Home 2014 (Page 4)

Year: 2014

EDC Sounds Alarm on Rising Costs of Natural Gas, Electricity

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Daily News

CHICOPEE — The Economic Development Council of Western Mass. voiced its concerns Tuesday regarding the rising costs of natural gas and electricity in the region.

“More expensive energy affects all of us negatively. All of us need to be concerned. Individuals face a reduction of disposable income and increased hardship,” the agency said in a prepared statement. “Businesses face reduced competiveness that threatens job growth and retention. Municipalities face increased energy costs while facing decreasing revenues. Hospitals and higher-education institutions must divert more resources to energy purchases, thus diverting resources from their core missions. Shrinking business and consumer spending reduces investments in those things that define quality of life in Western Massachusetts.”

Through a series of meetings and discussions with entities familiar with the issues, the EDC infrastructure committee released the following findings:

• Recent and future closings of oil- and coal-fired plants have boosted, and will continue to increase, Massachusetts’ dependency on natural gas for electric power generation. Nearly 50% of all electricity in Massachusetts is generated by natural gas, and that proportion is rising. These conditions, when combined with inadequate supplies of natural gas, are resulting in dramatically increased power costs during the winter.

• Gas companies serving this region are reaching the limits of their capacity to serve new customers. Berkshire Gas will stop adding customers in Greenfield at the end of 2014, and in Amherst in 2016. Columbia Gas is reaching the end of its capacity to serve Northampton and Easthampton. It could serve 10,000 more customers in the region if it had additional capacity. The inability to serve new customers will negatively affect economic growth in the region.

• Kinder Morgan is proposing a pipeline-extension project through Northern Mass. that will increase natural-gas supply to Berkshire, Franklin, and Hampshire counties as well as Eastern Mass.

• NU/Spectra proposes an expansion of the Algonquin Pipeline that would increase natural-gas supplies available to the Springfield area and Eastern Mass.

• Several New England states have been working to bring electricity generated by Hydro Quebec to the region.

EDC Infrastructure Committee Chair Paul Nicolai summarized the committee’s work, suggesting that “supplying cost-effective, responsibly clean energy for our people and businesses is a complicated problem requiring balanced approaches and moderate thinking. EDC has struck that balance and encourages policymakers to do so as well.”

At a recent meeting, the EDC board of directors approved a resolution supporting the following actions, which, if implemented, will help to provide an adequate, stable supply of energy at competitive prices:

• Increase natural-gas supply by permitting both natural-gas pipeline-expansion projects proposed for the region and state;

• Increase the sources of power generation by enabling the purchase of hydro-generated electricity from the north;

• Continue support of conservation and renewable-energy technologies; and

• Encourage a regulatory environment that promotes market stability and competitive outcomes.

ABC Projects Continued Growth for Construction Sector in 2015

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Daily News

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) forecasts a steady and ongoing economic recovery for the U.S. commercial and industrial construction industries in 2015. The reasonably brisk industry recovery in 2014 should continue in 2015, with momentum especially growing in segments closely related to the current American energy and industrial production resurgence.

“ABC forecasts non-residential construction spending will expand by roughly 7.5% next year,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “The segments that will experience the largest growth in construction spending in 2015 include power (e.g. natural-gas-related construction), lodging (leisure and business spending), office space (professional-services employment creation), and manufacturing (rebounding industrial production). The public sector will see far more sluggish growth in construction spending; however, this fits a multi-year pattern with private non-residential spending exceeding public non-residential spending by 28% in 2014, up from 15.6% in 2013.”

Leadership Pioneer Valley Launches Leadership 2.0

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — Leadership Pioneer Valley (LPV) is offering offering a new series of bite-sized training sessions beginning in January to enhance leadership skills and understanding of the region. The sessions are open to LPV alumni and other emerging and established leaders.

LPV recognizes that leadership is a lifelong process, and the Leadership 2.0 series features six two- to three-hour training sessions on a variety of topics with the goal of deepening leadership skills, creating new and diverse connections, and making an impact on the region. The sessions are open to LPV alumni who want to continue their learning or others who are unable to be part of LPV’s 10-month program. The intent is to diversify Leadership Pioneer Valley’s offerings and create new opportunities.

Workshop topics include “Effective Communications,” “Becoming a Superhero Board Member,” and a field experience to explore the Agawam area. The series sponsors include Sisters of Providence Health System/Mercy Hospital, Appleton Corp., the Beveridge Family Foundation, and the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts.

Berkshire Bank Raises $23,091 for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

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Daily News

PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Bank has been recognized by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for its total corporate impact for participating in the Light the Night Walk fund-raiser in Albany, N.Y. Berkshire Bank raised $23,091 for the Light the Night Walk campaign. Berkshire’s volunteer team was led by Tami Gunsch, senior vice president, Retail Banking, who personally raised $5,159.02 and was recognized as the top individual fund-raiser of 2014.

The Light the Night Executive Challenge is a national fund-raising competition among participating corporate executives in the Greater Albany region to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The challenge ran for six weeks, from Sept. 3 to Oct. 8. Berkshire Bank was an integral part of the 1,100-plus individuals and businesses who participated in the Walk to End Cancer at the Albany chapter’s 16th annual Light the Night Walk at Siena College on Oct. 11.

Berkshire Bank will be recognized at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s awards ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 12 at Revolution Hall in Troy, N.Y. During the event, Berkshire will be recognized as the top corporate supporter for having raised $13,000 in corporate-sponsorship funds, and as a ‘mega plus team’ for having raised more than $10,000 in team funds.

James Garvey Wins National Social-media Award

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The social-media marketing work of James Garvey, social media analyst at Garvey Communication Associates Inc., was recognized with a Top 10 Social Media Standouts award at the recent 2014 Lift Brands Corporate Conference in Las Vegas.

Garvey has been working with a regional Snap Fitness gym and fitness center for the last six months and devised a plan to harvest relevant content and disseminate it according to a defined editorial calendar. The center reported that the new social-media marketing plan has both grown online fans and helped achieve a 25% sales increase.

Garvey is a member of the New England Financial Marketing Assoc., the Advertising Club of Western Mass., an associate member of the Public Relations Society of America, and a registered mentor with Valley Venture Mentors.

Winstanley Partners Hires Lesia Gribbin as Graphic Designer

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Daily News

LENOX — The marketing and creative agency Winstanley Partners, based in Lenox, announced that Lesia Gribbin has been appointed to the position of graphic designer.

Gribbin holds a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the College of St. Rose in Albany, N.Y.; studied graphic design at Studio Art Centers International in Florence, Italy; and maintains membership with the New York City chapter of AIGA, the professional association for design.

Following stints at the New York Post, global design consultancy Dragon Rouge, and Delmar, N.Y.-based advertising agency 2Communiqué, Gribbin brings experience in visual communication, concept development, and branding to her new position, in addition to proficiency in digital design as well as lithography, photography, illustration, and more.

Skoler, Abbott & Presser to Present Briefing on Sick-leave Law

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — Skoler, Abbott & Presser, P.C., a labor and employment law firm serving the Greater Springfield area, announced an upcoming briefing, to be co-hosted by the Employers Assoc. of the NorthEast (EANE), focused on the new Massachusetts sick-leave initiative. The event will take place Thursday, Dec. 18, at the Berkshire Bank Community Room in Pittsfield from 8 to 10 a.m.

The sold-out program demonstrates an extraordinary need to educate business owners and human-resource professionals about the change in law that will go into effect on July 1. Specifically, Massachusetts voters backed paid sick leave, which was a question on the ballot this past November. The law entitles employees to earn up to 40 hours of paid sick time each year if they work for businesses with 11 or more employees; workers at smaller companies may earn 40 hours of annual unpaid sick time.

“Very rarely does an event sell out so quickly,” said Mark Adams, director of human resource solutions for EANE. “It’s a big indicator that this law will have a major impact on business here in Massachusetts. We like to stay on top of the most recent laws governing the workplace and are thrilled to see so many professionals learning more through EANE programs.”

Attorney Amelia Holstrom of Skoler Abbott will present the briefing as part of the firm’s partnership with EANE. She will provide answers to the most common questions about the new law, including:
• What does the law require?
• How is sick time earned?
• When do employees begin to earn this time?
• When can employees begin to use this time?
• What happens to unused sick time left over at the end of a calendar year?
• What can sick time be used for?
• Must employees give advanced notice before taking sick time?
• Can an employer require documentation when an employee uses sick time earned under this law?
• Does unused sick time need to be paid out when an employee leaves a company?
• Are there notice requirements?
• What are the penalties for non-compliance?

“At Skoler, Abbott & Presser, we specialize in these niche matters of employment and represent only the needs of employers,” said Holstrom. “This briefing is one of many resources we offer for business owners and human-resource professionals, and we are available to help employers navigate through the changes needed in order to stay in compliance with the law. Although the changes will not go into effect until July 1, the new year is a great time to re-evaluate sick-time policies and update professional protocol. We encourage all employers to become educated on the new law and make any necessary changes.”

Additional EANE forums for education about the new sick-time-leave initiative will be considered after further guidance is issued by the state Attorney General’s Office. The attorney general is expected to announce interpretations of the law between now and when it takes effect.

Springfield Preservation Trust Announces Sale of 77 Maple St.

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield Preservation Trust (SPT) announced the sale of 77 Maple St. to DevelopSpringfield for $35,000. The property, built in 1832 as the Springfield Female Seminary, had fallen into a state of disrepair and near-collapse in 2009 when the trust intervened to save the property from demolition.

“Today’s sale represents the completion of the trust’s important preservation work and the transfer of the property to a responsible owner who is doing great things next door at 83 Maple St.,” said Don Courtemanche, president of the Springfield Preservation Trust. “We believe having these properties together under single ownership will ultimately be in both properties’ best interests in terms of preservation and marketability.”

Added Jay Minkarah, president and CEO of DevelopSpringfield, “we are thrilled to add this wonderful property to our portfolio. It makes so much sense for us to include the rehabilitation of this building in our plans for rehabilitation of the Ansel Phelps House at 83 Maple St.”

Since purchasing the property, SPT has made significant structural repairs, including the critical rebuilding of a collapsed wall as well as foundation repairs, roof and trim repairs, and the repair and restoration of 24 of the building’s large, historic windows. The project has been the beneficiary of a great deal of public support, including contributions from the Springfield CDBG Program, the Massachusetts Historical Commission, the 1776 Foundation, MassMutual Financial, the Hampden Bank Foundation, Bob McCarroll, and a vast number of SPT members and friends through year-round SPT special events.

“We are an all-volunteer organization and could not have saved this building without the support of the community and funders,” said Courtemanche. “This truly was a community effort.”

In addition to the Ansel Phelps House, DevelopSpringfield also owns a former carriage house and row of garages on an abutting parcel and an adjacent vacant lot that will provide parking, access, and green space to support both buildings. For information on leasing opportunities, contact Minkarah at (413) 209-8808 or [email protected].

Luso Federal Credit Union Makes Donation to Noble Hospital

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Daily News

WESTFIELD — Noble Hospital recently received a donation of $8,600 from Luso Federal Credit Union, to go toward helping women at the hospital’s Center for Comprehensive Breast Health.

During the month of October, Luso’s employees held a team competition to see which employee team could raise the most money for breast-cancer research through various fund-raising activities. As a result, this year’s donation from employees and customers represents a 230% increase over the prior year’s donation.

Hampshire Mall to Host Holiday Performance on Dec. 11

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Daily News

HADLEY — Hampshire Mall announced that the West Mass Brass band will be performing its holiday-themed compositions on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. near the food court.

West Mass Brass is a British-style, brass and percussion band that was formed in September 2014. Organized and conducted by Kenneth McCance of Millers Falls, the group consists of music majors and teachers, brass-band enthusiasts, and talented high-school students. The mission of the band is expose the British-style brass-band experience to others to enjoy and perpetuate, and to provide a challenging opportunity for capable individuals to play and perform.

Valley Gives Attracts Record Number of Nonprofits

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Daily News

PIONEER VALLEY — This year, 463 nonprofit organizations serving Western Mass. — more than 100 above the total in 2013 — will be raising money on Dec. 10 during Valley Gives, an annual, 24-hour e-philanthropy event.

This year, the event has a goal of attracting 20,000 donors. To help promote participation, Valley Gives organizers will have mobile teams appearing around Western Mass., spreading information about Valley Gives as well as using iPads to help passersby make gifts to their favorite nonprofits. The giving stations will be found at the following times and places:
• 8:30-10:30 a.m., Tower Square, 1500 Main St., Springfield
• 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tower Square, 1500 Main St., Springfield
• 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Balise, 1399 Riverdale St., West Springfield
• 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Balise, 1979 Boston Road, Wilbraham
• 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Greenfield Community College: Street Level, 270 Main St., Greenfield
• 3:30-6:30 p.m., Big Y, 503 Memorial Ave., West Springfield
• 3:30-6:30 p.m., Big Y, 237 Mohawk Trail, Greenfield
• 3:30-6:30 p.m., Big Y, 136 North King St., Northampton

At the end of the day, a countdown-to-midnight celebration is being hosted at Luxe Burger Bar, 1200 West Columbus Ave., Springfield. The event, beginning at 7 p.m., is open to participating nonprofits and donors and is being organized by the Terrace Group.

A complete list of participants is available at valleygives.wordpress.com/2014-participants. Gifts can be made on Dec. 10 at www.valleygivesday.org. Valley Gives is spearheaded and hosted by the Community Foundation of Western Mass. Joining this effort as partners are eight of the leading funding organizations serving Western Mass., including the Jewish Federation of Western Mass., the Jewish Endowment Foundation, the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts, United Way of Hampshire County, United Way of Franklin County, United Way of Pioneer Valley, the Irene E. & George A. Davis Foundation, and the Beveridge Family Foundation.

Valley Gives is supported by presenting sponsor Balise Auto and featured sponsors Doherty, Wallace, Pillsbury & Murphy, Big Y, UBS Keady Foard Montemagni Wealth Management Group, and Easthampton Savings Bank. Underwriters include Paragus Strategic IT and Greenfield Cooperative Bank. Partners include Peter Pan, United Personnel, Andrew & Associates, as well as numerous individual donors.

Bay Path Announces Commitment to Expand College Access

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Daily News

LONGMEADOW — On Thursday, Bay Path University President Carol Leary joined President Obama, the first lady, and Vice President Biden, along with hundreds of college presidents and other higher-education leaders, to announce new actions to help more students prepare for and graduate from college. The White House College Opportunity Day of Action helped support Obama’s commitment to partner with colleges and universities, business leaders, and nonprofits to support students across the country.

“I am honored to participate in this important initiative and to represent the 76.6 million adult women in this country who do not have a baccalaureate degree,” said Leary. “Through the launch of the American Women’s College at Bay Path University, we are making a bold commitment to provide a truly revolutionary model of higher education for underserved adult women. It is time that we as a country focus on this population. Higher education has the potential to transform a woman’s life and, in so doing, positively impact her community, her workplace, and her family.

“The generational impact of educating adult women is profound,” Leary continued. “Research demonstrates that only 13% of children of women without a degree go on to college. When a woman earns a degree, that figure escalates to 49%. A focus on the education of adult women is critical to President Obama’s goal of restoring our nation as a global leader in college-educated citizenry.”

Leary is among the participants being asked to commit to new action in one of four areas: building networks of colleges around promoting completion, creating K-12 partnerships around college readiness, investing in high-school counselors as part of the first lady’s Reach Higher initiative, and increasing the number of college graduates in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Expanding opportunity for more students to enroll and succeed in college, especially low-income and underrepresented students, is vital to building a strong economy and a strong middle class. Today, only 9% of those born in the lowest family income quartile attain a bachelor’s degree by age 25, compared to 54% in the top quartile.

In an effort to expand college access, the Obama administration has increased Pell scholarships by $1,000 a year, created the new American Opportunity Tax Credit worth up to $10,000 over four years of college, limited student-loan payments to 10% of income, and laid out an ambitious agenda to reduce college costs and promote innovation and competition.

ACCGS Business@Breakfast to Tout Region’s Entrepreneurial Spirit

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The entrepreneurial spirit of the region will take center stage at the Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield’s Business@Breakfast on Jan. 7, from 7:15 a.m. to 9 a.m. at Ludlow Country Club, One Tony Lema Dr., Ludlow.

Paul Silva, executive director of Valley Venture Mentors (VVM), will discuss “Putting the PIONEER Back in Pioneer Valley.” He will be joined by Natasha Clark, founder of LionessMagazine.com, a Western Mass.-based, all-digital magazine for the female entrepreneur.

VVM is a nonprofit based in Springfield that provides key support to the entrepreneurial ecosystem through its mentorship and accelerator programs. Silva is the manager of the River Valley Investors angel-investor network and co-founder of the Valley Venture Mentors entrepreneurship-mentoring program and All in Play, a company creating software that helps the blind socialize with their fully sighted friends and families as equals. He is the former president of the co-working space and incubator Click Workspace.

The breakfast will also honor Dr. Mark Keroack on his new role as CEO of Baystate Health, and recognize Andrew Associates on its 30th anniversary in business. Reservations are $20 for ACCGS members in advance ($25 for members at the door) and $30 for general admission. Reservations are suggested and can be made online at www.myonlinechamber.com.

Baystate Franklin’s Clinical Notes to Present Free Holiday Concert

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Daily News

GREENFIELD — Baystate Franklin Medical Center’s Clinical Notes, a hospital-based women’s a cappella chorus, will perform a free holiday concert, “Songs of Stars and Roses,” on Thursday, Dec. 18, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. in the hospital’s main conference rooms. Under the direction of Kathryn Aubrey-McAvoy, the group will perform both traditional and contemporary holiday and secular music. Hospital staff, patients, visitors, and the public are invited to attend.

“This will be our first time holding an evening concert,” said Phyllis Stone, chorus manager. “We are hoping to attract staff, as well as family and friends, who often can’t make it to our noontime concerts.”

Clinical Notes was formed in 2003 by Stone and Annginette Anderson, who shared a love of a cappella singing and a belief that music should be part of a healing environment. Though members have come and gone over the 11 years, most of the singers have been in the group since its inception. The group performs two formal concerts yearly (during the holidays and at the beginning of summer), and sings at various hospital-related events, such as the annual Chocolate Fantasy, Nurses’ Week, and other celebrations. They have also performed during the Relay for Life Sacred Gathering, the Hospice of Franklin County tree lighting, the United Way A Cappella Festival, and the BFMC Follies.

For more information, contact Stone at (413) 773-2573 or [email protected].

Junior Achievement Announces New Officers, Board Members

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — Junior Achievement of Western Mass. recently elected new officers and welcomed new members to its board of directors.

JA’s 2014-15 officers include chair Darlene Libiszewski of Chicopee Savings Bank; co-vice chairs John Boudreau of Contractor’s Edge LLC and Michael Ginsberg of Insurance Industry Consulting Services; treasurer Nicole Denette of Savage Arms; and clerk Margaret LaMotte of Paragus Strategic IT. Rounding out the executive committee are former chairmen Al Kasper of Savage Arms and Phil Goncalves of Country Bank.

“I’m pleased to be a part of the synergistic relationship between Junior Achievement, local schools, and many supporters to position our students to achieve economic and career success,” said Libiszewski. “I look forward to continuing our efforts of helping Western Massachusetts young people reach their full potential, and applaud everyone who has contributed toward achieving this important objective.”

