BusinessWest Staff, Author at BusinessWest

Finck & Perras Insurance Agency Reports on Community Investments

By BusinessWest Staff February 1, 2018

Daily News

EASTHAMPTON — Genevieve Brough, president of Finck & Perras Insurance Agency Inc., recently announced that the firm invested roughly $40,000 in the wider community through sponsorships and donations to nonprofits in 2017.

“It’s my aim to have a tangible engagement in our community,” Brough said, noting Finck & Perras aims to support organizations that have a mission to improve the lives of children and people with disabilities.

Organizations the company supported range from youth sports and recreation programs in Hampshire County to Riverside Industries in Easthampton, Link to Libraries, and the Children’s Advocacy Center of Hampshire County. “These organizations are among the great assets of our community. They’re part of its fabric,” she said.

Brough passes on her philanthropic values to employees, encouraging them to take part in community activism and fund-raising. Finck & Perras has supported the United Way of Hampshire County for 19 years, for instance, encouraging employees take part in making regular donations by offering various incentive programs.

Other organizations Finck & Perras supported in 2017 include the Academy of Music Theatre, Northampton; the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, Springfield; Pathlight, Springfield; TedXEasthamptonWomen; Safe Passage, Northampton; the Northampton Family Fourth Celebration; Nonotuck Community School Inc., Northampton; Cooley Dickinson Health Care, Northampton; and Look Memorial Park, Florence.

Finck & Perras provides home, auto, business, and marine insurance and has offices in Easthampton and Florence.

Governor’s Super Bowl Wager Again Includes Koffee Kup Cupcakes

By BusinessWest Staff February 1, 2018

Daily News

BOSTON — Ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl matchup between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles, Gov. Charlie Baker of Massachusetts and Gov. Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania announced a friendly wager on the game’s outcome.

Baker wagered a variety of the Commonwealth’s local food offerings should the Eagles pull off an upset, including Boston crème cupcakes and lemon squares from Koffee Kup Bakery in Springfield, a favorite of the governor’s that he has included in several Patriots playoff wagers during his tenure.

Also included in his wager are clam chowder from Legal Sea Foods in Boston; Craisins from Ocean Spray in Middleborough; apple cider donuts from Smolak Farms in North Andover; apple pie, chicken pot pie, and maple syrup from Hollis Hills Farms in Fitchburg; and Grillo’s pickles from Needham.

“As the New England Patriots prepare for their eighth Super Bowl of the last 17 years, the full force of the Commonwealth and all of New England is behind them every step of the way because we know their jobs are not done yet,” Baker said. “We are proud to have another opportunity to offer up some of Massachusetts’ finest local products for a good cause and look forward to the Pats bringing home another Super Bowl win.”

Wolf wagered Federal donuts; soup from the Rooster Soup Co.; Reading Terminal Market scrapple, in honor of the market’s 125th anniversary; coffee from La Colombe in Philadelphia; and donated pizza slices from Rosa’s Fresh Pizza, a pay-it-forward pizzeria that provides hundreds of meals per week to homeless Philadelphians. The governors have agreed to donate the winnings to a local food pantry of their choice.

“Over the last year, the Eagles have battled adversity and inspired millions of fans, both on and off the field,” Wolf said. “I am putting some of my Philly favorites and Philly’s finest and most iconic food items on the line, but look forward to Gov. Baker sending some Massachusetts food to Pennsylvania.”

Eric Polep Named President, CEO of J. Polep Distribution Services

By BusinessWest Staff February 1, 2018

Daily News

CHICOPEE — J. Polep Distribution Services announced the promotion of Eric Polep to president and CEO, reporting to Chairman of the Board Jeffrey Polep.

“Eric has proven time and again he understands how to grow with the industry and as the business dictates. He represents J. Polep with pride, and his everyday goal is to make sure each customer and vendor sees the outcome of long-term success, which is the foundation to our business,” said Jeffrey Polep, also Eric’s father.

Polep Distribution Service is the fifth-largest convenience wholesaler in the U.S., exceeding $1.5 billion in sales. The locally owned and operated business posted a 30.1% increase in overall sales, rising from ninth place to fifth place in the 2017 CSNEWS Top Wholesalers report.

Eric will continue to work closely with Jeffrey and all of the company’s support staff to ensure effective execution of strategies and operational services.

“I am very excited for this opportunity that lies ahead of me and look forward to the continuing growth of the business,” Eric said. “Upon graduating college, I knew I wanted to go right into the family business and absorb everything I could from my father. Working beside him has always been a dream of mine, and it’s an honor to be named president of J. Polep Distribution Services by him and our board.”

Bay Path’s MS in Nonprofit Management Named to Top-10 List

By BusinessWest Staff February 1, 2018

Daily News

LONGMEADOW — Bay Path University’s master of science (MS) program in Nonprofit Management and Philanthropy has been named to the top 10 in the nation, as ranked by thebestschools.org.

The university’s program has been recognized among the top online graduate nonprofit-management programs annually since 2014. This year, Bay Path ranked 10th on the list as one of just two New England colleges to make the cut. The program has also been rated as one of the top-10 most affordable online master’s degree programs in nonprofit management in the U.S., according to affordablecolleges.com.

“We are proud to be recognized among the leading national programs for nonprofit management — an honor that affirms feedback we’ve received from our students year after year praising its flexible, online format and personalized instruction,” said Sylvia de Haas-Phillips, the program’s director and assistant professor. “Our MS in Nonprofit Management and Philanthropy is focused on developing emerging leaders in the field. An approach that takes theory to practice, coupled with applied learning opportunities, continues to result in nonprofit professionals prepared for the challenges and opportunities present in today’s nonprofit sector.”

According to thebestschools.org, graduate-degree programs in nonprofit management were selected for the ranking based on academic excellence, types of courses offered, faculty strength, rankings, awards, and reputation, including the college’s reputation for effectively providing online degree programs.

The MS in Nonprofit Management and Philanthropy at Bay Path University, open to men and women, is offered completely online or on campus, either full-time or part-time.

Country Bank Names Miriam Siegel Senior VP of Human Resources

By BusinessWest Staff January 31, 2018

Daily News

WARE — Country Bank announced that Miriam Siegel has joined its team as senior vice president of Human Resources.

A graduate of the State University of New York at Albany with a bachelor’s degree in business, Siegel boasts 26 years in the financial-services industry. She is also a certified compensation professional and certified benefits professional from WorldatWork.

For 21 years, Siegel worked at United Bank. She began her career as a payroll clerk and worked her way through the ranks until she found her passion within the human-resources department. Her time at United Bank made a significant impact on her approach to human resources.

“I live and work by the philosophy that your most valuable assets are your people,” she said. “I am very excited to be back at a local community bank where employees and customers come first.”

Siegel owned and operated the Village Store Café in Wilbraham with her husband. During that time, they began a run/walk event, the Cup to Pint Fun Run, to support local charities. The Children’s Museum in Wilbraham, the Livestrong Program at the Scantic Valley YMCA, and the Wilbraham Hampden Academic Trust, have all received donations from this annual fund-raiser.

Siegel is a member of the Massachusetts Bankers Assoc., WorldatWork, and the New England Human Resources Assoc., and serves on the board of directors for Behavioral Health Network in Springfield.

“Miriam’s extensive expertise in human resources within the financial-services industry makes her a perfect fit for Country Bank,” said Paul Scully, the bank’s CEO and president. “We are thrilled to have her join our team; we know that Miriam will be an esteemed resource for Country Bank and its employees.”

Former Baystate Health CMIO Joins VertitechIT

By BusinessWest Staff January 31, 2018

Daily News

HOLYOKE — Dr. Neil Kudler, former chief medical information officer for Baystate Health, has joined Holyoke-based healthcare consultancy VertitechIT as chief medical officer.

“IT consultants focused primarily on bits and bytes are doing their clients a disservice,” said Kudler, who has held other senior executive and strategist positions at Baystate Health, one of New England’s largest healthcare systems. “As CMO of VertitechIT, I’m in a position to bridge that all-important technology gap between clinicians and the IT departments that must support them.”

VertitechIT is among the fastest-growing healthcare IT consultancies in the country, focused on helping senior IT leaders to strategically and tactically transform the role of IT in the hospital setting.

“Any consultant worth their fee can design and implement a new cloud strategy or infrastructure platform,” said VertitechIT CEO Michael Feld. “Dr. Kudler gives us immense credibility on the clinical side of the house, providing guidance on things like diversified health-system operations, population health, and data analytics.”

Before joining VertitechIT, Kudler served as senior healthcare innovation strategist for TechSpring Technology Innovation Center, and as chief operating officer for Baycare Health Partners. He is a graduate of Colgate University and received his master’s degree from Harvard Divinity School. He received his doctor of medicine degree from New York University and trained in internal medicine at UC San Francisco.

PeoplesBank Announces Two Appointments

By BusinessWest Staff January 31, 2018

Daily News

HOLYOKE — PeoplesBank announced appointments of two key associates. Christopher Scott was appointed assistant vice president, portfolio manager, while Michael Pike was appointed Hadley branch manager.

Scott has more than six years of banking experience. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration, with a concentration in corporate finance, from the Isenberg School of Management at UMass Amherst. He is also a graduate of the Springfield Leadership Institute.

Pike has more than 12 years of banking and financial-services experience. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from Notre Dame College.

Berkshire Bank Promotes Lori Gazzillo

By BusinessWest Staff January 31, 2018

Daily News

PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Bank promoted Lori Gazzillo to senior vice president and director of the Berkshire Bank Foundation. She was previously the foundation’s vice president.

In her new position, Gazzillo is responsible for the development, planning, and implementation of strategies to support the Berkshire Bank Foundation, improving quality of life, cultivating partnerships, and fostering community relationships across the Bank’s six-state footprint.

Gazzillo joined Berkshire Bank in 2011 from Legacy Banks, where she was the Community Relations officer since 2006.

“Lori has more than 20 years of communications and community-relations experience and has shown exceptional leadership in improving and developing strong relationships in our existing and new markets. We look forward to continuing to foster these relationships as we grow,” said Linda Johnston, senior executive vice president and chief Human Resources officer.

Gazzillo serves on the board of directors of 1Berkshire, the Brien Center, and Associated Grant Makers, is a member of the newly formed Berkshire Leadership Impact Council, and was recently appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker to the Berkshire Community College board of trustees. She has a bachelor’s degree from Keene State College and a master’s degree in education from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. She is also a graduate of the ABA School of Bank Marketing and Management.

Berkshire Hills Reports Q4 Operating Results

By BusinessWest Staff January 30, 2018

Daily News

PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Hills Bancorp Inc. reported that fourth-quarter pre-tax income grew by 82% to $19.5 million in 2017 compared to $10.7 million in the prior year. This improvement was due to business development and the benefit of mergers, including Worcester-based Commerce Bancshares Corp. which was acquired on Oct. 13, 2017.

Net income after tax was impacted by an $18 million non-core charge to income-tax expense resulting from federal tax reform enacted near year end. This reform is expected to benefit future earnings due to a lower statutory federal tax rate beginning in 2018. Net income after tax totaled $55 million in 2017 compared to $59 million in 2016.

The tax charge noted above reduced fourth-quarter earnings per share by $0.40 and resulted in a fourth-quarter net loss of $0.06 per share in 2017, compared to a profit of $0.32 per share in 2016. Fourth-quarter core earnings per share improved by 4% to $0.58 in 2017, from $0.56 in 2016. The measure of core earnings excludes the above tax charge and also excludes other net non-core charges primarily related to merger costs. These costs in the fourth quarter of 2017 were mostly related to the Commerce acquisition, which increased assets by $1.8 billion, or 19%, to $11.6 billion at year end.

For a full report, click here.

Monson Savings Bank Announces Community’s Choices for Giving

By BusinessWest Staff January 30, 2018

Daily News

MONSON — For the eighth year in a row, Monson Savings Bank asked the community to help plan the bank’s community giving activities by inviting people to vote for the organizations they would like the bank to support during 2018.

“We are very pleased that this program continues to be something that people truly appreciate, and how it really benefits the communities we serve,” said bank President Steve Lowell. “We started to get inquiries about when it was going to kick off back in early fall, and we decided to start it earlier this year to give people more time to rally participation. We were thrilled to hear from so many people.”

The top vote getter was Boy Scouts of Western Massachusetts, followed, in order of votes, by Wilbraham United Players, Shriners Hospitals for Children, Scantic Valley YMCA, River East School-to-Career, Link to Libraries, Rick’s Place, Academy Hill School, Behavioral Health Network at Valley Human Resources, and Monson Free Library.

“Our communities voted for more than 210 organizations this year,” Lowell noted. “I have to say it feels great to be part of such a wonderful community full of concerned, active, and committed citizens.”

Report: Holyoke Community College an Economic Powerhouse

By BusinessWest Staff January 30, 2018

Daily News

HOLYOKE — Students who graduate from Holyoke Community College (HCC) with an associate degree will see an average increase in annual earnings of about $10,000 a year compared to those with only a high-school diploma, according to a new report that calculates the total economic impact of HCC on the Pioneer Valley at nearly $215 million annually.

“By comparison,” the report says, “this contribution that the college provides on its own is almost as large as the entire arts, entertainment, and recreation industry in this area.”

The analysis of HCC’s economic value was conducted by Emsi, an economic modeling firm whose clients include colleges and universities as well as some of the largest for-profit corporations in the U.S., such as Amazon and Coca-Cola. For this, Emsi based its conclusions on academic and financial reports from HCC, industry and employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau, and other surveys related to education and social behavior. The study, commissioned by the college, looked at data from 2015-16.

“When you talk about our impact, most people don’t think about our economic impact,” said HCC president Christina Royal. “They think about HCC offering education and the impact the college has directly on students’ lives in terms of their academic studies and career pathways. I don’t think people realize that HCC is an economic powerhouse in this region. This study puts a numerical value on what we do every day.”

For fiscal year 2016, which ended June 30, 2016, the study found that the total economic impact of the college on the economy in the three counties of the Pioneer Valley (Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin) was $214.6 million, or about 0.7% of the region’s gross regional product.

That number includes direct spending by the college’s 991 full-time and part-time employees as well as operational spending by the college itself, and accounts for a multiplier effect, which measures how that money works its way through the regional economy. The total also includes short-term construction projects and spending by students who relocate to the Pioneer Valley as well as spending by students who choose to remain in the area for college rather than go elsewhere. In FY 2015-16, HCC served 8,243 credit students and 3,024 non-credit students.

The largest impact, though, comes from alumni — former students who continue to live and work in the region: $155.1 million, or enough to support 2,642 jobs, the report notes.

The study also examined the economic benefits of HCC from a student’s perspective, noting that those who complete their associate degree could expect to earn an average of $9,600 more per year than those with only a high-school diploma. “In return for their investment, HCC’s students will receive a stream of higher future earnings that will continue to grow through their working lives.”

Put another way, for every $1 students invest in their education (out-of-pocket expenses, interest on loans, foregone income while in school), they will earn $3.2, an average return of 12.7%. “This is an impressive return, especially when compared to the 30-year average 10.1% of the U.S. stock market,” the report says.

The study also concludes that HCC represents a “a solid investment” for taxpayers, generating more in tax revenue than it takes in through state and local funding — $54.6 million compared to $31.6 million, or a benefit-cost ratio of 1.8, an average rate of return of 4.5%.

Massachusetts also benefits as a whole from the presence of HCC in two major ways: increased prosperity from an expanding economic base and savings generated by the improved lifestyles of students, most notably in a reduction in medical costs through improved health, reduced crime, and lower employer contributions toward unemployment.

“The results of this study demonstrate that HCC creates value from multiple perspectives,” Emsi concludes. “The college benefits local businesses by increasing consumer spending in the region and supplying a steady flow of qualified, trained workers into the workforce. It enriches the lives of students by raising their lifetime earnings and helping them achieve their individual potential. It benefits state and local taxpayers through increased tax receipts across the state and a reduced demand for government-supported social services. Finally, it benefits society as a whole in Massachusetts by creating a more prosperous economy and generating a variety of savings through the improved lifestyle of students.”

O & P Labs Invites Public to Visit New Prosthetic Center

By BusinessWest Staff January 29, 2018

Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — O & P Labs announced the grand opening of its Prosthetic Center at 3500 Main St. in Springfield. The local prosthetic company has been serving Western and Central Mass., Northern Conn., and Southern Vermont for more than 30 years.

“We employ the most advanced technology and precise systems available,” said owner Jim Haas. “However, it is our team’s dedication to helping every patient through their individual process — before, during, and after an amputation — that is the backbone of our company.”

The Prosthetic Center at 3500 Main St. will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 15 at 5 p.m. to celebrate the grand opening. The public is invited to tour the new facility, meet the team, and learn about the history of amputation and technology advances in the field.

O & P Labs is best known for its local, state-or-the-art fabrication lab, which allows patients to receive fittings, repairs, and adjustments quickly. The 3D printer decreases production time, and digital scanning technology creates highly customized prosthetic sockets.

“Having had my last prosthesis for over 10 years, it was difficult to imagine just how much better the function would be,” said O & P Labs patient Kara Stokowski.

Book Discussion with Judge Michael Ponsor Slated for Feb. 5

By BusinessWest Staff January 26, 2018

Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The Hampden County Bar Assoc. invites the public to a reading and book talk with New York Times bestselling author Judge Michael Ponsor on Monday, Feb. 5 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Fort, 8 Fort St., Springfield.

Ponsor will discuss his first novel, The Hanging Judge, released in 2013, and his new novel, The One-Eyed Judge, a fast-paced and thought-provoking legal fiction. This event is a fund-raiser for the newly established Hampden County Bar Foundation. There is no fee for attending this event; however, a donation for the foundation is encouraged. Ponsor will be donating a portion of the sales of his books at the event to the foundation.

AIC Announces Joint Session Model Congress Scholarship Recipients

By BusinessWest Staff January 26, 2018

Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — The 78th annual Model Congress at American International College (AIC), the longest-running continuous congress of its type in the nation and one of the college’s oldest campus traditions, convened earlier this month. Ten high schools throughout New England came to campus to write, debate, and pass legislation in a weekend-long simulated congress.

The AIC Model Congress awards scholarship opportunities to its top delegates. This year’s top delegate is Althea Brennan from Chatham High School, who received the Kathryn Mauke Scholarship, a full, four-year tuition scholarship to AIC. Second- and third-place delegates are Nicholas Audette and Trevaughn Smith, respectively, from SABIS International Charter School. They received half-four-year and quarter-four-year scholarships to AIC. All delegates received a $1,000 scholarship should they choose to attend the college in the future.

In addition, Best Bill was awarded to Matthew Ciesla and Bryant Keeney from Pope Francis High School, who put forward a bill requiring periodic, random drug testing for welfare recipients regardless of income, race, sexuality, or socioeconomic background. Outstanding Delegation was awarded to SABIS International Charter School, and the Rebecca Gray Spirit Award, for the highest level of participation, enthusiasm, and team spirit, was presented to Chatham High School.

Participating schools in the 2018 Model Congress included Agawam High School, Chatham High School, East Longmeadow High School, East Windsor High School, Minnechaug Regional High School, Pope Francis High School, Poultney High School, SABIS International Charter School, Southwick Regional School, and Wilbraham and Monson Academy.

Expedia Names Lenox ‘Best Place to Escape in Massachusetts’

By BusinessWest Staff January 26, 2018

Daily News

LENOX — The Lenox Chamber of Commerce announced that travel-booking website giant Expedia has named Lenox as the “Best Place to Escape in Massachusetts.”

Expedia released its “Best Place to Escape in Every State” feature on Jan. 3. These places made the list for being ideal for a relaxing getaway where visitors can recharge, take a breather, and revel in serene solitude.

“From quaint small towns to quiet nature preserves, this country is full of places to escape to, and we’ve chosen our favorite in each state, highlighting the perfectly restful things to do there. So, sit back, relax, and start dreaming of better times ahead — these calm places are calling your name,” Expedia author Lily Rogers wrote.

Lenox and Berkshire notables highlighted in the article included Blantyre, Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mount, Edith Wharton’s Home, and Berkshire Grown.

“It’s very exciting for Expedia to recognize Lenox as the exceptional place it is once again,” said Jamie Trie, marketing director for the Lenox Chamber of Commerce. “Last year, Expedia named Lenox as a top luxury vacation spot, and USA Today named us the ‘Best Northeastern Small Town.’ This is a great recognition to start off the new year with.”

Four to Be Recognized by Greater Chicopee Chamber of Commerce

By BusinessWest Staff January 26, 2018

Daily News

CHICOPEE — The Greater Chicopee Chamber of Commerce will pay tribute to the four recipients of the prestigious Shining Stars Awards at its annual event to be held at the Castle of Knights on Memorial Drive on Friday, March 2 from 6:30 to 10 p.m.

Since 1985, the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce has paid tribute to an extraordinary Business of the Year, Citizen of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, and Nonprofit Organization of the year by the Shining Stars Nominating Committee, chaired by Ernest Laflamme Jr., the first Citizen of the Year.

“Recognizing the people and organizations that serve our community is one of the best ways we can make sure they are thanked for their extraordinary work, and serves as an inspiration for all of us,” said Jessica Roncarati-Howe, chamber president.

Interstate Towing Co. will be recognized as the Greater Chicopee Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year for 2018. Interstate Towing is a professionally operated, full-service towing, recovery, and road-service company, started from the ground up in 1999 by CEO Jeremy Procon. In partnership with AAA, Interstate Towing has become the foremost towing and recovery provider in the area.

