Day: April 15, 2023

Palmer’s Development Is All Part of the Plan

By Contributor
Ryan McNutt
Community Spotlight

Community Spotlight

By Mark Morris

Ryan McNutt

Ryan McNutt says the ‘hill’ off Palmer’s Mass Pike exit is a challenging site.

You might say Ryan McNutt is a man with a plan. The Palmer town manager keeps a copy of the town’s master plan on his desk for anyone who wants to know the projects and priorities for the community in the years ahead.

McNutt sees a real benefit in a formal plan because it reduces what can be an overwhelming world of choices.

“When you have a document that we’ve all agreed on, it allows us to work toward the different benchmarks that are laid out for us,” he said. “Having a plan just makes it easier to get things done.”

And there are a lot of initiatives that developers, the town, and the state are trying to get done in Palmer — everything from a hotel and water park on the site once proposed for a casino to a stop on the planned, and highly anticipated, east-west rail line; from new cannabis businesses and a brewery to some infrastructure projects, and much more.

Overall, it’s an intriguing tome for this town roughly halfway between Springfield and Worcester, one that could change the landscape in all kinds of ways.

One key benchmark involves developing the land near Exit 63 on the Massachusetts Turnpike, commonly known as the Palmer exit.

With several empty land parcels near the exit ramp, McNutt and others see this as a significant economic opportunity. He was prepared to have the town purchase one of the parcels, clean up the lot, and advertise it for development with the hope it would be a catalyst for others.

“When you have a document that we’ve all agreed on, it allows us to work toward the different benchmarks that are laid out for us. Having a plan just makes it easier to get things done.”

While planning that move, a developer bought the parcel from the current owner and signed on to build the Liberty Plaza, scheduled to open late next year. Committed retail stores include a Chipotle restaurant, Starbucks, Jersey Mike’s Subs, and two other retail spaces not yet finalized.

“This is a great success for the town because it turns an empty lot into the kind of plaza you would expect to see close to a turnpike exit,” McNutt said. “Best of all, we achieved the result we wanted without having to buy anything.”

But this project pales in comparison to another proposed project, one that involves development of an area known as the ‘hill.’ Located directly at the end of the turnpike exit, the parcel represents nearly 200 acres of land. It was this area that was the proposed site for a casino complex.

According to Quabog Hills Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Andrew Surprise, Kalahari Resorts is in discussion with the town about a potential 400- to 500-room hotel with an indoor water park. Kalahari Resorts currently has hotel complexes in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Texas. Themed around African adventure, the hotels emphasize family vacations by featuring large indoor water parks, and business gatherings by offering large conference centers.

Andrew Surprise

Andrew Surprise says the Quaboag Hills Chamber has rebounded following a loss of members and direction during the pandemic.

“If Kalahari eventually locates here, it would be a huge economic benefit to Palmer and the entire region,” Surprise said.

At the town level, McNutt said Palmer is working with the company to address bringing public utilities and access roads to the hill parcel.

“It’s a challenging site,” he noted. “While nothing is a sure thing, I’m glad to see this company feels optimistic enough to keep exploring the opportunity.”

Meanwhile, those in — or looking to enter — the cannabis industry are also finding opportunities in Palmer.

Indeed, while there are no cannabis retailers currently operating in town, that will soon change. Kali Cannabis has begun building a retail operation on Shearer Street, close to the turnpike exit. Cannabis retailer Silver Therapeutics has also broken ground on its facility, and two additional companies, Green Gold Group and Green Adventure, are planning retail operations in Palmer. The latter companies are still completing the permitting process with the Cannabis Control Commission.

In short order, the town could see four cannabis establishments open their doors.

“We will have to see what the market does to determine the right number of cannabis retailers,” McNutt said. “We’re going to let capitalism solve that one.”

As for the chamber, in the middle of the pandemic, it faced a shrinking membership base and a loss of direction. During that time, Surprise became the executive director, with a mandate to turn things around. After nearly three years, he is happy to report the chamber is back.

“We’ve added dozens of new members in the last two years, with more businesses signing on every day,” he said, adding that, in the past year, the chamber has brought $364,000 in economic-development money to its members.

 

Tracking Progress

Another engine of economic development involves a train stop in Palmer as part of the east-west rail project currently under consideration. In the budget that Gov. Maura Healey will present to the legislature for approval, she has identified funding for train stops in Pittsfield and Palmer.

