use of his bachelor’s degree in Finance and Economics from UMass Amherst at a Boston accounting firm, but something just wasn’t right.
“I found myself spending more time in Boston Common than in the office,” Pelis recalled, and he made a move to head back to school with the goal of spending much more time outdoors.
With a second degree from the UMass Stockbridge School of Landscape Design and Horticulture, he purchased what was then a very small garden center in Westhampton called North Country Landscapes. With just two staff members at the start of the Great Recession, Pelis grew the business to 11 staffers who provide high-end, luxury landscape-design plans that include rock formations, stone patios, and walkways with integrated gardens.
Targeting what he calls the ‘aspirational gardener’ — the client who wants more of an artistic, outdoor living-room area that celebrates nature — Pelis took advantage of trends associated with the recession that impacted his industry.
“People were staying home more often, not going on vacations, and willing to put $20,000 or $30,000 into their backyard, with a patio and firepit,” he noted. “Now, they’re spending even more.”
While growing his business, Pelis has also broadened his involvement within the community, devoting more time and energy to civic causes that he finds personally rewarding and important in others’ lives.
Watching his late mother, who suffered for years with multiple sclerosis, enjoy an active quality of life through the Stavros Center, he decided to give back to that organization in her name by serving on the board beginning in 2012. Meanwhile, his love of art, and his desire to help others appreciate what is in their own backyard, has kept him active on the UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center board and gala committee.
A frequent attendee of Northampton Area Young Professionals and Northampton Chamber of Commerce events, Pelis donates time to bowl-a-thons, golf tournaments, and nonprofit auctions, as well as donating birdbaths and garden-themed gift baskets from North Country Landscapes for raffles.
“I find it to be the cheapest and the most rewarding form of advertisement for my business,” he said, “and it feels good.”

— Elizabeth Taras

Shonda Pettiford

By
Pettiford-Shonda
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Assistant Director of Communication, Commonwealth Honors College, UMass Amherst, age 38

Pettiford-ShondaShonda Pettiford believes everyone has potential, and she takes pride in using her writing skills to tell the stories of students at Commonwealth Honors College. “I really enjoy being in the educational environment,” she noted. “It’s amazing to see students grow and develop over the years, and I enjoy giving voice to other people’s stories and accomplishments in the Honors College.”
But the mother of two daughters is especially vested in helping women realize their potential. “I think everyone should be treated equally and have equal access to opportunities,” she said. “And I’m passionate about supporting women and helping them to build their leadership skills, because historically, culturally, and socially, women have not always been valued for their gifts. So I do everything I can to make sure that every girl and woman recognizes exactly how powerful she is.”
Pettiford funnels much of that effort through the Women’s Fund of Western Mass. She has been involved with the organization since 2001 and has served in many roles there, including board member, vice president, and president. In fact, when her two-year tenure as president ended, she was asked to serve an additional year. “It’s been a significant part of my life,” she said.
Pettiford was recognized as the youngest board president in the organization’s international network, and says the fund offers grants and strategic initiatives that help girls and women, such as programs aimed at developing leadership skills.
She was one of 20 women selected for membership in the international Women’s Funding Network Bridge Builders Cohort, and was chosen to be the group’s spokesperson at one of the plenary sessions during its international conference in New York.
Pettiford has also served on the statewide advisory board for the Massachusetts Women’s Pipeline for Change. In addition, she was selected to be part of the Women’s Professional Fellowship Program, funded by the U.S. State Department, that focuses on women’s health and leadership.
As part of the exchange, she went to Brazil in January, and plans to continue her personal mission of helping women to succeed, because, as she said, “everyone deserves a voice.”

— Kathleen Mitchell

People On the Move

By
April Kearse
Departments People on the Move

Joseph Kulig

Joseph Kulig

United Bank announced that Joseph Kulig has joined the bank as Vice President of Commercial Lending in the Springfield Region. Kulig has more than 20 years of commercial banking experience, most recently as relationship manager with TDBank in Springfield. Previously, he served as a commercial loan review officer with SIS Bank in Springfield following six years as principle bank examiner with the Massachusetts Division of Banks in Boston. He holds an MBA from Western New England University, and a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the Isenberg School of Management at UMass Amherst.Kulig has been an active member of the community serving on the board of Rebuilding Together Springfield since 1997 and the West Springfield Youth Soccer Club since 2012. He has coached youth baseball, soccer, and basketball in West Springfield.
•••••
American International College announced the following promotions:
April Kearse

April Kearse

Esta Sobey

Esta Sobey

Nick Young

Nick Young

Dina Ditmar

Dina Ditmar

Dahimeli Mercado

Dahimeli Mercado

Danielle Wisniowski

Danielle Wisniowski
















• April Kearse, was named Associate Dean for Undergraduate Academic Advising. Prior to this new role, Kearse served as Director of Student Support Services (ACE Program) and Assistant Director of Multicultural Admissions. She has a master’s degree in Educational Psychology, and will graduate from AIC with her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership in May 2014,
• Esta Sobey, was named Associate Dean of the AIC Education Department. Previously, she served as chair of the department, Director of Field Experiences, and Director of Middle/Secondary Education. She earned bachelor’s degree from SUNY Stony Brook and two graduate degrees from Columbia University,
• Nick Young was named Dean of Low Residency Programs. He previously served as associated dean of the Ed.D. program at AIC. Young received his bachelor’s degree from Austin Peay State University, an MBA from Western New England University, an Ed.D. from AIC, and a Ph.D. from Union Institute and University. Young currently serves as superintendent of schools in South Hadley,
• Dina Ditmar was promoted to Learning Resource Center and Simulation Faculty Coordinator. Ditmar started at AIC in 2005, serving as an adjunct clinical faculty member, and was named Learning Lab Coordinator in the fall of 2010. She received her BSN at Elms College and her MSN at AIC,
• Dahimeli Mercado was named Student Accounts Analyst. A graduate of AIC, Mercado previously served as a Student Accounts Representative. She earned her bachelor’s degree at AIC and is currently enrolled in the MSAT program at AIC; and
• Danielle Wisniowski was promoted to Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions. Previously an admissions counselor at AIC, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Newbury College and a juris doctorate from WNEU School of Law.
•••••
Monson Savings Bank announced the following:

Christina Bordeau

Christina Bordeau

Claire Ladue

Claire Ladue

• Christina Bordeau has been named Branch Manager for the bank’s Hampden branch. She brings more than 15 years of retail banking experience to Monson Savings, having held previous management positions at Citizens Bank and Bank of America.
• Clare Ladue has named branch manager of the Ware branch, scheduled to open this spring. Previously, she managed the Hampden location.
•••••
John Shea

John Shea

The Springfield office of Boston-based Morrison Mahoney LLP announced that Attorney John Shea had joined the staff. Shea’s concentration in estate planning, wills, durable powers of attorney, health care proxies, revocable and irrevocable trusts, and related services, will be added to the firm’s trial and litigation and medical malpractice defense services. Shea was previously in private practice concentrating in all areas of estate planning and administration as well as business and real estate transactions, and has advised clients in the formation of small, family-owned and franchise businesses. Shea holds a Master of Laws with a concentration in estate planning and elder law, from the Western New England University School of Law, a Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School in Boston, a Master of Science in labor studies from UMass Amherst, and a Bachelor of Arts in government from Connecticut College.
•••••
Dr. Ronald Burkman, Jr

Dr. Ronald Burkman, Jr

Dr. Ronald Burkman, Jr., a board certified physician in obstetrics and gynecology with Baystate Wesson Women’s Group Obstetrics and Gynecology at Baystate Medical Center, was recently named by more than 1,100 Hampden District Medical Society peers as the district’s 2013 Community Clinician of the Year. The award was established in 1998 by the Massachusetts Medical Society to recognize a physician from each of the Society’s 20 district medical societies who has made significant contributions to patients and the community and who stands out as a leading advocate and caregiver. From 1995 to 2007, he was chairman of the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Baystate Medical Center. Since 1995, he has been a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. Long active in the Massachusetts Medical Society, Burkman has served on its committees on professional liability, maternal and perinatal welfare, and managed care. The award will be presented at the district society’s annual meeting April 30 at the Delaney House in Holyoke.

N. Andrew Robb

By
Robb-Andrew-N
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
President, Burgess, Schultz & Robb, P.C., age 39

Robb-Andrew-NAndy Robb can almost understand why some people would consider accounting work to be monotonous and perhaps not as rewarding as some other lines of work.
That’s almost understand.
He told BusinessWest that many of those not in his profession are of the mistaken belief that accounting is about numbers and taxes. Instead, it’s about people, Robb said, and because each individual and each company is different, there is a great amount of variety in this field — and rewards as well.
At a recent presentation he gave before the Berkshire Brewing Co. stockholders meeting, the rewards were immediate and refreshing. “At what other job can you get a draught beer, any type you want, and talk financials?” he joked, adding that his goals are usually far more substantial and involve helping business owners achieve their ambitions, aim higher, and, overall, take their businesses where they want them to go.
He’s been reaping such rewards since joining the profession after graduating from Quinnipiac College with a degree in Accounting, and especially since forming what has become Burgess, Schultz & Robb, an East Longmeadow-based firm that specializes in corporate tax work.
Robb also strives to create a balance between his business, his family (his wife, Amy, and four children), his multi-faceted work within the community, and, yes, his golf game. And sometimes he gets to mix these passions — using time on the course to talk with clients and network with potential new ones, and work as a member of the Ronald McDonald House Golf Committee.
He is also a member of the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce and the Chicopee Rotary Club, serves as treasurer for the Chicopee Visiting Nurses Assoc., and holds that same post with the Chicopee Fest of All Inc.
Doing all that wouldn’t be possible, he said, without considerable support from Amy, a stay-at-home mother.
“Amy allows me to do what I need to do to be out there networking, marketing, growing the firm the way I need to,” Robb said. “Thanks to her for all that she does, because she helps make me what I am.”