Junior Achievement also announced the addition of William Sepaniak of Baystate Medical, Brendan Greeley of RJ Greeley, Tracey Alves-Lear of TD Bank, Christine Quiterio of Comcast, and Jon Feeney of Smith & Wesson.

WNEU Accepting Small Business Legal Clinic Applications

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The Western New England University (WNEU) Small Business Legal Clinic is now accepting applications from entrepreneurs and small-business owners seeking legal assistance for the spring 2015 semester.

Under faculty supervision, law students assist clients with legal issues including choice of entity, employment policies, contract drafting, regulatory compliance, and intellectual-property issues relating to trademark and copyright. This is a free service available to local businesses that would not otherwise have the resources to obtain these types of services.

The Small Business Clinic at the WNEU School of Law has assisted more than 250 small businesses. The clinic is a resource for entrepreneurs who lack the finances to retain an attorney. By using the clinic’s services, businesses can avoid problems by getting legal issues addressed early and correctly. It also provides students with a great opportunity to get real-world experience.

The Small Business Legal Clinic asks small business owners to submit their applications by Dec. 12. Applications received after that date will be considered if additional resources are available. Students will begin providing services in January. For more information, call the Legal Clinic at (413) 782-1469 or e-mail [email protected].

The Western New England University Small Business Legal Clinic was established to provide law students with an opportunity to provide practical consultation to entrepreneurs launching small businesses or growing existing businesses in the community. For more information, visit www1.wne.edu/cie.

WNEU School of Law Offers 
Five-week Mini-Law School

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Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — Western New England University School of Law will open its doors to the community with a five-week program focused on demystifying the law. The Mini-Law School will be held from Feb. 10 to March 10 on Tuesday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Blake Law Center, Room D, 1215 Wilbraham Road, Springfield.

“Individuals interested in becoming better-informed and engaging in stimulating dialogue will find this program rewarding,” said Pat Newcombe, associate dean for Library and Information Resources. “No legal knowledge is necessary, just a curious mind.”

Mini-Law School offers non-lawyers an understanding of legal topics that impact their everyday lives. Each class is taught by School of Law faculty and moderated by the Hon. Kenneth Neiman, magistrate judge, U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts. Blending theory and practice, the classes will focus on family law, health law, constitutional law, and environmental law. The sessions include:

• Feb. 10: “Welcome to Mini-Law School: An Inside View of Law School and the Courts,” presented by Neiman and School of Law Dean Eric Gouvin;

• Feb. 17: “Family Law: What Defines a Family?” presented by 
Professor of Law Jennifer Levi and Neiman;

• Feb. 24: “Health Law: End-of-Life Choices,” presented by 
Professor of Law Barbara Noah and Neiman;

• March 3: “Constitutional Law: Real Law or Just Another Kind of Politics?” presented by Professor of Law Bruce Miller and Neiman; and

• March 10: “Environmental Law: Legal Solutions to Pollution Challenges,” presented by 
Professor of Law Julie Steiner and Neiman.

“After five weeks, you won’t be a lawyer,” said Western New England University Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Beth Cohen, “but you will be able to better understand laws that have an effect on your life, and, unlike traditional law school, there are no tests or homework.”

Tuition is $35 for all five sessions, or $10 for each individual session. The program is free of charge for any high-school, college, or graduate student with a valid student ID. To register by phone or for more information, call Newcombe at (413) 782-1616. Registration will continue through Jan. 19. Learn more at www.law.wne.edu/minilaw.

Farmington Bank Appoints Catherine Turowsky Vice President

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Daily News

FARMINGTON, Conn. — Farmington Bank announced the appointment of Catherine Turowsky as vice president, cash management sales and services representative. Turowsky operates out of Farmington Bank’s Western Mass. Commercial Services Office, located at 138 Memorial Ave. in West Springfield.

“We’re pleased to welcome Catherine to our Farmington Bank Commercial Services team,” said John Patrick Jr., chairman, president, and CEO of Farmington Bank. “She joins a group of experienced bankers who bring a wealth of local business knowledge and insights to our Western Massachusetts operation.”

Turowsky, with more than 28 years of banking experience in Massachusetts, comes to Farmington Bank from People’s United Bank, where she served as senior vice president/market manager of cash management services. She is a member of the Treasury Management Assoc. of New England and the Assoc. for Financial Professionals.

In September, Connecticut-based Farmington Bank announced its plans to enter Massachusetts with the establishment of the commercial services office now open in West Springfield and two de novo hub branches planned to open, subject to regulatory approval, in West Springfield and East Longmeadow in 2015.

HMC Names Barry Waite Corporate Director of Human Resources

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Daily News

HOLYOKE — Holyoke Medical Center welcomes Barry Waite as corporate director of Human Resources.

Waite, a native of Holyoke, served five years as corporate director of Human Resources for the Loomis Communities in South Hadley and seven years as regional director of Human Resources with HealthBridge Management in Concord. Previously, he served as director of Public Affairs and Strategic Communications for Baystate Health in Springfield, and as director of Communications and Marketing for Qualidigm in Middletown, Conn.

“This is an exciting time for Holyoke Medical Center, as we bring a new vision and strategic plan into action. The people who work here every day, providing the excellent care that our community hospital is recognized for, are the reason I’m here,” said Waite. “In HR, we have a real impact on how that care is provided, whether the focus is on the morale of the workplace, employee benefits, or creating a healthier workplace environment for our employees — creating an environment where they can thrive and serve our patients to the best of their ability.”

Waite attended Boston College and earned his master’s degree in health communications at Emerson College/Tufts University School of Medicine. He lived in Boston for 14 years and was delighted to return to his native Western Mass. in 2000 so his wife could pursue a doctorate in nutrition at UMass Amherst. Among Waite’s plans for HMC are to introduce a new employee-wellness program including an initiative for achieving a healthy work-life balance.

“From an HR perspective, it’s rewarding being part of the team that will bring Holyoke Medical Center into the future, with a focus on patient-centered healthcare delivery,” Waite said. “I am working with people who have dedicated their lives to what this hospital has to offer. Taking the wealth of knowledge and experience that they have and being part of bringing it to the next level is exciting.”

Paragus Strategic IT Recognized as Model Employer

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Daily News

HADLEY — Paragus Strategic IT was recently honored with an Employer of Choice award by the Employers Assoc. of the NorthEast at the organization’s Employment Law and HR Practices Conference in Sturbridge. Paragus CEO Delcie Bean was also a featured speaker at the 21st Century Talent event focused on how top employers are changing today’s workforce.

Winners of the Employer of Choice award are recognized for developing a culture of transforming and rewarding employee performance. Entrants are judged in categories including company culture, training and development, communication, recognition and reward, and work-life balance. Past winners include Maybury Material Handling, PeoplesBank, and Health New England.

The 21st Century Talent conference was organized by Bank of America, Commonwealth Corp., and Grads of Life. Along with representatives from Harvard and Udacity, Bean was invited to speak about Paragus Strategic IT’s commitment to the next generation of workforce.

Since Bean founded the company at age 13, Paragus has grown from a one-man operation to a regional leader in business computer service, consulting, and information-technology support. And despite a sluggish economy, Paragus IT has continued to thrive and expand. In 2012 and 2013, Paragus was named in Inc.’s annual ranking of the 5,000 fastest-growing businesses. With a 546% growth rate over six years, Paragus is the second-fastest-growing outsourced IT firm in New England.

Most recently, Bean started Tech Foundry, a nonprofit education program designed to provide area high-school students with strong education and career training in technology.

Construction Spending Increases in October

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Daily News

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Construction spending increased in October amid growing public-sector demand for construction and continued modest growth in residential work, according to an analysis by Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said the new spending figures underscore the need for measures to increase the supply of qualified construction workers as firms worry about growing labor shortages.

“Today’s data shows that construction growth remains volatile,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “While overall construction spending jumped by more than 1% in October, the gain followed two months of stagnation. Public construction was the fastest-growing segment for the month but the slowest-growing over the past year and for the first 10 months of 2014 combined. Conversely, private, non-residential construction inched down from September to October but has risen at double-digit rates — 11% — for the combined January-through-October period. And private residential construction continues to grow very modestly, with multi-family construction taking the lead on an annual basis.”

Construction spending in October totaled $971 billion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, up 1.1% from the September total and 3.3% higher than in October 2013, Simonson noted. Private residential spending edged up 1.3% from September and 1.9% from a year earlier, while private non-residential spending dropped 1.0% for the month but rose 6.4% year-over-year. The third component of the total — public construction spending — increased 1.5% from September and 2.3% from a year ago.

Single-family home construction gained 1.8% for the month and 13.2% over 12 months, and multi-family work increased 1.0% from the September level and jumped 27.2% from a year earlier. The largest private non-residential type, power construction — which includes oil and gas fields and pipelines as well as electric power — slumped 1.9% in October but rose 0.3% from the prior year.

Commercial construction — comprising retail, warehouse, and farm projects — decreased 2.6% for the month but increased 9.3% for the year. Manufacturing construction increased 3.4% for the month and 23% year-over-year. Among the largest public segments, highway and street construction inched up 1.1% for the month and declined 0.1% from October 2013. Public-education construction inched up 2.2% and 6.1%, respectively.

“For 2014 as a whole and 2015, private non-residential spending and multi-family spending should be the strongest segments, followed by single-family construction, with very limited prospects for public construction,” Simonson said.

Association officials said the spending increases come as many firms report growing labor shortages. They urged elected and appointed officials to act on a series of measures the association has identified that will help expand the supply of qualified construction workers. “We need to make sure there are enough workers available to meet growing demand for construction,” said Stephen Sandherr, the association’s CEO.

Chief Executives at U.S. Companies Expect Sales to Keep Growing

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Daily News

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Business Roundtable said Tuesday that 40% of its member CEOs plan to hire more workers, up from 34% in the third quarter. Nearly three-quarters project their sales will rise, roughly the same as the previous quarter.

The findings suggest that slowing growth overseas hasn’t caused large corporations to pull back on their hiring plans. Still, the CEOs say they are less likely to invest in new facilities or equipment; 13% say they plan to cut such spending, up from just 10% in the previous quarter.

The survey was conducted between Oct. 22 and Nov. 12, and is based on 129 responses from the Roundtable’s 200 member CEOs.

TommyCar Auto Group Supports Rock 102 Mayflower Marathon

By
Daily News

HADLEY — TommyCar Auto Group was a supporter and sponsor of the Rock 102 Mayflower Marathon, with its Service Department offering discounts on vehicle maintenance to anyone willing to donate non-perishable canned goods. In addition to the generous community support, Country Hyundai, Country Nissan, and Northampton Volkswagen matched the first $1,000 that was donated by listeners each day, donating a grand total of $3,000 to Springfield Open Pantry.

“It was inspiring to see how many people come out during those three days to donate non-perishable items. We were honored to be part of this amazing cause” said TommyCar co-owner Carla Cosenzi.

This year, the annual Rock 102 Mayflower Marathon raised $108,000 for Springfield Open Pantry. Bax & O’Brien broadcasted 52 hours from the Basketball Hall of Fame in downtown Springfield. Their goal was to fill three 48-foot trailers with non-perishable food donations.

BusinessWest Publisher Donates $500,000 to Cathedral High School

By
Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — Cathedral High School has received a $500,000 donation from Cathedral alumnus John Gormally, owner and publisher of BusinessWest magazine. Cathedral High School President Dr. Ann Southworth said the gift “will be used to provide immediate tuition assistance to students desiring a Cathedral High School education, as well as support faculty.”

But the money is more than just a donation. Gormally is also challenging the business community in Western Mass. to “step up to the plate and show their support” like he has done.

“I have confidence in Catholic education,” said Gormally, a 1978 graduate of the school. “I think it is important to have a Catholic high school in Springfield. It is my hope and desire that the Springfield Diocese finds a way to rebuild Cathedral on Surrey Road in Springfield. I would also hope that the business community steps up to recognize Cathedral as the important resource it is in the community and financially support it.”

Currently the fate of Cathedral High School, which was heavily damaged in the 2011 tornado, has yet to be decided by Bishop Mitchell Rozanski. A nonprofit group called the Committee for Cathedral Action has been rallying support and raising funds for the school, and is about halfway to its $10 million goal.

Degrees of Urgency

By
Education Sections
Report Urges Action to Increase Number of College Graduates

StateGradsUrgencyDPartRichard Freeland says the numbers don’t lie. If anything, they’re conservative, which should be cause for alarm or — preferably, in his view — decisive action.

He was referring to projections contained the latest Vision Project report released recently by the Mass. Department of Higher Education. Titled “Degrees of Urgency: Why Massachusetts Needs More College Graduates Now,” the report uses rhetoric, but mostly numbers to explain that thesis.

Starting with 72%. That’s the percentage of Massachusetts jobs that will require some college education by 2020, said Freeland, the state’s commissioner of Higher Education. That number is the highest in the country, he added, and a reflection of the high-tech jobs that are now dominating the state’s economy.

But there’s also 55,000 to 65,000 — that’s the projected shortfall in the number of college graduates the state will experience by 2030, according to the report. Then there are 6:1 and 17:1, the current ratios of job openings to recent bachelor’s degree recipients in the fields of healthcare and information technology, respectively. And finally, there’s -9%. That’s the projected drop in Massachusetts high-school students graduating annually between 2009 and 2020.

Add all these numbers up, figuratively, and the state is facing what Freeland calls a “perfect storm,” one that could seriously threaten or slow its high-tech economy.

“The Massachusetts workforce has become heavily dependent on the graduates of public higher education,” he said. “And unless we raise the level of our game, we’re not going to have the workforce we need.”

This is a message that should resonate with incoming Gov. Charlie Baker and the Legislature, he said, adding that the state’s ability to compete with leading technology states such as California, New York, and New Jersey will be imperiled unless steps are taken.

Richard Freeland

Richard Freeland

“Degrees of Urgency” recommends three: boosting college-completion rates; closing achievement gaps, especially those involving the African-American and Latino populations; and attracting and graduating more students from underserved populations.

None of the above constitutes rocket science, and these steps have been the basic goals spelled out in the Higher Education Department’s Vision Project, said Bill Messner, president of Holyoke Community College, who said the problem outlined in the report and the solutions to it appear relatively simple. In reality, though, they are not.

“We have to get more people into college, and we have to get more people through college — it’s as simple as that,” he said, adding quickly that changing demographics across the state and especially in the Pioneer Valley (more on them later), current funding levels for the state’s public institutions, and those projections of falling numbers of high-school graduates will make these stern challenges.

What will help, said Freeland, is a broader commitment from the Legislature to fund public higher education at a level well above the current one, which is, in every sense of the word, average, in terms of national statistics.

“Massachusetts still ranks very much in the middle of the pack among the states in terms of per-student investment in public higher education,” he said while explaining his department’s call for an additional $475 million over five years that would be spread out over the state’s community colleges, state universities, and the many campuses of the University of Massachusetts. “We still haven’t made a commitment to investing in genuine excellence in public higher ed, and that’s the point of this report; Massachusetts can’t get by with an average system of public higher education and an average level of investment.”

Such a boost will make the state’s public schools more affordable and, thus, more attractive to those challenged by the cost of higher education, he said, and also to the comparatively high number of high-school graduates who feel compelled to leave the Bay State to attend college.

Overall, recent funding increases for public higher education have essentially restored what was lost in the fiscally trying years following the Great Recession, Freeland said, adding that a greater investment is needed to build on recent momentum and enable the public colleges to meet the additional burden they’ve been asked to absorb.

For this issue and its focus on education, BuinessWest takes an in-depth look at the “Degrees of Urgency” report and the suggested steps for possibly clearing the skies.

Course of Action

Messner told BusinessWest that the gathering storm outlined in the report is already much in evidence at HCC, in the form of recent enrollment figures.

In 2009, the year after the Great Recession began, there were 7,400 students enrolled, he noted. By 2011, the number was down to 7,100. In 2013, it was 6,700 (down more than 5%), and in 2014, it was 6,600. And another 1% to 2% drop is projected for 2015.

Bill Messner

Bill Messner says falling high-school populations, coupled with demographic changes, have impacted enrollment at Holyoke Community College.

Behind these statistics is declining high-school enrollment, Messner acknowledged quickly, but there’s much more to it than that, especially changing demographics.

“Whatever bubble was moving through has come and gone,” he said of the high-school population. “Meanwhile, the demographic mix in our region is changing, and that’s no surprise — we’re seeing it at HCC, and other people are seeing it as well.

“We have more first-generation, low-income students coming to us, and that reflects the population as a whole,” he went on. “We have fewer college-educated students moving into the area, and more non-college-educated people moving in, which results in more first-generation college students.

“The other way of saying that,” he continued, “is that the only growth population in Western Massachusetts tends to be immigrants, and the large majority of these immigrants do not have a college education, and they’re not coming from cultures where a college education is necessarily the priority it is here in the United States.”

But while enrollment is down, the number of graduates has not changed appreciably, Messner went on, noting that, in 2011, the high-water mark, there were 1,128. In 2013, there were 958, and in 2014, there were 1,105, a nearly 15% increase. These numbers clearly show that the college is becoming more successful in moving those students who do enroll through to graduation.

And these real-time developments add some exclamation points to the “Degrees of Urgency” report and those three steps outlined to put more students into the pipeline, see them through to the other end, and make them part of a qualified workforce, said Messner, adding that, while the report talks mostly about conditions projected for down the road, many of the anticipated changes in numbers are already taking place.

“Community colleges are pretty good canaries in the coal mine, so to speak,” he said. “If you look at our enrollment — and our enrollment is no different than any other community college — it peaked in 2008 and has been on a steady decline since then, and there’s little to indicate that this will change.”

Messner noted that, while there has been progress in closing achievement gaps and improving graduation rates, as his statistics show and the report states, there is considerable work to be done.

Completing His Thoughts

Freeland agreed, and returned to what the “Degrees of Urgency” report calls the “Big Three” strategies to increase the number of students graduating with degrees or certificates.

He said declining high-school enrollment is a reality the state will have to live with, and, given those numbers, there must be a commitment to improving completion rates in general, attracting more students from underserved populations to the public colleges and universities, and closing achievement gaps.

Included in that ‘underserved populations’ category are adult students (those ages 25-65 who have some college credits but not a degree), military veterans, and high-school graduates heading to out-of-state colleges.

Massachusetts has more individuals in that third category than most states (it ranks 29th in that category), said Freeland, listing as possible causes everything from the small size of the Commonwealth — “if you want to get away, as many students do, you almost have to leave the state” — to a lack of awareness, or appreciation, when it comes to the public higher education system here.

“Public higher education in Massachusetts has never enjoyed a strong reputation,” he explained. “You have students leaving Massachusetts to attend public colleges and universities in other states. Staying in state and going to one of the public schools doesn’t have a lot of cache among high-school students, although UMass Amherst may be beginning to acquire that.”

Changing this equation won’t happen quickly or easily, he went on, adding that the quality of education being provided and its cost are two big factors that could be addressed through a greater investment in public higher education in this state.

As for those adult students, they most aspire to jobs that require a college degree or certificate, but they are not yet ready for college-level work, said Freeland, adding that, in addition to the challenge of getting them enrolled or re-enrolled, these individuals must also confront competing job and family pressures.

Thus, they embody two components of the report’s three-pronged strategy — getting into college and then getting through it.

As the report states, there have been some improvements in graduation rates, such as those logged at HCC, but additional efforts, encompassing everything from mentoring to making more enrollees ‘college-ready,’ will be needed.

