PATRICK ADMINISTRATION APPROVES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS THAT WILL CREATE AND RETAIN 6,187 JOBS IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COMMONWEALTH
Projects will leverage over $342 million in private investment
BOSTON – Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - The Economic Assistance Coordinating Council (EACC) today approved eighteen projects for participation in the Economic Development Incentive Program (EDIP), which are expected to create 1,696 new jobs and retain 4,491 existing jobs, in addition to leveraging over $342 million in private investment and supporting construction projects across the Commonwealth.
Among the approved projects are seven manufacturing companies and eight projects located in Gateway Cities. The EDIP program will facilitate the growth of these businesses, which will contribute to job creation and private investment in the state. The EACC meets on a quarterly basis to review applications.
“Supporting companies that are choosing to grow in Massachusetts is an important part and one of the Administration’s key economic development objectives to create economic opportunity in every region of the Commonwealth,” said Massachusetts Office of Business Development Executive Director Michael Hunter. “These investments will help these companies expand and continue to enhance the Massachusetts economy by making our communities stronger in the long term.”
The EDIP is the Commonwealth’s investment tax credit program for businesses. In 2009 and again in 2014, Governor Deval Patrick and Housing and Economic Development Secretary Greg Bialecki, along with the Legislature, reformed the program and, as a result, the EDIP has become one of the most effective programs helping business grow in Massachusetts. EDIP tax credits and other incentives are available to companies that make qualifying investments in new facilities and create new jobs. The most recent changes are part of the Economic Development Bill Governor Patrick signed in August. The most notable changes include elimination of the geographic eligibility requirements, allowing all 351 communities to utilize the program as an economic development tool. Additionally, the 2014 reforms created the Job Creation Project (JCP) which enables companies that are creating at least 100 jobs within 2 years, but that are not making an investment that significantly increases the assess value of the property to receive a per job tax credit of up to $1,000 per job or $5,000 per job if the project is located in one of the Commonwealth’s 26 Gateway Cities.
Since these changes, 222 projects have received approval, leading to the potential creation of 16,112 new jobs, the retention of 45,402 existing jobs and leveraging of over $5.8 billion in private investment. The EACC has assisted 118 manufacturers through the EDIP and has supported 100 projects in Gateway Cities. The EACC approved the following projects at today’s meeting:
Manufacturing Retention Projects (MRP)
Golden Fleece Manufacturing Group LLC dba Southwick / Brooks Brothers Group, Inc. (Haverhill) – Founded in 1929 and now a wholly owned subsidiary of Brooks Brothers Group, Inc., Golden Fleece Manufacturing (doing business as "Southwick") is a manufacturer of high-end suits, sport coats and trousers for Brooks Brothers and other retailers both domestically and internationally. Their current 86,000 square foot facility Haverhill is operating at capacity making approximately 120,000 suits per year and Golden Fleece is seeking to expand into a 148,000 square foot vacant facility located across the street. This expansion will enable the company to better meet customer demand and manufacturing output is projected to increase to 160,000 suits per year. A private investment of $16 million will facilitate the purchase and fit out of the building and includes the purchase of approximately $2.15 million in machinery and equipment. The Manufacturing Retention and Job Growth Project will create 70 net-new full-time jobs in the Commonwealth and retain 468 full-time jobs in Haverhill. The City of Haverhill is supporting the project with a 20-Year Tax Increment Financing and Personal Property Tax Exemption Agreement valued at $4,406,851. The EACC approved $2,100,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Joseph's Gourmet Pasta Company (Haverhill) – Founded in 1991, Josephs Gourmet Pasta Company is a leading manufacturer of premium frozen stuffed pasta currently for the food service segment. Their product line includes artisan cannelloni, ravioli, tortellini, gnocchi and manicotti. The company was acquired by Brynwood Partners in December of 2013 and the new ownership is strategically focusing on stabilizing the existing business and growing it in commercial channels beyond foodservice. Joseph’s Gourmet Pasta currently leases its manufacturing facility