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Fri. Jan. 13, 2012 After storm outages, Mass AG seeks tougher laws Attorney General Martha Coakley wants the state to do more to compensate utility customers who suffer lengthy power outages after severe storms. In a letter sent this week to a legislative committee, Coakley proposed changing state law to require that any penalties paid by utilities after power outages be returned directly to consumers in the form of rate credits. The attorney general has also proposed doing away with an existing cap on penalties that can be imposed on utilities.	Advertisement
Mass. travel office unveils text-messaging program that alerts skiers with smartphones to special deals In collaboration with many of the state’s ski areas, the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism has just launched a program that enables the ski areas to promote themselves to smartphone users. Consumers who visit www.massvacation.com/winterfun and then click on “Hit the Slopes” can sign up for a service that will send them text-messages about special deals and discounts. The program is launching just before the Martin Luther King holiday weekend, typically a popular time for ski areas.
Newport Grand seeks city gambling referendum NEWPORT, R.I. -- Newport Grand has asked city officials to seek approval from the General Assembly to put a table-gambling referendum before Newport voters. The Newport Daily News and Providence Journal report that Diane Hurley, chief executive and co-owner, wrote to the council that Newport Grand could not survive as is in competition with a resort casino in the Fall River area. Massachusetts lawmakers and Governor Deval Patrick legalized casinos in November.
CBRE brokers $39.9m sale of Village Shoppes of Salem in N.H. Clarion Partners has sold the Village Shoppes of Salem shopping center in Salem, N.H., for $39.9 million, said a broker involved in the transaction. The broker is the Boston office of CBRE/New England’s National Retail Investment Group, or NRIG. CBRE Inc., headquartered in Los Angeles, is a large commercial real estate services firm. CBRE said it represented the seller in the transaction and procured the buyer, Route 28 Salem LP. The shopping center is fully occupied with such tenants as Best Buy, Sports Authority, DSW, PetSmart, and Michaels.
Saudi Arabian health ministry buys medical devices from Zoll Zoll Medical Corp., a Chelmsford-based maker of medical devices, said that the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health purchased six of its intravascular temperature management systems to treat pilgrims suffering from heat stroke during the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca last November. The process of cooling the body with a Zoll system can limit potential damage to the brain, tissue, and other organs, resulting in lives saved that might otherwise be lost, the company says.
Boston fashion sales site Rue La La lays off workers Rue La La, the Boston-based members-only fashion sales website, said today it will cut 60 positions. The layoffs come as a result of consolidating a partner website, Smartbargains, into Rue La La, which is partially owned by eBay Inc.
Citizens Bank parent plans to cut 4,800 jobs, but little if any impact seen locally The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc, the parent of Providence-based Citizens Bank, announced plans today to cut 4,800 jobs, citing volatile markets and new regulations in the United Kingdom.
Report: Cape Wind unlikely to be done by mid-2015 The long-planned Cape Wind offshore wind project is unlikely to be producing electricity by mid-2015, New England’s power grid manager says in a new report that raises the prospect of more delays in a project beset by them. But Cape Wind officials say they disagree with ISO New England’s evaluation and expect to be running at least partially by mid-2015. ISO New England’s determination about Cape Wind was included in a Jan. 3 report in which the company rejected Cape Wind’s bid to participate in a market that it oversees.
Shaw’s survey: Patriot fans are among the most fanatical football fans in the US Followers of the New England Patriots are among the most fanatical and superstitious football fans in the country, according to a recent “Snack Down Survey” from the parent company of the Shaw’s supermarket chain. The survey contacted fans in several football markets, including Philadelphia, Chicago, and San Diego, and the survey found that locals in the Boston area are more likely to identify themselves as diehard fans for their team than folks in other parts of the country.
Globe will print most editions of the Telegram & Gazette The Telegram & Gazette said today it will print the Worcester newspaper from The Boston Globe’s Dorchester facility six days a week, eliminating more than 60 jobs at its Millbury plant. The newspaper’s Monday through Friday editions, and the Sunday Telegram will be printed at the Globe. The Telegram’s commercial print operations will continue in the Millbury production facility. Both the Telegram & Gazette and the Globe are owned by The New York Times Co.
Organic yogurt maker Stonyfield taps former Ben & Jerry’s exec to be CEO Stonyfield, an organic yogurt company based in Londonderry, N.H., said today that Walt Freese, a former Ben & Jerry’s CEO, will take over as president and chief executive. Freese succeeds cofounder Gary Hirshberg, who will continue as Stonyfield chairman, while he seeks to play a larger role in advocating for change in national food and agriculture policies, including the labeling of genetically engineered foods. According to a company press release, Hirshberg “hand-selected” Freese, who will take over later this month.