“We have been working very hard on what we call ‘student success,’ which is shorthand for retaining and graduating more students, and we’re not peculiar in that — everyone’s working on that,” said Messner, adding that this hard work, coupled with more emphasis on attaining a degree, rather than taking certain courses and attaining a certain number of credits for transfer, is at least partially responsible for that rise.

But there are still many challenges ahead, most of them manifesting themselves in those lower enrollment figures he relayed.

As he talked about ways to stem that tide, he focused on one of the big problems — poor high-school graduation rates in many area cities, especially Springfield and Holyoke — while relaying some comments he made at a recent United Way meeting on that subject (see related story on page 27).

“I told people, ‘this is not a problem for the Springfield School Department or the Holyoke School Department — anyone who hires people from the local workforce is going to be impacted by this,’” he recalled. “If we don’t increase our high-school graduation rates, we’re going to see a dramatic decline in the number of college graduates, and that doesn’t bode well for our economy.”

The Bottom Line

Looking ahead about six months, Messner said the final tally for the number of graduates at next spring’s commencement ceremony will be very telling. And right now, he’s not at all sure what to expect.

“If it’s up or even close to the number we had for last spring, it will be a really good sign that something positive is going on,” he said, adding quickly that, whatever the number is, stern challenges remain for those looking to put more students in the pipeline — and hire them if and when they graduate.

Freeland concurred, and noted that all those numbers in the Vision Project report add up to an ominous forecast — one for a perfect storm.

It probably won’t miss this region, he noted, and, in fact, it will hit harder than most others. But with appropriate steps, the state can weather it.

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

Panel on State Officials’ Compensation Calls for Reforms, Increases

By
Daily News

BOSTON — A seven-member advisory commission created by legislation to review compensation for the state’s constitutional officers and the Legislature presented its findings and recommendations Monday in a detailed report to the public and policy makers.

The commission, chaired by Ira Jackson, dean of the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at UMass Boston, was established by Section 239 of the state budget and appointed in September 2014 to analyze compensation for public officials, including the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, secretary of state, auditor, and the Legislature. The commission was mandated to issue its report by Dec. 1.

“The Advisory Commission conducted a transparent, open, data-driven review of the current compensation of public officials and developed a series of major reforms and recommendations based on its research, as well as input from the public,” said Jackson. “We recommend that the Legislature strongly consider implementing important reforms to the process of calculating compensation, while at the same time making appropriate increases in compensation levels for the governor and other elected officials to more adequately reflect their responsibilities.”

Recommended reforms include:
• Eliminating legislative per diem payments;
• Determining the biennial adjustment in legislative pay through a consistent process using 
data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis to measure the quarterly change in salaries and 
wages in Massachusetts for the most recent eight quarters;
• Calculating any increase or decrease in compensation for all constitutional officers and the 
House speaker and Senate president using the bureau’s data on a biennial basis;
• Limiting outside employment through a first-in-the-nation measure precluding the 
constitutional officers, House speaker, and Senate president from earning outside income, other than passive income; and
• Establishing future special advisory commissions on a biennial basis to conduct a thorough 
review of compensation and reforms.

Specific recommendations on compensation include:
• Ensuring that any compensation increases must be cost-neutral to the taxpayer through efficiencies and savings identified by the constitutional officers and Legislature and reported on an annual basis to ensure accountability and transparency;
• Establishing the salary for the governor at $185,000, which, when adjusted for cost of living, would rank 10th among the 50 states. Massachusetts is one of only six states that does not provide a governor’s residence or a housing allowance. The commission recommends that the governor receive a housing allowance of $65,000;
• Providing a salary of $175,000 for the attorney general and the treasurer and receiver general;
• Setting a salary of $165,000 for the lieutenant governor, the secretary of state, and the state auditor;
• Establishing compensation for the House speaker and Senate president at $175,000 annually; and
• Increasing the legislative office expense to $10,000 for legislators whose districts are within a 50-mile radius of Boston, and to $15,000 for legislators located outside that radius.

“While any recommendation to increase compensation for state leaders may be controversial, the commission believes these increases are appropriate based on the data we reviewed, and the recommended reforms are important foundations for public trust,” said Jackson. “The commission’s recommendations were guided by a thorough review of data comparing Massachusetts with other states, a strong desire to ensure that the state attracts and retains highly talented individuals regardless of means or geography, and the principle that officials should be fairly compensated based on the significant responsibilities of the offices they hold.”

Calculated Decisions

By
Accounting and Tax Planning Sections
Careful Planning Can Lessen Your Tax Burden

By KRISTINA DRZAL HOUGHTON, CPA, MST

Kristina Drzal-Houghton

Kristina Drzal-Houghton

U.S. taxpayers are facing more uncertainty than usual as they approach the 2014 tax-planning season. Many may feel trapped in limbo while Congress has been preoccupied with the November midterm election and its results — leaving legislation that could alter the current tax picture up in the air.

Since D.C. lawmakers are unlikely to pass, extend, or modify tax provisions anytime soon, tax planning may seem pointless. But, actually, careful planning is wise regardless of the situation and even more important during uncertain times.

Even though the federal tax laws haven’t changed much from last year, your circumstances may have changed. And some rules that expired on Dec. 31, 2013 may yet be restored, even retroactively, to Jan. 1, 2014. It could be the perfect time for you to get a fresh perspective.

To make sure you’re taking all the appropriate steps to minimize your individual and business taxes, you should anticipate possible changes with the informed guidance of your tax professional.

Tax Strategies for Individuals

Before you can make wise planning decisions about your individual taxes, you need to be aware of your current tax situation.

Can you control when you receive income, or at least determine when deductible expenses are paid? If you can control timing, you have a valuable planning tool that can enable you to reduce your taxable income and tax liability.

Maximize your tax strategies by forecasting income-tax positions for 2014 and, to the extent possible, subsequent years. Evaluate not only the amount of your income but also the types of income you anticipate generating, your marginal tax bracket, net investment income, wages and self-employment earnings, and capital gains and losses.

Before deciding to accelerate or defer income and prepay or delay deductible expenses, you need to gauge the possible effect of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) on these tax-planning strategies. Having a number of miscellaneous itemized deductions, personal exemptions, medical expenses, and state and local taxes can trigger AMT.

The opportunity to take advantage of income timing exists particularly for taxpayers who are:

• In a different tax bracket in 2014 than in 2015;
• Subject to the AMT in one year but not the other;
• Subject to the 3.8% net investment income (NII) tax in one year but not the other; or
• Subject to the additional 0.9% Medicare tax on earned income in one year but not the other.

The 3.8% NII tax and the 0.9% Medicare tax apply when your modified adjusted gross income exceeds threshold amounts. Net investment income includes dividends, rents, interest, passive activity income, capital gains, annuities, and royalties. Passive pass-through income is subject to the NII tax.

The NII tax does not apply to non-passive income, such as:

• Self-employment income;
• Income from an active trade or business;
• Portions of the gain on the sale of an active interest in a partnership or S corporation with investment assets; and
• IRA or qualified plan distributions.

Remember that the additional 0.9% Medicare payroll tax applies to earnings of self-employed individuals and wages in excess of the thresholds in the table above.

After analyzing your specific tax situation, if you anticipate that your income will be higher in 2015, you might benefit from accelerating income into 2014 and possibly postponing deductions, keeping the AMT threat in mind.

On the other hand, if you think you may be in a lower tax bracket in 2015, look for ways to defer some of your 2014 income. For example, you could delay into 2015:

• Collecting rents;
• Receiving payments for services;
• Accepting a year-end bonus; and
• Collecting business debts.

Also, if you itemize deductions, consider prepaying some of your 2015 tax-deductible expenses in 2014. The following expenses are commonly prepaid as part of year-end tax planning:

• Charitable contributions. You may take a tax deduction for cash contributions to qualified charities of up to 50% of adjusted gross income (AGI). When contemplating charitable contributions, consider contributing appreciated securities that you have held for more than one year. Usually, you will receive a charitable deduction for the full value of the securities, while avoiding the capital-gains tax that would be incurred upon sale of the securities.
• State and local income taxes. You may prepay any state and local income taxes normally due on Jan. 15, 2015 if you do not expect to be subject to the AMT in 2014.
• Real-estate taxes. You can prepay in 2014 any real-estate tax due early in 2015. But you should keep in mind how the AMT could affect both years when preparing to pay real-estate taxes on your residence or other personal real estate. However, real-estate tax on rental property is deductible and can be safely prepaid even if you are subject to the AMT.
• Mortgage interest. Your ability to deduct prepaid interest has limits. But, to the extent your January mortgage payment reflects interest accrued as of Dec. 31, 2014, a payment before year end will secure the interest deduction in 2014.
• Miscellaneous itemized deductions. These include unreimbursed employee business expenses, tax-return preparation fees, investment expenses, and certain other miscellaneous itemized deductions that together are in excess of 2% of AGI.

The amount of itemized deductions you can claim on your 2014 tax return is reduced by 3% of the amount by which your AGI exceeds the thresholds, which began as low as $152,000. However, deductions for medical expenses, investment interest, casualty and theft losses, and gambling losses are not subject to the limitation. Taxpayers cannot lose more than 80% of the itemized deductions subject to the phaseout.

 

Know Your Tax Rates, Exemptions, and Phaseouts

A personal exemption is usually available for you, your spouse if you are married and file a joint return, and each dependent (a qualifying child or qualifying relative who meets certain tests). The personal exemption for 2014 is $3,950.

But the total personal exemptions to which you are entitled will be phased out, or reduced, by 2% of the amount that your AGI exceeds the threshold for your filing status. The threshold amounts for the personal-exemption phaseout are the same as for itemized deductions.

Even when federal income-tax rates are the same for you in both years, accelerating deductible expenses into 2014 and/or deferring income into 2015 or later years can provide a longer period to benefit from money that you will eventually pay in taxes.

 

Beware the Alternative Minimum Tax Trap

As mentioned previously, determining whether you are subject to the alternative minimum tax in any given year figures prominently in tax planning.

Every year the IRS ties, or indexes, to inflation the AMT exemption and related thresholds based on filing status. If it’s apparent that you will be subject to the AMT in 2014, you should consider deferring certain tax payments that are not deductible for AMT purposes until 2015. For example, you may defer your 2014 state and local income taxes and real-estate taxes, except taxes on rental property, which are not subject to the AMT. Also consider deferring into 2015 your miscellaneous itemized deductions, such as investment expenses and employee business expenses.

However, if the AMT will not apply to your taxes in 2014, but could apply in 2015, you may want to prepay some of these expenses to lock in a 2015 tax benefit. Just be careful that your prepayment does not make you subject to AMT in 2014.

If you do not expect to be subject to the AMT in either year, the age-old strategy of deduction ‘bunching’ could apply. If this is expected to be a high year for miscellaneous itemized deductions, consider accelerating next year’s expenses into this year.

Or, if this is a low year for these deductions, try to defer these expenses for the rest of the year into next year. This method helps you maximize the likelihood that these deductions will result in a tax benefit.

 

Exploit Long-term Capital Gains

While avoiding or deferring tax may be your primary goal, to the extent there is income to report, the income of choice is long-term capital gain thanks to the favorable tax rate available. Short-term capital gain is taxed at your ordinary income tax rate.

If you hold a capital asset for more than one year before selling it, your capital gain is long-term. For most taxpayers, long-term capital gain is taxed at rates no higher than 15%. But taxpayers in the 10% to 15% ordinary income-tax bracket have a long-term capital-gain tax rate of 0%.

Taxpayers whose income exceeds the thresholds set for the relatively new 39.6% ordinary tax rate are subject to a 20% rate on capital gain.

If the long-term capital-gain rates of 0%, 15%, or 20% are not complicated enough, keep in mind that special rates of 25% can apply to certain real estate, and 28% to certain collectibles. Also, gains on the sale of certain C corporations held for more than five years can qualify for a 0% rate. Talk to your tax adviser before you assume the long-term capital gains rate that would apply.

Remember that you can use capital losses, including worthless securities and bad debts, to offset capital gains. If you lose more than you gain during the year, you can offset ordinary income by up to $3,000 of your losses. Then you can carry forward any excess losses into the next tax year.

However, you should be careful not to violate the ‘wash sale’ rule by buying an asset nearly identical to the one you sold at a loss within 30 days before or after the sale. Otherwise, the wash-sale rule will prevent you from claiming the loss immediately. While wash-sale losses are deferred, wash-sale gains are fully taxable. It’s important to discuss the meaning of nearly, or ‘substantially,’ identical assets with your tax adviser.

 

Contribute to a Retirement Plan

You may be able to reduce your taxes by contributing to a retirement plan. If your employer sponsors a retirement plan, such as a 401(k), 403(b), or SIMPLE plan, your contributions avoid current taxation, as will any investment earnings until you begin receiving distributions from the plan. Some plans allow you to make after-tax Roth contributions, which will not reduce your current income, but you will generally have no tax to pay when those amounts, plus any associated earnings, are withdrawn in future years.

You and your spouse must have earned income to contribute to either a traditional or Roth IRA. Only taxpayers with modified AGI below certain thresholds are permitted to contribute to a Roth IRA. If a workplace retirement plan covers you or your spouse, modified AGI also controls your ability to deduct your contribution to a traditional IRA.

If you would like to contribute to a Roth IRA, but your income exceeds the threshold, consider contributing to a traditional IRA for 2014, and convert the IRA to a Roth IRA in 2015. Be sure to inquire about the tax consequences of the conversion, especially if you have funds in other traditional IRAs.

In addition to the SIMPLE IRA, self-employed individuals can have a simplified employee pension (SEP) plan. They may contribute as much as 25% of their net earnings from self-employment, not including contributions to themselves. The contribution limit is $52,000 in 2014. The self-employed may set up a SEP plan as late as the due date, including extensions, of their 2014 income tax return.

An individual, or solo, 401(k) is another option for the self-employed. For 2014, a self-employed individual, as an employee, may defer up to $17,500 ($23,000 for age 50 or older) of annual compensation. Acting as the employer, the individual may contribute 25% of net profits, excluding the deferred $17,500, up to a maximum contribution of $52,000.

 

Withholding and Estimated Tax Payments

If you expect to be subject to an underpayment penalty for failure to pay your 2014 tax liability on a timely basis, consider increasing your withholding between now and the end of the year to reduce or eliminate the penalty. Increasing your final estimated tax deposit due Jan. 15, 2015 may reduce the amount of the penalty but is unlikely to eliminate it entirely.

Withholding, even if done on the last day of the tax year, is deemed withheld ratably throughout the tax year. Underpayment penalties can be avoided when total withholdings and estimated tax payments exceed the 2013 tax liability or, in the case of higher-income taxpayers, 110% of 2013 tax.

Tax Strategies for Business Owners

The main tax issue to keep in mind if you’re a business owner is that a number of tax provisions, such as 50% bonus depreciation, expired at the end of 2013. In addition, the Section 179 deduction has been limited significantly.

Congress may pass legislation to renew or modify these tax breaks — perhaps retroactively. Of course, you can’t count on that possibility, so if you have used these provisions to reduce your taxes in the past, it might be advisable to adjust your withholding and estimated tax payments for 2014.

 

Special 50% Bonus Depreciation

Through 2013, businesses could use the special bonus depreciation to deduct up to 50% of the cost of such assets as new equipment, computer software, and other qualifying property placed into service by year end. The 50% bonus depreciation did not apply to used equipment. Unless Congress acts, it will not be available at all in 2014.

 

Section 179 Deduction

Under Section 179 of the IRS Tax Code, businesses could expense the full cost of new and used equipment, including technology, in the year of purchase instead of over a number of years. They still can. However, the amount they can expense has dropped from an upper limit of $500,000 in 2013 to $25,000 in 2014 — a sizable difference. If your company has nearly reached the $25,000 expensing limit, you may want to postpone further purchases until 2015.

The 2014 limit on equipment purchases qualifying for Section 179 treatment is $200,000. After a business reaches the maximum amount, the available tax deduction phases out on a dollar-for-dollar basis. In other words, once a business buys $225,000 of equipment, the deduction is reduced to zero. You should monitor your company’s total purchases to prevent the phaseout.

 

Repair Regulations

The IRS and the U.S. Treasury have issued final tangible property regulations (TPRs) that become mandatory for tax year 2014. These TPRs will likely require most businesses to file additional tax returns and supporting statements and/or include in their returns certain annual elections. Those new, additional returns are referred to as IRS Form 3115, Change in Accounting Method.

If you have multiple trades or businesses, more than one building, or leasehold improvements, whether or not these are contained in separate legal entities, such as LLCs, or disregarded entities, we may have to prepare numerous, separate Form 3115s, as well as make numerous TPR annual elections. Since the changes required by the TPR are so widespread, starting on the various analysis prior to year end is highly suggested.

While the preparation of the IRS form 3115 will be done, in the majority of cases, by this 2014 tax-return filing, certain new annual elections related to the TPRs are anticipated to be required and/or chosen for every income-tax filing subsequent to your adoption of the new TPRs.

You should discuss with your tax adviser the TPR elections choices. While they will certainly advise you on the alternatives or choices that are available for you regarding these TPR annual method elections, please remember the final choices are yours to make. The three common annual method TPR elections are the following:

• The de minimis safe harbor for writeoff of property acquisitions and non-incidental material and supplies costing less than your book writeoff policy, such as items costing less than a certain dollar amount (for example, less than $500 per item);
• If applicable, the safe harbor for small taxpayers, where you can elect not to capitalize improvements or repairs on eligible building property (i.e., your buildings with depreciable basis less than $1 million per building; and
• The partial asset disposition elections under §1.168(i)-8(d)(2). This election is made annually to enable you to apply this section to a disposition of a portion of a prior asset that you have replaced with a subsequent improvement. An example of the application of this method is where you replace a roof on one of your buildings, and you are then able to write off the remaining depreciable basis of the prior roof. You’d make this election to avoid a situation where you will depreciate two roofs at the same time, instead of recording a loss on the disposition of the original roof.

In addition to filing these changes in accounting methods, and the making of the annual TPR elections outlined above, your internal processes that may have to be modified include:

• Accounting for ‘non-incidental’ material and supplies; and
• Establishment of a capitalization writeoff policy dictating a certain writeoff amount (e.g., “our policy is that we are going to expense all purchases under $500”). If you do not, you may be limited to a $200 per item write-off policy, including the creation of an internal writing of what actions, expenditures, or items would require capitalization (such as improvements, acquisitions, restorations, betterments, adaptions, etc.), as opposed to expenditures that would be categorized as repair and maintenance expenses.

If you do not currently have a written and communicated capitalization policy, we advise you that, in order to take advantage of the annual de minimis writeoff safe harbor described above, you must create and execute that writing and communication before Jan. 1, 2015, if you desire to employ the writeoff policy in next year’s tax returns, since the policy needs to be adopted prior to the beginning of the effected tax year. Also, review your depreciation schedules to see what assets on that list may qualify for writeoff in the 2014 tax year.

In preforming the analysis for these changes, you may find that, in applying the TPRs, your business can benefit from an additional deduction in 2014.

 

Conclusion

As the 2014 tax season approaches, taxpayers have a lot of questions. Will expired tax provisions be reinstated? If so, will they apply retroactively to the beginning of the year? Will they be altered? Will new tax laws make it through the legislative process?

Most importantly, how will these decisions affect your taxes?

These are legitimate concerns. Unfortunately, no one can predict the future. But we can suggest that you and your tax professionals should diligently watch the tax landscape for pending legislation that could have an impact on your taxes. Your safest course of action in the midst of uncertainty is to remain in close communication with your tax adviser for the latest guidance.