Dawn Creighton will be recognized as the Greater Chicopee Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year for 2018. She is the Western Mass. regional director for Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM) and board president of Dress for Success Western Massachusetts. Dress for Success is a not-for-profit organization promoting the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support, and the career-development tools to help them thrive in work and in life. In addition to her work at AIM and Dress for Success, Creighton sits on the boards of the Human Resource Management Assoc., Junior Achievement, and Internhere.com.

Karen Hansmann of Chicopee will be recognized as the Greater Chicopee Chamber Volunteer of the Year for 2018. When Hansmann began offering to help out at the chamber, she jumped right in and did whatever was needed, consistently showing a commitment to supporting the community and encouraging others to get involved. She is an incoming member of the Chicopee Chamber board of directors, Salute Breakfast committee chair, and Chicopee Democratic City Committee member, and recently left Voices From Inside after 10 years of service.

Valley Opportunity Council (VOC) will be recognized as the Greater Chicopee Chamber Nonprofit Organization of the Year for 2018. VOC started out small in 1965 and was originally named the Community and Regional Opportunity Program. It has grown significantly since then and now offers over 30 programs in a wide variety of areas, including food and nutrition, energy assistance, education and child care, youth and adult programs, and community outreach. Several years ago, VOC also started investing in the local community by purchasing and renovating properties in Chicopee and Holyoke.

This event is sponsored by diamond sponsor Westfield Bank; platinum sponsors Polish National Credit Union and PeoplesBank; gold sponsors the Arbors Kids, Holyoke Medical Center, and BusinessWest; and bronze sponsor United Personnel.

The evening is a gala event decorated by CJC Events, which is a full-service video, audio, lighting, rental, staging, and multi-media production company that turns the banquet room into a glamorous theater in which the chamber honors its recipients. To register to attend, call the chamber at (413) 594-2101 or visit www.chicopeechamber.org and sign up in the Calendar of Events.

Application Deadline for 2018 Local Farmer Awards Is Jan. 31

By BusinessWest Staff January 25, 2018

Daily News

AGAWAM — Big Y and the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation (HGCF) remind farmers in Western Mass. that the application deadline for a Local Farmer Award is Jan. 31. These awards for equipment and physical farm improvements support local farmers with projects that improve their ability to compete in the marketplace.

Other funders include Baystate Health, the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, Farm Credit East, HP Hood, MGM Springfield, and Sheraton Springfield Monarch Place.

Recipients will be awarded up to $2,500, and the partners anticipate distributing more than $116,000 in 2018. Realizing the economic importance of local farms in our region, the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation launched the program in 2015.

“Through our partnership with the Grinspoon Foundation, we are providing one more way to help local growers thrive in our community,” said Big Y President and Chief Operating Officer Charlie D’Amour.

For more information, visit www.farmerawards.org.

River Valley Co-op Explores Potential Second Store Site

By BusinessWest Staff January 25, 2018

Daily News

EASTHAMPTON — River Valley Co-op has secured an option agreement for the potential purchase of the Easthampton property at 228 Northampton St. (formerly the Fedor Automobile Dealership) as a second store location. River Valley Co-op is a cooperatively owned grocery store with one location in Northampton. Since 2014, the cooperative business has been discussing a second store location with co-op owners, customers, and employees in order to accommodate its growth as well as furthering the mission of building a strong local food system.

“We’ve been looking for a suitable location for a second store for several years to serve our community better,” said Andrea Stanley, board president. “Our goal is to expand our community-owned grocery business to further our local economic impact and build the resiliency of our local food system through year-round purchases to even more local farmers. We believe that Easthampton is an ideal match for River Valley Co-op. In fact, we have many co-op owners and vendors from Easthampton already, so we feel a strong connection to the community and look forward to expanding our working relationships even further with this project.”

The option agreement gives the co-op a year to conduct its due diligence, planning, and fund-raising before exercising its exclusive right to purchase the property. River Valley Co-op’s leadership team met recently with Easthampton Mayor Nicolle LaChapelle to discuss the dynamics of the plan.

“River Valley Co-op is a natural fit for Easthampton residents as consumers and job-seekers. High-quality food and jobs is a combination that is hard to beat,” LaChapelle said. “I had the opportunity to sit down with the River Valley team last week. They conveyed deep understanding of Easthampton and shared their plans with thoughtfulness and enthusiasm. As the co-op is ready to grow, Easthampton is ready to support that growth to ensure success for everyone.”

Property owner Eddie Fedor said his family is enthusiastic about the potential of River Valley Co-op expanding in Easthampton. “This is a great location and will be very convenient for a lot of people. River Valley Co-op’s support of local farmers and other local vendors would make them a great addition to our community.”

Added General Manager Rochelle Prunty, “growing our co-op community with an Easthampton location gives River Valley Co-op’s local producers an expanded market and supports opportunities for new vendors. We are looking to build a store of the same size but with a larger parking lot than the Northampton store. This location meets many of our site criteria very well. We know there are some traffic concerns and we look forward to working with the community to determine how to best alleviate them. Now that we’ve secured the site, engaging community members and our staff to develop our plans is our next priority.”

The co-op expects to employ 100 people in its Easthampton store. More than 95% of Northampton store employees are full-time with benefits and are represented by UFCW Local 1459.

United Financial Bancorp Inc.  Announces Fourth-quarter Results

By BusinessWest Staff January 25, 2018

Daily News

HARTFORD, Conn. — United Financial Bancorp, Inc., the holding company for United Bank, announced results for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2017.

The company reported net income of $9.5 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2017, compared to net income for the linked quarter of $15.2 million, or $0.30 per diluted share. The company reported net income of $14.6 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2016. Net income for the year ended Dec. 31, 2017 was $54.6 million, or $1.07 per diluted share, compared to net income of $49.7 million, or $0.99 per diluted share, for the year ended Dec. 31, 2016.

On Dec. 22, 2017, President Trump signed into law the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which, among other things, lowered the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%. Companies must recognize the effect of tax-law changes in the period of enactment under the generally accepted accounting principles. This tax reform resulted in a $2.8 million negative net-income impact in the fourth quarter of 2017. Of the $2.8 million impact, $1.6 million flowed directly through the provision for income taxes, and was primarily related to a re-measurement of the company’s deferred tax asset.

Additionally, there was a $1.2 million pre-tax adjustment related to the write-down of legacy United limited partnerships due to the aforementioned tax reform. Other significant events during the quarter included the company surrendering $32.8 million of under-performing bank-owned life insurance policy value, resulting in a $2.4 million negative impact to the provision for income taxes. The company subsequently reinvested $30 million into higher-yielding product in early January 2018.

“The United Bank team delivered strong loan and non-interest bearing deposit growth in the fourth quarter of 2017. Asset quality, capital, and liquidity remained strong and stable,” said William Crawford IV, CEO and President of the ompany and the bank. “I want to thank our United Bank teammates for their steadfast focus on serving our customers and communities.”

Assets totaled $7.11 billion at Dec. 31, 2017 and increased $137.7 million, or 2%, from $6.98 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. At Dec. 31, 2017, total loans were $5.34 billion, representing an increase of $134.2 million, or 2.6%, from the linked quarter. Changes to loan balances during the fourth quarter of 2017 were highlighted by a $76.7 million, or 4.3%, increase in investor non-owner occupied commercial real-estate loans; a $24.9 million, or 9.3%, increase in other consumer loans; a $21.4 million, or 3.8%, increase in home-equity loans; and a $18.9 million, or 2.3%, increase in commercial business loans. Loans held for sale increased $24.7 million, or 27.6%, from the linked quarter, as the company increased the held-for-sale portfolio for delivery to third-party investors at the end of the quarter. Total cash and cash equivalents decreased $9.8 million, or 10%, from the linked quarter.

Deposits totaled $5.2 billion at Dec. 31, 2017 and increased by $45.2 million, or 0.9%, from $5.15 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Increases in deposit balances during the fourth quarter of 2017 were highlighted by a $53.4 million, or 7.4%, increase in non-interest-bearing checking deposits, as well as a $77.3 million, or 4.5%, increase in certificates of deposit. Offsetting these increases was a $75.5 million, or 3.4%, decline in NOW checking and money-market deposits, largely due to seasonal withdrawals in municipal funds that are experienced during the fourth quarter.

MGM Springfield Announces Executive Team

By BusinessWest Staff January 25, 2018

Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — MGM Springfield President and Chief Operating Officer Michael Mathis announced that his full executive team is now in place. The team, a diverse group of industry professionals, will lead operations for MGM Springfield, set to open later this year.

“This is an all-star team,” Mathis said. “Together, they bring years of experience and a broad expanse of skills that strengthens the deep bench of talent we already have in place. Each of them is committed, not only to the day-to-day objectives of their positions, but also to the greater role this property will play in the community. This team is the backbone of MGM Springfield, and we will proudly reflect and represent the diversity of the region in which we work.”

For the 12th consecutive year, MGM Resorts International has been recognized as a Top Company for Diversity by DiversityInc, one of the nation’s leading sources on workplace-diversity management. Almost 69% of the company’s employees are minorities. About 44% of employees in MGM Resorts’ management ranks are women, while minorities comprise 43% of MGM Resorts’ management ranks. “The beating heart of MGM Springfield is our commitment to diversity,” Mathis said.

Besides Mathis, the MGM Springfield management team also includes Anthony Caratozzolo, vice president, Food & Beverage; Alex Dixon, general manager; Anika Gaskins, vice president, National Marketing; Brian Jordan, director, Surveillance; Monique Messier, executive director, Sales; Sarah Moore, Vice President, Marketing, Advertising & Brand; Marikate Murren, vice president, Human Resources; Jason Rosewell, vice president, Facilities; Jason Rucker, executive director, Security; Lynn Segars, vice president, Slot Operations; Gregg Skowronski, executive director, Hotel Operations; Talia Spera, executive director, Arena Operations; Seth Stratton, vice president and general counsel; Courtney Wenleder, vice president and chief financial officer; and Robert Westerfield, vice president, Table Games.

In 2000, MGM Resorts became the first company in the gaming and hospitality industry to voluntarily adopt a formal diversity and inclusion policy. This is a critical pillar of the company’s enterprise-wide social-responsibility platform, which also includes community giving and environmental sustainability as key elements.

Family’s Story about Living with Autism to Screen at Film Festival

By BusinessWest Staff January 24, 2018

Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — A film 12 years in the making features an Amherst family dealing with autism. Ethan at 21 is the showcase film at a film festival hosted by Pathlight, Whole Children, and Five College Realtors, with two showings and locations the weekend of Feb. 10-11. The festival also features three short documentaries from the renowned Sprout Film Festival. All of the films feature individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

Ethan at 21 is a challenging film that explores whether society is equipped to care for the growing population of young adults with disabilities, including autism. It is also a funny, poignant, truthful, portrait of one family.

Shot over 12 years, Ethan at 21 introduces Ethan as a curious, silly eleven-year-old with autism and follows him as he grows into a 21-year-old earning money on a landscaping crew and navigating his own independence. With his passions for music, farm machinery, and My Little Ponies, and his habit of self-talk and complicated dietary restrictions, Ethan and his autism affect his other family members in profound and complex ways. His two younger brothers discuss their roles in Ethan’s future, and his parents share their struggles to find a place for their son where he will find a community and live a life with meaning.

“I began making this film when I was 26 and single,” said filmmaker Josephine Sittenfeld. “Over the past 11 years, I met my husband, married, and became a mother of two. I was always inspired by Ethan and his family, but making this film gained additional importance for me after I became a parent. Ethan’s parents are my heroes. Through their example, I’ve continually been reminded what good parenting is — and that, above all, it includes letting your child carve his own path. As I’ve shared meals with Ethan’s family, watched the Super Bowl with them, and even traveled with them (and slept on the floor of their hotel room), I’ve learned that, even when life is frustrating, things often work out — just not necessarily in the way you expect.”

This is a sneak peek screening of a film in progress, and will be shown on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2 to 4 p.m. at Mills Theater in Carr Hall at Bay Path University in Longmeadow; and on Sunday, Feb. 11, (4:30 to 6:30 p.m.) at Hadley Farms Meeting House in Hadley.

The filmmaker is eager for audience feedback as she looks toward festival distribution and broadcast later this year. Sittenfeld, Ethan, and his family will be on hand for a question-and-answer period after each screening.

The film festival also includes three short films from New York-based Sprout Film Festival, whose mission is “to inspire audiences, promote inclusion, and support transformative filmmaking as an integral part of social change.”

Admission to either showing is $10 and includes a post-film reception as well as a panel discussion with the Ethan at 21 filmmaker. To learn more about Pathlight and Whole Children or to register for the film festival, visit www.wholechildren.org.

AIM President to Deliver State of Massachusetts Business Address

By BusinessWest Staff January 24, 2018

Daily News

NEWTON — Will automation, artificial intelligence, and robotics help Massachusetts employers solve the shortage of skilled workers that threatens the future of the economy?

That will be the topic as Richard Lord, president and CEO of Associated Industries of Massachusetts, delivers the fourth annual State of Massachusetts Business address before an audience of 300 business leaders on Friday, Jan. 26, at 8 a.m. at the Newton Marriott hotel.

Lord’s speech will be followed by commentary from a panel of experts moderated by WBZ Radio Business Editor Jeff Brown. Panel members include David Askey, founder of Ascend Robotics of Cambridge; Martha Sullivan, president and CEO of Sensata Technologies of Attleboro; and Peter Russo, director of Growth and Innovation at the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

The State of Massachusetts Business speech will last 20 minutes and be followed immediately by the panel discussion.

Holyoke Medical Center to Offer Free Program on Heart Health

By BusinessWest Staff January 24, 2018

Daily News

HOLYOKE — Holyoke Medical Center will host a free Learn with a Doc Program, “Heart Health: Valvular Heart Disease,” on Wednesday, Feb. 7 at 5:30 p.m. in the HMC Auxiliary Conference Center.

February is American Heart Month. The heart has four valves that direct the flow of blood as it pumps, and when these valves are not working properly, it is called valvular heart disease. Join Dr. Nirav Sheth as he discusses the causes, signs, and symptoms of valvular heart disease, and what you can do to keep things flowing in the right direction.

This program is free and open to the public, and is part of Holyoke Medical Center’s community-education programming. This is one in a series of workshops held throughout the year to help people learn about specific health issues, wellness, prevention, and treatment. To register for this event, visit www.holyokehealth.com/events or call (413) 534-2789.

Karri May Joins Springfield Office of Pinck & Co.

By BusinessWest Staff January 24, 2018

Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — Pinck & Co. Inc., a comprehensive real-estate-development and project-management services firm, announced Karri May joined the firm’s Springfield office as senior project manager.

May brings to the firm 13 years of design and planning experience with a focus on healthcare, design for the aging, commercial, and higher education. She also has extensive client-management and business-development experience and will help grow the firm’s portfolio in Western Mass. and Connecticut.

She previously worked at Steffian Bradley Architects as senior associate, where she specialized in the design and planning of healthcare projects in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York. Prior to that, she worked at Amenta/Emma Architects as a project architect, focusing on design for higher education, commercial, and senior housing/accommodations.

May earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Pratt Institute and is a registered architect in Connecticut, a member of the American Institute of Architects, and a LEED-accredited professional. She also holds a Massachusetts Certified Public Purchasing Official Program designation and a Lean for Healthcare certificate.

She is a frequent keynote speaker at industry and community events, has volunteered as a design mentor with CANstruction — a charitable organization for the design and construction industry — and has received several awards, including a Woman on the Rise designation from the Connecticut Professional Women in Construction.

“As we continue to position our business to grow in Western Massachusetts and Connecticut, I am thrilled that Karri has joined our team,” said Jennifer Pinck, president and founder of Pinck & Co. “Not only does she bring a high level of expertise in planning and design and project management, she is passionate about the lasting impact built environments have on communities. Karri shares our commitment to putting our clients’ best interests first and going above and beyond to help them realize their vision.”

Valley Eye Radio Provides Information, Connectivity to Listeners

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Features

All the News That’s Fit to Hear

Pat Duperre, a longtime volunteer with Valley Eye Radio, says she was inspired to read by the challenges of her son, who lost his sight after a heart attack.

For more than 40 years now, a nonprofit known as Valley Eye Radio has been bringing more than news, obituaries, supermarket ads, and Little League scores to those who have lost the ability to read. It has been bringing these individuals hope that their disability will not impact overall quality of life.

Pat Duperre was getting ready to retire. And as she recalls those days and her plans for the ones to come, she remembers thinking — actually knowing — that she would be doing a good deal of volunteer work within her community. In fact, she was already working to find something meaningful to do with her time.

Instead, something meaningful found her, as she put it, and she wound up volunteering in a way she could not have imagined just a few months earlier.

“My son suffered a massive heart attack, and as a result, he lost his sight,” she recalled. “And I saw what he went through, the struggles that he went through to adapt to one day having sight and the next day having nothing.”

These observations coincided with a picture she saw in her local newspaper of Barbara Loh, executive director of Valley Eye Radio (VER), receiving a check from the East Longmeadow Lions Club to help continue that organization’s intriguing mission.

To make a long story a little shorter, Duperre soon become a part of that mission, which is to bring news stories, like the one that inspired her, to the blind, visually impaired, and those not able to read for themselves due to a disability.

These days, she reads the Republican live every Wednesday morning from 9 to 11, delivering all kinds of news — from front-page stories to the obituaries (they have their own time slot, 10 a.m., due to their significance for many readers) to notes on blood drives — and with what she called “a little bit of humor.”

But Loh told BusinessWest — another one of the many publications read on the air — that dozens of volunteers like Duperre bring much more than the day’s news into listeners’ homes.

There are a lot of events going on with some very important information for people, and if you have that kind of disability, you’re reliant on someone to bring you someplace, and it’s often not possible to get to some things.”

“We want to help people, bottom line, to have better lives once they have challenges they never anticipated,” she explained, adding that this assistance begins with the day the special radio that delivers the Valley Eye Radio signal is delivered to one’s home by still another volunteer. “We’re giving people hope that their lives will not be in significant decline because of the impact of this disability.”

VER has been providing this hope for more than 40 years now, said Harold Anderson, programming coordinator for the nonprofit organization, noting that, while the basic mission hasn’t changed over that time, many things have, and VER has adjusted accordingly.

There are new publications, such as BusinessWest’s sister publication, Healthcare News, to read, he said, adding that, in recognition of significant demographic changes within the region, Spanish-language magazines and newspapers are now read as well.

Meanwhile, the need for the program’s services is growing. Indeed, as the population ages, more people are suffering from visual impairment, said Loh, adding that Valley Eye Radio is responding by being more aggressive in its efforts to tell its story and thus gain more of the many forms of support it needs — from financial contributions to additional volunteers — to carry out its mission.

From left, Harold Anderson, programming coordinator for VER; Barbara Loh, executive director; and volunteer reader David Manning.

As for those volunteers, they are, in most respects, the lifeblood of the organization, said Loh, adding that many, like Duperre, have a personal connection to its mission.

For this issue, BusinessWest takes an in-depth look at VER and the vital service it prides to its listeners. This article might be too long to be read over the airwaves — readers prefer stories that can be digested in 10 minutes or less — but that can’t be helped. It takes more than a few column inches to properly convey the importance of this work and especially the passion of those who volunteer and thus make it all happen.

Hear All About It

While growing up in rural Maine, Eileen Richard didn’t get to watch much television.

“My mother didn’t believe in it,” she recalled, adding quickly that she did believe in books, and this was a passion soon shared by her four daughters, who literally couldn’t wait for the next visit from the bookmobile.

And it’s a passion that has never left Richard, who began reading for the blind in various capacities some four decades ago. She has worked and volunteered in many settings since, and actually came back to reading for the blind (at VER) because, in her previous role as a volunteer at Baystate Children’s Hospital, the patients were so absorbed by their electronic devices that there was no call for Richard to read to them.

So she started reading the Daily Hampshire Gazette on VER and thoroughly enjoys every minute of it, especially the small items on animals up for adoption.

“I call it my pet project, and I have a tendency to read them as if I am the animal involved,” she explained. “If it’s a male dog, I might lower my voice and say, ‘hi … boy, you really need to meet me; I’m a wondrous pet, and I’m friendly, but not too friendly — I won’t jump all over you.’

“I really try to put my personality into whatever pet it is, be it a rabbit, a cat, or a dog,” she said, adding that she reads to people as if she were sitting in a room with them. “I like to read with personality.”

And the listeners like that personality, apparently, said Loh, adding that Richard has many fans, especially Larry Humphries, a long-time VER board member who insisted on having Richard attend the gathering marking his retirement from the board because he wanted to meet the woman behind the voice.

“You feel like you are so cared for, even on the radio, when you are listening to Eileen,” said Loh. “It really is amazing.”

The same can be said of the more than 50 people who volunteer in various ways for VER, and especially those who take to the mic to bring the news — and some companionship — home.

It has been this way since 1977, said Anderson, noting that the station is now part of a network of six stations throughout the Bay State operating under the name Talking Information Center (TIC).

Volunteers now read a number of daily weekly and monthly publications that cover Hampden and Hampshire counties, he said, adding that the service is vital because newspapers are usually the only source of what would be considered very local news.

By that, he meant everything from obituaries to church outings; from Little League scores to letters to the editor; from the daily horoscope to service-club gatherings (yes, like that photo of Loh receiving a check from the Lions Club).

That kind of news isn’t available on traditional radio or television, and one couldn’t get it on their cell phone, either, Anderson noted, adding that VER brings it to those who have lost their sight or seen it diminish to the point where they can’t read anymore.

And it delivers much more than the daily or weekly news, he went on, adding that, over the past few years, VER has been taking its act on the road, if you will, and, by doing so, it is taking its listeners to various events through that special radio that sits in their home.

