Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | November 25, 2019 | wbjournal.com C E N T R A L M AS S I N B R I E F Marijuana regulators move into Union Station V E R BAT I M Family-owned marijuana "The Millis location is very special to us. This is the town my grand- fathered settled in when he moved to this country." Marc Rosenfeld, CEO of marijuana company CommCan, which he owns with siblings Ellen and Jon Rosenfeld, on the opening of their Millis recreational and medical dispensary in November Used car settlement "As a result of this settlement, customers who were misled by AutoMax will get money back, and the company will stop its illegal practices." Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, on a $925,000 settlement by Framingham used car dealer Auto Max Inc., and its owner Howard Wilner, over allegations of deceptive sales practices Small business training "Nonprofits strengthen their region's small businesses, which drive local jobs." Gov. Charlie Baker, on $3 million in Small Business Technical Assistance grants awarded statewide to nonprofits, including six in Central Massachusetts T he Massachusetts Canna- bis Control Commission's long-anticipated move to Worcester will be complete on Tuesday. e board, which has been temporarily based in Boston during its short tenure since 2017 overseeing the state's cannabis cultivation and retail sales industry, started its move to Union Station in late November. More than 60 commission staffers will start working in the new location on Nov. 26. A Worcester location gives the commission a geographically centered location in the state with equal access to establishments throughout Massachusetts, said Shawn Collins, the commission's executive director. Last year, the commission unanimously approved establishing its permanent headquarters in Worcester for what it says is its cost efficiency and central location. e commission selected Union Station as its headquarters aer a public procurement process with the Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance. It will maintain a satellite office in Boston. In December, the CCC formalized a 10-year lease for a 14,381-square-foot office at Union Station at a first-year cost of $439,200 and also entered into a lease for a 4,532-square-foot satellite office at 50 Franklin St. in Boston's Downtown Crossing. e CCC said at the time it hoped to move into the Boston office by late spring or summer, and into its Worcester headquarters in about 40 weeks, aer some construction work to configure the space to the CCC's needs. But with the lease on its temporary offices at 101 Federal St. in Boston expiring in May, the CCC opted instead to extend that lease through December at a cost of $26,711 per month. e agency said it had planned for the costs in its fiscal 2020 budget. CCC officials have touted the central location of the agency's planned Worcester headquarters and its accessibility to public transportation. e agency is hoping basing itself in Worcester will make it accessible to people all around the state and will be a more convenient base of operations for the CCC inspectors who regularly travel to various marijuana businesses. e Worcester space includes 25 offices, 53 work stations and three conference rooms, one of which will be large enough to accommodate the commission's public meetings. The new Union Station Other changes could be coming to Union Station. In September, the Worcester Redevelopment Authority signed a lease with Limitless Recreation & Hospitality LLC, a business entity registered to William Broullon, the former owner of the Country Music Ranch & Saloon on James Street. Greater Good Imperial Brewing Co.'s Soul Purpose beer line and an arcade bar have also been in negotiations with the WRA to possibly locate at the station. BY GRANT WELKER Worcester Business Journal News Editor W Steven Hoffman, chairman, Cannabis Control Commission

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