 

Kristina Drzal Houghton, CPA, MST is a partner with the Holyoke-based accounting firm Meyers Brothers Kalicka, and director of the firm’s Taxation Division; [email protected]

Doing Business as Certificates

By
DBA Certificates Departments

The following Business Certificates and Trade Names were issued or renewed during the month of November 2014.

AGAWAM

4tion Skateboards
206 Garden St.
Dylan Copella

AFIS, LLC
365 Main St.
Steven Zicolella

Enigma HVAC
33 Norman Terrace
Irina Kuzmenko

Happy Home Maid Service
101 Sylvan Lane
Laura Vieu

CHICOPEE

Chuck’s Auto Sales, LLC
78 West St.
Charles Swider

Eric’s Sales
103 Lukasik St.
Eric Ladabouche

Salon Bocage
766 Memorial Dr.
Lisa A. Allen

St. Amand Services
32 Highland Ave.
Jessica St. Amand

HOLYOKE

Action Figure Planet
50 Holyoke St.
Nancy Cote

Amy’s Hallmark
50 Holyoke St.
Buzook Vitt

Dunkin Donuts
330 Main St.
Lori Martins

Dunkin Donuts
1600 Northampton St.
Lori Martins

Paper City Cuts 2
522 South St.
Jose M. Lopez

NORTHAMPTON

Karmel Kreations
25 Franklin St.
Selena Dittberner

Pixel Edge
109 High St.
Sunergix Inc.

Red Barn Honey Company
43 Fort Hill Terrace
Richard Conner

Skyline Design
209 Locust St.
Douglas Ferrante

Sushi City
228 King St.
Soe Naing

Toad’s Kin Car Company
5 Middle St.
Radley Nutting

PALMER

A-Z Heating & Cooling
17 Lafayette St.
Kevin Zawaliki

Al’s Heating & Plumbing
37 Stimson St.
Eric Nareau

Blockberries
65 Jim Ash St.
David Whitney

Family Produce Market
54 Commercial St.
Gidget Jolly

Hollywood Nails
1411 Main St.
Linh Lee

PG Building & Remodeling
54 Charles St.
Peter Gorski

Target Engineering
111 Woodland Heights
Norman Leclair

SPRINGFIELD

Kate Transportation
44 Montgomery St.
Catherine Kamau

La Primera Iglesia Elahim
113 Orchard St.
Carmen Rodriguez

Mamajuana Roasted Chicken
30 Fort Pleasant Ave.
Christian Flores

Manna Chinese Food
44 Springfield St.
Hua Y. Ou

Martinelli, Martini & Gall
82 Maple St.
Paul R. Gallagher

Metro Apartment, LLC
908 Belmont Ave.
Peter J. Houser

Midway Barber & Company
1106 State St.
Thomas Allen

Painter Plus Floors
91 Portulaca Dr.
Gilfrey Gregory

Powell Construction Company
11 Preston St.
Lillian Moultrie

South End Smoke and Grocer
469 Main St.
Manirakiza Jamari

The Rich Look Fine Auto
36 Amity Court
Richard D. Manning

The Touch of NYC Hair Studio
680 Sumner Ave.
Sophia C. Evans

Word Barista
79 James St.
Cheryl D. Noel

WESTFIELD

Alessio’s Pizza Inc.
280 Southampton Road
Alessio’s Pizza, Inc.

Have Comedy Will Travel
36 Moseley Ave.
Steven L. Henderson

Menard Construction & Design
46 Stuart Place
Dennis Menard

Mlisyany Direct
1 Brentwood Dr.
Mlisyany Direct

Roadrunner Express
772 West Road
Thomas Sorel

Community Spotlight: Palmer

By
Community Spotlight Features
In Palmer, Life Goes On After Failed Casino Bid

Linda Leduc and Charles Blanchard

Linda Leduc and Charles Blanchard say it’s important to implement strategies to raise Palmer’s profile and reputation as a business-friendly town.

Charles Blanchard says many residents and people who drive through Palmer think, because the majority of its mills have closed, that industrial jobs no longer exist in town.

“We hear it all the time,” the town manager said, adding that this is an erroneous conclusion, and a new video, titled Industry Alive in Palmer: An Inside Look at Local Businesses, has been created to dispel that notion.

It was shown for the first time on Oct. 14 during a Town Council meeting and showcases eight of the town’s successful manufacturing companies. They range in size from large to very small, but many have been operating for generations inside former mills and locations such as the Maple Tree Industrial Center, a 48-acre site on Route 20 with access to rail that abuts the Massachusetts Turnpike.

“There are people doing things behind walls here better than anywhere else in the world; it’s just interesting that it’s happening in Palmer,” said Mark Borsari, president of Sanderson MacLeod Inc., a company featured in the video that makes twisted wire brushes.

Darcy Fortune agrees. “I’m a fifth-generation Palmer resident, and before I did the interviews for this video, I did not realize how many factories, foundries, commercial distribution facilities, and industrial parks we have here in town,” said the co-creator of the production. “Although Palmer is known as the Town of Seven Railroads, it should actually be called the Hub for Industrial Activity.

“People work hard here every day behind the scenes to produce products that are distributed all over the world,” she went on. “These establishments are participating in the American dream, and they deserve recognition, along with the smaller mom-and-pop businesses that prosper here. Palmer is an ideal place to live, work, and operate a business.”

Getting that message across was the unofficial motivation behind the video, which shows that there is definitely life in this community after a high-stakes attempt to bring a casino to a site off Turnpike exit 8 — an endeavor that went on for several years — came to an abrupt end 13 months ago when town voters voted against the plan.

And while the casino dominated talk in the town, officials there didn’t wait for the matter to be decided before moving forward with a number of economic-development-related initiatives. These include everything from a tax-increment-financing (TIF) zone to establishment of so-called priority-development sites, a status that requires officials to issue permits for new businesses in those sites within 180 days, to the creation of the new position of economic development director. Linda Leduc, who had been serving as the town’s planner, now has that new title as well, and she’s moving ahead with a number of strategic initiatives ro raise Palmer’s profile and bring more businesses to the community.

“We have a variety of strategies and resources that can help businesses that want to move here,” she noted. “They include our priority-development- zoned properties, which have an expedited permitting process, as well as our single tax rate. We just want people to know that Palmer is a business-friendly town.”

Making Strides

Leduc said she plans to use the video as a marketing tool at economic-development conferences and other appropriate settings. She told BusinessWest that she and Blanchard came up with the idea for the production after she became economic-development director last year, and they began to tour local businesses with Lenny Weake, president of the Quaboag Hills Chamber of Commerce.

“We wanted to see what types of businesses were in town, make sure the town was meeting their needs, and find out what they needed to help them grow and prosper,” Leduc said, adding that the visits generated a wealth of information and insight.

Blanchard said they visited 16 companies. “Along the way, we met a lot of owners, learned about their businesses, and became excited about what was going on in Palmer. Many had developed a strong niche in the marketplace, and their prosperity has been a well-kept secret,” he told BusinessWest, citing examples that included a foundry, a precision metal company, a construction firm, and a major tree service.

After the trio completed their visits, Blanchard approached M-Pact TV General Manager Bruce Henriques with the idea of creating a video that would focus on companies involved with manufacturing and distribution. M-Pact is the town’s public-access station and airs in Palmer and Monson on channels 7 and 12.

Henriques said he would be happy to do the work at no charge. “I had been self-employed most of my life when I took this job 15 years ago, and I wanted to give the station a more commercial feel and do more for the business community, so it was an ideal fit,” he explained. “I know some of the business owners who are profiled in the video, and they have gone through some tough times over the years. I felt they deserved a break; they supply jobs and are doing some great things people aren’t even aware of.”

Leduc concurred. “We wanted people to understand the types of businesses we have here and why they are successful, and the video speaks loudly about why a business would want to be located in Palmer.”

Since its completion, the video has been shown frequently on the public-access channels and has also been posted on the town’s website, YouTube, and Facebook. Companies featured in the production include Palmer Foundry, Mustang Motorcycle Seats, Rathbone Precision Metals Inc., Sanderson MacLeod, Maple Leaf Distribution Services Inc., Palmer Paving Corp., Northern Tree Service, Northern Construction Service LLC, Architectural Millwork Specialists, and BL Tees Inc.

Beyond simply telling Palmer’s story, though, town officials are also taking steps to incentivize businesses to move there.

Within the TIF zone, for example, a new business that opens there can negotiate an agreement with the town to pay taxes on a graduated rate for a period of no less than five and no more than 20 years. The state also offers incentives connected with the agreement, and Leduc said Palmer Corp. and, more recently, Detector Technology Inc. have taken advantage of the program.

“Palmer Corp. moved into warehouse space and made $1 million in improvements,” she noted, “while Detector Technology acquired a second building and changed warehouse space into manufacturing space.”

Right Place, Right Time

Blanchard believes there is plenty of opportunity to build a business in Palmer’s four villages, including space in a mill in Thorndike that is only partially occupied. He also believes the town is an ideal location for businesses due to its location.

“Palmer has access to a number of major highways,” he said, adding that, in addition to the turnpike, Routes 20, 32, 181, and 67 run through town. “Plus, there are a number of freight lines that go into Palmer Industrial Park, and there is an off-loading rail-line facility at Maple Street Industrial Park on Route 20.”

Blanchard cited Sherwood Industries, which is not showcased in the video, as a prime example of how Palmer’s access to rail is beneficial to businesses.

“They bring lumber products here by rail from the Northwest, then distribute them all over the Northeast and into the Carolinas,” he said. “And last year, they received an industrial rail access grant to extend rail service onto their property to allow more products to be brought in and distributed.

“There was also another grant issued to expand rail service in our industrial park,” he went on, adding that many local businesses not featured in the video are doing well, such as American Dry Ice, which distributes carbon dioxide and dry ice to various firms, including hospitals and restaurants.

Leduc agrees there is plenty of room for new businesses. “Palmer Technology Center and Maple Tree Industrial Park have unfilled space, and there are some empty storefronts available in Depot Village,” she said.

The town also has five priority-development sites, and in 2009, the community received a $15,000 grant to conduct a study to determine what was needed in terms of water and traffic control to put the sites to “their highest and best use,” said Leduc. These sites include:

• Olson Farm, 30 acres of open land zoned for mixed business along Route 20;
• The Holbrook site, a downtown parcel of less than a half-acre on the corner of Route 20 and Bridge Street;
• Chamber Road Industrial Park, a site containing two parcels of shovel-ready land totaling 10.7 acres;
• Thorndike Energy, an old mill complex located off Church Street on five acres with the potential for 90,000 square feet of renovated building space; and
• The area formerly slated for the casino, 152 acres across from the turnpike exit controlled by Northeast Realty.

Moving Pictures

Leduc, Blanchard, Fortune, Henriques, and other people who helped create the video hope it will inspire new businesses to consider moving to these sites or other available properties in Palmer. However, Blanchard said the production has already had an impact within the town.

“It opened new lines of communication between town officials and existing businesses, which we hope will continue whenever an issue comes up and they need support,” he told BusinessWest.

Meanwhile, the screening before the Town Council probably inspired a vote to make the town more business-friendly, or at least not less so.

“They were scheduled to vote on the tax-classification rate that night,” said Blanchard. “Although we have historically maintained a single tax rate, the council was considering changing it because of rising costs. But the video made them recognize the value of maintaining the single tax rate, and they voted to continue it to help the businesses in Palmer.”

It is the hope of those involved that the video, not to mention the many other initiatives undertaken by town officials, will yield more success stories to relate in the years and decades to come.

Palmer at a glance

Year Incorporated: 1775
Population: 12,140 (2010)
Area: 32 square miles
County: Hampden
Residential Tax Rate: Palmer, $19.36; Three Rivers, $20.06; Bondsville, $19.97; Thorndike, $20.25
Commercial Tax Rate: Palmer, $19.36; Three Rivers, $20.06; Bondsville, $19.97; Thorndike, $20.25
Median Household Income: $50,050
Family Household Income: $58,110
Type of government: Town Council
Largest Employers: Baystate Wing Hospital; Sanderson MacLeod Inc.; Camp Ramah; Big Y

* Latest information available

Bankruptcies

By
Bankruptcies Departments

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

Babcock, Jennifer L.
300 East Main St., #1A
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/29/14

Babcock, John P.
9 Evans Ave.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/29/14

Bastek, Christine A.
265 Chapin St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/28/14

Blair, Dustin A.
Blair, Chantal M.
a/k/a Grandbois, Chantal M.
41 Judd Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/28/14

Bourdeau, Alain A.
Bourdeau, Lynne A.
40 Belvidere St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/21/14

Buckowski, Jodie Leah
31 Coolidge Road
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/22/14

Burwell, Jennifer Elizabeth
PO Box 1383
Northampton, MA 01061
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Colak, Serdar
15 Wilson St.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/18/14

Crowell, Robert
365 Tiffany St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 10/22/14

Cruz, Carmen D.
27 Southern Dr.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Dunn, Jeffrey J.
433 Amherst Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/28/14

Ferrari, Edward C.
PO Box 561
Agawam, MA 01101
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/30/14

Fish, Colleen Elizabeth
166 College St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/27/14

Forney, Scott D.
32 Knollwood Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 10/31/14

Gamsby, Andrea D.
35 Dorset St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/30/14

Geanacopoulos, Ashley R.
38 1/2 North Main St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/18/14

Grimard, Suzanne
56 Elm St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 10/27/14

Hathaway, Karl A.
Hathaway, Desiree C.
89 Mountain View St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/22/14

Hodgkins, Erin Dunican
a/k/a Stebbins Hodgkins, Erin D.
34 Bridge St.
Millers Falls, MA 01349
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Hrasna, Christopher Robin
193 Sargeant St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Jackman, David E.
264 Huntington Road
Chester, MA 01011
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/24/14

Jaskulski, David M.
53 James St.
Feeding Hills, MA 01030
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/28/14

Kochaniec, Deborah L.
228 Florence Road
Florence, MA 01062
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Langlois, Clark M.
Langlois, Moira A.
419 Montcalm St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/28/14

Ledford, Judy A.
a/k/a DeGray, Judy A.
a/k/a McRobbie, Judy A.
90 Canterbury Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/24/14

Lopez, Glorimar
97 Robak Dr.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/21/14

Lynch, Amy L.
26 Dayton St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Maki, Jonathan P.
59 Knollwood Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/29/14

Manganelli, Matthew T.
Manganelli, Jennifer
14 Wolcott Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/29/14

McNerney, Robert W.
55 Redden Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/30/14

Mongeau, Donald R.
Mongeau, Lynne M.
11 West Cornell St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/30/14

Peters, Dustin R.
Peters, Stacey M.
68 Lyon St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/17/14

Pizzonia, Angelo
40 Merriam St.
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/22/14

Polanek, Lisa M.
a/k/a Rumps, Lisa Marie
444 North Main St. #25
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/30/14

Quinlan, Trevor A.
Quinlan, Margaret E.
46 Paula Ave.
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/17/14

Redmond, Ronald C.
32 Riviera Dr.
Agawam, MA 01001
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/21/14

Rivera, Dimary
1225 Bay St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Roberts, Amber N.
219 School St., Apt. 2L
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Rodriguez, Gabriel M.
1293 Dwight St., 2nd Floor
Springfield, MA 01107
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/17/14

Ruell, Jeanne Y.
67 Clayton Dr.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Sor, Sokun
19 Holyoke St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/30/14

Stearns, Mark J.
26 Washington St.
Brimfield, MA 01010
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

Stone, Sarah E.
a/k/a Hamel, Sarah E.
16 Grove St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/24/14

Tebeau, Christopher J.
1721 Riverdale St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/21/14

Telega, Valerie L.
5 Beaver Dr.
South Deerfield, MA 01373
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/23/14

The Zengineer
Inspirit Common Collective
Fontaholic Designs
Sparkle, Bucky N
Sparkle, Emily H.
a/k/a Connor, Emily H. Sparkle
378 Main St., #2
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/28/14

Torres, Gloria E.
110 Methuen St.
Springfield, MA 01119
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/20/14

Wilder, Douglas M.
Wilder, Deborah M.
243 Elm St., Apt. 2L
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/21/14

Williams, Sorguey
239 Mill St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 10/29/14

GradNation Summit 2014

By
Education Sections
Conference Focuses on Ways to Boost Springfield’s Graduation Rate

By KATHLEEN MITCHELL

Michael Smith

Michael Smith (second from left) introduces Springfield Mayor Dominic Sarno (left) to his parents and grandmother, who helped him succeed in school.

Many businesses donate to local nonprofit organizations and do their best to support the community. But Michael Smith says they inadvertently fail to recognize the role they can play in a critical area of need.

“Businesses often think that lowering the high-school dropout rate is a job for schools, nonprofit organizations, and the government. But they need to pay attention to what is happening if they expect the country to have an educated workforce,” said the Springfield native during a keynote speech at the GradNation Summit 2014 luncheon held last month at Springfield College for community and business leaders. “They may be writing checks or hosting grant competitions, but it is not enough. They need to establish apprenticeship programs, bring high-school students into their companies, and send their employees into the schools.”

Smith was recently appointed a special assistant to President Obama and is senior director of Cabinet Affairs for the presidential My Brother’s Keeper initiative, which addresses opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color that prevent them from reaching their full potential.

He traveled to the Bay State from Washington, D.C. to attend the day-long GradNation event, at which summit leaders shared best practices aimed at keeping inner-city students interested in their own education, with a focus on the relationship between success in middle school and the path to graduation.

Springfield was one of 100 cities across the nation selected by America’s Promise Alliance to hold a GradNation conference, with the goal of boosting the high-school graduation rate to 90% by 2020. And the United Way of Pioneer Valley convened the event as part of its Stay in School initiative launched last year in partnership with Springfield’s public schools.

“Middle school is a time when kids often get off track; adolescence can be really challenging, and we can’t wait until high school to make sure students are achieving at grade level. We need to get them in the pipeline early,” Smith said, adding that an overwhelming number of dropouts are “kids of color.”

He told BusinessWest that he grew up in the Hill McKnight area of Springfield. “It was a rough neighborhood with drugs, crime, violence … you name it,” he said. “I had many opportunities to fall off the path, but thanks to my parents, my grandmother, and the Boys & Girls Club, which provided me with opportunities to volunteer as well as my first job, I became a success.

“But I think about the kids I went there with who are not standing in a similar position today,” he went on. “A lot of them dropped out of school or had children early, and way too many dreams were deferred.”

However, there are strategies that can make a difference, and Smith said peer mentoring is an effective tool in middle school. But he quickly dispelled the belief that focusing solely on improving academics is the most important strategy in reducing the dropout rate.

“It takes far more than academics for a child to be successful,” he said, citing the Harlem Children’s Zone as a program that works. “They use innovative educational programs to help children, but they feed them breakfast first. You have to look at all of the roadblocks, and we need to disrupt the way we have been doing things because it is not working.

“Good enough is not good enough; we invest far too much money in things that don’t bear fruit, and governments and nonprofits can’t save children,” he went on, adding that, while nonprofits spend $300 billion each year, the dropout rate remains high.

“So, it’s clear that we need to form new partnerships, invest in innovation, and set the same goals if we want to attain a 90% graduation rate,” he told the audience.

Working Together

Springfield Mayor Dominic Sarno told those assembled that a number of success stories have come out of Springfield, adding quickly that considerable work remains.

