Worcester Business Journal

6 Worcester Business Journal | April 17, 2023 | wbjournal.com T H E T I C K E R 1805 Year the Grafton Inn was built on Grafton Common. The building sold for $1.2 million on April 4. Source: Worcester District Registry of Deeds $3.4 million Total compensation in 2022 for Mike Reed, the CEO, president and chair of Gannett Co., the parent company of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette and MetroWest Daily News Source: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 1.9 Points the Central Massachusetts Business Confidence Index dropped in March from February. March's score of 52 still falls into optimistic territory. Source: Associated Industries of Massachusetts $2,500 Amount awarded individually in 2023 Festival Grants Projects by the Massachusetts Cultural Council to 69 Central Massachusetts organizations Source: Massachusetts Cultural Council 862,927 Worcester County population in 2022, a 0.1% rise from 2021 while the statewide population dropped 0.11% to 6,981,974 Source: U.S. Census Bureau $615 million Acquisition by Marlborough medical device manufacturer Boston Scientific Corp. of Texas-based Apollo Endosurgery Inc., which specializes in gastrointestinal devices Source: Boston Scientific November to April Tourist season for which Discover Central Massachusetts, MetroWest Boston Visitors Bureau, and Visit North Central Massachusetts received a $1-million marketing grant Source: Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism 23,390 square feet Size of the new Lancaster facility that Leominster manufacturer F&M Tool & Die will move into, after leasing the space from former occupant Beacon MedTech Solutions Source: NAI Glickman Kovago & Jacobs B R I E F S our federal, state, and city partners for securing this expansion with JetBlue and building on the economic and tourism benefits for Central Massachusetts," Gov. Maura Healey said in the release. e reintroduction of the route to Orlando and the new offering to Fort Myers are in response to increased demand from customers in Central Massachusetts for additional Florida flights, according to the release. "e return of JetBlue's Orlando flight and their new service to Fort Myers shows the continued growth and travel demand our region is experiencing, and we are thrilled to provide more options to the traveling public," Lew Evangelidis, sheriff of Worcester County and chairman of the Massport board of directors, said in the release. Tickets for the routes are available on JetBlue's website. Country Bank names former FinPro COO to board of directors Country Bank named 30-year banking veteran Steven Musso to its board of directors at its annual meeting. Musso previously served as COO at FinPro, Inc., a management consulting firm focused on banking based in New Jersey, leading consulting engagements, running the consulting operation, and building the technology division, according to a April 4 press release from Country Bank. "I am excited to be on the other side of the fence. Joining the Board at Country Bank allows me to bring all of my past experiences to bear in helping the Bank continue to serve its local communities and grow by delivering quality banking services in a rapidly changing industry," Musso said in the press release. Country Bank is headquartered in Ware and has $1.7 billion in assets as of Dec. 31 according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. As of June 30 it has $1.4 billion in deposits, $362.4 billion of which is attributable to Central Massachusetts branches according to the WBJ Research Department. Downtown Worcester apartment development given planning board nod e Worcester Planning Board ap- proved a six-story, 108-market-rate-unit apartment and retail building to be built on a parking lot at 35 Portland St. in downtown Worcester. Developer MG2 Group of Boston plans to build the 90,000 square foot building. e approved plans include re- tail space on the ground floor, which the developer intends to make into an art studio or art gallery and possibly a gym, according to Joshua Lee Smith, an attor- ney for Worcester law firm Bowditch & Dewey, who represented the developer at the April 5 Planning Board meeting. e 2,000 square feet of art spaces would add to the cultural district, which includes Arts Worcester on Portland Street and the abutting Ha- nover eatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts. e building, a few blocks from Union Station, is considered transit-oriented and will contain 62 parking spaces, 58 of which will be stacked in an automated stacking system. Eric Zachrison of Context, LLC, the architecture firm designing the project, said the project will use a variety of colors and textures of cement fiber panels to add warmth and a human scale to the project. For this reason, the project also features articulation of the facade and roof. e project does not require Worces- ter Zoning Board of Appeals approval according to Smith. e building is one of several new structures recently proposed for down- town, and in the Canal District. Manufacturer buys neighboring Leominster company's soon-to-be- closed facility for $12.4M e owners of New England Wire Products in Leominster have purchased two neighboring industrial buildings at 101 and 107 Scott Drive from Spectro Coating Corp., a flock manufacturer that stopped production in February. e property at 101 Scott Drive was sold by HK Shah LLC of Leominster for $8.7 million and 107 Scott Drive was sold by RNP Shah LLC of Leominster for $3.7 million on April 4, according to the Worcester Northern District Registry of Deeds. e properties comprise approximately 18 acres with a 158,000-square-foot industrial building. Spectro Coating stopped production in February. Owner Hemendra Shah told industry publication Fabrics & Steven Musso Continued from previous page

• Cover