“We’ve been going out into the community more, and I’ve been doing more interviews and recordings at various events to try to bring people even more than just the newspapers,” Anderson explained. “There are a lot of events going on with some very important information for people, and if you have that kind of disability, you’re reliant on someone to bring you someplace, and it’s often not possible to get to some things.

“So I’ve been going out and doing those kinds of things,” he went on, adding that he has taken VER and its listeners to everything from elder-care conferences to the recent Thrive After 55 Fair at Western New England University, to a senior symposium at Greenfield Community College.

When the Wall That Heals, a traveling replica of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C., came to West Springfield, VER was there, with Anderson interviewing a number of veterans to capture their reflections on the experience.

Volunteer Chip Costello has been a long-time reader of BusinessWest.

Such outreach, as Anderson calls it, is a win-win for VER in that it provides additional services to listeners while also giving the nonprofit invaluable exposure at a time when many still don’t know about the station or its mission.

And that’s critical, because all this programming requires resources, said Anderson and Loh, adding that VER relies on a number of funding sources, including the state (although it hasn’t received any money from the Commonwealth since last summer), grants from area foundations such as the Community Foundation and Beveridge Foundation, individuals, and area businesses and civic groups — for example, the Lions Club underwrites the obituaries, A to Z Movers underwrites sports, and the law firm Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin underwrites elder-law news.

The Latest Word

Chip Costello, another volunteer, also has a personal connection to VER and its mission — actually, several of them.

While he was studying for his MBA at Western New England University, the nonprofit became the subject of a project involving several of the students.

“The point of the exercise was to go over and study it as a nonprofit organization, so we looked at it from that perspective,” he recalled. “I thought their mission was very interesting.”

Much later, while working at MassMutual as a national sales manager for the annuity product line, a different, much deeper connection was formed.

“My mother, who was a voracious reader, developed macular degeneration, and it got to the point where she just couldn’t read anymore,” he explained. “So I would go over there and read things to her. That’s why this is such a natural fit, especially when you can see the kind of impact such a condition can have of someone, when novels or stories or essays are so important to them, and suddenly they don’t have access to that. And it’s so easy to help.”

Costello shows up at the Valley Eye Radio studios on Hampden Street in Springfield (generously donated by WGBY) at 8 a.m. each Wednesday to prerecord the reading of stories in BusinessWest.

With his background in business, he finds that subject matter interesting, and understands that the stories he’s reading resonate with individuals who worked at a specific company or in a certain field. And the work enables him to give back to the community — something his former employer always stressed — in a way that he knows, from personal experience, can improve quality of life.

“I like the idea of working with nonprofits,” said Costello, who also teaches Gaelic and volunteers at his church now that he’s ‘retired.’ “I enjoy this and continue to do it because I feel it’s important.”

David Manning agreed. He’s a very recent addition to the corps of volunteers — he’s only been doing this for roughly two months — but he can already see how he’s changing lives by reading the Chicopee Register and other material.

Eileen Richard reads the Daily Hampshire Gazette live on VER, and will often take the role of an animal up for adoption.

Like Richard, he was drawn to the organization by the kind of local news content — in this case an editorial on VER and its mission that appeared in the Gazette and the Amherst Bulletin — that he would later be reading on the air.

“It rang a bell with me because, many years ago, when I started working, my interest was in working with deaf-blind children,” said Manning, adding that he has a deaf son and that the original plan for his career was to train at the Clarke School for Hearing and Speech to work with deaf children and later go on to the Perkins School in Boston to work with deaf-blind children.

However, he liked the work at the Clarke School so much, he stayed there 45 years. He retired and did ‘old-man things,’ as he called them, got sick of that, and decided that he needed to get back to do something meaningful. Those thought patterns coincided with his reading of that editorial on VER.

Today, he reads “anything and everything,” as he put it, a collective that includes everything from the Chicopee paper to the grocery inserts, with the latter running neck and neck with obituaries as perhaps the most popular segments on VER.

“I’ll tell people how much roast beef is a pound,” he told BusinessWest, adding that the service provided by VER resonates with him because he’s seen how his son, now in his 50s, can lose a sense of connectivity through his disability.

“I’ve seen how disabilities can affect people,” he noted. “I’ve seen how my son can sit in the middle of a crowd and not know what’s going on because he can’t hear what they’re talking about. That has helped sensitize me to the position a person with a disability finds themself in.”

Sound Reasoning

Upon wrapping up her interview with BusinessWest, Richard left for the studio and commenced reading some news from the Gazette.

Before long, she was taking the role of a cat up for adoption and putting on what could only be described as a hard sell.

Or maybe it was a soft sell, because, as advertised, she was talking to the audience in a calming voice and as she would if she was sitting with someone in her living room.

As Loh put it earlier, you have to feel like you’re cared for, even on the radio.

This is the magic of Valley Eye Radio, which brings its listeners all the news that’s fit to hear and, more importantly, provides those most precious commodities — companionship and connectivity.

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

Pittsfield Gets Proactive with Growth Measures

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Community Spotlight Features

Community Spotlight

Linda Tyer says the city has taken several steps to support business growth.

When she issued her annual state-of-the-city address recently, Pittsfield Mayor Linda Tyer spoke at length about issues ranging from schools to public safety; from recreation to housing, and much more.

But she summed up many of her feelings early on, with five simple words: “Pittsfield is good for business.”

As an example, she cited the creation of a new municipal position, business development manager, a yet-to-be-named appointee who — under the guidance of the newly formed Mayor’s Economic Development Council, comprised of Tyer; Mick Callahan, chair of the Pittsfield Economic Development Authority; and Jay Anderson, president of the Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corp. — will promote and foster economic development, job growth, and capital investment by working to retain and grow existing businesses and by attracting new businesses.

“Another key feature of this collaboration includes the creation of a ‘red-carpet team’ made up of city and state officials whose purpose is to develop strategies and explore incentives to support business expansion or startups,” Tyer said, noting that the team was deployed several times last year, assisting local businesses such as Modern Mold and Tool and LTI Smart Glass with their expansion efforts.

She said the next step in supporting businesses is building the Berkshire Innovation Center, which recently received a $1 million pledge from the City Council. “This commitment has opened up more dialogue with state officials, and I anticipate that soon we will have a complete financing package that will secure all the necessary funding for construction and two years of operations.”

The Berkshire Innovation Center, she explained, will be a state-of-the-art facility located at the William Stanley Business Park, featuring cutting-edge equipment available to advanced manufacturers for research and development of new products. In partnership with Berkshire Community College, the center will be a place of teaching and learning, creating a pipeline of trained employees that area companies desperately need.

“It will revolutionize how we support advanced manufacturers here in Pittsfield and the Berkshires and how we build a skilled workforce,” she explained.

At the same time, Tyer noted, the city has seen the opening of several new small businesses, including floral-arrangements outfit Township Four, Red Apple Butchers, and the Framework co-working space, all on North Street, as well as Hangar Pub and Grill on East Street.

The city has seen movement on the residential front as well, said Tyer, who noted that Millennials want to live in locations with hip housing, convenient access to work, and work-life balance amenities. She cited the former St. Mary the Morningstar Church on Tyler Street, which was acquired by local developer David Carver and his company, CT Management Group, and will be redeveloped into 29 units of market-rate rental housing and include campus-style pathways and inviting common areas.

Pittsfield at a Glance

Year Incorporated: 1761
Population: 44,737
Area: 42.5 square miles
County: Berkshire
Residential Tax Rate: $20.01
Commercial Tax Rate: $39.98
Median Household Income: $35,655
Median family Income: $46,228
Type of Government: Mayor, City Council
Largest Employers: Berkshire Health Systems; General Dynamics; Petricca Industries Inc.; SABIC Innovative Plastics
* Latest information available

“Our neighborhoods deserve our efforts too,” she was quick to add, “and while we seek new market-rate housing, we also want to help shore up our city’s older housing stock.”

To that end, she will soon announce the details of a city-sponsored home-improvement initiative in collaboration with MassHousing, which seeks to provide funding to improve the exterior of owner-occupied dwellings who qualify under relaxed eligibility guidelines. The program will allow for the repair or replacement of features such as windows, doors, porches, siding, and roofs. “Giving our residents the resources they need to enhance the value of their homes and to improve their quality of their life is the primary objective of this initiative,” the mayor noted.

Multi-pronged Approach

Tyer said the issue of community housing, along with parks, open space, and historic preservation, are the four designated categories that will comprise a formal plan developed by the city’s Community Preservation Committee, and $420,000 in Community Preservation funding will be invested in one or more of the four categories. Creating the plan will include public input to make sure the community’s priorities are considered.

Still, Pittsfield has moved ahead with a number of municipal quality-of-life projects. A permanent pavilion will be installed this spring at Durant Park with the support of Greylock Federal Credit Union, while Clapp Park will benefit from a $400,000 state grant.

“Clapp Park is truly a four-season destination in Pittsfield, and this funding aligns two strong community partners, Rotary International and the Buddy Pellerin Field Committee,” Tyer said. “Both will partner with the city on Clapp Park improvements, including the construction of a splash pad, enhancements to the playground and fields, and increased accessibility.”

Elsewhere, 75% of the design is complete for the bike path extension of the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail from Mall Road to Crane Avenue, and construction on the path is expected to begin this spring. “This is great news for many in our community who relish the outdoors and enjoy hitting the trails on foot or on bike.”

Finally, due to a growing interest among active seniors for the game of pickle ball, the city striped four pickle ball courts at Reid Middle School for their use.

Meanwhile, an emphasis on neighborhood revitalization can be seen in the Tyler Street Transformative District Initiative, a partnership between Pittsfield and MassDevelopment. A streetscape-improvement program on Tyler Street will include more lighting, landscaping, bike lanes, and improved pedestrian accommodations.

In addition, a storefront-improvement project there allows businesses to apply for funding for exterior improvements. Hot Harry’s, Panda Garden, Goodwill Industries, and Quillard Brothers Garage are among the operations taking advantage of the program.

Finally, the Tyler Street Pilot LED Light Project, a collaborative effort between the city, Pine Ridge Technologies, and Eversource, aims to improve lighting, environmental stewardship, and cost savings. Two LED streetlight fixtures were incorporated into existing banner poles on Tyler Street at Grove and Plunkett streets, and will be monitored throughout the spring.

Speaking of power, the city’s electrical aggregation program allows local government to combine the purchasing power of residents and businesses to provide them with an alternative to the existing basic service costs offered by Eversource.

“Considering the increases in Eversource’s delivery rates, we wanted to ensure that residents had an ability to offset those increasing costs,” Tyer said, adding that, beginning this month, the Community Choice Power Supply program will provide city residents and businesses with a collective savings of more than $780,000 over the next six months.

In a similar vein, the city officially launched its newest 2.91-megawatt solar-power-generation facility at the former landfill located off of East Street. Ameresco will operate and maintain the project at no charge to the city. In exchange, the city entered into a 20-year agreement to purchase the power generated by the solar array.

“Combining the reduced utility costs and the personal property taxes paid by Ameresco, this project is estimated to save the city up to $140,000 annually,” Tyer noted. “That’s $2.6 million over the duration of the contract.”

Safety and Numbers

On the public-safety front, the Pittsfield Fire Department grew its ranks with the addition of eight new hires made possible through a federal SAFER grant, helping to reduce the city’s overtime costs by 60%. The department also recently purchased a 2014 ladder truck in mint condition at 60% of the cost of a new truck, as well as new hydraulic rescue tools.

The Police Department saw an even bigger change, hiring Police Chief Michael Wynn after a decade with no one in that role. Meanwhile, 14 officers completed field training in 2017, and the department recently hired six additional officers who will begin their training this year.

At Pittsfield Municipal Airport, reconstruction of two runways will begin this spring, enhancing overall safety by eliminating potential hazards caused by deteriorating runway pavement, Tyer said. The state Department of Transportation Aeronautics division also identified the airport for a rebuild of its terminal starting in 2020.

“The airport is also a perfect landscape for environmental stewardship,” she added. “Underway is the planning and development of a solar array that will provide revenue for the airport and cost-saving energy for municipal facilities.”

Even amid all that progress, Tyer said the city is challenged by serious fiscal constraints.

“Pittsfield is at its levy ceiling, and our ability to provide services that the community expects and deserves is impacted by diminished financial resources. This year our revenue growth remains limited, and we do not foresee dramatic increases in state aid or local receipts. This is a serious matter that requires a lot of difficult decisions, persistence over time, and sheer determination.”

She added, however, that “I view this circumstance as an opportunity to sharpen our thinking about the role of government and to access expertise at every level. We’ve already tapped into the state’s community compact program to develop a model for financial forecasting and to produce an improved, more informative budget document. And there’s more work to do.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

Exceeding Their Entrepreneurial Goals

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Opinion

Editorial

Over the past 22 years, BusinessWest has had a number of intriguing recipients of its Top Entrepreneur award.

Many would fall in the category of ‘traditional’ when it comes to entrepreneurs, including last year’s honoree, Paul Kozub, creator and president of V-One Vodka, and the 2015 recipients, the second and third generations of the D’Amour family, owners of Big Y supermarkets.

But some honorees would definitely be considered non-traditional, or outside the box (there’s an entrepreneurial term). These would include former Springfield Technical Community College President Andrew Scibelli, who, among other things, created the Technology Park across from the main campus at the start of this century. That term ‘non-traditional’ would also describe former Cooley Dickinson Hospital President Craig Melin, who not only led that institution back from the financial brink, but spearheaded the creation of a number of cutting-edge programs.

At first blush, it might seem fair to label this year’s honoree — the owners and managers of the Springfield Thunderbirds — to be a non-traditional selection, or at least a combination of both. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine the Red Sox being named Top Entrepreneurs, or the Alabama Crimson Tide, for that matter.

But this team’s owners and managers exemplify all the basic tenets of entrepreneurship — from risk taking to meeting a recognized need within the market; from introducing a new product to thinking outside the box (there’s that phrase again).

Wait, introducing a new product? Hockey isn’t a new product. Yes, and that’s a point we’ll come back to in a minute.

First, the risk-taking part. It was a calculated risk, but a risk nonetheless. After all, when the owners of the Springfield Falcons decided to move the team to Arizona, there were many in this region saying that Greater Springfield was not a hockey town and could not support a professional sports team.

They put their faith in Springfield native Nate Costa, a veteran administrator with the American Hockey League who had previously gained significant experience in group sales and other aspects of team management and promotion with the league’s franchise in San Antonio.”

But a group of owners, led by Paul Picknelly, owner of Monarch Place, decided that Springfield not only needed a hockey team at this critical time in its history — with MGM already building its casino and several other forms of progress in evidence — but that it would support one as well.

They put their faith in Springfield native Nate Costa, a veteran administrator with the American Hockey League who had previously gained significant experience in group sales and other aspects of team management and promotion with the league’s franchise in San Antonio.

He came to Springfield with a game plan, and it called for bringing a lot more than hockey to the residents of this region.

Indeed, he and his front-office team have delivered experiences, rather than three periods of hockey. These experiences have included live music, special promotions (a Star Wars-themed night, wrestling greats in attendance, and bring your dog to the game, for example), and tributes to some of the sport’s greats (like Willie Oree) and the legacy of hockey in Springfield.

This is thinking outside the box, and it culminated with bringing Red Sox legend David Ortiz to the MassMutual Center in November for a night they’ll be talking about for years.

As for those owners, they didn’t just buy the team and hand the keys to Costa. They’ve invested time, energy, and imagination to the task of bringing people to the MassMutual Center — and bringing them back repeatedly — and building the brand they’ve created.

Call it teamwork, another one of those fundamentals of entrepreneurship.

All of them are on display with the Thunderbirds, a team that has captured the region’s attention and held onto it by doing what all good entrepreneurs do — finding ways to continuously improve and deliver what the customer wants and needs.

An outside-the-box choice for Top Entrepreneur? Maybe, but not really. This is just a good business success story. v

The Opioid Crisis and the Workplace

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Opinion

By Dr. Deborah Happ

Asurvey recently released by the National Safety Council reveals that more than 70% of workplaces are feeling the negative effects of the opioid-abuse epidemic. Nearly 40% of employers said employees are missing work due to abuse of painkillers, with roughly the same percent reporting employee abuse of the drugs on the job.

However, only a small percentage of those with opioid or other substance use disorders ask for help or receive it. And that’s costing employers around $10 billion annually from absenteeism, according the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

Here are four ways you can address substance addiction in your workplace:

• Create a non-stigmatizing workplace. One way to influence more people to seek help is to convince them that getting treatment is the smartest thing to do. By talking about addiction like any other disease, you silence the stigma and allow people to realize it’s all right to ask for help.

Finally, it’s important to remember that employees struggling with opioid misuse or substance addiction are not weak or morally corrupt. Drug addiction is a disease and needs to be treated and talked about like any other disease — with compassion and quality care.”

• Equip staff to recognize the signs of addiction. It’s important that management and staff be trained on the early signs of opioid and substance addiction — irritability, poor concentration, and declining performance — so they can intervene before the situation deteriorates. Train managers to address performance issues, because that often opens up the dialog to talk about sensitive matters.

• Offer support to employees and family members. Just as you would with an employee who has a medical condition, such as cancer or heart disease, offer non-judgmental support to employees with a substance-use disorder. Remember, employees who have family members struggling with substance addiction suffer at work too. Those who are affected by a loved one’s addiction can have increased absenteeism, lack of focus, and health problems related to stress. If you don’t already have one, consider providing a confidential employee-assistance program (EAP) for your employees.

• Help employees access treatment. Ensure that your employees have access to quality treatment for substance addiction. Consult with your health-plan provider about a comprehensive plan that covers inpatient and outpatient services. Employees with opioid addiction can often benefit from medication-assisted treatment, which reduces the cravings for opioids and allows employees to work while in treatment.

Finally, it’s important to remember that employees struggling with opioid misuse or substance addiction are not weak or morally corrupt. Drug addiction is a disease and needs to be treated and talked about like any other disease — with compassion and quality care. Opioid misuse impacts much more than workplace performance: overdoses killed more than 64,000 Americans in 2016, up 21% over 2015.

That’s why creating a safe work environment is key. There’s nothing more important than sending a message to your employees that you care about their health and well-being. v

Dr. Deborah Happ is a senior vice president for New Directions Behavioral Health in Kansas City.

Top Entrepreneur 2017

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Cover Story Sections Top Entrepreneur

T-Birds’ Owners and Managers Continue to Push the Envelope

Front row, from left, Dante Fontana, Nathan Costa, Frank Colaccino, and Brian Fitzgerald; second row, from left, Paul Picknelly, Dinesh Patel, Chris Bignell, Chris Thompson, Sean Murphy, Francis Cataldo; third row, from left, Derek Salema, Peter Martins, Jerry Gagliarducci, John Joe Williams, Vidhyadhar Mitta, and James Garvey.

An Exercise in Teamwork

Back in the spring of 2016, a consortium of owners came together, bought the Portland Pirates AHL franchise, and relocated it to Springfield. It was said that this group brought hockey back to the City of Homes 10 days after it left. In reality, though, it has brought much more, including excitement, energy, innovation, and vibrancy — along with hockey. For doing all that, the team of owners and managers has been named BusinessWest’s Top Entrepreneurs for 2017.

If you go on eBay this morning, you can buy a bobblehead featuring Red Sox slugger David Ortiz wearing sunglasses and a Springfield Thunderbirds jersey. List price: $59.99.

But while you can buy it now, you can’t get it for at least a month or so.

That’s because no one actually has one to send to you. These items won’t be distributed until the Feb. 17 Thunderbirds game against the Providence Bruins.

The fact that this bobblehead is already for sale online demonstrates many things — from the incredible popularity of Big Papi to the awesome power of capitalism at work (60 balloons for a bobblehead?).

But it demonstrates something else as well: Just how far hockey has come in Springfield in 20 short months. Indeed, in the late spring of 2016, there was no hockey in Springfield. Well, there was no American Hockey League franchise, anyway.

Red Sox legend David Ortiz belts a foam baseball into the crowd during the game on Nov. 11. His appearance in Springfield represents just one example of the outside-the-box thinking that defines the new ownership and management team.

The Falcons, who had been playing at the MassMutual Center for more than 20 years, had pulled up stakes and were heading to Arizona. Into this void stepped what would become, by AHL standards (or any standards, for that matter), a huge ownership group of 28 that brought professional hockey back to Springfield.

Only, all 28 of them would be put off by that last phrase to some extent.

Indeed, they would prefer to say that hockey is just one of the things they’ve brought to the City of Homes. They’ve also brought imagination and entrepreneurship; Star Wars Night and $3 Coors Light draughts on Friday night; free parking in the Civic Center Garage (actually, it’s back by very popular demand) and … David Ortiz bobbleheads.

Evidence of all this was in abundance on Jan. 6, a frigid Saturday night when the wind chill was well below zero, representing a microcosm of what the team has accomplished and what it has become.

This was Blast from the Past Night, with the team donning Springfield Indians jerseys from the early ’90s for a tilt against the Providence Bruins. The night became a mix of nostalgia, high energy, and record sales at the merchandise shop.

“It was 6 below zero, and we had more than 6,000 people in this arena,” said Paul Picknelly, president of Monarch Enterprises and managing partner among the owners. “We sold out the place with families that are coming to downtown Springfield, feeling comfortable bringing their families downtown for professional sports.

“It’s not just about hockey,” he went on. “The previous owners’ mindset was ‘we have hockey in Springfield.’ What we’re saying is that we have something different that we’re offering the community.”

