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2 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | FEBRUARY 14, 2022 Biz Briefs Quinnipiac University eyes new biz school as part of $244M expansion Quinnipiac University President Judy Olian. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED HBJ FILE PHOTO Q uinnipiac University's board of trustees has approved a $244 million investment to construct three new buildings at its Mount Carmel Campus in Hamden, including a new business school. The expansion — to be paid for through a combination of the university's endowment, philanthropic efforts and debt financing — will include the addition of two academic buildings and a residence hall, which will become part of the school's new South Quad section on campus, the school said. "This unprecedented set of investments, the first stand-alone new buildings on the Mount Carmel Campus since the early '90s, will enable necessary advances in academic, research and student learning-living experiences at QU for years to come," said Quinnipiac President Judy D. Olian. The three new buildings will be located on the Mount Carmel Campus between Tator Hall and the current College of Arts and Sciences on the southern part of campus. The proposed new buildings include a: 79,000-square-foot School of Business; 137,000-square- foot general academic facility that will feature wet and dry labs, a greenhouse and vivarium (animal habitat), and an auditorium with up to 800 seats; 417-bed residence hall. Webster Bank closes $10.3B merger with Sterling Webster Bank recently completed its $10.3 billion merger with New York's Sterling Bancorp. Officials with both lenders said the combined company — still named Webster Bank, but now headquartered in Stamford instead of Waterbury — is well-positioned to grow its commercial banking business, improve the banking experience for customers and realize gains for investors. The company now has approximately $65 billion in assets, $44 billion in loans and $53 billion in deposits based on balances as of Dec. 31, 2021. It operates 202 financial centers in the Northeast, and will keep Webster's multi- campus presence in Waterbury, the bank's longtime headquarters. Lamont picks Carey Manufacturing's Lavoie as next manufacturing czar There's a new chief manufacturing officer in town. Gov. Ned Lamont has named Paul Lavoie Connecticut's chief manufacturing czar, taking over from Colin Cooper who announced in December his plans to retire. In his new role, that's based within the state Department of Economic and Community Development, Lavoie will be responsible for coordinating state and private-sector efforts that promote growth in Connecticut's manufacturing industry. Lavoie began his full-time post Feb. 7. He previously served as general manager of Carey Manufacturing in Cromwell, which builds catches, latches and handles, as well as electronic hardware. Former Carey Manufacturing Inc. GM Paul Lavoie has been named the state's new chief manufacturing officer. IT firm GalaxE.Solutions plans to bring 180 new jobs to Hartford IT firm GalaxE.Solutions announced that it plans to bring 180 new jobs to Hartford as part of an ongoing worker relocation project. Company officials said 100 service desk positions currently based in the Philippines will be moved to Hartford. Another 80 people will be recruited through the firm's workforce development program, which focuses on information technology training. GalaxE said it will "focus on hiring from a wide pool of talent, including those underrepresented individuals from the city of Hartford, where every individual will have a job opportunity at the completion of training," said company founder and CEO Tim Bryan. New Jersey-based GalaxE entered Hartford in 2019 and has created 220 jobs locally so far, Bryan said. Of those hires, more than 60% came from underrepresented communities and 80% are from the Greater Hartford region, he added. The company has its downtown office at CityPlace I. GalaxE.Solutions CEO Tim Bryan (left) stands next to Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin in September 2019. HBJ FILE PHOTO Entity tied to NY finance giant D.E. Shaw buys 352.6 acres in East Granby A limited liability company linked to investment fund D.E. Shaw Group recently paid $3 million for 352.6 acres of mostly agricultural land in East Granby. River Bend Holdings LLC sold four properties in the town's south end to Broadleaf Solar LLC, according to town records. River Bend is controlled by Indus Realty Trust, an industrial and warehouse landlord that got its start in Connecticut's tobacco trade. Broadleaf Solar lists the same address as New York City international investments firm D.E. Shaw Group. The sale included four parcels that collectively encompass just over 3% of Granby's 17.7 square-mile area. Attempts to reach a D.E. Shaw representative were not successful. D.E. Shaw is a multinational investment management firm that has invested in more than 65 renewable energy projects, including the first offshore wind farm in the U.S., according to the company website. 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