Day: June 12, 2018

GTI’s Marijuana-cultivation Facility in Holyoke Is a Budding Enterprise

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GTI cover 0618a Feature600x200
Cover Story

Growth Industry

Matt Yee stands outside a room

Matt Yee stands outside a room equipped to simulate ‘summer.’ Access inside is extremely limited.

Green Thumb Industries’ marijuana-cultivation facility in Holyoke is not like most other businesses — or any other business, for that matter. There is no sign over the door, there was no elaborate ribbon-cutting ceremony when it opened, and, with a few minor exceptions, no one will visit this place. It is like all other businesses, though, in keeping the focus on innovation and putting out a quality product.

The ‘flowering room,’ as it’s called, is climate-controlled to simulate early fall.

And it does that so well that when Matt Yee, president of the Massachusetts market for Green Thumb Industries (GTI), walks inside … he has flashbacks of a sort.

“This is perpetual September. I always feel like I’m walking through the Holyoke Community College parking lot at the beginning of school — it always reminds me of that.”

“This is perpetual September,” he told BusinessWest, referencing the temperature, the warmth of the sun, and a slight, cool breeze. “I always feel like I’m walking through the Holyoke Community College parking lot at the beginning of school — it always reminds me of that.”

Perpetual September? Welcome to GTI’s 45,000-square-foot marijuana-cultivation facility in Holyoke, a recently opened venture that is, in just about every way you can imagine, not like any other business in this region.

That much becomes abundantly clear after one short visit — only, you really shouldn’t expect to visit this place anytime soon. They don’t exactly roll out the welcome mat — not because they’re not friendly, but because they don’t want or need company.

For starters, there’s no signage on the property, at least for GTI (there are other tenants in this old paper mill), and for a reason. The company doesn’t exactly want to broadcast its location, although its address, 28 Appleton St., in the so-called Flats section of the city, is commonly known.

The sign outside one of the growing rooms conveys the importance of keeping the plants safe at GTI’s Holyoke facility.v

The sign outside one of the growing rooms conveys the importance of keeping the plants safe at GTI’s Holyoke facility.

Also, there is no front door, really. You enter through the back, and only after using a coded key to get through a tall gate and passing under several surveillance cameras. Once inside — again, if you get that far — you can’t go any further without checking in with security, leaving a copy of your driver’s license behind, getting a badge with a recorded number on it, and being escorted by an employee through some more locked doors.

But before going through — and unless you’re an employee, an elected official on business, some other sort of VIP, or a business writer on assignment, you probably won’t be going through — one must step onto a large mat of sorts covered by about an inch of water.

That’s because marijuana plants are somewhat fragile and susceptible to contamination that might be brought into their home on the soles of one’s shoes. For the same reason, no one gets further than the security desk without donning a white lab coat.

“Contamination of the system can cause millions of dollars in damage,” said Yee. “Even walking across the parking lot, people can pick up some powdery mildew — one of the biggest issues we have — or various aphids and bugs, and those can be issues as well.”

To help keep these plants — which give new meaning to the phrase ‘cash crop’ — safe, GTI has enlisted the help of what are known as “beneficials” — tiny mites that feast on many of the known enemies of marijuana plants. There are hundreds of them in small packets placed next to each plant.

“If there’s an invasion of aggressive bugs, they’ll eat those little guys,” Yee said of the mites. “It’s an interesting process — signing the invoice for 25,000 bugs was kind of interesting; they’re very, very, very small, but you can see them, although it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.”

These are just some of the steps (ladybugs and other beneficials are also deployed) being taken to ensure that the first crop, and all those to follow — the business plan calls for cultivating 120 pounds per month — will be as healthy and profitable as possible, said Yee, who came to this job and this industry thanks to a chance encounter with Pete Kadens, president of Chicago-based GTI at the restaurant Yee was managing (more on that later).

The flowering room he showed BusinessWest was empty, but by the time this magazine went to the printer, it was full of plants enjoying those cool fall breezes. From there, it’s only a few more steps until the fruit of the plant is processed into product, such as the small joints called ‘dog walkers’ — because you can start and finish one in about the time it takes to walk the dog — to be placed in tins already stored in the so-called trim room.

“It’s a great little product — everybody really loves these all across the nation,” he said, adding that, starting in several weeks, these dog walkers and other products will be shipped to GTI’s recently opened dispensary in Amherst and other locations across the state.

For this issue, BusinessWest takes an in-depth look inside GTI’s facility in Holyoke, and also inside a business that is new to Massachusetts and this region, but appears to have a future that might be as bright as the high-pressure sodium lights inside the flowering room.

Branch Office

Those are 1,000-watt units, and there are 88 of them in the room, Yee explained, adding quickly that it gets so bright in those rooms that employees wear protective sunglasses when inside.

That was one of many bits of information Yee passed along while serving as tour guide, one of many functions he’s taken on (although, now that growing has started, the volume of tours has subsided) while carrying out a role he probably couldn’t have imagined for himself a few years ago.

GTI expects to cultivate 120 pounds of marijuana per month at its Holyoke facility.

GTI expects to cultivate 120 pounds of marijuana per month at its Holyoke facility.

But the picture changed quickly and profoundly after Kadens ventured into Johnny’s Tavern in South Hadley for dinner back in 2016. Yee, as noted, was general manager of that eatery (one of many owned and operated by his family), with the emphasis on was. Indeed, the two started talking, and the more Kadens talked about the cannabis industry and its potential in the Bay State, the more Yee wanted to be part of it.

To make a long story somewhat shorter, Yee joined GTI and has taken a lead role in opening the Holyoke facility and getting the first plants in the ground, if you will.

First, though, there was a lengthy learning curve for Yee, who said his education in cannabis and the business of cultivating and distributing marijuana took him to GTI facilities across the country, including those in Colorado, Nevada, Illinois, and Virginia.

“It was a really intense drop into the cannabis world,” he recalled, adding that GTI has facilities similar to the one in Holyoke operating in several states.

The operation on Appleton actually represents what Yee called the third iteration of a GTI growth facility. Lessons have been learned over the years, he said, in everything from production to automated systems to air handling, and they’ve all been applied to the Holyoke plant, which came to be after a lengthy review of options regarding what to build and where.

“It came down to ‘should we do this in an open field somewhere for cheaper or do the socially responsible thing and breathe new life into a vacant space?’ And we decided to do this — and it was a project.”

Indeed, as Yee walked through the facility, he noted that, while it provided one key ingredient in the form of wide-open spaces and high ceilings, the old mill required quite a bit of expensive work to be retrofitted into a marijuana-cultivation facility.

But in the end, GTI determined that rehabbing such a facility is a better alternative to building new, even it is the more expensive alternative.

“It came down to ‘should we do this in an open field somewhere for cheaper or do the socially responsible thing and breathe new life into a vacant space?’” he recalled of the decision-making process. “And we decided to do this — and it was a project.”

‘This’ was a retrofit in the middle of an urban setting, granted one that has embraced the cannabis industry with open arms.

Thus, security is extremely tight, he said, noting the facility is outfitted with cameras, motion detectors, glass-break sensors, and more.

“Visitation is very, very restricted,” he said, adding that the state has access to the facility’s camera systems and monitors what goes on. If someone watching sees someone in the building without a badge, inquiries are made.

Joint Venture

Yee’s ability to learn quickly about the industry he joined was in evidence on the tour, as he talked about marijuana and, more specifically, how it will be cultivated in this old mill.

“Marijuana is an annual,” said Yee, who walked while he talked. “Typically, the seeds will pop in the spring, it will grow through the summer, and then, come the shorter days of late summer and fall, its flowering process is triggered — and it’s those flowers that we’re harvesting; it’s the fruit of the plant.”

Matt Yee says it will be a few more months before GTI is able to fill tins of ‘dog walkers’ it will ship out the doors of the Holyoke plant.

Matt Yee says it will be a few more months before GTI is able to fill tins of ‘dog walkers’ it will ship out the doors of the Holyoke plant.

There are no seasons, per se, indoors, so cultivators like GTI have to replicate them, he went on, as he stopped at a room simulating early- to mid-summer. Through a large, thick window, Yee pointed to and talked about the already-tall plants inside.

Taking visitors in that room, even after they’ve put on a lab coat and stepped on a few of those water-covered mats, constitutes far more risk than the company is willing to take on, he said, adding that these plants are much too valuable to risk contamination.

The sign on the door gets this point across. “Do Not Enter — Limited Access Area,” it reads. “Access Limited to Authorized Personnel Only.”

“There are about 18 hours of light in this room,” said Yee, returning to the subject at hand and the process of simulating summer-like conditions. “We’re really just pushing the plants to get to a proper size, and then we stimulate them to get to their flowering stage.”

Actually, the ‘summer’ room is the second stop for the plants, which start off as cuttings from other plants, known as ‘mothers,’ and take up residency in the ‘cloning room.’

Their third stop will be in that room that simulates September, where it is a constant 72 degrees, Yee went on, adding that the first plants were due to arrive there in early June.

In that setting, a shorter day, with the lights on for maybe 12 hours, is created. That difference in the amount of light is what actually triggers the plant to move into its reproductive cycle, he explained.

“The male plants will develop pollinating elements, and the female plants develop the flowers,” he noted. “We only have females here; there are no males on site.”

The plants will double or triple in size in the flowering room, he went on, adding that, when they’re ready for harvesting, they’re removed from their pots, the iconic fan leaves are removed, and the flowers are put into a drying room, to be hung on what are known as ‘Z racks.’

Once the flowers reach a certain level of dryness, they can be processed, said Yee, adding that the product is weighed and then moved into the ‘trim room,’ a space where the flowers are “manicured” (Yee’s word) into their final, saleable form, such as those aforementioned dog walkers.

From beginning to end — from the nursery to that tin of dog walkers — the process covers about three months, and, starting with the second batch, there will be continuous yield at this facility, which will be needed to recover the significant investment (nearly $10 million) in this facility.

“We’ll be harvesting about half a room a day,” he projected, adding, again, that the overriding goal is to keep the crops safe — from invading insects and anything else — until they’re harvested.

Yield Signs

Getting back to those packets of beneficials, Yee said the mites are really small and quite hard to see, and he’s essentially taking the distributor’s word that there were 25,000 of them in that last order.

“If you crack one of the packets open and pour the contents in your hand, there’s sawdust or whatever it is … and if you look hard, you can spot these little critters rolling around.”

What’s somewhat easier to see is the vast potential for the cannabis industry in Massachusetts, although that picture is still coming into focus, on both the medicinal and recreational sides of the spectrum.

GTI intends to be well-positioned to capitalize on whatever market eventually develops, and the Holyoke facility will play a huge role in those efforts.

It is really unlike any business you’ve ever visited — only, you won’t know, because you probably won’t be visiting.

George O’Brien can be reached at [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 May 2018.

AMHERST

A Cut Above
34 Main St.
Jody Young

Head Games Beauty Supply
67 North Pleasant St., 2R
Erica Wilson Parkins

Level Studio Arts
49 Boltwood Walk
Jena McNerney

Modern Home
52 Chapel Road
Julian Albo

UMass Amherst Global
11 Amity St.
Shorelight-Minuteman, LLC

BELCHERTOWN

Amherst Self Storage
1270 Federal St.
Alejandro Levins

Frontline Logistics, LLC
689 George Hannum St.
Christopher Fontaine

Layman Financial
54 Dressel Ave.
Craig Layman

CHICOPEE

Brandon Beaulieu Electrician
28 Ducharme Ave.
Brandon Beaulieu

Color Me Crazy
104 Catherine St.
Michelle Hernandez

Sliski Construction
17 Goodhue Ave.
Henry Sliski

Trinity Health of New England Medical Group
1109 Granby Road
RiverBend Medical Group Inc.

Trinity Health of New England Medical Group
444 Montgomery St.
RiverBend Medical Group Inc.

EASTHAMPTON

Ben Falkoff Music
8 Groveland St.
Ben Falkoff

Mac Industries
30 Pleasant St.
John McDonough

Old Jarvis, LLC
405 Holyoke St.
Christian LaChapelle

Precision Painting by Papy, LLC
121 Cottage St., Apt. A
Guy Mbangu

EAST LONGMEADOW

East Longmeadow Skilled Nursing Center
305 Maple St.
East Longmeadow Skilled Nursing Center

Forest Park Development Group
566 Prospect St.
Tyde Richards

Mind-Body Connections
143 Shaker Road
Cheri Brady

Minute Clinic Diagnostic
217 North Main St.
Kimberly DeSousa

GREENFIELD

Andy’s Antique Restoration & Fabrication
40 Linden Ave.
Hormidas Lively

Bristles and Brushes Painting
4 Armory St., Apt. 3
Kory Wilson

GCB Financial Services, a Division of Greenfield Cooperative Bank
63 Federal St.
Mary Rawls

Hayden Center for Neuromuscular Education & Pain Relief
158 Main St.
Rob Hayden

Homedic
14 Graves Road
Aleksandr Agapov

The Market
259 Conway St.
Fruitland Inc. of Greenfield

Martin’s Farm Compost
341 Plain Road
Adam Martin

HADLEY

Allard Farms
41 South Maple St.
Wayne Goulet

Duffy Academy of Irish Dance
1 Mill Valley Road
Alycia Olanyk

Free to Be Childcare
102 Rocky Hill Road
Corinne Shaw

Many Graces Flower Farm
17 Lawrence Plain Road
Rebecca Maillet

River Valley Irrigation
57 Bay Road
Eric Lebrecque

Therapeutic Advancements
104 Russell St.
Anna Morrell

HOLYOKE

Advance Auto Parts #5123
447 South St.
Advance Stores Co. Inc.

Ahmisa Yoga Center
123 Homestead Ave.
Erin Kelly

Hat World
50 Holyoke St.
Kevin Thimjon

Old Tea Horse Road
270 Pleasant St.
Nathan Jacques

Purple City Service
14 St. James St.
Luis Torres

RPineiro Productions
30 Willow St., #1
Roberto Pineiro

Trak II Convenience, LLC
330 Main St.
Johnny Kayrouz

LUDLOW

Dawn Creative Co.
844 Center St.
Dawn Hebert

Ludlow Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Co.
177 Chapin St.
Donald Marchand

Ray Haluch Excavating
755 Lyon St.
Raymond Haluch

Sweet House
223 East St.
Xiufeng Lin

NORTHAMPTON

D.L. West Roofing Contractor
11 Plymouth Ave.
Daniel West

Mama Iguana’s Restaurant
271 Main St.
Maria Guerra

Mike Florio Welding and Repair
15 School St.
Michael Florio Jr.

Pizza Paradiso
12 Crafts Ave.
Maria Guerra

The Pure Massage & Spa
30 Strong Ave.
Yuting Huang

Route 9 Design and Build Inc.
104 North Elm St.
John Landry

Salon Herdis Inc.
231 Main St.
Timothy Fisk

Spoleto Restaurant
1 Bridge St.
Maria Guerra

The Tigerlily Salon
122 Main St.
Christina O’Dea Grail

True Blue Dog Training
72 Austin Circle
Jennifer Schreiner

Valley Angora
131 Bridge St.
Ana Alves

SOUTHWICK

Elite Cleaning Pros
24 Congamond Road
Lisa Morse

LKQ Northeast Inc.
58 Sam West Road
Michael Sullivan

Rehab Resolutions Inc.
627 College Highway, Suite 6
Sofia Zanzarella

Walt’s Garage
61 Granville Road
Kathy Whalley

SPRINGFIELD

110 K
880 St. James Ave.
Joseph Janas

A Su Orden Corp.
573 Canon Circle
Lydia Lozada

Advantics Inc.
101 King St.
Suzette Cotton

Alicia’s Pet Care
24 Taylor St.
Alicia Vazquez

Armistice
20 Arnold Ave.
Denise Luna

CSK Painting
88 Wait St.
CSK Painting

Energizing ’N Touch Massage Solutions
529 Main St.
Hermenia Grayson

Especially for You
56 Cuff St.
Terese Napoli

Exclusives Barber Shop
162 Boston Road
Dwayne Scott

Handy Man Services
20 Waterford Circle
Richard Torres

Hot Oven Cookies
1597 Main St.
Sheila Colon

Iced Cases
52 Westminster St.
Larissa Creighton

Imperial Aquatics
394 Dickinson St.
Tommy Phan Le

Laboy’s Auto Transport
19 Hope St.
Angel Laboy

Leika’s Soup
116 Byers St.
Zukeika Torres

Life Laboratories
299 Carew St.
Mark Fulco

Little Centaur Press
795 South Branch Parkway
Little Centaur Press

Mike’s Auto Transport
39 Langdon St.
Michael Lopez

Posar Photography
36 Gates Ave.
Denise Silva

Pro Auto Electric
97 Laconia St.
Fred Pafumi Jr.

R.G. Transport
87 Helberg Road
Raul Ramos

Tacos El Charros
43 Calhoun St.
Elias Martinez

Timeless Jewelry & Accessories
57 Haskin St.
Tamika McKenzie

Tina’s Handmade Soaps
58 Duchess St.
Tina Bureau

Utopia Smoke & Vape
548 Page Blvd.
Ghulam Azhar

WESTFIELD

Alive! Health Solutions
304 Sackett Road
Gabriella Michaliszyn

American Auto & Tire
410 Southampton Road
410 Southampton Road, LLC

Bryan M. Kasperowski, DMD, LLC
79 Broad St.
Bryan Kasperowski

Dream Meadow Farm
631 West Road
Joseph Boisseau

Diamond Custom Coatings Inc.
3 Progress Ave.
Diamond Custom Coatings Inc.

Meadex Technology
33 Plantation Circle
David Watson

Millie’s Kitchen Deli & Pizzeria
1029 North Road
Millie’s Kitchen Deli & Pizzeria

Service Station Maintenance
10 Phelps Ave.
Phyllis French

Thor Auto Enterprise
260 Russellville Road
Mary Beltrandi

WILBRAHAM

Squadra Nuvolari
899 Stony Hill Road
Brian Cunningham

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.

CHICOPEE

Empyre Enterprises Inc., 34 St. James St., Chicopee, MA 01020. Christopher Harman, same. Retail and online sales, any lawful purpose.

Interstate Carriers Corp., 78 Robak Dr., Chicopee, MA 01020. Marina Biley, same. Vehicle transportation.

ERVING

Friends of The Erving Public Library Inc., 17 Moore St., Erving, MA 01344. Rebecca Jane Hubbard, 8 Gary St., Erving, MA 01344. The purpose of this corporation is to support the programs and services of the Erving Public Library financially above and beyond the support provided through municipal appropriations.

FEEDING HILlS

Feeding Hills Spa Inc., 1226 Springfield St., Feeding Hills, MA 01030. Changji Jin, same. Personal services.

HOLYOKE

Gilbert Towing Co., 950 Main St., Holyoke, MA 01040. Gilbert Negron Correa, same. Automotive towing.

HUNTINGTON

Highlands Footpath Inc., 77 Worthington Road, Huntington, MA 01050. Jeffery Scott Penn, same. Purposes to engage in all legal activities relating to the development, maintenance and operation of the highlands footpath, a public hiking trail, from Lee to Goshen.

LONGMEADOW

Family Life Success Inc., 251 Park Dr., Longmeadow, MA 01106. Amy Hilbrich Davis, same. Provides SVCS & PDTS to improve family wellbeing.

SPRINGFIELD

Fresh Air Inc., 184 Lamont St., Springfield, MA 01119. Irving Raul Concepcion, same. Provide services for youth female/male aged 17-26 that have involvement with the judicial, DCF, DYS, DOC, HOC, homelessness, substance abuse, trauma.

Iglesia Cristiana Pentecostal Jesus El Buen Pastor, 910 Liberty St., Springfield, MA 01107. Rosa Mojica, 18 America St., Apt. 1, Chicopee, MA 01013. To engage the community in worship services.

WEST SPRINGFIELD

Gogri And Rana Inc., 82 Pierce St., West Springfield, MA 01089. Khushal Gogri, same. Cell phone accessories.

JC Charter Inc., 425 Union St., West Springfield, MA 01089. John H. Cookley, same. Passenger transportation.

Briefcase

By
Briefcase Departments

MGM Springfield, PVTA Introduce ‘the Loop’

SPRINGFIELD — MGM Springfield and the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) have joined forces to create the Loop — a new public transportation service linking downtown tourist attractions, hotels, restaurants, and arts and culture destinations to provide a more robust travel experience for Springfield visitors. Debuting Aug. 24 as part of MGM Springfield’s opening day, the Loop will connect Springfield’s most storied landmarks, including Union Station, the Springfield Armory, Springfield Museums, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and MGM Springfield. The Loop schedule is designed with visitors in mind. In addition to stops at cultural highlights, the shuttle also will make stops at MassMutual Center, Holiday Inn Express, Sheraton, Hampton Inn, and La Quinta Inn & Suites. The Loop will run Wednesdays through Sundays from Union Station from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and complete a full circuit in 60 minutes during the day and 40 minutes in the evening. Traveling on the Loop will be free. Sandra Sheehan, administrator with the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, noted that the Loop will be operated with a zero-emissions electric bus as part of PVTA’s goal of providing sustainable transportation. As part of its host-community agreement, MGM Springfield will provide PVTA with financial support to operate and maintain the Loop. This includes maintenance and insurance of the vehicle, as well as the costs associated with the hiring, supervising, and compensating the driver.

 

Massachusetts Business Organizations Issue Plan to Reduce Healthcare Costs

BOSTON — Twenty prominent Massachusetts business organizations representing thousands of employers announced an initiative to save $100 million in healthcare costs by reducing avoidable use of hospital emergency departments. The newly formed Massachusetts Employer-Led Coalition to Reduce Health Care Costs will work with doctors, hospitals, and health insurers to reduce inappropriate use of emergency departments (EDs) by 20% in two years. State officials estimate that 40% of ED visits are avoidable, a pattern that costs $300 million to $350 million annually for commercially insured members alone. Coalition leaders Richard Lord, president and CEO of Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM), and Eileen McAnneny, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation (MTF), say the group will help employers take a direct role in the health and healthcare of their employees and beneficiaries. Healthcare industry organizations — including the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Assoc., Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Assoc. of Health Plans, and the Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians — are committed to be strategic partners with the coalition. The coalition’s goal is to shift as many avoidable ED visits as possible to high-value, lower-cost settings to relieve crowded EDs, reduce the cost of care, and improve quality. Most ED use is necessary, appropriate, and in many cases life-saving. However, providers and payers broadly agree that shifting ED use for non-urgent health problems to more timely, appropriate settings will improve quality and patient experience, and lower the cost of care. Upper respiratory infections, skin rashes, allergies, and back pain are among the most common conditions for which Massachusetts patients seek care in the ED unnecessarily, and the cost of an ED visit can be five times that of care provided in a primary-care or urgent-care setting. The coalition will focus on four tactics for change:

• Work with employers to communicate information about avoidable ED use with employees and families so they can get the best possible care in settings such as primary-care practices, retail clinics, and urgent-care centers;

• Track and publicly report the rate of avoidable ED visits so employers, stakeholders, and the public may understand and tackle the scope of the issue;

• Work with labor unions, healthcare providers, health plans, employers, and employees to reward and encourage the appropriate use of the ED by aligning financial incentives, and bolster the availability of care in the community, especially during nights and weekends; and

• Advocate for policy changes that will advance new care delivery and payment models, such as accountable-care organizations, telemedicine, and mobile integrated health, which, combined, can improve access to timely care in the right setting.

Massachusetts Jobless Rate Holds Steady in April

BOSTON — The state’s total unemployment rate remained at 3.5% in April, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development announced. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) preliminary job estimates indicate Massachusetts added 6,100 jobs in April. Over the month, the private sector added 5,900 jobs, as gains occurred in education and health services; professional, scientific, and business services; other services; financial activities; and trade, transportation, and utilities. Government also added jobs over the month. From April 2017 to April 2018, BLS estimates Massachusetts has added 47,600 jobs. The April unemployment rate was four-tenths of a percentage point lower than the national rate of 3.9% reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The labor force increased by 20,900 from 3,683,700 in March, as 19,700 more residents were employed and 1,300 more residents were unemployed over the month. Over the year, the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased four-tenths of a percentage point from 3.9% in April 2017. The state’s labor-force participation rate — the total number of residents 16 or older who worked or were unemployed and actively sought work in the last four weeks — is up over the month four-tenths of a percentage point at 66.0%. Compared to April 2017, the labor-force participation rate is up four-tenths of a percentage point. The largest private sector percentage job gains over the year were in construction; professional, scientific, and business services; leisure and hospitality; and other services. Meanwhile, the largest job gains occurred in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Springfield, Barnstable, Worcester, Lowell-Billerica-Amesbury, and Framingham areas.