— Elizabeth Taras

Stacy Robison

By
Robinson-Stacey
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
President, CommunicateHealth Inc., age 34

Robinson-StaceyHealth information can be confusing — but Stacy Robison says it doesn’t have to be.
With that simple idea in mind, she launched a business from her attic. Four years later, Northampton-based CommunicateHealth boasts 25 employees, annual revenues that have increased tenfold since the first year, and a second office in Rockville, Md.
“We’re founded on the core principle that people deserve clear information about their health,” she said. “When people are dealing with health issues, they’re often under a whole lot of stress, and it makes it really hard to understand information that’s already complicated. So we’re all about making things easier for people.”
Those efforts range from writing and designing interactive health websites to writing fact sheets and creating mobile apps aimed at making health information easier — and even more fun — to access. Government agencies comprise a good portion of her clientele, including ongoing work with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We got to work on pandemic flu information with the CDC, and we worked on childhood-obesity messages with the American Academy of Pediatrics,” she explained. “It kind of runs the gamut, but in each case, we’re taking pretty complicated health information and making it easier to find and use.”
Robison leveraged a public-health degree into a career working with various health agencies, where she experienced first-hand how complicated the information could be. “I started rewriting things, and pretty soon other people were sending me their fact sheets and brochures, asking if I could rewrite and translate them into plain language. It was obvious there was a huge need, and that’s how this business was born.”
Robison runs CommunicateHealth with her partner, Xanthi Scrimgeour, “which is kind of nice because we can bounce ideas off each other.” In addition, she has become something of a national speaker and writer on the issue of health literacy.
“I think this business is in the right place at the right time,” she said, noting that, as insurance reform complicates the medical landscape, health leaders are beginning to recognize the importance of lessening confusion and anxiety.
“People need access to information they can understand,” she said, “and we’ve been able to capitalize on that.”
— Joseph Bednar

Rachel Romano

By
Romano-Rachel
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Founder and Executive Director, Veritas Preparatory Charter School, age 35

Romano-RachelRachel Romano spent six years working in Springfield’s public schools. But a subsequent stint as a principal at a charter school in Framingham got her thinking.
So she applied with the state Board of Education in 2010 to launch Veritas Preparatory Charter School in Springfield, which opened its doors last fall.
“There’s such a compelling need for high-quality public schools in Springfield,” she explained. “Our school is about closing the achievement gap and getting kids prepared for college.”
Intended to serve grades 5-8, Veritas opened with just a fifth-grade class this year and will ramp up with a new crop of fifth graders each year, reaching full enrollment in the fall of 2015.
“Our mission is to prepare kids for success in college,” Romano said — preparation that includes longer school days and a longer year than other schools, as well as a strong focus on academics, character, and structure. “They’re expected to sit up straight and do every piece of work; they get an hour and a half of homework every night, and they do it. I feel so inspired by our students and how hard they’re willing to work every day.”
Such high expectations, she believes, are critical to student success.
“I had always thought education was an equalizer; I had a decent public education, and I thought everyone did,” she said. “But I later realized that education is not an equalizer for kids growing up in the inner city, but a crippling factor for them; the schools are riddled with low expectations and complacency.”
Romano finds this unacceptable. “Kids are smart, and they should have the chance to go to college,” she said. “I knew we were taking on hard work, but there are other schools in this country doing this, and doing it well. So I thought we could do it here in Springfield.
“Many of our students will be the first generation in their family to go to college, and we’re paving the way for them,” she added, noting that this year’s fifth-graders are called the ‘class of 2024’ as a way to focus them on college graduation. “It’s about creating a vision and making that vision of college success a reality.”
— Joseph Bednar

Jennifer Root

By
Root-Jennifer
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Clinical Director, Center for Human Development, age 37

Root-JenniferWhen she was in high school, Jenn Root took a test to determine her ideal career paths. The matches that popped up, she recalled, were librarian, teacher, and social worker. “I said, ‘what the heck is a social worker?’”
But in college, she took a psychology class and loved it; that piqued her interest in social work, which she eventually chose as her major.
In that field, she has sought out opportunities to help some of society’s most challenged constituencies, working with various organizations to provide social services to disadvantaged children, adolescents, and families. She’s doing the same today as clinical director in the Center for Human Development’s Terri Thomas Girls Program.
As a detention unit for adolescent girls, it’s not the most cheerful job. “They’re in a tough place in their lives, and they come from different places in terms of emotional stability and mental health,” Root said. “A lot of the girls have a history of trauma.
“It’s not the kind of job where you see immediate results, and if you need immediate gratification to feel good about your work, it would be hard,” she continued, adding that her work is focused mainly on stabilizing these rough situations. “I like to think of it as planting a seed; you don’t really see it grow, but it does, and even when the girls come back to us, we can see the change and the growth. And you’re supporting them while they grow and change.”
As her photo suggests, Root is an avid runner, who has competed in two marathons and countless road races. “This job can be very stressful,” she said. “Running is my outlet.”
Her physical fitness came in handy the time she climbed the roof of a building to talk a client out of hurting herself. But saving and changing lives is usually a less dramatic, more gradual process.
“This is a small chapter in their life,” Root said. “In the moment, it can be hard to understand that they won’t be in the system forever, but, rather, they have an opportunity to change. They don’t have to have the same life their parents did; they can blaze new trails and create their own future.”

— Joseph Bednar

Jonathan Stolpinski

By
Stopinski-Jon
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Vice President, Westfield Electroplating Co., age 32

Stopinski-JonWhen Jonathan Stolpinski sold his 16 alpacas because he and his family just couldn’t devote the time to them and run the family business, Westfield Electroplating Company (WEPCO), it was a sad day — for all those involved.
“Out of everyone, my dog, Brewski, misses them the most,” said Stolpinski of the furry friend he comes home to after long hours in the electroplating business, which is the process of coating various substances (nickel, chrome, zinc, and others) by electricity or chemical conversion onto everything from aircraft parts to medical devices.
In 1984, his father purchased the business, which was founded in 1946, and Stolpinski essentially grew up in the company as it expanded. And while he worked summers in the plant — and at the now-shuttered Foster House restaurant next door that the family also owned and operated — he was never pushed into the business.
“My father did a pretty good job at keeping me away, to not influence me; he wanted me to make the decision for myself and see what was out there.”
And what was out there, after earning a degree in Business Administration at St. Michael’s College in Vermont, was Lake Tahoe, Nev., where he “sowed his oats” for a year, working at a casino and skiing three to four times a week. In 2004, he decided, on his own, that the family business would be a good fit.
Learning the electroplating business on the job, he now serves as vice president under his father, playing a significant role in ongoing growth, from 140 employees to 155, from $11 million in annual sales to more than $17 million, and with a portfolio now boasting more than 2,000 customers.
Stolpinski and WEPCO are good business neighbors, supporting Noble Hospital, the Westfield Chamber of Commerce, and myriad nonprofits in the city. But it’s his position on the board of directors for the Westfield Boys and Girls Club that is a newfound civic passion.
“The more we do for boys and girls now,” he said, “when they get older, the more they will be able to do for others.”

— Elizabeth Taras

Editorial

By
Editor's Corner Opinion
40 More Reasons to Feel Positive

EditorialBWlogoBusinessWest launched its 40 Under Forty program in 2007 with a number of goals in mind. Identifying young leaders was the primary mission, and we have certainly done that, especially with the Class of 2013, which we introduce in this issue.
But through their stories, we wanted to inspire others to become leaders themselves, and in the process, show that, contrary to what might be popular belief, young people don’t have to leave this market to enjoy success in business, find fulfillment in their work, and make their mark in the community.
Like the six groups that came before, the Class of 2013 provides plenty of examples of people who are not only excelling in their fields, but also giving back to the cities and towns in this region, often with work that involves the young people who will shape this region’s future. Here are just a few examples:
• Tim Allen, the principal of the new South End Middle School in Springfield. Under his leadership, this facility, which serves lower-income children, many of whom are English Language Learners, has recorded more improvement on the English portion of the MCAS tests in its first year than any of the other six neighborhood middle schools in the city. Allen also does a considerable amount of mentoring, and gives time and energy to Big Brothers Big Sisters;
• Adrian Bailey Dion has developed imaginative — and entrepreneurial — strategies to enable the Grinspoon Foundation, which she serves as COO, to dramatically increase the number of books it distributes through its PJ Library, which supports literacy and values development in children ages 1-8 through the purchase and delivery of age-appropriate Jewish books. She also supports area food pantries and kitchens in their work to feed area residents in need;
• Melyssa Brown, an accountant with Meyers Brothers Kalicka in Holyoke, has made her mark professionally, as the youngest manager in the firm’s Audit & Accounting Division. But it’s her work in the community that is really adding up (figuratively speaking). She’s one of the prime movers with a new Girls Inc. initiative called Eureka, in which girls ages 12-15 spend four weeks each summer on a college campus to learn about math, science, computers, sports, and both personal and career development;
• Kam Capoccia is a pharmacist who is changing the way people might think about those in that profession. While she still dispenses pills during weekend shifts at a local Walgreens, she spends much of her time dispensing information, as an associate professor of Pharmacy at Western New England University, but especially as the director of the Consultation and Wellness Center at the Big Y on Cooley Street in Springfield. There, she’s assisted countless individuals with issues ranging from Type 2 diabetes to high blood pressure to problems with obesity;
• Walt Tomala Jr. knows what it’s like to triumph over adversity. He suffered third-degree burns over 60% of his body in a flash explosion that occurred when a sanding machine malfunctioned while he was remodeling a bowling center. He spent a year in recovery and rehab, and eventually started his own construction company, one that has played a lead role in helping others achieve a higher quality of life, through work on everything from blitz-build projects for Habitat for Humanity to construction of homes for severely wounded veterans. He’s also been a steady supporter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Space doesn’t permit us to tell all 40 stories here, but these five serve as effective examples of how this entire class is the embodiment of professional excellence, community activism, and true leadership.
Their stories begin on page A6. Read, enjoy, and become inspired.

Community Profile: Springfield

By
ACCGS Executive Director Jeff Ciuffreda
Features
Springfield Eyes Bright Future, Casino or Not

SpringfieldProfilesMAPDomenic Sarno has been talking about a potential Springfield casino for a long time. But that’s not all he wants to talk about.
“We’ve handled the casino as a potentially $1 billion economic-development project with a gaming component,” the Springfield mayor said of the dual proposals put forth by MGM Resorts International and Penn National Gaming, “but we’re moving on three or four different other fronts besides the casino.”
Three or four would be a gross understatement. Those fronts range from ongoing tornado recovery to Union Station, which will begin its $78 million transformation to a multi-use transportation hub later this year; from the new data center at the former Technical High School — one of the final pieces of an ongoing revitalization of the State Street corridor — to continued efforts to draw more businesses and foot traffic downtown, among many other efforts.

Mayor Domenic Sarno

Mayor Domenic Sarno says efforts to locate a casino in the city constitute one of many economic-development related initiatives taking place in Springfield.

“So it’s more than just the casino,” Sarno said, before admitting he certainly welcomes such a huge development and the $15 million to $20 million in property-tax revenue that might accompany it  — not to mention thousands of jobs and, hopefully, opportunities for local businesses to partner with the casino developer, if Springfield does indeed land the project. “Both entities understand that they have to connect to the fabric of the city.”
Jeff Ciuffreda has become a bit weary of the casino issue as well. As executive director of the Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield, he knew any stand taken by the ACCGS would be controversial with some, “so we supported it with one caveat — that it not distract from ongoing economic development.”
After all, an $800 million casino does change the equation downtown, and is not exactly the sort of project the City of Homes is accustomed to. Ciuffreda wants assurances that MGM or Penn National won’t ignore the small businesses that are in many ways the city’s backbone.
“We’ve had discussions with both developers, and there seems to be genuine interest in looking at ways for spinoffs of the casino to really benefit small and medium-sized businesses,” he said, noting that a casino is expected to purchase some $50 million to $55 million in goods and services annually.
“We’ve been trying to encourage them to be cognizant of the fact that they’re moving to an area with a lot of small to medium-sized businesses that may not be able to produce the quantity of goods and services they’re looking for, but maybe they can carve out a portion of those goods and services.”
So, the casino is certainly the elephant in the room when planning for the future. But while it’s not possible to move every project forward until the gaming question is settled, city leaders say, there is plenty more going on in Springfield, a community they insist is on the rise — no matter what the Mass. Gaming Commission decides later this year.

City on the Move
When they sat down with BusinessWest, Sarno and Kevin Kennedy, the city’s chief development officer, enthusiastically ran through a deep list of recent and ongoing economic-development initiatives.
Take Union Station, for example. Sarno cited the impact of other Union Station projects undertaken in various cities, from New Haven, Conn. to Washington, D.C. “In D.C., it was a decrepit, crime-riddled, drug-infested area, but when Union Station was done, it changed the whole thing. It’s not only about transportation; it’s an economic catalyst.”

ACCGS Executive Director Jeff Ciuffreda

ACCGS Executive Director Jeff Ciuffreda says many downtown businesses no longer have the “bunker mentality” that prevailed after the recession.