For bringing this family entertainment, this ‘something different,’ as well as much-needed vibrancy and even validity to downtown Springfield, the Thunderbirds team — not the one on the ice (although it is also a big part of the story), but rather the ownership and management team — has been selected by the leaders at BusinessWest as the recipients of the magazine’s Top Entrepreneur Award for 2017.

Several of the team’s owners and managers gather on the ice in a host of jerseys worn by the team over the past season and a half. The ownership group is large (28 individuals and groups) but very engaged.

This group was chosen among a host of other intriguing candidates for many reasons, but especially the manner in which it has changed the landscape since that headline announcing that the Falcons were flying southwest — and we don’t mean the airline.

There is considerably more energy downtown on 36 game days and nights (there are actually a few morning contests as well, as we’ll see) between October and April, and maybe beyond.

But that’s just part of the story. Indeed, the T-Birds are a year-long phenomenon and a region-wide resource as well, thanks to an omni-present mascot and a management team laser-focused on keeping the team top of mind, even in the middle of summer.

The phrase ‘weaving our way into the fabric of the community’ was uttered by more than a few of the owners we spoke with recently, and this is exactly what the team has done.

For their ability to do that, and especially for their efforts to bring not only hockey but much more back to Springfield, the ownership and management team is truly worthy of BusinessWest’s Top Entrepreneur honor.

Owning the Solution

They sound like characters on one of those Saturday morning cartoon shows.

But ‘Boomer’ and ‘Squeaky’ are real — well, sort of. They are the mascots, respectively, for the Thunderbirds and Balise Motors’ growing stable of car washes in Western Mass.

They appear together sometimes, and increasingly, and these joint appearances are just one example of the many ways in which the 28 owners of the Thunderbirds — Jeb Balise, a principal with the family-owned Balise corporation, is one of them — are involved and invested in the team and its success in Springfield and across the region.

Other examples abound, from construction company owner Dave Fontaine putting banners for the team at his construction sites, to Dunkin’ Donuts franchise owners Peter Martins and Derek Salema running promotions at their stores (more on one of those later); from employees at Red Rose Pizza wearing T-Birds jerseys on game nights (principal Anthony Caputo is one of the owners) to Picknelly, a local partner with MGM Springfield, convincing that corporation to not only be a sponsor of the T-Birds, but to actively help market it after the casino opens this fall.

It happened very quickly, and the reason it did, and the reason everyone got involved from the ownership standpoint, is because everyone loves Springfield. We have diverse backgrounds, but we all love Springfield, and it’s an easy ask when you ask someone to invest in it.”

Indeed, just before a slot machine pays out to a winner, a screen will pop up asking the lucky player if he or she would like to buy a ticket to a Thunderbirds game, said Picknelly, adding that this is one of many ways the casino will help promote the team.

Collectively, these initiatives, and this involvement, speak to how unified these owners are in their desire to secure a long, prosperous future for this franchise. They have different businesses and different backgrounds — and many of them didn’t know much about hockey when they were approached about this venture — but they understood the importance of the team to the city, especially at that critical time in its history.

Indeed, using different words and phrases, the owners we spoke with said that the spring of 2016, when they all came together in this enterprise, was not the time (if there really ever is a good time) for Springfield to be without a hockey team.

Elaborating, they said that, with MGM coming in the fall of 2018, Union Station set to open soon, greater vibrancy downtown, and a general sense of optimism, the city needed to maintain momentum, not lose any.

So when Picknelly called and asked them to be part of a growing consortium of owners, they found it easy to say ‘yes.’

“I remember getting the call from Paul on a Friday afternoon; he said, ‘did you see the paper today?’” said Fran Cataldo, a principal with C&W Realty, referring to the day the Falcons’ owners announced they were selling the team to the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes. “I said, ‘yeah, I did.’ And he said, ‘it’s not going to happen; we’re going to keep hockey here.’

“And in the course of 72 hours, we identified a team, negotiated a purchase-and-sale agreement, and made a deposit on the team,” he went on. “It happened very quickly, and the reason it did, and the reason everyone got involved from the ownership standpoint, is because everyone loves Springfield. We have diverse backgrounds, but we all love Springfield, and it’s an easy ask when you ask someone to invest in it.”

Thunderbirds players wore replica Indians jerseys on Blast from the Past Night on Jan. 6, an event that became a microcosm of the team’s efforts to create energy and an experience at the MassMutual Center.

Cataldo, a long-time friend of Picknelly’s, said he’s worked with him on a number of initiatives that fall into the broad categories of economic development and improving the public perception of Springfield. And the purchase of the Thunderbirds fell into both categories, so be called it a “natural,” especially in the context of the question everyone was asking 21 months ago: ‘what if we lost hockey?’

“It’s more than losing hockey,” he said, answering the question himself. “You’re losing 4,000 or 5,000 people 30-plus nights a year downtown. They’re bringing their families downtown, they’re parking, they’re eating, they’re going out afterward; it’s a huge, huge economic engine for Springfield.

Frank Colaccino, CEO of the Colvest Group, who admits that he didn’t know a red line from a blue line when Picknelly called him, tells a similar story.

“He called me and said, ‘we’ve got to move quick; we need the support of people who work in Springfield and care about Springfield,’” he recalled. “I think it took me all of about five minutes to say, ‘Paul, do you think we’ll get our money back?’ He said, ‘yeah, I think we will,’ and I was in.”

Collectively, the ownership team being assembled needed to raise $5.5 million for the down payment on the team, and as it went about doing so, it focused on keeping the group local and committed to the region.

It even turned down more than $1 million from a New York investor that wanted in, but also wanted some controls in exchange for its investment.

“We all sat around this table and said, ‘we don’t want that,’” said Colaccino. “The person’s not from the area, doesn’t care about the area, and we decided we didn’t want to give up some of those controls. And it took some guts to walk away from that and say, ‘we’re going to raise this money.’”

In the span of about 10 days, Springfield lost hockey and got it back, but the act of buying the Portland (Maine) Pirates and bringing them to Springfield would be only the first expression of entrepreneurship with this franchise.

Net Results

The second, whether the ownership team realized it at the time or not (and they probably did), was hiring Springfield native Nate Costa to lead this venture.

Costa had most recently been working in the American Hockey League office in its Business Services Department, but he also had extensive experience in the field, if you will, working for the league’s San Antonio Rampage.

He arrived in Springfield with what he called a “blueprint” — one that called for not just hockey, but affordable family entertainment — but also with his hands full.

Indeed, the team didn’t have a name at that point, or colors, a uniform design, or even a lease with the MassMutual Center. All that got done, and Costa set about putting to work the lessons he learned in San Antonio, but also from watching some of the league’s most successful franchises.

From the outset, he said the focus has been on providing an experience, not just three periods of hockey, and also on making the team visible and active within the community. Doing those things requires a real commitment from ownership and the requisite resources to get the job done properly, something the previous ownership didn’t provide.

Chris Thompson, the Thunderbirds’ senior vice president of Sales & Strategy, who has worked with the team for nearly a decade and for three different ownership groups, described the difference between then and now.

“It’s a breath of fresh air having the support of the local investment group to give us the resources to be able to go out there and tell the story,” he explained. “We did some cool things with the Falcons back in the day, but we could never tell the story; the biggest difference between then and now is that the local group is fully engaged.”

It is also more entrepreneurial, a word that could be used to describe both ownership and management, said Costa, adding that this has become the team’s mindset largely out of necessity.

Elaborating, he said that, from his vantage point in the AHL offices, he saw what he called missed opportunities in Springfield, especially with regard to ticket sales at all levels, especially group sales and season tickets.

His goal upon taking over the team was to seize those opportunities.

“I put together a plan that I almost had in the back of my mind,” he recalled. “It was really focused on grassroots efforts — beefing up our season-ticket sales, doing more with marketing and on social media, and really taking an entirely fresh look at the franchise.

“I had absolute confidence, if we stuck to our plan when it came to ticket sales and having a sales mindset, that this could work here,” he went on. “And I think we’re starting to see that. It’s taken some time, but year one was a huge success on a number of levels.”

This was made clear by the team’s haul when it comes to year-end awards handed out by the league. The credenza in the conference room is crowded with such plaques, which recognize achievement in areas ranging from group ticket sales to “recovered revenue.”

Costa said those plaques result from a systematic look at all aspects of the operation with an eye toward making changes when they were needed, and that was often the case.

As it was with ticket prices, for example, said Costa, noting that, with the previous administration, all seats were priced the same. The new ownership has introduced price flexibility, dividing the seating bowl into several areas, with different prices for each one.

Another focal point was concessions. Using the team’s relationship with MGM, management was able to negotiate a Friday-night special on concession and beer sales in an effort to get more younger people and families in the arena.

Still another matter was parking, which was a recognized deterrent for many potential fans. So the club negotiated a deal whereby the team would make a payment to the city, enabling patrons to park in the Civic Center Garage for free, a step that brought immediate and lasting results.

“We really tried to take all the things we had heard from the previous couple of years and take them head on and find ways that we could make a tangible impact,” said Costa. “We did this not only for the casual fan, but the season ticket holders; they’re going to reap the biggest benefit from this because they’re coming every night.”

Goal Oriented

As for that aforementioned promotion at Dunkin’ Donuts, one that involved giving away two game tickets with purchases at the drive-up window on a specific day, the mere mention of it brought some wry smiles and looks toward the ceiling among those talking with BusinessWest.

This wasn’t a promotion gone wrong, per se, but one that didn’t go exactly as planned. And this created one of those good problems to have — sort of, but not really.

To make a long story a little shorter, far more people redeemed the tickets for this early-season game than management anticipated, leaving far fewer seats available for walk-up customers, a scenario the team has worked very hard to avoid.

Previous Top Entrepreneurs

• 2016: Paul Kozub, founder and president of V-One Vodka
• 2015: The D’Amour Family, founders of Big Y
• 2014: Delcie Bean, president of Paragus Strategic IT
• 2013: Tim Van Epps, president and CEO of Sandri LLC
• 2012: Rick Crews and Jim Brennan, franchisees of Doctors Express
• 2011: Heriberto Flores, director of the New England Farm Workers’ Council and Partners for Community
• 2010: Bob Bolduc, founder and CEO of Pride
• 2009: Holyoke Gas & Electric
• 2008: Arlene Kelly and Kim Sanborn, founders of Human Resource Solutions and Convergent Solutions Inc.
• 2007: John Maybury, president of Maybury Material Handling
• 2006: Rocco, Jim, and Jayson Falcone, principals of Rocky’s Hardware Stores and Falcone Retail Properties
• 2005: James (Jeb) Balise, president of Balise Motor Sales
• 2004: Craig Melin, then-president and CEO of Cooley Dickinson Hospital
• 2003: Tony Dolphin, president of Springboard Technologies
• 2002: Timm Tobin, then-president of Tobin Systems Inc.
• 2001: Dan Kelley, then-president of Equal Access Partners
• 2000: Jim Ross, Doug Brown, and Richard DiGeronimo, then-principals of Concourse Communications
• 1999: Andrew Scibelli, then-president of Springfield Technical Community College
• 1998: Eric Suher, president of E.S. Sports
• 1997: Peter Rosskothen and Larry Perreault, then-co-owners of the Log Cabin Banquet and Meeting House
• 1996: David Epstein, president and co-founder of JavaNet and the JavaNet Café

“It was the Friday after David Ortiz, so we were topical and people wanted to check us out,” Cataldo recalled. “The redemption, which is typically low for those tickets, was through the roof, and we essentially sold out of our tickets.”

Said Costa, “at the end of the day, we were turning people away at the box office, which you don’t want to do all the time.”

If the Dunkin’ Donuts promotion was something that went wrong — and that’s not the term most would prefer to use in reference to that night — then not much else has for this team.

Indeed, just about everything has gone exceedingly right.

Including the so-called ‘Shoot to Win’ promotion involving one of the team’s newest sponsors, Mercedes-Benz of Springfield.

In case you missed it — and that was almost impossible to do — young Nathan Vila managed to shoot a puck into a hole not much wider than the puck itself from about 150 feet away to win a new Mercedes GLA SUV. But that’s only part of the story.

“It was just before Christmas, and the young man [Nathan] was heading into the service in a few weeks and gave the car to his mother to drive,” said Peter Wirth, a principal with the dealership. “You really couldn’t script it any better.”

There hasn’t been a script, per se, for anything the Thunderbirds and their management team have done since they started scrambling to get the team ready for the start of the 2016-17 season in that hectic summer other than do what entrepreneurs do famously — think outside the box, innovate, invest in the company, and take some calculated risks.

And these are exactly the personality traits that inspired Wirth and his wife, Michelle, to want to be part of what was happening with the Thunderbirds.

“We went to a few games, and they seemed to be doing things the right way … it might as well have been the NHL; they were delivering a really good product,” he said. “They think outside the box, and they create energy and excitement, and we wanted to be part of that.”

And nothing personifies those qualities more than the night David Ortiz came to Springfield.

In case you missed it — and that, too, was almost impossible to do — the Red Sox slugger appeared before and during the Nov. 11 game against the Laval (Quebec) Rocket. He drove an ATV on the ice, signed a ton of autographs, and whacked some foam baseballs into the sellout crowd.

It was a huge success, but it was also a considerable risk given the huge sticker price attached to an appearance from Big Papi. But it was a risk the ownership team was more than willing to accept it.

“That was a huge commitment — those big stars certainly don’t come cheap,” said Colaccino. “But when that idea was presented, everyone around this table said, ‘what a great idea.’ The number being tossed around to get him here was a big one, but not one person said, ‘no, that’s not a good idea.’ Having a baseball guy come to a hockey arena … that’s outside-the-box thinking, and it was hugely successful.”

Costa quantified the matter by saying the team reaped a three-to-one return on that sizable investment thanks to a mix of corporate sponsorships, additional ticket revenue, a VIP event, merchandise, and special Red Sox-themed team jerseys made possible through the team’s relationship with MGM. Elaborating, he called the Ortiz night not only a microcosm of that blueprint mentioned earlier, but an example of his mindset when it comes to the team and its ownership.

“From day one, I’ve looked at this as a business venture because they’ve put their trust in me to make this work from a business perspective, and I’ve never lost sight of that,” he explained. “So when I presented the Ortiz piece, it wasn’t ‘give me what I need to get him,’ it was ‘here’s what it’s going to do for us, here’s what the return is going to be, here’s what it’s going to do for the community and the Thunderbirds name in general.’

“And coming from the American Hockey League and seeing what other AHL franchises need to do in a market like Springfield … it’s very entrepreneurial,” he went on. “It’s grassroots; it’s rolling up sleeves and doing the dirty work.”

Knowing the Score

Meanwhile, Costa said the Ortiz night was a very needed step to raise the bar in the team’s critical second year.

Indeed, calling on his extensive experience in the league, he said it’s not uncommon for a team to do well in its first year as it brings something new and different to a region. It’s also common for teams to struggle in their efforts to maintain that momentum.

“I knew it was going to be a challenge in year two to continue that momentum moving forward, and I knew we needed something special,” he said, referring to the Ortiz promotion but also a full year’s worth of events.

The Thunderbirds sold $10,000 worth of gin and juice at the Jan. 6 game, thanks to Snoop Dogg, his Indians jersey, and effective use of social media.

While Ortiz’s appearance in Springfield has probably been the high-water mark for this franchise, there have been plenty of other examples of outside-the-box thinking, risk taking, and, overall, an entrepreneurial mindset.

All those were on display on Blast from the Past Night, which highlighted the team’s success not only in creating an experience on the ice and in the arena, but in fully capitalizing on the awesome forces of social media.

In this case, the team put Snoop Dogg to work — or, more specifically, the Springfield Indians jersey he famously wore in the video for his song “Gin and Juice” — in its promotions for Blast from the Past Night. It was a natural tie-in to the evening’s festivities and inspiration for a $5 gin and juice special sold at the MassMutual Center that night.

“We sold $10,000 worth of gin and juice,” said Picknelly, noting that he and his son split one that night.

And then, there was Hockey Week in Springfield, staged in the middle of this month in an effort to bring people out during a difficult time of year and a few difficult days of the week.

The week started with a 1:05 p.m. tilt against the Hartford Wolf Pack on Martin Luther King Day. Youngsters were admitted to end zone seats for $5.55 courtesy of Friendly’s. The week continued with a Wednesday contest (those dates are always challenging) against one of the league’s most iconic franchises, the Hershey Bears. If the T-Birds won (and they did), then patrons’ ticket stubs would be good for the Feb. 7 game (yes, another Wednesday).

The week wrapped up with a Friday-night tilt against the Binghampton (New York) Devils, or a ‘3-2-1 Friday,’ as they’re called because a Coors Light, as noted, is $3, a hot dog is $2, and sodas are $1.

The unofficial goal moving forward, said Costa, with several owners nodding their head in agreement, is to make what happened on the night of that Dunkin’ Donuts promotion the norm.

Well, not exactly what happened that night, but the part about a game being sold out and patrons not to expect to be able to walk up to the ticket window a few moments before a game starts and buy some tickets.

“People are used to just walking up on game night and buying a ticket and getting a great seat,” Costa explained. “It’s not necessarily the case anymore, and from the beginning, that’s what we set out to do.

“What we’re trying to manufacture is urgency,” he went on. “That was the biggest thing we didn’t have coming into this. There was no urgency to buy tickets, no urgency to buy season tickets, no urgency to buy tickets early; we’ve tried to lay the foundation to change that — to create a sense of urgency.”

From all accounts, the team’s owners and managers are well on their way to doing just that.

Bottom Line

As he talked about the ownership group that he reports to, Costa acknowledged that 28 is a big number and one that most people would see as ungainly and something of a disadvantage.

He says this group is anything but that.

That’s because it’s not only large, but also visible on game nights and, most importantly, fully invested in the team, in every sense of that word.

“It’s been a huge benefit, and we couldn’t do what we do without it,” he said of the large group of owners. “We lean on them for support within the local community.”

Support comes in many forms — from getting much-needed introductions to exercising connections such as those needed to secure those Red Sox-themed jerseys for David Ortiz night, to bringing people to the MassMutual Center, as that Dunkin’ Donuts promotion did.

All that support has resulted in a changed landscape — where sometimes one can’t get a ticket on game night, and, yes, where David Ortiz bobbleheads are for sale on eBay two months before they’re actually handed out.

It’s a story of determination. A story of teamwork. But mostly, it’s a story of old-fashioned entrepreneurship.

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

Gateway City Arts Is a Place to Meet — in More Ways Than One

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Meetings & Conventions Sections

Inspiration Point

Vitek Kruta stands in the Hub at GCA, which hosts concerts almost weekly.

Gateway City Arts touts itself as “a venue for events, entertainment, dining, art making, teaching, and learning.” That’s quite a mouthful, but the sprawling complex in Holyoke’s growing innovation district, beside its historic canals, has certainly become all that and more. It’s a model, co-owner Vitek Kruta says, that not only raises the profile of local artists and startups, but boosts tourism and raises the city’s economic profile.

Today, the complex known as Gateway City Arts houses artist studios, operates a restaurant, presents concerts on a regular basis, and hosts events of all kinds. But Vitek Kruta says its origins were much more humble than that.

“The whole thing started because I was looking for my studio,” said Kruta, an artist himself, who, along with business partner Lori Divine, bought the facility on Race Street in Holyoke five years ago. “We stumbled upon this space, and we loved the building. Then it took several months to negotiate to get it. Once we did, we asked, ‘now what do we do with all this space?’”

All they knew for sure was that they saw something unique in the empty warehouse along the city’s canals. Now, the facility functions as a co-working space for artists and others during the day and an event space on nights and weekends, one with a decidedly funky vibe.

Kruta and Divine were no strangers to the area arts scene. He had been involved in New City Art in Northampton, and she with the Guild Studio School in Northampton, among other roles. “We were both always interested in building community around art, providing space for artists’ classes and concerts and the interaction of all these disciplines. Now we had this huge building, so what can we do with it?”

SEE: List of Meeting & Convention Facilities

Besides housing his own studio — he restores fine art — in the complex as planned, Kruta and Divine slowly began the process of cleaning up the building and making it available for studios and classes — and, eventually, performances, meetings, and events.

“Little by little, we had to find out how can we utilize this place and follow our dream, because we always dreamed about creating a community-based place for artists and musicians,” he explained. His daughter, a tango dancer, brought her group of dancers in house, and they volunteered to help with renovating the rooms and sanding the floors.

The restoration of a large room called the Judd Paper Hall attracted other dance and yoga groups, even while the complex’s future bistro area, where BusinessWest recently sat with Kruta, was still a dark, boarded-up storage area, with two loading docks where big trucks carried away loads of debris throughout the day. Meanwhile, the current concert venue, known as the Hub at GCA, was just a temporary stage, but was selling out shows early on.

“Now it’s growing to the point where we’re starting to attract bigger players in the game,” he noted. The next phase was renovating the upper floors — he eventually moved his studio and office up there — and making the first floor accessible for public use. “Little by little, we started to develop the second-floor cubicles, which is now the maker space.”

Those artists and makers include puppeteers, painters, costume designers, writers, jewelry makers, three nonprofits, a property-management startup, and, soon, a microbrewery. Four tenants are graduates of SPARK, Holyoke’s entrepreneurship-education and mentorship program. Gateway also houses a fully equipped woodworking shop and ceramics studio in the basement, which can be rented to whomever needs them.

The facility’s bistro serves lunch and dinner throughout the week and a popular brunch on Sundays.

“This whole facility is about resources,” he said. “We have an instrument builder who makes guitars downstairs. There was a guy who built 500 beehives. There are small projects — if somebody just needs to come drill some holes, and they need some special piece of equipment, it’s there.”

