After a dozen years, 125 public meetings, and $100 million in sunk costs, the saga of the failed Columbus Center project, a mixed-use development slated to straddle the Massachusetts Turnpike […]
The lessons of the failed Columbus Center project
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Newt Gingrich declares war on reVolting electric cars
The next stop in the culture wars is the electric car. Newt Gingrich has declared that President Obama now threatens Americans’ right to choose the type of car that they […]
Posted inEconomy
Shire top recipient of state tax credits
The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center handed out $21.2 million in tax credits to 28 companies, with high-flying Shire HGT of Lexington garnering the top award of $3 million, bringing its […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Romney: A Michigander or Michi-gamer?
Mitt Romney wants to be president, so he needs to win next week’s Michigan primary. A big part of the game plan for pulling that feat off involves reinforcing Romney’s […]
Posted inPolitics
IG questions legality of Red Sox deals
Inspector General Gregory Sullivan is questioning the legality and fairness of a 2003 deal between the Boston Redevelopment Authority and the Boston Red Sox that allowed the ball club to […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
How corrupt is Massachusetts?
We tend to think of Massachusetts as a pretty corrupt place. Let’s see, three House speakers in a row have been convicted of crimes. Sal DiMasi, the most recent speaker […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Life Sciences Center in salary crosshairs
CORRECTION: The salary information contained in this story for employees of the Life Sciences Center has changed. The two employees who were earning $185,000 a year have left, leaving the […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
In Worcester, a web site that names names
Matt Amorello, the former head of the Mass. Turnpike Authority and the Big Dig, debuted a transportation column this morning that criticizes what he calls the minimal impact of stimulus […]
Posted inHealth Care, Opinion
Mass. can do better on prescription checks
The US Centers for Disease Control, labeling prescription drug abuse the fastest growing drug problem in the nation, has suggested that “changes in state laws that focus on the prescribing […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Scott Brown and the 99 percent
US Sen. Scott Brown has jumped feet first into a controversy that complicates his Senate campaign. Last week, the Obama administration back-peddled on a mandate to require institutions and universities […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
GOP touts plan for economic growth, jobs
Criticizing Democrats for inertia on job growth, Republican lawmakers today unveiled a package of proposals geared towards stimulating the economy and creating jobs in Massachusetts. “When we looked at the […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment
Cape Wind part of merger deal
NStar and Northeast Utilities have agreed to freeze their rates, rebate $21 million to Massachusetts customers, and buy more than a quarter of Cape Wind’s electricity output to secure the […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
Meditech project really dead
Back in September, medical software developer Meditech pulled the plug on a plan to build a $65 million office complex in Freetown, but South Coast officials mounted an intense effort […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Election laws need overhaul
The Massachusetts Legislature recently accomplished what few believed was possible. With a singular commitment to broadening democracy in the state, it adopted a fair and comprehensive redistricting plan. For this […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
Federal early ed aid is great but not enough
When Gov. Deval Patrick and more than 150 legislators, early educators, early childhood advocates ,and state education leaders gathered at the State House last month to celebrate the Commonwealth’s newly […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
The value of a vigorous press
On Friday, Boston Globe editor Martin Baron was honored as the 2012 recipient of the Stephen Hamblett First Amendment Award, given by the New England First Amendment Center. Below is […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Download
Hospital rankings stir controversy
As part of the sweeping 2010 federal health care law, the government is trying to tie Medicare reimbursement rates to the quality of care delivered at hospitals. The idea is […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
What’s yours is the Times’s and what’s the Times’s is the Times’s
The New York Times, like most entertainment, publishing, and media behemoths, is firmly in favor of the stalled efforts in Congress to reel in copyright infringement and outright piracy on […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Lawyering up on Beacon Hill
Beacon Hill lawmakers are lawyering up as state and federal investigators probe hiring practices at the Massachusetts Probation Department. Campaign finance records indicate a number of lawmakers identified as frequent […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
Schilling’s got game
Curt Schilling, aka the Big Lug, looks like he might be pitching a perfect game. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning came out this week amid great expectations. Pre-orders of the $60 […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download, Transportation
MBTA Snow Job
Higher gas taxes. New tolls. Charging drivers by the mile. Everyone has an idea of how to fix what ails the MBTA. The latest trial balloon would reallocate $20 million […]
Posted inEconomy, State House News Service, Transportation
No new taxes, fees, DeLeo tells House
House Speaker Robert DeLeo told his colleagues the chamber’s budget for the coming fiscal year would not include any new taxes or fees, and he didn’t mention whether he has […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, The Download
DiMasi moves, Beacon Hill quakes
Last month, the Globe reported that federal prosecutors had “essentially completed their investigation” into rigged hiring at the state’s Probation Department, saying indictments “could be imminent.” Soon after, the Lowell […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion, Transportation
MBTA deficit solutions too narrow in scope
Discussion about the MBTA’s proposal to implement fare hikes and service cuts to meet a $160 million dollar budget shortfall has, until Boston Mayor Tom Menino’s recent letter to Secretary […]