The House rolled out a major economic development package this week, but one key proposal that has been kicking around Beacon Hill for two-and-a-half years was noticeably absent – the proposed expansion of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. Convention officials launched an ambitious program for expanding the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in November […]
Paul McMorrow
Paul McMorrow comes to CommonWealth from Banker & Tradesman, where he covered commercial real estate and development. He previously worked as a contributing editor to Boston magazine, where he covered local politics in print and online. He got his start at the Weekly Dig, where he worked as a staff writer, and later news and features editor. Paul writes a frequent column about real estate for the Boston Globe’s Op-Ed page, and is a regular contributor to BeerAdvocate magazine. His work has been recognized by the City and Regional Magazine Association, the New England Press Association, and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. He is a Boston University graduate and a lifelong New Englander.
Posted inThe Back Story, Transportation
South Station NOT on track
More than 18 months ago, state transportation officials announced a major federal grant that would enable them to expand South Station in Boston. But the state hasn’t tapped the funds yet, and it’s beginning to look like it may not happen for awhile. The $32.5 million federal grant, drawn from high-speed rail stimulus funds, was […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
What’s up with the sales tax?
Sales tax receipts normally behave like you’d expect them to: They rise when the economy is expanding, and fall when unemployment spikes. Data from across the country show that, historically, sales taxes track the business cycle closely. Over the past decade, though, the Massachusetts sales tax became decoupled from the state’s economy. Some revenue has […]
Posted inUncategorized
Finding her voice
Attorney General Martha Coakley at a financial literacy workshop at East Boston High School. Martha Coakley has a cold. The attorney general apologized for this fact as she took the stage to address a group of Boston business honchos, popped a couple cough drops into her mouth, and joked that if the audience hit […]
Posted inPolitics
Cahill lawsuit leads to indictment
Attorney General Martha Coakley learned about the alleged political connection to a 2010 Lottery ad blitz the same way everyone else in Massachusetts did – she read about it in Tim Cahill’s own lawsuit. Coakley announced public corruption indictments today against Cahill, the former state treasurer who waged an unsuccessful third-party run for governor in […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Globe raising price again
The Boston Globe is raising the newsstand price of its daily paper by 25 percent next week as it scrambles to prop up circulation revenue in the face of declining advertising income. The state’s preeminent news organization managed to fend off a threatened shutdown in 2009 by negotiating givebacks from its unions, but the upcoming […]
Posted inEconomy, The Back Story
Essex official wants to sue over mortgage mess
(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’)); John O’Brien is a national folk hero to anti-foreclosure activists. The Southern Essex Register of Deeds has garnered national attention by accusing big banks of acting like a “criminal […]
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 sponsors of job candidates at the Probation Department have hired lawyers using money from their political accounts. The payments don’t specify why the lawyers were […]
Posted inThe Back Story, Uncategorized
The Mashpee mad dash
A section of the state’s new casino gambling law that was intended to give a head start to the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe may now be working against the tribe. The section requires the Mashpee to meet a July 31 deadline for concluding local and state gambling negotiations over a casino site, or they lose their […]
Posted inEconomy
Galvin trades barbs with S. Coast officials
South Coast officials traded pointed accusations with an unusually animated Secretary of State William Galvin today, as the two sides battled over a bill exempting a stalled Freetown office development from Galvin’s review. “You’re being asked to reward belligerence and noncooperation,” said Galvin, testifying before a legislative committee in opposition to the Freetown bill. The […]