There’s plenty of ‘there’ at Gateway, and more to come, as Kruta and Divine continue to hone their vision of the facility as a resource not only for its tenants, but for the community as a whole.

Food for Thought

A major step toward fulfilling that vision has been the creation of a fully functional commercial kitchen, which enables Gateway to prepare much more food than before, when Kruta had access only to a tiny kitchen space.

That means the events people book in one of the three large meeting areas — which include weddings, fund-raisers, concerts, bar mitzvahs, birthday parties, memorial services, and corporate trainings — now have food service to match. Meanwhile, a restaurant on the site called Gateway City Bistro serves lunch and dinner most days, and a popular brunch on Sundays.

“We realized that, when we have concerts, we need to provide some kind of food,” Kruta said, but the kitchen benefits Gateway in other ways, too. While artist tenants thrive through shared resources and networking, food-related startups can use the kitchen to develop their own enterprises — such as Holyoke Hummus Co., which started at Gateway but now has its own location on High Street.

Vitek Kruta and Lori Divine saw plenty of potential in this Race Street warehouse that has now become a mecca for the arts, performances, and events.

The possibilities are endless, he continued, whether a startup is baking cookies, packaging spices, selling dumplings from a food truck, or launching a microbrewery. But the key word is ‘startup.’

“That’s the whole idea — this is a startup place for everybody. Once you become established or test your product or you can actually take it to the next level, you move out and find some other place.”

It’s often a small step from having a great idea to developing the prototype, he added, arguing that there’s no place quite like Gateway that provides that opportunity to such a wide range of entities.

Meanwhile, the concert venue, which obviously benefits from the expanded food service, now boasts a fully equipped stage with state-of-the-art lighting. A few steps away, an outdoor patio beer garden and grill area provides an opportunity to host events outdoors. And all of it takes place in a complex with a specific vibe that appeals to party bookers looking for something a little different. “Really, anything that you need space for, you can find here,” Kruta said.

Gateway’s many spaces have been used for fund-raisers as well, and some of the artistic endeavors are intended to reflect relavant civic concerns, such as an upcoming exhibit — timed for Black History Month — of 35 paintings by Robert Templeton, known for his presential portraits as well as his civil-rights-themed pieces, including a massive portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. that will be on display for the month. The art show will be complemented by concerts, panels, and discussions centered on social justice.

“This is a tool to move the community forward and address certain issues,” Kruta said. “It is very exciting. When you start to get a little understanding of the complexity of this place … it’s hard to explain, but anything is possible.”

Art and Parcel

Since they purchased the building that would become Gateway City Arts, Kruta and Divine have expanded their team to 20 employees. One of them, Cait Simpson, first arrived as an artist using the space, and now serves as the facility’s director of marketing.

“The environment they set up is so community-based and so devoted to the arts,” she said, “and as an artist coming to work here, you feel that, and you’re inspired to do more here.”

The connections that form among the artists are also valuable, Kruta noted, as they often help each other understand the entrepreneurial aspects of their trades and learn how to make a living selling their work. In return, the artists often take part in events that raise Gateway’s profile while also giving them valuable exposure. “We are fostering and developing these relationships that will only multiply the creative possibilities. That’s the idea of this place.”

In short, Kruta loves the energy he feels when he walks around the building.

“We love Holyoke, and that’s why we’re here,” he said. “You look around, and it’s incredible. We’re bringing 30,000 people here a year. We have concerts almost every week. People come here for a one-of-a-kind experience, and I think that’s what we’ve accomplished.”

Admittedly, plenty of area facilities offer, as Gateway does, a catering program, multiple halls people can rent for weddings and corporate meetings, and state-of-the-art sound equipment. “But we have a specific vibe here,” Kruta told BusinessWest. “We are artists, and we can afford to be quirky, and we want to be. We want people to come here and be like, ‘oh, look at those bricks.’

“That’s the reaction now,” he concluded. “There’s always this factor of ‘wow, I’ve never seen anything like this,’ and they walk away feeling inspired.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

The Boylston Rooms Wed Modern Amenities, Industrial Charm

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Meetings & Conventions Sections

Brick by Brick

Erin Witmer says her goal was to preserve the history of the Keystone building while creating flexible spaces that can be crafted to the mood of each event.

It’s a different wedding photo, to be sure.

Their names are Kyle and Liz, and they’re standing, decked out in formal clothes, in front of a 110-year-old mill, with boarded-up windows on the top floor and chipped bricks at their feet. It’s a striking scene, and it’s not for everyone, Erin Witmer said.

“It is part of the charm here,” she said of the environs of the Boylston Rooms, her new event space located in the Keystone building on Pleasant Street in Easthampton, next to another notable restored mill, Eastworks. “If you’re looking for a ‘perfect,’ new kind of space, you’re probably not going to look here. We definitely have some of the charm and character of the original space.”

The engaged couples and others who book the venue for a broad variety of events, however, immediately ‘get’ it, she added.

“Last year was pretty tremendous. The first couples that booked their weddings here, they looked at it when it was just an empty warehouse space, and were able to see what it could be. And it’s been incredibly positive since then.”

Witmer and her husband bought the historic Keystone building in 2015 with the goal of opening an event space that offered something memorable and different from more traditional venues, she told BusinessWest.

“I first started in events at the Inn at Northampton, before it was the Clarion, doing banquet and event work there,” she recalled. “It was a very traditional banquet hall, and it got me thinking about what I valued in an event space and what I’d like for my own event space. I really wanted a space where people could personalize it, a blank canvas where people can bring in their own ideas and dreams and design thoughts, and could create whatever space they’d like to create. It’s a very flexible place, and you can make it whatever you want it to be.”

The venue includes two main areas — the 3,800-square-foot West Room, which can accommodate 300 seated guests or 600 standing, and can be divided into two smaller spaces; and the 2,700-square-foot East Room, with space for 200 seated or 500 standing — as well as an outdoor patio. Weddings often use all of it, with perhaps a ceremony in one of the two large rooms and a reception in the other.

Event bookers, like Kyle and Liz, appreciate the quirky photos and unique memories the Boylston Rooms provide.
West On Jade Photography

Since opening in September, Witmer said, the Boylston Rooms have hosted many weddings, with plenty of positive response from the couples and guests alike, and bookings for 2018 are pouring in even faster. “We’re super blessed interms of response from the community.”

But the space accommodates many other events as well, from the inaugural ball for Easthampton’s new mayor to a fund-raiser for the town’s Fire Department; from a TEDx talk in November to upcoming events like an awards banquet and a play reading — all of them surrounded by the original wood columns, exposed brick, and visible ductwork that gives the building, as Witmer said, its considerable charm.

History Lesson

The Keystone building traces its history to the turn of the 20th century, when the West Boylston Co., a textile manufacturer incorporated in 1814, was forced to leave its namesake town when the Wachusett reservoir, which would have completely submerged the mill site, was in its planning stages.

In 1899, the company decided to dismantle the mill brick by brick and send it by train to Easthampton, where those same bricks were used to build Eastworks in 1908, and Keystone between 1907 and 1912.

“People enjoy the sense of history here, and we tried to keep as many historical elements of the space intact,” Witmer said. “When we purchased it, this was a gigantic, empty warehouse.”

But there was plenty of potential in the hardwood floors, the floor-to-ceiling windows, and the views of the Holyoke Range outdoors. She purposely kept her restoration plan simple, from incorporation of original fixtures as much as possible to the white-centric color design, which complements whatever palette each event booker wants to incorporate.

Parties have used string lights, LED uplighting, and other touches. “And you can hang things from the beams,” Witmer said. “We had a bride who made wreaths, which are amazing. Another bride made hundreds of paper cranes, which we hung from the beams; they were really spectacular, and something I never would have thought of. People can bring in their own ideas and their own dreams for the space, and we can make it happen.”

Meanwhile, Keystone is bustling with other activity, with its east wing fully tenanted by a range of businesses, its west wing quickly approaching full capacity, and plans to develop residential units on the third floor starting this spring. “So there’s a lot happening,” she added.

So it’s a busy time in the old mill, but not so much that service suffers; Witmer likes being a hands-on partner to groups that rent the Boylston Rooms, and has a special place in her heart for weddings.

“It’s a really special day, and on a very simple level, I love being able to make people happy — even in the smallest things, from having complementary champagne to making sure the DJ is playing the music they want to hear, or that every hanging thing is perfect, or that they’ve got all their gifts in the car at the end of the night,” she explained.

“A lot of times, the bride will turn to me before coming in — ‘do I look OK?’ And I can say, ‘yes, you look beautiful, and straighten their necklace, and they go in. Those little moments are incredibly important and special.”

The Big Day

‘Special’ is what Witmer was looking for when she and her husband invested in a run-down building that has become an economic engine on Pleasant Street — and a place where people can celebrate events large and small in a space that’s anything but the same old venue. People like Kyle and Liz.

“I love being a part of somebody’s wedding day,” Witmer said. “Every time the doors open and I see a bride and her father walking in, I tear up — every single time. It’s such an important day in someone’s life, and to be a part of it is such an honor.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

Normandeau Technologies Embraces a New World of Communication

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Sections Technology

Call Forward

Brett Normandeau says hot communication technologies like business texting are providing new opportunities for his nearly 30-year-old company.

Brett Normandeau recalls the early days of the company his father started 28 years ago, when installing telephone systems was simpler, and even voice mail seemed revolutionary. Those days are long gone, and companies, like NTI, that succeed in the world of business communication are navigating some fast-moving waters. But they’re also making work easier and less expensive for their clients, and those are goals that never go out of style.

After eight years in its headquarters on Riverdale Street in West Springfield, Brett Normandeau said he’s looking to move into a smaller space.

Simply put, while his company, Normandeau Technologies Inc. (NTI), is growing — to seven employees at present, after three recent hires — his space needs are shrinking, since technicians are performing more work remotely than ever before.

It’s one example of how NTI reflects the very business trends that impact the services it provides to customers.

The company has been been selling, installing, and servicing telephone systems for 28 years, with voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) technology — which uses the Internet to exchange various forms of communication that have traditionally been carried over land lines — serving as its main service focus over the past decade-plus.

It’s a technology that allows businesses to stay connected even when employees are far-flung — whether they’re working from home or in an office across the country.

Smartphones, however, are changing the game when it comes to phone systems, and newer developments like business texting and mass notification services — two niches Normandeau is particularly excited about — again evolving the way employers and employees communicate.

Kevin Hart is excited too — enough to return last year to the company he worked for many years ago, this time as director of business development.

“We’re looking to grow as a company. There’s a big market right now, and we’re ready for it,” he told BusinessWest, before noting that, as technology has evolved, so have client expectations. “We’re excited that we can do this more efficiently now than ever before. Customers appreciate that. They want their stuff fixed. The industry standard used to be two to three days response time, and now sometimes it’s within the hour.”

When my father started 28 years ago, all we did was run cable and service some telephone systems. That was even before voice mail. I remember that change, and thinking, ‘are we going to take this voice mail on?’ We started doing that, and it just progressed from there.”

So, while the company continues to make a name for itself in the fields of IP telephony, IP surveillance, data cabling, and cloud services, newer technologies continually shake up the game and provide plenty of opportunity for growth.

“What attracted Kevin to come back were the products and technologies we’re offering, and the opportunities he’s got to develop our business,” Normandeau said. “Business texting is huge, and so are emergency notification systems, as well as our traditional cloud and telephone systems, which have been the bread and butter of our business.”

While traditional phone systems are slowly changing over to cloud-based systems, plenty of companies are still behind the curve, he added, noting that such systems offer more integration, functionality, and control — and lower costs — than ever before. In short, it’s a good time to be in this business.

Beyond the Simple Phone

At its heart, Normandeau communications has been trading in phone systems since Ray Normandeau launched the enterprise in Florence in 1990, using money from an early-retirement package offered by a streamlining AT&T.

As Ray built his business on word of mouth and a few loyal customers, his son Brett started working alongside his father, having been licensed as an electrical journeyman shortly before Ray launched the company. He took over as president when his father retired about 16 years ago.

At the start, clients were mainly residential, but gradually, the emphasis turned to business customers, which today comprise the vast majority of the client base.

“When my father started 28 years ago, all we did was run cable and service some telephone systems. That was even before voice mail,” Normandeau said. “I remember that change, and thinking, ‘are we going to take this voice mail on?’ We started doing that, and it just progressed from there.”

NTI’s featured partners include LG-Ericsson, whose iPECS-LIK product further streamlines communication within any size business, from small offices to large corporations with thousands of users, managing all kinds of communication — phone calls, e-mails, texts, etc. — across multiple sites, under a single user interface. It’s a useful product for multi-site organizations, such as banks and their multiple branches.

Kevin Hart, standing in front of a phone from a different era, says customer expectations have evolved along with the technology.

Hart said businesses are starting to turn away from internal server networks that need occasional upgrading or replacing.

“Cloud-based systems today are effective, and they work, where 10 years ago they were heavily contingent on bandwidth,” he told BusinessWest. “The second-generation cloud-based systems at this point are not only reliable, but they’re usually cheaper than your current telephone bill.”

Added Normandeau, “it’s an operating expense as opposed to a capital expense, and that’s very attractive to businesses.”

On the business-texting front, Normandeau uses a platform called Captivated. On one side, a company’s contacts text it on a landline or published text number the business promotes. On the other side, a text comes into Captivated and the company handles it or easily transfers it to the right department or individual.

SEE: List of Computer Network/IT Services

The benefit, Normandeau said, is that people don’t answer phone calls as often as they used to, particularly from numbers they don’t recognize, scared off by the proliferation of robocalls — but they will look at texts, especially if the sender’s number is familiar.

In addition, service providers in all kinds of industries can use the system to reach customers if they’re running late for an appointment, while an auto mechanic working on a vehicle who sees additional problems can quickly get in touch with the customer and start working on the second problem — all of this, again, predicated on people being more likely to respond to texts than calls. “It’s a huge scheduling convenience,” Normandeau said.

In addition, all texts are centralized and saved in the cloud, providing a permanent record that isn’t available when technicians use their personal cell phones to contact customers.

In the realm of mass notification — a related but different technology than regular business texting — Normandeau uses the StaffAlerter platform, which was originally developed originally for the K-12 market, for campus security and other reasons. It uses templates by which messages can be sent out quickly to an entire subscriber list with the touch of a button.

“In an emergency, a schook teacher can automatically send an alert, a mass notification to all staff, that can also tie into their paging system throughout the school, so teachers can lock down the classrooms,” he explained.

But the applications are endless, Hart added, from sending alerts to snowplow drivers during the early-morning hours as a storm looms, to contacting large groups of off-duty nurses or police officers if a shift suddenly opens up. “Before, you’d have to call 30 people to get someone to come over and cover.”

Growth Pattern

Staff growth at NTI includes its new operations manager, Lindsey McGrath, who has 20 years of experience on the carrier side of the business, and Russell Diederich, a technician who spent 30 years at Verizon.

Those are the moves a company that knows it has opportunities to grow, Hart said.

“The lion’s share of companies still use legacy systems,” he noted. “Especially after the economic downturn in ’08 and ’09, they held on to what they had and were reluctant to make changes, but it’s no longer cost-effective to do it that way.”

He said he recently sold a new system to a client he had services 21 years ago, noting that “he got his money’s worth.”

“Truth be told,” Normandeau was quick to note, “a lot of those old phone systems still work. There’s a New England mentality of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’”

That said, he added, there are plenty of opportunities for companies to streamline their communications and save money if they’re willing to look into them.

Especially companies like NTI itself, which is scaling up its staff while downsizing its space because working remotely is the wave of the future.

“It makes far more sense when technicians and sales staff don’t have to come to a central point,” Hart said. “It saves a lot of ‘windshield time’ for sales and service techs when we have this platform. It’s better for customers and better for employees’ quality of life.”

That said, NTI isn’t resting on its laurels, Normandeau said, noting that he takes part in IT networks and conferences with an eye on the next big thing in communications. “I’m going to the IT Expo in Florida next month to check out the latest and greatest,” he said — and bring that knowledge back to a company that has evolved significantly since the days when voice mail was all the rage.

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]

Willys-Overland Property Might Become a Growth Engine

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Commercial Real Estate Sections

Vehicle for Growth?

The Willys-Overland building on Chestnut Street has a proud past, and developers now believe it has an intriguing future as market-rate housing.

Chuck Irving says the property at 151 Chestnut St. in Springfield — known to the well-informed as the Willys-Overland Building because the long-defunct car maker had a showroom on its first floor and a 1,000-car garage above — caught his attention some time ago, after it was damaged and then abandoned after the natural-gas explosion in late 2012.

And he thought it had some potential.

But what really opened his eyes was the rebirth of an almost identical property in Detroit also built by Willys-Overland.

Irving recalled googling ‘Willys-Overland Lofts,’ the name of the housing complex the site was converted into (just as BusinessWest did, and you can) and seeing headlines about relatively small but well-appointed units selling for north of $500,000. And going fast.

“We started reading the articles about the same building in Detroit,” recalled Irving, a principal with Boston-based Davenport Properties. “We went online, looked at the pictures … and it was an incredibly attractive property. And so we started looking at this building, thinking, ‘if it’s structurally sound, this is a great opportunity, because it comes with parking.’”

Indeed, seeing what happened in Detroit and coupling that with what readily appears to be a growing need for market-rate housing as the countdown to MGM Springfield’s opening hits eight, maybe nine months, the Springfield property’s potential soared in Irving’s eyes.

Enough to make the 70,000-square-foot, four-story structure Davenport Property’s latest investment in the City of Homes and the region as a whole. Others include the Springfield Plaza, the Hadley Mall, and the Walmart in Westfield.

SEE: Listings of Available Commercial Properties

“Our company is involved with MGM,” said Irving, noting that the company considers itself MGM’s development partner in Springfield. “And we’ve been watching the employees of the company come into the area, especially the young ones, and looking at their perception of the inventory of available apartments. Through their eyes, it became really clear that there was a need for more market-rate housing in Springfield.”

Whether the Chestnut Street property in Springfield can follow the lead of its twin in Detroit is a huge question mark, one that will hopefully be answered by extensive cost-benefit analysis work in the weeks and months to come, or what Irving called “calibrating Springfield’s market rents with construction costs.”

But he believes the property is certainly a sound investment and that the building will play a key role in the revitalization of the city and especially the area that has come to be known colloquially as the ‘blast zone.’

Kevin Kennedy, Springfield’s chief Development officer, agreed. He said the Willys project, if it develops as Davenport believes it could, might become a catalyst for the blast zone, an area bordered, roughly, by Lyman Street to the north, Dwight Street to the west, Pearl and Hillman streets to the south, and Spring Street to the east.

“There are other investors looking into that area, which we’re calling the ‘next frontier’ in Springfield,” he told BusinessWest, adding that the conditions are favorable for more housing initiatives and related businesses in that zone.

These conditions include everything from MGM and other job-creating ventures in and around downtown to the revitalization of Union Station, just a block or so to the north of the Willys building, to an interest among Millennials and also some retiring Baby Boomers in what Kennedy called “urban living.”

“When you calculate all the jobs that are going to be happening in the downtown and the Springfield area in general, and also take into account the fact that urban living is making a comeback, as well as the growing entertainment options in that area … all these things make this project viable and add up to something good for Springfield,” he said.

A new life as housing would only be the latest chapter in the intriguing history of what has come to be known as the Willys-Overland Block Local Historic District, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

Built in 1916 as an automobile sales, service, and garaging area, the property became part of what would later be described as an auto-industry legacy in Springfield. Indeed, the Duryea brothers created the first marketable auto in Springfield — there’s a statue depicting their creation near Stearns Square — and Rolls-Royce located a plant in the city to capitalize on its highly skilled workforce.

But Willys-Overland, like the others, did not enjoy a long history in the city. Indeed, it closed its property here in 1921 due to slumping sales, and it has seen a number of uses since.

It was a primarily a parking garage for some of the downtown hotels before they were converted into condominiums, said Irving, and after that, it served as home to a host of businesses, ranging from Square One to a construction company.

These operations were forced out by the gas explosion in late November 2012, he went on, adding that the building was completely gutted and has been vacant, with most of the windows covered with plywood, ever since.

Above, a news story announces the opening of the Willys-Overland building in 1916. At right, the Willys-Overland property in Detroit, which has been transformed into lofts selling for more than $500,000.

Below, a news story announces the opening of the Willys-Overland building in 1916. At right, the Willys-Overland property in Detroit, which has been transformed into lofts selling for more than $500,000.

The previous owner applied for a demolition permit in January 2015, but the city sought and won a delay of that move due to the property’s historic significance.

It was this delay that essentially gave the property a reprieve — time for more progress to take shape in Springfield, time for a recognized need for more market-rate housing to emerge, and, yes, time for the Willys-Overland Lofts project to catch fire — and catch Davenport’s attention.

As noted, the Springfield Willys-Overland property is an intriguing addition to an already large and diverse portfolio of properties in Western Mass.

Perhaps the most visible is the Springfield Plaza, which has undergone an extensive facelift and added new tenants ranging from a trampoline complex to a new home for Springfield’s Registry of Motor Vehicles office, which, said Irving, has brought a significant surge in traffic to the plaza.

The portfolio also includes a retail complex across the street from the Eastfield Mall and what’s known as Davenport Square in Springfield, at the corner of Union and Main streets across from MGM Springfield. The development will include MGM’s daycare facility as well as some retail.

As for the Willys-Overland building, the next steps in the process of writing the next chapter in its history are finalizing designs, crunching the numbers, as noted earlier, and requesting support for historic tax credits, said Irving, adding that redevelopment is dependent on such tax credits and other forms of assistance.

