Archive for the ‘News’ Category

By CHARIS ANDERSON

NEW BEDFORD — UpSource Inc. has committed to a 10-year lease for space in a Belleville Avenue mill to house a growing call center, according to a company official.

The lease, which takes effect Jan. 15, cements the company’s relationship to the space, which it has been inhabiting on a temporary basis since August, said Susan Cohen, UpSource’s vice president of client relations.

The company has more than doubled its workforce since moving into New Bedford, hiring 32 people to bring its total employment to 58 full-time employees, Cohen said.

UpSource acquired the call center, which was … Read entire story

By Brian Boyd

NEW BEDFORD — The city’s effort to become a major staging area for the offshore wind industry could pay off after Cape Wind scored a major legal victory Wednesday.

The developer of 130 wind turbines in Nantucket Sound plans to be the first to use New Bedford’s proposed port staging facility to deploy turbine parts, provided that work is done in time. Following the state Supreme Judicial Court’s ruling in favor of Cape Wind, Mayor Scott W. Lang said he is optimistic the staging area will be ready before the wind farm begins construction.

At the same … Read entire story

By Mass.gov

Lieutenant Governor Murray Announces $3.2 Million to Support Infrastructure and Economic Development in New Bedford
NEW BEDFORD – Thursday, January 12, 2012 – Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray today joined state and local officials to announce a $3.2 million MassWorks Infrastructure Grant for water, sewer and roadway improvements to support the Acushnet Avenue International Market Place in New Bedford. The International Marketplace project will create 40 construction jobs, five part-time jobs and 30 full-time jobs while advancing the redevelopment of the Acushnet Avenue Marketplace.

“Our Administration continues to work with cities and towns across the state, including Gateway Cities … Read entire story

By Brian Boyd

NEW BEDFORD — Naughty Dawgs is coming back to the city’s downtown for the first time in eight years.

The popular restaurant has applied for permits to open its third location on North Sixth Street, near City Hall. Naughty Dawgs formerly had a restaurant on Union Street but has not had a presence in the downtown since that location closed.

Customers have been asking the owners to return to the heart of the city, and the growth of the area makes the move attractive, said Ken Rapoza, who has owned the business for 18 years with partner … Read entire story

By Beth Perdue

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — One of New Bedford’s hottest young start-ups has opened an office in Cambridge, but that doesn’t mean it is leaving the Southcoast behind, according to co-founder Phil Beauregard.

Objective Logistics, a start-up software firm that specializes in restaurant workplace optimization, recently secured $1.5 million in venture capital in a round led by Google Ventures and Atlas Venture.

The deal came together in a whirlwind, according to Southcoast native Beauregard, with Atlas Venture making the first commitment. Asked who else he’d like to work with, Beauregard, 30, said he quickly answered Rich Miner, of … Read entire story

By CHARIS ANDERSON

NEW BEDFORD — The head of the EPA’s New England region on Thursday backed the use of CAD cell technology in the harbor cleanup, arguing it is a proven technique that will shorten the project’s time line.

“There shouldn’t be a disagreement whether CAD cells work or not if they’re designed right,” said Curt Spalding, administrator for Region 1 of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, during a meeting with The Standard-Times’ editorial board.

He added later: “The community may dislike the CAD as an alternative but we think it’s very viable.”

Spalding said CAD, or confined aquatic … Read entire story

By SoutCoastToday.com

NEW BEDFORD — Gov. Deval Patrick’s office announced Monday a $1.2 million grant that will help fund street-scaping and roadway improvements on Acushnet Avenue.

The funding was approved as one of 23 MassWorks Infrastructure Program grants.

The Acushnet Avenue project will provide improvements to provide pedestrian access to the “Acushnet Avenue International Marketplace,” according to the state. The project hopes to stimulate small business growth in the area. The total MassWorks program investment in the project, according to the state, is $3.25 million.

“Our administration has made historic investments to help communities improve their infrastructure and create jobs,” … Read entire story

By Gazette Staff Reports

NEW BEDFORD — Gov. Deval Patrick visited Bridgewater State University’s Aviation Training Facility located at the New Bedford Regional Airport Tuesday to announce the results of a statewide airport economic impact study that finds Massachusetts public airports generate $11.9 billion in economic activity and support approximately 124,000 jobs.

“Infrastructure investments just like these create jobs and improve public safety,” Patrick said. “New Bedford Airport is one of many great examples of the importance of aviation facilities to our economic strength.”

After touring the training facility, Patrick proclaimed the month of November as “General Aviation Month.”

The … Read entire story

By Jack Spillane

Some buildings work there way so deeply into the heart of a community that even fire and demolition evidently can’t take them away.

So city officials and the New Bedford preservation community gathered Thursday to break ground to rebuild the “Queen Anne house” at One Washington Square.

Each year in this city, vacant urban lots where historic houses once stood, pop up like so many missing teeth in the mouth of an increasingly unbridled vagrant. But the Waterfront Historic Area League (WHALE) has said that the demise of this iconic building, at least, will not stand.

New … Read entire story

By Patrick Anderson

The crumbling old mills on the banks of the Acushnet River in New Bedford’s North End may look like money pits, but to developers specializing in historic reuse, such as WinnCompanies of Boston, the buildings look like opportunities.
“They do not scare us away, we embrace them,” said Winn Managing Partner Gilbert Winn, who has recently embarked on renovating the Manomet Mills building on Riverside Avenue. “When completed, we think the high ceilings and large windows are advantages.”

Period details aren’t the only advantages of working with old industrial properties such as Manomet Mills, which Winn plans … Read entire story