“We need to push the needle if we are going to knock down poverty. The number-one priority is education, followed by jobs, and you get jobs through education,” he said, acknowledging that middle school is a difficult time for young people.

“If we are going to make any real improvements in the dropout rate, the entire community needs to be behind it,” the mayor went on. “We have a moral imperative to improve urban schools, but it will require bold and difficult measures to get dramatic outcomes.”

Springfield College President Mary Beth Cooper was among a bevy of speakers who outlined their efforts to help Springfield schools, and said the college has tutors in preschools who focus on early literacy skills of at-risk children.

“Our Springfield College School Turnaround Initiative also places 48 Americorps members in Level 4 schools. In 2013-14, they implemented targeted interventions to improve attendance, academic achievement, and the behavioral-social-emotional health of the students,” she said, adding that, as a result, 55% showed an increase in academic engagement.

Dora Robinson, president and CEO of United Way of Pioneer Valley, stressed the fact that GradNation was not simply an event. “It’s a call to action, and we really need a lot of support,” she said. “If we invest time and effort on the front end, more young people will graduate and move into the workforce. We have made some inroads in moving the needle, but until we are willing to stand up and support young people, we shouldn’t point fingers.”

In addition to speakers, the event included both youth and community panels, and the participants took note of what it will take to formulate an action plan to inspire middle-school students to do well in class. Measures that were outlined include engaging parents and young people, establishing safe places for students to go, providing them with individual mentors and social and emotional supports, and putting early-warning response systems in place that will alert educators when a student is at risk of dropping out.

“If anyone can do this, Springfield can,” Smith said. “But in order to reach a 90% graduation rate, we have to interrupt the status quo. People keep doing the same things over and over, while millions of kids fall through the cracks. Everyone needs to lock their arms together with a common goal.”

Moving Forward

Although 80% of students across the nation graduate from high school today, jut over half (54.9% last year) of Springfield high-school students earn their diploma.

Progress has been made, but Henry Thomas III, president of the Urban League, said the future of the region and the local economy depends on students not only graduating, but obtaining the credentials they need to get a job after high school. “The whole community needs to put education front and center.”

The information gleaned from the GradNation Summit will be distilled into a three-year community action plan to support Springfield’s middle-school students that will be submitted to America’s Promise Alliance by early January.

“This summit is the beginning, but nothing we do in school matters if a child is not eating, or drugs are being sold in violence outside their windows,” Smith said, as he spoke about a program in Washington, D.C. that matches children with paid mentors who do everything from getting them help for depression to providing assistance to parents looking for a job.

“But we also need investments, mentors, and slots for apprenticeships and internships so young people can gain practical experience,” he went on. “We need to come together to figure out our workforce needs in the next few years and make sure we are investing time and money to fill these jobs instead of having to look elsewhere.”

Building Confidence

By
Construction Sections
Construction Unemployment Hits Eight-year Low, but Challenges Remain

The construction industry, both nationally and in Massachusetts, seems to be emerging from several years of sluggish growth, as unemployment in the field has fallen to an eight-year low across the U.S.

Specifically, construction companies added 12,000 jobs nationally in October, pushing the sector’s unemployment rate to 6.4%, the lowest mark since 2006, according to Associated General Contractors of America.

“For the past several months, the construction industry has added jobs at double the all-industry rate of 1.9%,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Construction wages, which were already higher than the private-sector average, rose 2.6% in the last year — the fastest rate since early 2010 — as contractors ramped up their search for qualified workers. There were fewer unemployed, experienced construction workers [in October] than at any time in the past eight years.”

The trend is occurring fairly uniformly across America, with 28 states adding construction jobs between September and October, and 37 adding jobs over the past 12 months, in both cases including Massachusetts.

Indeed, over the past 12 months, the Commonwealth has added 2,400 construction jobs, a 2.0% increase that ranks 29th among all U.S. states. However, the Bay State added 1,300 jobs between September and October alone, a 1.1% increase that ranked 13th in the U.S. That performance coincides with a quarterly report from the Mass. Assoc. of Commercial & Institutional Builders that casts a cautiously positive eye on the landscape, while lamenting the rising costs of materials and labor.

“In the near term, higher costs of production don’t help contractors repair their recession-weakened bottom lines,” the report states. “However, these components are also signs of a growing economy as manufacturers see higher utilization rates and unemployment drops closer to full employment levels, thus pushing wages up.”

Back to Work

Nationally, construction employees worked an average of 39.2 hours per week, tying the highest mark in almost nine years. “Together,” Simonson said, “these indicators — high weekly hours, low unemployment, and accelerating wage gains — point to an industry that may be on the verge of acute difficulty filling key positions.”

Association officials said the construction-employment gains, along with rising wages and weekly hours, are consistent with survey results showing more firms having a hard time finding enough qualified workers to fill available positions. Construction employment totaled 6,095,000 in October, the highest total since May 2009, with a 12-month gain of 231,000 jobs, or 3.9%, Simonson said.

Over the past year, Florida added the most construction jobs of any state (38,900 jobs, or 10.2%), trailed closely by Texas (38,500 jobs, 6.2%), California (34,300 jobs, 5.3%), Illinois (14,800 jobs, 7.8%), and Utah (11,000 jobs, 14.9%). Meanwhile, Texas, Florida, Utah, Colorado, and Idaho posted the highest one-month jumps between September and October.

Stephen Sandherr, CEO of Associated General Contractors of America, noted that job growth remains inconsistent in some states because many firms are struggling to cope with growing worker shortages, new regulatory burdens, and flat, or declining, public-sector investments in infrastructure and construction. “Many firms are having a hard time expanding their payrolls as wages rise, costs grow, and market demand varies greatly from one segment to the next.”

Added Simonson, “these year-over-year and one-month changes show that construction is doing well in most of the country. Yet, the list of states that have added construction jobs varies from month to month, showing that the industry’s recovery remains vulnerable to worker shortages and unfavorable governmental actions.”

The latter is also a worry for the Mass. Assoc. of Commercial & Institutional Builders, which notes that the federal government continues to stall on a comprehensive highway bill, while private investors follow the government’s lead and sit on their hands.

“The good news is that, in general, we are now at a point in the recovery where we can focus more on thriving than surviving,” the group notes, “but thriving in the new economic climate will require not just being the strongest or biggest, but also the most adept at dealing with economic climate change.” n

Progress — by Design

By
Education Sections
WNEU’s Biomedical Engineering Program Is in a Growth Mode

By KEVIN FLANDERS

Dr. Robert Gettens

Dr. Robert Gettens, right, with students Hadiatou Barry (left) and Dena Navarroli, check out lab equipment in the Biomedical Engineering department at WNEU.

Inside the labs at Western New England University’s Biomedical Engineering (BME) department, students aren’t simply studying the technologies behind medicine. They’re constantly searching for ways to improve them.

It’s a philosophy, acting Department Chair Dr. Robert Gettens and BME students agree, that prepares them well to be leaders in a variety of careers. Many recent WNEU graduates have become specialized medical attorneys. Others have gravitated toward research. One particularly accomplished alumnus, Ryan Turner, is on his way to becoming a brain surgeon. But, regardless of what path graduates choose, they all share an ability to comprehensively analyze and enhance technology, a trait that is imbued in each student while studying at WNEU.

“Rather than teach students what the functions are of particular medical devices, we focus on the fundamentals of engineering so they will be able to go out and design new products,” said Gettens, an associate professor who will remain the acting department chair until Dr. Judy Cezeaux returns from her sabbatical.

Named by U.S. News to its “Best in Undergraduate Engineering” list, WNEU’s Biomedical Engineering department has seen a marked increase in enrollment over the past five years. What was once a fledgling department with fewer than 10 graduates per year has become a paragon of biomedical pedagogy that sends about 20 students each year into the field. With five professors — each boasting impressive credentials to go along with a Ph.D. — the department has inspired students from throughout the nation to pack their cold-weather gear in preparation of continuing their studies in Western Mass.

“The numbers have skyrocketed,” said Gettens, who praised his students for their commitment and relentless pursuit of knowledge. “The students are always so engaged and dedicated to learning.”

Training Future Inventors

Take a moment to reflect on how far medical devices and the technologies that allow for their creation have come in the last 10, 20, and 50 years, enabling millions of individuals to have hope that wouldn’t have existed in the past. Now project those same time frames into the future, and the possibilities for expansion and invention seem unimaginable.

But for BME professors and students, future technologies are not only imaginable but viable. Every invention starts somewhere, and perhaps the incipient traces of tomorrow’s next breakthrough are currently confined to the notebook of a student in Western Mass. It’s not that much of a stretch, considering that 10 BME students at WNEU have been listed as inventors on patents since 2010. Moreover, almost 22% of graduating seniors since 2001 have received regional or national awards for their senior design projects. Engineering careers are no longer dominated by men, either, as more than 40% of WNEU’s BME students are women.

“What we teach here is engineering, which is all about designing,” Gettens told BusinessWest. “By the time they graduate, our students know how to design medical devices.”

The BME department also collaborates with several area hospitals to ensure that students are provided with the best opportunities possible. Among its partners are Baystate Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, and Shriners Hospital for Children, as well as other local organizations and hospitals that utilize and advance medical technology. Additionally, a few seniors are currently teamed up with hospitals or companies to develop new devices that could potentially transcend the way patients are cared for.

In short, at WNEU, the future truly does lie in the here and now.

And the BME department hasn’t grown exclusively from an enrollment perspective. Following a two-phase, $12.8 million renovation and expansion project at Sleith Hall that concluded in September, students and staff are benefiting daily from two brand-new laboratories. The bioinstrumentation lab is dedicated mostly to the electronic components of engineering, including electrocardiography, bioamplifier design, ultrasound, signal-processing systems, and pulse oximetry. The second lab, meanwhile, serves as a simulated hospital room, complete with a dummy patient decked out in WNEU apparel who occupies the hospital bed. In this lab, students get to see the latest technologies in action and record their effectiveness in a medical setting. That way, when it comes time for these innovations to serve actual patients in hospitals, they will function at the highest levels possible.

In addition to their work inside the labs, WNEU students also have an opportunity each year to take part in a global health and technology course that includes a trip to Guatemala to learn about healthcare in a foreign environment. The BME department, which also includes professors Dr. Anthony English, Dr. Michael Rust, and Dr. Brent Ulrey, know a thing or two about travel, as they’ve earned degrees from several universities and conducted research throughout the nation.

What’s Next?

For thousands of graduating college seniors each year, a degree doesn’t necessarily translate into a job. In some cases, it’s a matter of too many graduates and limited positions to be filled within that field, while in others the problem is rooted in choice of major. But for those emerging from the BME program at WNEU, it’s not a question of whether they will find a job, but which position they’ll choose.

Sometimes opportunities abound to the extent that graduates must first determine what field they’ll choose, then begin the process of applying for positions.

“Many of our graduates work for companies that make medical devices, and others are working for the government,” said Gettens, who earned his Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Syracuse University and also served as an engineering officer in the U.S. Army. “They can also go to graduate school to do more research, or they can go to medical school. It depends on what interests them.”

Nationally, 20% of all BME students go on to medical school, according to WNEU’s statistics. But since the university offers a unique, six-year engineering/law program, many of its students have selected the two-for-one degree and backed up their knowledge of medical technology with legal education, a decision that opens many doors.

For WNEU seniors Hadiatou Barry and Dena Navarroli, it will soon be time to say goodbye to William H. Sleith Hall and begin their careers. Armed with advanced training that will serve them well in any field, it will surely be a bittersweet departure.

“I love it here — the professors are really down to earth; you have your fun moments and your serious moments,” said Barry, who is originally from New York City. “It’s the best of both worlds.”

Navarroli, who came to WNEU from Gilbert, Ariz., added, “I was really scared moving all the way from Arizona, but the professors have really supported me. They’ve been great, and they provide so many opportunities here that you can’t find anywhere else.”

For their senior design projects, Barry is researching quantum dot nanocarrier systems for targeted drug delivery, while Navarroli is working with a clinical sponsor on an innovative breast-cancer-surgery device. Both students have excelled in the BME program, and Barry is taking advantage of the rigorous six-year engineering/law opportunity. When she graduates, she’ll be able to choose between patent law and medical litigation if she selects a legal career, both of which are branches of law that require extensive knowledge of medical technology.

“It’s definitely been challenging, but this was my top choice, and it’s been a great experience,” she said.

Both Barry and Navarroli have bright futures ahead of them, as employment of biomedical engineers is expected to increase by nearly 30% by 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In recent years, WNEU seniors have gone on to work for such major healthcare companies and institutions as Active Medical Devices, Covidien, St. Louis University, Cornell University, Respironics Novametrix LLC, and Microtest Laboratories Inc., among others.

Rewarding Field

Interests and specialties aside, WNEU’s BME students and professors were drawn together by a common passion — helping people in need.

Though many biomedical-engineering students throughout the nation may never operate on a single patient in their careers, the technologies they develop help doctors and nurses save countless lives. From advanced imaging systems to pioneering point-of-care devices, BME students situate themselves on the cutting edge of technology by studying thousands of applications and mechanisms during their college years. They also dedicate several hours each week to reviewing case studies and staying current on the latest research and literature pertaining to the constantly evolving field.

And the research is hardly limited to the students. With busy teaching schedules, professors sometimes struggle to find enough time to complete multiple research projects each semester.

“The faculty members have done a lot of research lately in micro- and nano-devices,” said Gettens, whose department recently received a $500,000 grant from Massachusetts Life Sciences. “Because the professors usually do 12 credit hours of teaching [per semester], trying to find time for research can definitely be a challenge.”

Gettens said the grant will allow for the purchase of equipment that facilitates micro- and nano-fabrication for medical devices. To outsiders, these words might as well be written in a different language, but for those immersed in the innovative, collaborative culture of biomedical engineering, the more complex the application, the more enthralling the endeavor.

And that explains why the program — and the job opportunities it creates — are both on the rise.

Picture This

By
Departments Picture This
Meet the Leaders

VW5L3708VW5L3635useVW5L3693VW5L3654VW5L3702The Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield held its annual Government Reception on Nov. 19 in the Carriage House at Storrowton Tavern in West Springfield. Sponsored by Baystate Health and Comcast, the reception provided business and community leaders with the opportunity to meet socially with local, state, and federal officials. From top to bottom: state Sen. Don Humason, state Rep. Aaron Vega, and Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau President Mary Kay Wydra; PVTA Chief Financial Officer Patricia O’Leary, Agawam Town Clerk Richard Theroux, and PVTA Administrator Mary MacInnes; Springfield Technical Community College President Ira Rubenzahl and Mike Knapik, executive director of Advancement at Westfield State University; Mayors Ed Sullivan of West Springfield, Domenic Sarno of Springfield, Richard Cohen of Agawam, and Richard Kos of Chicopee; Davis Foundation Project Director Sally Fuller, Western Mass. Economic Development Council President Allan Blair, and Square One President Joan Kagan.

(Photos by Driscoll Photography)


Legislative Symposium

DaleJohnstonEileenDrummRobertDeLeoRichardNealKathyAndersonKatePhelonTonyCignoliThe Greater Westfield, Greater Chicopee, Greater Holyoke, and South Hadley/Granby chambers of commerce recently staged the CheckPoint 2014 Legislative Symposium at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House in Holyoke. A number of elected officials attended, ranging from U.S. Rep. Richard Neal to Bob DeLeo, speaker of the state House of Representatives, to the entire House and Senate delegation from the chambers’ communities. Seen here, from left, are Dale Johnston, executive director of the South Hadley/Granby Chamber of Commerce; Eileen Drumm, president of the Greater Chicopee Chamber; DeLeo; Carlos Gonzalez, president and CEO of the Mass. Latino Chamber of Commerce; Neal; Kathleen Anderson, president of the Greater Holyoke Chamber; Kate Phelon, executive director of the Greater Westfield Chamber; and Tony Cignoli, a political consultant who moderated the event.


Farmington Bank Reception

2014MA-EventMore than 200 area business leaders were on hand Nov. 13 as Farmington Bank, which recently entered the Western Mass. market with branches in East Longmeadow and West Springfield, staged an elaborate reception at the Springfield Sheraton. During the reception, John Patrick, the bank’s chairman, president, and CEO, announced the bank’s donation of $2,500 to Open Pantry Community Service in Springfield. Seen here is the bank’s Massachusetts team, from left: Patrick; Joe Kulig, vice president, Commercial Lending; Catherine Turowsky, vice president, Cash Management Services; Joe Young, vice president, Commercial Lending; Candace Pereira, assistant vice president, commercial loan officer; and Mike Moriarty, senior vice president, Commercial Lending.

Law Column

By
Columns Sections
Employers Should Heed Social-media Rulings

By PETER VICKERY, Esq.

What should you do if an employee ‘likes’ a Facebook post that accuses you of dishonesty? The answer may surprise you.

Peter Vickery

Peter Vickery

Are you on solid legal ground if you peruse a job applicant’s blog? The answer to that question could change, depending on what happens in the next session of the state Legislature. Employers interested in staying on the right side of social-media law should know about two recent decisions from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and one state-level proposal that would further limit the ability to screen job applicants here in Massachusetts.

Let’s start with the federal decisions. Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) protects employees who are engaged in “concerted activity for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection.” It applies to unionized and non-unionized workplaces alike, so long as the business falls under the jurisdiction of the NLRB.

In the last four years, the NLRB has issued three reports on the extent to which the act protects employees’ online statements, and earlier this year it decided two cases that between them answer some questions about how far employers can go in protecting their businesses from the damaging effects of employees’ social-media activities. The first case involves Facebook’s ‘like’ button.

What’s Not to Like?

Can a series of public, profanity-laced Facebook comments accusing the employer of incompetence and dishonesty constitute protected concerted activity? Yes, says the NLRB. What about clicking ‘like’ to show you approve of a comment-forming part of the discussion? Is that a protected Section 7 right? Yes, it can be.

Ralph DelBuono and Tommy Dadonna own Triple Play Sports Bar and Grille in Watertown, Conn. They produced an employee handbook that contained a policy about online conduct. The policy warned employees that they would be subject to disciplinary actions for engaging in “inappropriate [online] discussions about the company, management, and/or co-workers.”

In early 2011, Triple Play’s owners learned that some of their employees were worried that they might owe more in state taxes than anticipated, so DelBuono and Dadonna decided to call a staff meeting. A week or so before the scheduled staff meeting, a Facebook discussion took place, initiated by a former Triple Play employee, Jamie LaFrance. That online conversation led to a decision from the NLRB, Three D, LLC d/b/a Triple Play Sports Bar and Grille (Aug. 22, 2014).

By way of status update on Facebook, LaFrance alleged that Triple Play’s owners “can’t even do the paperwork correctly” and that, as a result, she owed taxes to the state. She concluded her status update with a profanity. A Triple Play customer posted a comment, which also included a profanity.

One current Triple Play employee, a cook named Vincent Spinella, then ‘liked’ LaFrance’s status update. LaFrance posted an additional statement about DelBuono, saying “he’s such a shady little man. He prolly [sic] pocketed it all from all our paychecks.” At that point Jillian Sanzone, a current Triple Play server and bartender, joined the conversation, stating “I owe too. Such an a—hole.” Two other Triple Play employees participated in the discussion as well.

The employers learned about the Facebook discussion and discharged Sanzone. After asking Spinella why he had ‘liked’ the status update, and concluding that he approved of the disparaging comments, they discharged him, too. Sanzone and Spinella took the matter to the NLRB.