Opioid-related Overdose Deaths Continue to Decline in Massachusetts

BOSTON — Opioid-related overdose deaths continued to decline overall year over year in Massachusetts, according to the latest quarterly opioid-related deaths report released by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The quarterly report found that, for the first three months of 2018, opioid-related overdose deaths declined by an estimated 5% over the first three months of 2017, according to preliminary data. The report also found that the total number of estimated and confirmed opioid-related deaths for 2017 is 2,016, which is 133 fewer deaths than the 2,149 estimated and confirmed deaths in 2016, or a 6% decline.

Baystate Franklin Medical Center Reaches Agreement with Nurses

GREENFIELD — Baystate Franklin Medical Center recently announced it has reached agreement on a new five-year contract with the Massachusetts Nurses Assoc. (MNA) on behalf of BFMC registered nurses. According to Baystate Franklin officials, the hospital is committed to staffing models that maintain its flexibility to address individual patient care needs in a sustainable way. Baystate Health now has no open union contracts and has reached agreement on five union contracts within the past 14 months.

Company Notebook

By
Company Notebook Departments

First-ever Improv Theater in Region to Open in Hadley

HADLEY — Happier Valley Comedy announced the opening of the first-ever improv theater in Western Mass., to be located at 1 Mill Valley Road in Hadley. The local improv company will provide regular shows, classes, and professional and personal development services. It will be the only improv theater in the state outside of the Boston region. Happier Valley Comedy’s recent fundraising effort raised close to $27,000, making it possible to begin immediate construction of a 70-seat theater and classroom space in the new complex along Route 9 in Hadley. Pam Victor, Happier Valley founder and president, and General Manager Braidman plan to open the theater by June 25 in time to hold their weekly summer classes. When the stage is complete later this fall, Happier Valley live shows will move to the new space. By the end of the year, the calendar will expand to include shows every Saturday night. The Happier FAMILY Comedy Show will remain at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art.

Starbucks Opens at Monarch Place

SPRINGFIELD — The latest edition to Springfield’s downtown, a full-service Starbucks on the corner of Main Street and Boland Way, opened on May 30. Starbucks at Monarch Place donated all proceeds from its first week of business to the Zoo in Forest Park & Education Center to assist in the creation and installation of a new educational exhibit, bringing two exotic African cats to the city. The opening of Starbucks represents the final phase of the newly renovated plaza at Monarch Place and follows the grand opening of a United Bank branch next door on the ground floor of Monarch Place. Starbucks now occupies the front corner of the plaza, facing Main Street, with 30-foot-tall ceilings, and featuring a commissioned piece of artwork by renowned artist Llew Majia, a 400-pound, 10-foot medallion that celebrates the diversity of Latin American coffee-growing countries. Patrons can also enjoy outdoor music and café seating on the plaza while overlooking the newly restored water wall.

United Bank Announces Purchase of Six Branches

HARTFORD, Conn. — United Bank announced it has entered into an agreement with Webster Bank, N.A. of Waterbury, Conn. to purchase six branches located in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. United Bank will assume approximately $120 million of branch deposits in the transaction, which is expected to close in the fall of 2018, pending regulatory approval. Under the terms of the agreement, the following six Webster Bank branches will be purchased by United Bank, and employees at those branches are expected to join the United Bank team: 50 Elm St., West Springfield; 1355 Boston Road, Springfield; 62 Center Square, East Longmeadow; 124B Boston Post Road, Waterford, Conn.; 654 Long Hill Road, Groton, Conn.; and 48 Franklin St., Westerly. Due to the close proximity of three branches in the Springfield market as a result of this transaction, United Bank will take the following actions at the time of the closing of the agreement, pending regulatory approval: United’s branch at 95 Elm St., West Springfield will close. All banking activity in that branch will consolidate into the Webster branch across the street at 50 Elm St. Also, customers will continue to have access to the separate drive-up branch at 52 Van Deene Ave., West Springfield. United’s branch at 459 Main St. in Indian Orchard will close. All banking activity in that branch will consolidate into the Webster branch at 1355 Boston Road, which is only one mile away from the Indian Orchard branch. United Bank’s branch at 94 Shaker Road in East Longmeadow will close. All banking activity in that branch will consolidate into the Webster branch at nearby 62 Center Square. United Bank emphasizes that customers from the six branches included in this transaction do not need to do anything at this time. United will mail a package of information to the homes and/or businesses of all Webster customers from these branches in advance of the account and branch conversions, which are expected to occur in the fall of 2018.

WGBY Earns Emmy Nod for Opioid Special

SPRINGFIELD — WGBY’s The Opioid Crisis: A Community Dialogue, which aired live on May 11, 2017, has been recognized by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) Boston/New England Chapter, which nominated The Opioid Crisis: A Community Dialogue for a regional 2018 Emmy Award in the category of Health/Science Program or Special. Executive Producer Tony Dunne and Carrie Saldo, the program’s host and producer, were both named in the nomination. Moderated by then-Berkshire Eagle reporter Saldo (now host of WGBY’s weekday public-affairs series Connecting Point), The Opioid Crisis: A Community Dialogue was developed in partnership with the Center for Human Development (CHD) and featured a panel of Western New England locals, including Dr. Robert Roose of Providence Behavioral Health Hospital; Hampden County District Attorney Anthony Gulluni; Chantal Silloway, Adolescent Recovery Program director at Goodwin House; Danyel Zerella, a mother in addiction recovery; Jennifer Kimball, manager of the Public Health Program at the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission; and Liz Whynott of Tapestry Health’s needle-exchange program. With a town-hall-style discussion, the program was broadcast live from the WGBY studio in Springfield. Panelists fielded questions and comments from in-person audience members as well as Twitter and Facebook users.

PVCU Recognized for Promoting Savings

SPRINGFIELD — Pioneer Valley Credit Union was recognized for its efforts to encourage Americans and support its members to save money during America Saves Week and Military Saves Week. Pioneer Valley Credit Union was one of 15 banks, 17 credit unions, and five military-affiliated organizations recognized around the world. “Year after year, we work with our members to help them to achieve their financial goals and to become more savvy consumers,” said Anabela Grenier, Pioneer Valley Credit Union president and CEO. “America Saves is a wonderful program which works in concert with our philosophy to help members as they make their journey to a better financial future.”

Smith Brothers Insurance Named to President’s Clubs

EASTHAMPTON — Smith Brothers Insurance, with local offices in Easthampton and West Springfield, was recently appointed to the Hanover Insurance Group’s President’s Club, an elite group of independent insurance agencies from across the country. Agencies named to the Hanover President’s Club are recognized for delivering outstanding value to their customers through insurance expertise and responsive service. Smith Brothers was one of only 140 independent agencies recognized with this distinction across the county. The Hanover partners with 2,100 independent agents nationwide. Meanwhile, Smith Brothers was also named to the Jewelers Mutual Insurance Group’s President’s Club. Each year, Jewelers Mutual recognizes top agents nationwide for their expertise in Jewelers Block, a specialized insurance coverage protecting the jewelry trade. Smith Brothers Insurance was one of 25 brokers throughout the nation named to Jewelers Mutual’s President’s Club.

American Benefits Group Recognized with Award

NORTHAMPTON — American Benefits Group (ABG), a provider of solutions in the health-benefits industry, has been recognized by healthcare-benefits payments giant Alegeus as the 2018 APEX Award winner for Operational Efficiency and Excellence. The award was presented at the Alegeus National Conference on May 16 in Orlando, Fla. ABG currently serves more than 1,300 employer plans in all markets, including several Fortune 1000 clients. The company has grown revenues by more than 300% since 2012. ABG was also previously recognized by Alegeus as the National Customer Service Champion in 2015. In conjunction with the award, Alegeus has made a $1,000 donation to the local charity or nonprofit of ABG’s choice. American Benefits selected local nonprofit Safe Passage, an organization that serves victims of domestic abuse. “They are just making a major move into a brand-new facility, so the contribution is well-timed,” ABG CEO and founder Robert Cummings said. “We feel Safe Passage is an organization that is doing life-changing and life-saving work.”

River Valley Counseling Center Opens New Easthampton Location

EASTHAMPTON — River Valley Counseling Center celebrated the opening of its newest office location in Easthampton with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 29. Services available at the Easthampton location include individual, couple, family, and group psychotherapy for adults, adolescents, and children. Clinicians help the client, couple, or family identify the concerns or issues that will become the focus of treatment. Both the client and clinician work together to determine the most effective treatment needed. The frequency and duration of counseling sessions is determined based on individualized treatment plans. River Valley also offers school-based therapy throughout all Easthampton Schools, a partnership formed in the fall of 2017. The Easthampton office is currently accepting new patients without a wait list and is conveniently located along the bike trail. For additional information, visit rvcc-inc.org or call (413) 540-1234.

Shriners Hospitals for Children Named Health Nonprofit Brand of the Year

TAMPA, Fla. — Shriners Hospitals for Children has been named 2018 Health Nonprofit Brand of the Year, based on the Harris Poll EquiTrend Equity Score. In addition, Shriners Hospitals ranked highest in trust in its category. The annual survey of brand equity, now in its 30th year, compares the brand health of thousands of brands from hundreds of categories, including eight for nonprofit organizations, based on consumer responses. Shriners is a leader in pediatric specialty care, especially in the areas of orthopaedics, burns, spinal-cord injury, and cleft lip and palate.

People on the Move

By
Departments People on the Move
Nikki Gleason

Nikki Gleason

Florence Bank hired Nikki Gleason to serve as vice president and branch manager of the bank’s new Springfield location, slated to open this year. Gleason studied accounting at Springfield Technical Community College and completed the program at the New England School of Financial Studies at Babson College. She is a board member for Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity as well as a fundraising committee member Revitalize Community Development Corp. of Springfield. She will work in the bank’s second Hampden County branch, at 1444 Allen St. in Springfield.

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Jose Rivera

Jose Rivera

After an extensive search, Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) hired Jose “Joe” Rivera as its new senior director of Public Safety/chief of police. Rivera, who started May 7, brings a range of law-enforcement experience. For the past 24 years, he has worked in municipal and higher-education policing. Most recently, he served as chief of police at Holyoke Community College. He previously worked at STCC as the college’s assistant director of public safety/lieutenant. Rivera, who holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Curry College in Milton, began his career with the Amherst Police Department. He moved on to other positions, including ones at the Massasoit Community College Police Department and UMass Dartmouth, where he was a sergeant and lieutenant, respectively. His certifications and training include firearms instructor, sexual-assault investigation, emergency planning, interview and interrogation, and Clery Act compliance, which requires colleges and universities participating in federal financial-aid programs to maintain and disclose campus crime statistics and security information.

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Brian Roode

Brian Roode

Gove Law Office announced it will open an office in Spencer, expanding its presence into Worcester County. The four-attorney firm also has offices in Ludlow and Northampton. Along with the opening of the Spencer office, Gove Law Office also welcomes attorney Brian Roode as an associate. Roode, who has been in practice since 2008, will be focused on real-estate transactions, family law and mediation, estate planning, and landlord-tenant matters. He earned his juris doctor from the Massachusetts School of Law in 2008 and owned his own solo practice until joining the Gove Law Office in 2018. He practices in Worcester, Hampden, and Hampshire counties.

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Becky Bozadjian

Becky Bozadjian

Tighe & Bond Inc., a regional leader in engineering and environmental consulting, appointed Becky Bozadjian as its director of Marketing & Communications. In this role, she will manage the firm’s marketing and communications group and contribute to growth strategies consistent with Tighe & Bond’s continued expansion in the marketplace. Bozadjian, who is based in the firm’s Westwood office, has more than 25 years of experience as a senior management and marketing professional in the architecture, engineering, and construction industry. During this time, she has focused on building responsive marketing organizations, as well as developing and implementing strategic marketing plans for small, regional, and national professional-services firms. Her career has been defined by high-level leadership positions at several prominent engineering firms in the Boston area. Bozadjian has been a member of the Society for Marketing Professionals and has presented on a variety of topics at the national and regional levels. In the Coaching for Leadership & Teamwork Program at Babson College, she coaches undergraduate students on leadership, communication, and teamwork skills. She earned her MBA at Babson College with a concentration in marketing, and her bachelor’s degree in economics from Connecticut College.

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Heather Loges

Heather Loges

Heather Loges was recently promoted to the position of chief operations officer at Royal, P.C., a labor and employment law firm in Northampton. Loges has been with Royal since July 2016, joining as a paralegal. As the COO, Heather is in charge of all aspects of law-firm operations and law-firm management and finances, as well as managing the firm’s business-development and marketing strategies. Loges has a bachelor’s degree from UMass Amherst and a certificate in paralegal studies from Boston University. She was recently nominated for the 2018 Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Excellence in Paralegal Work Award.

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Michael Ostrowski, president and CEO of Arrha Credit Union, congratulates Tony Sanches, assistant vice president of Retail Operations, for receiving a Credit Union Rising Star Award at the Great New England Credit Union Show in Worcester. The show highlighted new technology and featured breakout sessions in many topics, including cybersecurity, latest trends in digital banking, member satisfaction, and member experience. The morning breakfast was a salute to employees who showed a strong sense of the mission of credit unions and strong abilities in their area of expertise, along with community involvement.

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The Lenox Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed its new executive director, Shaun Kelleher. Kelleher grew up in the Berkshires and is back home after spending nearly a decade in New York City. He attended Berkshire Community College and, later, Syracuse University. In New York, he cultivated a career in marketing. As senior director of Marketing at 24 Seven, a creative staffing and recruiting company with 12 offices across the globe, he led a team of designers, marketers, copywriters, and strategists to grow and promote the brand. Most recently, he was an account manager at BRIGADE, a marketing and design agency in Hadley, where he worked with clients such as SVEDKA Vodka, BIC, Black Box Premium Wines, Woodbridge, World Hotels, and Audience Rewards. He also sits on the board of the Ad Club of Western Massachusetts as its membership chair.

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Hannah Winters

Hannah Winters

Megan Conner

Megan Conner

Sue Camp

Sue Camp

Taylor Real Estate announced it has hired a new employee who recently earned her real-estate license, and two other agents have also been licensed in the past year. Hannah Winters came on board in April as a rental specialist, and she will lead the family-owned firm’s Rental Department. Winters and realtors Megan Conner and Sue Camp also earned the credentials that will allow them to represent a buyer or seller in a real-estate transaction. Originally from Portland, Oregon, Winters moved to Western Mass. in 2015. She is working on an associate degree in business administration at Holyoke Community College and will attend UMass Amherst this fall, where she hopes to earn a bachelor’s degree in accounting. She has volunteered with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps in the past and also has experience in hospitality management. Conner, the daughter of Taylor Real Estate owner Chuck Conner, is an Easthampton native who grew up working in the business. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a specialty in developmental disabilities and human services from UMass Amherst. Conner has extensive experience in customer service, having worked at Taylor Real Estate as the administrative and advertising assistant for the past nine years. She previously served as a developmental specialist relief staff at Riverside Industries. Camp has more than 20 years of customer-service experience. She holds an associate degree in biomedical engineering technology from Springfield Technical Community College and is a volunteer for Dakin Humane Society and the therapeutic Equestrian Center in Holyoke.

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Robert Mickey joined the Main Street Hospitality team as senior director of Regional Operations and general manager of the Red Lion Inn. Mickey brings 20 years of hospitality experience to Main Street Hospitality, including extensive operational and management expertise. His tenure at Old Edwards Hospitality Group in Highlands, N.C. was preceded by work at other prominent properties throughout the Southeast, including the Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W.V. as vice president of Guest Relations. He also served as director of Room Operations at the Sea Island Co. in St. Simons Island, Ga. In his new role at Main Street Hospitality, Mickey will focus on leading operations at the Red Lion Inn and provide oversight and support to Main Street Hospitality’s Berkshires properties, including Porches Inn at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Hotel on North in Pittsfield, and Briarcliff in Great Barrington.

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Solidago Foundation CEO Elizabeth Barajas-Román officially welcomed participants to the Women and Money Summit hosted by the Women’s Funding Network, the largest philanthropic network in the world devoted to women and girls. The summit was held at the SUNY Global Center in New York City on May 22. Barajas-Román serves as vice chair of the Women’s Funding Network. The Women and Money Summit focused on women-of-color leadership and the role of women as engaged influencers on all issues relating to economic security. Barajas-Román participated in an afternoon panel discussing the importance of including both race and gender in grant-making strategies in order to achieve economic opportunity and security for all.

Chamber Corners: Upcoming Events

By
Chamber Corners Departments

1BERKSHIRE
www.1berkshire.com
(413) 499-1600

• June 13: Good News Business Salute, 4:30-6:30 p.m., hosted by Hotel on North, 297 North St., Pittsfield. Join us to celebrate the following salutes: Excelsior Integrated, Buxton School, Mildred Elley, and the Brien Center. The presentation will begin at 4:45 p.m., and cocktail hour will start at 5:30 p.m. Guests are invited to enjoy Hotel on North for dinner afterward.

• June 20: Chamber Nite with Booking.com, 5-7 p.m., hosted by Hilton Garden Inn Pittsfield Lenox, 1032 South St., Pittsfield.

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

• June 14-17: Taste of Amherst on the Amherst Town Common. Showcase your restaurant or business with more than 20,000 attendees throughout the weekend. Booth space is limited, so reserve your space soon. All vendors must be open for all four days and all hours of operation, rain or shine. For more information about this event, call the chamber office at (413) 253-0700 or e-mail [email protected].

• June 22: New Member Reception to welcome, celebrate, and showcase our new members, 5 p.m. Venue to be announced.

FRANKLIN COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.franklincc.org
(413) 773-5463

• June 14: Business After Hours, 5-7 p.m., hosted by Crumpin-Fox Club, 87 Parmenter Road, Bernardston. Networking event with refreshments and cash bar. Register at franklincc.org or [email protected].

• June 22: Annual Meeting, 7:30-9 a.m., hosted by Eaglebrook School, Deerfield. This will be the last breakfast until September. Local state legislators have been invited, and chamber officers will be elected. Sponsored by Greenfield Cooperative Bank, Greenfield Recorder, Greenfield Savings Bank, Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Assoc., and Yankee Candle Village. Cost: $13 for members, $16 for non-members. Register by June 16 at franklincc.org or [email protected].

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

• June 14: CEO Luncheon, 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m., hosted by the Collegian Court, 89 Park St., Chicopee. A quarterly luncheon series where CEOs tell of how they rose to their positions. May’s luncheon will feature Dr. Harry Dumay of Elms College. Series sponsored by Polish National Credit Union. Cost: $30 for members, $35 for non-members. Sign up online at www.chicopeechamber.org/events or call (413) 594-2101.

• June 16: Run the Runway 5k, 9:30 a.m. Race starts at Westover Metropolitan Airport, 255 Padgette St., Chicopee. Presented by the Greater Chicopee Chamber, GCC, and WMA. Spectators welcome (behind the fence only).

• June 20: Salute Breakfast, 7:15-9 a.m., hosted by Elms College Campus Center. Air Show theme. Chief Greeter: Connie Brown, Galaxy Council. Keynote: Col. Bull Durham, 439th Airlift Wing. Sponsored by United Personnel, Westfield Bank, Holyoke Medical Center, Polish National Credit Union, Gaudreau Group, Spherion Staffing Services, and PeoplesBank. Cost: $23 for members, $28 for non-members. Sign up online at chicopeechamber.org/events.

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

• June 14: Networking by Night, 5-7 p.m., hosted by Fort Hill Brewery, 30 Fort Hill Road, Easthampton. Sponsored by Oxbow Ski Show Team and Tandem Bagel. Food and door prizes will be available. Pre-registration is suggested. Cost: $10 for members, $15 for non-members. For more information, visit www.easthamptonchamber.org or call the chamber office at (413) 527-9414.

• June 27: Speaker Breakfast 2018, 7:30-9 a.m., hosted and sponsored by Williston Northampton School, 19 Payson Ave., Easthampton. Keynote speaker Kate Harrington, Human Resource manager for Smith College, will speak on “Hiring the Right Fit.” She will help attendees understand how to develop a diverse applicant pool, know what questions to ask, and recognize what questions to avoid. She will also point out what to look for in a great employee and how to watch for bias. Cost: $25 for members, $30 for non-members. Pre-registration is suggested. For more information, visit www.easthamptonchamber.org or call the chamber office at (413) 527-9414.

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

• June 21: Workshop: “Microsoft Word: Advanced Tips, Tricks & Shortcuts,” 9-11 a.m., hosted by Greater Northampton Chamber of Commerce, 99 Pleasant St., Northampton. Presented by Pioneer Training. This workshop will go beyond the basics and explore some of Word’s more advanced features. Cost: $35 for members, $45 for non-members. Space is limited, and pre-registration is required at goo.gl/forms/pX8YUuC25YdMsLjD2.

• July 11: July Arrive @ 5, 5-7 p.m., hosted by Northampton Country Club, 135 Main St., Leeds. Cost: $10 for members.

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

• June 13: June After 5 Connection, 5-7 p.m., hosted by Westfield Bank, 462 College Highway, Southwick. Refreshments will be served, and a 50/50 raffle will benefit our chamber scholarship fund. Bring your business cards and make connections. Cost: free for members, $10/ for non-members (cash or credit paid at the door). Sign up online at www.westfieldbiz.org. For sponsorships or more information, call the chamber at (413) 568-1618.

• June 21: Summer Sizzler Kick-Off, 5:30-8 p.m., hosted by the Ranch, 65 Sunnyside Road, Southwick. This event, featuring networking, oversized outdoor games, heavy hors d’oeuvres, and cocktails, is great for making connections and team building while having fun. Sponsors include Mestek Inc. (platinum event sponsor) and Berkshire Bank (gold sponsor). For sponsorships or reservations, call the chamber at (413) 568-1618 or visit www.westfieldbiz.org.

• July 12: 41st Pancake Breakfast, 7-11 a.m., hosted by South Middle School, 30 West Silver St., Westfield. Rain or shine. Attractions include a bounce house, face painting, entertainment, a live broadcast from WSKB 89.5, and vendor tables. Sponsors to date include BusinessWest (pancake sponsor), Appalachian Press (placemat sponsor), Puffer Printing (ticket sponsor), and Dunkin’ Donuts (coffee sponsor). Cost: $6 for adults, $5 for seniors, $3 for kids under 10. For additional sponsorships or tickets, call the chamber at (413) 568-1618 or visit www.westfieldbiz.org.

SOUTH HADLEY & GRANBY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
www.shgchamber.com
(413) 532-6451

• June 12: After 5 at Ameriprise, 5-7 p.m., hosted by Ameriprise building, 551 Newton St., South Hadley. Come meet Steve Duval and the rest of the Ameriprise team, who are new members this year to the chamber family. Mix and mingle with other South Hadley & Granby Chamber members, spread the word about your business, and hear about theirs. Cost: $10 for members, $15 for non-members. Register at www.shgchamber.com (click on the link in the event description) or e-mail [email protected].

• June 20: BBQ Bash Membership Drive, 5-7:30 p.m., hosted by Brunelle’s Marina, 1 Alvord St., South Hadley. Invite your friends who are not yet members of the chamber so they can get to know us. It will be an evening of food, lawn games, conversation, door prizes, and a 50/50 raffle as an extra incentive. Bring your business cards to enter the door-prize drawing. Sponsors to date include Westfield Bank (presenting sponsor) and Florence Savings Bank, M. Connie Laplante ERA Real Estate, and SHELD (participating sponsors). Register by June 15 at www.shgchamber.com (click on the link in the event description) or e-mail [email protected]. Be sure to let us know how many will be coming with you.

SPRINGFIELD REGIONAL CHAMBER
www.springfieldregionalchamber.com
(413) 787-1555

• June 19: Lunch ‘n Learn: Business Succession Planning, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., presented by Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin, hosted by Colony Club, 1500 Main St., Springfield. The event will discuss the various stages of a business that should trigger succession-planning conversations, as well as discussion of three options for transferring the business: sale to an independent third party, transfer to family members, or sale to employees. Cost: $30 for members ($35 at the door), $35 general admission ($45 at the door). Reservations may be made at www.springfieldregionalchamber.com, [email protected], or (413) 755-1310.