“While the budget hasn’t yet passed, it’s a promising sign because it shows the Commonwealth believes in the rail project and supports Palmer,” McNutt said.

If approved, a rail stop in Palmer offers residents the possibility of direct access to Boston without driving. But Surprise looks at that potential from a different angle. “I’m more focused on bringing people from Boston and Eastern Mass. here, so they can visit the region, spend money in this area, and help our economy.”

It’s an economy that’s growing and becoming increasingly diverse, with many new additions, including cannabis-based businesses as well as the town’s first brewery, created by Rachel Rosenbloom and her husband, Michael Bedrosian, who saw opportunity in Palmer and are seizing it.

“We knew town officials were looking to revitalize downtown, and we thought it would be a good idea to add something to the community that would encourage people to go downtown,” Rosenbloom said.

While the couple have been home brewers for 10 years, Rosenbloom is a professional brewer, working at Fort Hill Brewery in Easthampton for the past five years. Palmer is known as the Town of Seven Railroads because the rail industry was an important part of the town’s early industrial development. That knowledge inspired the couple to name their business Seven Railroads Brewery.

“We didn’t want to go with an obvious name like Palmer Brewing Company,” Rosenbloom said. “We wanted to choose a name that really meant something to the community and to the area.”

Once they receive the proper construction permits for their Park Street location, the couple will start installing their brewing equipment. They have secured a license to brew and are still waiting for approval of their license to pour, which will determine how soon they can open the taproom and start serving the public.

“We’re going to concentrate on being a brewery, and while we won’t be serving food, we will invite local food trucks and let patrons know they can bring in food,” Rosenbloom said.

Palmer at a glance

Year Incorporated: 1775
Population: 12,448
Area: 32 square miles
County: Hampden
Tax Rate, residential and commercial: Palmer, $21.40; Three Rivers, $21.82; Bondsville, $22.54; Thorndike, $22.25
Median Household Income: $41,443
Median Family Income: $49,358
Type of government: Town Manager; Town Council
Largest Employers: Baystate Wing Hospital; Sanderson MacLeod Inc., Camp Ramah of New England; Big Y World Class Market
*Latest information available

She is hopeful the taproom can open this spring or early summer, and she’s not the only one looking forward to it.

“Everyone we talk to is super excited and can’t wait for us to open,” she said. “The response we’ve gotten from the community has been so positive, with several local businesses reaching out to help and to discuss working with us in the future.”

Last spring, Surprise resumed publishing the chamber’s recreation guide and business directory after not producing it during the pandemic years. Published in time to distribute at the Brimfield Antique and Flea Market (which brings more than 250,000 people to the region every year), the guide’s return proved a big success.

“We distributed half our print run at the flea market as well as to more than 60 locations in the region, with many asking for more copies,” Surprise said. “People really liked the pocket-guide format, and, of course, it’s available online, too.”

With the 2023 edition, Surprise is looking to create different trails for antique shops, breweries and wineries, boutique shops, and more. He hopes the increased activity will increase the tourism dollars spent in the region. “Right now, our efforts are all about planting seeds and seeing what grows.”

Meanwhile, Palmer continues to seek a new use for the 100-year-old Converse Middle School. McNutt said the town looked into the costs to modernize it for municipal use, but the price tag was too high. Now he’s looking to see if housing developers, specifically those building for residents age 55 and over, can propose an effective use for the site.

As part of its master plan, Palmer is also working on replacing two main bridges in town, on Church Street and Main Street. After minor repairs, the Main Street bridge has been deemed safe for now, while the Church Street bridge was closed. A truss bridge is in use until a new Church Street bridge gets built.

“It’s a complicated construction project, but we are still on schedule with our benchmarks,” McNutt said. “It is still a goal that I will drive my car across the new bridge this year.”

A boat ramp for Forest Lake is one project that is now complete. As a small, quiet spot, McNutt explained that the lake is a popular place for parents to teach children how to fish.

In the past, boat owners would launch from a sandy area along the lake and park their vehicles on the adjacent road. That would often lead to two safety issues of launching during muddy times and then parking vehicles on a fairly busy road. The Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game and Department of Conservation corrected those issues with a dedicated boat launch and an adjoining parking lot.

“From a safety, convenience, and aesthetic point of view, the boat launch was a great project all around that will benefit people for years to come,” McNutt said.