Kennedy also mentioned the interest UMass Amherst has shown in a downtown location. “That is real. We’re having discussions with them, and we’re expecting they will come to fruition, and a year from this fall, it’ll be the UMass Springfield campus.” That’s an important development, he said, “because bringing students downtown brings vibrancy; it creates excitement. It helps with the restaurants and all the retail along Main Street.”
And with the completion of the data center and a recently announced, $25 million redevelopment of the Indian Motorcycle property in Mason Square — a project being undertaken by American International College and First Resource Development Co. — the State Street corridor continues its impressive momentum. “AIC is really happy,” Kennedy said. “MassMutual is happy. The residents of Mason Square are happy.”
Ciuffreda noted several other recent successes, from new life in the former federal building on Main Street to the downtown relocations by the likes of Thing5, Accountable Care Associates, Cambridge College, and other businesses, to small but noticeable aesthetic improvements, such as James Kitchen’s art installations.
Then there’s the just-announced lighting project being undertaken along some of the city’s main thoroughfares: on Main Street in the downtown club district, on North Main Street in the North End, and along Sumner Avenue near the entrance to Forest Park.
The city has teamed up with Western Mass. Electric Co. to replace outdated light fixtures in those areas with lights that are both brighter and more energy-efficient, with an eye on expanding the effort to other neighborhoods.
Particularly in the historic neighborhoods, Kennedy said, the old, decorative light fixtures have a place, but the switch “saves us money and saves WMECo money, and citizens benefit because we’re changing the whole image of downtown safety and security; by improving the lighting, people will have more confidence to come downtown, and they’ll feel more safe and secure.”
Ciuffreda understands the reason for the change, noting that chamber members are being asked for their feedback on the new lights being tested. “I’ve heard people say, ‘I went to a Falcons game, and for the first time in a long time, I felt safe after I left, but then I walked down the street, and it was kind of dark.’”
“We want people to tell us what they think,” Kennedy said. “What we’re trying to do downtown is change the whole lighting arrangement, from decorative lighting to better illumination. In addition, we’ll soon be announcing a new security arrangement downtown so, generally, when someone gets out of work downtown, they’ll see a cop. When they go to an event at the MassMutual Center or CityStage, they’ll see a cop.”
“When people feel safe, they’re more likely to visit, and more bodies on the street means more vibrancy,” added Sarno, noting that further economic development will be limited unless the city addresses the safety issue — both perception and reality. “We’ve thought this out very well, and we’re trying to connect all the pieces of the puzzle. There’s a lot of work that might not seem very sexy up front, but behind the scenes, it’s helping us do the more sexy things.”

Still Standing
Impressively, Sarno noted, all this is taking place in the wake of a devastating tornado that ripped through several city neighborhoods in June 2011. A strategic disaster-recovery plan has been in the works for almost two years, but now federal money is beginning to arrive — including $21.9 million from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and $1.3 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency — to put the plan into action.
“We were dealing with the disaster 24/7 for three months. And in the first two weeks, we started to think about how this could be an opportunity to redefine the city,” Sarno said. “That’s when we started piecing together DevelopSpringfield; we wanted a vision not only for the affected area, but a chance to redefine the whole city — to highlight strong areas and make areas in need better. Now that the money is starting to come in, we’re seeing fruit from these projects.
“It’s tough enough for an urban center as it is, and we were hit with one disaster after another,” he said of the freak weather events of 2011 and the natural-gas explosion downtown last fall. “A lot of people thought the tornado was a haymaker, the knockout. But the exact opposite happened. After seeing our resiliency, people are taking a second look at Springfield. We’re not saying we don’t have urban challenges; we do, and we’ll conquer them. But people have their eyes on the city.”
Kennedy agreed. “Confidence is back in Springfield,” he said, adding that progress has been aided by the “reliable and predictable way of going about our business. We developed a strategy and stuck to that strategy, as opposed to being all over the lot.”
Yet, Ciuffreda was quick to add that some projects — from the next phase in a downtown parking study to a UMass Springfield campus — simply can’t move forward until the site of the casino is known.
“My feeling is, [UMass] wants to do something that won’t compete with the other colleges and universities, but until the casino is sited, it makes it difficult for them to figure out where they want to be,” he said. “The parking, the lighting, the UMass presence — they’re all being overshadowed. Now, you can’t rush an $800 million development, but these other things can’t wait in the wings forever.”
That said, “the mayor and Kevin (Kennedy) have an eye on all of this and haven’t been distracted by casinos,” Ciuffreda was quick to add. “All these other projects seem to be getting their due attention.”
Even the 2009 decision to increase the mayoral term from two years to four has had an impact on development, Kennedy said, because it means the mayor no longer has to spend more than half his term in campaign mode. “It gives you the time to sketch out the vision and, more important, implement and execute that vision. That’s what we’re in the midst of doing now.”
Added Sarno, “you’ll always get naysayers asking ‘why are you making that move?’ But it’s like a chess game. Each move sets up another move, although it might not always be obvious.”

Better Days
From the chamber’s perspective, Ciuffreda said, Springfield is on the rebound from the Great Recession.
“Starting three years ago, we could see some small and mid-sized companies leaving the chamber, for mostly economic reasons,” he said. “We haven’t seen that in the last year or so; our numbers show a firming up of the economy. We’re seeing more participation in our programs. Folks aren’t in as much of a bunker mentality downtown — they’re coming out, they’re moving forward. I think there’s some momentum there.”
How a potential casino impacts that progress, both positively and negatively, remains to be seen.
“I can’t lie to you; there will be small businesses that will be hurt if Springfield wins the gaming license,” he noted. “But our hope is that, through employment and other opportunities, we can minimize those losses. Our real concentration is on maximizing the upside, the spinoff that will occur in these other areas. On balance, the chamber decided there was more good than bad, more upside than downside. That’s why we’re supportive of it.”
Meanwhile, Kennedy said, it’s business as usual on the economic-development front, and city leaders aren’t about to sit around waiting for the Gaming Commission’s verdict.
“Everyone knew the downtown was a problem, and we had to do our homework and spadework before we could fix it,” he told BusinessWest. “Even without the casino, if you add up Union Station, Indian Motorcycle, different road projects, the new schools — those are real, and we’ll see more things happening over the next two years. So we are working really hard to make sure we are not casino-centric, because we may not get the casino.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

Running Out of Options

By
Andrew Sum
Features
Older Unemployed Individuals Find Themselves in the Fight of Their Lives

Cheryl Adamson

Cheryl Adamson says she’s encountered a good deal of bias when it comes to her age, one of the reasons she’s been unable to find a full-time job for nearly two years.

When Cheryl Adamson found herself unemployed after the Hampden House retirement community closed its doors in September, 2011, she never believed that 20 months later she would be crossing her fingers and literally praying for a second part-time job she’s interviewed for, which coupled with an enjoyable gig she has peddling dog food, still won’t pay her anything close to what she was making as a chef manager.
But that is reality for this 55-year old Chicopee resident, and for countless others like her who find themselves trapped in a situation described as unprecedented by those who study labor markets and the trends now shaping them.
In a nutshell, jobs that were lost during the Great Recession and the years that followed are simply not being replaced at anything approaching the same pace. And while all age groups are affected by this development known as long-term unemployment, it is older workers, especially those 55 and over, who often find themselves on the outside looking in and, in some extreme cases, wondering if they will ever work again.
Older workers downsized or impacted by business closures face a number of challenges as they try to re-enter the job market, said Andrew Sum, director of Northeastern University’s Center for Labor Market Studies, who listed everything from a lack of needed skills, especially with information technology, to the simple fact that people have been out of work for months or even years, leaving a resume gap that intimidates employers, who see such individuals as damaged goods.
“The longer one is unemployed, the harder it is to get a job,” he said, “and the more likely it is that individuals will simply give up and leave the labor force.”
Adamson has seen all of this, up close, personal, and repeatedly. She first used the word ‘prejudicial’ to describe what was going on, but then settled on ‘biased.’
“Some people would blatantly ask me how old I was, either in interviews or over the phone,” she told BusinessWest “And I’ve heard a lot of people say I’m ‘overqualified,’ which I interpret to mean ‘you’re too old.’”
Tom Thebodo can certainly relate.
Steve Trueman

Steve Trueman says many older unemployed individuals are, or soon will be, in what he called “survival mode.”

Steve Trueman says many older unemployed individuals are, or soon will be, in what he called “survival mode.”
[/caption]He took what he considered to be a reasonable gamble in January 2011, when Home Depot decided it would take over management of its warehouse operation in Westfield from the company it had hired to handle that assignment, Exel Logistics. Home Depot offered the workers an opportunity to keep their jobs, but at roughly two-thirds the salaries they were earning; Thebodo said ‘thanks, but no thanks.’
Nearly 26 months later, and close to a year after his unemployment benefits ran out, he is still looking for work and having serious doubts about whether he will soon get anything paying close to what he was making before.
“I haven’t had many bites at all — I’ve probably applied for 300 jobs and I think I’ve had two interviews,” he said, adding that one was for a seasonal, part-time position at Six Flags. “I want to work, and I think can outwork these younger guys that are getting the jobs, even though they aren’t very experienced, because they’re cheaper to hire. I’m just not getting any chances.”
Steve Trueman, director of Adult Workforce Programs for the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County, said many older workers like Adamson and Thebodo are, or soon will be, in what he called “survival mode,” which is certainly not how they intended to live in the years leading up to their retirement.
“People have lost their homes, they’ve lost their nest eggs, and they’re adjusting their lifestyles,” he said, adding that some are taking positions they are seriously overqualified for, and at a fraction of their former salary — if they can find anything at all — just to get by. “They’ve gone off the path of where they were headed; their plans have been derailed.”
And perhaps the most unsettling news for this constituency is that there is little, if anything, to indicate that conditions are going to improve any time soon. In fact, things could actually get worse before they get better.
Companies that downsized, or rightsized, during the Great Recession have found new ways to do the same, or more, with fewer people, said Trueman, adding that many employers are showing little desire to ramp back up to pre-downturn staffing levels. Meanwhile, looming sequestration could impact the situation in many ways — from eliminating many jobs, and thus creating even more competition for openings, to cutting off funding for programs to retrain people for new opportunities.
For this issue, BusinessWest turns the spotlight on long-term unemployment, especially as it impacts older workers. Not long ago, they were moving toward retirement with a plan; now those plans have changed, and they have to navigate what most would describe as uncharted waters to get back into the workforce.

Age-old Problem
Elizabeth Veillette’s business card declares that she is a “mature worker specialist” with CareerPoint, the one-stop career center based in Holyoke.
And she says that makes her quite unique in the field of employment services. “I’m not aware of anyone else who does what I do, not only in this state but nationally,” she said, adding that the grant-funded position involves work assisting and counseling older workers as they seek employment.
Many of these individuals are facing long-term unemployment (a technical term that means someone’s been looking for work for more than a year), she went on, adding that she works one-on-one with such clients, and also in workshops, such as one titled ‘Job Search Strategies for Mature Workers,’ and job-club activities.
Veillette was leading a job-club session just prior to talking with BusinessWest. This is a group of roughly 20 people, many of them facing similar challenges — and emotions — as they try to rejoin the workforce.
“A lot of them are only a few years from retirement, so they’re going through a lot of shock and a lot of grief,” she explained. “There’s a fair amount of working through the emotional piece to be able to pull yourself together enough to go and look for another job.”
She said many of those she works with have been with the same company for decades, have specialized skills that might make it difficult to get into another field, especially in the ultra-competitive environment that exists today, and little, if any job-search experience.
And these are just some of the challenges they face, she noted, adding that she’s noticed what she would have to call some bias against older workers.