• July 19: Golf Tournament, 11 a.m., hosted by Crestview Country Club, 281 Shoemaker Lane, Agawam. Reservations may be made at www.springfieldregionalchamber.com, [email protected], or (413) 755-1310.

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

• June 12: Annual Meeting and Business Grant Drawing, 7 a.m. The event will kick off with the welcoming of new co-chairmen Frank Palange and Ryan McLane and the incoming WRC board of directors. Two $500 business grants will be drawn the morning of the event. Guest speaker Michael Harrison from TALKERS will address guests. Cost: $35 for members, $45 for non-members. Sponsorships and program advertising are available. For more information or for tickets, contact the chamber office at (413) 426-3880 or e-mail [email protected].

YOUNG PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY OF GREATER SPRINGFIELD
springfieldyps.com

• June 28: Tenth annual Great Golf Escape, hosted by the Ranch, 65 Sunnyside Road, Southwick. Visit springfieldyps.com for registration information.

Agenda

By
Agenda Departments

40 Under Forty Gala

June 21: BusinessWest’s 12th annual 40 Under Forty Gala is a celebration of 40 young business and civic leaders in Western Mass. The lavish cocktail party, to be held starting at 5:30 p.m. at the Log Cabin in Holyoke, will feature butlered hors d’oeuvres, food stations, and entertainment — and, of course, the presentation of the class of 2018, profiled in the April 30 issue of BusinessWest and also available at businesswest.com. Also, the fourth Continued Excellence Award honoree will be announced. The 40 Under Forty sponsors include PeoplesBank (presenting sponsor), Northwestern Mutual (presenting sponsor), Isenberg School of Management, the MP Group, Mercedes-Benz of Springfield, Health New England, renew.calm, Development Associates, and YPS of Greater Springfield (partner). Tickets cost $75 per person (tables of 10 available). For more information, call (413) 781-8600, ext. 100, or e-mail [email protected].

Lunch & Learn Session on Employee Retention

June 22: Some 43 million Americans have $1.3 trillion in student loans. The average job tenure for Millennials is only 12 to 15 months. When an employee leaves, it costs the employer between 10% and 30% of their annual salary to replace them. The Gaudreau Group and GradFin will host a Lunch & Learn session at the Hilton Garden Inn in downtown Springfield to help employers overcome these issues. The session, sponsored by the Employers Assoc. of the NorthEast and led by Jenny MacKay and Geoff Urquhart, will focus on increasing employee retention with new employee-benefits and engagement strategies such as loan refinance and consolidation programs, financial-wellness education, and repayment-assistance benefits. Space is limited. Register at www.gaudreaugroup.com/events.

Financial-literacy Workshops

July 11 to Aug. 1: Springfield Partners for Community Action Inc. will host financial-literacy workshops starting Wednesday, July 11 and continuing every Wednesday through Aug. 1. Sessions run from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at 721 State St., Springfield, and are free and open to the public. Workshops are facilitated by the agency’s on-staff, nationally certified credit counselors. Series learning objectives include budgeting, credit, managing money, and debt. Refreshments will be served, and raffle prizes will be offered. Call Springfield Partners at (413) 263-6500 to register.

‘Trauma-sensitive Schools’

July 11-13: The Education Division at Elms College will host a three-day conference in July to give educators tools for working with students who have been affected by trauma. The conference, titled “Trauma-sensitive Schools: Meeting the Needs of Traumatized Students and Their Teachers,” will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day on the Elms College campus. This conference, designed for pre-K-to-12 school administrators, teachers, counselors, school nurses, and paraprofessionals, will provide educators with the knowledge, understanding, and tools to create a successful trauma-informed learning environment. The cost for an individual to attend is $250; for district/school teams of three or more, the cost is $200 per person. The registration deadline is June 13. To register, e-mail [email protected].

Brightside Golf Classic

July 23: More than 200 golfers are expected to participate in the 38th Annual Brightside Golf Classic at Springfield Country Club in West Springfield. Two tee times are available. Registration and breakfast for the morning session will begin at 6:45 a.m. with a shotgun start at 7:30 a.m. Lunch and registration for the afternoon session will begin at 11:30 a.m. with a 1 p.m. shotgun start. The evening reception will be held immediately following the tournament from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. For more information on sponsorships, donations, and attending the event, contact Suzanne Boniface at (413) 748-9935 or [email protected]. Information is also available at www.mercycares.com/brightside-golf-classic.

Court Dockets

By
Court Dockets Departments

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

HAMPDEN DISTRICT COURT

Mary Grabowski v. Meredith Management Corp., Maple Springfield Management Corp., and Maple Springfield Associates, LP
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing injury: $24,000
Filed: 4/30/18

American Builders & Contractors Supply Co. Inc. d/b/a ABC Supply Co. Inc. v. Gibbkell Corp. d/b/a Gibbkell Construction Corp.
Allegation: Money owed for goods sold and delivered: $6,230.57
Filed: 4/30/18

Dolores Weir v. East Side Holyoke, LLC, trustee of the 7 Franklin Street Realty Trust
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing injury: 10,378.38
Filed: 5/1/18

Syreeta Frazer v. Ocean State Jobbers Inc.
Allegation: Negligence; folding chair failed, causing injury: $2,112
Filed: 5/1/18

HAMPDEN SUPERIOR COURT

Gordon Hunting v. Eastern States Exposition Inc. and Outdoor Sports Expo Group Inc.
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing injury: $9,634.01
Filed: 5/2/18

Richard Reid v. Nicholas Fay, M.D.
Allegation: Medical malpractice: $88,000+
Filed: 5/3/18

Shaun Gibson v. Cloot’s Auto Body Inc. and Gary Cloutier
Allegation: Breach of contract, breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, unjust enrichment, unfair and deceptive practices: $22,000
Filed: 5/7/18

Jeffrey Lauziere v. Smith & Wesson Corp., American Outdoor Brands Corp., and Smith & Wesson Security Solutions Inc.
Allegation: Negligence; plaintiff fell through roof on defendant’s premises while performing services as a roofer, causing injury: $2,441,001.46
5/11/18

HAMPSHIRE DISTRICT COURT

Fitzgerald Fences Inc. v. D.A. Sullivan & Sons Inc.
Allegation: Breach of contract regarding installation of fence; $16,782
Filed: 5/3/18

HAMPSHIRE SUPERIOR COURT

Jason Calamia v. Cinemark USA Inc., Pyramid Mall of Hadley Newco, LLC, Pyramid Management Group, LLC, and Gleason Johndrow Landscaping Inc.
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing injury: $46,251
Filed: 5/3/18

Thyda Ty, et al v. Cumberland Farms Inc., et al
Allegation: Negligence; Fire-suppression system above gas pumps malfunctioned, causing chemical release in parking lot, causing injury: $25,000
Filed: 5/9/18

Shannon Coler v. Cooley Dickinson Hospital Inc.
Allegation: Employment discrimination (pregnancy): $200,000+
Filed: 5/18/18

City of Northampton v. Barr & Barr Inc., Liberty Mutual Insurance Co., and Caolo & Bieniek Associates Inc.
Allegation: Breach of contract, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation: $100,000
Filed: 5/18/18

Jolene M. Lambert v. Holyoke Medical Center Inc., Spiros Hatiras, and Erin Hurlburt
Allegation: Employment discrimination and wrongful termination: $180,000
Filed: 5/18/18

HOLYOKE DISTRICT COURT

Peter Ziemba v. Home-Like Apartments Inc., Neil A. Abrahamson, Paul Abrahamson, and Vermont Mutual Insurance Co.
Allegation: Negligence and breach of implied warranty of habitability; slip and fall causing injury: $23,000
Filed: 5/18/18

Picture This

By
Picture This

Email ‘Picture This’ photos with a caption and contact information to [email protected]

Finding Their Sparkle

Link to Libraries recently hosted local author Natasha Lowe at Kensington International School in Springfield

Link to Libraries recently hosted local author Natasha Lowe at Kensington International School in Springfield. Lowe spent more than an hour with the third grade, discussing life as an author and reading from her latest novel, Lucy Castor Finds Her Sparkle. “I’m just bowled over by the incredible work Link to Libraries does,” Lowe said. “Getting books into the hands of kids is a small thing that can make a big difference. A book can offer a child a magical world to escape into. They become like old friends, to be read over and over again. I had such a wonderful time visiting Kensington School this morning and sharing Lucy with all the third-graders.”

 

New Life on Main Street

Country Bank announced it has donated its former building, located at 65-71 Main St., Ware, to the Quaboag Valley Community Development Corp. (QVCDC).

Country Bank announced it has donated its former building, located at 65-71 Main St., Ware, to the Quaboag Valley Community Development Corp. (QVCDC). “The bank is looking forward to the development of this property as a creative, innovative space for artists and crafts people to practice and teach, as well as display their work,” said Paul Scully, president and CEO of Country Bank. The retail space is currently being revitalized and will provide incubator space to three new small businesses to help them begin their journey. The plans for the retail space include a pottery studio that will work in conjunction with Workshop 13 on pottery classes for the public, an art gallery with a coffee shop, and an additional space for another artistic business. The QVCDC also received a $75,000 grant from the MassDevelopment Collaborative Workspace program to help with the renovations taking place in the new space. Pictured, from left: Alexandria Martinez, project specialist, QVCDC; Sheila Cuddy, executive director, QVDC; Scully; and Mary McGovern, CFO of Country Bank.

 

Future Teachers

The ​MassMutual Foundation has awarded Teach Western Mass (TWM) $150,000 to support two teacher-pipeline programs, Generation Teach and the Urban Education Pathway (UEP

The ​MassMutual Foundation has awarded Teach Western Mass (TWM) $150,000 to support two teacher-pipeline programs, Generation Teach and the Urban Education Pathway (UEP). Both programs are critical to TWM’s efforts to recruit, prepare, and retain effective teachers to provide access to a world-class education to every student in Western Mass. Launched in partnership with Smith College in the fall of 2017, the first cohort of undergraduate Urban Ed Scholars includes 23 students from Mount Holyoke College, Hampshire College, Smith College, and UMass Amherst. Generation Teach is a summer fellowship for high-school and undergraduate students interested in exploring a teaching career.

 

Running for Their Lives

More than 2,500 girls, spectators, volunteers, and community members gathered on June 3 for the Girls on the Run Western Massachusetts 5K event at Springfield College, the culminating moment of the Girls on the Run season

More than 2,500 girls, spectators, volunteers, and community members gathered on June 3 for the Girls on the Run Western Massachusetts 5K event at Springfield College, the culminating moment of the Girls on the Run season. Girls on the Run is a national, physical activity-based, positive youth-development program that uses fun running games and dynamic discussions to teach life skills to girls in grades 3-8. During the 10-week program, girls participate in lessons that foster confidence, build peer connections, and encourage community service while they prepare for the end-of-season celebratory 5K event. In Western Mass., more than 190 trained volunteer coaches facilitated the curriculum to 54 teams of girls this spring season, helping equip them with the physical and emotional skills necessary to carry them over the 5K finish line. There were 740 girls in the program this spring from 52 school sites.

 

Engineering Inspiration

Holyoke Community College (HCC) recently hosted students from Putnam Vocational Technical High School and Springfield High School of Science and Technology for Engineering Exploration Day

Holyoke Community College (HCC) recently hosted students from Putnam Vocational Technical High School and Springfield High School of Science and Technology for Engineering Exploration Day. The students calculated the trajectory of projectiles, explored the computer science that enables 3-D printing, built bridges out of newspapers, plotted transit maps, solved logic puzzles, examined atomic structures, generated magnetic fields, and much more. “Engineering Exploration Day was not only about letting incoming students know about our STEM programs and classes; it also offered our STEM students the opportunity to share their personal experiences of how HCC has impacted their personal journeys,” said Melissa Paciulli, HCC’s STEM project administrator. Pictured: Alban Medina, 18 (right), gets ready to shock one of his classmates from Putnam during an exercise in electricity.

 

Alzheimer’s Awareness

On May 15, Alzheimer’s Assoc. officials, local state legislators, and citizens impacted by Alzheimer’s disease gathered at the Grand Staircase at the Massachusetts State House for a day of awareness and conversation around the disease

On May 15, Alzheimer’s Assoc. officials, local state legislators, and citizens impacted by Alzheimer’s disease gathered at the Grand Staircase at the Massachusetts State House for a day of awareness and conversation around the disease. The event, Alzheimer’s Advocacy Day, included a focus on pending legislation (H. 4116) that would support these individuals and their families while focusing on preparing various stakeholders on making the state more dementia-capable. H.4116 passed the House of Representatives on Jan. 31 and is expected to be in front of the Senate this summer. Attendees also met with their local legislators to share how Alzheimer’s has impacted their lives, thank their representatives for their support of H.4116, and urge senators to support the upcoming legislation. 

 

Springfield Dementia Friendly Coalition Receives Grant

By
Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The newly formed Springfield Dementia Friendly Coalition (SDFC) has been awarded a Dementia-Friendly Capacity Building Grant from the Massachusetts Council on Aging under a Service Incentive Grant from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs.

The Council on Aging grant will enable the coalition to hold focus-group meetings over the coming months with local government and public officials, first responders, and members of the business community to make them aware of the issues facing individuals living with dementia, their friends, family, and care partners, to give an overview of the movement and elicit their thoughts and engagement in the initiative. In addition, the group will meet with those living with dementia and their care partners and expand the Dementia Friendly website, www.dementiafriendlycommunities.org.

The coalition chair, Synthia Scott-Mitchell from Springfield Partners for Community Action, noted that “a dementia-friendly community is defined as one that is informed, safe, and respectful of individuals with dementia and their families, and provides supportive options for improved quality of life.”

An estimated 5.7 million Americans ages 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia. Nearly 60% of people with dementia live in their own communities, and one in seven live alone, creating an urgent need for communities to support people with dementia and their caregivers.

SDFC partners include the Springfield Department of Elder Affairs/Council on Aging, Springfield Partners for Community Action, Greater Springfield Senior Services, the Alzheimer’s Assoc., Silver Life Care at Home, Chapin Center, El Grupo de Apoyo, and Loomis Lakeside at Reeds Landing.

A calendar of upcoming events is available at www.dementiafriendlycommunities.org. For more information or to get involved, contact Scott-Mitchell at (413) 263-6500, ext. 6518, or [email protected], or Carol Constant at (413) 588-5184 or [email protected].

Pakistani Artists to Paint Amherst BID Trolley This Week

By
Daily News

AMHERST — In collaboration with the UMass Donahue Institute and during the Taste of Amherst, renowned artists from Karachi, Pakistan will be painting the Amherst BID ‘trolley.’

Haider Ali and Ali Salman specialize in Pakistani truck art. The laborate painting and adorning of commercial trucks and buses is common throughout Pakistan. The owners of these trucks use the art as an expression of pride in their vehicles and profession. This particular group of artists, professionally known as Phool Patti, do the bulk of their painting with trucks but have done dozens of international projects in Asia, Europe, and the U.S. In fact, painting the Amherst trolley is their last stop before working on an exhibit at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.

The public is invited to see the painting take place on the Amherst town common on Friday, June 15 from 5 p.m. until dusk and Saturday, June 16 from 2 p.m. until completion.

Elms Students Present Autism Research at International Conference

By
Daily News

CHICOPEE — Two master’s students from Elms College contributed to the growing body of global research in autism-spectrum disorders by presenting posters at last month’s annual meeting for the Assoc. of Behavior Analysis International in San Diego.

Alyssa Clark and Miranda Fogg are in the master of science in applied behavior analysis program at Elms, and both have been working with children with autism on research projects with Laura Hanratty, director of applied behavior analysis and ASD graduate programs assistant professor.

The three collaborated on two posters to present at the conference. The first poster was titled “Evaluating Efficacy of Varied Reinforcers on Learning New Skills.” For this project, the students taught three children with autism 30 to 40 new academic skills, using different reward strategies.

“Using reinforcers is a hallmark in early intervention for autism, and the students were able to share how to make early intervention even more effective for kids who are struggling with academics,” Hanratty explained. “The children in this study were able to master many academic skills to help with communication.”

The second poster was titled “Differential Reinforcement of Alternative Behavior Without Extinction.” In this project, the students worked with a young child with severe problem behavior, including aggression and destroying property.

“The research team completely decreased problem behavior, while teaching the young child communication skills and how to follow adult instruction,” Hanratty said. “By the time they were done, the child was completing up to 15 instructions with multiple steps and completing his academic skills.”

Earlier this year, Clark and Fogg presented the posters at the annual meeting of the Connecticut Assoc. for Behavior Analysis in Hartford.

Bankruptcies

By
Bankruptcies Departments

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

Adomaitis, Katherine M.
33C Benoit Circle
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/03/18

Baker, Heather
a/k/a Sujdak, Heather
96 Charden Lane
Athol, MA 01331
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/14/18

Bob Stevens Plumbing
Stevens, Robert Charles
18 Dean Pond Road
Brimfield, MA 01010
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/09/18

Caldwell, Michael D.
51 Haumont Ter.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/13/18

Carpenter, Richard J.
Carpenter, Claire M.
134 Columbia St.
Adams, MA 01220
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Clear Design
Paganetti, John Louis
165 Front St., Suite 2
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/04/18

Crocker, Donna H.
76 Hazelwood Ave.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/03/18

Dowland, Richard Lee
10 Emerald Place
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/15/18

Fenner, William
267 Breckenridge St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Fowler, Robert E.
224 Pearl St., Unit 1L
Springfield, MA 01105
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/02/18

Garrow, Heather
42 Putting Lane
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/03/18

Gerald, E. Beaulieu
408 Sumner Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/10/18

Gerardi, Jason
Gerardi, Brittany
a/k/a Mossey, Brittany
86 Hampstead Place
Athol, MA 01331
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/14/18

Geryk, Laura A.
a/k/a Geryk-Missien, Laura A.
903 Florence Road
Florence, MA 01062
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/15/18

Goldberg, Edward R.
59 Glenview Dr.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/14/18

Golphin, Prince
Golphin, Tammy L.
248 King St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/08/18

Gosselin, Jean Joseph
Gosselin, Lynn M.
536 Piper Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Gouvin-Maxfield, Christy L.
57 Brittany Road
Indian Orchard, MA 01151
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Hardy, Gordon T.
7 Davis St., Apt. B
Easthampton, MA 01027
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/13/18

Huberty, Sarah F.
30 Cross St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/11/18

J. Landscaping
Wojcik, Jeremiah R.
PO Box 555
Cheshire, MA 01225-0555
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Kirby’s Electric
Kirby, John J.
Kirby, Holly A.
179 Country Road
Agawam, MA 01001
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/06/18

Kirkland, Beth Moore
14 Williamsburg Dr.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 04/30/18

Knight, Stefiny Ann
PO Box 83
Thorndike, MA 01079
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/02/18

Kondrotas, Benjamin F.
179 Everett Road
Barre, MA 01005
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/08/18

Korth Fleischer, Anne Marie
Fleischer, Ann Marie
12 Maple St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/07/18

Kubacki, Tami P.
113 Geneva St.
Indian Orchard, MA 01151
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/15/18

LDS
Lockhart, Jan J.
59 Wilmont St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/07/18

MacDonald, James E.
MacDonald, Margaux A.
1089 Park St., Apt. 1
Palmer, MA 01069
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Monette, Richard Gerald
38C Grove St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/09/18

Murphy, Donna M.
1153 Saint James Ave.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Nalubega, Mary
492 Cold Spring Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/09/18

O’Dean, Jessica L.
2284 Main St.
Three Rivers, MA 01080
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/03/18

Roman, Yvonne
318 Ingleside St. 1st
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/15/18

Sherrer, Curtis Edward
44 Canal St.
Turners Falls, MA 01376
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/09/18

Spears, Marilyn E.
188 Nassau Dr.
Springfield, MA 01129
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/04/18

St. George, Lori L.
a/k/a Bodzinski, Lori
2759 Greenwich Road
Ware, MA 01082
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 04/30/18

Sullivan, Kathryn R.
a/k/a Antunes, Kathryn R.
96 Hafey St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/01/18

Swanson, Jerome Anthony
PO Box 282
Monson, MA 01057
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 04/30/18

Vega, Jeremy
32 Fairview Ave., Apt 3
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/02/18

Volpi, Ashley J.
3 Myrtle St., Apt. B7
Adams, MA 01220
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/15/18

Wildwind Flags
Windward, Kathleen M.
a/k/a Jackson, Kathleen M.
a/k/a Kathleen Windward
82 Breakneck Road
Sturbridge, MA 01566
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/08/18

Williams, Claudette L.
a/k/a Williams, Claudette Letendre
8 Harper St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/15/18

Willor, Francis J.
455 Old State St., Apt. 2
North Adams, MA 01247
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 05/11/18

Wright, Lewin George
Wright, Brenda Marie
a/k/a Wright, Brenda Williams
120 Breckwood Circle
Springfield, MA 01119
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 05/04/18

Wysocki, Gina M
15 Overland St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 04/30/18

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

CHARLEMONT

1903 Route 2
Charlemont, MA 01339
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Robert M. Ovitt
Seller: Winston Healy TR
Date: 05/16/18

DEERFIELD

12 Beaver Dr.
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $249,900
Buyer: Christopher Bagley
Seller: Denise M. Houle
Date: 05/17/18

34 Plain Rd East
Deerfield, MA 01373
Amount: $329,000
Buyer: Daniel P. Sheehan
Seller: William F. Rotkiewicz
Date: 05/14/18

GREENFIELD

400 Adams Road
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Keith E. Goduti
Seller: Matthew S. Smith
Date: 05/10/18

230 Davis St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $131,200
Buyer: JP Morgan Chase Bank
Seller: Holly M. Murdock
Date: 05/07/18

Highland Ave.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $134,900
Buyer: Gretchen E. Green
Seller: Linda S. Singer
Date: 05/16/18

18 Highland Ave.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Christopher P. Goudreau
Seller: Marilyn Berthelette
Date: 05/11/18

36 Lakeview Dr.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $298,000
Buyer: Jennifer J. Wheeler
Seller: William F. Doyle
Date: 05/15/18

5 Park St.
Greenfield, MA 01376
Amount: $425,000
Buyer: Eawoftd LLC
Seller: Greenfield Womens Health
Date: 05/17/18

28 Revere Circle
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $209,000
Buyer: Michel E. Dubois
Seller: Troy Santerre
Date: 05/18/18

MONTAGUE

442 Turners Falls Road
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $402,000
Buyer: Clifford C. Spatcher
Seller: Gary H. Gardner
Date: 05/18/18

1 Wentworth Ave.
Montague, MA 01376
Amount: $228,000
Buyer: Karen J. Woodcock
Seller: Mary K. Mattiace
Date: 05/11/18

NEW SALEM

144 Neilson Road
New Salem, MA 01355
Amount: $237,000
Buyer: William Cody
Seller: Richard H. Oliver
Date: 05/18/18

NORTHFIELD

415 4 Mile Brook Road
Northfield, MA 01354
Amount: $280,000
Buyer: Vincent R. Pernice
Seller: Cecelia Jordan
Date: 05/15/18

ORANGE

100 Brookside Road
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Wayne Mailloux
Date: 05/11/18

87 East Road
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Jamey H. King
Seller: Frederick L. Maguire
Date: 05/17/18

83 East Myrtle St.
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Christy L. Page
Date: 05/10/18

104 Governor Dukakis Dr.
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $345,000
Buyer: Zbylut Realty LLC
Seller: PTG Realty LLC
Date: 05/07/18

ROWE

5 Pine Hill Dr.
Rowe, MA 01367
Amount: $138,000
Buyer: Douglas M. Upton
Seller: Debra L. Buchanan
Date: 05/07/18

SHELBURNE

1063 Mohawk Trail
Shelburne, MA 01370
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Andrew M. Mangold
Seller: Dana Filbert
Date: 05/11/18

WARWICK

1055 Orange Road
Warwick, MA 01378
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Mandy M. Yurko
Seller: Rivers, Robert A., (Estate)
Date: 05/18/18

WHATELY

45 Christian Lane
Whately, MA 01093
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Paul M. Gray
Seller: Ronald J. Rup
Date: 05/15/18