 

Bottom Line

In order to keep town projects on the path to completion, Palmer has a master-plan implementation committee consisting of citizens and town officials to make sure the actions that occur are aligned with the goals the town has identified.

“As we succeed and complete these projects, it serves as a catalyst and allows us to get even more done for the town,” McNutt said.

After all, it’s part of the plan.

Senate Legislation Authorizing Chapter 90 Funding Should Benefit Rural Towns

By Contributor
Construction

Claiming Mileage

 

On March 30, the Massachusetts State Senate passed a bill that includes $350 million in bond authorizations for transportation needs across the state, including $200 million for the state’s Chapter 90 program, which provides municipalities with a reliable funding source for transportation-related improvements, including road and bridge repairs.

“This legislation will maintain and improve our state’s infrastructure, ensure that residents have safe and reliable transportation options, and support sustainable, regionally equitable economic development in communities across the Commonwealth,” Senate President Karen Spilka said.

The legislation also authorizes $150 million in programs that will assist municipalities with various transportation-related projects. This includes $25 million each for the municipal small-bridge program, the Complete Streets program, a bus-transit infrastructure program, grants to increase access to mass transit and commuter rail stations, grants for municipalities and regional transit authorities to purchase electric vehicles and the infrastructure needed to support them, and new funding dedicated to additional transportation support based on road mileage, which is particularly helpful for rural communities.

“Rural towns do not have large municipal budgets like some Commonwealth cities; yet, with much smaller municipal budgets, they have been expected to maintain many hundreds more miles of roads than their urban counterparts.”

“By dedicating a $25 million fund to rural communities for road and culvert work, the Senate has once again demonstrated a commitment to regional equity,” state Sen. Jo Comerford said. “Rural towns do not have large municipal budgets like some Commonwealth cities; yet, with much smaller municipal budgets, they have been expected to maintain many hundreds more miles of roads than their urban counterparts. They have culverts in need of repair and a significant number of gravel and dirt roads. This rural program recognizes and begins to address these pressing, inequitable realities for rural communities, and I’m deeply grateful.”

In arguing for the bill’s passing, Comerford made a passionate appeal for relief for communities in her district, which includes parts of Hampshire, Franklin, and Worcester counties.

“I know Boston didn’t have a lot of snow this winter. That was not the case in my district. Just over two weeks ago, a number of towns in my district received over 24 inches of snow, some getting as much as 38 inches just in one storm,” she said. “The Hatfield DPW director wrote that, ‘due to the late storms, we have a lot of roads that have fallen apart and a lot of tree damage. With the costs of asphalt rising and the Chapter 90 funding staying the same, we will never catch up.’ The Greenfield DPW director told us, ‘due to many freezes and thaw cycles, our roads have shown accelerated deterioration, and our pavement-management program is really in shambles.’

She said the base amount being provided to communities has been static for many years, while costs are constantly rising. “Weather events are getting more extreme, putting more stress on roads and bridges and cleanup, and rural municipalities have many dirt and gravel roads, making up more than 30% of a municipality’s road network, in some instances, in my district. And this, of course, is exacerbated by climate change, the erosion and the disrepair of these roads.”

She noted that the existing Chapter 90 formula used to distribute funds — established more than 50 years ago — takes into account road mileage, but also population and employment. “But this doesn’t work for the places that don’t have the people, but do have the miles and miles of roads. Adjusting the base Chapter 90 formula to put more emphasis on road mileage is something that I respectfully urge us to consider.”

State Sen. Paul Mark, who represents all of Berkshire County among some communities in Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties, agreed that the mileage-based calculation will greatly benefit smaller towns.

“In a district of 57 cities and towns, 54 of which have populations of fewer than 10,000 people, and in some cases communities as small as 120 residents, we live first-hand every day how difficult it can be to undertake road repairs, invest in new equipment, or have our voice heard in Boston,” he said.

Legislators outside Western Mass. also praised the bill’s passage.

“Our transportation system is the backbone of our Commonwealth, connecting us to our jobs, families, and communities,” said state Sen. Brendan Crighton, chair of the Senate Committee on Transportation. “This investment is not just an investment in infrastructure, but an investment in the future of our Commonwealth, enabling our cities and towns to make the necessary improvements to promote efficient and safe travel for all.”