in Haverhill and the company plans to invest $19 million to purchase the facility and an adjacent property with two mostly non-functional structures, one of which will be demolished with for immediate use as parking. Ultimate use for the entirety of the adjacent property will be determined by the future business needs of the company. The Manufacturing Retention Project will retain 254 full-time permanent jobs in the Commonwealth. The EACC approved $762,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Easypak, LLC (Leominster) – Founded in 2004, Easypak is a manufacturer of thermoformed plastic packaging products located in Leominster. The company specializes in just-in-time (JIT) delivery of versatile packaging solutions tailor-made to each customer. Easypak has experienced significant growth over the past 5 years and is operating its current 20,800 square foot facility 24-hours non-stop and overtime on weekends and is outsourcing 15 percent of their production to meet demand. As a result, the company is proposing to invest $7.5 million to add approximately 20,000 square feet to their current facility and purchase machinery and equipment. The Manufacturing Retention and Job Growth Project will create 15 net-new full-time manufacturing jobs in the Commonwealth and retain 65 full-time employees in Leominster. The City of Leominster is supporting the project with a 5-Year Tax Increment Financing and Personal Property Tax Exemption Agreement valued at $330,966. The EACC approved $262,500 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Hoff's Kitchen Co. Inc. (Malden) – Hoff's Bakery was founded in a small bakery in 1983 and has grown from a product line of locally sold cheesecakes to a manufactured line of gourmet cakes, tortes, individual desserts, brownies, dessert bars and mini pastry that are available for purchase across the eastern seaboard. The company is currently capacity constrained at its 30,000 square foot facility in Medford and is proposing to invest $19.5 million to purchase and renovate a 100,000 square foot facility in Malden. Hoff’s is a Safe Quality Food (SQF) Certified company and their new facility will be a state of the art food manufacturing facility equipped with innovative machinery that will assist in the efficiency, quality and food safety controls. The Manufacturing Retention and Job Growth Project will create 70 net-new full time jobs in the Commonwealth and retain their existing full-time workforce of 78 employees. The City of Malden is supporting the project with a 5-Year Special Tax Assessment valued at $573,470. The EACC approved $875,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Expansion Projects (EP)
Archgrove Hospitality, Inc. (Amesbury) – Archgrove Hospitality, Inc. is one of the region’s leading hospitality companies, owning and operating eight trademarked hotels and inns catering to business and leisure travelers in Connecticut, Maine and New Hampshire. The company is proposing to invest over $10.6 million to construct and operate a 54,000 square foot hotel with 92 rooms in Amesbury. Additional amenities would include a business meeting space, health center, indoor pool and breakfast room. Upon opening, the project will create 15 net-new full-time jobs in the Commonwealth. The Town of Amesbury is supporting the project with a 10-Year Tax Increment Financing Agreement valued at $802,501. The EACC approved $37,500 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
LogMeIn, Inc. (Boston) – Founded in Budapest in 1998 and today headquartered in Boston’s Innovation District, LogMeIn users worldwide rely on the company's solutions for remote control, file sharing, systems management, data backup, business collaboration and on-demand customer support of PCs, servers, Macintosh computers, smartphones and other connected devices. Over 125 million devices are connected to a LogMeIn service. The company has outgrown its 102,000 square foot headquarters and is considering leasing an additional 117,000 square foot, 6-floor facility on Summer Street. The building of interest was extensively damaged in an 8-alarm fire in 2013 and LogMeIn will invest approximately $37.7 million to completely renovate the space to be consistent with its current headquarters. The expansion will create 450 jobs net-new full-time jobs to Boston that would have otherwise been located to Hungary, Ireland or San Francisco and will retain their existing full-time workforce of 353 employees. Upon completion of this project LogMeIn will be the largest software and technology company in the Innovation District. The City of Boston is supporting the project with a 13-Year Tax Increment Financing Agreement valued at $2,532,969. The EACC approved $1,061,250 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits. LogMeIn will also benefit from the Commonwealth’s 10 percent Abandoned Building Deduction.