HAMPDEN COUNTY

AGAWAM

115 Columbia Dr.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $288,000
Buyer: Brian J. Reilly
Seller: Dean M. Berry
Date: 05/18/18

52 Mallard Circle
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Kaydoke RT
Seller: William J. McMahon
Date: 05/09/18

734 North Westfield St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $239,900
Buyer: Charles R. Butler
Seller: Kevin J. Lynch
Date: 05/11/18

1278 Suffield St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $252,500
Buyer: Ashley T. Stone
Seller: John Decaro
Date: 05/15/18

BRIMFIELD

2 Adams Dr.
Brimfield, MA 01010
Amount: $223,000
Buyer: Timothy Heno
Seller: Sally A. Wilson
Date: 05/08/18

1170 Dunhamtown Brimfield Road
Brimfield, MA 01010
Amount: $430,000
Buyer: Crystal A. Kingsbury
Seller: Alan C. Thresher
Date: 05/07/18

17 Paige Hill Road
Brimfield, MA 01010
Amount: $168,100
Buyer: Colbey S. Snow
Seller: Michael J. Blanchard
Date: 05/15/18

CHESTER

9 Maple St.
Chester, MA 01011
Amount: $122,000
Buyer: Matthew T. O’Brien
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/11/18

CHICOPEE

21 Bay State Road
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $1,250,000
Buyer: Dhanya Real Estate Holdings
Seller: Montgomery Development Group
Date: 05/14/18

Bay State Road
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $1,250,000
Buyer: Dhanya Real Estate Holdings
Seller: Montgomery Development Group
Date: 05/14/18

229 Bemis Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $143,000
Buyer: Nathin S. Rand
Seller: USA HUD
Date: 05/18/18

56 Billings St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Juan A. Flores
Seller: Christian McCoy
Date: 05/15/18

143 Blanan Dr.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $255,000
Buyer: William Cruz
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/17/18

947 Burnett Road
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $1,900,000
Buyer: CH Realty 8 & CG CT Atlantis
Seller: Cherokee Hill LLC
Date: 05/14/18

52 Casino Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $187,500
Buyer: Yvonne V. Farino
Seller: Mario Maloni
Date: 05/17/18

17 Chateaugay St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Annie A. Feliciano
Seller: Larry Jones
Date: 05/15/18

199 College St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Aracelis Ocasio
Seller: Ann V. Rose
Date: 05/07/18

64 Czepiel St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: Robert T. Bialas
Seller: Linda M. Burque
Date: 05/11/18

35 David St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $283,000
Buyer: Mark A. Fine
Seller: Jeff M. Picard
Date: 05/08/18

25 Depot St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $256,000
Buyer: Daniel Martinez
Seller: Sergey Savonin
Date: 05/08/18

49 Eldridge St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $176,000
Buyer: Monique Walker
Seller: Gregory J. Deschenes
Date: 05/15/18

49 Elm St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $122,500
Buyer: Marilyn Page
Seller: James W. Fiore
Date: 05/18/18

86 Empire St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $179,900
Buyer: Christine Grainger
Seller: Jennifer A. Ledoux
Date: 05/15/18

63 Florence St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Aleli Figueroa
Seller: Frances A. Trembley
Date: 05/15/18

2 Highland Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $223,000
Buyer: Sonia Alicea
Seller: Antoni Jangas
Date: 05/08/18

22 Howard St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Bruce W. Hunter
Seller: Marshall W. Payne
Date: 05/18/18

735 James St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $415,000
Buyer: DSL Property Services LLC
Seller: Diane M. Bernashe-Lecca
Date: 05/08/18

161 Labelle Circle
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Michael F. Messier
Seller: Normand J&L J. Lapointe LT
Date: 05/16/18

29 Marion St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $149,000
Buyer: NSP Residential LLC
Seller: FNMA
Date: 05/11/18

Montgomery St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $1,250,000
Buyer: Dhanya Real Estate Holdings
Seller: Montgomery Development Group
Date: 05/14/18

515 Montgomery St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $400,000
Buyer: Dhanya Real Estate Holdings
Seller: Montgomery Development Group LLC
Date: 05/11/18

29 Northwood St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $174,900
Buyer: Donna M. Zanoli
Seller: Kathleen T. Flynn
Date: 05/08/18

52 Putting Lane
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Michael Woishnis
Seller: David A. Deslauriers
Date: 05/10/18

16 Rolf Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $157,000
Buyer: MTGLQ Investors LP
Seller: Rhonda L. Gosselin
Date: 05/10/18

138 Saint James Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Jennifer M. Riether
Seller: David R. Lareau
Date: 05/09/18

EAST LONGMEADOW

85 Avery St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Deirdre Moraes
Seller: Michelle B. Milo
Date: 05/07/18

66 Fernwood Dr.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $265,000
Buyer: Brian D. Mackenzie
Seller: Kenneth Werner
Date: 05/18/18

50 Forbes Hill Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Michael S. Ahmed
Seller: Mary R. Whelihan
Date: 05/10/18

101 Hillside Dr.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $295,900
Buyer: Ashley M. Swift
Seller: John M. Bobianski
Date: 05/18/18

8 Melvin Ave.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Omega Cleaners LLC
Seller: Despina Z. Pesculis
Date: 05/10/18

642 North Main St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $500,000
Buyer: 642 North Main St. Corp.
Seller: Torcia-Santaniello-King
Date: 05/09/18

382 Porter Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $267,775
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Robert E. Fisk
Date: 05/08/18

17 Savoy Ave.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $306,000
Buyer: Holly C. Wensley
Seller: Charlene M. Krol
Date: 05/17/18

30-34 Shaker Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $3,000,000
Buyer: Shaker Road LLC
Seller: East Meadows Realty LLC
Date: 05/17/18

60 Shaker Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $3,000,000
Buyer: Shaker Road LLC
Seller: East Meadows Realty LLC
Date: 05/17/18

26 Wood Ave.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $229,000
Buyer: John Wesonga
Seller: MR Home Inc.
Date: 05/07/18

GRANVILLE

1430 Main Road
Granville, MA 01034
Amount: $309,000
Buyer: Jeremy S. Batchelor
Seller: Tina Deblois
Date: 05/10/18

215 Silver St.
Granville, MA 01034
Amount: $193,921
Buyer: Daniel G. Neiweem
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/18/18

HAMPDEN

50 Baldwin Dr.
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Krysta L. Zanetti
Seller: Caryn Salwen
Date: 05/18/18

23 Glendale View Dr.
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $535,000
Buyer: Jana M. Roberts
Seller: Brian E. Specht
Date: 05/09/18

61 Rock A. Dundee Road
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $225,312
Buyer: Susan C. Rockwell
Seller: Anne W. Rockwell-Kollmann
Date: 05/14/18

HOLLAND

41 Craig Road
Holland, MA 01521
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Carol Blotniski
Seller: Corey K. Jovan
Date: 05/17/18

Mashapaug Road
Holland, MA 01521
Amount: $338,000
Buyer: Transportation Alliance Bank
Seller: New England Land & Lumber
Date: 05/17/18

6 Ridge Road
Holland, MA 01521
Amount: $183,000
Buyer: Joshua M. Perry
Seller: Alice E. Rainka
Date: 05/15/18

HOLYOKE

59 Berkshire St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Harris A. Colon
Seller: James F. Dupuis
Date: 05/08/18

78 Berkshire St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $189,900
Buyer: Stephen D. Winslow
Seller: Cheryl A. Hollway
Date: 05/14/18

21 Carol Lane
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $281,250
Buyer: Deborah K. Driscoll
Seller: Lorraine J. Zawada
Date: 05/16/18

70 Cleveland St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $340,000
Buyer: Justine A. Boulanger
Seller: Deborah K. Driscoll
Date: 05/16/18

55-57 Congress Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $148,000
Buyer: GQ LLC
Seller: Marcellin J. Berube
Date: 05/18/18

139 Hillside Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $162,000
Buyer: Meghann A. Jurkowski
Seller: Kristin C. Desmarais
Date: 05/18/18

41 Lynn Ann Dr.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $252,500
Buyer: Rudolph H. Fiebig
Seller: Paul M. Scott
Date: 05/16/18

240 Madison Ave. West
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $315,000
Buyer: Lee Morrissette
Seller: Edward A. Bouquillon
Date: 05/16/18

73 Sycamore St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $144,500
Buyer: Christopher Bates
Seller: Peter J. McMahon
Date: 05/16/18

LONGMEADOW

349 Bliss Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Anne K. MacDonald-Sarah
Seller: Kae F. MacDonald-Mary
Date: 05/17/18

79 Hillcrest Ave.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $280,000
Buyer: Celia J. Alvarado
Seller: Rachel L. Parziale
Date: 05/11/18

117 Lawnwood Ave.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $218,000
Buyer: Christioher Distefano
Seller: Kenneth W. Butt
Date: 05/18/18

31 Lincoln Park
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Tae H. Kim
Seller: Andrew C. Nichols
Date: 05/15/18

187 Lynnwood Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $345,000
Buyer: Lindsay K. Festa
Seller: Harvey S. Mandel
Date: 05/10/18

105 Riverview Ave.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Christopher Rooney
Seller: Eric Lederman
Date: 05/09/18

139 Warren Ter.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Ann M. Mowry
Seller: Craig T. Shapiro
Date: 05/18/18

1258 Williams St.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $475,000
Buyer: Veeraraghavan J. Iyer
Seller: Kathleen F. Weeks
Date: 05/18/18

359 Williams St.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $263,900
Buyer: Alan J. Hitchcock
Seller: Nancy N. Cole
Date: 05/18/18

LUDLOW

119 Barre Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $182,000
Buyer: Lisa A. Dowers
Seller: Carla A. Dawley
Date: 05/17/18

681 Center St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $209,000
Buyer: Marcel Nunes
Seller: Antonio G. Norton
Date: 05/17/18

125 Church St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $264,000
Buyer: Crystal M. Cavallo
Seller: Eric S. Bohnet
Date: 05/09/18

176 Higher Brook Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Natalina Zina
Seller: Judith A. Evaristo
Date: 05/14/18

59 Howard St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Bruno G. Varandas
Seller: Nolpaq Properties LLC
Date: 05/18/18

132 Whitney St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $206,000
Buyer: Gary P. Pouliot
Seller: Peter Guertin
Date: 05/07/18

348 Winsor St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $173,000
Buyer: Edward L. Roy
Seller: Mark K. Jessup
Date: 05/16/18

68 Yale St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Jeffrey C. McConkey
Seller: Jeffrey Newell
Date: 05/18/18

MONSON

42 Bethany Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $180,400
Buyer: Taylor M. Pronowicz
Seller: John H. Gousy
Date: 05/07/18

26 Blanchard Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Ashley M. Sliwa
Seller: Jennifer A. Samuels
Date: 05/11/18

54 High St.
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Michael Grochowski
Seller: David J. Wallace
Date: 05/18/18

19-1/2 King Ave.
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $159,495
Buyer: MTGLQ Investors LP
Seller: Benjamin T. Rathburn
Date: 05/14/18

159 Maxwell Road
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $235,000
Buyer: Craig M. Marengo
Seller: Frederick H. Dickson
Date: 05/17/18

PALMER

12 3rd St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $4,850,000
Buyer: Mapleleaf Warehouse LLC
Seller: Mapleleaf Distribution Services
Date: 05/14/18

14 3rd St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $4,850,000
Buyer: Mapleleaf Warehouse LLC
Seller: Mapleleaf Distribution Services
Date: 05/14/18

92 Beech St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: MTGLQ Investors LP
Seller: Susan C. Hurley
Date: 05/14/18

10 Berkshire St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $244,900
Buyer: Justina U. Eke
Seller: Darrin C. Booke
Date: 05/11/18

68 Flynt St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Monique Vadnais
Seller: Vadnais, Francis R., (Estate)
Date: 05/15/18

15 Holbrook St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $127,000
Buyer: Preferred Property Management
Seller: Ruby Realty LLC
Date: 05/16/18

2030 Oak St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $252,000
Buyer: Linda L. Austin-Morin
Seller: David Manning
Date: 05/18/18

4011 Pine St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $186,000
Buyer: Jose A. Lopez
Seller: Greg Lesniak
Date: 05/18/18

SPRINGFIELD

126 Arcadia Blvd.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $199,900
Buyer: Heather Chappel
Seller: Joseph A. Perez
Date: 05/14/18

94 Arnold Ave.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Edwina J. Washington
Seller: Yudelka A. Reyes
Date: 05/17/18

328 Arnold Ave.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $227,000
Buyer: Sara H. Kapinos
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/10/18

84 Barrington Dr.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $325,000
Buyer: Kareem G. Charles
Seller: Nathan W. Skrocki
Date: 05/15/18

43 Barrison St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $168,000
Buyer: Joseph A. Goulet
Seller: Brendon Struck
Date: 05/11/18

267 Boston Road
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Janice R. Jackson
Seller: Leonardo Toro
Date: 05/09/18

30 Bowdoin St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $444,000
Buyer: New Horizons Day Care Inc.
Seller: Restoration Worship Center
Date: 05/11/18

113 Brandon Ave.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $147,000
Buyer: Liam Moriarty
Seller: CME Properties LLC
Date: 05/11/18

276-278 Centre St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $380,000
Buyer: 716 Spring Valley LLC
Seller: Yellowbrick Property LLC
Date: 05/11/18

235 Chestnut St.
Springfield, MA 01103
Amount: $1,000,000
Buyer: Altranais Home Care LLC
Seller: Glenshane 2 LLC
Date: 05/14/18

80 Commonwealth Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Atif Khan
Seller: John J. Damato
Date: 05/11/18

84 Commonwealth Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Atif Khan
Seller: John J. Damato
Date: 05/11/18

91 Copeland St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Iesha Torres
Seller: Adam B. Rovithis
Date: 05/16/18

313 Cortland St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $136,000
Buyer: Luis I. Figueroa-Ortega
Seller: Charles Henderson
Date: 05/16/18

24 Dartmouth St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $129,000
Buyer: Southbridge RE LLC
Seller: Roberson, Robert A., (Estate)
Date: 05/11/18

48 East Allen Ridge Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $179,900
Buyer: Carlos N. Colondres
Seller: Robert E. Oberther
Date: 05/14/18

47 Gardens Dr.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $189,000
Buyer: David Martinez
Seller: Thomas E. Huckins
Date: 05/10/18

13 Grattan St.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $265,910
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Timothy J. Kempesty
Date: 05/15/18

25 Haumont Ter.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $117,000
Buyer: Diana Rosario
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/15/18

294 Holcomb Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $115,920
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Daniel E. Gamache
Date: 05/15/18

46 Irvington St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $198,500
Buyer: Martha Winters
Seller: Le & Associates LLC
Date: 05/18/18

193-195 Laconia St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $237,000
Buyer: Wenfeng Wang
Seller: James E. Purtle
Date: 05/09/18

42-44 Longfellow Ter.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $223,000
Buyer: Julio A. Sepulveda
Seller: Eryca R. Haase
Date: 05/14/18

206 Mallowhill Road
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $194,000
Buyer: Carolyn N. Duran
Seller: Cheryl M. Panetta
Date: 05/18/18

355 Maple St.
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $122,000
Buyer: Serena L. Harris
Seller: Mark R. Clink
Date: 05/14/18

196 Marmon St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $172,928
Buyer: Wilmington Savings
Seller: Steve D. Harris
Date: 05/10/18

134 Massasoit St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $179,900
Buyer: Devin A. Vanasse
Seller: Deveron E. Plummer
Date: 05/17/18

90 Newhall St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $116,500
Buyer: Natasha Pica
Seller: Marc J. Kadis
Date: 05/17/18

809 North Branch Pkwy.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $164,900
Buyer: Victor C. Colon
Seller: Westvue NPL TR 2
Date: 05/10/18

40 Ogden St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $184,000
Buyer: Francisco J. Negron
Seller: Thomas Day
Date: 05/08/18

120 Orchard St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $280,000
Buyer: 716 Spring Valley LLC
Seller: Yellowbrick Property LLC
Date: 05/11/18

116 Peekskill Ave.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Raymond DeLaCruz
Seller: Steven K. Merzigian
Date: 05/11/18

1070 Plumtree Road
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Anthony Sanabria
Seller: Williams F. Downs
Date: 05/15/18

34 Portulaca Dr.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $147,600
Buyer: Bank Of America
Seller: Steven E. Fish
Date: 05/08/18

129 Powell Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $165,000
Buyer: Jacqueline Baez
Seller: Lindsay A. Varelas
Date: 05/18/18

40 Ravenwood St.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Carlos A. Aguasvivas
Seller: Stanley W. Szaban
Date: 05/11/18

264 Redlands St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $164,000
Buyer: Carlos M. Rivera
Seller: Jason M. Vilakis
Date: 05/17/18

75 Regal St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Janine M. Prokop
Seller: Junior Properties LLC
Date: 05/11/18

125 Rochford Circle
Springfield, MA 01128
Amount: $147,500
Buyer: North Harlow 5 LLC
Seller: Citizens Bank
Date: 05/11/18

16 Ronald Dr.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $168,000
Buyer: Alphonso S. Morgan
Seller: Todd Bourcier
Date: 05/16/18

151 Rosewell St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $156,000
Buyer: Sasha Rivera
Seller: John B. Wesonga
Date: 05/07/18

295 Rosewell St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Western Mass. Property Developers
Seller: AJN Rentals LLC
Date: 05/17/18

1250 Saint James Ave.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $615,000
Buyer: Arista Springfield LLC
Seller: Albany Rd-Saint James Ave.
Date: 05/11/18

78 Shady Brook Lane
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $134,000
Buyer: Andrew Smith
Seller: Segismund Sharpe
Date: 05/11/18

142 Shefford St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Aguasvivas Realty LLC
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/11/18

142-144 Stafford St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $153,000
Buyer: Hector Montanez
Seller: Evan R. Nyman
Date: 05/09/18

6 Stony Brook Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $181,000
Buyer: Eva-Marie Sullivan
Seller: Calvin Lee
Date: 05/11/18

36 Sunbrier Road
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Eric L. Adams
Seller: Lucy A. Bianchi
Date: 05/09/18

138 Switzer Ave.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Miguel Goncalves
Seller: E&R Realty LLC
Date: 05/16/18

305 Tremont St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Kristin A. Petig
Seller: Brown, James H., (Estate)
Date: 05/14/18

134 Undine Circle
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Kelly D. Conroy
Seller: Ethel L. Lee
Date: 05/18/18

44 Vadnais St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $156,000
Buyer: Kendra L. Silva
Seller: Frederick C. Deluck
Date: 05/15/18

10 Van Ness St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Jaime A. Correa
Seller: Danielle Costas
Date: 05/15/18

6 Venture Dr.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Robert Hayes
Seller: Joseph M. Pafumi
Date: 05/11/18

45 Vincent St.
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $129,000
Buyer: Olga E. Decepeda
Seller: Lisa A. Dowers
Date: 05/17/18

144-146 West Alvord St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: Zendy Moya
Seller: Jermaine Reid
Date: 05/16/18

797 White St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Michael Pare
Date: 05/16/18

2020 Wilbraham Road
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: E. Rodriguez-Morales
Seller: Anthony Sanabria
Date: 05/15/18

2494 Wilbraham Road
Springfield, MA 01129
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Annie A. Salem
Seller: Edward J. Hannifin
Date: 05/10/18

24-28 Wilcox St.
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $1,050,000
Buyer: Sandra Lee RT
Seller: Springfield Homes LLC
Date: 05/11/18

76 Wilshire Road
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $187,500
Buyer: Kayla Levreault
Seller: JMJP LLC
Date: 05/17/18

SOUTHWICK

279 Feeding Hills Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Christopher M. Racicot
Seller: Linda M. Cimma
Date: 05/11/18

35 Gillette Ave.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $299,900
Buyer: Melissa E. Goyette
Seller: Konstantin Avraamov
Date: 05/11/18

105 Lakeview St.
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $305,000
Buyer: Jason K. Lichtenberger
Seller: Kurtis Gendron
Date: 05/18/18

WEST SPRINGFIELD

53 Bretton Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $384,900
Buyer: Tiffany L. Royland
Seller: Gina M. Pugliano
Date: 05/14/18

161 Chestnut St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $125,200
Buyer: MAA Property LLC
Seller: Shawn D. Thebodo
Date: 05/07/18

42 Cooper St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $122,000
Buyer: Melro Associates Inc.
Seller: Eric Olberg
Date: 05/17/18

1319 Elm St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $165,087
Buyer: Citizens Bank
Seller: Christian M. Diluzio
Date: 05/18/18

23 Healy St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: Scott D. Ramsdell
Seller: Deborah J. Belden
Date: 05/17/18

45-47 Hill St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Alevtin M. Sergeychik
Seller: Arseniy Sergeychik
Date: 05/18/18

132 Janet St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $232,500
Buyer: Stephanie V. Schlatka
Seller: Calabrese Construction
Date: 05/18/18

18 Lennys Way
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $432,000
Buyer: William Messer
Seller: John R. Greguoli
Date: 05/14/18

143 Morton St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $189,900
Buyer: Luis A. Antonmarchi
Seller: Begley, Robert M. Sr., (Estate)
Date: 05/08/18

33 Old Westfield Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Richard C. Lovely
Seller: Bank New York Mellon
Date: 05/11/18

10 Pleasant St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $223,000
Buyer: Rasik Mukhtasimov
Seller: Yong No
Date: 05/09/18

249 Rogers Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $263,900
Buyer: Jose A. Rivera
Seller: Richard C. Young
Date: 05/11/18

603 Union St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Andrey Kolesnichenko
Seller: Jose A. Rivera
Date: 05/10/18

730-734 Westfield St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $239,900
Buyer: Washington Garcia
Seller: Michael P. Sullivan
Date: 05/18/18

57 Witch Path
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $269,000
Buyer: Joshua A. Fasser
Seller: Daniel T. Martin
Date: 05/18/18

WESTFIELD

25 Beckwith Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $122,000
Buyer: Viktor Moshkovskiy
Seller: MTGLQ Investors LP
Date: 05/08/18

289 Buck Pond Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $192,227
Buyer: Igor Kuzin
Seller: Deutsche Bank
Date: 05/09/18

19 Carroll Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Pamela J. Boisseau
Seller: FNMA
Date: 05/11/18

97 Colony Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Michael W. Blondek
Seller: Lawrence J. Plude
Date: 05/17/18

26 Day Lily Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $463,800
Buyer: Kevin Dal-Zovo
Seller: Bent Tree Development LLC
Date: 05/16/18

11 Eastwood Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $329,900
Buyer: Richard E. Tersavich
Seller: Buddy L. Denison
Date: 05/16/18

77 Fairfield Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $204,000
Buyer: Pavlo Shvyryd
Seller: Robert E. St.Onge
Date: 05/07/18

27 Furrowtown Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $310,000
Buyer: Steven J. Sheldon
Seller: F&G Development Corp.
Date: 05/10/18

11 Kylie Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $329,900
Buyer: Michael Egan
Seller: Kevin L. Padberg
Date: 05/08/18

17 Leonard Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $182,000
Buyer: Jose Rodriguez
Seller: Kaitlyn L. Sherry
Date: 05/11/18

103 Old County Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $315,000
Buyer: Robert E. St.Onge
Seller: Nathan B. Aube
Date: 05/11/18

391 Prospect St. Ext.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $515,000
Buyer: Vien B. Nguyen
Seller: Anthony V. Langone
Date: 05/08/18

Roosevelt Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $116,000
Buyer: MS Homes LLC
Seller: Benjamin Hallmark
Date: 05/07/18

146 Root Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Rudolf Santini
Seller: Kimberly A. Haile
Date: 05/15/18

42 Shepard St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $272,392
Buyer: Wilmington Savings
Seller: Bernard K. Kober
Date: 05/07/18

Summit Lock Road #2
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $1,800,000
Buyer: GSPP Terawatt Westfield
Seller: 1054 Southampton LLC
Date: 05/14/18

16 Vadnais St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $189,900
Buyer: Joseph A. Chimi
Seller: Kenney, Wilma M., (Estate)
Date: 05/16/18

60 West Silver St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Kent G. Hodge
Seller: Frances A. Wheeler
Date: 05/16/18

WILBRAHAM

7 Harness Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $558,000
Buyer: Peter R. Carmichael
Seller: Joseph A. Kelly
Date: 05/14/18

5 Hilltop Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $425,000
Buyer: Joseph S. Fusco
Seller: Dean M. Florian
Date: 05/08/18