While the reuse plans are still in their infancy, Irving anticipates perhaps 60 units of relatively small size, with a portion of the building to be used for parking.

“It’s got great bones, and it’s absolutely perfect for apartments with the column spacing,” he noted. “What we’re trying to go after is small — really small units for young professionals who don’t want the price of having a big space.

“Our take on it is that it’s a great investment,” he went on. “We’re not certain that the market rents will support the construction costs, and we’re still verifying that. But in the long run, we think Springfield is on the upswing, so whether it’s this year or next year, we’re convinced that this will be a great residential investment.”

As for the blast zone, or Springfield’s ‘next frontier,’ as Kennedy called it, progress has come slow to that area, with the gas explosion now more than five years in the rear-view mirror.

This can be attributed to several factors, he went on, including the slow pace of insurance settlements on many of the properties in the zone (including the Willys-Overland building) and a desire among investors to see how and in what ways Springfield continued its revitalization.

But Kennedy believes the Willys-Overland project could trigger other developments in that area and other housing initiatives as well. And Irving agreed.

“The Springfield market, in our mind, is about to blossom,” he told BusinessWest. “And so, this is a good place to be on the ground level.

“This is a small project at 60 units,” he went on. “If this tests out and verifies that market rates can support new construction, then this will be a catalyst for that entire area.”

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

HMC Adds Westfield Property to Growing Portfolio

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Commercial Real Estate Sections

Progress in Site

An aerial shot of 70 Turnpike Industrial Park Road in Westfield.

Michael Grossman says his New York-based firm, HMC Real Estate Partners, looks at several hundred properties in the Northeast corridor over the course of a year — at least a few per week, by his estimate.

When asked what prompts he and partners Barry Lefkowitz and Brendan Kolnick to move beyond looking — or well beyond, as the case may be — and make an addition to their growing portfolio of properties, he said there are a number of factors that go into that equation.

These include everything from that time-honored first consideration in real estate — location, location, location — to the condition of the property, the condition of the local market, demand for the type of real estate in question, and a host of other variables.

And every one of those boxes could be checked when it came to a property now marketed as 70 Turnpike Industrial Road, known to most as the National Envelope site, because that was the tenant there for a number of years before it vacated the property in 2015.

“We saw great potential for value creation,” said Grossman. “The project represents an excellent opportunity to turn a non-performing property into a productive asset for the community as well as our investors.”

Elaborating on this potential, Grossman noted that the property is located roughly a mile from Mass Pike exit 3 (you can almost see the highway from the property), and also has rail accessibility. What’s more, it has size (238,575 square feet) and flexibility in that it is suited for both production and warehousing, and is in good condition, especially following more than $1 million in work to the roof, replacement mechanical systems, and more.

Add in a strong market for manufacturing and distribution space, fostered by dwindling inventory, and a city eager to replace the jobs lost when National Envelope left the city, and it’s easy to see why HMC pursued the property and thus greatly increased its presence in the region.

Indeed, this is the company’s second major acquisition in Western Mass. in 2017; the other was the fully leased, 187,840-square-foot warehouse building in the Agawam Regional Industrial Park, home to OMG and Vaupel.

Michael Grossman says acquisition of the Turnpike Industrial Park property represents an opportunity to turn a non-performing property into a real asset for the city and the region.

The company also owns a large industrial property in New Jersey, and the portfolio now boasts nearly 1 million square feet of industrial and distribution facilities.

Grossman joined fellow industry veterans Lefkowitz and Kolnick in creating HMC in 2016, with Grossman and Lefkowitz both having left Mack-Cali Realty Corp., a public, multi-billion-dollar real-estate investment trust, to start their own company.

HMC focuses primarily on acquiring multi-tenant industrial and office-flex properties, Grossman explained, adding that the company had developed a strong working relationship with many of the top real-estate-services firms, including Cushman & Wakefield, which put the Westfield property on HMC’s radar and is now its agent.

The company’s principals saw a property that needed some work — there was a considerable amount of deferred maintenance — but also great potential in what would be a new role, that of home to multiple tenants.

And Grossman, as he offered BusinessWest a tour and pointed out its open spaces, high ceilings (up to 36 feet in some portions of the facility), and 12,000 square feet of office space, envisioned up to four tenants.

“We’re looking at assembly, manufacturing, and straight distribution,” he explained. “The building lends itself to manufacturing because of the extensive power.”

The logo created to accompany marketing materials for the property does an effective job of highlighting some of its many assets, especially that strategic location part.

Indeed, curving their way around a large ‘70’ (the street address) are four lanes of highway and some railroad track. The roadway is the Turnpike, obviously, the west-bound lanes of which are less than 100 yards from the back of the property. The railroad track signifies the potential to create a spur that would connect the property to a rail line running through the north side of the city. National Envelope never used rail service, but the potential is certainly there for future tenants to do so, Grossman said.

Potential is a word you hear early and often in reference to this property, and Grossman and his partners are confident that it won’t be long before this potential is realized.

— George O’Brien

For Sale, for Lease

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Commercial Real Estate Sections

A listing of available commercial properties

Building Permits

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Building Permits Departments

The following building permits were issued during the month of January 2018.

AGAWAM

Oak Ridge Golf Club Inc.
850 South Westfield St.
$15,000 – Verizon Wireless replacing three antennas with new models and adding three to existing cell tower

CHICOPEE

Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield
202 East Main St.
$69,000 – Code upgrades to Mary’s House of Prayer

DEERFIELD

Deerfield Academy
7 Boydon Lane
$2,490,000 – Erect roof over tennis courts

Deerfield Academy
1 Albany Road
$13,021 – Re-roof dining hall

Yankee Candle
16 Yankee Candle Way
$132,000 – Re-roof building, add insulation and sump at roof drains

EASTHAMPTON

Keystone Enterprises
122 Pleasant St.
$2,640 – Remove internal stairway, construct non-load-bearing demising wall

One Northampton St. Inc.
1 Northampton St.
$18,000 – Install replacement windows

Williston Northampton School
40-50 Park St.
$21,300 – Roofing on gymnasium

EAST LONGMEADOW

Dores Dental
281 Maple St.
$210,500 – Interior commercial renovations

First Congregational Church
239 Porter Road
$3,200 – Insulation

W.F. Young
302 Benton Dr.
$71,000 – Solar

GREENFIELD

CC MA Realty, LLC
7 Legion Ave.
$36,550 – Install new wet and dry sprinkler system

LONGMEADOW

Hair Studio One Inc.
20 Cross St.
$4,625 – Roof replacement

LUDLOW

Ludlow Fish & Game
857 Sportsmen’s Road
$2,100 – Commercial alterations

NORTHAMPTON

Atwood Drive, LLC
22 Atwood Dr.
$18,500 – Illuminated wall sign for Cooley Dickinson Health Care

Atwood Drive, LLC
22 Atwood Dr.
$16,500 – Illuminated wall sign for Cooley Dickinson Health Care

Atwood Drive, LLC
22 Atwood Dr.
$8,000 – Illuminated wall sign for Cooley Dickinson Health Care

First Church of Christ, Scientist
46 Center St.
$11,935 – Temporary egress stairs and porch deck

Florence Bank
491 Pleasant St.
$3,360 – Illuminated wall sign

Lathrop Community Inc.
680 Bridge St.
$10,000 – Remove kitchen cabinets; install new cabinets, floor, and sink

Malvern PANalytical
22 Industrial Dr.
$7,000 – Replace windows on second floor

Smith College
84 Elm St.
$11,000 – Office renovation

Smith College
51 Belmont Ave.
$16,000 – Install new roof

PALMER

Camp Ramah of New England
29 Bennet St.
$9,500 – Repair floors in bathrooms in four bunks, remove and reset showers and sinks

SOUTHWICK

Lodestar Energy
63 Congamond Road
$3,692,333 – Solar

SPRINGFIELD

Boston Rd./Pasco Rt. 20 Retail, LLC
1300B Boston Road
$62,600 – Interior tenant fit-out

Mercy Medical Center
299 Carew St.
$85,630 – Create X-ray room out of two offices, remodel two offices

Phillips Edison & Co.
380 Cooley St.
$3,337 – Install horn strobes and initiating devices and connect to landlord’s fire-alarm panel

Springfield Redevelopment Authority
55 Frank B. Murray St.
$900,000 – Fit out third floor of Union Station for future Peter Pan Bus Lines offices

WARE

Country Bank
75 Main St.
$41,384 – Roofing

Country Corners Storage
50 Greenwich Road
$48,400 – Storage trailer

WESTFIELD

FRP Holdings Westfield, LLC
24 Main St.
$68,127 – Remodel store, new bathroom, add two offices

Noble Hospital
115 West Silver St.
$17,254 – Rework three office spaces to create IT server room

Tyrone Co.
14 Sycamore St.
$42,000 – Convert garage into apartment

WEST SPRINGFIELD

Albert Keinath
888 Main St.
$7,385 – Assemble exhaust duct

Saremi, LLP
442 Main St.
$3,500 – Repair due to fire

WILBRAHAM

McClure Insurance
2361 Boston Road
$2,400 – Replace sign

Real Estate Transactions

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

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

ASHFIELD

Apple Valley Road
Ashfield, MA 01330
Amount: $514,995
Buyer: Gary Epstein
Seller: Robert L. Pratt
Date: 12/28/17

BERNARDSTON

808 Brattleboro Road
Bernardston, MA 01337
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Bradley J. Letourneau
Seller: Clifford C. Spatcher
Date: 12/28/17

61 Deane Road
Bernardston, MA 01337
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Robert A. Deane
Seller: Bank Of America
Date: 12/18/17

COLRAIN

1 Church St.
Colrain, MA 01340
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Megan N. Weller
Seller: Ann M. Martin
Date: 12/19/17

CONWAY

34 Academy Hill Road
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Josephine Lally
Seller: Nicholas Potter
Date: 12/19/17

38 Academy Hill Road
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Josephine Lally
Seller: Nicholas Potter
Date: 12/19/17

201 Maple St.
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Scott Hoffman
Seller: William Sheehan
Date: 12/29/17

2701 Shelburne Falls Road
Conway, MA 01341
Amount: $180,500
Buyer: Bear River Investments
Seller: Sara Logan
Date: 12/21/17

GILL

143 Barney Hale Road
Gill, MA 01354
Amount: $156,000
Buyer: Nicole A. Coombs
Seller: Wells Fargo Bank
Date: 12/29/17

GREENFIELD

12 Armory St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Claire Huttlinger
Seller: George R. Marchacos
Date: 12/26/17

117 Beacon St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Judith M. Maloney
Seller: Laurel J. Brocklesby
Date: 12/29/17

1 Harrison Ave.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $212,500
Buyer: Jody P. James
Seller: PDV Inc.
Date: 12/29/17

22 Little Ave.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $173,000
Buyer: Jodie L. Suhl
Seller: Kempf, Jean P., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

86 Meridian St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: James A. Hazel
Seller: FNMA
Date: 12/29/17

125 Mohawk Trail
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $1,597,650
Buyer: Parmar Properties North
Seller: Shree Vinayak Inc.
Date: 12/29/17

33 Norwood St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $194,000
Buyer: Dorothea L. Melnicoff
Seller: PDV Inc.
Date: 12/28/17

33 Norwood St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $171,963
Buyer: PDV Inc.
Seller: Jason M. Thompson
Date: 12/20/17

69 Oakland St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $259,500
Buyer: Nancy Y Conant
Seller: Jeffrey I. Scroggin
Date: 12/22/17

49 Phyllis Lane
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $291,000
Buyer: Yuriy Kovrizhnykh
Seller: Kenneth J. Cook
Date: 12/28/17

30 River St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Christopher H. Martenson
Seller: Robert G. Wallitis
Date: 12/28/17

98 River St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $197,000
Buyer: Darren S. Schmidt
Seller: George M. Sanford
Date: 12/19/17

35 Sauter Lane
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Silvio Lima
Seller: Michael S. Mota
Date: 12/21/17

204 Wells St.
Greenfield, MA 01301
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: Patricia Simmons
Seller: Laurie A. Newsome
Date: 12/20/17

LEYDEN

West Leyden Road
Leyden, MA 01301
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: S. Lisa Hayes
Seller: Damon, Edwin H. Jr. (Estate)
Date: 12/29/17

MONTAGUE

14-16 3rd St.
Montague, MA 01376
Amount: $323,000
Buyer: 108 Properties LLC
Seller: Steven W. Rossetti
Date: 12/27/17

79 7th St.
Montague, MA 01376
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Jesse Hall
Seller: David W. Bartlett
Date: 12/29/17

6 Gunn Road
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $318,000
Buyer: Cameron T. Gray
Seller: Trevor J. Allenby
Date: 12/28/17

43 Hillside Road
Montague, MA 01351
Amount: $194,000
Buyer: Steven S. Gochinski
Seller: PDV Inc.
Date: 12/22/17

74 Montague St.
Montague, MA 01376
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: James E. Adams
Seller: Balboni, Robert H., (Estate)
Date: 12/19/17

NORTHFIELD

54 Pine St.
Northfield, MA 01360
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Walter A. Smith
Seller: Donald B. Randall
Date: 12/28/17

ORANGE

136 Brookside Road
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $493,000
Buyer: WM Realty Holdings NH LLC
Seller: BD Waterford Real Estate
Date: 12/22/17

53 Burrill Ave.
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Wells Fargo Bank
Seller: Maureen D. Wright
Date: 12/22/17

167 East Main St.
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $493,000
Buyer: WM Realty Holdings NH LLC
Seller: BD Waterford Real Estate
Date: 12/22/17

3 Memory Lane
Orange, MA 01364
Amount: $164,500
Buyer: John A. Gallagher
Seller: Daniel Stoodley
Date: 12/22/17

SHUTESBURY

7 Oak Knoll
Shutesbury, MA 01072
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Phil Potts Roaring Bluff
Seller: Aaron M. Snow
Date: 12/20/17

SUNDERLAND

41 South Silver Lane
Sunderland, MA 01375
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Vincent J. Tran
Seller: Michael A. Wissemann
Date: 12/29/17

WENDELL

9 Davis Turn Road
Wendell, MA 01379
Amount: $183,000
Buyer: Aaron M. Snow
Seller: David M. Beck
Date: 12/21/17

WHATELY

63 Long Plain Road
Whately, MA 01373
Amount: $500,000
Buyer: Ryan P. Bailey
Seller: Wilcox Builders Inc.
Date: 12/22/17

100 State Road
Whately, MA 01093
Amount: $700,000
Buyer: P&M Holding LLC
Seller: ALDT Realty LLC
Date: 12/29/17

31 Swamp Road
Whately, MA 01093
Amount: $410,000
Buyer: David J. Limero
Seller: Eileen Buckowski
Date: 12/20/17

HAMPDEN COUNTY

AGAWAM

84-86 Bridge St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $171,500
Buyer: Valley Building Co. LLC
Seller: Frederick D. Fusco
Date: 12/19/17

5 Elmar Dr.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $265,000
Buyer: Devin T. Galloway
Seller: Mark R. Verville
Date: 12/29/17

Franklin St. Ext.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $266,000
Buyer: Yegor Muravskiy
Seller: Shirley G. Drenzek
Date: 12/29/17

19 Horsham Place
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $258,000
Buyer: Mark L. Berthiaume
Seller: Robert L. Loomis
Date: 12/28/17

515 Mill St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $266,000
Buyer: Yegor Muravskiy
Seller: Shirley G. Drenzek
Date: 12/29/17

131-137 Moore St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $255,000
Buyer: Susan Grossberg
Seller: RAK Realty Assocs. LLC
Date: 12/29/17

703 North St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $181,000
Buyer: Andrei Klimov
Seller: Thomas J. Davis
Date: 12/29/17

326 North West St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $219,000
Buyer: William G. Grimaldi
Seller: Robert P. Ollari
Date: 12/22/17

51 Peros Dr.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $194,900
Buyer: Marta M. Rodriguez
Seller: Teresa A. Frogameni
Date: 12/20/17

107 Reed St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Viktoriya Tikhomirova
Seller: Edward A. Walters-Zucco
Date: 12/29/17

521 South West St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $224,000
Buyer: Jessica L. Breton
Seller: David J. Limero
Date: 12/20/17

371 Southwick St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $135,000
Buyer: Southwick Street RT
Seller: Dion L. Berte
Date: 12/29/17

576 Southwick St.
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $199,900
Buyer: James K. Burghoff
Seller: Donna M. Santos
Date: 12/22/17

399-401 Springfield St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Tina Nguyen
Seller: Geraldo V. Perez
Date: 12/20/17

1673 Suffield St.
Agawam, MA 01001
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Igor Banar
Seller: Carol J. Pananas
Date: 12/22/17

2 Westview Lane
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $254,238
Buyer: FHLM
Seller: Mikhail S. Sergeychik
Date: 12/21/17

17 Wilbert Terrace
Agawam, MA 01030
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Kathleen A. Klimoski
Seller: Kristen L. Buoniconti
Date: 12/29/17

BLANDFORD

6 Wyman Road
Blandford, MA 01008
Amount: $141,000
Buyer: James Start
Seller: Ian T. McEwan
Date: 12/22/17

BRIMFIELD

167 Warren Road
Brimfield, MA 01010
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Gail L. West
Seller: Burnham, Patricia M., (Estate)
Date: 12/21/17

CHICOPEE

21 Academy St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $195,000
Buyer: Michelle R. Filiau
Seller: Suzanne Murphy
Date: 12/29/17

6 Dejordy Lane
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $267,000
Buyer: Eugene R. Lapierre
Seller: David Geoffroy
Date: 12/29/17

428 East Main St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $144,000
Buyer: John R. Wolowicz
Seller: Edward S. Wolowicz
Date: 12/21/17

19 Freedom St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $156,000
Buyer: Stephanie M. Marotte
Seller: Karen J. Chlosta
Date: 12/27/17

76 Lawndale St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Veniamin Telelyuyev
Seller: Vasiliy Telelyuyev
Date: 12/22/17

15 Leclair Terrace
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $170,000
Buyer: O’Connor Rentals LLC
Seller: Peter A. Desrosiers
Date: 12/29/17

49 Mary St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $212,000
Buyer: Eirielle Granger
Seller: Adrien F. Goulet
Date: 12/26/17

665 McKinstry Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $115,000
Buyer: Thomas J. Dowd
Seller: Lemieux, Janet E., (Estate)
Date: 12/29/17

49 Montgomery St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Nzabandora Appolinaire
Seller: MS Homes LLC
Date: 12/26/17

17 Moore St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Stephen S. Storozuk
Seller: Lisa A. Lonczak
Date: 12/22/17

71 Nye St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $164,000
Buyer: Sylwia A. Boryczka
Seller: Deborah A. Kvarnstrom
Date: 12/29/17

7 Otis St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $220,000
Buyer: Adrian Cedeno
Seller: Jane M. Wysocki
Date: 12/28/17

40 Pickering St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $247,000
Buyer: J. Townsend-Butterworth
Seller: David Abert
Date: 12/18/17

40 Plymouth St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Karen M. Boisjolie
Seller: Constance A. Houle
Date: 12/28/17

89 Royalton St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Joshua Donohue
Seller: John E. Duda
Date: 12/29/17

35 Savory Dr.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $315,000
Buyer: Todd A. Beaudoin
Seller: Kevin T. Laplante
Date: 12/22/17

22 Suzanne St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Amount: $117,000
Buyer: Steven J. Niedbala
Seller: FNMA
Date: 12/18/17

58 Taft Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Gabriel Morales-Velez
Seller: Amy L. Guyott
Date: 12/22/17

164 Wheatland Ave.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Amount: $245,000
Buyer: Derek T. Topulos
Seller: Scott M. Haselkorn
Date: 12/29/17

EAST LONGMEADOW

Baldwin St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $435,000
Buyer: Baldwin Street LLC
Seller: D&C Properties Inc.
Date: 12/22/17

11 Crescent Hill
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $178,000
Buyer: Sarah E. Metcalf
Seller: Peter D. Abel
Date: 12/21/17

5 Donamor Lane
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $203,000
Buyer: Cynthia R. Palmer
Seller: Imogen Foster
Date: 12/20/17

14 High Meadow Circle
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $625,000
Buyer: Robert A. Weishaus
Seller: Hal B. Jenson
Date: 12/29/17

6 Kelsey St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $259,000
Buyer: Michael C. Healey
Seller: Charles M. Healey
Date: 12/21/17

28 Kibbe Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $235,000
Buyer: Mark E. Evans
Seller: Brian M. McGrath
Date: 12/22/17

313 Maple St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $500,000
Buyer: Fairview Extend Care Services
Seller: Meadows Realty Holdings
Date: 12/28/17

7 Melwood Ave.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $316,000
Buyer: Donna M. Prather
Seller: Victor Degray
Date: 12/22/17

Parker St.
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Love Of FT
Seller: William F. Johnson
Date: 12/21/17

43 Pembroke Terrace
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $455,000
Buyer: Ruben Vaidya
Seller: R. Bruce Snyder
Date: 12/29/17

472 Porter Road
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Mariano Dross
Seller: Irving C. Ostrander
Date: 12/22/17

10 Silver Fox Lane
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $323,839
Buyer: C&M Builders LLC
Seller: John F. Cassidy
Date: 12/19/17

23 Wilder Lane
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
Amount: $255,000
Buyer: Alan P. Coppolo
Seller: Dennis M. Welch
Date: 12/20/17

GRANVILLE

1572 Main Road
Granville, MA 01034
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: David A. Burl
Seller: Anthony Melchionno
Date: 12/28/17