Andrew Sum

Andrew Sum says that the longer one has been unemployed, the harder it is to find work.

“There is some actual age discrimination that is taking place,” she said. “In a lot of cases, what people (employers) are saying, but without actually saying it, is ‘you’ve been doing this a long time, you’re too expensive, I can’t afford you, so I’m going to call you overqualified.’”
And there are many more people hearing such words than at any time in the past three decades, or since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started keeping such stats, said Sum, co-author of a report issued two years ago titled The Dislocation Experiences and Labor Market Adjustment Problems of America’s Older Workers During the Great Recession of 2007-2009.
While preparing it, he discovered that the numbers of people in this state who had been unemployed for more than a year, and especially older workers, were much higher than he thought. A decade or so ago, the mean duration of unemployment among older workers in the state was 16 weeks, he said, noting that over the past 18 months, that number has risen to 50 weeks for those ages 55 to 64 and 44 for those over 65.
“We’ve never seen unemployment duration this high for older workers,” he told BusinessWest, “or for anyone else, for that matter.”
Those sentiments are backed up by Labor Department statistics showing that the number of people age 45 and older who have been jobless for more than a year has quadrupled since 2007, accounting for more than half of the 3.5 million Americans who have been unemployed long term.
Slicing through such numbers, Sum qualified the situation by saying that while there are more older individuals (over 55) working today, by percentage, than any other age group, it is more difficult for those in that demographic who are unemployed to rejoin the workforce.
“For older workers, when they’re unemployed for long periods of time, their recall rate gets to be pretty low,” he explained, adding that the longer one is out, the more this situation becomes exacerbated.

Idle Thoughts
People like Thebodo and Adamson don’t need statistics from the Labor Department, or Sum’s report, to tell them they’re facing something unusual — and extremely frustrating as they try to re-enter the workforce.
“I’m hanging in there, but it’s getting very depressing,” said Thebodo, adding that he is not yet ready to join the ranks of those who have simply given up in their search and thus technically, and ironically, are no longer classified as unemployed. “I’d just like someone to give me a chance to show what I can do, but no one will do that.”
These sentiments echo those of a woman (who asked to be identified only as ‘Debbie’) who has been out of work for the better part of three years now.
A former clerical worker for a municipality she also chose not to name, Debbie said she’s been hindered in her efforts to find a job by everything from what she considers to be average (at best) computer skills to the fact that she doesn’t speak Spanish.
“Everyone wants you to be bilingual today,” she said, using ‘everyone’ to describe those who have sat across the interview table from her.
Debbie said she’s had several temp jobs, none of which turned into anything permanent, and worked for a few weeks to get the Hobby Lobby store up and running at the Holyoke Mall, but was not among the 40 people ultimately hired by the company.
A member of a job club at FutureWorks, the one-stop career center based in Springfield, she said she tries to remain upbeat — “I always look at the glass at being half full” — and benefits from being around others who are facing the same challenges she is.
“I kind of feel like I’m lost and alone in this — you keep saying to yourself, ‘why can’t I find anything,’” she said. “When there’s other people in the same situation, it makes you feel better  … you have to keep your chin up.”
Conrad Rogowski, manager of Career Services at FutureWorks, said such a positive attitude is critical for all those seeking to re-enter the workforce, but especially mature workers who have some inherent advantages over many younger applicants, he believes, listing everything from experience in a given field to a strong work ethic — and must exploit them.
“Age can certainly be a disadvantage, but it can also be an advantage — it depends on the individual,” said Rogowski, who works with a number of mature workers. “For the 55-plus workers, there are factors that can work for them or work against them. One of the big questions they face concerns whether they’ve kept up with technology, which is critical to their ability to be able to market themselves when they’re out of work.”
“Sometimes, people fall behind on technology, other times, the company they were working for falls behind,” he continued, adding that FutureWorks encourages such people to get caught up, not only with equipment and software, but also with the social media vehicles available to market themselves, such as LinkedIn and Twitter.
Meanwhile, he said, many older workers have to change their mindset somewhat and focus on what employers need, and not what they need as they pursue employment.
“At one time, a number of years ago, the focus was on ‘what’s in this for me?’” he noted. “But in this job market, what people have to focus on is the needs of the employer. And this is where some of the advantages of the mature worker come in.
“In a tough job market, employers are looking for a variety of things,” he went on. “They’re looking for longevity in jobs and depth in a work history; they’re looking for people skills, communication skills, maturity, productivity, and a work ethic, and these are all things that a mature worker can demonstrate on their resume, and can certainly demonstrate once they have an opportunity to get in front of an employer at an interview.”

The Bottom Line
Adamson told BusinessWest that she’s been trying to stress her experience, what she can do for an employer, and how she can be as asset — even if she is overqualified for the job in question — but just hasn’t been given any chances to prove herself.
When asked to describe what that’s been like, she summoned the word ‘humbling,’ while noting that her joblessness has come at a time of other losses in her life, including her fiancée, who died a few years ago, so she keeps things in perspective.
“You have to really stay positive about things,” she said, noting that the aforementioned part-time job she’s seeking isn’t anything approaching management. But it is something she needs on so many levels — from the financial to the standpoint of self-esteem.
Such is life when one is in survival mode — and that is the unfortunate reality for many older individuals who thought the home stretch to retirement would be much different.

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

Mark Zatyrka

By
Zatyrka-Mark
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Vice President and Director of Marketing & Public Relations, American Homecare Federation Inc., age 33

Zatyrka-MarkMark Zatyrka has faced big challenges all his life, and he’s devoted his career to helping other people with similar struggles.
Zatyrka was born with severe hemophilia, a bleeding disorder. In addition to requiring constant blood infusions, he developed severe arthritis in several of his joints. Then, in the mid-’80s, he contracted HIV from a blood transfusion.
But he found a career with purpose with the American Homecare Federation, a company that works exclusively with individuals and families living with bleeding disorders. He started out as a marketing associate and eventually climbed the ladder to his current leadership role.
“I have severe hemophilia, so I know the challenges I grew up with, and I have a personal relationship with a lot of our patients,” he said. “I can mentor the younger kids and show them that disease does not need to define them; this disease does not have to hold them back, and they can still create great things with their lives.”
Over the past decade, he said, the company has received high satisfaction ratings from patients, which is critical in this field. “As one of the smaller companies in this market competing against some of the largest companies, if we don’t provide the highest-quality care, we’ll get eaten up out there.”
Zatyrka says he feels fortunate to have a career that resonates so personally with him and that allows him to shape other people’s lives for the better, and he has gradually become a public advocate for hemophilia, HIV, and AIDS issues, partnering with a number of local organizations and regularly speaking to young people.
“The hemophilia community was devastated by HIV and AIDS back in the early ’80s; about 90% of severe hemophiliacs contracted HIV,” he said. “I’m HIV-positive, and I do my best to help educate others in the community.”
That includes co-founding the AIDS kNOw More Project, an initiative of the AIDS Foundation of Western Mass. that trains young people to educate their peers about HIV and AIDS, about which there’s plenty of misinformation.
“Unfortunately, a stigma still exists around HIV, and that drives me nuts,” he said. “And a lot of the stigma comes from uneducated, unknowledgable people.”
With a mix of education and compassion, Zatyrka is changing perceptions — and lives.

— Joseph Bednar

Walter Tomala Jr.

By
Tomala-Walter
40 Under 40 The Class of 2013
Owner and President, TNT General Contracting, age 37

Tomala-WalterWalt Tomala Jr. says the speed-building endeavors he’s participated in — everything from two local Extreme Makeover: Home Edition projects to a blitz-build event for Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity — are in many ways a metaphor for how he lives his life.
In other words, he’s committed to simply not wasting a minute of his time. This attitude has enabled him to successfully balance his business, TNT General Contracting, with his family and especially his daughter, Lauren, and also his work in the community through those aforementioned projects, but also many others, especially his tireless service with the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
But beyond maximizing his time, there is another common thread between Tomala’s extreme-building exploits and his own life. That would be the matter of dreams — making them, shaping them, and willing them to come true.
As a teenager, Tomala’s dream was to be a professional baseball pitcher, and he was on his way — he starred for Westfield High School — when a devastating shoulder and elbow injury took baseball out of the equation and forced him to recalibrate. He took work building and remodeling bowling centers, but a year into that job he was caught in a flash explosion when a sanding machine malfunctioned. He suffered third-degree burns over 60% of his body and spent a year in recovery and rehab.
Undaunted, he went back to building bowling centers, and eventually started his own construction company with a name, TNT, which has nothing to do with his family name, but everything to do with the explosion that nearly ended all his dreams.
Since then, he’s focused on other people’s dreams, from participating in the Extreme Makeover projects to designing and overseeing the blitz build for Habitat; from building four houses in a week for victims of the June 1, 2011 tornado to helping construct two homes for severely injured veterans.
Introduced to Make-A-Wish by his father when he was 13, Tomala has made that nonprofit one of his passions. And in 2000, the organization named him its volunteer of the year.
To say that he’s made the very most of all his time would be a huge understatement.

— George O’Brien

Guest Perspective

By
Opinion
What Would Horace Moses Do?

At one time, Horace Moses may have been best known as the president of the Strathmore Paper Co. in West Springfield, but his legacy is much bigger than that.
In 1919, Moses founded Junior Achievement, the worldwide financial training program for young people. Growing up on his family’s farm, Moses acquired the habits of fiscal responsibility and entrepreneurship. He not only worked the fields, but networked with a variety of business owners to sell the farm’s products.
Moses was quick to learn that through hard work, determination, and ambition, one can achieve the American Dream. His philosophy wasn’t limited to personal gain, however. Moses donated his time and wealth to a variety of worthwhile causes. One initiative close to his heart was ensuring that children develop the skills to secure their own economic success. It was this goal that led Moses and Theodore Vail, president of American Telephone & Telegraph to found Junior Achievement right here in Western Massachusetts.
Today, JA is the world’s largest organization dedicated to educating students about workforce readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs. Although born of humble beginnings on the Big E fairgrounds, JA reaches more than 4 million students each year across the United States, and another 6 million in countries around the world. JA’s volunteer-delivered K-12 programs help prepare students for the real world by showing them how to effectively manage their finances, generate wealth, and help build robust communities.
Moses and Vail realized the importance of teaching young people that thrift, economy, and industry are necessary to sustain the American vision. Almost 100 years later, nothing has changed.
Each year, roughly 1.3 million students drop out of school. Each dropout costs society approximately $200,000 in lost tax revenue and government expenditures over his or her lifetime. The personal cost of dropping out of school isn’t just economic — there’s a psychological price, as well. As someone who’s gone from high school dropout to college graduate, I can tell you that being a dropout can be debilitating. The lack of skills eventually damages your self-confidence, resulting in a social paralysis. You feel trapped in your situation. You want to work, to achieve, but lack the foundation and support system to overcome your circumstance.
Horace Moses knew that it doesn’t have to be that way, and that by investing in our children we could help them become productive participants in our national economy.
Addressing the dropout population is only part of the solution. Approxinately 45% of today’s college graduates don’t have the skills to advance past an entry-level job. Managers at more than 53% of large companies and 67% of small companies say it’s difficult to recruit employees with the skills, training, and education their companies require. In time, this skills gap will invariably weaken our ability to compete in the global marketplace. Helping our children aspire to succeed is not only imperative to their own well-being, but to our own economic and entrepreneurial survival.
What would Horace Moses do in the face of today’s problems? He would commit his resources to find a solution. That’s why he co-founded Junior Achievement. JA supports youth development by fostering the spirit of entrepreneurship, and by instilling and modeling key business and work-readiness concepts such as leadership, teamwork, and critical thinking.
I encourage you to join me in following his example by making an investment in the youth of Western Mass. We don’t need to dedicate the time or resources Moses had at his disposal. We already have a structure, it just needs caring professionals, community leaders, and supporters. Find out how you can empower students to stay in school, develop the skills necessary for economic success, and live the life each of us hopes for for our own children.
Get involved with Junior Achievement of Western Mass., your local school system, or other worthwhile cause. You can change the direction of a generation. That’s what Horace Moses would do.