6 Poplar Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Thomas M. Day
Seller: Peter J. Andrusko
Date: 05/08/18

550 Ridge Road
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $339,900
Buyer: Steven Thomas
Seller: Jonathan M. Ryan
Date: 05/07/18

24 Tinkham Glenn
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $356,500
Buyer: Jason R. Comes
Seller: Nicole M. Fusco
Date: 05/15/18

12 Willow Brook Lane
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: JCR RT
Seller: 601 Main Street LLC
Date: 05/17/18

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY

AMHERST

40 Blossom Lane
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $455,000
Buyer: Sean T. Valentine
Seller: Stephen M. Strassner
Date: 05/18/18

144 Chestnut St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $460,000
Buyer: Sean Tarbox
Seller: Peter H. Wells
Date: 05/14/18

91 Cottage St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $360,000
Buyer: Cedric DeLeon
Seller: Charlotte T. Hathaway
Date: 05/17/18

10 Flat Hills Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $300,000
Buyer: Alexandra Peckham
Seller: Nathan A. Schnarr
Date: 05/18/18

52 High Point Dr.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $468,750
Buyer: Carol A. O’Connell
Seller: Mary Elizabeth Bridegam TR
Date: 05/11/18

49 Kestrel Lane
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $654,000
Buyer: Pawan H. Dhingra
Seller: Ralph P. Hill
Date: 05/15/18

196 Shutesbury Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $535,000
Buyer: Bernard A. Weintraub
Seller: Colborn W. Smith
Date: 05/08/18

559 West St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $262,000
Buyer: Dorje Romito
Seller: Christina G. Salgo
Date: 05/07/18

BELCHERTOWN

44 Barton Ave.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $342,000
Buyer: James M. Casey
Seller: Paul M. Guerin
Date: 05/09/18

204 Bay Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $223,000
Buyer: Alexandra R. Shea
Seller: Matthew P. Goldman
Date: 05/17/18

28 Brandywine Dr.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $286,000
Buyer: Andrea S. Tarr
Seller: John W. Jendza
Date: 05/11/18

94 Channel Dr.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $221,000
Buyer: Seth I. Hussey
Seller: Karen L. Foster
Date: 05/18/18

310 Cold Spring Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $337,500
Buyer: Jeremy A. Sawyer
Seller: Robert A. Fancy
Date: 05/18/18

15 Doe Hollow
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $319,000
Buyer: Matthew J. Hoey
Seller: Patrick J. Nee
Date: 05/17/18

126 Goodell St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $450,000
Buyer: Nicholas O. Drysdale
Seller: Ann Sklar
Date: 05/07/18

30 Jasons Way
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $500,000
Buyer: Joseph W. Oliverius
Seller: Peter A. Elias
Date: 05/16/18

30 Ledgewood Circle
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: Emily R. Brooks-Gould
Seller: Gary R. Charpentier
Date: 05/15/18

35 Ledgewood Circle
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Ryan R. Lavoie
Seller: Ellen J. McCarthy-Mary
Date: 05/09/18

277 Mill Valley Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Hannah K. Eisenstein
Seller: Tina M. Stone
Date: 05/11/18

103 North Washington St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $277,000
Buyer: Matthew P. Goldman
Seller: Paula Johnson
Date: 05/17/18

154 Sabin St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $385,000
Buyer: Michael B. Taylor
Seller: Linda Austin-Morin
Date: 05/18/18

12 Waterford Dr.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $478,000
Buyer: Harry C. Wichert
Seller: Andrew C. Allison
Date: 05/09/18

EASTHAMPTON

258 East St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Ethan C. Abeles
Seller: Servicenet Inc.
Date: 05/10/18

7 Hannum Brook Dr.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $269,900
Buyer: Abigail S. Rae
Seller: Thomas M. Bacis
Date: 05/15/18

40 Reservation Road
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $425,000
Buyer: Jason M. Hollway
Seller: Jennifer A. Chassman
Date: 05/14/18

GOSHEN

19 Spruce Corner Road
Goshen, MA 01032
Amount: $169,000
Buyer: Jeffrey J. Kwolek
Seller: Casey Dwyer
Date: 05/18/18

GRANBY

17 Amherst St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $207,000
Buyer: Monica A. Torres-Manzano
Seller: Joseph E. Brault
Date: 05/17/18

117 Amherst St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $280,000
Buyer: Emily Sweet
Seller: Jeffrey A. Bessette
Date: 05/15/18

197 Batchelor St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Karin M. Eichelman
Seller: Margaret M. Flaherty
Date: 05/10/18

275 East State St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Louis Santos
Seller: Katherine J. Wilcox
Date: 05/15/18

6 Greystone Ave.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $222,000
Buyer: Morris E. Jones
Seller: Joshua E. Lafond
Date: 05/14/18

29 High St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $234,900
Buyer: Dung Nguyen
Seller: Juan P. Maldonado
Date: 05/15/18

24 Smith Ave.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Sandra E. Blaney
Seller: Daniel R. Blaney
Date: 05/07/18

Taylor St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Jill A. Kopka
Seller: Taylor, Maudetta A., (Estate)
Date: 05/17/18

HADLEY

119 East St.
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $124,900
Buyer: Isaac Chow
Seller: US Bank
Date: 05/18/18

6 River Dr.
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $385,000
Buyer: Andrew G. Bombardier
Seller: Pelissier, William E., (Estate)
Date: 05/18/18

97 Russell St.
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $650,000
Buyer: Building Grounds LLC
Seller: Niedbala, Julianna, (Estate)
Date: 05/18/18

17 Shattuck Road
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $445,000
Buyer: Valley Construction Co.
Seller: Joanne T. Keller
Date: 05/18/18

South Maple St.
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $680,000
Buyer: USA
Seller: NSTAR Electric Co.
Date: 05/10/18

HATFIELD

113 Prospect St.
Hatfield, MA 01038
Amount: $390,000
Buyer: Timothy D. Scott
Seller: Justine A. Boulanger
Date: 05/10/18

NORTHAMPTON

115 Bridge St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $893,960
Buyer: MTGLQ Investors LP
Seller: Thomas Horton
Date: 05/10/18

145 Chesterfield Road
Northampton, MA 01053
Amount: $387,100
Buyer: Heather K. Tauck
Seller: Sue & Kevin Costa FT
Date: 05/08/18

136 Chestnut St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $538,000
Buyer: Monte S. Becker
Seller: Meredyth A. Klotz
Date: 05/16/18

47 Forest Glen Dr.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $285,000
Buyer: Robert E. Kauschen
Seller: John H. Aubrey
Date: 05/14/18

54 Fort St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Marco Poletto
Seller: Dianne E. Branch
Date: 05/10/18

38 Hayes Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Kimberly A. Krusell
Seller: Timothy M. Daley
Date: 05/15/18

20 Ladd Ave.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $791,750
Buyer: Atelier LLC
Seller: Yankee Hill Machine Co. NT
Date: 05/08/18

30 Ladd Ave.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $791,750
Buyer: Atelier LLC
Seller: Yankee Hill Machine Co. NT
Date: 05/08/18

119 Massasoit St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $449,000
Buyer: Leah C. Morrison
Seller: Geoffrey C. Crowther
Date: 05/18/18

671 North Farms Road
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $750,000
Buyer: Adam B. Greeff
Seller: Denise M. Goggins
Date: 05/17/18

89 Oak St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $430,000
Buyer: John T. Geryk
Seller: Jennifer Jachowski
Date: 05/16/18

32 Ward Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $750,000
Buyer: Myla Kabat-Zinn
Seller: Glenn Alper
Date: 05/18/18

SOUTH HADLEY

15 College View Heights
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $371,000
Buyer: Lynn M. Williams
Seller: Nancy P. Boyd
Date: 05/18/18

6 East Red Bridge Lane
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $465,000
Buyer: Stephen A. Paparo
Seller: Robert Lowell-Whited
Date: 05/10/18

39 Lexington Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $195,000
Buyer: Rebecca L. Monroe
Seller: Patricia A. Nadolski
Date: 05/14/18

395 Newton St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $214,900
Buyer: Cheryl Burke
Seller: Brian J. Bliss
Date: 05/17/18

2 Pheasant Run
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $390,000
Buyer: Ian R. Matzen
Seller: Carla W. Newton
Date: 05/11/18

317 River Road
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $345,000
Buyer: Daniel R. Blaney
Seller: Michael J. Ginley
Date: 05/08/18

21 Waite Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $195,000
Buyer: Jonathan A. Campbell
Seller: Baker, Sheila, (Estate)
Date: 05/10/18

SOUTHAMPTON

28 Mountain View Circle
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $235,000
Buyer: Katherine Taylor
Seller: Joanne I. O’Donoghue
Date: 05/14/18

WARE

39 Bank St.
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Mark Manthorne
Seller: Suzanne Gomes
Date: 05/17/18

15 Monroe St.
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $179,200
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Brian S. Kidwell
Date: 05/18/18

88 West St.
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $122,500
Buyer: Patrick McGowan
Seller: Brad M. Dimiero
Date: 05/07/18

13 Woodland Heights
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $186,000
Buyer: Gene R. Leas
Seller: Darwin M. Irish
Date: 05/07/18

WESTHAMPTON

18 Hathaway Road
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $285,628
Buyer: Frederick W. Krafft
Seller: Suzanne M. Krafft
Date: 05/15/18

69 Northwest Road
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $172,882
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank
Seller: Sean P. Rourke
Date: 05/17/18

WILLIAMSBURG

54 South St.
Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Timothy Nye
Seller: Sylvester, Gail A., (Estate)
Date: 05/18/18

Ludlow’s Mill Project Is Right on Schedule

By
Community Spotlight Features

Community Spotlight

An architect’s rendering of the Ludlow Mills complex, redevelopment of which is an ongoing process.

An architect’s rendering of the Ludlow Mills complex, redevelopment of which is an ongoing process.

Eric Nelson said he recently had cause to look over the occupancy permit issued to Westmass Area Development Corp. for the property now known as Ludlow Mills.

The date on the document — April 2012 — gave him both pause and more evidence that time does, indeed, fly.

Yes, it’s been more than six years since this ambitious project — a blend of both brownfield and greenfield development — was launched, and, for the most part, it is on schedule, said Nelson, president of Westmass for roughly half the duration of this effort.

And by on schedule, he was referring to the pace of development, or redevelopment, at this complex of 60 buildings and adjoining undeveloped land. When it started the clock back in 2011 when the property was actually acquired, Westmass said this would be a 20-year project that would generate $300 million in public and private investments, more than 2,000 jobs, and a more than $2 million increase in municipal property taxes.

To date, there have been several high-profile initiatives on the site, most notably the building of a new HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital ($28 million), WinnDevelopment’s overhaul of the structure known as Mill 10 into over-55 housing ($24 million), and several smaller developments.

And there is more on the drawing board, most notably WinnDevelopment’s planned conversion of Mill 8, the so-called Clock Tower Building — because it’s home to the clock tower that is perhaps the most recognizable landmark in this community — into a mixed-used project featuring commercial space on the ground floor and more housing in the floors above. That’s a $50 million project, according to current but very preliminary estimates, that was announced nearly two years ago.

“So far, we’ve either constructed or leveraged $127 million in private and public investments,” said Nelson, tallying up the two completed projects, the announced Clock Tower initiative, and a host of smaller line items, if you will, such as brownfield cleanup, infrastructure work, and other publicly funded initiatives.

The next key milestone for the project is the construction of Riverside Drive, which will open up approximately 60 acres of pre-permitted light-industrial property in the easternmost area of the mill site. A $3.5 million MassWorks grant from the state was earmarked for the project, and Westmass and town officials are working with congressional leaders to secure a matching $3.5 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to cover the $7 million cost of the roadwork.

The Ludlow Mills project is on schedule, if not ahead of it, in another respect, said Town Planner Doug Stefancik. This would be what could be called the trickle-down effect to the town and the region in terms of jobs and other benefits.

Doug Stefancik says the ‘trickle-down effect’ from redevelopment of the Ludlow Mills complex is already in evidence.

Doug Stefancik says the ‘trickle-down effect’ from redevelopment of the Ludlow Mills complex is already in evidence.

That list would have to include the riverwalk that was inspired by the project and has become a popular recreational facility within the town, as well as the jobs created and kept in Ludlow by the mill project (HealthSouth would certainly fall into that category), the new housing option of the form of Building 10 (many of those with that address were already town residents) and the promise of more at the Clock Tower Building, and early signs of additional vibrancy and new businesses to support those residents and business tenants at the mill.

“As the mills develop, they will generate additional interest outside that area,” he explained. “That’s because now, you’re putting people down at the mills; you have people who are 55 and over in that housing project, and that’s going to carry over into the community.”

Within walking distance, he added, are a post office, a library, restaurants and shops on East Street, and convenience stores. “There is a trickle down; people are getting into their routines [at Mill 10], and it’s going to be a positive for the whole area.”

The mill project is the story in Ludlow, but it’s not the only story, said Stefancik, adding that the community continues to add new residential projects — it has large amounts of developable land, and as the housing market continues to build momentum, more building permits are being issued — and there are infrastructure projects planned that should spur more private investment.

Chief among them is a $6 million project to improve the aptly named Center Street, the town’s main commercial throughfare and the one that handles traffic getting onto and coming off turnpike exit 7 (more about that later).

For this, the latest installment in its Community Spotlight series, BusinessWest turns its focus onto Ludlow and especially a project that recalls the town’s past and will play a huge role in its future.

Milling About

As he talked about the mill project, Nelson said there are obviously a lot of moving parts, and the broad goal is to keep the initiative moving so that those ambitious goals for everything from jobs to tax revenue can be met.

And the construction of Riverside Drive is a linchpin to those efforts, he said, adding that there is an existing road, but it is not adequate to support development of the 60 acres of greenfield in the Ludlow Mills master plan.

The MassWorks grant, secured with the help of State Sen. Eric Lesser and state Rep. Thomas Petrolati, was a big step forward in the effort to secure the needed federal funds, said Nelson.

“It’s a pretty effective argument when you can say to grant-funding agencies, ‘you’re going to pay 50% because there’s another entity that will kick in 50%,’” he told BusinessWest. “It’s a very competitive environment for grants, and it helps to have that kind of support from the state.”

Ludlow at a glance

Year Incorporated: 1774
Population: 21,103
Area: 28.2 square miles
County: Hampden
Residential Tax Rate: $19.01
Commercial Tax Rate: $19.01
Median Household Income: $53,244
Median Family Income: $67,797
Type of government: Town Council, Representative Town Meeting
Largest Employers: Hampden County House of Correction; HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital; Mass. Air National Guard; Kleeberg Sheet Metal Inc.
*Latest information available

As noted earlier, there has been considerable momentum created at the site since it was acquired by Westmass. The first triumph was the HealthSouth project, which amounted to new construction, but with use of many materials from the mill complex itself.

And last fall, the Mill 10 over-55 project opened to considerable fanfare. The complex is fully occupied, and there is, according to some reports, a lengthy waiting list for units that do become available.

Not all has gone according to plan, most notably the very public pending loss of high-profile tenant Iron Duke Brewery. A disagreement developed between tenant and landlord concerning the former’s taproom, which, Westmass argued, had become more of a tavern, attracting large numbers of patrons taking up a considerable amount of the mill’s available parking spaces.

The discord has been marked by acrimony, considerable press coverage, and even a little humor — Iron Duke created a brew called ‘Eviction Notice Black IPA’ at one point — and the company is apparently set to take its act to Wilbraham when its lease expires.

But there is still plenty of forward movement at the historic site, developed by Ludlow Manufacturing and Sales Co., which made a variety of products out of Indian-grown jute and employed more than 4,000 people at its high-water mark.

The goal moving forward is to have people working, living, shopping, dining, recreating, and receiving a wide range of services at the site, said Nelson.

And housing will be a big part of that mix, he noted, adding that the success story that is the Mill 10 project provides ample evidence that there is a need for more housing, including units in the affordable, or subsidized, category, and there are 68 of those among the 75 units at Mill 10.

Actually, what’s planned for the Clock Tower Building is what’s called ‘workforce housing,’ meaning that it will not be for those over 55 exclusively, and will be priced for teachers, firefighters, and others at the lower ends of the pay scale.

Nelson noted that $300,000 in Massachusetts historical tax credits have been secured for the project, said Nelson, an important foundation on which to build in the challenging task of financing the initiative.

Meanwhile, there are other forms of progress on the site, he said, including early movement toward locating a restaurant on the property, one that will have views of the river, and reuse of more of the so-called stock houses once used to store jute and other raw materials.

There are roughly 30 of them, and maybe two dozen are occupied by companies doing everything from precision machining to car-seat repair, said Nelson, adding that the goal is to bring more of them into use and thus continue that process of creating a critical mass of people and businesses that generates more traffic at the mill and, ultimately, more momentum.

“The residential component of Mill 10 presents opportunities for other uses that might come in there and pivot off that residential component,” he told BusinessWest. “If we get a critical mass, and HealthSouth certainly helps with this, we get more traffic, more interest, and more people are exposed to the mill; we’re trying to get more interest from that 8-to-5 window.”

And as momentum swells inside the mill, there is a trickle-down effect, said Stefancik, noting, as just one example, that the river walk has indeed become a popular new attraction in town.

“A lot of people now have that as part of their walking routine,” he told BusinessWest, adding that the amenity is drawing people of all ages and making the river something it really hasn’t been for some time — a community resource.

The town is looking to create more momentum with the planned reconstruction of Center Street (Route 21), a project that will include work on the roadway, shoulders, sidewalks, curbs, drainage, and more.

This will be a $6 million project that bring some inconvenience to people traveling on this main commercial throughfare, but ultimately, it will improve traffic flow through the city. Work is scheduled to start this summer.

Overall, there have been a number of new developments in recent years, he explained, listing everything from solar-energy installations — three of them in all — to new condominium and subdivision projects to another brewery, Vanished Valley, all providing ample evidence that Ludlow is a place where people want to live, work, and even generate electricity.

Bottom Line

Time really does fly, and the Ludlow Mills project offers plenty of evidence to that effect.

A project that was launched six years ago amid considerable fanfare and expectation is, as Nelson noted, on schedule when it comes to those measurables such as a jobs, tax dollars, and public and private investment.

It is also on schedule, as Stefancik said, when it comes to the trickle-down effect and creating more momentum within the community.

And, by all indications, the project — and the community — will only build on what has already been accomplished.

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

The Numbers Game at UMass

By
Opinion

Editorial

A recent report issued by the Pioneer Institute, a conservative-leaning, Boston-based think tank, brought a new wave of criticism to the admissions practices at the University of Massachusetts and its flagship campus in Amherst, but what it really did — we hope — is open some eyes to some of the alarming trends in higher education today.

The report, released late last month, revealed that out-of-state applicants are often getting in at the expense of in-state residents with higher grade-point averages and SAT scores. The average GPA for admitted out-of-state students was 3.78, while for Massachusetts students it was 3.97.

Stating the blatantly obvious, Mary Connaughton, co-author of the report, said it isn’t supposed to be this way. “It’s actually heartbreaking,” she told the Boston Globe. “We don’t want our kids left out in the cold.”

Indeed, we don’t. But we need a much deeper analysis of the numbers and, more importantly, some aggressive action taken by the state elected leaders to perhaps reverse them.

Out-of-state students are preferred in this environment because they pay higher rates. Meanwhile, competition for those students (and all students, for that matter) is especially keen as high-school graduating classes continue to shrink in size, and that’s why out-of-state applicants are getting admitted to the Amherst campus with lower GPAs than young people in Chicopee, Lowell, and Fall River.

As the Pioneer Institute said, in essence, that’s bad — because this is the state university we’re talking about. It’s there, primarily, to serve state residents, especially as a lower-cost alternative to the many, many exemplary private colleges and universities in this and other states.

Through the decades, it has filled this role well, even as its stature has increased and it has become much more than a ‘fall-back school’ — a phrase used by so many who went there in the ’70s and ’80s to capture how it became their choice after they couldn’t get into, or couldn’t afford, those aforementioned private schools.

But in recent years, changing financial conditions have forced changes in admission policies, and we choose those words carefully. As the state’s commitment to higher education wavered, the university was seemingly left with little choice but to favor out-of-state students and the higher tuitions they paid.

There are other reasons for admitting out-of-students; for starters, they want to come here because of the excellence of the programs, which is a good thing, but the school also wants to create needed diversity by admitting students from other parts of the country and other parts of the world.

But mostly, it’s about money. The estimated cost of attending UMass Amherst for an in-state resident is just under $30,000; conversely, for an out-of-state resident, it’s between $47,600 and $49,000. You can do the math.

And so can the people trying to administer programs at the flagship campus. They would appear to have two choices: admit more in-state residents and incur losses in revenue that threaten quality of programs and perhaps the existence of others, or admit more out-of-state students.

The latter has been the course, and in 2016, the school actually gave more admissions to students who lived outside the state than to those who called the Baystate home — although, overall, more than 75% of those attending the school are from Massachusetts.

School officials believe that’s a good number. The Pioneer Institute doesn’t, and Connaughton believes the state should consider a cap — perhaps 18%, the number used by some other states — on out-of-state admissions so that deserving state residents don’t lose out.

We have a better idea — stronger support of higher education at the state level so those reviewing admissions applications don’t have to make the amount of tuition a student can pay the first number they look at.

Think Before Clicking That Link

By
Opinion

Opinion

By Beth Haddock

The e-mail can arrive in your inbox cleverly disguised, appearing to come from your boss, a co-worker, or some other person, business, or organization you trust.

But click on a link or attachment as instructed, and you could be in for a headache. You’ve just given cybercriminals access to your company’s data — and potentially put the business out of compliance with federal laws and regulations about protecting that data.

Phishing attacks are one of the most common security challenges individuals and businesses face when it comes to keeping information secure. The phisher’s goal is to steal sensitive and confidential information. That information could include Social Security numbers, credit-card and bank-account numbers, medical or educational records, dates of birth, and e-mail addresses.

That’s problematic because federal regulations may require that your business keep certain information secure. Just as an example, health providers are expected to safeguard the medical records of patients under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

Such compliance issues can create unwelcome complications for businesses, which is why they need to be proactive in addressing phishing. Here are a few steps they can take to protect themselves.

Educate employees. The first line of defense against phishing is employees, because they are the ones likely to be targeted. Make them aware of the concerns and tell them to be suspicious of e-mails that offer them links with little explanation, or that ask for sensitive data, even if it appears to be coming from a trusted source.

Reassess who has access to data. Because employee mistakes are the most likely cause of a breach, retraining alone may not get the job done. A business or organization may want to take another look at who should have access to all that sensitive data, and make adjustments where possible.

If a breach happens, take action. You can’t just ignore the data breach. Right away, your IT team needs to be notified so they can get to work handling the breach. At the same time, it’s important to immediately contact your compliance officer or attorney so they can take appropriate steps for reporting the breach to the proper regulatory agencies.

These phishing expeditions from cybercriminals represent a serious challenge for businesses and for their compliance officers. It’s critical to be aware of the threat and to know that there are steps you can take to reduce your risk and avoid finding yourself out of compliance with regulations that govern your sensitive data.

Beth Haddock, CEO and founder of Warburton Advisers, is the author of Triple Bottom-Line Compliance: How to Deliver Protection, Productivity and Impact. She has more than 20 years of experience as a compliance and business executive, and her consulting firm provides sustainable governance and compliance solutions to leading international corporations, technology companies, and nonprofits.

2018 Continued Excellence Award Finalists Announced

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Features

The Fab Five

Scores submitted by a panel of three judges have determined the five finalists for this year’s Continued Excellence Award, an honor created in 2015 to recognize past 40 Under Forty honorees who have built on the business success and civic commitment that initially earned them that honor.

They are:

• Michael Fenton, associate at Shatz, Schwartz & Fentin, P.C.;

• William Gagnon, vice president of Marketing & Key Accounts for Excel Dryer Inc.;

• Samalid Hogan, regional director of the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center;

• James Leahy, assistant director, Business Development and Promotion Sales for the regional office of the Massachusetts State Lottery Commission; and

• Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse.

The winner of the fourth annual award will be announced at this year’s 40 Under Forty gala, slated for June 21 at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House in Holyoke.