Hudson Lock (Hudson) – Founded in 1963, Hudson Lock is a designer and manufacturer of highly engineered, custom and specialty medium-security locks and locking systems to meet customers' specifications. Hudson Lock has recently required HPC, Inc. a designer and manufacturer of locksmith equipment located in of Schiller Park, Illinois and will strategically be moving all Illinois operations to its 210,000 square foot Hudson facility. Hudson Locks’ facility has ample open manufacturing floor space available to accommodate this relocation; however, the company will invest approximately $547,000 in interior renovations and equipment purchases that are essential to integrating the acquisition. The Expansion Project will create 30 net-new full-time jobs in the Commonwealth and retain 46 existing full-time jobs in Hudson. The Town of Hudson is supporting the project with a 20-Year Tax Increment Financing Agreement valued at $41,397. The EACC approved $32,846 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Potpourri Group, Inc. / PHI Acquisitions, Inc. (Littleton) – Founded in 1963, Potpourri Group is a leading catalog and e-commerce company headquartered in Billerica, MA. Potpourri started publishing a single catalog and today has expanded to 15 catalogs titles that offer approximately 50,000 products in the areas of home decor, apparel, jewelry, gifts, toys and pet accessories. The company currently occupies a 300,000 square foot fulfillment and call center in Northbridge, Massachusetts and a 90,000 square foot facility in Portland, Maine. Due to increased customer demand the company is seeking to expand and consolidate and has proposed to invest over $14 million to construct a new 450,000 square foot facility for use as a state-of-the-art fulfillment and call center in Littleton. The Expansion Project will create 130 net-new full-time jobs and retain 227 jobs in the Commonwealth. The Town of Littleton is supporting the project with a 20-Year Tax Increment Financing and Personal Property Tax Exemption Agreement valued at $3,335,496. The EACC approved $325,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
AMT BioProducts Corp (New Bedford) – Founded in 2002, Advanced Marine Technologies (AMT), is a leading developer and marketer of organic, environmentally friendly products. Using a unique proprietary process, AMT converts waste material from seafood processing plants creating useful agricultural, consumer and industrial materials. The company is currently operating in New Bedford and due to increased demand for their processing services resulting from a growing population of dogfish and increased demand for their products; AMT is proposing to invest approximately $685,000 to expand into an adjacent former seafood processing facility that has been vacant for five years. This expansion will double the size of AMT's current operations, create 5 net-net full-time jobs in the Commonwealth and retain 11 existing jobs in New Bedford. The City of New Bedford is supporting the project with a 5-Year Special Tax Assessment valued at $47,918. The EACC approved $31,336 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Mohawk Fine Papers Inc. (South Hadley) – Mohawk Fine Papers is North America's largest privately-owned manufacturer of fine paper and envelopes. The company is a fourth-generation, family owned business based out of New York and has operations in North America, Europe and Asia. The company has conducted a regional site search for a new manufacturing facility and has identified an 110,000 square foot facility in South Hadley. Mohawk will invest $1.5 million to renovate the facility and fit it with the necessary machinery and equipment. The proposed facility will produce in excess of 500 million envelopes annually and warehouse product prior to being shipped. The Expansion Project will not only bring a new-to-Massachusetts manufacturer to the state, but will also create 37 net-new full-time jobs in the Commonwealth. The Town of South Hadley is supporting the project with a 5-Year Special Tax Assessment valued at $177,338. The EACC approved $73,050 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Job Creation Projects (JCP)
