Worcester Business Journal

18 2018 Economic Forecast • Worcester Business Journal • www.wbjournal.com Reserve your advertising space today and get your company's message in front of the region's business leaders! Contact: Mark Murray, Associate Publisher 508.755.8004 x227 • mmurray@wbjournal.com Your business deserves a powerful presence in Central Mass. www.wbjournal.com UPCOMING ISSUES January 8 Best of Business Awards January 22 Economic Development February 5 Banking & Finance February 19 Marketing & Social Media March 5 Business Leaders of the Year/ Hall of Fame March 19 Meetings Guide & Golf Directory Worcester Business Journal WBJ Continued from Page 17 H o s p i t a l i t y Tower Hill tabs Florida native as new CEO T ower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston announced in February it had selected the director of a Virginia garden and Florida native as its new CEO. Grace Elton, the director of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, Va. since 2011, took over as permanent Tower Hill CEO in early April. She will fill the position left vacant by Kathy Abbott, who left in May 2016 to work in Boston on waterfront issues. Suzanne Maas served as inter- im CEO until a permanent replace- ment was found. Elton is a former adjunct professor and arboretum supervisor at the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University in Philadelphia. She is a native of Florida, as the daughter of parents who worked in Everglades National Park. Tower Hill is in the early phases of implementing its new master plan to add more gardens and programs. The botanical garden celebrated its 30th anniversary at its Boylston location last year and the 175th anniversary of its parent organization – the Worcester County Horticultural Society. The Chameleon restaurant closes abrupty T he Chameleon, the Worcester res- taurant that opened in the former The Usual space after its owner was arrested on drug charges, closed sud- denly in November. The restaurant opened on June 30, just months after The Usual owner Kevin Perry was indicted on federal drug charges, including nine counts of money laundering, three counts of aggravated cash structuring, one count of making a false statement on a loan application and one count of distribu- tion of fentanyl. According to court filings, Perry changed his plea to guilty on Oct. 13 and agreed to prison terms of 14 to 16 years, five years of supervised release and the forfeiture of nine properties, vehicles and nearly $2 million. Attendance at Tower Hill Botanic Garden hit a record of nearly 140,000 in 2016, right before Grace Elton became the organization's new CEO. The now closed Chameleon restaurant on Shrewsbury Street

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