HAMPDEN

25 Kibbe Lane
Hampden, MA 01036
Amount: $479,000
Buyer: Gregory W. Simonelli
Seller: Custom Homes Development
Date: 12/28/17

HOLLAND

10 Julia Ann Dr.
Holland, MA 01521
Amount: $235,000
Buyer: Edward L. Fisher
Seller: David A. Lopez
Date: 12/29/17

HOLYOKE

94 Beacon Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $172,000
Buyer: Ileana M. Cruz
Seller: Donna W. Hoener
Date: 12/18/17

209 Beech St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Marcela Gebara
Seller: Melissa A. O’Connell
Date: 12/22/17

36 Elliot St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $274,900
Buyer: Reinaldo Cruz
Seller: Steven J. Moran
Date: 12/21/17

25 Erie Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $188,000
Buyer: Philip A. Momnie
Seller: Wesley Lukas
Date: 12/29/17

81 Hillside Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Ray A. Phillips
Seller: William T. Lyle
Date: 12/18/17

330 Mackenzie Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Kathryn J. Fleming
Seller: Bank Of America
Date: 12/29/17

1655 Northampton St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Valley Building Co. Inc.
Seller: Jane L. Rodrigue
Date: 12/21/17

1678 Northampton St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $255,000
Buyer: Gallagher Properties LLC
Seller: Elizabeth A. Cartier
Date: 12/18/17

1698-1700 Northampton St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Andrew R. Weibel
Seller: Champigny, Thomas R., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

158 Ontario Ave.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $192,000
Buyer: Alexandro S. Laftsidis
Seller: Ernest E. Smith
Date: 12/20/17

9 Vadnais St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Ailin Borkowski
Seller: Maureen A. Connor
Date: 12/28/17

57 West Glen St.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $136,595
Buyer: Bank Of America
Seller: Tina Leclair
Date: 12/28/17

44-46 Westfield Road
Holyoke, MA 01040
Amount: $146,500
Buyer: Max C. Hebert
Seller: Carolyn E. Henneman
Date: 12/20/17

LONGMEADOW

111 Captain Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $626,000
Buyer: Nehal P. Patel
Seller: Williams J. Dupont
Date: 12/18/17

71 Lawrence Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $557,000
Buyer: Gregory S. Diamond
Seller: Martin E. Upperton
Date: 12/22/17

863 Maple Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $258,000
Buyer: Chuan Lin
Seller: Timothy J. Bannon
Date: 12/29/17

270 Park Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $343,875
Buyer: Robert Kushner
Seller: Nationstar Mortgage LLC
Date: 12/18/17

550 Pinewood Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $681,000
Buyer: JBSB 550 Pinewood RT
Seller: Patti G. Glenn
Date: 12/21/17

80 Primrose Dr.
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Amount: $400,000
Buyer: Jeffrey D. Katz
Seller: Lawrence B. Katz
Date: 12/29/17

LUDLOW

38 Circuit Ave.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $176,278
Buyer: Melissa L. Smith
Seller: Mark J. Reilly
Date: 12/22/17

134 Colonial Dr.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $317,615
Buyer: Linda E. Bourcier RET
Seller: Artur D. Demoura
Date: 12/22/17

24 Holy Cross Circle
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Colm E. Landers
Seller: Mary A. Driscoll
Date: 12/29/17

115 Howard St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $123,000
Buyer: JP Morgan Chase Bank
Seller: Kimberly A. Pellegrini
Date: 12/27/17

371 Miller St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Joseph S. Pio
Seller: M&G Investors LLC
Date: 12/26/17

630 West St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $118,000
Buyer: E&G Joint Venture NT
Seller: Aimee Y Arizmendi-Pagan
Date: 12/27/17

36 Williams St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
Amount: $136,000
Buyer: Hussein T. Alsammaraee
Seller: Lucille K. Hancock
Date: 12/20/17

MONSON

20 Chestnut St.
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: Thomas A. Boyer
Seller: Michele D. Byrne
Date: 12/27/17

3 Country Club Lane
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Thomas D. Piendak
Seller: David Z Podworski
Date: 12/20/17

32 Main St.
Monson, MA 01057
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: BG Real Estate Inc.
Seller: Robert S. Dix
Date: 12/29/17

PALMER

152-156 Bourne St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $248,000
Buyer: Robert A. Smus
Seller: Warren H. Spears
Date: 12/22/17

215 Burlingame Road
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $127,000
Buyer: Keith E. Leaning
Seller: Ronald G. Belling
Date: 12/29/17

7 Desimone Dr.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $292,500
Buyer: Paul Eusebio
Seller: Peter D. Baruffaldi
Date: 12/21/17

61 East Palmer Park Dr.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $192,000
Buyer: HSBC Bank USA
Seller: Kelly L. Robbins
Date: 12/28/17

153 Jim Ash Road
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $254,000
Buyer: Wess F. Jarvis
Seller: William W. Gravel
Date: 12/22/17

7 Kelly Road
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Collin Vartanian
Seller: Aram Vartanian
Date: 12/29/17

1427 North Main St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Gaoli LLC
Seller: David Chau
Date: 12/22/17

9 South St.
Palmer, MA 01080
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Charles G. Nothe
Seller: James F. Kapinos
Date: 12/19/17

42-48 Stewart St.
Palmer, MA 01069
Amount: $120,000
Buyer: Ruby Realty LLC
Seller: Edward J. Philbrook
Date: 12/29/17

SOUTHWICK

185 Feeding Hills Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $167,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Elizabeth Gomez
Date: 12/19/17

12 Hunters Ridge Circle
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $379,900
Buyer: J. A. Santos-Villanueva
Seller: Richard D. Bossie
Date: 12/29/17

33 Miller Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $205,500
Buyer: Denise A. Dorazio
Seller: William W. Motyl
Date: 12/22/17

283 South Longyard Road
Southwick, MA 01077
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Daniel M. Felix
Seller: Dorothy R. Cauthen
Date: 12/29/17

SPRINGFIELD

100-102 Abbe Ave.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Luis G. Vergara
Seller: Edward Boczon
Date: 12/22/17

93 Agnes St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Maxine D. Moultrie
Seller: Connie L. Johnson
Date: 12/28/17

6 Andrew St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $3,687,750
Buyer: BMG Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

41 Ansara St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $149,000
Buyer: Jose Rivera
Seller: Michelle L. Bilodeau
Date: 12/20/17

90 Atwater Road
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $192,500
Buyer: J. R. Villanueva-Figueroa
Seller: Nahabed L. Charkoudian
Date: 12/27/17

71 Avon Place
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $415,000
Buyer: Rawal Realty LLC
Seller: Glory Realty LLC
Date: 12/29/17

73-R Avon Place
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $415,000
Buyer: Rawal Realty LLC
Seller: Glory Realty LLC
Date: 12/29/17

34-36 Belmont Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $3,687,750
Buyer: BMG Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

65 Belmont Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $1,012,250
Buyer: 65 Belmont Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

102-104 Blaine St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $178,000
Buyer: Anthony Thornton
Seller: Mark B. Pease
Date: 12/28/17

819 Bradley Road
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $133,000
Buyer: Christopher C. Walker
Seller: Timothy Flouton
Date: 12/29/17

45 Burnside Terrace
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $140,000
Buyer: Omotunde M. Bailey
Seller: Randy E. Nick
Date: 12/19/17

122 Chestnut St.
Springfield, MA 01103
Amount: $4,800,000
Buyer: 3 Chestnut LLC
Seller: 122 Chestnut LLC
Date: 12/29/17

151-157 Chestnut St.
Springfield, MA 01103
Amount: $450,000
Buyer: Chestnut Acquisitions LLC
Seller: Ciocca Construction Corp.
Date: 12/28/17

32-34 Continental St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $156,000
Buyer: Edid T. Figueroa-Santiago
Seller: Henry J. Vargas
Date: 12/19/17

31 Cottonwood Lane
Springfield, MA 01128
Amount: $168,000
Buyer: Matthew P. David
Seller: Catherine E. Adornato
Date: 12/28/17

79 Dana St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $142,500
Buyer: Felix Rosado
Seller: Lisa Santaniello
Date: 12/19/17

11 Derryfield Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $130,000
Buyer: Shavone L. Gauthier
Seller: Bryar, Phyllis H., (Estate)
Date: 12/28/17

178 Denver St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Amanda Duda
Seller: Chad Lynch
Date: 12/18/17

48 Drexel St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Andrea Martinez
Seller: Richardo James
Date: 12/21/17

19 Edendale St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $162,000
Buyer: Shelby R. Bouchard
Seller: Christian B. Wiernasz
Date: 12/21/17

42 End St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $152,000
Buyer: Firas I. Kotaich
Seller: Junior Properties LLC
Date: 12/28/17

33 Fort Pleasant Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $3,687,750
Buyer: BMG Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

80 Greaney St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $171,000
Buyer: Arelis Roy
Seller: Megazzini FT
Date: 12/29/17

141 Hadley St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $178,000
Buyer: Kari A. Stewart
Seller: Lori A. Blocher
Date: 12/29/17

16 Harkness Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $142,000
Buyer: Katie E. Byrne
Seller: Tina Forbes
Date: 12/22/17

44 Herman St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $129,000
Buyer: Elsie M. Rodriguez
Seller: Ethep P. Donahue
Date: 12/29/17

26 Huntington St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $145,500
Buyer: Nicholas R. Dejesus
Seller: Christopher Michniewicz
Date: 12/22/17

125 Ithaca St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Amanda J. Hill
Seller: Ting Chang
Date: 12/29/17

45 Kimberly Ave.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $124,100
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Patrick Gonzalez
Date: 12/19/17

7 Lancaster St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $133,000
Buyer: David A. Rivera
Seller: Donald H. Ayotte
Date: 12/22/17

17 Leyfred Terrace
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $1,012,250
Buyer: 65 Belmont Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

288 Locust St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $3,687,750
Buyer: BMG Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

75 Lyons St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $151,000
Buyer: C. M. Fernandez-Garcia
Seller: Kavork M. Merigian
Date: 12/19/17

3111 Main St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $750,000
Buyer: Zahoor U. Haq
Seller: GDK Spring Realty LLC
Date: 12/27/17

79 Maplewood Terrace
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $212,000
Buyer: Michael P. Riggins
Seller: Constance H. Ryder
Date: 12/22/17

206 Marsden St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $116,450
Buyer: US Bank
Seller: Nikia M. McCoy
Date: 12/20/17

24 Michigan St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Noel Twagiramungu
Seller: Tiara L. Warren
Date: 12/26/17

70 Mooreland St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $167,000
Buyer: Vaycheslav Foksha
Seller: Sean F. Curran
Date: 12/21/17

N/A
Springfield, MA 01101
Amount: $236,000
Buyer: Maria C. Lopez
Seller: Joan Lupa
Date: 12/21/17

7 Naismith St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $290,000
Buyer: Edwin Torres
Seller: Franciso Bruno
Date: 12/29/17

17 Northway Dr.
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $147,900
Buyer: Roger Francis
Seller: Agnes Kearon
Date: 12/21/17

39 Oakland St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $325,000
Buyer: Drama Studio Inc.
Seller: Episcopal Missions of Western Mass.
Date: 12/22/17

752 Page Blvd.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $1,250,000
Buyer: Kasa Springfield Realty
Seller: H&S Olson Of Springfield
Date: 12/27/17

69 Parker St.
Springfield, MA 01151
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Lazy Valley Winery Inc.
Seller: WN Management LLC
Date: 12/27/17

11-13 Pauline St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Extremely Clean 2 LLC
Seller: Michael Paton
Date: 12/29/17

66 Powell Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $129,900
Buyer: Rosemary Perez
Seller: Sigmund C. Barnes
Date: 12/22/17

25 Redstone Dr.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Anthony Santiago
Seller: Tooker, John S. Jr. (Estate)
Date: 12/19/17

42 Redstone Dr.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $210,900
Buyer: Ashley M. McFarlane
Seller: Jacob P. Goodin
Date: 12/22/17

304 Roosevelt Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $164,900
Buyer: Lisa A. Folvi
Seller: Kenny Nguyen
Date: 12/28/17

120 Rosewell St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Miguel Acosta
Seller: Chappella Hernandez
Date: 12/19/17

118 Santa Barbara St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $116,300
Buyer: Brett A. Staples
Seller: Nelson Santos
Date: 12/22/17

17 Sherwood Road
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Jonathan A. Goldman
Seller: Pamela A. Greaney
Date: 12/27/17

81 Signal Hill Circle
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $378,000
Buyer: Ryan Walsh
Seller: Grahams Construction Inc.
Date: 12/29/17

17 Silvia St.
Springfield, MA 01101
Amount: $305,000
Buyer: Mohamed Smaili
Seller: Bretta Construction LLC
Date: 12/29/17

886-892 State St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $3,687,750
Buyer: BMG Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

50-52 Stebbins St.
Springfield, MA 01109
Amount: $186,000
Buyer: John E. Harley
Seller: Gihad A. Awkal
Date: 12/22/17

73-75 Sterling St.
Springfield, MA 01107
Amount: $193,000
Buyer: Jens Martinez
Seller: Richard Decoteau
Date: 12/22/17

76 Strong St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Amount: $169,900
Buyer: Chatherine Y. Brantley
Seller: Mirna Chennaoui
Date: 12/22/17

1179 Sumner Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $121,600
Buyer: Wilmington Savings
Seller: Beneficial Mass Inc.
Date: 12/29/17

14 Taber St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Debra Deleon
Seller: Errol L. Holloway
Date: 12/29/17

249 Talmadge Dr.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $157,350
Buyer: Travis A. Greeley
Seller: James Fiore
Date: 12/26/17

Timothy Circle
Springfield, MA 01101
Amount: $173,000
Buyer: Mario Nascimento
Seller: Wendy S. Mascaro
Date: 12/22/17

110 Treetop Ave.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $174,000
Buyer: Nelson Santos
Seller: Kristin Wampler
Date: 12/22/17

104-106 Washington Road
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Gerson Souza
Seller: Nancy Conway
Date: 12/28/17

71 Wexford St.
Springfield, MA 01118
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: William Hollwedel
Seller: Joel T. Senez
Date: 12/19/17

114 William St.
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $138,000
Buyer: Isidoro R. Sanchez
Seller: Fernando J. Lucio
Date: 12/29/17

98-100 Woodside Terrace
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $150,000
Buyer: Fabian L. Holness
Seller: Onyx Investments LLC
Date: 12/20/17

183 Woodside Terrace
Springfield, MA 01108
Amount: $3,687,750
Buyer: BMG Holdings LLC
Seller: Lorilee 1 LLC
Date: 12/19/17

614-616 Worthington St.
Springfield, MA 01105
Amount: $168,000
Buyer: Field Group Holdings LLC
Seller: Sylvia M. Maynard
Date: 12/29/17

177 Wrentham Road
Springfield, MA 01119
Amount: $175,000
Buyer: Hawa N. Busolo
Seller: Joseph L. Harris
Date: 12/29/17

WALES

10 Shaw Road
Wales, MA 01081
Amount: $268,900
Buyer: Steven E. Frank
Seller: Tatyana Y Komarova
Date: 12/28/17

32 Stafford Road
Wales, MA 01081
Amount: $202,000
Buyer: Ricky J. Mustion
Seller: Wendy V. Johnson
Date: 12/29/17

24 Woodland Dr.
Wales, MA 01081
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Daniel J. Diblasi
Seller: Edward L. Fisher
Date: 12/29/17

WEST SPRINGFIELD

13 Alderbrook Lane
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $139,000
Buyer: Heritage Ventures LLC
Seller: Bank Of New York Mellon
Date: 12/21/17

60 Armstrong St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $219,900
Buyer: Tek Gautam
Seller: Sean L. Poirier
Date: 12/28/17

17 Blossom Road
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $162,100
Buyer: Stephen Buynicki
Seller: William F. Bennett
Date: 12/29/17

16 Bonair Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Murat Selim
Seller: Justin H. Carr
Date: 12/22/17

7 Bond St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $347,500
Buyer: Peter A. Slepchuk
Seller: Ryan M. Walsh
Date: 12/29/17

89 Burke Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $185,000
Buyer: Marc H. Gendron
Seller: Naura C. Lutat
Date: 12/21/17

63 Elm Circle
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $151,672
Buyer: HSBC Bank
Seller: Tammy Lamountain
Date: 12/19/17

25 Fox St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $190,000
Buyer: Abdul AlQaisy
Seller: Brian W. Clark
Date: 12/22/17

29 Neptune Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $244,000
Buyer: Christopher McRobbie
Seller: Kevin P. Malloy
Date: 12/18/17

130 Pine St.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $154,000
Buyer: Mykola Persanov
Seller: MHFA
Date: 12/28/17

176 Woodbrook Terrace
West Springfield, MA 01089
Amount: $370,000
Buyer: John A. Peterson
Seller: Joseph C. Kelley
Date: 12/21/17

WESTFIELD

76 Alexander Place
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $318,000
Buyer: Stephen L. Thomas
Seller: Amanda R. Collins
Date: 12/29/17

189 Barbara St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Suzanne M. James
Seller: Stephen F. Cook
Date: 12/29/17

Birch Bluffs Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: DDLP Development LLC
Seller: Edward F. Szuba
Date: 12/21/17

289 Buck Pond Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $280,000
Buyer: Deutsche Bank
Seller: Alexandr Botyan
Date: 12/27/17

30 Cara Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $315,000
Buyer: Paul G. Piquette
Seller: Dawn L. Obitz
Date: 12/18/17

16 Casimir St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $250,144
Buyer: Nicholas A. Maratea
Seller: Terence P. Bray
Date: 12/22/17

12 Cortez St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $181,000
Buyer: Damon A. Blanchette
Seller: Stephanie M. Marotte
Date: 12/21/17

193 Falley Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $296,000
Buyer: Kim E. Clifton
Seller: Helen Vardakas
Date: 12/29/17

23 Family Lane
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $329,900
Buyer: Jacob T. Allen
Seller: Nicholas Johnson
Date: 12/21/17

120 Franklin St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $217,000
Buyer: Sanaa Oprecht
Seller: Jeffrey W. Jason
Date: 12/22/17

40 Granville Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $282,000
Buyer: Bruce Scott
Seller: Gary E. Russolillo
Date: 12/29/17

204 Hillside Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $306,000
Buyer: Daniel M. Szalankiewicz
Seller: Mark A. Szalankiewicz
Date: 12/22/17

340 Holyoke Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: City Of Westfield
Seller: Patricia A. Madamas
Date: 12/20/17

50 Loomis Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $215,000
Buyer: Jessica Kelso
Seller: Luis E. Santos
Date: 12/28/17

20 Malone Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $124,500
Buyer: Kyle M. Amberman
Seller: Jason M. Seybold
Date: 12/27/17

33 Morningside Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Alexandrea M. Rees
Seller: Jeffrey W. Gilmer
Date: 12/22/17

77 Moseley Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $217,000
Buyer: Ruslan S. Kravchenko
Seller: Craig A. McRobbie
Date: 12/18/17

20 Myrtle Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $155,000
Buyer: Carolyn M. Wall
Seller: Tina M. Benson
Date: 12/28/17

North Westfield St.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $148,000
Buyer: Michael J. McElligott
Seller: John D. West
Date: 12/29/17

27 Noble Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $130,001
Buyer: Wilmington Savings
Seller: Angelo Rivera
Date: 12/27/17

119 Northridge Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $272,500
Buyer: Nadine M. Cignoni
Seller: Jesse Babcock
Date: 12/28/17

68 Plantation Circle
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $385,000
Buyer: MTGLQ Investors LP
Seller: Mark C. Bydlak
Date: 12/18/17

15 Smith Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $183,000
Buyer: Tina Benson
Seller: Jessica Kelso
Date: 12/28/17

700 Southampton Road
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $145,800
Buyer: Mount Tom Properties LLC
Seller: Michael F. Szenda
Date: 12/26/17

89 Sunset Dr.
Westfield, MA 01085
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Ellen M. Unsderfer
Seller: Matthew B. Osowski
Date: 12/20/17

WILBRAHAM

36 Decorie Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $265,000
Buyer: David Z Podworski
Seller: Mark A. Butterfield
Date: 12/20/17

11 Grassy Meadow Road
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $468,000
Buyer: Jeffrey B. Iafrati
Seller: Miriam J. Siegel
Date: 12/29/17

9 Millbrook Dr.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $323,000
Buyer: Maureen L. Obrien
Seller: S. Bertolacini & B. Mann TR
Date: 12/28/17

115 Soule Road
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $347,500
Buyer: Shaughn Dermody-Cadieux
Seller: Pamela S. Wallace
Date: 12/22/17

47 Springfield St.
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Miriam Siegel
Seller: Melissa A. Donohue
Date: 12/29/17

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY

AMHERST

16 Alpine Dr.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $255,500
Buyer: Alicia K. Kuzia
Seller: Lauren A. McCarthy
Date: 12/29/17

870 Bay Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $390,000
Buyer: Alexandra Bradspies
Seller: Snyder, Mary S., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

99 Chestnut St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $390,000
Buyer: Owen Shufeldt
Seller: Freiband, Evelyn, (Estate)
Date: 12/21/17

156 Columbia Dr.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $264,610
Buyer: Sonja Kadziolka
Seller: Catherine E. Bell
Date: 12/18/17

160 East Leverett Road
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $494,000
Buyer: James Cuomo
Seller: Alka Indurkhya
Date: 12/29/17

23 Owen Dr.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $590,000
Buyer: Arya Mazumdar
Seller: Chun I. Song
Date: 12/22/17

109 Potwine Lane
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $210,000
Buyer: Robert W. Adair
Seller: Elizabeth G. Horvay
Date: 12/21/17