Thom Fox is the community outreach director at Cambridge Credit Counseling and vice chairman of Junior Achievement of Western Massachusetts. He also serves as a start-up mentor at Valley Venture Mentors, member of the National Academy Foundation STEM-21 Advisory Board at Sci-Tech, and member of the Financial Stability Network of Hampden County; (413) 330-5254; [email protected].

Entrepreneurial Drive

By
Jim Haberern
Golf Preview Sections
Elmcrest’s Manager Puts Some Imaginative Spins on Golf Operations

Jim Haberern

Jim Haberern says Elmcrest has had to evolve from a somewhat closed society into one that’s much more open.

Jim Haberern called it his “temporary office.”

This would be the small, cluttered desk, chair, credenza, copier, and other pieces of equipment positioned in the center of what he termed the small-events room at the grille, or 19th hole, at Elmcrest Country Club in East Longmeadow, which he serves as manager.

Like the small room that is his permanent office, this space is getting a much-needed facelift. Indeed, as Haberern explained, while the club has undertaken many improvements over the years, some of the features would represent original equipment from when it was built almost 50 years ago.

“We’ve been doing a lot of painting and giving the place a new look,” he explained. “With the changes we’ve made, the room is much more versatile — and it’s also a lot cleaner, because just about everything in here had been here since day one. This was long overdue, and it was the right moment to do it.”

And just as the dance floor, some of the walls, ceilings, and woodwork from the club’s early days have required some change and modernization, so too have some of Elmcrest’s operating philosophies.

As Haberern explained, for decades the club operated as what he called a “closed society.” And by that, he meant the original core of members (only a few of whom remain) and the new members brought in on a steady basis until about 15 years ago, when those individuals started hitting 70 — and not on the scorecard.

As that group of original members dwindled in number, Elmcrest essentially had no choice but to become an open society, or at least one that was far more open than it and most other private clubs in this area have been historically.

And by open, he meant open to both new members of all ages and new ideas for attaining them. These have included many forms of marketing — something most private clubs had never done and some still refrain from — including print ads and sponsorship of a popular Saturday-morning golf show on radio station WEEI. But it also includes hosting more tournaments to introduce more people to the course and its amenities, and then giving participants a gift card good for another round, a practice that has paid off.

“Membership is moving in the right direction,” said Haberern, adding that there have been fairly steady increases over the past several years. “And a big reason for that is that people know who we are now. We were a closed society, and I had to open it up quite a bit.”

His efforts to continually cast a wider net continue with another new initiative aimed specifically at women. Noting that there are many professional women who may want to join a club but are reluctant because of their lack of golf skills, Haberern is putting together a package that would begin with lessons from a professional and eventually ease the individual into a golf membership.

Long-term, said Haberern, the unofficial goal for Elmcrest is to become more of a closed society again, meaning membership numbers closer to the 500 the club once enjoyed than the current 300. That day is still at least a few years away, he noted, adding that the economy is still far from fully recovered from not only the Great Recession, but the years just prior, when the golf industry started a decline that in many ways continues today.

So, for the immediate future, Haberern and his staff will continue to look for ways to be creative and keep this half-century-old club vibrant and on the cutting edge of new ideas on how to attract members and then provide them with value.

 

A Cut Above

Before talking about golf and the business that it is, Haberern wanted to discuss … carpentry.

Not the projects going on around his temporary office, necessarily, but the work of his uncle, Joe Pagos, who started Elmcrest with some business partners in the early ’60s.

Haberern said he started working at the club, and for his uncle, in the mid-’70s, when he was 10, and was soon handling odd jobs ranging from cleaning toilets to washing dishes to mowing greens. While performing such tasks, he did something that would pay dividends years down the road — watch, and, more importantly, listen to Pagos talk about business and serving people.

“Working with my uncle wasn’t easy, especially for a 10-year-old, because he was a very hardworking person and pretty demanding,” Haberern recalled. “But you learned his work ethic, his morals, and how things go. I’d have to say that it was probably the best education I ever had, sitting back or standing behind him and watching his business sense.

“He said, ‘I’m going to teach you everything; just keep your mouth shut and listen,’” he went on. “He taught me everything I needed to know, and mostly what he taught me was to be good to people, because if you are, they’ll be good to you.”

Such lessons served Haberern well when he assumed a leadership role in the family business in 2000. Learning the ropes from the ground up — not to mention all that insight from Pagos — gave Haberern a solid background in all aspects of a golf operation, and likely helped him interpret the warning signs about a decline in the industry that he started seeing as early as 1999.

“I could see then the golf business was heading for trouble,” he said, “and that you were going to have to do something more than open up the doors and expect new members to come in.”

In response to these trends, Haberern started taking the initiative, with some tactics that would have to be considered cutting-edge, if not well ahead of their time, when it comes to private clubs.

This included advertising, and, eventually, his strong presence on the radio, with a golf show that has the Elmcrest name attached to it. Haberern has also given the club a presence at the region’s annual golf expo, a stage usually preferred by public and resort courses open for general play.

“Almost everyone is doing things like that now,” he said of private clubs and marketing in general. “I was doing it five, six, or seven years ago; I’ve also liked to think outside the box.”

Other initiatives include being imaginative when it comes to tailoring membership packages to suit the needs of a specific demographic group, or even an individual.

To emphasize this point, Haberern showed BusinessWest a breakdown of current packages, many with deferred initiation, designed for families, individuals, younger individuals (there are two age groups, 30-35 and 19-29), seniors, juniors (ages 14-19), those on active duty in the military, and even those who live outside the area but have family here and visit frequently.

“I started hitting every demographic group I possibly could — kids under 30, people between 30 and 35 … before, clubs had individual and family memberships; now, I have a long list of them,” he noted. “Most people will fit into one of them, and if not, I can make one up for them.”

A willingness to take on more tournaments (but without negatively impacting members) has also benefited the club, said Haberern, noting that he is now staggering tournaments, starting earlier and ending later (Nov. 10 this year, with the seventh annual Marine Corps Breakfast & Golf Tournament) to achieve that result.

“I took a lot of dead time and filled it in with tournaments,” he said, adding that such outings bring in additional revenue — memberships certainly don’t cover all the costs at a private club — but, perhaps more importantly, also introduce players to the course, its clubhouse, and other amenities.

“Tournaments get people in the door,” he noted, “and that’s when you can give them information about the course and perhaps spark some interest. And with the free round you give them, we get a second opportunity to talk with them about membership or about bringing their own groups down for tournaments.”

The new initiative involving women members is something Haberern has been contemplating for some time, and he’s now ready to pull the trigger and implement it for this season.

“Everyone I’ve talked to about this likes the idea, and they think it will be well-received,” he told BusinessWest. “It’s a transition, from taking lessons to actually playing on a golf course. It should help people in business ease their way into the game and be less intimidated about playing.”

 

Course Correction

Haberern said he’s noted some improvement in the overall climate when it comes to the golf business.

“The economy has recovered somewhat, and people seem more willing to spend money on things like a club membership,” he noted, adding that it will likely be several more years before Elmcrest can be anything approaching that closed society he says it was years ago.

Which means he will continue to push the envelope when it comes to new and different strategic initiatives to brand Elmcrest and bring people to its front door and first tee.

 

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

Strong Viewpoints

By
Cover Story
Crumpin-Fox Club Focuses on Providing an Experience

Mike Zaranek

Mike Zaranek says Crumpin-Fox is a thought-provoking golf course, meaning that one needs a game plan to attack it.

Mike Zaranek describes the Crumpin-Fox Club as a “thought-provoking golf course.”

And by that, he meant that one can’t — or shouldn’t — plan on muscling their way around this picturesque track in Bernardston, just outside Greenfield. Rather, they have to think their way around.

“There’s a lot of shot-making that’s involved here,” said Zaranek, the head golf professional, gesturing with his hand to the 18th hole as he looked out on the course from a seat at Zeke’s Smokehouse Grill, the club’s 19th hole. “It’s not a bomber’s golf course where you hit your driver on every hole and try to get it as close as you can to the green. This course makes you think off each tee, and on every second shot as well.”

And just as the player needs a strategic plan for taking on this Robert Trent Jones Sr. creation, Zaranek and the rest of the management team needs one of their own to enable the club to continue growing at a time of stern challenges and mounting competition in the golf industry.

The essence of that plan is to let the course become not merely a destination, but an experience, said Zaranek, adding that it does this naturally, through its views and challenges, both of which create lasting memories.

“Each tee you stand on, and each green you look back to the tee on, is like a postcard,” he explained, adding that this effect is heightened by many changes in elevation and is especially dramatic at fall-foliage time. “There is a uniqueness to it, and that’s what brings people back.”

Repeat business is obviously one of the keys to success for any golf operation, but it’s especially critical for one that charges just under $100 a round for public play — which accounts for roughly 60% of the business at this semi-private course — and is tucked away in one of the most remote areas of the state, just a few miles from the Vermont border.

The Crump’s eighth hole

The Crump’s eighth hole forces the player to make a number of decisions.

Thus, the staff puts the accent on the total experience — from the golf to the meal afterward — and also on both driving first visits (which often prompt return trips) and convincing players that Crumpin-Fox should be a more than a once-a-year course.

“That sentiment is summed up in one of our marketing slogans — ‘minutes away, worlds apart,’” said Zaranek. “We’re a destination, but we don’t want to be just a destination; we’d love to have people visit us two, three, or four times a year. Overall, we want to make this an experience, one that you’ll enjoy and want to mark on your calendar every year.”

For this issue and BusinessWest’s annual Golf Preview, we take an indepth look at what is still a hidden gem, and Zarenek’s efforts to make it less so.

 

On the Hole

The eighth hole at ‘the Crump,’ as it’s called, is certainly one of the more thought-provoking holes on this 7,023-yard layout.

There is water along almost the entire left side of this lengthy par 5 (nearly 600 yards from the tips). And the decision making really begins after the drive, even if it’s a very good one.

The player is faced with the option of hitting a safer mid-iron to a still-relatively wide section of fairway for a third shot of roughly the same length over the lake to a narrow, undulating green, or bringing out more artillery and hitting down to a narrower strip of fairway, leaving just a wedge onto the putting surface.

There are many such decisions to be made on this course, which offers what Zarenek described as a Pine Valley-like feel, if not look, although it has some of that, too.

This is a reference to the George Arthur Crump-designed track in Southern New Jersey that is generally regarded as the world’s most difficult course, and one of its very best. The comparison doesn’t involve degree of difficulty — although Crumpin-Fox is certainly challenging — but rather the notion that every hole is an entity unto its own, with other holes rarely visible from tees, greens, or fairways.

“Each hole is set in its own scenery here — you play that hole, and then you move on to another piece of scenery, and that’s what we mean by a Pine Valley-like course,” Zaranek explained. “You barely see the group in front of you or the group behind you all day.”

The overall tightness of the layout also contributes to that description.