State Sen. Edward Kennedy, chair of the Senate Committee on Bonding, Capital Expenditures, and State Assets, added that “I’m pleased to see this crucial investment in the Commonwealth’s roads and bridges move toward fruition. The cities and towns of Massachusetts depend on this necessary funding to maintain their transportation infrastructure.”

A different version of the bill having previously been passed in the House of Representatives, the two chambers will now reconcile differences before sending the bill to Gov. Maura Healey’s desk.

What Employers Need to Know About Workers’ Compensation

By Contributor
Insurance

Avoiding a World of Hurt

By Encharter Insurance

 

If you are an employer in Massachusetts with one or more employees, workers’ compensation is a mandatory business-insurance coverage. An employer may be an individual, a partnership, a corporation, or any other form of ownership that has employees. Failure to carry workers’ compensation coverage can result in an immediate stop work order and fines for every day that no coverage was available.

Besides being the law, here’s why you need it: workers’ compensation is essentially a no-fault system designed to protect both employers and employees should a workplace injury or illness occur. Your workers’ comp insurance policy would cover payment for medical care related to the employee’s injury, and would pay wage-replacement benefits, also called indemnity payments. In exchange for these benefits, workers’ comp, rather than the courtroom, becomes the employee’s exclusive remedy.

Individual states have jurisdiction over their own systems, so specific regulations and benefits vary by state. In Massachusetts, the Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA) manages the workers’ compensation system, adjudicating any disputes or appeals that arise. Meanwhile, the Massachusetts Workers Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau sets rates.

 

How Is Coverage Obtained?

Most employers secure their workers’ compensation from an insurance agent. Large employers sometimes self-insure but must pass several regulatory gating issues to qualify for self-insurance.

If two or more insurance companies decline to insure your organization, you may have to seek coverage in the Massachusetts residual market, also known as an assigned risk pool.

Workers’ compensation insurance can be canceled by the insurance company, but only for the reasons of non-payment of premium, fraud or material misrepresentation, or a substantial increase in the hazard being insured. Your insurance company would need to notify you of cancellation with 10 days written notice.

 

How Are Rates Set?

The cost of the insurance is based on anticipated loss experience and is comprised of two basic components.

Under manual premium, the cost for your workers’ compensation policy is determined by your payroll and the classification of the work your employees do. The riskier the work, the higher the rate for the class code. There are thousands of class codes set by the Workers Compensation Rating & Inspection Bureau (WCRIB) in Massachusetts.

Under modified premium, once you have purchased workers’ compensation for two years, if the sum of the premiums for two years is $11,000 or more, your policy will be subject to experience rating. Manual premium is multiplied by an experience rating factor (or ‘e-mod’) reflecting your specific organization’s loss history. Much like the experience rating system used by many states to develop auto insurance rates, a bad year will impact an employer for years to come, as three prior years’ experience are used to develop a workers’ compensation e-mod.

 

What Benefits Does Workers’ Comp Provide to an Injured Worker?

Workers’ compensation coverage provides unlimited medical expenses, lost wages (also referred to as wage replacement or indemnity), rehabilitation expenses, and dependent and funeral expenses up to a state’s limits

The amount and duration of wage replacement and medical benefits varies based on each state’s law. Generally, the injured worker faces no out-of-pocket medical costs.

 

What Are Your Responsibilities as an Employer?

• Obtain workers’ compensation insurance coverage. Failure to carry coverage can result in stop-work orders and daily fines for the uncovered duration.

• Show proof of that coverage by posting notice in a public and visible place that all employees use.

• Provide a safe workplace, as required by OSHA.

• If an employee is injured, send them for medical care. In Massachusetts, you have the option to choose the physician for the first appointment.

• Report a medical-only injury (one with no anticipated lost time) to your insurer.

• Report a workplace injury with five or more days of absence, or a death, to the Massachusetts Division of Insurance.

 

What Are Some Best Practices to
Minimize Costs?

You can lower your workers’ comp costs by working to the lowest possible e-mod. There are two variables that you should work to control: the frequency of injuries, or how many work-related incidents occur; and the severity of workplace injuries, or the duration of time away from work. Here are best practices to help control both and to help you attain the lowest possible experience e-mod:

• Maintain a safe and healthy workplace. The least costly injuries are the ones that never happen. Control frequency by setting the expectation for an injury-free workplace, training employees to work safely, requiring personal protective equipment, and conducting periodic walk-through audits. Your insurance company can often provide safety resources.