The winners in 2015 and 2016, respectively, were Delcie Bean, president of Paragus Strategic IT, and Dr. Jonathan Bayuk, president of Allergy and Immunology Associates of Western Mass. and chief of Allergy and Immunology at Baystate Medical Center. Both were originally named to the 40 Under Forty class of 2008. Last year, the judges chose two winners: Scott Foster, an attorney with Bulkley, Richardson and Gelinas (class of 2011), and Nicole Griffin, owner of Griffin Staffing Network, now ManeHire (class of 2014).

This year’s five finalists were determined by scores submitted by three judges — Matthew Bannister, first vice president, Marketing and Innovation at PeoplesBank; Ira Bryck, president of the Family Business Center of Pioneer Valley; and former winner Griffin.

Read on for more details about the nominees.

Michael Fenton

Michael Fenton

Michael Fenton

When Fenton was named to the 40 Under Forty in 2012, he was serving his second term on Springfield’s City Council and preparing to graduate from law school. He was also a trustee at his alma mater, Cathedral High School, where he dedicated countless hours to help rebuild the school following the 2011 tornado.

Now an associate at Shatz, Schwartz & Fentin, P.C., practicing in the areas of business planning, commercial real estate, estate planning, and elder law, he received an Excellence in the Law honor from Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly and was named a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2014. In 2014, he became Springfield’s youngest-ever City Council president, overseeing the creation of the young professionals committee and the Community Preservation Act committee, which is bringing money into the community to benefit historic preservation, recreation, and open space. He also continues to serve on numerous civic organizations.

William Gagnon

William Gagnon

William Gagnon

A 40 Under Forty honoree in 2013, Gagnon was recognized for his work as vice president of marketing at Excel Dryer, the business launched by his father. In that role, he not only saw the company’s staff double, but was an original seed sponsor of a U.S. Green Building Council’s Green Apple program, which helps build healthy learning environments for kids around the globe.

Today, Gagnon continues to give back to the community through his position on the board of the Children’s Study Home. He has also continued to lead the green movement, spearheading energy efficiency within his industry by recently developing a new product that not only dries hands fast, but uses less energy, making it the most environmentally friendly hand dryer on the planet. He has also been working on a new, ADA-compliant hand dryer designed for easy access for individuals who are disabled or mobility-impaired.

Samalid Hogan

Samalid Hogan

Samalid Hogan

A 40 Under Forty honoree in 2013, Hogan is the regional director for the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network’s Western Regional Office. She has built partnerships across public, private, and civic sectors to achieve economic-development goals for the Pioneer Valley region.

In 2014, Hogan founded CoWork Springfield, the city’s first co-working space, which focuses on serving women and minority-owned businesses. In addition, she was appointed to the Governor’s Latino Advisory Commission in 2017, and serves on the boards of several organizations, including Common Capital, the New England Public Radio Foundation, the Minority Business Alliance, and National Junior Tennis and Learning of Greater Springfield. She was awarded the Grinspoon Entrepreneurial Spirit Award in 2017 and was recognized as a Woman Trailblazer and Trendsetter by the Massachusetts Latino Chamber of Commerce in 2016.

James Leahy

James Leahy

James Leahy

When Leahy was selected to the 40 Under Forty class of 2010, he was a five-time Holyoke city councilor, as well as the CEO and president of the city’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Road Race. He was also working for Alco Labs, a leader in eye-care medicine, and had won several awards for his business acumen, as well as serving on the boards of directors of the YMCA, the Holyoke Children’s Museum, the Holyoke Merry-Go-Round, the Boys and Girls Club of America.

Since then, Leahy has expanded his roles with the parade and road race, as well as serving as president of the Volleyball Hall of Fame and president of the Westfield State University Foundation board of directors. He is also assistant director of Business Development and Promotion Sales for the State Lottery Commission. Meanwhile, he has grown his civic volunteerism with service on numerous community organizations.

Alex Morse

Alex Morse

Alex Morse

Morse’s story is well-known, being elected Holyoke’s youngest mayor at age 22 in 2012 — reason enough to be named to the 40 Under Forty class of 2014. He’s since then won re-election twice, time enough to put his leadership in perspective.

Morse and his team have spurred a pipeline of some $125 million in private projects over the past few years, and overseen significant streetscape improvements, new and renovated parks, ongoing rehabilitation of the mill buildings, a partnership with the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce to launch the SPARK entrepreneurship program, and many new development projects. During his terms, community policing strategies have led to drops in crime, property values have gone up, and the unemployment rate has dropped. All this has helped create a new energy around a city that has in many ways been an afterthought in the region’s economic-development picture over the past few decades, but one that is clearly on the rise.

Meet the Judges

Three independent judges were tasked with reviewing dozens of nominations for the 2018 Continued Excellence Award and determining the five finalists. They are:

Matthew Bannister

Matthew Bannister

Matthew Bannister is first vice president of Marketing and Corporate Responsibility for PeoplesBank, a leader in green values, sustainable-energy financing, and charitable giving. He manages the corporate philanthropy program through grants and sponsorships, focusing on key areas including academics, innovation, economic growth, and community vibrancy. He also plans and directs the marketing and public-relations programs, and represents the bank in public, social, and business events.

Ira Bryck

Ira Bryck

Ira Bryck is president of the Family Business Center of Pioneer Valley. Since 1994, the center has provided a practical learning community for family-owned and closely held companies throughout Western Mass. Bryck also writes an online advice column for family businesses, and has written and produced three plays about life in family business that have been performed more than 50 times internationally.  His third play, A Tough Nut to Crack, is based on his 17 years in his family’s fourth-generation childrenswear business on Long Island, which he ran with his parents. He also hosts The Western Mass Business Show on WHMP, featuring interviews with business owners and expert advisors.

Nicole Griffin

Nicole Griffin

Nicole Griffin is a 40 Under Forty winner in 2014 and recipient of the Continued Excellence Award in 2017. She is the founder and chief talent officer of ManeHire (formerly known as Griffin Staffing Network). ManeHire is a full-service staffing agency that offers payroll services, corporate training, and temporary, temp-to-hire, and permanent placement. Griffin currently serves as a member of the board of directors for the YWCA of Western Massachusetts and the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County. She is also the 2015 recipient of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Scholarship at Babson College, the 2015 National Urban League Community Builder Award recipient, and an alumna of the Leadership Institute for Political and Public Impacts.

Bulkley Richardson Launches Alternative Dispute Resolution Group

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Law0618bFeature600x200
Law Sections

Not an Arbitrary Decision

John Greaney, who was forced to retire from the state Supreme Judicial Court as he turned 70, is definitely not the retiring type.

John Greaney, who was forced to retire from the state Supreme Judicial Court as he turned 70, is definitely not the retiring type.

John Greaney spent more than four decades behind various benches — everything from this region’s first Housing Court to the state Supreme Judicial Court. Desiring to take advantage of all that judicial experience, the Springfield-based firm Bulkley Richardson, which Greaney joined in 2016, has created an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) group, which he will lead. As arbitration and mediation become ever-more popular methods for resolving disputes, the firm sees this group as a solid business venture.

Peter Barry says it’s a rare opportunity when a small (at least in comparison to outfits in Boston, New York, and Philadelphia) Western Mass. law firm can add a former Massachusetts Supreme Court justice to its team.

Rarer still is an opportunity to add a jurist with the breadth and experience brought to the table by John Greaney, who retired from the SJC in 2008, capping nearly 35 years on various benches, starting with the Hampden County Housing Court (which he started) and time on the Superior Court and then the Appeals Court (more on that remarkable career later).

So it’s incumbent on a firm granted that opportunity to take full advantage of it, said Barry, managing partner with Springfield-based Bulkley Richardson, adding that the firm is doing just that by launching an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) group.

This is a move that not only capitalizes on Greaney’s deep reservoir of experience, but serves as a logical — and, yes, opportunistic — response to an ongoing trend within the law to settle matters not in the courtroom, but outside it, through mediation and arbitration.

These are routes that are generally quicker and less expensive than litigation, said Greaney, adding that ADR, as it’s known, has become increasingly popular in realms ranging from healthcare to construction; education to sports. Yes, some of Major League Baseball’s biggest rising stars have their salaries determined by arbitrators (after negotiation fails).

Greaney and Barry believe the firm could well become an attractive alternative (there’s that word again) amid a growing number of options for businesses, institutions, and sports leagues desiring to resolve matters through ADR, and for several reasons.

Chief among them is the expertise it offers — from not only Greaney, but also Barry, who has been involved in the mediation and arbitration of several complex matters, and the other lawyers at the firm.

But that expertise also comes at a sticker price well below what Boston and Harford firms would charge, an important consideration, said Barry.

“We’re looking to be selective and get appropriate cases from Northern Connecticut, Central Massachusetts, and the Boston area,” he said, noting that the firm already serves several clients in those markets, in part because of lower hourly rates.

Greaney, who will be teaming with Barry to handle many of the ADR matters that come to the firm, agreed, and said the timing and a host of factors were right for the launch of this venture.

“It’s a natural progression for this law firm to begin an ADR group,” he noted, adding that, apart from the Hampden County Bar Assoc., which has a panel of mediators and arbitrators, the only other mediators and arbitrators in this region are single-practice lawyers; Boston and Hartford have ADR groups, but this woud be the first in this region.

“There appears to be a need here for the right type of mediator and arbitrator,” he said, adding that the firm intends to fill that void.

Barry agreed.

“There are a lot of mediators and arbitrators out there,” he acknowledged. “But what we bring to the field is an expertise — primarily Judge Greaney — that is not available generally and is suitable for certain types of cases in particular.”

Peter Barry says ADR is an area of the law that is growing and will continue to grow as businesses and individuals seek alternatives to litigation.

Peter Barry says ADR is an area of the law that is growing and will continue to grow as businesses and individuals seek alternatives to litigation.

For this issue and its focus on law, BusinessWest talked with Greaney and Barry about Bulkey Richardson’s new ADR group, and also about how arbitration and mediation are becoming increasingly popular — and effective — methods for solving complex legal disputes.

Making Their Case

For those not familiar with Greaney’s background (and many are), it takes more than a few column inches, as they say in the print media, to capture all he’s done during his career.

So we’ll hit the highlights. But even that will take a while.

The Westfield native began his law career with the Springfield-based firm Ely and King in 1964, and was appointed to the Hampden County Housing Court in 1974. That housing court was the second in the state, with the first being in Boston, and was unique in that it served an entire county.

“We decided to innovate considerably,” he recalled. “We designed our own court forms, we changed them to get rid of all the legal language — which cluttered all the forms in the other courts — so people could understand them, and we made them bilingual because we had a large Spanish-speaking population. And, to the dismay of a lot of other courts and judges, we set up a citizen’s advisory council — all to make the court more user-friendly.”

In 1976, Gov. Michael Dukakis appointed Greaney to the Superior Court. This was followed by an appointment to the Appeals Court as an associate justice in 1978. In 1984, he became chief justice of the Appeals Court.

Greaney was appointed to the Supreme Judicial Court in 1989 and participated in several landmark cases while serving on the SJC. That list includes Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, in which he wrote the concurrence to the opinion establishing Massachusetts as the first state in the nation to legalize same-sex marriage.

“We share a common humanity and participate together in a social contract that is the foundation of our Commonwealth,” he wrote, creating language that has been used often by gay couples at their wedding ceremonies. “Simple principles of decency dictate that we extend … full acceptance, tolerance, and respect. We should do so because it is the right thing to do.”

Other significant cases include a 1993 decision upholding the adoption of a child by same-sex cohabitants; a 1997 decision in the Benefit v. City of Cambridge case, affirming the unconstitutionality of a statute prohibiting panhandling; a 2003 decision in the First Justice case addressing, on separation of powers principles, the constitutionality of statutes governing court clerks and probation officers; and a 2007 decision in the Murphy v. Boston Herald case, affirming a judgment based on defamation.

Greaney, famous for taking a Peter Pan bus to and from Boston most days and using that time to get more work done, reached mandatory retirement age (70) in 2008, but he wasn’t, and still isn’t, the retiring type. He joined the faculty of Suffolk University Law School, served as director of the Macaronis Institute for Trial and Appellate Advocacy, and taught constitutional law, criminal law, and appellate practice.

But he became a victim of the financial pressures facing many law schools today, and as Suffolk Law downsized and Greaney’s position was essentially eliminated, the judge looked for something else to do in ‘retirement.’ And as he looked, he remembered that Francis ‘Sandy’ Dibble, a partner at Bulkley Richardson, had long ago told him that, when he was done teaching, he should consider joining the firm.

He did so, in 2016, and thus went back to where he started (well, sort of) — practicing law in downtown Springfield.

But the legal landscape has certainly changed since Greaney first started out as a lawyer more than a half-century ago. Indeed, ADR has become an increasingly popular alternative to the courtroom, one that resolves matters in months, or even weeks, rather than years.

A Strong Case for ADR

There are two basic forms of ADR, mediation and arbitration, and while they are similar in that they are alternatives to traditional litigation, there are important differences.

Mediation is generally conducted with a single mediator who does not judge the case but instead simply helps the parties facilitate discussion and, hopefully, a resolution to a problem. Arbitration, on the other hand, is more judicial in nature (that’s why Greaney said it appeals to him) and involves one or more arbitrators who take on the role of a judge, making decisions about evidence and giving written opinions, which can be binding or non-binding, with the results being final.

“The shift from actual courtroom litigation and the resolution of disputes prior to courtroom litigation has become a fairly active enterprise over the past 12 years or so,” Greaney explained. “When I was a trial judge, no such thing existed.

“But the phenomenon was created by business people and others,” he went on. “And the courts wanted to see a simpler, more efficiently way to deal with the problems they had.”Also, many contracts — for everything from construction projects to employment agreements to the one signed by Stormy Daniels when she received $130,000 from Presisdent Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Choen — have provisions noting that there if problems arise, they will be resolved by private arbitration and not litigation, Greaney told BusinessWest, adding that the Supreme Court, with a few exceptions, has consistently upheld the validity of these arbitration clauses.”

And as a result, and many law firms and individuals, including many retired judges, now specialize in mediation and/or arbitration (mostly the former), creating a somewhat competitive market for those services.

Bulkley Richardson looks to stand out within that playing field and capitalize on the experience of both Greaney and Barry as well as a host of other attorneys within the firm, including Dibble, Daniel Finnegan, Kevin Maynard, David Parke, Melinda Phelps, Jeffrey Poindexter, and John Pucci.

Barry said the firm is not interested in taking on cases that could easily be handled by one of the other mediators in the region, and is instead interested in more complex matters. And, again, they could come from within the 413, or well outside it given the expertise the firm can now bring to bear.

And because of how the pendulum has swung toward ADR, there should be ample opportunity to grow the practice.

“ADR is an area that’s growing and will continue to grow, and there will be a need for the types of services we’ll provide,” he explained. “A lof of big companies have decided, almost across the board as a policy, that they’re not going to litigate — they’re going to do everything possible to settle a case because of the expense and time and misdirection of resources involved in litigation.”

Final Arguments

Getting back to Major League Baseball and those high-profile salary disagreements going to arbitration … and Greaney, an ardent Red Sox fan, noted with a laugh that he would love to get such a matter sent to Bulkley Richardson.

“I love sports; that would be a delight to get something that,” he told BusinessWest. “I understand the statistics and all that goes into those decisions.”

While landing such a case might be a long shot (that’s might), it seems a much safer bet that Bulkley Richardson’s launch of an ADR group will be a winning proposition — for the firm and the region as well.

That’s because of the uniquely high level experience that can brought to the table, especially from a judge that that has made his mark in settings ranging from Hampden County Housing Court to the SJC.

The jury is in — ADR is now the preferred method of resolving a dispute — and Bulkley Richardson appears well-positioned to capitalize on that movement.

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

‘3+3’ Lets Students Get Bachelor’s and Law Degrees in Six Years

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Law Sections

Streamlining the Process

Westfield State University President Ramon Torrecilha

Westfield State University President Ramon Torrecilha says the 3+3 initiative with UMass Law is just one example of partnerships aimed at streamlining the process of getting a college degree — or two of them, as the case may be.

Since he took the helm as president of Westfield State University in 2015, Ramon Torrecilha has talked often, and consistently, about a changing dynamic in higher education and especially at public institutions.

In this environment, he has said to BusinessWest and a wide range of other media outlets and audiences of various types, public schools must be vigilant in their efforts to make a college education more affordable, more value-laden, and better able to help students succeed in the field they’ve chosen.

And, he has argued, one of the best ways to accomplish these ends is through partnerships with other colleges and universities, especially other public schools.

All these sentiments — not to mention the school’s new operating philosophy — are reflected in WSU’s latest partnership initiative, one with the University of Massachusetts School of Law, or UMass Law, as it’s called, the only public law school in the Commonwealth.

It’s called the ‘3+3 law program,’ and UMass Law has created several such initiatives with other public institutions in the state, including UMass Dartmouth, UMass Boston, UMass Lowell, Fitchburg State, Worcester State, and the Mass. College of Liberal Arts in North Adams.

Those two numbers in the name of the program get right to the heart of the matter. They refer to the number of years a participant is in school. Add them up, and one gets six, which is exactly one less than it traditionally takes someone to earn a bachelor’s degree and then a law degree, otherwise known as a juris doctor or JD.

“And that one year is very significant,” said Torrecilha, adding that, by shaving two semesters off the process, individuals and their families can save perhaps tens of thousands of dollars — and degree recipients can get on with their careers sooner.

At a time when higher education in general, and public higher education especially, happens to be under scrutiny, I think partnerships, not only with UMass Law School but also our community college partners underscores and reaffirms our commitment to the citizens of the Commonwealth.”

And that career may not necessarily be in the law, said Torrecilha, adding that students in majors not traditionally associated with law — everything from English to gender studies — may well find the program worthwhile because of what a law-school education brings — everything from a focus on critical thinking to experience with forging and then presenting arguments to practice in writing.

“This program will target not only students in political science or philosophy or criminal justice,” he said, listing majors that traditionally feed students to law schools. “It will be available to students in disciplines that you don’t usually think of when you think of a law degree.”

Dr. Emily Todd, chair of the WSU English Department, agreed.

“People generally don’t think about English majors going on to get a law degree, but it’s actually a great preparation for law school,” she explained. “We see the strength of our program as setting people up to be successful; English majors develop skills as writers, good researchers, and excellent close readers, and that helps them to be persuasive writers and to develop their skills in synthesis and analysis.

“I was recently speaking with a first-year student before this program was announced,” she went on. “I always ask students what they want to do, and she said, ‘I’m thinking about law — I really love to think about words and analyze them closely.’”

Here’s how the program works. Following the completion of 90 credits at Westfield State, enrolled students begin their first year at UMass Law. Once the first 30 credits are completed there, students will obtain their bachelor’s degree from WSU. Those 30 credits will dually serve as the first-year requisite toward their law degree from UMass Law.

Elaborating, Torrecilha said those 30 credits earned during that first year at UMass Law will effectively serve as the elective courses that students in any degree program are required to take. They will come in what would be the fourth year of one’s progression toward a bachelor’s degree, rather than in the first two or three, which is traditionally the case.

Torrecilha said the 3+3 program was conceived with a number of goals in mind, including a desire to stimulate more interest in a law degree at a time when overall enrollment has been declining at all the most elite schools — although the needle has started pointing back up at some institutions. And also to perhaps provide a boost for UMass Law, which was launched in 2010 after the private law school Southern New England School of Law offered to donate real estate, facilities, technology, and library assets to UMass Dartmouth for the purpose of creating a public law program in the Commonwealth.

The UMass board of trustees approved the plan in late 2009, and the Commonwealth’s Board of Higher Education did the same a few months later. The school’s first class matriculated in 2010.

But the overriding goals are to streamline the process of getting both degrees and making it more cost-effective. Those are the terms one hears most often in association with the initiative.

If all goes well, Torrecilha said, students may be entered in the program by the fall of 2019. He said there are no goals for enrollment at this time, and he’s not exactly sure what to expect. But he has seen a good deal of interest in the program since it was announced several weeks ago.

“We’re educating the community as we go, and we’ve been talking to advisors,” he noted. “There are a lot of students here on the campus who are asking about it already; I’m hoping that that the first cohort will have between 20 and 30 students.”

Meanwhile, the school will continue to look for more ways to partner with other institutions, including those in the UMass system and the region’s community colleges, to create more ways to streamline the process of earning degrees and making them more cost-effective, said Torrecilha.

“At a time when higher education in general, and public higher education especially, happens to be under scrutiny, I think partnerships — not only with UMass Law School, but also our community-college partners — underscore and reaffirm our commitment to the citizens of the Commonwealth,” he told BusinessWest. “I think it also sets an example of how public institutions can come together for the public good.”

— George O’Brien

Enchanted Circle Theater Makes Learning Come Alive

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Education Sections

Art of the Matter

Gabriela Micchia with the multiplication charts created by Holyoke fourth-graders.

Gabriela Micchia with the multiplication charts created by Holyoke fourth-graders.

Forty-two years ago, Enchanted Circle Theater was born as, true to its name, a touring theater company, but its interactions in school classrooms led to a dramatic evolution of its mission. Today, the nonprofit — which works not only in theater arts, but with a whole host of creative endeavors — partners with schools and other organizations on a concept known as arts integration, which uses creativity to make education more impactful — and more fun.

As Gabriela Micchia unfolded a series of multiplication tables in the form of brightly hand-colored diagrams, she explained how they’re much more than mere teaching tools.

“They use these almost like multiplication flash cards,” she said of the Morgan School fourth-graders who created them, pointing out how the numbers connect in straight lines to create a times table for the central digit. “I just made the dots, and they connected the dots, and we talked about how to put the triangles together.”

It’s undoubtedly a more entertaining way to learn math facts than simple recitation. But the real magic happened later, when the students visited another fourth-grade class and excitedly explained how to create the charts and use them to play a math game, said Micchia, a teaching artist with Enchanted Circle Theater in Holyoke. In short, the kids became the teachers.

“It goes back to the idea of the pride they have in the knowledge they gain,” Micchia said. “As much information as they retain from an adult showing them what to do, I think sometimes it’s easier for them to understand it from another student. They see each other doing it.”

That’s a typical story for Enchanted Circle Theater, a 42-year-old, Holyoke-based nonprofit that partners with schools and other organizations to educate through the creative arts.

“It’s an immersion into creative and critical thinking around math concepts,” said Priscilla Kane Hellweg, the long-time executive artistic director. “We hear students telling their friends what they’re working on, and they care about what they’ve created because it’s their creative process. It’s a sense of ownership, so seeing their work, being able to walk by it in the hallway and share it with others, there’s a pride in accomplishment, and a sense of joy.”

It’s a model applicable not just to math, but to all school subjects — with a focus at all times on English-language communication skills.

There’s something about that moment of magic that happens between the audience and the performer during a live performance — there’s this alchemy that happens. And I wanted to follow up on that; I wanted more contact.”

For example, Hellweg said, “we do a lot of work in social studies, where our students will research and write and then perform an original play on the Trail of Tears or immigration or the Civil War or … well, I can give you 42 years worth of content.”

Science is a big focus as well, she added, citing a program for Holyoke fifth-graders called “Where Does Your Water Go?”

“They studied the water cycle, from falling down from the sky into a sewage system into our river right down the street,” she explained. “And then we turned it into an environmental advocacy program, where the students decided what they wanted people to stop and think about, and the impact that humans have on the environment and water.”

The kids then drew pictures — such as a fish swimming amid garbage, or a mallard whose feet are entangled in a plastic six-pack ring — and accompanying slogans, which were then turned into storm-drain art at eight downtown locations. “They created awareness of the water cycle and our role in keeping our world clean.”

Enchanted Circle has, from its beginning, been a working theater, but it has long embraced artistic endeavors of every kind — dance, music, visual arts, literature, even culinary arts — as teaching tools.

“We specialize in what’s called arts integration,” Hellweg said. “And there are three basic components to it. First, it’s about academic understanding — unpacking knowledge and learning concepts and deep critical thinking. The second channel is social-emotional learning and communication and collaboration and all those 21st-century learning skills that prepare us to be engaged in the world.”

The third element, quite simply, is artistry and creativity and examining the world through the filter of creative expression. “We work with people of all ages and all abilities, and it’s about inspiring and engaging and enhancing learning. It’s about connecting people to each other, people to information, people to the world around them, and people to themselves.”

Moment of Magic

Enchanted Circle was launched in 1976 as a touring theater company, but one that had a foothold in education from early on.