“At one time, especially on the back nine, it was basically the tee, the fairway, about five feet of rough, and then there was brush, the jungle,” he noted, adding that the course has been opened up somewhat over the years, but still demands accuracy. “What you see is what you get in front of you.”

This was the general idea when, in 1969, area businessman David Berelson engaged the services of Roger Rulewich, a noted golf-course architect then with Robert Trent Jones Inc., to locate a parcel for a destination golf course.

The current site in Bernardston was chosen, but the project stalled and didn’t begin to take shape until 1977, when Andy St. Hillaire, owner of Mohawk Plastics, bought the land and project, completed what are now the back nine holes, and built the present clubhouse.

The name Crumpin-Fox, said Zaranek, was derived from some of the old soda bottles found on the property as construction of the course commenced. The Bernardston-based Crump Soda Co. was eventually sold in 1853 to one Eli Fox, he noted, and then renamed the Crump & Fox Soda Co.

In 1987, St. Hillaire sold the club to William Sandri, president of the Sandri Co., which owned a number of gas stations in Western Mass., Vermont, and New York, and would eventually diversify into a number of business sectors, including real estate, clean-energy products, and golf.

The company now has three courses that operate under the name Fox Golf. The others are the Fox Hollow Club in Trinity, Fla., which opened in 1994 — its 18th hole was at one time rated the number-one par 4 in Florida by Florida Golf Central magazine — and Fox Hopyard in East Haddam, Conn., which opened in 2001.

 

Round Numbers

All three clubs operate under the same model — that of a semi-private course that has members but is also open to the public at most times during the week. Zaranek said this model is perhaps the most successful in golf today because it offers both the stability provided by a core of members (that number is roughly 235 at Crumpin-Fox, one Zaranek said he’s comfortable with) and the flexibility and additional revenue opportunities that come with making the course open to the public.

Membership at Crumpin-Fox has been steady, with relatively little fluctuation in the number in recent years despite turbulence in the economy, said Zaranek, adding that the public-play component of the equation has been more impacted by the downturn, as well as a number of other contributing factors.

These include everything from the weather — which has both helped and hurt; the 2012 season began on March 23 (a record for the Crump) after a nearly snowless winter, but the hurricane of 2011 took a heavy toll — to new competition in the destination-course market.

Indeed, while the pace of new-course construction has slowed in recent years, some additions in the eastern part of the state, especially a new cluster of tracks in the Plymouth area, as well as the Ranch in Southwick and some new venues in Connecticut, have had an impact on play in Bernardston, said Zaranek.

“From Route 3 down to the Bourne Bridge, they built 15 or 16 golf courses since 1997, and that took some of the traffic we used to get from the Boston area,” he noted. “We still get some, though, and we’re seeing those numbers climb because people are expanding their visions, and they’ve played all those new courses. People say, ‘have you ever played Crump?’ and once people come out here once, I think they like putting us back on their docket.”

Last year, even with that early start, the club recorded roughly 19,000 rounds between members and guests, he told BusinessWest, adding that, in banner years (such as the late ’90s), volume has exceeded 25,000, and the present goal is to get closer to 22,000.

To get there, the general strategic plan for the course, which hasn’t really changed since it opened, is to convince players from maybe a 75- to 100-mile radius that Bernardston is not that far away, and certainly worth the time and trouble for a course that is unique and challenging.

And this is the message being sent to a host of constituencies, from smaller groups (a foursome or two) to larger entities, such as leagues or clubs, to charitable organizations planning fund-raisers. The club already hosts a number of events, said Zaranek, including a large gathering for Big Brothers Big Sisters and another for the It Takes a Community foundation.

While the Crump name certainly resonates within the Western Mass. market, it is still somewhat of an unknown commodity in other areas, especially with younger golfers, he continued, adding that one of the club’s stated goals is to build brand recognition across the region it serves.

With each of those aforementioned constituencies, the key is providing value — and an experience — that will drive repeat business, Zaranek explained, adding that this goal, or mission, has prompted improvements ranging from extensive renovations to Zeke’s Grill, including the addition of a smoker, to an ongoing facelift in the locker rooms.

“There are a lot of elements that go into making a club successful,” he explained. “And you have to make each guest that comes through feel like a member that day, and make them feel like they had a great experience. And that all has to gel together. We keep trying to improve everything we do every day.”

Long-term, the club is exploring a possible expansion of the clubhouse and perhaps the addition of a large pavilion for outings, he said, adding that many events are currently staged under tents erected on the driving range.

Course of Action

Zaranek said the club has historically strived to be open by Masters weekend, the unofficial start of the golf season for those in the Northeast.

Looking out on a course that still had a number of areas covered by more than a few inches of snow, he said that goal is likely within reach (the Masters is set for April 11-14), but some assistance from Mother Nature will probably be needed.

She has already contributed a dramatic setting that has contributed to those postcards Zaranek described, and given the Crump a strong selling point to draw players for what will likely be the first of several visits.

“It’s one of the most unique, pretty, and, yes, demanding golf courses that you’re ever going to play,” he said in summation. “You don’t go away forgetting many of these golf holes as you play them.”

 

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

Celebrating the 2013 Difference Makers

By
Class of 2013 Difference Makers
Highlights from this year’s event

BizDiffMakrsLOGO2011More than 350 people turned out at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House in Holyoke for a celebration of BusinessWest’s Difference Makers for 2013. The photos on the next several pages capture the essence of a special night, which featured entertainment from the Children’s Chorus of Springfield and the Taylor Street Jazz Band, fine food, and memorable comments from this year’s winners, who all conveyed the passion that has made them true Difference Makers. This year’s class, chosen by the editor and publishers of the magazine from dozens of nominations, reflects the many ways in which individuals and groups can make a difference in the community. State Troopers Michael Cutone and Thomas Sarrouf, along with John Barbieri, deputy chief of the Springfield Police Department, were chosen for their work to orchestrate the C3 Policing program in Springfield’s North End. John Downing, president of Soldier On, was selected for the many ways that organization improves quality of life for veterans. Bruce Landon, president and general manager of Springfield Falcons, was chosen for his efforts to keep professional hockey in Springfield over the past 35 years. The Sisters of Providence were chosen for their 140 years of service to the community, especially in the broad realms of healthcare, education, and social service. And Jim Vinick, senior vice president of Investments for Moors & Cabot Inc., was chosen for his work with many area nonprofits, especially the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Jimmy Fund.

Sponsored By:
Baystate Medical Practices • First American Insurance • Health New England • Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C. • Northwestern Mutual • Royal LLP • Sarat Ford Lincoln • 6 Pt. Creative WorksDiffernceMakers0213sponsors

For reprints contact: Denise Smith Photography / www.denisesmithphotography.com / [email protected]

Photos From the 2013 Difference Makers Gala
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Opinion

By
Opinion
Career Readiness Critical for Young People

School to Career Connecting Activities, a collaborative effort between public and private partnerships, is led by 16 local workforce-investment boards in Massachusetts, including the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County (REB).  The initiative provides high-school students with paid internship opportunities in a wide array of occupations and industries, from which students gain exposure to real-world work opportunities and learn professionalism, responsibility, and job-readiness skills that help them become attached to the workforce in the future.

Recent national surveys of employers and human-resource managers have found increasing concerns with the employability and skill deficiencies of young workers.

In 2007, connecting activities leveraged more than $45 million in employer wages, putting more than 17,500 students in internships at 6,500 employer sites. In 2012 alone, with funding at only $2.75 million, more than 9,800 students were placed in internships at 3,500 employer sites. With funding in the state budget for fiscal year 2013 at only $750,000, the program is facing extreme challenges.

In Hampden County, we were able to put 658 students into internships with 258 area employers in various industries, including WGBY, Big Y, Baystate Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, Giggle Gardens, Holyoke Health Center, Polish National Credit Union, and many more.

The need for increased employment for the state’s teens is greater than in many years. According to a recent study by Northeastern University’s Center for Labor Market Studies, “in 2012, only 26% of the state’s teens found themselves able to obtain employment during an average month.” This was the lowest state teen-employment rate recorded over the past 50 years for which such data exists.  Fewer than one of seven low-income teens in high school in 2011 worked in Massachusetts.

The Center for Labor Market Studies has documented that those students who work during their senior year or in multiple summer jobs over their high-school years are more likely to transition into college or the labor market after graduation. The habits learned in the workplace, such as productivity, teamwork, collaboration, problem solving, management, and initiative, are paramount for the Commonwealth’s youth.

In Hampden County, the REB is working with 18 different schools through four lead school-to-career connecting-activities coordinators, who assist students and the school’s career facilitators to secure employment and optimize learning through internship opportunities. With the decreases in funding since 2007, we unfortunately cannot serve all the students who could benefit from an internship.

Student experiences speak for themselves. At Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham, two youths who participated in the School to Career Connecting Activities Program had plenty to say about their experiences.

A senior named Hannah, who placed at the town’s Engineering Department, said, “I loved my experience. It was a great way to learn about your intended college major [Civil Engineering]. I learned what was like to work in an office and how to use office equipment. I gained a lot of skills working on the computers with different programs. I learned how to interact with customers and employees. I learned how to be more observant and make certain connections. I learned that it is OK to take risks and be wrong and how to voice my opinion and not hide my ideas.

Meanwhile, a senior named Matthew, who placed at FloDesign, an innovative business incubator that specializes in contract engineering and technology commercialization, noted that “my goal of learning about the field and solidifying my decision on becoming an engineer has been met. By working on various projects and doing things actual engineers do, I have learned more than enough to be sure that this is the type of career I am looking for. ”

School to Career Connecting Activities staff are dedicated to providing opportunities for youth to develop their career skills while in school. The investment by the state Legislature in expanding these career-building tools and experience for its youth will help strengthen future employment opportunities for the young people of Massachusetts. This is not only an investment in the students themselves, but also in the Commonwealth’s future workforce and its economic growth potential.

For more information, contact Bill Ward, REB president and CEO, at (413) 787-1547.

 

Joseph Peters is chair of the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County. Andrew Sum is director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University.

Best of the West?

By
An architect’s rendering of Mohegan Sun Massachusetts.
Features
Mohegan Sun Believes It’s Still Holding a Winning Hand

An architect’s rendering of Mohegan Sun Massachusetts.

An architect’s rendering of Mohegan Sun Massachusetts.

Mitchell Etess says that, even when its plan for a casino in Palmer was essentially the only one on the table, Mohegan Sun knew there would be competition for a license in this part of the state, and probably lots of it.

But now that this competition has materialized — three other proposals: two for downtown Springfield and the other at the Big E in West Springfield — the company is approaching its work in much the same way that it did in 2009, 2010, and 2011, when it had the only colorful architects’ renderings in the local newspapers, and the subjects of conversation were if and when casino legislation would ever be passed.

That approach is to focus primarily on the one word — or three words, depending on how one looks at it — that shape most discussions involving commercial real estate: location, location, location.

 

“We’ve been in this marketplace [New England] for some time, and we looked all over the Western Mass. region — we always wanted to be in the west,” said Etess, CEO of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, referring to the company’s prolonged search for a casino location. “We looked at every single site, including some in Springfield. But we ultimately chose our site because it is, without question, the best location in the west, in our opinion.”

Elaborating, he said the parcel directly off exit 8 of the Turnpike represents a true, and desirable, destination, something he believes cannot be said for the other Western Mass. proposals, and especially those in Springfield.

Mitchell Etess

Mitchell Etess says the Palmer location brings a number of benefits for the Commonwealth as a true destination.

“Our location is someplace where people would want to go spend a few days,” he said. “I don’t say that to disparage Springfield, but the fact is, this is what people think about when they consider getting away for a few days — a place on a mountain, in the country — and not in the middle of a city.”