• Have a plan for point-of-injury response. A quick, caring, non-judgmental response to a work injury will help to set the trajectory for a positive outcome for all. Ensure that employees and managers know what to do if an injury occurs. Escort the injured worker to medical treatment.

• Partner with a nearby occupational doctor or medical clinic. Massachusetts allows employers to choose the first medical contact. Choose a top-quality physician or a clinic experienced in workplace injuries. Your insurance company may have a good network.

• Report injuries to your insurer in a timely manner. Early reporting is extremely important — numerous studies have demonstrated that the sooner injuries are reported, the better the outcome. Aim for same-day reporting.

• Prepare for return to work. It’s important to get employees back to work and on the team as soon as possible to help prevent disability syndrome. Plan for a transitional or modified job duties to help the employ re-acclimate and work-harden to their regular job.

Report: No Medical Cannabis Markets Fully Meet Patients’ Needs

By Contributor
Cannabis

Improvement Needed

 

In its annual “State of the States” report, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) gave 13 state medical cannabis programs failing grades.

In the report, the ASA gave failing grades to Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Idaho and Nebraska, the last two states without medical cannabis access, both got a zero.

No state earned an A, but Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, and Rhode Island got the highest grade on the ASA report card, a B+.

Massachusetts earned a C+. According to the report, “medical cannabis sales in Massachusetts have reached almost $1 billion since the medical cannabis program was approved in 2018. Despite this promising sales number, Massachusetts did not make any noticeable improvements to the medical cannabis program in the past year.

“In 2023, ASA recommends that legislators in the state expand protections provided under the law for patients. As it stands, employment protections only exist through case law and should be formalized by the state Legislature. The Legislature should also seek to protect patients rights within housing, education, and family court as well.”

The ASA did commend Massachusetts for not requiring a fee with patient registrations and encourages policymakers to extend patient registrations to cover multi-year periods in order to cut down on administrative paperwork for patients.

According to patient feedback gathered for the Massachusetts report, “patients surveyed expressed concern regarding inflated pricing, a concentration on potential harm rather than potential benefits, and that the adult use/recreational market is undermining the medical market. They also reported a lack of pediatric access.”

While states continue to slowly adapt their laws to meet the needs of patients, the ASA noted, “we have noticed a big shift in states prioritizing adult use. Recreational adult-use programs and medical cannabis programs are not the same and should not be treated as such. A state may have both recreational, adult-use laws and medical cannabis laws, but those programs must remain separate in order to serve the distinct needs of the population. Cannabis patients rely on medical cannabis products for their health and well-being and should be treated as patients by the state — not as recreational consumers.”

This includes protections that may not exist in the recreational market, the report explained, such as excise and sales tax breaks on medical cannabis products, continued access to medical cannabis for minor patients, civil-rights protections for employment, housing, parental rights, and even alternative accessibility methods.

“Medical cannabis programs are essential to patient health and well-being and should be maintained and improved upon regardless of the legality of recreational adult use in the state,” the ASA argued. “While adult-use models can expand access to a larger population of people and may even increase the number of legal cannabis retailers, these systems and associated businesses are often not held to the same standards as authorized medical cannabis businesses.

“For example, laboratory testing of adult-use products may not have to undergo screening for the full array of heavy metals and contaminants that medical products require. It is also uncommon that states ask adult-use retailers to maintain staff competent about medical cannabis products or their applications to ensure patients have a trained advisor to consult with when they purchase medicine. It is critical to patient health that states maintain focus on addressing medical cannabis program challenges and patient needs before, during, and after developing adult-use programs.”

The ASA also gave grades to the medical cannabis programs of U.S. territories, such as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (D+), Guam (C-), Puerto Rico (D), and the Virgin Islands (D+).

According to a report by Ganjapreneur, “even in states with full medical cannabis programs, each state differs greatly in how patients can access their medicine, where they can access it, or even what types of products they can access.” Because medical cannabis remains prohibited federally, it added, “most state programs leave out millions of potential patients due to issues with affordability, patient rights, and civil protections, or product-safety standardization.”

The ASA gave no state a grade higher than a B+ because none of them “include the entire range of protections and rights that should be afforded to patients under the law, with some lagging far behind others.”

The ASA believes there are more than 6 million medical cannabis users in the U.S., which is about 1 million more than in its report from 2021.

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