Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | March 20, 2023 | Worcester Business Journal 5 Breweries release female- driven beers to celebrate Women's History Month Cra breweries in Framingham, Marl- borough, Worcester, and throughout Central Massachusetts are creating and selling female-driven beers in March in support of Women's History Month and the nonprofit e Pink Boots Society. Pink Boots Society began at a cra brewers conference in 2008 and started its mission to make breweries more inclusive. In 2013, it hosted its first women's brew day, and since then it has grown and become an annual fixture in the cra brewing calendar. Breweries in Central Mass/ have begun to diversify their brewery missions to put a focus on the women's causes they feel closely align to their mission and hearts. Here is the female-driven beers Cen- tral Mass. breweries are releasing. • Lost Shoe Brewing and Roasting Co., Marlborough - Packaged and released on International Women's Day, March 8, Lost Shoe brewed a brewed a 7% IPA with passionfruit, pineapple and strawberry called ese Boots Were Made for Mashin'. e brewery's assis- tant brewer, Rachel Stillman, and eight other employees of the brewery helped with brewing and packaging. • Exhibit 'A' Brewing Co. - e Framingham brewery will brew its Pink Boots beer on March 23 with an expect- ed release in April. is year's beer will feature an all-female supply chain.e recipe was developed by female brewers and will be led by Dara Klotz at Exhibit 'A'. It will be packaged by women. • Redemption Rock Brewing Co. - e Worcester brewery is brewing an American porter called Nice Docs, and it will feature chocolate wheat and choc- olate rye from Valley Malt and Cascade hops from Four Star Farms, which is a B R I E F S T H E T I C K E R 19,600 Jobs added in January in Massachusetts. Source: Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Management $400,000 Donations made by Leominster-based Fidelity Bank to more than 275 organizations, events, and causes in 2022 through its LifeDesign Community Dividend program. Source: Fidelity Bank 60 Layoffs at the Leominster Packaging plant, after owner Wisconsin firm Quad/Graphics Inc. will close the facility by April 29 Source: Quad/Graphics Inc. 65% Massachusetts voters who would support a ballot question once again allowing cities and towns to implement rent control Source: Change Research Coworking space is a good option for work- from-home employees Multiple coworking companies have sought out space in Central Massachusetts over the past few months, with Boston-based WorkBar choosing Framingham for its 11th location and Wolanski CoWork picking downtown Worcester for a 15,000-square-foot coworking space for the Venture X franchise. While coworking spaces utilize much of their floor plans for shared working space, both WorkBar and Wolanski CoWork will have space for private offices, which Wolanski believes will be popular among startups. When polled online, the majority of WBJ readers who said they would consider using a coworking space believe they are a good option for work-from-home employees. Would you consider using coworking space for your business or employees? F L A S H P O L L woman-owned business. • Wormtown Brewery - e Worces- ter brewery makes She Hoppy twice a year: March for Women's History Month and in October to commemorate the first National Woman's Rights Conven- tion, which took place in Worcester on Oct. 23, 1850. e 7% hazy New England IPA is brewed by a female team. • Seven Saws Brewing Co. - e Holden brewery brewed and packaged its Women of the Woods IPA, which was made by all women on its staff. • Timberyard Brewing Co. - e East Brookfield firm brewed an ode to a dance hall called Lashaway Dance Pavil- ion and nicknamed Mosquito Ballroom, which existed in North Brookfield from 1937-1942. e dance hall was owned by the brewery's taproom General Manager Kate Ohanesian's great-grandparents and where her grandparents met. Stow golf course section may soon become housing development A long-anticipated conservation and residential development project at the Stow Acres Country Club is approaching its final stages as a 189-unit mixed-in- come housing development project awaits approval by the Town of Stow. Harvard-based developer MCO & Associates, Inc., Stow Conservation Trust, the Stow Planning and Conser- vation Departments, and Stow Acres Country Club are part of a public-pri- vate partnership aiming to redevelop the Country Club's north course. e Town of Stow completed the purchase of 109 acres of the site for conservation and recreation on Jan. 13 for $3.535 million, according to a press release from the Town. irty-two acres will be set aside for the proposed e Residences at Stow Acres, which will feature 124 single-fam- ily homes, 40 cottage rentals, and 25 age-62+ rental apartments, according to the developer's website. ere will be an affordable component. e developer is constructing another cottage rental community, MCO Cottag- es in nearby Lancaster, expected to be on the market in spring. e Town of Stow and the country club are planning a deal where a portion of the north course will be available for play for up to 10 years, according to the Town of Stow website. e 18-hole south course will operate normally. In 2021, the Town paid $1.5 million to the country club's owner to purchase a permanent conservation restriction on the 151-acre Stow Acres South Course using Community Preservation Act Funds. Redemption Rock's Women's History Month beer W 13% 25% 12% 23% 25% 3% Yes, It could help us save on our real estate costs. No, our business needs its own storefront. Yes, we would consider having the option for our work-from-home employees. Yes, it would be a good early step for our young, growing company. No, we prefer a traditional office lease. No, we own our building.

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