Fiksu (Boston) – Headquartered in Boston, Fiksu was founded in 2008 in the spirit of technological innovation after developing tools to promote their own mobile application and recognizing that these tools could be used more broadly to address the needs of mobile marketers. Today the company’s patent-pending platform applies intelligent technology to proprietary big data to master the challenges of mobile advertising – including tracking, optimization, media buying and integration. Fiksu’s Boston headquarters is currently located on the 11th floor of 31 Saint James Avenue and the company is proposing to expand by leasing the 10th floor of the building to accommodate for their growth trajectory. A private investment of $1.1 million is expected to renovate, purchase equipment and fit-out the space. As a Job Creation Project the company has committed to hire 120 net-new full-time jobs by the end of 2015 and will retain their existing workforce of 191 full-time employees. The EACC approved $120,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Wayfair, LLC (Boston) – Wayfair is headquartered in Boston and since the company’s founding in 2002 has grown to become one of the world’s largest e-commerce sites for home goods and housewares. The company sells over 7 million products from approximately 7,000 suppliers across five distinct brands: Wayfair.com, Joss & Main, All Modern, Dwell Studio and Birchlane. Wayfair experienced growth at a rate of 50 percent in the first half of 2014 and had a successful initial public offering in October 2014. Given the success of the business, the company is seeking to invest in expanding their physical office space in the Copley Place area of Boston, along with adding new employees to staff their departments such as software and system engineering, online marketing and analytics, category management, merchandising, operations, customer service and sales. As a Job Creation Project, the company has proposed to create 264 net-new full-time jobs by the end of 2015 and retain their existing Massachusetts full-time workforce of 1,289. The EACC approved $264,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Demandware (Burlington) – Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Burlington, MA, Demandware, Inc. provides enterprise-class cloud-based digital commerce solutions that enable companies to easily design, implement and manage their own customized e-commerce sites including websites, mobile applications, in-store solutions and other digital storefronts. The company has a unique business model that encourages partnership and shared success with their clients and today powers nearly 250 retail brands across more than 1,000 sites around the globe. The company is poised for growth and maintains offices or personnel in Australia, Austria, China, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. As a Job Creation Project, the company has proposed to hire 146 net-new full-time employees by the end of 2015 at their Burlington office and will retain their existing full-time workforce of 280 employees in Massachusetts. The EACC approved $146,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
SimpliVity Corporation (Westborough) – SimpliVity was founded in 2009 with the mission of simplifying IT as companies in the modern market are under continued pressure to leverage new technology to gain a competitive advantage, but are often constrained by cost and the complexity of deploying it. SimpliVity’s product solutions offer scalability, efficiency and economics of cloud computing while maintaining the performance, resiliency and manageability of enterprise IT. These solutions were launched as recent as April 2013, but have already been adopted by hundreds of enterprises and service providers worldwide. In August of 2014, the company announced its expansion into the Asia Pacific Region and Japan and currently exports approximately 50 percent of its sales. To enable growth as a global technology leader, SimpliVity is proposing a multiple phase growth plan and in phase 1 the company has proposed to hire 120 net-new full-time employees by the end of 2015 at their Westborough headquarters and additionally is seeking a second location in the surrounding area to accommodate future growth. The EACC approved $120,000 in EDIP Investment Tax Credits.
Local Incentive Only Projects - (the following projects applied to the EACC solely for approval of their local Tax Increment Financing or Special Tax Assessment Agreements and will not receive an EDIP Investment Tax Credit):
M.S. Walker, Inc. (Dedham) – Founded in 1933 and headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, M.S. Walker is a 5th generation family-owned liquor and wine wholesaler, rectifier and distributer. The company rectifies more than 1.1 million cases annually for 150 brands, sells its products both nationally and internationally and acts as a distributor for a multitude of national and international brands. The company must relocate from its 102,000 square foot facility in Somerville due to the taking of the land by eminent domain to make room for a maintenance/storage facility when the Green Line extends through Somerville and into Medford. The company conducted an extensive site search and identified the former Stop & Shop warehouse in Dedham as a viable site. Since the building is underutilized and economic distressed the company plans to invest $50 million to purchase equipment and construct a new 120,000 to 150,000 square foot state-of-the-art manufacturing center. The Town of Dedham is supporting the project with a 15-Year Tax Increment Financing Agreement valued at $2,151,502.