An administrative-law judge decided that the Facebook discussion, including Spinella’s ‘like,’ was concerted activity and that the discharge of Sanzone and Spinella was unlawful. Triple Play appealed to the board, without success. Although the outcome was the same (the employer lost), the board differed from the judge as to which standard to apply in determining whether the comments forfeited protection under the act. In other words, the board agreed with the judge that the comments did not lose protection, but disagreed as to why.

Triple Play’s owners said the Facebook posts were disparaging and defamatory. But the board disagreed, deciding that the comments “did not even mention the respondent’s products or services, much less disparage them.” And although an employer has the right to protect its reputation, Sanzone’s and Spinella’s comments were “not so disloyal” as to lose the protection of the NLRA. Because they were posted on an individual’s Facebook page, the board held that the comments were not directed to the general public, but were more like a workplace conversation that “could potentially be overheard by a patron.”

So the first aspect of the case that employers should bear in mind is that Facebook discussions among non-unionized employees relating to work can constitute concerted activity, thereby bringing those employees’ statements within the protection of the NLRA.

Second, the NLRB does not consider Facebook discussions that flow from a status update to be directed at the general public. Would the situation be different if the discussion had started on a Facebook page with a link to a blog and then continued on the blog’s moderated thread? Perhaps. But for now, business owners need to remember that discussion on an individual’s Facebook page is not directed at the public in the eyes of the NLRB.

The third point concerns the reach of a ‘like’ on Facebook. The administrative-law judge had taken Spinella’s ‘like’ as approving of the discussion in its entirety, but the board concluded that it only meant he approved of the initial status update (i.e., “they can’t even do the [tax] paperwork correctly”). Had he been so inclined, Spinella could have ‘liked’ the additional disparaging comments separately, but he did not. When reviewing a contentious Facebook discussion, employers should bear this distinction in mind.

The final reason this case matters has to do with social-media policies. Unlike the administrative-law judge, the board found that the Internet/blogging policy’s language about “inappropriate discussions” was unlawful because it would tend to “chill employees in the exercise of their Section 7 rights.” The policy’s language was too broad, and the board ordered the owners to revise or rescind it.

The takeaway for employers? General statements that discourage inappropriate discussions are definitely out of favor with the NLRB, so your online/social-media policies might be in need of some changes.

Beacon of Hope

The second NLRB decision, Richmond District Neighborhood Center, 361 NLRB No. 74 (Oct. 28, 2014) displays a little more balance. The board ruled that the Facebook posts at issue did constitute concerted activity under Section 7, but were not entitled to protection. So the employer was allowed to withdraw its offer to rehire the posts’ authors.

The employer was a nonprofit in the business of providing after-school activities via the Beacon Teen Center at George Washington High School in San Francisco. The case concerned two of the center’s employees: Ian Callaghan, an activity leader, and Kenya Moore, a program leader. They seem to have been unhappy in their work and, judging by their plans for the coming school year, were intent on spreading the unhappiness around.

On Aug. 2, 2012, Callaghan expressed his dissatisfaction with the program being “happy-friendly-middle school campy,” and said he would “have parties all year” at the center, encourage the students to “graffiti up the walls,” and, more generally, “f— it up.” Moore’s comments were of a similar timbre: “F— em. Field trips all the time to wherever the f— we want,” and “when they start [losing] kids I ain’t helpin.” She also indicated that, in the year ahead, she would take the students to “clubs” and that her work attendance would be less than exemplary: “I ain’t never go[ing to] be there,” she stated (in all caps).

After seeing a screenshot of the discussion, the employer rescinded its offer to rehire the pair. So Callaghan and Moore filed a complaint with the NLRB, where the administrative judge, referring to the Facebook exchange, found that “these two employees were engaged in concerted activity when voicing their disagreement with management’s running of the teen center.”

If Callaghan and Moore had resumed their positions as activity leader and program leader, it seems fairly likely that the Beacon Teen Center would have been anything but “happy-friendly-middle school campy,” as Callaghan put it. So it is worth pausing at this point to reflect that, in the eyes of the judge, when two employees of a publicly funded after-school program, charged with the care of teenaged high-school students, expressed their intention to hold parties at the center, put graffiti on the walls, take the students away from the center on “field trips” (including trips to clubs of some kind) without informing anyone, and simply fail to show up for work, they were engaged in Section 7 concerted activity.

Fortunately for the employer — and for the students and their parents — although he deemed the discussion to be concerted activity, the judge also found that it was of such a character that the employer was allowed to consider the employees unfit for further service. He dismissed the case. The General Counsel of the NLRB, on the side of the employees, appealed to the full board, arguing that the Facebook posts “could not reasonably be understood as seriously proposing insubordinate conduct.” The board disagreed with the General Counsel and upheld the administrative judge’s finding that the posts had lost the act’s protection.

The final outcome of the Beacon Teen Center case may give employers some degree of hope for future NLRB decisions regarding potentially damaging social-network commentary. It serves as a reminder that there is, indeed, a line between protected concerted activity and concerted activity that is so egregious that it forfeits protection. Even if it does not demarcate that line clearly, at minimum, the case suggests that, if employees indicate on Facebook that they are going to jeopardize (a) child safety and welfare, and (b) program funding, it might just be permissible to discharge them.

On the other hand, it is important to bear in mind two points. First, even a discourse like the one authored by Callaghan and Moore can amount to concerted activity. Second, even after trial, the General Counsel of the NLRB took the position that the participants in that discussion (replete as it was with plans to render the teen center a chaotic danger zone) were not really proposing insubordinate activity.

State-level Development

In addition to noting the federal decisions, employers should keep an eye on a state-level proposal that might reappear when the Legislature assembles next January. If reintroduced and enacted, state Rep. Cheryl Coakley-Rivera’s bill from the last session, titled an “Act Relative to Social Network Privacy and Employment,” would add to the growing list of thou-shalt-nots. If the bill becomes law, employers would not be allowed to require that job applicants and current employees add the employer to their list of social-media contacts or grant the employer access to their networks.

One apparent concession to the rights and needs of business owners is the bill’s proviso that employers would not be prohibited from obtaining information about an applicant or employee that is “in the public domain.” That looks reassuring. But ‘public domain’ is a term with a precise legal meaning, and it applies to creative works whose copyright has expired. It is not a synonym for ‘publicly available.’ An applicant’s blog may be visible for all the world to see, but that does not strip it of copyright protection and put it in the public domain.

If this bill becomes law in its present form, a judge construing the exemption could conclude that the Legislature intended to allow employers to obtain only information that is in the public domain (i.e., not subject to copyright) and to prohibit employers from obtaining information that is not in the public domain (i.e., information subject to copyright). But most of the information an employer would be interested in reading is subject to copyright. This presents a serious problem.

Imagine an applicant’s blog that consists of screeds about various Massachusetts businesses and their customers. Unless the job applicant takes a conscious decision to dedicate the blog to the public domain, the applicant owns the copyright. Is the publicly accessible blog in the public domain? No. Because copyright attaches at the moment the author creates the work and lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years, there would be precious little online information that an employer could look at without falling foul of the statute.

If the “Act Relative to Social Network Privacy and Employment” is re-filed, it will merit serious attention from the Massachusetts business community.

Peter Vickery practices law in Amherst; (413) 549-9933; www.petervickery.com

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

White Creek Traders Inc., 611 Suffield St., Agawam, MA 01001. Jason Morris, same. Internet sales.

GRANBY

United Siding & Painting Inc., 82 Pleasant St., Granby MA 01033. Fabio Cardoso, same. Residential and commercial siding & painting.

HADLEY

Pioneer Power Inc., 83 Rocky Hill Road, Hadley, MA 01035. David Moskin, same. Retail sales.

River Valley Dental of South Hadley, P.C., 63 East St., Hadley, MA 01035.Babak Gojgini, 607 George Hannum Road, Belchertown, MA 01007. Dental office.

HOLYOKE

Sports Stuff Inc., 2255 Northampton St., Holyoke, MA 01040. Soo Hyun Yoo, 2255 Northampton,Holyoke, MA 01040. Retail shoe company.

LONGMEADOW

Off the Grid Solutions Inc., 208 Shaker Road, Longmeadow, MA 01106.Taylor Scyocurka, same. Engineering and engineering design services, utility metering and supply.

LUDLOW

Overeasy Inc., 17 Cedar St., Ludlow, MA 01056. Kelly Maureen Dias, same. Restaurant.

The Gomes Agency Inc., 364 East St., Ludlow, MA 01056. Miguel Gomes, same.Insurance broker.

NORTHAMPTON

Northampton Family Dentistry, P.C., 69 Bridge St., Northampton, MA 01060. Chulhwan Kim, D.M.D., same.Dental practice.

Tattoo Afterlife Mass Inc., 110 Pleasant St., Northampton, MA 01060. Matthew Olivieri, same. Tattooing, massage therapy, and retail sales.

Waralee Inc., 257 Main St., Northampton, MA 01060. Saowanee Deechanupong, 201 Grove St., Northampton, MA 01060. Full-service restaurant.

Wheel of Color Inc., 123 Main St., Northampton, MA 01060. John Thomas Baldwin,75 Ashfield St., Shelburne Falls, MA 01370. Interior and exterior paint contracting.

PITTSFIELD

Perspective Property Maintenance Inc., 295 Partridge Road, Pittsfield, MA 01201. Gene Shepard, same. Landscaping, and property maintenance.

Robert J. Boylston Inc., 152 North St., Suite 330, Pittsfield, MA 01201. Robert Boylston, 50 Tucker St., Lenox, MA 01201. Psychotherapy/social work.

Stenna Inc., 140 High St., Pittsfield, MA 01201. Senen Maruli, same. Limited food service.

United Educators of Pittsfield Inc., 188 East St., Pittsfield, MA 01201. Brendan Sheran, 62 Spadina Parkway, Pittsfield, MA 01201. Association established to support students, increase student academic achievement, protect employee rights, uphold high professional standards and advance economic well-being and improve the quality of public education.

Williams Elementary School, PTO Inc., 50 Bushey Road, Pittsfield, MA 01201. Ann Wildgoose, 77 Glory Dr., Pittsfield, MA 01201.

SPRINGFIELD

Primera Iglesia Cristiana Gedeones Del Senor Inc., 105 Jefferson Ave., Springfield, MA 01107. Ramonita Rodriguez, same. Independent church and place of worship.

TNT Promotions 22 Corporation, 66 Appleton St., Springfield, MA 01108. Guillermo Negron, same. Music, sports, radio show, recording music and magazine.

Upper State Street Community Development Corporation, 471 Wilbraham Road, Springfield, MA 01109. Glenrose Tamesar, same.

Vido Foods Inc., 326 St., James Ave., Springfield, MA 01129. Reino Muesus, 53 Haskins St., Springfield, MA 01109. Business engaged in the preparation and distribution of traditional and non-traditional food among others, Caribbean ethnic.

WEST SPRINGFIELD

Parra-Dise Inc., 97 Adrian Ave., West Springfield, MA 01089. Gustavo Parra, same. Independent broker business.

The JGM Group Inc., 901 Prospect Ave., West Springfield, MA 01089. Joseph Malkoon, same. Food-brokerage business.

ZQHW Corp., 83 Therese Marie Lane, West Springfield, MA 01089. Zahoor Mian, same. Convenience store and gas station.

WILBRAHAM

Neighborhood Pizza Inc. 2481 Boston Road, Wilbraham, MA 01095. Ilyas Yanbul, 82 Bluebird Circle, Ludlow, MA 01056. Pizza restaurant.

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

512 Bald Mountain Road
Bernardston, MA 01337
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Allison E. Page
Seller: Thomas P. Owen
Date: 10/24/14

BUCKLAND

25 North St.
Buckland, MA 01339
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Jody P. James
Seller: Carolyn V. Boyer
Date: 10/28/14

CHARLEMONT

207 Main St.
Charlemont, MA 01339
Amount: $166,000
Buyer: Jennifer L. Lagoy
Seller: JJ Smith Properties LLC
Date: 10/24/14

93 Warfield Road
Charlemont, MA 01339
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Samuel B. Smith
Seller: Nancy Kittelsen
Date: 10/24/14

CONWAY

86 Main St.
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Jim D. Moore
Seller: Paula L. Olson
Date: 10/31/14

64 Mathews Road
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $350,000
Buyer: David R. Mazur
Seller: A. P. Kari
Date: 10/30/14

420 Mathews Road
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $239,000
Buyer: Andrew P. Soles
Seller: Raymond E. Perkins
Date: 10/23/14

800 Roaring Brook Road
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $305,000
Buyer: Dick L. McLeester
Seller: Nancy T. Winter RET
Date: 10/31/14

DEERFIELD

17 Braeburn Road
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $267,000
Buyer: Catherine A. Carulli
Seller: Kathleen D. Johnston
Date: 10/31/14

139 Lower Road
Deerfield, MA 01342
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: John G. Savage Realty Corp
Seller: Hassay, Agnes B., (Estate)
Date: 10/31/14

27 North Hillside Road
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $224,000
Buyer: Francis G. Sobieski
Seller: David A. Rohrs
Date: 10/29/14

341 Pine Nook Road
Deerfield, MA 01342
Amount: $221,888
Buyer: David Ilsley
Seller: William B. McIlvaine
Date: 10/31/14

249 River Road
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $360,000
Buyer: Norma S. Friedman
Seller: Daniel F. Graves
Date: 10/24/14

48 South Mill River Road
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Florence E. Howes
Seller: Boron LT
Date: 10/27/14

ERVING

16 Flagg Hill
Erving, MA 01344
Amount: $179,900
Buyer: Curtis R. Brunelle
Seller: Craig D. Moore
Date: 10/24/14

58 High St.
Erving, MA 01344
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: James M. Hackett
Seller: Elizabeth A. Hackett
Date: 10/29/14

GILL

33 Atherton Road
Gill, MA 01354
Amount: $154,000
Buyer: Elizabeth L. Girard
Seller: Raymond E. Purington
Date: 10/31/14

25 Green Hill Road
Gill, MA 01354
Amount: $600,000
Buyer: Laura M. Wiancko
Seller: Mackin, Helen, (Estate)
Date: 08/01/14

GREENFIELD

62 Barton Road
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: Daniel P. Goepp
Seller: Beatrice S. Clair
Date: 10/24/14

525 Bernardston Road
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $640,000
Buyer: 525 Bernardston Road LLC
Seller: Mass. Non Elective Credit TR
Date: 10/31/14

366 Davis St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: Andrew Babits
Seller: Allison E. Page
Date: 10/24/14

10 Euclid Ave.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Fawn M. Howe
Seller: David W. Britt
Date: 10/24/14

32 Fargo St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $286,000
Buyer: Alexander J. Duda
Seller: Eunice N. Kugell RET
Date: 10/30/14

63 Haywood St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $187,000
Buyer: John Bottomley
Seller: David E. Moscaritolo
Date: 10/28/14

576 Leyden Road
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $234,000
Buyer: Bryan G. Hobbs
Seller: Albrecht H. Kummerle
Date: 10/30/14

164 Log Plain Road
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $178,000
Buyer: John P. Markoski
Seller: Jerry A. Gaimari
Date: 10/29/14

22 Quincy St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Thomas L. Wilkinson
Seller: Aaron J. Sawyer
Date: 10/30/14

90 Vernon St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Mary I. Fiske
Seller: Scott D. Collins
Date: 10/31/14

3 Woodbine St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $159,000
Buyer: Angela Recchia
Seller: Dick J. McLeester
Date: 10/31/14

HAWLEY

26 Forget Road
Hawley, MA 01339
Amount: $268,000
Buyer: Holly B. Steward
Seller: Jade L. Mortimer
Date: 10/22/14

59 Middle Road
Hawley, MA 01339
Amount: $208,000
Buyer: William C. Cosby
Seller: Singing Brook Farm TR
Date: 10/24/14

MONTAGUE

127 Chestnut Hill Loop
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $237,500
Buyer: Sandy J. Beauregard
Seller: Thomas F. Schiff
Date: 10/30/14

118 Federal St.
Montague, MA 01349
Amount: $218,000
Buyer: Michelle D. Demers
Seller: Chris Roberts
Date: 10/29/14

517 Federal St.
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Deerfield Valley Management Trust
Seller: Teri M. Martineault
Date: 10/21/14

224 Greenfield Road
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $171,000
Buyer: Daniel M. Bartos
Seller: Stanley E. Noga
Date: 10/29/14

53 Randall Wood Dr.
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $223,500
Buyer: Steven A. Hawkins
Seller: William A. Shattuck
Date: 10/30/14

NORTHFIELD

13 Ferncliff Ave.
Northfield, MA 01360
Amount: $137,000
Buyer: Arthur W. Davis
Seller: Suzanne M. Travisano
Date: 10/24/14

112 Main St.
Northfield, MA 01360
Amount: $320,000
Buyer: George M. Larue
Seller: Michelle C. Minter
Date: 10/22/14

ORANGE

3 Converse Road
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $285,000
Buyer: Maureen F. Polana
Seller: Schwab, Mary L., (Estate)
Date: 10/27/14

153 Dana Road
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Robert J. Zajac
Seller: Paul G. Duffell
Date: 10/31/14

800 Pine Hill Road
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Zachary McBride
Seller: Darcy R. Flynn
Date: 10/24/14

91 Sandrah Dr.
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Samantha North
Seller: Keith S. Holden
Date: 10/31/14

ROWE

112 Ford Hill Road
Rowe, MA 01367
Amount: $220,200
Buyer: Alexandra R. Reisman
Seller: James M. Wootton
Date: 10/30/14

29 Potter Road
Amount: $328,000
Buyer: Cynthia L. Stetson
Seller: Audrey I. Faivre
Date: 10/22/14

SHELBURNE

121 Bridge St.
Shelburne, MA 01370
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Timothy J. Richardson
Seller: Joseph F. Palmeri
Date: 10/27/14

SHUTESBURY

399 Leverett Road
Shutesbury, MA 01072
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Russell P. Mizula
Seller: Deerfield Valley Management Trust
Date: 10/30/14

SUNDERLAND

120 North Main St.
Sunderland, MA 01375
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Town of Sunderland
Seller: Sophie M. Buczynski
Date: 10/29/14

70 North Silver Lane
Sunderland, MA 01375
Amount: $230,500
Buyer: Daniel F. Cicia
Seller: Alfred R. Lamountain
Date: 10/24/14

WHATELY

Masterson Road (ES)
Whately, MA 01093
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: FS RT
Seller: Steven R. Hannum TR
Date: 10/24/14

Masterson Road #6
Whately, MA 01093
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Stacy R. Ashton
Seller: Trust Indenture
Date: 10/29/14

215 River Road
Whately, MA 01093
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: James M. Pasiecnik
Seller: Lorri L. Jorgensen

HAMPDEN COUNTY

AGAWAM

68 Birch Hill Road
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $359,900
Buyer: Mark B. Vye
Seller: Derek H. Egerton
Date: 10/20/14

14 Farmington Circle
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $377,000
Buyer: Mary Millimet RET
Seller: Hillside Development Corp.
Date: 10/31/14

127 Katherine Dr.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Mi Wheat
Seller: Gary M. Matroni
Date: 10/29/14

4 Memory Lane
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $332,000
Buyer: Gregory M. Caputo
Seller: David B. O’Neill
Date: 10/28/14

49 Morningside Circle
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $286,000
Buyer: Dmitriy Shlemanov
Seller: Frank E. Disco
Date: 10/24/14

68 Parkview Dr.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $246,000
Buyer: Matthew A. Pacinella
Seller: Gregory M. Caputo
Date: 10/28/14