Meanwhile, this particular location may well have a huge advantage over the other three with regard to an emerging issue in this contest — the looming overhaul of an elevated section of I-91 that runs through downtown Springfield. If and when it happens, that project, estimated to cost $300 million to $400 million, would likely impact access to all three rival casino sites, said Etess.

“There’s a tremendous amount of congestion involved with an urban casino,” he said, “and we just don’t have that; we have people getting right off the turnpike and right onto our property.”

But while he did discuss the plight of his competitors to some degree, Etess chose to focus mostly on Mohegan’s project — now known as Mohegan Sun Massachusetts (more on that later) — and its strategic plan moving forward.

In essence, he said, this comes down to getting across the company’s main message: that a true destination resort casino is what the public wants, it’s what will best serve the state in terms of revenue, and it’s what Mohegan does.

“The reason there’s going to be gaming in Massachusetts is because of the success of Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods,” he explained. “What people in New England are used to is this rural gaming experience; we don’t believe people want to go downtown to go to the casino in New England, and we think people are very comfortable with what is known and successful.

“And, quite frankly, we know how to it,” he continued. “At the end of the day, we have the model that people are used to, we have the rural setting, we have access off the Turnpike, and we have 152 acres — we’re not pigeonholed into a few city blocks.”

For this issue, BusinessWest continues its series of stories on the players in the ongoing casino competition with another look at the Palmer project, which is now part of a crowded field, but a venture that those at Mohegan believe still stands alone.

 

Placing Its Chips

Much has happened since BusinessWest last talked at length with Etess and others involved with the Palmer casino proposal in the fall of 2011, just after gaming legislation was passed by the Legislature.

In short, Western Mass., and especially Springfield, became by far the most intense casino battleground in the Commonwealth. Over the span of a few months in the second half of 2012, three proposals were announced for Springfield, with one — Ameristar’s plan for a parcel off Route 291 — eventually shelved. In December, plans were announced for a project that would be built in a corner of the sprawling Big E complex on Memorial Drive in West Springfield. And in Holyoke, Mayor Alex Morse first announced he would consider a casino proposal for his community (after he campaigned against the concept when seeking the office in 2011), and then reversed course again and said such a facility wasn’t the answer for his city.

Through all that, the Palmer casino plan lost large amounts of attention in the press it once dominated, and, in the minds of some, lost some momentum as well.

But Etess doesn’t see it that way.

He acknowledged that his plan did lose some visibility as the press trained its cameras and microphones on the CEOs of rival casino developers as they stood in front of elaborate visual displays of their concepts. However, he said the Mohegan Sun plan never lost what he believes it has always had — a few important legs up on the competition, even before it materialized.

And this brings him back to that notion of location, but also Mohegan’s longstanding presence in the New England market, its track record with the resort-destination model, and the database of area customers it has at its disposal.

“If you ask people in this business to identify the biggest asset a casino has today, and they say anything other than their database, then they’re not being completely honest,” he explained. “Our casino will begin with a database of customers, and the ability to market directly to customers who are familiar with our brand, and that we know everything about, is something that no other competitor in the west can offer, and that’s a huge advantage.”

While watching MGM, Penn National, and Hard Rock International roll out their plans in 2012, Mohegan Sun officials were tweaking and, in their opinion, improving their proposal and making it more battle-ready.

New renderings of the project, including those on pages 6, 8, and 9, were released, and the name change — from Mohegan Sun Palmer to Mohegan Sun Massachusetts — was made official.

Mitchell Etess says the Palmer site offers many advantages

Mitchell Etess says the Palmer site offers many advantages, starting with its location off Turnpike exit 8.

Meanwhile, the company struck a partnership with the New York investment group Brigade Capital Management to bankroll the development, an accord that Etess believes will give the project another edge.

“We believe our project is on the soundest financial platform of anyone in the west,” he said, adding that this footing, coupled with a solid brand that is well-known in the region and the Palmer location, puts the project in a position to effectively compete for the license.

Overall, the Mohegan proposal is currently projected to cost $735 million and include a casino, hotel, and retail, said Etess, adding that the company is looking for a third-party developer to create other amenities to ensure the property has what he called “complete synergy.”

“We’re very comfortable that our casino and the additional third-party retail development is a very sound business model,” he continued, adding that be believes the proposal is right-sized for this location and that the market it is intended to serve is certainly strong enough to support it.

Groups supporting the casino, especially Citizens for Jobs & Growth in Palmer, have been anxious for details on the project and its latest developments, said Jennifer Baruffaldi, spokesperson for the organization, noting that a referendum on the plan could come as early as June, but is more likely to happen in September.

Etess said the existence of competition will impact the amount and nature of the information released on the project, but specifics will certainly be known before the referendum vote.

 

Odds Are

Etess told BusinessWest that he takes comfort in the fact that the competition that will unfold over the next 10 to 12 months and end with the Gaming Commission’s decisions on which operators will be awarded licenses for the three regions will not be a popularity contest decided by the public or the press.

It will come down to a simple, mostly objective contest to see which party can best convince the Gaming Commission that its project is the best bet for the Commonwealth, he said, adding that there are obviously many factors that will go into that decision beyond the urban-versus-rural casino debate — although that will be part of the discussion.

“This is about five people deciding what they believe is best for the state,” he explained, adding that he has been through similar competitions in other states and understands their vagaries and complexities. “They have to decide what will provide the most revenue for the Commonwealth and what brings the most to the table for the Commonwealth, because that’s what this is.

“It’s jobs, it’s community, it’s revenues you can drive, it’s creating out-of-state revenue … and we have a compelling case,” he went on, adding that it is summed up in the new name and logo for the Palmer project.

Etess told BusinessWest that the name was chosen carefully, to convey that this is a project that will have benefits for the entire state, not a city, such as Springfield, or the area surrounding it.

“This project benefits the Commonwealth,” he said. “This isn’t something that’s just going to benefit an urban area in downtown Springfield; it will bring jobs to Springfield, it will bring jobs to Worcester, it will bring jobs to the four-county area, and we believe that makes for a compelling case.

“Our goals and those of the [casino players] in Springfield are very different,” he went on. “They’re going to beat themselves up trying to argue what’s best for Springfield; our goal now is only to make a case about what’s best for the Commonwealth.”

Etess brushed aside comments from some observers of the casino contest that Mohegan Sun chose Palmer, and not a location further west, to minimize the impact on its operation in Connecticut. That theory holds that residents of some regions of Connecticut would be more likely to drive to Mohegan’s operation in that state (or to Springfield) than to Palmer.

Etess said that any operation in Western Mass. would draw patrons away from the Connecticut casinos, including one in Palmer, but the more relevant point is that a Palmer casino would more easily draw residents from across the Bay State and also Vermont, New Hampshire, and beyond than an operation in Springfield would.

“We don’t believe that people in New York, Vermont, or Albany who think about a vacation that includes gaming would go to downtown Springfield for that vacation,” he explained. “We believe that our location is much more realistic for that kind of vacation and presents a much bigger opportunity to benefit the Commonwealth.”

When asked about the company’s plans moving forward into the next stage of the competition, Etess said Mohegan will be doing mostly what it’s been doing since it set up a storefront on Main Street in Palmer in 2009.

“We’ve been planning, we’ve been part of the community, and we’ve continued to build relationships and have conversations within the community while watching the landscape unfold in front of us as we anticipated it would,” he said. “And we’re going to continue doing those things.”

 

Bottom Line

Etess told BusinessWest that he’s not sure if the Palmer proposal will benefit in any way from being the first proposal introduced to the Western Mass. region. And he acknowledges that many believe there are no advantages from such standing.

Such talk is mostly irrelevant now, he said, because the goal never really was to be the first one in, but to be the last project standing when it comes to the Western Mass. region.

He believes Mohegan Sun Massachusetts has some trump cards at its disposal — from location to brand to experience serving this region — that can enable it to win the jackpot.

 

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

People on the Move

By
Departments People on the Move

Anthony Montemagni

Anthony Montemagni

UBS Wealth Management Americas (WMA) announced that Anthony Montemagni, CFP®, Vice President of Investments, has been named to its exclusive ‘Top 35 Under 35’ program. “The Financial Advisors recognized for this program have shown an outstanding level of dedication to their clients, our firm and the industry, “said Bob McCann, CEO, UBS Wealth Management Americas. “Their commitment to partnering with clients to provide the best advice and services sets us apart from our competitors.” Montemagni has more than 16 years of experience in the financial services industry, all with UBS. He has earned extensive professional recognition for his achievements over the years. He attributes much of his success by offering his clients a combination of trust, expertise and a comprehensive understanding of their needs. In addition to being one of a select group of UBS Wealth Advisors, he has completed intensive training and testing to be recognized as a certified financial planner™ professional. He is one of an exclusive group of approved advisors in the UBS Defined Contribution Plan Consulting Program, and he is a portfolio manager within the firm’s Portfolio Management Program. He is also a member of the UBS Director’s Council.

Improvement on the Home Front

By
Landscape Design Sections
Landscape Architects Say People Are Investing in Their Backyards>

Brian Campedelli

Brian Campedelli says landscaping is a way for people to extend their home into their yard.

Last summer, Brian Campedelli sat in a client’s backyard, enjoying a lobster dinner, while soft music played and low-voltage lighting lit up the plantings, firepit, and other improvements made to the property.
“You could hear the waterfall in the background and the sound of the grasses rustling, and my client told me she felt like she was in Hawaii,” said the president of Pioneer Landscapes Inc. in Easthampton.
His comments mirrored those of other local landscape architects who say that, although the economy has not fully recovered, business on the home front is improving, and many people are investing in their own backyards and turning them into private oases.
“People want to be able to utilize their property every day, and by creating an outdoor room, they are extending their home into their yard,” Campedelli told BusinessWest. “Last year was a stellar year, and we couldn’t even get everything done, so we are carrying over quite a bit of work and are already running in many directions. I have three full-time estimators for residential work.”
Drew DeMay, owner of Fountain Bleu Landscape and Outdoor Design in West Springfield, agreed, and noted that people’s interest in transforming their backyards is growing. “People want a private area where they can enjoy themselves, relax, have some food, and sit by water, because they are staying home and not going out as much.”
In fact, his company “switched lanes” a few years ago when construction died down and businesses stopped spending money. He invented the Water-Vac professional-grade vacuum to clean ponds that hit the market about a year ago, and said the company is doing more residential work, with homeowners requesting improvements that include patios and shrubs.
“Last year was a really good year. People got tired of holding onto their money and started to spend it,” he said. “But last year at this time the weather was 70 degrees, and people already had their yards cleaned up, so we are at the beginning of what will happen over the summer. But people want to be able to come home and have a place to relax,” he told BusinessWest.
And the trend is so strong that William St. Clair said his company, St. Clair Landscaping and Nursery Inc. in Hampden, is developing a program called Beautiful Backyards, which will allow people to incorporate plantings, patios, walls, perennial gardens, water gardens, sitting gardens, privacy hedges, firepits, and more into their personal landscape.
He said the company has done some extravagant projects during the past decade, including waterfalls that cascade into pools, firepits, sitting gardens, and more. And although this is not the norm and many people have downsized their dream of what a backyard retreat will entail, they still want to create a place that is tranquil.
“We’ve done a lot of work for college professors who like to sit on a bench in their backyard and read,” St. Clair said. The benches can be put next to a water garden or pondless waterfall, or “an area that has been created where people can sit and relax.”
Firepits are extremely popular, and last year St. Clair installed 18 of them. “One was elaborate and had a patio around it that can sit two to six people,” he said. Other homeowners want walls to surround their firepits, which creates additional seating.
“There are a lot of really neat things that can be done,” he said. “People tell us, when they come home at the end of the day, they want their yard to look pristine and be something really special.”
Steve Prothers, owner of Amherst Landscape and Design Associates, validated the trend. As the economy regains strength, he said, people are willing and ready to spend money on their homes again.
“We’ve seen a resurgence in spending over the past two years,” he noted, “and people are doing things they have wanted to do for a long time; their goal is to be able to enjoy their outdoor space without having to leave town.”
Commercial business is also on the upswing. “We’ve seen some vibrancy in the last few years in terms of the amount of work and competitiveness,” Prothers told BusinessWest. “I have a small company, but there is a feeling across the board in our industry that things are looking brighter, which is a good sign.”