GE Healthcare (Marlborough) – GE Healthcare Life Sciences is a division of GE Healthcare and operates under the parent of the General Electric Company. The Life Sciences Division provides expertise and tools for a wide range of biotech and life sciences, including basic research of cells and proteins, drug discovery research and tools to support large-scale manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals. The company conducted an extensive site search for the new headquarters of its Life Sciences Division and after considering other states such as North Carolina and New Jersey, GE Healthcare Life Sciences is proposing to invest $21 million to expand into a 160,000 square foot facility in Marlborough. GE will retain and transfer 110 full-time Massachusetts employees to the site and create 220 full-time jobs in the life sciences and biotechnology cluster, further establishing Massachusetts of as the hub of life sciences. The City of Marlborough is supporting the project with a 10-Year Tax Increment Financing Agreement valued at $106,672.
21 East Living LLC / Bourne Avenue Capital Partners (North Attleboro) – 21 East Coast Living is a single purpose entity, created to develop and own a market-rate, mixed-use development consisting of 20,000 square feet of retail and commercial space and 193 apartments units. The site is located in the historic town center of North Attleboro; however, is a brownfield site. The company will invest $42.5 million to construct and re-develop the site will which will be the largest mixed used project ever built in North Attleboro. The project will create 4 net-new full-time jobs associated with the management of the building, however it is additionally anticipated that jobs will be created as a result of retail and other private businesses that will locate to the site. The Town of North Attleboro is supporting the project with a 20-Year Tax Increment Financing Agreement applied only to the commercial portion of the property valued at $481,936.
Martignetti Grocery Co., Inc. / Sixty Cross Street LLC / Martignetti Corp. (Taunton) – Founded in 1908 as a family grocery store in Boston’s North End, after the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, the Martignetti family received one of the first retail licenses for beverage alcohol in Massachusetts. The business has since grown into the third generation, family owned, Martignetti Companies, the leading distributer of wines and spirits in New England and the seventh largest distributer in the United States. Due to increased customer demand, the company is seeking to consolidate their two Massachusetts facilities located in Braintree and Norwood into an expanded facility. The company has identified 115 acres of land in Taunton and is proposing to invest $100 million to construct an approximately 800,000 square foot, state-of-the-art facility beverage distribution center. The company will transfer their existing Massachusetts workforce of 800 employees to the site. The City of Taunton is supporting the project with a 20-Year Tax Increment Financing and Personal Property Tax Exemption valued at $5,144,305.
波士頓郊區華人聖經教會（CBCGB）合田事工上週末舉辦慈善音樂會，既提前慶祝聖誕節，更傳遞關懷，募款濟助領養中國孤兒家庭。
波士頓郊區華人聖經教會的合田事工，今年三月從新英格蘭地區各個教會招攬來喜愛唱歌，擅奏樂器的教友，組成“合田聖樂團”，由薛悅悅，李建平擔任指揮，周鑫泉任專屬伴奏，演練了大半年後，上週末推出慶祝聖誕慈善音樂會，以音樂弘揚信仰，以及他們對人生的關愛。
目前共有成員29人的“合田聖樂團”，當天表演了十幾項節目，包括鋼琴三重奏“靜默在主前”，薛悅悅、江佩蓉二重唱“我耐性等候主”，醴陵，黃筱軒，，王藝臻等人以大中小提琴合奏“耶穌恩友歌”，“奇異恩典與巴哈“，全體合唱“我們心同聚”，詩歌聖樂團演唱“就在這房間裡”，“祢扶持我”，瑞典民謠改編的“你真偉大”，拉丁文改編的“純潔聖體”，非常現代，由金希文作曲的“他是愛我”，“燭光頌歌”，“平安夜”，“願主賜福保佑你”，“We
Wish you a merry Christmas“等歌曲。
當天的音樂會，由陳德修牧師致歡迎詞，合田事工關懷小組的曾陽生報告成員到送衣物到庇護所給流民，每週日到教堂服務三小時等活動。