“We were traveling to schools, to museums, to fairs, to libraries, bringing folk tales from around the world to life,” Hellweg said. “I’ve been here for 38 of our 42 years, and I love the performing. There’s something about that moment of magic that happens between the audience and the performer during a live performance — there’s this alchemy that happens. And I wanted to follow up on that; I wanted more contact.”

Patricia Kane Hellweg says students who learn through hands-on arts integration retain concepts more effectively because they have more ownership in the process.

Patricia Kane Hellweg says students who learn through hands-on arts integration retain concepts more effectively because they have more ownership in the process.

So the theater started developing workshops related to the performances, which evolved from one-off events to a regular partnership with schools — and an expansion of the organization’s work from drama to arts integration of all kinds.

“I felt that working in the classroom with teachers and students would really bring learning to life,” she told BusinessWest. “So we are still a theater company, and we create original plays on subjects with both cultural and historical relevance. But we really became a teaching institution.”

The theater has a presence in public schools throughout Holyoke, Amherst, Northampton, and parts of Springfield, but also in affordable-housing developments, preschools, universities, and other, perhaps surprising venues.

“We work throughout the community — in the foster-care world, in the mental-health field, with adjudicated youth in detention, in homeless shelters, in housing developments — bringing arts-integrated learning to some of the most marginalized and vulnerable populations in the area,” Hellweg said.

Holyoke’s public schools represent Enchanted Circle’s longest-term and closest partner, as seen in offerings like the visual math programs at Morgan School and a dual-language arts-integration program with grades K-3 at Metcalf School every Friday, which touches on numerous academic subjects. “Whatever they’re working on, we are working on,” she said. “It’s hands-on, project-based, arts-integrated learning.”

And that hands-on element is critical, she noted. Typically, the ideas kids learn at school are stored in their visual memory. “But if we’re doing embodied math — where students become an isosceles triangle, or two people create a parallelogram with their arms — then it’s in your muscle memory. And it brings the joy back to learning because it’s fun, and the laughter in class is huge.”

Micchia agreed. “It becomes this whole-body experience, this holistic experience when we use the arts to create this visual math.”

And students who are having fun are more likely to want to learn, Hellweg added. “What we find is that attendance goes up because students want to be in school, and behavior issues go down because students are engaged.”

That applies even to young people who never considered themselves learners, she said, recalling a bittersweet conversation she had recently with a 15-year-old girl in juvenile detention.

“She said to us, ‘I never thought I would find joy in learning, and I’m loving learning with Enchanted Circle. I never would have dropped out of school had Enchanted Circle been in my classroom.’”

Now working on a poetry-into-performance program through the theater, funded through the National Endowment for the Arts, the girl has a new outlook on why learning can — and should — be so much more than rote memorization. “That engagement, both the physical engagement and the experience of working collaboratively and creatively, changes the learning environment.”

Micchia went further than that, saying Enchanted Circle cultivates an emotionally safe learning space.

“I feel like it creates an acceptance — you’re accepted here. You don’t have to be the best at something,” she said, adding that there’s no one set way to teach a student. “One of the beautiful things is, it’s kind of organic and flexible, and you meet the needs of the child as opposed to the other way around. It’s not a formula.”

Teaching the Teachers

Students aren’t the only ones in need of that confidence, Hellweg noted. Teachers are, too — at least when it comes to the often-unfamiliar territory of arts integration in their classrooms.

“We do a tremendous amount of training of teachers, who don’t necessarily think of themselves as artists, and often feel that they’re not creative. But, within moments of one of our professional-development programs, they realize they’re very creative, and they have a tremendous aptitude for bringing the creative process into the classroom,” she told BusinessWest. “So we’ve been working with teachers on large and small ways to integrate the arts into the classroom, and any time we’re in residence in a classroom, we’re working in partnership with the teacher and students to create something together.”

One innovative initiative, the Honors Arts Academy in Holyoke, is an afterschool program at Donahue School that focuses on rigorous arts training for students. The goal is to secure the funding to place it at Holyoke High School and bring in seventh- and eighth-graders from three city middle schools to work with freshmen at the high school.

“The ninth-grade dropout rate is a big challenge,” Hellweg said, “so it’s good to get seventh- and eighth-graders feeling not just at home in the high school, but that it’s their school, and able to use the resources at the high school, like the television studio and the theater. Most middle schools don’t have those resources.”

In all Enchanted Circle’s programs, she added, students are moving beyond passive learning and generating their own ideas, helping to craft curriculum that means something to them.

While the theater has evolved slowly over the years, Hellweg is excited about a new initiative called the Institute for Arts Integration, which will be a regional hub for training teachers, social-service case workers, administrators, and teaching artists.

“There are a couple programs around the country that are doing this, and because we’ve been pioneers in the field of arts integration, we want to create our own institute,” she said. “Our goal is to make arts integration the norm in every classroom.”

It’s a goal that gets her out of bed each morning, doing a job she has loved for almost four decades.

“You don’t stay in a job that long unless it moves you,” she said. “Every single day, I see that ‘a-ha’ moment where students are able to do something they didn’t think they could. It’s palpable — teachers are seeing their students differently, students are seeing their teachers differently. Learning comes alive, and the creative process means it’s never-ending. That’s where my inspiration comes from.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

Nursing Proves to Be a Solid Option for Career Changers

By
Education Sections

Course Correction

Even her military experience repairing jet engines — work she finds intriguing — hasn’t kept Stephanie Dalton from reaching her goal of becoming a nurse.

Even her military experience repairing jet engines — work she finds intriguing — hasn’t kept Stephanie Dalton from reaching her goal of becoming a nurse.

Stephanie Dalton has wanted to be a nurse since she was 7, though it took a few intriguing detours to get there.

“I’ve always wanted to do it, and I paid for school myself,” she said of her initial enrollment in American International College six years ago. That entailed working at a series of jobs, from waitressing and babysitting to working at a sandwich shop and a horse farm.

“I was living on my own, just trying to make it, and when I got into the nursing program here, I was so excited,” she recalled. “But I struggled. I was working four jobs, I was trying to keep a roof over my head, food on the table, and trying to pay for my education, and I realized I needed to do something different because I was not going to be successful trying to work and manage school and everything else.”

That’s when Dalton decided to join the Air Force, thinking she could train for something in the medical field, but that didn’t work out. Instead, she became a jet-engine mechanic.

“I work on F-15s over at Barnes, and it’s really fun. I like it a lot,” she said, adding that she’s long had an aptitude for mechanical work. “I knew how to turn a wrench, my dad taught me how to change my own oil, I could change a tire. So I knew the basics. And I’m willing to learn — whatever they could teach me, I was willing to just learn.”

But Dalton — through many twists and turns, as we’ll see later — did find her way back to nursing, graduating last month from AIC with her bachelor’s degree.

Lauren Bennett had no such early sights on nursing; instead, she worked in banking and insurance — including a role in sales at MassMutual — for a decade before becoming a stay-at-home mom. Several years later, when her kids were starting kindergarten and second grade, respectively, she decided to pursue a career again — this time in nursing.

“I knew I didn’t want to sit in an office,” said Bennett, who earned her associate degree in nursing at Greenfield Community College in May. “That was something that I didn’t feel was making enough of an impact. There were definitely things I enjoyed about it, but I wanted a career making a positive difference in people’s lives. And I’ve always been interested in anatomy and physiology and nutrition — different aspects of healthcare.”

With nurses once again in demand across the U.S., the field has become an attractive one not only for recent high-school graduates pursing a college path, but for established professionals in other fields looking for a change. For this issue’s focus on nursing education, BusinessWest sat down with a few such women to find out why they made the switch — and where they intend to take their careers from here.

Horse Sense

When Dalton was ready to return to school, she found she was better able to balance her military and academic roles, she explained.

“I was in the National Guard, so I would have drill weekends, go in and do all types of training. Sometimes it was stressful, and I really had to learn how to manage my time, but life was going well for me.”

But the following year, she broke her neck and back horseback riding, and was put into a brace, waist to chin. “I really wanted to come back, but the doctor wouldn’t allow me.”

Still, she was eventually able to return to Barnes, as well as her junior year at AIC. “It was kind of difficult, coming back after being out of the swing of things for a year. I had a lot of struggles, but I had some great supports — a wonderful boyfriend, awesome friends, and my mom, who is my cheerleader. So I struggled, but I made it through.”

Shamicka Jones

Shamicka Jones wants to make a difference the way medical professionals made a difference for her family during times of medical crisis and tragedy.

That year, a family member with mental illness became very ill, which impacted Dalton’s life greatly, and once again she was feeling stretched thin by her military duties, school, and family challenges. But her senior year was much smoother — not less stressful, necessarily, but she was figuring out how to manage the pressures of achieving the career she wanted.

“I feel like I’ve done a lot in the time I’ve been in school,” she told BusinessWest, in what can only be called an understatement.

Shamicka Jones has been through a lot as well, much of it tragic. A congenital heart condition runs in her family, claiming her two brothers at age 11 and her own young son in 2010. Needless to say, she has been exposed to the medical world and some exceptionally caring professionals within it — and found she had a desire to be one, too.

“I did auto insurance for seven years, but I’ve always had an interest in healthcare because of my family history — we had a lot of medical issues,” she said. “Every time I went to the hospital, I always used to see the nurses, and I thought, I want to do that; I want to help people.”

She tried medical assisting school but found the opportunities in that field lacking. After that, she worked at a group home, serving mentally challenged individuals, work she found fulfilling.

But Jones had her sights set on nursing, and was busy with her nursing-school prerequisite coursework when her son passed away, which threw her for a loop. “I started questioning, what am I going to do? Can I ever move forward from this?”

But she continued to attend school, and two years after that, her mother suffered a serious cardiac event “She dropped down in front of me and my daughter while we were out. I had to give her CPR for 10 minutes before the EMS even arrived. We went to the hospital, and they were able to get her back.”

She had to take a semester off to care for her mother, and began doubting her plans to be a nurse — doubts that returned when her daughter was diagnosed with the same genetic heart condition she and so many other family members have.

“I thought, ‘this is not the path,’ she recalled. “But everyone was like, ‘you need to keep going. You need to do this.’” Her daughter, in fact, was her biggest supporter in her quest to get a nursing degree, which she did last month at AIC.

Many Pathways

Jones’ experiences have shaped her career goals, as she is eyeing both cardiac intensive care and psychiatric nursing, helping people with mental-health challenges.

“As a new graduate, I do need to get some experience in so many different areas,” she said. “When I was younger, when I thought of nurses, I thought of hospitals and visiting nurse associations, but nurses are everywhere, in every aspect of society. It’s amazing to me to see all the different options we have.”

Dalton is in the same boat — well, jet, actually — as she considers her options, aiming to find work in a community hospital after taking her boards. She’s looked into being a flight nurse as well, but that plan — which would require copious amounts of specialized training — is on the back burner for now.

When you think of a nurse, the first thing you might think of is somebody in a hospital, at the bedside, but there are so many other possibilities.”

“I always thought I wanted to do some type of pediatric nursing,” she added. “But going through the program, I’ve really broadened my horizons, and now I feel like I want to do everything. Mental illness lies very near and dear to my heart because of my family member, and I see the lack of resources; I see the support that’s not there, the stigma that goes along with it, and I feel like that’s definitely an avenue of interest as well. I’m still interested in pediatrics, and I actually do enjoy working with the older adult population.”

One of her short-term goals is to get involved in community nursing. “In our community course, we actually did blood-pressure and blood-glucose screenings, and that’s something I’m interested in starting up in my town — going to the senior center and starting a little clinic so I can connect with the community and help people.”

Among her long-term goals is meshing her love for horses with her training to launch a therapeutic riding program for special-needs children.

If that sounds like a lot of interests and goals, it is — but it reflects the wide spectrum of roles available to nurses today.

“When you think of a nurse, the first thing you might think of is somebody in a hospital, at the bedside, but there are so many other possibilities,” she said. “That’s the great thing about nursing — you’re not just limited to just one spot, and if you don’t like your job, it doesn’t mean you have to leave nursing. You can maybe do administrative work, or you can do home care. The options are seemingly endless.”

Bennett told BusinessWest she originally wanted to go into labor and delivery. “Now I’ve seen so much more, and I really loved the emergency department, the ICU. I’m pretty open at this point.”

She recognizes that many nurses don’t immediately find the niche they love, and it’s good to keep an open mind, considering all the possible landing spots.

“I know nurses that are stressed by their jobs,” she said, “but I don’t know any nurses who would change careers or say they’d rather do something else. Maybe they’d like a different schedule, but they don’t regret going into nursing.”

Troubled Times

Dalton was experiencing some regrets during the toughest times during her long path to a degree.

“The first year back after I had my injury, I was struggling academically, and I had failed two exams, and I just wasn’t doing well,” she recalled. “An instructor sat down with me and asked me if I had a plan B and what else I would do, and I told her I didn’t.

“I’m extremely persistent,” she said with a laugh born of hard-earned wisdom. “No matter what got in my way, this is what I was meant to do. It was important to be a nurse. The things I’ve been through, that accident … I walked away from a broken neck and back, and the doctors told me I shouldn’t be able to walk right now. So I really believe that this is what I’m meant to do.”

Jones has a similar perspective on being in the right career, no matter where it leads.

“I hope I find my place,” she said. “It may not be where I think I’m going to be right now, but I just want to help people the way my family has been helped. We’ve gone through a lot, but always got amazing care. I want to make that kind of impact.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Puts Greater Emphasis on Planning

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Accounting and Tax Planning Sections

Upping the Ante

By Kristina Drzal Houghton, CPA, MST

It’s June. This is generally not the time to be thinking about taxes. In reality, though, businesses and individuals should always be contemplated taxes and how to reduce their burden. And the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act signed into law late last year gives people even more to think about.

Kristina Drzal Houghton

Kristina Drzal Houghton

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, (TCJA), signed into law on Dec. 22, 2017, brought the biggest changes to both individual and corporate taxes that we’ve seen in the past 30 years. These changes were primarily effective for tax years 2018 and after. For many reasons I’ll highlight in this article, these changes make starting your planning early extremely important.

I will briefly acknowledge that the TCJA reduced the C-corporation tax rate to a flat 21%, from the previous maximum rate of 34%. Additionally, there were changes made to U.S. taxation of income earned abroad by U.S. C-corporations and their affiliates.

The focus of this article will revolve around planning for individuals and small businesses.

Where to Start

I would suggest having an accountant run mock 2018 returns as a starting point. Running those future numbers can flag potential issues. That said, state revenue departments and the Internal Revenue Service have had little time to process the changes, so much remains in flux. The IRS and states haven’t decided how some provisions of the new tax law will be calculated yet. I expect that the IRS and states will start to share their 2018 guidance later this summer. In the meantime, here are some suggestions:

Rework Your Withholding

The new law means that the W-4 you filled out, however many years ago, may need to be adjusted. The IRS encourages everyone to use the Withholding Calculator, available on irs.gov, to perform a quick ‘paycheck checkup.’ Remember, the new tables don’t reflect all the changes that may affect a taxpayer next year, so they are a somewhat blunt tool.

The calculator helps you identify your tax withholding to make sure you have the right amount of tax withheld from your paycheck at work.

If workers leave their W-4s as is, they could wind up withholding too little, which can bring penalties, or they may get a smaller-than-expected refund next year. Workers in higher tax brackets who receive large bonuses could see a higher tax bill next season if they don’t tweak W-4s, since one of the ways employers can set the withholding rate on ‘supplemental income’ such as bonuses in the new law is to use a flat rate of 22%.

Think About Deduction Planning

A big change that could affect many taxpayers is the tax overhaul’s controversial cap on state and local income tax (SALT) deductions, a provision Democrats have labeled a war on blue-state Americans. The deduction, which used to be unlimited, will be capped at $10,000 next year. The new law’s near-doubling of the standard deduction to $12,000 for single filers and $24,000 for married couples filing jointly does mean fewer will itemize.

States were busy devising workarounds to keep those residents from seeing a big spike in federal taxes next year, but the IRS recently informed taxpayers that proposed regulations will be issued addressing the deduction of contributions to state and local governments and other state-specified funds, for federal tax purposes. The proposed regulations will make clear that the Internal Revenue Code, not the label used by states, governs the federal income-tax treatment of such transfers.

As a result of the decreased SALT deduction and the increased standard deduction, the tax benefit from charitable contributions may be lost if the standard deduction exceeds itemized deductions. One strategy for people who regularly donate to charity is to bunch up into one year what they would have given over multiple years. For those who itemize, charitable donations remain deductible on federal returns and can help lift married taxpayers who file jointly above the $24,000 standard deduction hurdle.

By putting a few years’ worth of donations into a donor-advised fund — many financial-services firms have units that offer them — you can take the deduction the year you put the money in, but distribute the money to charity over multiple years. For taxpayers older than 70½ who are taking required distributions from an IRA, they should consider making distributions to charities directly from their IRA.

Mortgage and Home-equity Loan Deductions

The new tax law lowered the amount of deductible interest expense on ‘acquisition indebtedness.’ For new loans made after Dec. 14, 2017, the maximum interest is limited to a mortgage ceiling of $750,000; previously, this was $1 million. It also eliminated the interest deduction on loans, such as home-equity loans, that are not used to ‘buy, build, or substantially improve’ a home.

New College Savings Plan Uses

The new tax law expands the allowable use of tax-exempt 529 college savings plans for education costs that accrue while your child is between kindergarten and high-school graduation. This added allowable use is limited to $10,000 per year per beneficiary. But be careful — while some states automatically follow the federal code, others choose to decouple from certain parts of it. So, while the U.S. government may say you can use 529 money for K-12 expenses, a state may consider such a withdrawal a non-qualified distribution and could tax the earnings and charge you penalties.

Section 199A Pass-through Optimization

Section 199A, which is a new section of the tax code arising from the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act of 2017, introduces a 20% deduction on qualified business income (QBI) for the owners of various pass-through business entities which include S-corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, and sole proprietorships — or, really, any business that is not a C-corporation.

The QBI deduction will provide big tax breaks for many business-owning clients, but unfortunately, the new deduction is highly complicated, and it may take some time before the IRS can even provide more meaningful guidance on how it will be applied. However, the reality is that the planning opportunities created by IRC Section 199A are tremendous, and practitioners are already eagerly exploring how they can help clients reduce their tax burden through creative strategies around the QBI deduction.

Business owners will generally fall within one of three categories when it comes to the QBI deduction:

• Business owners below their applicable threshold amount — which is $157,500 of taxable income for all filers except joint filers, and $315,000 for those filing jointly — can enjoy a QBI deduction for the lesser of 20% of their qualified business income or 20% of their taxable income. It does not matter what type of business is generating the income, nor is there a need to analyze W-2 wages paid by the business or depreciable assets owned by the business. The QBI deduction is what it is.

• Business owners over their applicable threshold who derive their income from a ‘specified service’ business (i.e., some specialized trade or service business) — which includes doctors, lawyers, CPAs, financial advisors, athletes, musicians, and any business in which the principal asset of the business is the skill or reputation of one or more of its employees — will have their QBI deduction phased out. The phase-out range is $50,000 for all filers except joint filers, and $100,000 for those filing jointly. Once a business owner’s taxable income exceeds the upper range of their phase-out threshold ($207,500 for individuals and $415,000 for married filing jointly), they cannot claim a QBI deduction for income generated from a specialized trade or service business. Period. End of story. ‘Do not pass go, do not collect $200.’

• Business owners over their applicable threshold who derive their income from a business that is not a specialized trade or service business may also have their QBI deduction at least partially phased out, but the full deduction may be ‘saved’ based on how much they pay in W-2 wages and/or how much depreciable property they have in the business. Business owners with qualified business income from non-specified service businesses whose taxable income exceeds the upper range of their phase-out threshold can still take a QBI deduction equal to or less than the greater of:

1. 50% of the W-2 wages paid by the business generating the qualified business income; or

2. 25% of the W-2 wages paid by the business generating the qualified business income, plus 2.5% of the unadjusted basis of depreciable property owned by the business.

A careful analysis of the rules above will lead one to realize that, when it comes to maximizing a business owner’s opportunity for a QBI deduction, strategies will fall into one of three main buckets:

• Income-reduction strategies, such as trying to lower taxable income by increasing deductions or spreading out the income over multiple taxpayers, to stay below the income threshold where the specified service business or wage-and-property tests kick in;

• ‘Income alchemy’ strategies, where we try to transform income derived from a specified service business into income derived from a company that is not a specified service business, to avoid the phase-out (for those over the income threshold); and

• Business strategies, such as changing an entity, revisiting compensation models, and revisiting business assets, to more favorably characterize business income in the first place.

Relook at Filing Separate Returns for Married Couples

The tax code has long limited married couples filing separate returns from taking advantage of a number of tax breaks, either by barring those tax breaks entirely under the ‘married filing separately’ status, or phasing them out at very modest income thresholds. As a result, in the past, it’s rarely been a tax-efficient move for married couples to file separate returns, except in highly unusual circumstances. That will likely still be the case for most married couples, but the creation of the QBI deduction does tilt the balance somewhat for some couples.

Should You Revoke S-corp Status?

The hot question since the passage of the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act of 2017 and Section 199A is, “should I revoke S-corp status and go to C-corp?” The answer is no.

While the TCJA reduced C-corporation tax rates to 21%, the QBI reduces the maximum rate on pass-through income to 29.6% (80% of 37%). Previously, the maximum tax rate on pass-through income was 39.6% plus the effect this income had on itemized deduction and personal exemption phase-outs, producing an even greater effective rate.

This rate exceeded the prior maximum C-corporation rate of 34%. Owners elected to operate their businesses in pass-through entities for many reasons beyond the current year’s tax. None of these considerations have changed.

For most small businesses and their owners, the key point is to acknowledge that TCJA creates a tremendous number of planning opportunities. New strategies with QBI will certainly continue to be developed with time and further guidance from the IRS, but even in the present, there exists enough reasons to reach out to your advisors and have them help them reduce your tax liabilities.

Kristina Drzal Houghton, CPA, MST is a partner and director of the Taxation Division at Holyoke-based Meyers Brothers Kalicka; (413) 536-8510.

Business Owners Must Understand Risks in Their Organizations

By
Accounting and Tax Planning Sections

The Fraud Triangle

By Julie Quink, CPA

Julie Quink

Julie Quink

As a culture, we generally believe that people are honest and are trustworthy. Failures like Enron and WorldCom, whose combined fraud losses totaled $46 billion, have raised an awareness of the costs of fraud and have highlighted the need for management to understand and monitor the business risks within their organizations.

What Is Fraud?

Fraud is an intentional act that results in misrepresenting financial information (lying) or misappropriation of assets (stealing). The misrepresentation of financial information typically encompasses misstating earnings to meet market or company expectations and to meet compensation-plan benchmarks. Misappropriation of assets is the taking of company assets, whether cash and equivalents, inventory or supplies, for personal benefit and use.

Statistics indicate that:

• 10% of employees would never, ever commit fraud;

• 10% of employees are actively exploring ways to commit small-scale fraud against their employer, which could include padded mileage and expense reports, small-scale theft of supplies and other materials; and

• 80% of employees would never commit fraud unless certain factors are present.

The factors that would provide the motivation for 80% of employees to consider committing fraud are termed the Fraud Triangle. These factors include:

• Pressure — a financial need created by gambling addictions, substance and alcohol abuse, family illness, or extramarital affairs;

• Opportunity — the ability to access cash or items easily convertible to cash (inventory); and

• Rationalization — the feeling of entitlement or the feeling that there is no other way to financially meet the pressure unless taken from their employer.

Otherwise honest employees may commit fraud under these circumstances.

Indicators that an employee may be committing fraud include the appearance that the employee is living beyond their lifestyle, suspected or known substance or alcohol abuse, and resistance to relinquishing control of duties to others.

Common Ways Fraud Occurs

Generally, misrepresented financial results are accomplished through fictitious transactions or adjustments recorded in accounting records.

Fraud is an intentional act that results in misrepresenting financial information (lying) or misappropriation of assets (stealing).”

The most common ways that an individual can misappropriate funds are:

• Creating fictitious employees on the payroll system and generating payroll checks that the fraudulent employee cashes — the ghost- employee scheme;

• Creating fictitious vendors and generating checks to the fraudster for goods and services never received by the company — the ghost-vendor scheme; and

• Taking customer checks or cash before being deposited into the bank and modifying the accounting records to conceal the theft.