Changing Climate
St. Clair said this past year was a “very, very good one.”
“Our forte is high-end residential projects, and last year we did several of them,” he reported. In fact, his business increased by about 32%.
But it has still not returned to what it was before the recession, and several years ago the company added maintenance to the services it offers, in part to fill the void, but also because people who spend a significant amount of money want their property professionally maintained.
“We used to have 18 people working for us, and last year we had between 10 and 13,” he said. “This year, we’re starting off with the same number. But we’re doing things to become more efficient — buying smarter and asking our employees to become more cognizant of waste.”
In addition, for the third year in a row, St. Clair’s employees are working four 10-hour days, which allows them to get more done and also gives them Friday and Saturday as makeup days in case of inclement weather, which can help them meet deadlines. Still, last year they weren’t able to finish up one of their biggest projects because the ground froze.
“And right now, we have enough work to take us through July 1, which is not bad for any business,” he said.
He attributes part of his success to the personal relationships he builds with clients. But the tornado of 2011 also resulted in work, such as a property in Longmeadow that suffered extensive tree damage. In addition to ripping out an entire row of pines damaged by the storm and replacing them with emerald-green arborvitae, the homeowners had their entire front and backyard landscaped.

Bill St. Clair

Bill St. Clair says homeowners want to build spaces that promote relaxation, whether it’s a firepit, water feature, or a pergola like this one — a structure that’s becoming more popular.

“And right now, we have four jobs on the books to replace privacy hedges that were damaged by the tornado,” St. Clair added.
Walter Cudnohufsky, owner of Walter Cudnohufsky Associates Inc. in Ashfield, is also doing more residential work. In some cases, people are buying property and fixing problems that were never resolved, such as drainage issues, but in others they are upgrading their landscapes. “But the first words we hear from everyone are ‘low maintenance,’” he said.
Cudnohufsky also handles a lot of commercial work and has been busy for the past two years. He said towns, like homeowners, want to make improvements that the community can enjoy. But he believes there is a real misunderstanding about the importance of design.
“People have grown up in houses and yards, so they don’t think they need assistance. But even if they get a short consultation, it’s an insurance policy against making a major error and spending money frivolously and needlessly,” he explained. “You want to be able to do as much as you can with your budget.”
For example, a granite countertop for a barbecue could equal the cost of renovating the entire landscape, when there are other choices, such as outdoor concrete, which are attractive and durable, Cudnohufsky said.

Popular Features
Although people are spending money, DeMay said, many have “downsized their imagination,” especially when it comes to water features. “Bigger used to be better, and we used to build a lot of large ponds and courtyards.”
But today, people are spending less and want to avoid the maintenance that ponds with fish and vegetation require. “Many prefer to have a small pond with a waterfall for the simple fact that it costs a lot less money,” he said. “They can still get the sound and the effect of tranquility, but want be able to come home and just relax outside.”
St. Clair agrees that people don’t want to have to work to keep their landscape attractive. “There is no such thing as no maintenance, but everyone wants to minimize it. They don’t want to be married to a water feature or their yard,” he said.
So many are opting for waterfalls. “The sound of tranquility that comes from water flowing is mesmerizing, and people can sit by it, relax, and contemplate,” DeMay said.
Campedelli said pondless waterfalls free people from liability, and can be enhanced by ornamental grasses that complement the soothing sound of the water. “They grow seven to nine feet high, and when they are planted around seating areas and waterfalls, they are beautiful to look at, and the sound is soothing whenever a slight breeze blows through them.”

Drew DeMay

Drew DeMay says a slowdown in commercial work in recent years has coincided with increasingly strong residential demand.

Firepits are also enormously popular. “Everyone wants one. Their kids can sit and roast marshmallows, or they can have their neighbors over and put their feet up and relax,” Campedelli said. “Our clients want to keep their fires going during the summer, even when it’s really hot, because of the atmosphere it creates.”
St. Clair concurred. “We are also putting in a lot of firepits. They have really become a big trend, and we have clients who are using them throughout the winter.”
Some people choose gas burners, while others opt for the traditional wood-burning style, built with drains inside so the fire can be extinguished without having to leave coals smoldering.
“More and more companies are creating gas inserts, and some units are built to look like fireplaces,” DeMay said, adding that firepits and outdoor cooking have become so popular that some people are having outdoor kitchens built, a trend he expects to continue. “They are incorporating them into small courtyards.”
Another growing market is patios and walkways, which local landscape architects say are becoming more popular than wood decks. “Even the composite materials weather and need pressure washing or replacement,” Campedelli told BusinessWest, adding that the materials available today “are gorgeous and come in many different patterns.”
St. Clair said pergolas are also seeing interest. The structures are similar to a large arbor, and plants such as wisteria climb the sides and form a leafy roof as they grow to cover the rafters.
Lighting is another factor that plays a significant role in the ambience of outdoor spaces after the sun sets.  Low-voltage lighting is being built into walls, hung on trees, or arranged to illuminate walkways or the entire perimeter of a landscaped area. It is also being installed around firepits, in sitting gardens, or on fireplaces.
“I’m also a big fan of torches,” Campedelli said. “They’re a key element in lighting. There is nothing like flickering light with shadows, so we create an atmosphere using a combination of torches and low-voltage lighting.”

Worthwhile Investment
Campedelli said some people are having outdoor areas wired for a TV, with speakers built into the sitting area. “It’s a theme-park type of feel with background music. Think of the worst day at work you ever had, then imagine coming home and opening your back door and feeling like you are on vacation or at the beach. We build that feeling.”
And once the work is done, families can stay home and relax in their surroundings. “People don’t want to have to drive anywhere once they get home from work,” DeMay said.
In short, the future looks bright indeed for landscape architects as homeowners take steps to create their own private refuges and places of relaxation.

Taxing Situation

By
Accounting and Tax Planning Sections
It’s Not Too Early to Start Thinking About Next Year

Cheryl Fitzgerald

Cheryl Fitzgerald

It’s never too early to start thinking about tax-planning ideas for 2013 for businesses and individuals.
With some of the new Obamacare taxes kicking in for 2013, as well as tax increases from the American Tax Relief Act of 2012, the sooner you start planning, the more you’ll be able to minimize your taxes.
Here are some things to think about.

Businesses
• General depreciation: New assets generally acquired and placed in service before Jan. 1, 2014 continue to be eligible for 50% bonus first-year depreciation.
Start planning for your acquisitions now so that assets that need to be ordered will be received and installed before the expiration of this provision. Buying a used asset does not qualify for the additional bonus depreciation; it must be a new asset, and not just new to you. Section 179 is still available for used assets.
• Qualified leasehold improvement depreciation: Qualified leasehold improvement property placed in service before Jan. 1, 2014 is depreciated over a reduced 15-year period. There are related party limitations, but if improvements qualify, this is a significant benefit over the 39-year life which is scheduled to return on January 1, 2014.
• Business tax extenders: The Tax Relief Act also extended many business-tax credits and other provisions. Notably, it extended through 2013 the research and development credit. Other business provisions extended through 2013 are the work opportunity tax credit, the employer wage credit for employees who are active-duty members of the uniformed services, and numerous other business credits.

Individuals
• Tax rates: 2013 brings us a new rate bracket that begins with the 39.6% rate. The threshold amounts are keyed to taxable income and are: $450,000 for married individuals filing joint returns and surviving spouses, $425,000 for heads of household, $400,000 for single individuals, and $225,000 for married individuals filing separate returns.
Therefore, for those within the new 39.6% range, above-the-line deductions and exclusions — and strategies to maximize them — now become ever-more valuable. At these same thresholds, the top capital-gains rate increases from 15% to 20%.
The Medicare portion of the FICA tax on wages increases from 1.45% (2.9% for self-employed) to 2.35% (3.8% for self-employed) for wages over $200,000. Individuals or couples with multiple W-2s may not have this tax withheld by their employer, but will be subject to the additional tax upon filing their 2013 income-tax return. To avoid a surprise liability on April 15, 2014, individuals with multiple sources of wages may want to consider increasing their federal withholding.
• 3.8% net investment income surtax: For years beginning in 2013, under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, a new-investment income (NII) surtax applies. The NII surtax on individuals generally equals 3.8% of the lesser of:
• NII for the tax year, or
• The excess, if any, of modified adjusted gross income ($250,000 for filing status of married filing jointly or surviving spouse, $125,000 for filing status of married filing separately, and $200,000 for any other filing status).
NII includes not only interest, dividends, and capital gains, but also income from passive activities such as partnerships and rental real-estate income. One category of income notably excluded is flow through income from an S corporation in which the shareholder actively participates.
This gives a significant advantage to flow through K-1 income over W-2 wages taken by the shareholder, since that is subject to the 2.9% employee/employer combined Medicare tax and the added 0.9% when wages exceed $200,000. Although it appears simple that a shareholder would want to minimize their wages, rules related to reasonable compensation as well as state-tax consideration make this a complex planning area involving the business and individual.
Given that the thresholds are lower for the 3.8% tax than the 20% maximum tax on net capital gains, capital gains subject to the 20% tax invariably will also be subject to the additional 3.8% surtax, while net capital gain subject to the 3.8% surtax will not necessarily be subject to the maximum 20% rate.
Individuals who planned large capital-gain transactions prior to Dec. 31, 2012 most likely benefited from an 8.8% savings. If the sale qualified for installment-sale reporting, this additional tax might be an incentive to elect out-of-installment sale treatment.
• Roth conversions: This lifts most restrictions and now allows participants in 401(k) plans with in-plan Roth conversion features to make transfers to a Roth account at any time.
Those making such conversions may be recognizing a large amount of income that may push them into a higher income or capital-gain threshold bracket and result in the NII surtax applying. Timing conversions, doing them over a period of years, and/or reducing capital-gain recognition events during those years are strategies now worth considering.
• IRA distribution: The Tax Relief Act extends, through Dec. 31, 2013, the provision allowing tax-free distributions from individual retirement accounts to public charities by individuals age 70 1/2 or older, up to a maximum of $100,000 per taxpayer each year. Taking advantage of this provision for charitable giving may also help reduce exposure to one or more of the threshold amounts discussed earlier.
• Phaseout of itemized deductions and personal exemptions: The phaseout of these items are reinstated, but at modified adjusted gross income thresholds of $250,000 for single taxpayers, $275,000 for heads of household, and $300,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly.

Bottom Line
So, as you can see, 2013 tax planning needs to incorporate the interplay that one idea may have on another.
Additionally, it is important to monitor your tax planning as the year goes on instead of waiting until the end of the year. It is never too early to think about these things in order to help minimize some potential taxable transactions that occur throughout the year.

Cheryl Fitzgerald is a senior tax manager with the certified public accounting firm Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C. in Holyoke; (413) 536-8510.