Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | October 10, 2016 | Worcester Business Journal 5 B R I E F S Shopping on Thanksgiving is for the birds Framingham's Staples announced in October it will not open its stores on Thanksgiving, instead promoting its online sales that day and its 6 a.m. Black Friday opening. This marks diverging trends of retailers either opening for extended hours on Thanksgiving or not at all. Overwhelmingly, WBJ readers agreed with Staples' decision F L A S H P O L L Do you think retailers should be closed on Thanksgiving? Yes. Being open is not worth it when balanced against employee morale and business image. 72% No. This is too much of a shopping event to be limited to Black Friday. 1% MassDevelopment funds $7.7M Tree House brewery expansion MassDevelopment has issued a $7,740,000 tax-exempt bond that will help build and equip a 53,000-square- foot 60 beer barrel brew house in Charlton -- the future second site for Monson-based Tree House Brewing Co. The expansion will allow Tree House to brew up to 3,000 barrels of beer a week, or 150,000 barrels a year, and meet demand from its customers for the company's craft beer, according to a release from MassDevelopment. The bond was issued on behalf of Landreau Realty, LLC, a real estate enti- ty for Tree House Brewing Company. Country Bank purchased the bond. The new brew house is expected to open sometime in early 2017. Worcester agency charged with defrauding Medicaid out of $816K Worcester-based Compassionate Homecare and three individuals have been indicted in connection with allega- tions that they stole hundreds of thou- sands of dollars from the state's Medicaid program, Attorney General Maura Healey announced. The home health agency allegedly rou- tinely overbilled and falsely billed for services that were not authorized or pro- vided to patients, according to a release from Healey's office. MassHealth provides healthcare prod- ucts and services to eligible low-income individuals, including people with dis- abilities, children and senior citizens. CHC is headquartered in Worcester with branch offices in West Springfield and Lawrence. It was established to pro- vide home health services to individuals covered by the MassHealth program, including skilled nursing and home health aide (HHA) visits, according to the AG's office. Compassionate Homecare, Inc. (CHC), owner Francis Kimaru, chief operating officer Wilberto Rodriguez, and administrator Deborah Giordano were indicted in October. Continued on next page "I am one of the rare non- Black Friday shoppers...In fact, I think it has become a quite barbaric and just plain ridiculous tradition." COMMENTS: "Nice to have the world a little quieter now and then." Yes. Online sales can be used to balance out any losses for retailers. 21% "For me, it isn't a matter of ethics but of pragmatism. Most workers I have spoken to LOVE the overtime. But if the store isn't making enough to cover its costs, why open? Me, I hate shopping so I don't care if the stores are open or not." See what Delta Dental of Massachusetts can do for you and your employees. Talk to your broker, or visit deltadentalma.com Not all plans are created equal. Dental Service of Massachusetts, Inc. is an Independent Licensee of the Delta Dental Plans Association. ®Registered Marks of the Delta Dental Plans Association. STR AIGHT TO THE POINT. Now flying direct from Rhode Island's Green Airport to Chicago O'Hare. American Airlines and the Flight Symbol logo are marks of American Airlines, Inc. oneworld is a mark of the oneworld alliance, LLC. © 2016 American Airlines, Inc. All rights reserved. STR TR T AIGHT TO THE POINT. T. T Now flying direct from Rhode Island's Green Airport to Chicago O'Hare. 6% No. Retailers cannot afford to limit themselves to this degree. The groundbreaking at Tree House

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