Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | October 14, 2019 | Worcester Business Journal 5 B R I E FS Monahan retiring as MCPHS president Charles Monahan, the president of MCPHS University for more than two decades and a Worcester native, will retire effective in January. MCPHS, which has a main campus in Boston, has expanded significantly in Worcester during Monahan's tenure, with 1,500 students and academic programs including pharmacy, nursing, acupuncture and optometry. e college has renovated downtown Worcester buildings and converted the former Crowne Plaza hotel into a dormitory. Monahan, a 1962 graduate of what was then the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, has led the school since 1997. In that time, the school has grown from 1,000 students in one building in Boston to 7,200 students today in more than 100 degree and certificate programs in Bos- ton, Worcester and Manchester, N.H. A search committee will be formed to find Monahan's successor. Richard Lessard, the school's executive vice president, CFO and COO, will serve as interim president. MCPHS opened in Worcester in 2000. Worcester's Sky Mark Tower sells for $28.8M Sky Mark Tower in Worcester, the city's tallest residential building at 24 stories, has sold for $28.8 million. e tower was bought by Los Ange- les-based Benedict Canyon Equities, according to Capstone Apartment Part- ners, a Charlotte firm brokering the deal. e building had been owned since 2003 by a limited liability corporation regis- tered to Framingham property manage- ment company VTT Management. e founder of Benedict Canyon Equities, Bob Hart, is a Worcester Poly- technic Institute graduate and a member of its board of trustees, according to Capstone Apartment Partners. e deal comes out to $139,806 for each of the building's 206 apartments. e building, at Main and Austin streets at the southern edge of downtown, is 95% occupied and 98% leased. Collings Foundation cancels flights following fatal Conn. crash e Collings Foundation of Stow has suspended flights of its historic and military aircra for the rest of the year fol- lowing a fatal crash in Connecticut, which le seven dead. e nonprofit made the announcement on its website following the crash of its B-17 aircra Oct. 2 at Bradley Internation- al Airport in Windsor Locks, where seven people were killed and another seven were injured. e foundation is cooperating with an investigation into the cause of the crash. e World War II bomber was part of the foundation's Wings of Freedom tour spanning the country each year, with a stop this year at the Worcester Regional Airport on Sept. 20, 21 and 22. Bradley was hosting the latest stop on the tour. e Collings Foundation runs the American Heritage Museum in Stow, which opened in May with dozens of mil- itary vehicles and other artifacts. Events at that location will continue to take place. American International moves HQ to Westborough Specialty chemical and ingredient distribution firm American International Chemical has moved from its former Framingham location to a new 15,000-square-foot office in Westborough in order to accommodate its growing staff. e new location is within a 64,000-square-foot building in an office park on West Park Drive. e company expands from its former location in a shared 20,000-square-foot office on Newbury Street in Framingham. New owner proposes glass facelift for Midtown Mall e Midtown Mall in downtown Worcester could look vastly different if a proposal by the new owner is approved. e newly proposed facade would replace the historic building's current Art Deco exterior with a modern look of glass wrapping up to the roof of the building. e plans were prepared by Gray Archi- tects of Salem and were filed with the city on Sept. 10. e property owners have filed for a waiver of the demolition-delay ordinance with the Worcester Historical Commission. at filing will be reviewed on Oct. 17. If the waiver is not granted, the work would be put on hold for one year. Felicio Lana, a Worcester property manager, acquired the two-building mall for $4 million in May. PLEASE JOIN US! • Basnett Plumbing & Heating, Littleton • Beechwood Hotel, Worcester • Berkeley's Dapper Dog & Cat, Danielson, CT • Closets by Design, Shirley • Feen's Country Living, Fitchburg • Fresh Start – The Moving Crew, Worcester • Gould & Ettenberg, P.C., Worcester • Grunts Move Junk and Moving, Worcester • JS Transport Services, Auburn • Location Inc., Worcester • Miles Funeral Home, Holden • National Glass Works, Worcester • Porter and Chester Institute, Worcester • PuroClean Certified Restoration, Auburn • Red Dog's Roofing, Fitchburg • Unic Pro, Shrewsbury • Worcester Bravehearts, Worcester Thank you to our event sponsors: Wednesday, November 13th at 5:00PM The Manor Restaurant, West Boylston, MA Join us as we reveal the winners of the 2019 Central MA Awards for Marketplace Excellence. Awards Presentations | Hors d'oeuvres | Networking Advanced tickets: $20 | Tickets can be purchased by calling 508-552-0366. 2019 FINALISTS: Continued on Page 6 The Sky Mark Tower residential building is 98% leased. All companies should be invested locally On Sept. 30, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan said it planned to obtain 100% ownership of Worcester steel mill manufacturer Primetals in early 2020, by buying out 49% of the company from German industrial manufacturer Siemens, which co-founded the company. In a move announced last year, Primetals is consolidating its Worcester operations into a $28-million building in Sutton. Of the 10 largest employers in Central Massachusetts, five are headquartered in the region. F L AS H P O L L Is it better for local companies like Primetals to have local ownership? It doesn't matter as long as the owners are invested in the community. 61% Yes, the people making employment and financial decisions should be local. 32% 7% No, having outside investment helps boost the region's economy.

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