Preventing Fraud

According to the 2018 Report to the Nations published by the Assoc. of Certified Fraud Examiners, 50% of fraud and corruption cases are detected by a tip. Meanwhile, weaknesses in internal control are responsible for nearly 50% of all frauds, and losses are up to 50% higher when collusion of fraudsters exists.

When considering effective prevention and detection techniques, it is critical to:

• Implement a whistleblower policy that provides a mechanism for confidential communication of suspected impropriety;

• Assess areas of risk and evaluate internal controls over the most susceptible business cycles, including cash receipts, cash disbursements, and payroll; and

• Review financial and operational trends to determine routine and unusual patterns.

Simple techniques to strengthen internal controls over significant business cycles include the receipt of unopened bank statements by owner for independent review of monthly activity, and varying of procedures relative to the review the payroll journals or signing of vendor checks, if another individual is typically responsible for those areas. Inquiry and observation, such as camera systems, in areas that pose a concern may act as a deterrent for the occurrence of fraud due to the mere fact that someone is reviewing activity or inquiring.

When techniques fail to prevent and detect fraud, it is important to gather and review evidence. It is recommended that legal counsel be involved in suspected fraud and investigations at the onset. Legal counsel will likely engage an accountant to assist in the review of evidence and documents.

Business owners and management cannot afford not to be aware of fraud indicators and assess the associated risks within their own organizations. Awareness of who puts your organization at risk, review of trends, and simple monitoring tasks can assist in preventing fraud losses, which can create significant, unplanned costs for an organization.

Julie Quink, CPA is the managing principal of Burkhart, Pizzanelli, P.C., specializing in the accounting and consulting aspects of the practice. She is also a certified fraud examiner.

Our Annual Guide to Summer Fun in Western Mass.

By
Cover Story Sections Travel and Tourism

Hot Tips

Vacations are highlights of anyone’s calendar, and summertime is, admittedly, a perfect time to get away. But it’s also a great time to stay at home and enjoy the embarrassment of riches Western Mass. has to offer when it comes to arts and entertainment, cultural experiences, community gatherings, and encounters with nature. From music festivals and agricultural fairs to zoos and water activities — and much more — here is BusinessWest’s annual rundown of some of the region’s outdoor highlights. Have fun!

 

MUSIC, THEATER, AND DANCE

FreshGrass Festival
1040 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA
www.freshgrass.com
Admission: $46-$119 for three-day pass; $350 for VIP ‘FreshPass’
Sept. 14-16: The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is known for its musical events, and the Fresh Grass festival is among the highlights, showcasing close to 50 bluegrass artists and bands over three days. This year, the lineup includes Indigo Girls, Trampled by Turtles, Flogging Molly, Béla Fleck, Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, and many more.

Green River Festival
One College Dr., Greenfield, MA
www.greenriverfestival.com
Admission: Weekend, $129.99; Friday, $34.99; Saturday, $69.99; Sunday, $64.99
July 13-15: For one weekend every July, Greenfield Community College hosts a high-energy celebration of music; local food, beer, and wine; handmade crafts; and games and activities for families and children — all topped off with hot-air-balloon launches and Friday- and Saturday-evening ‘balloon glows.’ The music is continuous on three stages, with more than 35 bands slated to perform.

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival
358 George Carter Road, Becket, MA
www.jacobspillow.org
Admission: $25 and up
Through Aug. 26: Now in its 86th season, Jacob’s Pillow has become one of the country’s premier showcases for dance, featuring more than 50 dance companies from the U.S. and around the world. Participants can take in scores of free performances, talks, and events; train at one of the nation’s most prestigious dance-training centers; and take part in community programs designed to educate and engage audiences of all ages. This year’s highlights include a season-opening performance by the Royal Danish Ballet, a visit from the ever-popular Pilobolus, and an artist-curated program by New York City Ballet’s Daniel Ulbricht.

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center
14 Castle St., Great Barrington, MA
www.mahaiwe.org
Admission: Varies by event
Year-round: The beloved Mahaiwe Theatre dates back to 1905 — continuously running programs since its opening — and underwent an extensive, $9 million renovation starting in 2003. Today, the theater seats just under 700 and hosts year-round arts programming, including music, dance, theatre, opera, talks, and movie classics. It’s leaders say Mahaiwe is a staple and a resource: its live performances inspire tens of thousands of audience members each year, its embrace of modern technology supplements programming with live, high-definition satellite broadcasts from around the world, and its year-round schedule enhances the quality of life for those who reside in and visit the Berkshires.

Old Sturbridge Village Craft Beer & Roots Music Festival
1 Old Sturbridge Village Road, Sturbridge, MA
www.osv.org
Admission: $14-$28; free for children under 4
July 21: OSV’s craft beer festival is back, with more brews, bands, and bites than ever before. Eighteen craft breweries from across New England will offer an opportunity to sample and purchase some of the region’s top beers, ciders, and ales, while barbecue pork, brats, burgers, and more will be available. At five indoor and outdoor stages, more than a dozen musical artists will present the sounds of Americana, bluegrass, country, folk, and roots music.

Springfield Jazz and Roots Festival
Court Square, Springfield, MA
www.springfieldjazzfest.com
Admission: Free
Aug. 11: The fifth annual Springfield Jazz & Roots Festival will offer a festive atmosphere featuring locally and internationally acclaimed musical artists. More than 10,000 people are expected to hear sounds from a mix of well-known artists and up-and-comers. Headliners announced so far include Maceo Parker, Pedrito Martinez Group, and Jon Cleary, with more announcements expected soon.

Tanglewood
297 West St., Lenox, MA
www.bso.org
Admission: Varies
Through Sept. 14: Tanglewood has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937, and like previous years, it has a broad, diverse slate of concerts in store for the 2018 season, including the Festival of Contemporary Music on July 26-30 and performances by the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops orchestras, ensembles of the Tanglewood Music Center, and internationally renowned guest artists from the worlds of classical, jazz, American songbook, Broadway, rock, pop, and dance.

Williamstown Theatre Festival
1000 Main St., Williamstown, MA
www.wtfestival.org
Admission: $60-$75
Through Aug. 19: Six decades ago, the leaders of Williams College’s drama department and news office conceived of an idea: using the campus’ theater for a summer performance program with a resident company. Since then, the festival has attracted a raft of notable guest performers, with this year’s names including Matthew Broderick (The Closet, June 26 to July 4) and Mary-Louise Parker (The Sound Inside, June 27 to July 8). The 2018 season’s seven productions will spotlight a range of both original productions and works by well-known playwrights.

HISTORY AND CULTURE

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
1000 Hall of Fame Ave., Springfield, MA
www.hoophall.com
Admission: $16-$24; free for children under 5
Year-round: The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is home to more than 300 inductees and more than 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Hundreds of interactive exhibits share the spotlight with skills challenges, live clinics, and shooting contests. A $44 million capital campaign is funding a two-phase renovation project, with the first phase, including new dome lighting, a main lobby overhaul, and significant renovation of the Hall’s theater, now complete.

Glasgow Lands Scottish Festival
300 North Main St., Florence, MA
www.glasgowlands.org
Admission: $5-$16, free for children under 6
July 21: Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the largest Scottish festival in Massachusetts, held at Look Park, features Highland dancers, pipe bands, a pipe and drum competition, animals, spinners, weavers, harpists, Celtic music, athletic contests, activities for children, and the authentically dressed Historic Highlanders recreating everyday life in that society from the 14th through 18th centuries.

Glendi
22 St. George Road, Springfield, MA
www.stgeorgecath.org/glendi
Admission: Free
Sept. 7-9: Every year, St. George Cathedral offers thousands of visitors the best in traditional Greek foods, pastries, music, dancing, and old-fashioned Greek hospitality. In addition, the festival offers activities for children, tours of the historic St. George Cathedral and Byzantine Chapel, vendors from across the East Coast, icon workshops, movies in the Glendi Theatre, cooking demonstrations, and more.

Historic Deerfield
84B Old Main St., Deerfield, MA
www.historic-deerfield.org
Admission: $5-$18; free for children under 6
Year-round: Historic Deerfield, founded in 1952, is an outdoor museum that interprets the history and culture of early New England and the Connecticut River Valley. Visitors can tour 12 carefully preserved antique houses dating from 1730 to 1850, and explore world-class collections of regional furniture, silver, textiles, and other decorative arts on display in the authentic period houses and in the Flynt Center of Early New England Life, a state-of-the-art museum facility. Check out the website for a packed roster of summer activities, including educational lectures, cooking demonstrations, and exhibitions of period decoration, textiles, furniture, and art.

Pocumtuck Homelands Festival
Unity Park, 1st Street, Turners Falls, MA
www.nolumbekaproject.org
Admission: Free
Aug. 4: This fifth annual celebration of the parks, people, history, and culture of Turners Falls is a coordinated effort of the Nolumbeka Project and RiverCulture. The event features outstanding Native American crafts, food, and live music, as well as demonstrations of primitive skills. The Nolumbeka Project aims to preserve regional Native American history through educational programs, art, history, music, heritage seed preservation, and cultural events.

Shakerfest
1843 West Housatonic St., Pittsfield, MA
www.hancockshakervillage.org
Admission: $65-$70 for all access; individual activities priced separately
Aug. 18: Hancock Shaker Village will present a day of music, ballads, storytelling, and dance — a place where musicians blend with the audience, and there’s no backstage. From food to free tours of ancient medicinal herb gardens, this festival offers numerous experiences to enjoy with the music, including afternoon harmony and dance workshop; an evening performance in the barn that combines traditional song and dance with new compositions, movement, and projections inspired by the Shakers who built the barn; and a rollicking barn dance.

Stone Soul Festival
1780 Roosevelt Ave., Springfield, MA
www.stonesoulfestival.com
Admission: Free
Aug. 31 to Sept. 2: New England’s largest African-American festival offers family-oriented activities, entertainment, and cultural enrichment, and is a vehicle for minority-owned businesses to display their wares and crafts. Entertainment at Blunt Park includes gospel, jazz, R&B, and dance. Sunday’s free picnic includes ribs and chicken cooked by talented pitmasters, backed by live gospel music performed by local and regional choirs.

Yidstock
1021 West St., Amherst, MA
www.yiddishbookcenter.org/yidstock
Admission: Festival pass, $236; tickets may be purchased for individual events
July 12-15: Boasting an array of concerts, lectures, and workshops, Yidstock 2018: The Festival of New Yiddish Music brings the best in klezmer and new Yiddish music to the stage at the Yiddish Book Center on the campus of Hampshire College. The seventh annual event offers an intriguing glimpse into Jewish roots, music, and culture.

FAIRS AND FESTS

Berkshires Arts Festival
380 State Road, Great Barrington, MA
www.berkshiresartsfestival.com
Admission: $7-$14; free for children under 10
n July 6-8: Ski Butternut may be best-known for … well, skiing, of course. But the property also plays host to the Berkshires Arts Festival, a regional tradition now in its 17th year. Thousands of art lovers and collectors are expected to stop by to check out and purchase the creations of more than 200 artists and designers.

The Big E
1305 Memorial Ave., West Springfield, MA
www.easternstatesexposition.com
Admission: $10-$15; free for children under 5; 17-day pass $20-$40
Sept. 14-30: As regional fairs go, it’s still the big one, and there’s something for everyone, whether it’s the copious fair food or the livestock shows, the Avenue of States houses or the parades, the local vendors and crafters or the live music. But it’s not the only agricultural fair on the block. The Westfield Fair kicks things off Aug. 18-20, followed by the Blandford Fair and the Three County Fair in Northampton Aug. 31 to Sept. 3, the Franklin County Fair in Greenfield on Sept. 6-9, and the Belchertown Fair on Sept. 21-23, to name some of the larger gatherings.

Celebrate Holyoke
Downtown Holyoke, MA
www.celebrateholyokemass.com
Admission: Free
Aug. 24-26: Celebrate Holyoke is a three-day festival that made its return in 2015 after a 10-year hiatus, and typically draws more than 10,000 people downtown over the course of the weekend. This year’s festival will include live musical performances, food and beverages from local restaurants, activities for children, and goods from local artists and makers.

Downtown Get Down
Exchange Street, Chicopee, MA
www.chicopeegetdown.com
Admission: Free
Aug. 24-25: Now in its fourth year, Chicopee’s downtown block party, which typically draws about 15,000 people to the streets around City Hall, will feature tons of live music, as well as attractions for children, local food vendors, live art demonstrations, and the Get Down 5K Race.

Franklin County Beer Fest
66 Thunder Mountain Road, Charlemont, MA
www.berkshireeast.com
Admission: $25 in advance, $30 at the door
July 21: Join fellow brew enthusiasts for an afternoon of food, music, and drink. The third annual Franklin County Beer Fest will be held at Berkshire East Mountain Resort and will feature beer from several local breweries, local ciders, and local mead and libations. Online ticket buyers will receive a souvenir glass.

Mattoon Street Arts Festival
Mattoon Street, Springfield, MA
www.mattoonfestival.org
Admission: Free
Sept. 8-9: Now in its 46th year, the Mattoon Street Arts Festival is the longest-running arts festival in the Pioneer Valley, featuring about 100 exhibitors, including artists that work in ceramics, fibers, glass, jewelry, painting and printmaking, photography, wood, metal, and mixed media. Food vendors and strolling musicians help to make the event a true late-summer destination.

Monson Summerfest
Main Street, Monson, MA
www.monsonsummerfestinc.com
Admission: Free
July 4: In 1979, a group of parishioners from the town’s Methodist church wanted to start an Independence Day celebration focused on family and community, The first Summerfest featured food, games, and fun activities. With the addition of a parade, along with booths, bands, rides, and activities, the event has evolved into an attraction drawing more than 10,000 people every year.

River Celebration
350 Linden St., Brattleboro, VT
www.ctriver.org/celebration
Admission: $15; free for children 12 and under
June 16: The Connecticut River Conservancy will host this family-friendly event at the Retreat Farm in Brattleboro. Morning excursions including a pontoon cruise on the Connecticut River, a paddling adventure in the Meadows, a freshwater mussel ecology workshop, a fly-casting workshop, and more. Enjoy live music by River Rhapsody and lunch by Tito’s Taqueria and Vermont Country Deli. Additional activities include an ice-cream-making workshop and several demonstrations open all day: a stream table, a soil-infiltration table, a water-quality testing station, and more. Vermont Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman will moderate the “Farm/River Roundtable: Doing Right by Our Rivers.”

Worthy Craft Brew Fest
201 Worthington St., Springfield, MA
www.theworthybrewfest.com
Admission: $45 in advance, $50 at the door
June 16: Smith’s Billiards and Theodores’ Booze, Blues & BBQ, both in the city’s entertainment district, will host more than 25 breweries, with music by Feel Good Drift and the Radiators Soul and Rhythm and Blues Revue, and food served up by Theodores’, Mercado Food Truck, and Nora Cupcake Co. The event will also feature a home-brew contest; Amherst Brewing will make the winner’s beer and serve it at next year’s Brew Fest.

MORE FUN UNDER THE SUN

Berkshire Botanical Garden
5 West Stockbridge Road, Stockbridge, MA
www.berkshirebotanical.org
Admission: $12-$15; free for children under 12
Through Oct. 8: If the flora indigenous to, or thriving in, the Berkshires of Western Mass. is your cup of tea, try 15 acres of stunning public gardens at the Berkshire Botanical Garden in Stockbridge. Originally established as the Berkshire Garden Center in 1934, today’s not-for-profit, educational organization is both functional and ornamental, with a mission to fulfill the community’s need for information, education, and inspiration concerning the art and science of gardening and the preservation of the environment. In addition to the garden’s collections, among the oldest in the U.S., visitors can enjoy workshops, special events, and guided tours.

Crab Apple Whitewater Rafting
2056 Mohawk Trail, Charlemont, MA
www.crabapplewhitewater.com
Admission: Varies by activity
Through Oct. 8: Wanna get wet? Crab Apple is a third-generation, multi-state family business that operates locally on the Deerfield River in the northern Berkshire Mountains of Western Mass. Its five separate rafting excursions range from mild to wild, full- or half-day runs, in rafts and inflatable kayaks. In short, Crab Apple offers something for everyone, from beginners to more experienced rafters.

Great New England Air & Space Show
57 Patriot Ave., Chicopee, MA
www.greatnewenglandairshow.org
Admission: Free; upgraded paid seating available
July 14-15: The 2018 Great New England Air & Space Show at Westover Air Reserve Base will feature popular attractions like the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, who last performed in Chicopee in 2008. But note the subtle change to the event title — ‘Space Show.’ That’s because the Air Force operates the largest space program in the world, and the Great New England Air & Space Show is entering a new phase by incorporating elements of space and cyberspace capabilities of military and civilian contractors.

Lupa Zoo
62 Nash Hill Road, Ludlow, MA
www.lupazoo.org
Admission $10-$15; free for children under 2
Through Nov. 4: Lupa Zoo brings the African savannah to Western Mass. residents. The late Henry Lupa fulfilled his lifelong dream of creating a zoo right next to his Ludlow house, filling it with hundreds of animals and instilling a warm, familial atmosphere. Visitors to the 20-acre can be entertained by monkeys, feed giraffes on a custom-built tower, and marvel at the bright colors of tropical birds. In addition to offering animal shows and animal-feeding programs, the staff at Lupa Zoo promotes conservation and sustainability.

Post #351 Catfish Derby
50 Kolbe Dr., Holyoke, MA
www.post351catfishderby.com
Admission: $10 entry fee
July 20-22: The American Legion Post #351 touts its 38th annual Catfish Derby as the biggest catfish tournament in the Northeast. Fishing is open to the Connecticut River and all its tributaries. The derby headquarters and weigh-in station are located at Post #351. A total of $1,425 in prize money is being offered, with a first prize of $300. Three trophies are available in the junior division (age 14 and younger).

Six Flags New England
1623 Main St., Agawam, MA
www.sixflags.com/newengland
Admission: $57.99-$67.99; season passes $109.99
Through Oct. 28: Continuing an annual tradition of adding a new major attraction each spring, Six Flags New England recently unveiled Harley Quinn Spinsanity, an extreme pendulum ride that sends guests soaring 15 stories in the air at speeds up to 70 mph. Other recent additions include the Joker 4D Free Fly Coaster, the looping Fireball, and the 420-foot-tall New England Sky Screamer swings — in addition to a raft of other thrill rides. But fear not: the park has attractions for everyone along the stomach-queasiness spectrum, from the classic carousel and bumper cars to the giant wave pools and lazy river in the Hurricane Harbor water park, free with admission.

Springfield Dragon Boat Festival
121 West St., Springfield, MA
www.pvriverfront.org
Admission: Free
June 23: The sixth annual Springfield Dragon Boat Festival returns to North Riverfront Park. Hosted by the Pioneer Valley Riverfront Club, this family-friendly festival features the exciting sport of dragon-boat racing and will include music, performances, food, vendors, kids’ activities, and more. The festival is an ideal event for businesses and organizations looking for a new team-building opportunity, and provides financial support for the Riverfront Club as it grows and strengthens its presence in Springfield and the Pioneer Valley.

Valley Blue Sox
500 Beech St., Holyoke, MA
www.valleybluesox.com
Admission: $5-$7; season tickets $99
Through Aug. 1: Western Mass. residents don’t have to trek to Boston to catch quality baseball. The Valley Blue Sox, defending champions of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, play close to home at MacKenzie Stadium in Holyoke. These Sox feature a roster of elite collegiate baseball players from around the country, including some who have already been drafted into the major leagues. Frequent promotional events like postgame fireworks and numerous giveaways help make every game at MacKenzie Stadium a fun, affordable event for the whole family.

 

 

 

Building Permits

By
Building Permits Departments

The following building permits were issued during the month of May 2018.

AGAWAM

Millwork Realty Associates, LLC
32 Century St.
$59,169 — Roofing

Rayonia Motors, LLC
521 River Road
$2,450 — Ground sign

Salerno Properties, LLC
430 Main St.
$4,400 — Replace pole sign

DEERFIELD

Deerfield Academy
612 Greenfield Road
$8,000 — Siding, repair rotten framing, install new windows

PACC
46 South Main St.
$20,000 — Roofing

EAST LONGMEADOW

Dores Dental
281 Maple St.
$5,000 — Roofing

HADLEY

Parmar and Sons Inc.
41 Russell St.
$79,909 — Install roof-mounted photovoltaic system

LUDLOW

Ludlow Elks Lodge
69 Chapin St.
$12,000 — Alterations

PALMER

Sanderson MacLeod
1199 South Main St.
$114,000 — Renovations

SPRINGFIELD

Blue Tarp Redevelopment, LLC
12 MGM Way
$510,587 — Tenant fit-out on first floor of MGM Springfield for Hannoush Jewelers

Blue Tarp Redevelopment, LLC
12 MGM Way
$860,051 — Tenant fit-out on first floor of MGM Springfield for the Salon

City of Springfield
36 Court St.
$2,500 — Alteration to create new office space for Licensing on third floor of City Hall

Financial Plaza Trust
1350 Main St.
$1,335 — Install partition wall dividing office in Suite 1507 of One Financial Plaza

MassMutual
1295 State St.
$524,900 — Alter interior space for office use and repair ceiling tile on second floor of south building

Mittas Hospitality, LLC, DD Development, LLC, and Rudra Realty, LLC
1500 Main St.
$25,000 — Swap out three existing antennas and install six radio units on cell tower

Ramani Realty, LLC
1534 State St.
$7,200 — Alter lounge kitchen

South Congregational Church of Springfield
45 Maple St.
$275,000 — Install new elevator in existing stairwell opening

Springfield College
263 Alden St.
$15,000 — Alter office space in rooms 209 and 225 of Athletic Training building

Springfield College
263 Alden St.
$15,000 — Alter office space on second floor of Blake Hall

WEST SPRINGFIELD

1050 Main St., LLC
1050 Main St.
$12,000 — Install fire-protective signaling system

Apple Ridge Realty, LLC
352 Riverdale Road
$434,000 — Interior work at McDonald’s including restroom upgrade, new seating layout with new finishes, new front counter with finishes; update exterior facade; site work including replacement of drive-thru features and accessibility upgrades

Rick Bosori
107 Bosworth St.
$20,000 — Roofing

City of West Springfield
429 Morgan Road
$6,000 — Masonry, framing, and window replacement

Costco Wholesale
119 Daggett Dr.
$49,000 — Expand hearing-aid department to include second testing booth

Wendy Diamond
1285 Riverdale Road
$40,000 — Roofing

Glenn Rocheleau
56 Hanover St.
$7,500 — Excavate for footings under porch, remove and replace one floor joist

WILBRAHAM

Country Bank
2379 Boston Road
$100,000 — Renovate existing space

Cumberland Farms
105 Post Office Park
$2,025,228 — Construct new convenience store, gas canopy, and fuel dispensers

AIC Names New Health Sciences Facility for Frank Colaccino

By
Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — American International College (AIC) announced that the new health sciences educational facility located at 1020 State St. in Springfield will be named the Colaccino Center for Health Sciences in recognition of Frank Colaccino, a 1973 alumnus of the college.

Colaccino is the founder, president, and CEO of the Colvest Group in Springfield, a firm that specializes in land planning and development; commercial real-estate site selection; shopping center research, development, leasing, and management; and office-space rental and leasing services.

While serving as chair of the board of trustees finance committee in 2005, Colaccino was instrumental in helping restore the college’s solvency after facing extreme financial jeopardy. In 2007, and again in 2015, he assumed the role of chairman of the board of trustees. Colaccino is the first alumnus in the college’s history to hold this position.

“At a time when this institution was in great fiscal need, Frank was committed to preserving AIC’s longevity,” said AIC President Vince Maniaci. “Through his leadership and unwavering service, we have seen the college grow immeasurably. It is in recognition of Frank’s dedication, loyalty, and financial support that we elected to name the new educational facility in his honor.”

Set to open this fall, the two-story, 20,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility will house AIC’s new exercise science programs in addition to expanded occupational therapy and physical therapy offerings. Athletic training programs will be introduced beginning in 2021.

Located in the geographic center of Springfield, the Colaccino Center for Health Sciences complements the ongoing redevelopment of downtown by extending revitalization efforts up the State Street corridor to the Mason Square/Upper Hill neighborhood.

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