76 Pineview Circle
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $276,400
Buyer: David L. Aldrich
Seller: James J. Sikora
Date: 10/24/14

51 Robin Ridge Dr.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $214,900
Buyer: Harriet R. Lawton
Seller: FHLM
Date: 10/24/14

394 Springfield St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: VIP Homes & Associates LLC
Seller: Schulze, Germaine A., (Estate)
Date: 10/28/14

156 Suffield St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $2,775,000
Buyer: Legacy RT
Seller: GP Apartments LLC
Date: 10/30/14

Washington Ave. #A-D
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $2,775,000
Buyer: Legacy RT
Seller: GP Apartments LLC
Date: 10/30/14

BLANDFORD

41 North Blandford Road
Blandford, MA 01008
Amount: $274,000
Buyer: Eric B. Mcvey
Seller: Darlene F. Horne
Date: 10/23/14

BRIMFIELD

55 Dix Hill Road
Brimfield, MA 01010
Amount: $214,900
Buyer: Keith Vieweg
Seller: Sarah A. Parker
Date: 10/31/14

56 Haynes Hill Road
Amount: $278,000
Buyer: Thomas M. Williams
Seller: Fountain & Sons Fuel Co. Inc.
Date: 10/31/14

CHESTER

74 Kinnebrook Road
Chester, MA 01011
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Douglas L. Rockwell
Seller: Steven A. Stroud
Date: 10/29/14

CHICOPEE

149 Casey Dr.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $191,000
Buyer: Neonita M. Yeaple
Seller: Michael G. Harris
Date: 10/28/14

63 Chapel St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $168,900
Buyer: Willie D. McCollaum
Seller: Bennett Properties LLC
Date: 10/23/14

12 Columba St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Frank A. Demarinis
Seller: Christopher Pawlikowski
Date: 10/24/14

134 Gilbert Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Hector R. Gonzalez
Seller: Daniel R. Godbout
Date: 10/31/14

1193 Granby Road
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $7,769,000
Buyer: ARCP WA Chicopee MA LLC
Seller: Ogden MA LLC
Date: 10/31/14

541 Grattan St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: William J. Beynor
Seller: Lucille A. Dubois
Date: 10/31/14

71 Kaveney St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $254,000
Buyer: Shawn C. Roberts
Seller: Christine M. Filiau
Date: 10/27/14

12 Loretta Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Kirill I. Zenchenko
Seller: Edmund Stlaurent
Date: 10/30/14

127 Lukasik St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Matthew J. Kele
Seller: Wyllie, Nancy E., (Estate)

91 Mountainview St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Timothy J. Dupuis
Seller: Frances S. Cahalan
Date: 10/31/14

56 Ogden St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $144,900
Buyer: Scott E. Early
Seller: Inna Boyko
Date: 10/24/14

134 Polaski Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $131,200
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank
Seller: Dorothy Weber
Date: 10/23/14

169 Poplar St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: Krzysztof Dziegielewski
Seller: Ferdynand Dziegielewski
Date: 10/30/14

16 Sanford St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Liena Mor
Seller: Tod R. Noftall
Date: 10/31/14

147 Skeele St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $138,000
Buyer: John R. Damato
Seller: Edward P. Gay
Date: 10/28/14

96 Walnut St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $117,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Ran D. Booth
Date: 10/27/14

128 Wheatland Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $180,400
Buyer: MKAA LLC
Seller: Edward S. Bury
Date: 10/28/14

48 Woodcrest Circle
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $126,000
Buyer: Brendan D. Crandall
Seller: Patricia Scanlon
Date: 10/23/14

73 Wymanlea Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $162,500
Buyer: Triple JCD LLC
Seller: Charlene Stoyak
Date: 10/30/14

EAST LONGMEADOW

37 Frankwyn St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $187,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Lisa C. Finn
Date: 10/27/14

74 Indian Spring Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $269,900
Buyer: Paul S. Brewster
Seller: David R. Mazur
Date: 10/30/14

4 Hedgerow Lane
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $239,900
Buyer: Dorothy M. Joseph
Seller: Timber Development LLC
Date: 10/23/14

35 High Pine Circle
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $342,000
Buyer: David M. Ference
Seller: Jeffrey D. Leclair
Date: 10/24/14

Pease Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Dennis A. Chaffee
Seller: Ronald I. Goldstein
Date: 10/23/14

121 Westwood Ave.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Christopher R. Driscoll
Seller: Mary E. Kostorizos
Date: 10/30/14

GRANVILLE

81 Granby Road
Granville, MA 01034
Amount: $172,200
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank
Seller: Thomas F. Alamed
Date: 10/28/14

HAMPDEN

8 East Brook Dr.
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $372,500
Buyer: Frank Morello
Seller: Peter C. James
Date: 10/31/14

32 Oak Knoll Dr.
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $206,400
Buyer: Craig A. Forni
Seller: Gordon E. Clark
Date: 10/31/14

19 Tall Pines Road #19
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $326,500
Seller: BB Holdings 2 LLC
Date: 10/24/14

HOLYOKE

8 Bayberry Dr.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $169,000
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Jennifer L. Dowland
Date: 10/28/14

11 Brenan St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $174,000
Buyer: Marcia Russell
Seller: Edward H. Riel
Date: 10/30/14

6 Brenan St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $178,000
Buyer: Susan Yelle
Seller: Kathleen M. Costello
Date: 10/31/14

190 Chestnut St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $9,432,354
Buyer: PNC Bank
Seller: Melvin N. Caballero
Date: 10/20/14

11 Claren Dr.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $150,368
Buyer: Midfirst Bank
Seller: Raymond A. Cote
Date: 10/23/14

21 Glen St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Caelin M. Aklais
Seller: Michael S. Lesniak
Date: 10/31/14

Nonotuck St. (rear)
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: Joseph H. Ely
Seller: 329 Beech Street LLC
Date: 10/31/14

25 Orchard St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $173,000
Buyer: Sofia Lemons
Seller: Jill Gagne
Date: 10/27/14

15 Park Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Deborah L. Willis
Seller: Nancy Kennedy
Date: 10/29/14

109 Ridgewood Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Danielle R. Dallaquila
Seller: John A. Magri
Date: 10/29/14

21 Saint James Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Francisco Marrero
Seller: Russell A. Sprague
Date: 10/31/14

9 Vassar Circle
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $274,000
Buyer: William J. Cubi
Seller: Barowsky, Norma J., (Estate)
Date: 10/30/14

LONGMEADOW

46 Cheshire Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $398,750
Buyer: Joseph W. Furnari
Seller: Diana M. Abbasy
Date: 10/29/14

223 Kenmore Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Keith S. Maynard
Seller: Apex Inc.
Date: 10/21/14

113 Longmeadow St.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $278,000
Buyer: Bruce L. Morin
Seller: Stephen J. Murphy
Date: 10/29/14

104 Osceola Lane
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $778,166
Buyer: Hershal Patel
Seller: Sodi Inc.
Date: 10/24/14

43 Severn St.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $330,000
Buyer: Ellen Humphreys
Seller: Philip C. Steiger
Date: 10/31/14

59 South Ave.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $183,000
Buyer: David A. Lenn
Seller: Nancy J. Burns
Date: 10/30/14

68 Willow Brook Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $309,000
Buyer: Willow Realty LLC
Seller: Edward F. Szela
Date: 10/27/14

LUDLOW

21 Batista Circle
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $267,000
Buyer: Erik McKeone
Seller: Wayne N. Lafleur
Date: 10/30/14

148 Cislak Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $655,000
Buyer: Jeremy J. Procon
Seller: Ann L. Morello
Date: 10/31/14

80 Davis St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $220,545
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Andrew Robert
Date: 10/29/14

5 Green St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Michael P. McGrath
Seller: Etta H. Sergneri
Date: 10/24/14

59 Meadow St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $160,500
Buyer: Kevin P. Geissler
Seller: Krystal A. Cortinhas
Date: 10/24/14

42 Jestina Circle
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $365,000
Buyer: Wayne N. Lafleur
Seller: Christopher J. Dias
Date: 10/30/14

155 Lakeview Ave.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Steven W. Balicki
Seller: Goncalves, Maria F., (Estate)
Date: 10/31/14

7 Parker Lane
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $260,000
Buyer: James C. Wyllie
Seller: USA HUD
Date: 10/31/14

66 Ridgeview Circle
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $141,000
Buyer: Anthony J. Elias
Seller: Robert H. Hickey
Date: 10/28/14

180 Southwood Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $500,000
Buyer: Jessica Salema
Seller: Peter D. Martins
Date: 10/20/14

67 Valley View Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $355,000
Buyer: Carmine M. Keane
Seller: Debra K. Stacy
Date: 10/31/14

142 Wedgewood Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $272,000
Buyer: Timothy D. Rego
Seller: John R. Davis
Date: 10/24/14

105 West Ave.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $143,000
Buyer: Walter A. Lorenz
Seller: Gretchen E. Moos
Date: 10/27/14

149 Wilno Ave.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Alicinio Martins
Seller: Corine A. Thompson
Date: 10/31/14

MONSON

72 Bradway Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $277,500
Buyer: Timothy B. Gregoire
Seller: Donald J. Grimaldi
Date: 10/31/14

21 Bunyan Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Richard A. Lombardo
Seller: USA
Date: 10/27/14

356 Main St.
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Tina M. McBee
Seller: John J. Bish
Date: 10/28/14

53 Nieske Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $229,000
Buyer: John J. Maloney
Seller: Steven D. Fontaine
Date: 10/31/14

126 Upper Hampden Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $287,500
Buyer: Martin R. Bolduc
Seller: Thomas A. Wood
Date: 10/31/14

98 Wilbraham Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: Michael S. Kazalis
Seller: Gregory J. Hall
Date: 10/28/14

PALMER

55-69 Belanger St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $340,000
Buyer: Remlap Rentals LLC
Seller: C. K. Scott LLC
Date: 10/23/14

88 Longview St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $179,000
Buyer: Joshua J. Gagnon
Seller: Roy M. St.George
Date: 10/31/14

2090-2092 Main St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Remlap Rentals LLC
Seller: Clifford J. Scott
Date: 10/23/14

2094-A Main St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Remlap Rentals LLC
Seller: Clifford J. Scott
Date: 10/23/14

81 Mount Dumplin Road
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $186,000
Buyer: Ryan A. Dias
Seller: Sergio A. Dias
Date: 10/31/14

120 Peterson Road
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Christyna A. Rioux
Seller: Kenneth L. Mongeau
Date: 10/21/14

3064 Pine St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $133,000
Buyer: Richard T. Wells
Seller: Divina Urena
Date: 10/29/14

SPRINGFIELD

199 Acrebrook Road
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $166,000
Buyer: Oleg Atayan
Seller: Fannie Sophinos
Date: 10/27/14

100 Aldrew Terrace
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $127,000
Buyer: John L. Viens
Seller: Richard B. Francis
Date: 10/31/14

28 Austin St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $400,000
Buyer: Teodoro R. Cruz
Seller: West Meadow Homes Inc.
Date: 10/21/14

814 Belmont Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Chhabi Pathak
Seller: DB Properties LLC
Date: 10/31/14

95 Briggs St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Ileana Garcia
Seller: Grahams Construction Inc.
Date: 10/22/14

60 Clement St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $134,000
Buyer: Paul V. Allard
Seller: Anthony A. Bocchino
Date: 10/31/14

24-26 Commonwealth Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $167,000
Buyer: Dawa W. Tamang
Seller: Thomas W. Cuzzone
Date: 10/22/14

24 Cunningham St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $133,320
Buyer: Maureen Rehbein
Seller: Alexis A. Majka
Date: 10/22/14

246 Dutchess St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Buyer: Lisa P. Kallaugher
Seller: Surtan Realty LLP
Date: 10/24/14

8-10 Enfield St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $140,000
Seller: Anthony J. Nowak
Date: 10/27/14

119 Fenway Dr.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $162,000
Buyer: Luis E. Diaz
Seller: Robert P. Doty
Date: 10/24/14

127-129 Fountain St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $169,000
Buyer: Cristhian B. Vasquez
Seller: Phuong Nguyen
Date: 10/31/14

287 Fountain St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Cherrie L. Mahmoud
Seller: Shirley A. Ford
Date: 10/31/14

143 Groveland St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $138,081
Buyer: Bayview Loan Servicing
Seller: Carrie Schaub
Date: 10/30/14

152 Harkness Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $127,500
Buyer: Tsering Lhamo
Seller: Value Properties LLC
Date: 10/27/14

27 Health Ave.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $142,500
Buyer: Luis A. Cruz
Seller: Shawn Carleton
Date: 10/24/14

39 Hermitage Dr.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Emilio Sanchez
Seller: Delois F. Swan
Date: 10/31/14

44 Howes St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $132,000
Buyer: Nathan Ladlee
Seller: Gabrielle Agron
Date: 10/31/14

63 Kipling St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $189,000
Buyer: Mark J. Hawkins
Seller: Christine Gula
Date: 10/31/14

231 Louis Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $149,900
Buyer: Virgilio Garcia
Seller: Cindy Valerio
Date: 10/21/14

20 Mandalay Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $168,750
Buyer: Alan B. Magill
Seller: Laurence P. Brandoli
Date: 10/31/14

77 Methuen St.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $116,505
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Eugenia Caraballo
Date: 10/23/14

74 Mildred Ave.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: Javires M. Colon
Seller: Timothy J. Rahilly
Date: 10/24/14

225 Oakland St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $260,000
Buyer: MJT Properties LLC
Seller: Oak Ridge Custom Home
Date: 10/24/14

47 Palmyra St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $132,000
Buyer: Shirley L. Spencer
Seller: Michael D. Thomas
Date: 10/22/14

119 Park Road
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Meraliss Velazquez
Seller: Robert F. Filipiak
Date: 10/31/14

104 Parkside St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $127,000
Buyer: Pedro Arenas
Seller: Elsa Dones
Date: 10/28/14

146 Paulk Terrace
Springfield, MA 01128
Amount: $182,000
Buyer: Ian M. Mancini
Seller: Jason D. Sylvester
Date: 10/29/14

120 Pinecrest Dr.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Laura M. Acerra
Seller: Lucien J. Demers
Date: 10/27/14

55 Ramblewood Dr.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $149,900
Buyer: Siha Sok
Seller: Stanley Tolpa
Date: 10/23/14

83 Ridgewood Terrace
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $212,000
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Anne B. Bell
Date: 10/30/14

25 Riverview Terrace
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $253,000
Buyer: Kerri Saucier
Seller: Paul Depelteau
Date: 10/28/14

30 Rosedale Ave.
Springfield, MA 01128
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Jack A. Ohlemacher
Seller: Beatrice U. Rancore
Date: 10/30/14

53 Rosella St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $224,000
Buyer: Robert F. Schmidt
Seller: Elizabeth A. Staggs
Date: 10/31/14

151 Saffron Circle
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $168,900
Buyer: Bob L. Daniels
Seller: Taryn Markham
Date: 10/30/14

152-154 Santa Barbara St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $152,500
Buyer: Luis R. Torres-Ortiz
Seller: Abigail Alers
Date: 10/24/14

43 Sargon St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $119,000
Buyer: Robert D. Gaspari
Seller: John J. Maloney
Date: 10/31/14

691 State St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: MS Homes LLC
Seller: CF SBC REO LLC
Date: 10/24/14

70 Sunset Dr.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $181,382
Buyer: DLJ Mortgage Capital Inc.
Seller: Rafael R. Santana
Date: 10/23/14

78 Thorndyke St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $167,500
Buyer: Victor Colon
Seller: Lisa D. Richardson-Gomes
Date: 10/31/14

25 Tioga St.
Springfield, MA 01128
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Mark S. Flood
Seller: Marshall Harris
Date: 10/31/14

35 Trillium St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $134,526
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Nicole Moody
Date: 10/28/14

69 Upland St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $142,600
Buyer: Sue A. Ho-Sang
Seller: Gilbert F. Gordon
Date: 10/31/14

46 Wachusett St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Darwin Rivera
Seller: DAG Real Estate Development Inc.
Date: 10/31/14

SOUTHWICK

21 Feeding Hills Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Megan Cammisa
Seller: Raymond A. Ouellette
Date: 10/30/14

6 Jeffrey Circle
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $197,000
Buyer: Carmen L. Marquez
Seller: Edward C. Hildreth
Date: 10/31/14

69 Lakeview St.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Mark W. Blackmer
Date: 10/31/14

358 North Loomis St.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Lauren Kendzierski
Seller: Roger E. Hughes
Date: 10/28/14

11 Pine Knoll
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $389,000
Buyer: Craig A. Johnsen
Seller: Michael J. Rauza
Date: 10/31/14

210 Sheep Pasture Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $187,827
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Veronica L. Dearden
Date: 10/28/14

108 South Loomis St.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Matthew J. Pomeroy
Seller: Seth W. Pomeroy
Date: 10/22/14

26 Shirley Terrace
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $216,000
Buyer: Jessica L. Gilbert
Seller: Adam R. Hart
Date: 10/23/14

TOLLAND

307 Jeff Miller Road
Tolland, MA 01034
Amount: $223,800
Buyer: Ryan A. Michonski
Seller: Robert Franchino
Date: 10/31/14

WEST SPRINGFIELD

64 Ashley St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $158,000
Buyer: Pavel Banaru
Seller: Louis H. Beauvais
Date: 10/30/14

39 Baldwin St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $138,000
Buyer: Elida Gashi
Seller: Richard Williams
Date: 10/31/14

36 Blossom Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Kathleen M. McDonagh
Seller: Lizanne Campanini
Date: 10/30/14

34-38 Elmdale St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Constantin Enciu
Seller: Cesare R. Ferrari
Date: 10/31/14

44 Hillside Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Cassandra Ardizoni
Seller: Patrick J. Lynch
Date: 10/31/14

222 Kings Hwy.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Jose M. Perez
Seller: Elizabeth A. Staltare
Date: 10/30/14

21 Lynne Dr.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $242,500
Buyer: Jason Boutet
Seller: Robert A. Swanson
Date: 10/29/14

47 Mosher St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $147,000
Buyer: Jason R. Vandeusen
Seller: Lindsey G. Brynjolfsson
Date: 10/30/14

95 Ohio Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $335,000
Buyer: Edward P. Czeremcha
Seller: Jeffrey W. Puffer
Date: 10/22/14

112 Orchardview St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Kristen N. Montville
Seller: Mark A. Lamy
Date: 10/24/14

36 Orchardview St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $167,000
Buyer: Benjamin J. Crum
Seller: David L. Aldrich
Date: 10/24/14

44 Talcott Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $196,600
Buyer: Melissa Deslauriers
Seller: Conlin, Barbara A., (Estate)
Date: 10/27/14

WESTFIELD

10 Belden Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $339,900
Buyer: Matthew T. Vanheynigen
Seller: Long, Theresa A., (Estate)
Date: 10/24/14

288 Elm St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $425,000
Buyer: Siddhi Vinayak Corp.
Seller: Leemilts Petroleum Inc.
Date: 10/31/14

18 Fowler Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Sergey Markevich
Seller: Susan M. Oleksak
Date: 10/24/14

351 Hillside Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Peter M. Ulias
Seller: Maurice S. Erwin
Date: 10/31/14

56 Jefferson St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Double D. Investments LLC
Seller: Lynn A. Chrzanowski
Date: 10/30/14

44 Llewellyn Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $324,000
Buyer: Edward F. Wienckowski
Seller: Bruce E. Armstrong
Date: 10/24/14

