IT FELT LIKE CHRISTMAS on Wednesday in New Hampshire. The weather was delightful outside in Manchester, but inside the folks at Eversource Energy were acting like Santa Claus. They weren’t dressed in red or shouting ho ho ho, but they were handing out lots of goodies as they made the case for why their Northern […]
The Back Story
Posted inThe Back Story
Special elections ready-made for insiders
THE CANDIDATES ARE off and running in the short sprint to the April 3 special election primary to fill the state Senate seat vacated in late January by Linda Forry. The race is sure to generate some excitement for political junkies, but it could also be seen as grounds for some unease and misgivings about […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Find Mass. money – and then wait
If you have unclaimed property listed with the state treasurer’s office, don’t make plans to spend it – or even get it – any time soon. After years of urging people to search the listings and put in a claim for money or property they may have forgotten about or been unaware of that was left by […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Trump makes it easier to not pay interns
The Trump administration just made it a lot easier for for-profit employers to legally benefit from the work of interns and not have to pay them, according to new rules released recently by the US Department of Labor. This comes after several legal challenges were filed against the previous set of six rules adopted by […]
Posted inEnvironment, The Back Story
NH regulators give thumbs down to Northern Pass
NORTHERN PASS, the $1.6 billion project selected by Massachusetts last week to bring a massive amount of hydro-electricity into New England from Quebec, failed to win a key permit from New Hampshire on Thursday. The seven members of the New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee concluded that Northern Pass failed to meet one of the four […]
Posted inThe Back Story
China says your recyclables don’t measure up
IT’S NOT APPARENT AT THE CURB yet, but recycling programs across Massachusetts are taking a big hit right now because of a new Chinese policy limiting the amount of contaminants the country will accept in shipments of waste paper and some other scrap materials. The new level, set at a half of a percent for […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Is anyone home at Millennium Tower?
WEALTHY PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD have bought condos at the ultra-luxury Millennium Tower in Downtown Crossing, but not many of them live there full time. City of Boston assessing records indicate three of every four owners don’t consider their condos their principal residence, suggesting the 60-story building, which is nearly sold out, is […]
Posted inThe Back Story
How John Henry ended up buying the Globe for nothing
IT TOOK A LITTLE LONGER than he planned, but John Henry managed to purchase the Boston Globe and a new printing facility in Taunton for nothing. Henry, a billionaire who also owns the Boston Red Sox and the Liverpool Football Club, started the ball rolling in October 2013, paying The New York Times Co. $70 […]
Posted inThe Back Story
West Station vs. Boston Landing
SOMETHING SEEMS AMISS with the state’s ridership numbers for the proposed West Station in Allston. The draft environmental impact report for the Allston Interchange forecasts 250 daily commuter riders and 2,900 bus riders when the station opens in 2040. But a host of people, most of whom want West Station built much sooner, are saying […]
Posted inThe Back Story
Checking in on T control board at halfway point
THE MBTA’s FISCAL AND MANAGEMENT CONTROL BOARD is halfway through its five-year term, which seems like a good time to review its progress so far. The law creating the control board said the five-member group was needed to ensure that the transit authority embraces transparency and accountability, strives for organizational and fiscal stability, and earns the trust of the public. The MBTA has […]