870 South East St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $437,500
Buyer: Karl E. Zimmerman
Seller: Margaret A. Riley
Date: 12/18/17

258 Strong St.
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $349,000
Buyer: Boyoung Seo
Seller: Sun-Hee Kim
Date: 12/22/17

2 Wintergreen Circle
Amherst, MA 01002
Amount: $380,000
Buyer: Natalie McKeon IRT
Seller: John A. Tesauro
Date: 12/22/17

BELCHERTOWN

99 Allen Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $260,000
Buyer: Jeffrey W. Stpeter
Seller: Byron L. Miltz
Date: 12/22/17

30 Brandywine Dr.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $312,500
Buyer: Rachel Mandel
Seller: Robert T. Beauchamp
Date: 12/28/17

884 Federal St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $310,000
Buyer: American Advisors Group
Seller: Robert C. Follette
Date: 12/26/17

175 Jabish St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $310,000
Buyer: H. Scott Grondin
Seller: Gary L. Brougham
Date: 12/21/17

166 North Liberty St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $219,000
Buyer: Katherine R. Polanco
Seller: Alfred A. Benoit
Date: 12/29/17

328 Old Enfield Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Nicholas A. Capell
Seller: M. T. Bergeron-Cichaski
Date: 12/18/17

160 Sargent St.
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $299,000
Buyer: Shawn M. Harris
Seller: Jackson Brothers Property
Date: 12/26/17

245 Ware Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $225,000
Buyer: Alexandra M. Weigel
Seller: George B. Jackson
Date: 12/28/17

350 Warren Wright Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $305,000
Buyer: Thomas E. Whiteley
Seller: Musaddak J. Alhabeeb
Date: 12/29/17

60 Warren Wright Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Amount: $255,000
Buyer: Kenneth P. Slate
Seller: Cynthia K. Schneider
Date: 12/27/17

EASTHAMPTON

13 Bayberry Dr.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $423,000
Buyer: Stanley Gajda
Seller: John J. Hasper
Date: 12/28/17

7 Hannum Brook Dr.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $145,000
Buyer: Thomas M. Bacis
Seller: Samora, Eunice M., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

6 West St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Bernhard K. Kober
Seller: Kober, Bernhard W., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

13 West St.
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $381,500
Buyer: Martin W. Fleming
Seller: Shirlee B. Williams
Date: 12/19/17

15 Wilton Road
Easthampton, MA 01027
Amount: $277,000
Buyer: Gregory R. Blackburn
Seller: Thomas E. Whiteley
Date: 12/29/17

GOSHEN

25 Aberdeen Road
Goshen, MA 01032
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Mary C. Colwell
Seller: Luanne B. Knox FT
Date: 12/29/17

GRANBY

143 Chicopee St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Leonard Camano
Seller: Mark L. Drapeau
Date: 12/22/17

131 School St.
Granby, MA 01033
Amount: $260,000
Buyer: Matthew R. Dennis
Seller: 131school Street NT
Date: 12/21/17

HADLEY

9 East St.
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $394,835
Buyer: Michael J. Lengieza
Seller: East Street Commons LLC
Date: 12/22/17

152 Rocky Hill Road
Hadley, MA 01035
Amount: $212,000
Buyer: Lynn C. McKenna
Seller: James V. Foley
Date: 12/29/17

HATFIELD

28 Linseed Road
Hatfield, MA 01088
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Francis C. Lyman
Seller: Matthew N. Lyman
Date: 12/18/17

8 School St.
Hatfield, MA 01038
Amount: $451,407
Buyer: FNMA
Seller: Carla J. Brannan
Date: 12/19/17

117 West St.
Hatfield, MA 01088
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Wind River Properties LLC
Seller: Ursula M. Donaldson
Date: 12/28/17

HUNTINGTON

15 Bromley Road
Huntington, MA 01050
Amount: $350,000
Buyer: 15 Bromley Road Land TR
Seller: Charles A. Blackman TR
Date: 12/22/17

114 Goss Hill Road
Huntington, MA 01050
Amount: $275,000
Buyer: Christofer Thrasher
Seller: Andrew B. McCaul
Date: 12/26/17

208 Norwich Lake
Huntington, MA 01050
Amount: $230,000
Buyer: Sarah E. White
Seller: Richard W. Wiernasz
Date: 12/28/17

NORTHAMPTON

50 Avis Circle
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $310,000
Buyer: Timothy R. Johnson
Seller: Michael J. Dibrindisi
Date: 12/29/17

65 Baker Hill Road
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $515,000
Buyer: David Butts
Seller: Josland & Associates PC
Date: 12/22/17

36 Beattie Dr.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $332,000
Buyer: Matthew T. Donovan
Seller: Phyllis J. Maggiolino
Date: 12/19/17

20 Bridge Road #25
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $675,513
Buyer: Roy G. Jinks
Seller: Bridge Road LLC
Date: 12/22/17

93 Cahillane Terrace
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $170,300
Buyer: Matthew A. Motamedi
Seller: Elise M. Russell
Date: 12/18/17

76 Gothic St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $500,000
Buyer: Patrick J. Melnik
Seller: Roger A. Walaszek
Date: 12/20/17

44 Graves Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $730,000
Buyer: Black Dogs LLC
Seller: Noho Partners LLP
Date: 12/28/17

41 Henry St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $125,000
Buyer: Nancy L. Bak
Seller: Bak 2008 RET
Date: 12/22/17

7 Higgins Way
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $641,568
Buyer: Patricia J. Aslin
Seller: Sturbridge Development
Date: 12/22/17

28 Maple Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Kysa Nygreen
Seller: Mark A. Sayre
Date: 12/20/17

12 Maple St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $233,174
Buyer: V. Mortgage REO 2 LLC
Seller: Monica T. Toomey
Date: 12/22/17

110 Market St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $349,900
Buyer: Valley Building Co. Inc.
Seller: Timothy S. Cotton
Date: 12/18/17

256 Pleasant St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $1,055,000
Buyer: Lumber Yard Northampton
Seller: Valley Community Development Corp.
Date: 12/28/17

193 Ryan Road
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $160,000
Buyer: Ilene Berezin
Seller: Dora M. Onhilevich
Date: 12/20/17

282 Spring St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $450,000
Buyer: Steven M. Sanderson
Seller: Roger P. Clark
Date: 12/19/17

65 State St.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $560,000
Buyer: APE Realty LLC
Seller: Josephine F. Cavallari TR
Date: 12/29/17

88 Village Hill Road
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $205,000
Buyer: Denmark Property Group
Seller: Hospital Hill Development
Date: 12/19/17

54 Washington Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $644,000
Buyer: Andrew S. Leland
Seller: Charles Mick
Date: 12/19/17

101 Washington Ave.
Northampton, MA 01060
Amount: $400,000
Buyer: Trysquare LLC
Seller: Edward J. Grady
Date: 12/28/17

38 Willow St.
Northampton, MA 01062
Amount: $296,500
Buyer: Marvin Cable
Seller: Lucille R. Crowther
Date: 12/20/17

SOUTH HADLEY

16 Berwyn St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $174,500
Buyer: Ryan Kennedy
Seller: Moore, James J. Sr., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

16 Doane Terrace
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $250,000
Buyer: Christopher P. Guilmette
Seller: Durand, Mary K., (Estate)
Date: 12/22/17

281 East St.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $410,000
Buyer: Robin D. Giroux
Seller: Rehm Family Properties
Date: 12/28/17

2 Hillside Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $236,000
Buyer: Thomas G. Poole
Seller: Casey Belieu
Date: 12/28/17

9 Hillcrest Ave.
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $195,000
Buyer: Stephen S. Templeton
Seller: Gail B. Fitzgerald
Date: 12/20/17

20 Meadow Lane
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $380,000
Buyer: Stephen A. Rondeau
Seller: Nelen FT
Date: 12/22/17

3 Tigger Lane
South Hadley, MA 01075
Amount: $439,000
Buyer: Brendan P. Cronin
Seller: Matthew T. Lapinski
Date: 12/29/17

SOUTHAMPTON

43 Coleman Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $255,250
Buyer: Kevin J. Evelti
Seller: Roger E. Jette
Date: 12/29/17

46 High St.
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $270,000
Buyer: Caryl J. McPherson
Seller: Janet L. Johnston
Date: 12/28/17

45 Pleasant St.
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Wynter H. Howland
Seller: William D&E A. Schaffer TR
Date: 12/29/17

Valley Road
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Thomas M. Bacis
Seller: James R. Labrie
Date: 12/19/17

6 Woodmar Lane
Southampton, MA 01073
Amount: $455,000
Buyer: Howard A. Koski
Seller: David Garstka Builders
Date: 12/27/17

WARE

16 Coldbrook Dr.
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $330,000
Buyer: Michael Messier
Seller: Benchmark Custom Homes
Date: 12/20/17

7 Kelly Road
Ware, MA 01082
Amount: $200,000
Buyer: Collin Vartanian
Seller: Aram Vartanian
Date: 12/29/17

WILLIAMSBURG

7 Laurel Road
Williamsburg, MA 01039
Amount: $125,500
Buyer: Jason C. Harder
Seller: FNMA
Date: 12/28/17

100 Petticoat Hill Road
Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amount: $295,000
Buyer: Brian Moriarty
Seller: Richard A. Barnard
Date: 12/21/17

6 Williams St.
Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amount: $187,000
Buyer: Brittany Superba
Seller: Greenwood, Richard E., (Estate)
Date: 12/29/17

WESTHAMPTON

177 Main Road
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $186,000
Buyer: Brian McLain
Seller: Sequoia Properties LLC
Date: 12/29/17

Pine Island Lake #46
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Laura A. Pompei
Seller: Hart FT
Date: 12/22/17

Pine Island Lake #46A
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Laura A. Pompei
Seller: Hart FT
Date: 12/22/17

Pine Island Lake #47
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $240,000
Buyer: Laura A. Pompei
Seller: Hart FT
Date: 12/22/17

26 Pine Island Lake
Westhampton, MA 01027
Amount: $180,000
Buyer: Michael D. Tiskus
Seller: Stanne, Anthony J., (Estate)
Date: 12/28/17

Bankruptcies

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Bankruptcies Departments

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

Calderon-Perez, Jessica
97 April Lane
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/28/17

Caplette, Robert W.
15 Arbor Lane
Wilbraham, MA 01095
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/28/17

Couture, Joseph A.
Couture, Kelly J.
23 State St.
Monson, MA 01057
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 12/22/17

Deyo, Kevin P.
547 Front St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/22/17

Dones, David
48 Melvin St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/21/17

Fiorentino, Alexandria Lee
26 Ogden St.
Indian Orchard, MA 01151
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Hayes, Kenneth S.
30 Center St.
Chicopee, MA 01013
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/28/17

Healey, Carolyn A.
15 Livingstone Ave.
Westfield, MA 01085
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/29/17

Jones, Christopher Scott
Jones, Leah Michelle
161 Memory Lane
Orange, MA 01364
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/22/17

Josephson, Scott R.
Josephson, Diane L.
37 Captain Road
Longmeadow, MA 01106
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Joslyn, Sandra E.
129 Taylor St.
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/26/17

Kiendzior, Danielle M.
a/k/a Paquin, Danielle M.
37 Edward Dr.
Holyoke, MA 01040
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/19/17

Lusty, William Joseph
430 Old Warren Road
Palmer, MA 01069
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Miller, Moses D.
167 Main St.
Leeds, MA 01053
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 12/22/17

Paulino, Pablo J.
4 Langdon St.
Springfield, MA 01104
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Pickard, Matthew J.
256 Mandalay Road
Chicopee, MA 01020
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/22/17

Richardson, Ronald Roger
331 Cold Spring Ave.
West Springfield, MA 01089
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/28/17

Ruhmkorff, Samuel G.
125 Black Birch Trail
Florence, MA 01062
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Santiago-Roman, Iraida Estrella
Greenfield Gardens
21 Harris Court
Greenfield, MA 01301
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/29/17

Sideris, Argiris C.
a/k/a Sideris, Archie C.
40 Allen Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/29/17

Sound Solution and Auto Sports
Pacheco, William R.
Pacheco, Rebecca L.
115 Carroll St.
Springfield, MA 01108
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Stone, Maura L.
a/k/a Lightsey, Maura Walpole
a/k/a Stone, Maura W.
20 Gilead St.
Adams, MA 01220
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/21/17

Veal, Eddie O.
PO Box 51491
Indian Orchard, MA 01115
Chapter: 13
Filing Date: 12/26/17

Zaleski, David Lewis
Zaleski, Ann Marie
20 Prospect St.
Adams, MA 01220
Chapter: 7
Filing Date: 12/27/17

Doing Business as Certificates

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

DBA Certificates Departments

The following business certificates and trade names were issued or renewed during the month of January 2018.

AMHERST

Pizza House of Amherst
17 Montague Road
Francisco Perez

Sev Kolysko
48 North Pleasant St., Suite 205
Seweryn Kolysko

Small Batch Books
493 South Pleasant St.
Fred Levine

TR Designs
43 Wildflower Dr.
Natasha Friedman

CHICOPEE

Alansari Auto Sales & Repair
926 Front St.
Abdull Whab Mustafa

Springfield Automotive Partners, LLC
295 Burnett Road
Peter Wirth

Yankee Glass Inc.
450 New Ludlow Road
Roy Sabourin

DEERFIELD

Brookside Cemetery
10 South Main St.
William Leno

Deerfield’s International Market
261 Greenfield Road
Tenzin Bhuti Rinchen

River Bend Farm
44A South Main St.
Richard Wysk

EASTHAMPTON

Beaudry Home Improvement
117 Ferry St.
Matthew Beaudry

Suite 3
180 Pleasant St.
David DelVecchio, Brian Scanlon

Tech Cavalry
180 Pleasant St.
David DelVecchio, Brian Scanlon

EAST LONGMEADOW

A.B.E. Chimney
111 Millbrook Dr.
Michael Ardrukonis

All Things Metal
15 Ainslie Dr.
Bruce Mackechnie

JB’s Ice Cream
622 North Main St.
Jeffrey Buzzelle

GREENFIELD

Arising Embodiment Healing Arts
50 Chapman St., Suite 2
Karla Muise

Beijing Restaurant of Greenfield Inc.
45 Main St.
Hui Chen

Doggie Dips & Clips
278 Federal St.
Karen Baker

Elizabeth Home
5-7 Congress St.
7 Congress St. Inc.

Fitness Through Cycling
306 High St.
Patricia Clements

Harper’s Store
404 Colrain Road
William Valvo

Namaste Nepalese/Indian Restaurant
286 Main St.
Saphal Singh Rana Magar

OCR, LLC
166 Federal St.
Marc Houlihan

HADLEY

Candy Stand
367 Russell St.
Syed Ali

Moe’s Southwest Grill
379 Russell St.
Sagar Shah

Panera Bread
351 Russell St.
PR Restaurants, LLC

Western MA Family Golf
294 Russell St.
Hollrock Engineering Inc.

HAMPDEN

A to Z Auto Sales Service
83 North Monson Road
Rebecca Paquette, Anthony Paquette

HOLYOKE

Executive Vending
154 Rock Valley Road
John LaRose

Fun Star
50 Holyoke St.
David Leichus

Onix Landscaping
329 Beech St.
Onix Gonzalez

Tri State Golf Marketing
72 Old Jarvis Ave.
Jerome Nomakeo

LUDLOW

Jeffrey’s Suit Rack
287 East St.
Jeffrey Clemons Sr.

NORTHAMPTON

Alchemy Healing Center
17 New South St., #104
Leta Herman, Jaye McElroy

Born Perfect
17 New South St., #104
Leta Herman, Jaye McElroy

Criminal Defense Northampton
94 King St.
Kevin Kelley

Karuna Center for Yoga and Healing Arts
25 Main St.
Paul Menard

Northampton Tire and Auto Service
182 King St.
Kurt Zimmerman

Somewhere Is Here
17 New South St., #104
Leta Herman, Jaye McElroy

Toward Harmony Tai Chi & Qigong
16 Center St., Suite 527
Charles Ryan

PALMER

CKS
46 Wilbraham Road
Kevin Kolakowski

County Corner Citgo Inc.
5 Springfield St.
Peter McKearney

Mass Biofuels Co.
15 Old Farm Road
Joseph Turek

SOUTHWICK

57 Hair, LLC
610 College Highway, Suite 12A
Adam Oliveri

Southwick Computer Repair
4 Island Pond Road
Robert Cranston

SPRINGFIELD

350 Grill
350 Worthington St.
Sherri Lynn Via

AAW Removals
94 Grover St.
Anthony Alonzo

AGS X Press
15 Crow Lane
Kavon Smith

Alcogen Engineering Solutions
12 Steuben St.
Amir Hasan

AMG Retail I, LLC
707 Dickinson St.
AMG Retail I, LLC

Elegant Barbershop
135-137 Boston Road
Pedro Genao

Express Auto Sales Inc.
1103-1107 State St.
Amjad Hussain

Fancy Nails
1655 Boston Road
Thi Tai

Gemini Property Management
127 Carnavon Circle
Rickford Fraser

Love Nails Inc.
1349 Allen St.
Chun Ri Zhao

Michelman Law Offices
1333 East Columbus Ave.
Jay Michelman

Milliam Jewelry & More
92 Fieldston St.
Milliam Bermudez

Monsoon Roastery
143 Main St.
Timothy Monson

Red Oak Properties
66 Cumberland St.
Alexandre Pazmandy

Renee’s Visuals Three
55 Marengo Park
Renee’s Flowers

Sprint
1300 Boston Road
Sprint Spectrum, LP

Tiny Tykes Daycare
77 Fisher St.
Rosany Santiago

WARE

Apex Automotive
96 West St.
Jason Thomas

Jackson Hewitt Tax Service
352 Palmer Road
Jay Benge

Ware Built Timber Frame
19 Sheehy Road
Eric Moulton

Ware Service Center
290 Palmer Road
Joe Pocai

WEST SPRINGFIELD

A2 Business Services
5 Sunnyside St.
Jeanette Brennan

Balise Mazda
635 Riverdale St.
Balise Motor Sales

Bliny Crepes Tea House
261 Union St.
Arturas Ribinskas

Ezee Mart
622 Kings Highway
Ezee Shop Inc.

Girard LP
1343 Riverdale St.
Charles Mercier

Jason Freitag Electrician
355 Lancaster Ave.
Jason Freitag

Joe’s Landscaping
62 Worthen St.
Joseph Schmidt

Kelly Bouchard, DMD, PC
103 Van Deene Ave.
Kelly Bouchard

WILBRAHAM

Battlefront Pro Wrestling
15 Bartlett Court
Daniel Gore

The Bilberry Salon
2141 Boston Road
Laura Grondin

Hypnosis for Life
14 West Colonial Road
David Preto

Life Care Center of Wilbraham
2399 Boston Road
Dennis Lopata

State & Bond, LLC
215 Stony Hill Road
Steven Barton

Incorporations

By BusinessWest Staff January 23, 2018

Departments Incorporations

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

AMHERST

Hyperion Ives Capital Inc., 433 West St., Suite 7, Amherst, MA 01002. Nick Stern, same. Wealth management.

CHICOPEE

INF Contractors Inc., 337 Hampden St., Chicopee, MA 01013. Kyle Rosa, same. General contracting, construction.

LUDLOW

Head to Toe Day Spa Inc., 36 East St., Ludlow, MA 01056. Dan Yun Huang, same. Spa store.

NORTHFIELD

Harrison Anglers Inc., 232 Old Vernon Road, Northfield, MA 01360. Thomas E Harrison, same. Fishing guide services.

SPRINGFIELD

Iglesia Cubierta Con El Manta De Jesus Inc., 109 Tiffany St., Springfield, MA 01108. Elizabeth Perez-Villamil, same. Non-profit organization, church-related activities.

TURNERS FALLS

Hug Your Student Debt Inc., 348 Montague City Road, Turners Falls, MA 01376. Frances Rahaim Ph.D., same. Student debt assistance.

WESTFIELD

Harry Dhamotra 06 Inc., 45 Montgomery St., Westfield, MA 01085. Harish Kumar, same. Cell phone accessories store.

I.P.O. Concrete Service Inc., 289 Buck Pond Road, Westfield, MA 01085. Ivan Okhrimenko, same. Installation and repair of concrete flatwork.

WEST SPRINGFIELD

HGL Transport Inc., 59 Lowell St., West Springfield, MA 01089. Khakim Kasimov, same. Long-haul trucking business.

IG Transportation Inc., 1111 Westfield St. Apt C4, West Springfield, MA 01089. Vyacheslav Babinov, same. Trucking.

Hot Brass Inc., 1050 Main St., West Springfield, MA 01089. Edward David Knapik, 17 Beauview Terrace, West Springfield, MA 01089. Sporting retail and indoor range.

All the News That’s Fit to Hear

Hear All About It

The Latest Word

Sound Reasoning

Community Spotlight

Pittsfield at a Glance

Multi-pronged Approach

Safety and Numbers

Editorial

Opinion

T-Birds’ Owners and Managers Continue to Push the Envelope

An Exercise in Teamwork

Owning the Solution

Net Results

Goal Oriented

Previous Top Entrepreneurs

Knowing the Score

Bottom Line

Inspiration Point

SEE: List of Meeting & Convention Facilities

Food for Thought

Art and Parcel

Brick by Brick

History Lesson

The Big Day

Call Forward

Beyond the Simple Phone

SEE: List of Computer Network/IT Services

Growth Pattern

Vehicle for Growth?

SEE: Listings of Available Commercial Properties

Progress in Site

Daily News

News

Contact

Departments

Events