24 Loring Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Dana A. Gronbeck
Seller: Roy E. Tatro
Date: 10/31/14

9 Paper St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $195,000
Buyer: Jefford A. Barnes
Seller: Lawrence S. Trinceri
Date: 10/24/14

193 Peach St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $214,188
Buyer: Kimberly A. Landry
Seller: James N. McElroy

107 Pineridge Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $306,600
Buyer: Eric L. Breault
Seller: Dana A. Gronbeck
Date: 10/31/14

39 Pochassic St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $147,500
Buyer: Edward M. Tosado
Seller: Martin E. Newman
Date: 10/24/14

140 Pontoosic Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Kenneth A. Pelletier
Seller: Matthew A. Pacinella
Date: 10/28/14

53 Putnam Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $172,500
Buyer: Jeffrey A. Thomson
Seller: Peter J. Miller
Date: 10/24/14

25 Ridgeway Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $161,000
Buyer: Stephan K. Dickinson
Seller: Andrew J. Pavlica
Date: 10/24/14

44 Sabrina Brooke Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $375,000
Buyer: Jason A. Lavallee
Seller: John M. Tierney
Date: 10/31/14

12 Winding Ridge Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $414,900
Buyer: Gerard J. Sokop
Seller: Norman E. Wroblewski
Date: 10/20/14

7 Woodland Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $350,000
Buyer: Nancy J. Bals
Seller: Jon M. Schultz
Date: 10/30/14

31 Woodside Terrace
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Edward J. Fournier
Seller: Patricia A. Cray
Date: 10/31/14

WILBRAHAM

1126 Glendale Road
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Jason P. Keegan
Seller: Linda S. Hall
Date: 10/24/14

28 Grassy Meadow Road
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $222,500
Buyer: Kimberly Ross
Seller: Claudette Desanctis
Date: 10/28/14

7 Ladd Lane
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $311,000
Buyer: Bart Soar
Seller: Stanley Kogut
Date: 10/31/14

509 Main St.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Brett F. Johnson
Seller: Claire E. Fredette
Date: 10/31/14

12 Mcintosh Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $315,000
Buyer: Tina M. Carnevale
Seller: David D. Patterson
Date: 10/29/14

17 Millbrook Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $235,000
Buyer: Taryn Siciliano
Seller: FHLM
Date: 10/30/14

6 Stirling Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $235,000
Buyer: Kenneth C. Byers
Seller: Patrick F. McComb
Date: 10/30/14

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY

AMHERST

181 Aubinwood Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Mazen Naous
Seller: Catherine E. Manicke
Date: 10/29/14

44 Dennis Dr.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $216,000
Buyer: Corey B. Kurtz
Seller: Kathleen I. Dyer
Date: 10/23/14

9 Hedgerow Lane
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $369,000
Buyer: Brian E. Messier
Seller: David R. Salvage
Date: 10/30/14

7 Laurel Lane
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Hampshire Property Management
Seller: Kornorfer, Raymond H., (Estate)
Date: 10/23/14

86 Northampton Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $436,000
Buyer: Amherst College
Seller: Daniel P. Barbezat
Date: 10/30/14

340 Potwine Lane
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $272,000
Buyer: Peter M. Levy
Seller: Robert A. Cooke
Date: 10/30/14

616 Station Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $445,000
Buyer: David R. Salvage
Seller: Elliott N. Fortescue
Date: 10/30/14

BELCHERTOWN

12 Clark St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $260,000
Buyer: Steven D. Fontaine
Date: 10/31/14

26 Clark St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Alicia B. Agoglia
Seller: Bethany K. Bowman
Date: 10/27/14

178 Federal St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Darkar LLC
Seller: Manx LLC
Date: 10/28/14

61 Federal St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Jackson Brothers Property Management
Seller: Peter S. Galuszka
Date: 10/27/14

130 Gold St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $177,250
Buyer: Edward B. Tick
Seller: Joshua D. Burkett
Date: 10/31/14

9 Howe St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $237,000
Buyer: Molly W. Fenton
Seller: Kenneth R. Chaisson
Date: 10/24/14

14 Ledgewood Circle
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Walter J. Rose
Seller: Larry D. Unwin
Date: 10/22/14

7 Rural Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $170,600
Buyer: Thomas J. Tonelli
Seller: Property Edge LLC
Date: 10/30/14

22 South Main St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $279,000
Buyer: Joseph R. Bowman
Seller: Christopher Agoglia
Date: 10/27/14

121 Stebbins St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: David M. Arbour
Seller: James A. Ribeiro
Date: 10/24/14

127 Turkey Hill Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: John H. Bickford
Seller: David Wilson
Date: 10/29/14

CUMMINGTON

247 Stage Road
Cummington, MA 01026
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: Elizabeth E. Kapitulik
Seller: David E. Gowdy
Date: 10/30/14

EASTHAMPTON

1 Autumn Dr.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $359,900
Buyer: Jason Curtis
Seller: Melissa L. Coyle
Date: 10/20/14

9 Camelot Lane
Amount: $320,000
Buyer: Alan C. Borowski
Seller: Bartlett, Russell P., (Estate)
Date: 10/30/14

4 Gaugh St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $197,500
Buyer: Budlia LLC
Seller: Jaime M. Caplis
Date: 10/24/14

2 Grove St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Thomas W. Brown
Seller: Robert J. Labonte
Date: 10/31/14

157 Hendrick St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $330,000
Buyer: Nancy A. Ogulewicz
Seller: David M. Lepine
Date: 10/24/14

20 Mayher St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $199,900
Buyer: Nicholas J. Schwab
Date: 10/21/14

24 Mill St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $552,500
Buyer: James C. Seltzer
Seller: Chester R. Torrey
Date: 10/22/14

222 Park St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Molly Montgomery
Seller: Charles G. Cernak
Date: 10/31/14

52 Phelps St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $203,000
Buyer: April Yvon
Seller: Timothy J. Dowgiert
Date: 10/31/14

9 Taft Ave.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $269,000
Buyer: Alysa Austin
Seller: Laura A. Tilsley
Date: 10/24/14

29 Treehouse Circle
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $251,000
Buyer: Jonathan D. Cartledge
Seller: EH Homeownership LLC
Date: 10/30/14

HADLEY

15 Stockwell Road
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $148,500
Buyer: Manuel T. Morocho
Seller: Schick, Karl D., (Estate)
Date: 10/29/14

HATFIELD

11 Pleasant View Dr.
Hatfield, MA 01038
Amount: $389,900
Buyer: Dennon A. Rodrigue
Seller: Gerard J. Sokop
Date: 10/20/14

HUNTINGTON

80 County Road
Huntington, MA 01050
Amount: $282,500
Buyer: Carole J. Bihler
Seller: Allison T. Flynn
Date: 10/24/14

46 Harlow Clark Road
Huntington, MA 01050
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Luke Leszczynski
Seller: FNMA
Date: 10/24/14

61 Searle Road
Huntington, MA 01050
Amount: $216,500
Buyer: Chrisoula Marangoudakis
Seller: Kyle Colby
Date: 10/31/14

NORTHAMPTON

10 Bright Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $195,000
Buyer: Michelle L. Squires
Seller: Vivian M. Eastman
Date: 10/31/14

Easthampton Road
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $387,500
Buyer: City Of Northampton
Seller: Carol Hewes
Date: 10/24/14

33 Emerson Way
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Susan H. Angier
Seller: Emerson Way LLC
Date: 10/23/14

141 Fair St., Ext
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Laurel Carangelo
Seller: Marcia Russell
Date: 10/30/14

65 Ford Xing
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $563,810
Buyer: Ivana M. Liebert
Seller: Kent Pecoy & Sons Construction
Date: 10/24/14

18 Laurel Park
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: 35 State St. LLC
Seller: David R. Baker
Date: 10/31/14

46 Laurel Park
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $159,500
Buyer: Todd Wilsey
Seller: Laurie Scanlon
Date: 10/22/14

38 Matthew Dr.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Chanbona Er
Seller: Matthew R. Marchand
Date: 10/31/14

123 Moser St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $433,931
Buyer: Lora M. Hodges
Seller: Kent Pecoy & Sons Construction
Date: 10/29/14

14 Murphy Terrace
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $123,000
Buyer: Sherry L. Taylor
Seller: Elizabeth M. Mongeau
Date: 10/29/14

273 North Main St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $303,000
Buyer: Jennifer L. Busone
Seller: Bonnie A. Galenski
Date: 10/31/14

128 Rocky Hill Road
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $387,500
Buyer: City Of Northampton
Seller: Carol Hewes
Date: 10/24/14

237 Spring Grove Ave.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $242,500
Buyer: Elizabeth L. Mercer
Seller: Marjorie L. Harrington
Date: 10/22/14

276 State St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Linda Putnam
Seller: Elizabeth A. Falkenthal
Date: 10/30/14

26 Sumner Ave.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $335,000
Buyer: Nooni Hammarlund
Seller: Bryan N. Lombardi
Date: 10/30/14

51 Vernon St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $457,000
Buyer: Stephen Petegorsky
Seller: David J. Lalima
Date: 10/27/14

SOUTH HADLEY

246 Brainerd St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $331,000
Buyer: Andreas Zinner
Seller: Michael A. Chmura
Date: 10/31/14

113 East St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $327,500
Buyer: Paul S. Kandel
Seller: Katie L. Stefanik
Date: 10/20/14

141 Granby Road
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $152,500
Buyer: Ruby Z. Khan
Seller: Eleanor M. Contini
Date: 10/31/14

340 Granby Road
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $202,500
Buyer: Lauren Emery
Seller: Glen E. Kotfila
Date: 10/22/14

16 Michael Dr.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Jeffrey W. Dupaul
Seller: David J. Boutin
Date: 10/30/14

44 Pittroff Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $231,000
Buyer: Dana R. Sicard
Seller: George W. Dewolfe
Date: 10/30/14

22 Spring Meadows
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $440,000
Buyer: Michael R. Matty
Seller: Stephen Doyle
Date: 10/22/14

4 Stewart St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $192,000
Buyer: Raymond V. Hebert
Seller: Mark R. Marion
Date: 10/31/14

18 Summit St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $222,000
Buyer: Shannon K. Dasilva
Seller: Peter A. Gallivan
Date: 10/20/14

23 Tampa St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $164,900
Buyer: Kyle E. Rodrigues
Seller: Anne Pappas
Date: 10/31/14

6 Yale St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $183,000
Buyer: Christopher F. Geraghty
Seller: Francis W. Geraghty
Date: 10/22/14

SOUTHAMPTON

22 Bluemer Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $167,500
Buyer: Darcelle A. Ward
Seller: Barbara J. Calisch
Date: 10/30/14

83 College Hwy.
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: TBH Realty LLC
Seller: Daniel T. Hatzipetro
Date: 10/27/14

96 Gunn Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $452,500
Buyer: Richard S. Lyman
Seller: James F. Boyle
Date: 10/31/14

87 Maple St.
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $303,000
Seller: Doreen A. Boisjoli
Date: 10/23/14

199 Pomeroy Meadow Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $348,000
Buyer: Gary Sheldon
Seller: Richard C. Ziomek
Date: 10/21/14

WARE

88 Coffey Hill Road
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: James A. Beaudry
Seller: Martin R. Bolduc
Date: 10/31/14

133 North St.
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $196,500
Buyer: Taylor B. Williams
Seller: Kenneth Fitzgibbon
Date: 10/20/14

51 West St.
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Heat Pro Inc.
Seller: Jean E. Broom
Date: 10/27/14

WILLIAMSBURG

161 Main St.
Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amount: $183,000
Buyer: John J. Svoboda
Seller: Emma F. Karowski
Date: 10/21/14

4 Nash Hill Road
Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amount: $310,000
Buyer: Adrienne Deluca
Seller: Andrew P. Soles
Date: 10/23/14

80 South St.
Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amount: $375,000
Buyer: Laura T. Garcia
Seller: Robert J. Bihler
Date: 10/24/14

Clinic in Construction

By
Construction Sections
Houle Builds on Its Expertise in Healthcare Contracting

By KEVIN FLANDERS

Houle Construction President Tim Pelletier, left, and Vice President Bob Langevin

Houle Construction President Tim Pelletier, left, and Vice President Bob Langevin, with a ‘baffle box’ used to keep air free of dangerous particulates.

As a contractor specializing in projects at medical facilities, Raymond R. Houle Construction has seen the industry evolve dramatically since opening in 1977. Practices have changed. Regulations have tightened. Competition has increased.

But Ludlow-based Houle hasn’t been daunted by change, instead employing innovation and reinvention to succeed in a challenging business where plenty of other enterprises have failed.

Leading the way have been President Timothy Pelletier and Vice President Robert Langevin Jr., with more than 40 years combined at the company.

“We are healthcare-contractor-certified and have a tremendous amount of experience working in hospitals,” Pelletier said. “Our staff is up to date on all of the latest infection-control procedures.”

That’s critical in an age when construction at medical facilities has been far more closely scrutinized and regulated than in past decades. With the emergence, over the past 15 years, of new policies and protocols governing every project — from emergency departments to patient rooms — contractors must be certified before they can even consider working inside a hospital. Houle, boasting a staff of around 30 employees, is one of a few commercial builders in the area with experience in all aspects of healthcare construction.

Simply put, Pelletier said, his staff knows how to get the job done in situations where planning and execution are crucial. Hospitals are among the most challenging construction venues, partly because they can’t be shut down for weeks or months at a time to facilitate site work. As such, every member of the construction team must be adept at working seamlessly in an active medical environment, with minimal disruption to patients and staff.

For instance, “when you’re renovating an emergency department, you have to create a construction environment within the existing environment. The ER isn’t going to close so you can work,” he explained. And with hospital patients often resting in close proximity to where the work is being completed, he added, every procedure must be completed with an emphasis on safety and efficiency.

History in Healthcare

Operating in the beginning out of founder Raymond Houle’s garage in South Hadley, Houle Construction has evolved and grown to become one of the region’s noted contractors, particularly in the realm of medical facilities. The company’s clients have included Cooley Dickinson Hospital, Baystate Medical Center, Baystate Wing Hospital, Holyoke Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, the Sisters of Providence Health System, and Genesis Health Ventures, among others.

Tim Pelletier

Tim Pelletier says working on medical facilities means completing projects efficiently while keeping patients safe.

But becoming a leading area name in healthcare construction has been far from easy. For example, each time a new infection-control procedure is introduced, the company must adapt accordingly, and each time a new healthcare mandate is instituted, the staff must align its practices to the fresh industry standard. In some instances, uncertainty over new regulations required the Houle team to rely on innovation.

“We were told to figure it out and come up with a solution,” Pelletier said, recounting a situation about eight years ago when hospital infection-control departments began to implement new asbestos-abatement regulations in windowless areas of facilities.

In response to the changes, the staff invented what is now known in the industry as a ‘baffle box’ — a device used to diffuse torrents of air generated by negative air machines during asbestos-removal projects. Now made of plexiglass, the first such devices made by Houle were constructed of plywood and helped to safely exhaust dust and particles.

Not long after the creation of baffle boxes, Pelletier and Langevin recalled, hospitals were requiring the use of similar devices, and the competition was mimicking Houle’s design. Today the staff continues to search for new strategies to maximize safety and efficiency on the job site, well aware that they can’t afford to be complacent in a rapidly changing, increasingly policed industry.

The reasons for tighter controls are numerous. First, patient privacy laws have been tightened under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). As for the renewed emphasis on infection control, there’s good reason for that. In 1999, the Institute of Medicine dropped a bombshell of a report called “To Err Is Human — to Delay Is Deadly,” claiming that up to 98,000 people were dying needlessly each year because of preventable medical harm, including hospital-acquired infections.

Since that time, hospitals have aggressively ramped up their infection-control protocols, and contractors that want a piece of the lucrative medical-facility construction niche have done the same. In fact, the New England Regional Council of Carpenters has created a training program for members who perform work in a clinical environment. The curriculum covers everything from controlling airborne contaminants to mold remediation to routing materials and personnel around patients and staff.

Bob Langevin

Bob Langevin says Ray Houle, the company’s founder, was a believer in figuring things out for himself, a trait he passed on to the current leadership.

“Hospital construction is a whole different animal,” Pelletier said. “It really isn’t like any other kind of construction. We are always looking for new ways to improve infection-control equipment. As we continue to do more projects, we learn better and faster ways to achieve results. You have to continually research the latest products so you can stay ahead of the curve and provide the best possible service to customers.”

Demonstrating the breadth of the firm’s work, he cited renovations to the fourth and fifth floors at Mercy Medical Center as one of the company’s largest recent projects, as well as a $10 million project for Specialized Technology Resources in Enfield, Conn., that converted a mushroom plant to a solar manufacturing facility. Houle also led a recent laboratory renovation at the John W. Lederle Graduate Research Center on the campus of UMass Amherst.

Drawing on Experience

Pelletier and Langevin ascribe their company’s sustained success to not only the staff’s commitment and hard work, but also the experience of each member. From the management team to those leading work in the field, Langevin said, everyone is on the same page and works collaboratively during each project.

“The core of the staff has been here for a minimum of 10 years. We all work really well together,” he noted.

Neither Pelletier nor Langevin went to college, instead receiving education in construction from hundreds of projects over the years. Starting off as carpenters, they slowly progressed through the ranks — every jobsite their classroom, every supervisor a de facto professor in a different subject.

“There is no replacement for being out in the trenches and doing it yourself,” Pelletier said. “We have a tight group here — it’s like a family environment.”

Both men learned much of what they know from Raymond Houle himself, who has now been retired for 15 years after handing the reigns to Pelletier.

“He worked his way up through the trade just like us and eventually started his own business,” said Langevin, who works closely with owners, project managers, and architects on a daily basis — all skills he learned from Houle and others. “He really wanted you to get out there and figure things out for yourself, but he was always there if you had a problem.”

He and Pelletier agree that taking time to appreciate all aspects of the job is integral, especially the lighter moments. In a business that often abounds with stress — particularly when deadlines near — the staff does its best to keep the atmosphere loose and upbeat. “I think it’s important to keep a good sense of humor,” Langevin said.

It’s far more important, of course, to ensure that each project stays on time and within its budget, which is often made even more difficult by tight parameters. For hospital leaders, the goal is to get work done as quickly as possible to reduce disruptions to staff and patients, although speed and attention to detail can be a tricky blend unless a company has many years of experience balancing those needs.

Sometimes, Pelletier told BusinessWest, meeting a condensed deadline can feel like achieving the impossible, even for veterans who have been in the industry for decades. But those who dedicate their careers to the industry learn to embrace the innate challenges of deadlines.

“It’s rewarding,” Pelletier said of finishing ahead of a difficult deadline, especially for jobs in medical settings. “Everyone has to work together, from the hospital staff to all of the contractors involved. It’s always a team effort, and we try to keep everything coordinated so it gels like it’s supposed to.”

Pelletier said business has taken a slight dip this year for Houle, with an array of smaller projects dominating the 2014 schedule. The staff has high hopes for a solid 2015, though. Overall, the local industry has been trending in a positive direction, and with such recent announcements as Holyoke Medical Center renovating its Emergency Department to include a behavioral-health component, contractors working in the medical niche hope construction opportunities will be available at area hospitals in 2015.

Then it’s up to Pelletier and his staff to decide which projects they will pursue.

“Things have been really busy over the last five years,” he noted. “It’s tailed off a little, but the drop hasn’t been significant, just a little downturn this year. I am optimistic that things will pick up. It all depends on what our customers are doing.”