Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs and the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority today announced a policy for public access to open space along aqueducts in 14 communities, including the Cochituate and Sudbury aqueducts in Natick. The policy sets forth guidelines for the Cochituate, Sudbury, Weston and Wachusett aqueducts. A press release explains that these aquaducts once supplied water for Greater Boston, but are now used only as emergency back-up resources. “These aqueducts follow miles of scenic, tree-lined paths across the landscape, which will be a great addition to the open Continue reading >>>

The Aquinnah tribe Tuesday announced Phase I of a $167 million proposed casino development, using 50 of the 500 acres the tribe is planning to place in trust in Lakeville or Freetown. The tribe is proposing a 145,000-square-foot casino with 2,700 slot machines and 36-table games.  The design also includes a 150,000-square-foot hotel and a 130,000-square-foot garage. A referendum vote is scheduled in Freetown on May 29 and in Lakeville,  June 2. The $167 million development would include traffic mitigation, road improvements and buffer space between the casino and any retail or residential Continue reading >>>

CHELMSFORD, Mass.—A display of 11.9 million grains of rice, representing the lives of the various ethnic groups lost in the Great Holocaust during World War II, was one of the moving artworks displayed at the second annual Interfaith Service Against Genocide, co-hosted by Sts. Vartanantz Armenian Church in Chelmsford and the Greater Lowell Interfaith Leadership Alliance (GLILA). Muslims, Jews, Orthodox Christians, Catholics, Protestants, non-denominational Christians, and Buddhists were all invited to hold a handful of rice in their palm, pause, reflect, and stand together against Continue reading >>>

The worldwide casino company run by billionaire Boston native Sheldon Adelson will bypass the chance to build a casino in Massachusetts, saying the state’s plan to license up to three casinos and a slot parlor is going to dilute the market, according to a spokesman. Adelson, who had spent nearly $500,000 lobbying lawmakers on the casino bill approved last November, is known for building lavish gambling resorts, some costing several billion dollars. “With multiple facilities being proposed, it didn’t synch with our business model,’’ Ron Reese, a spokesman Continue reading >>>

“They believe they get reelected if they’re perceived as creating jobs,” said Barry Bluestone, an economist and dean of Northeastern University’s School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs. “The political incentives are so strong to do these types of deals.”Edward Glaeser, an economist and director of Harvard University’s Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston, laughed when asked if politicians would ever stop investing taxpayer dollars directly in specific companies. The problem, he said, is the broad policies that create a favorable business climate, such as improving schools, transportation Continue reading >>>

Home / Real Estate News / We Recommend... Kimberly Steimle, Suffolk Construction's chief marketing officer and chief people officer, was honored as one of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce's 2012 recipients of the Ten Continue reading >>>

Edith Brown, 90, who works as a cashier in Framingham State’s dining commons, received a special service award from Framingham State President Timothy J. Flanagan during the university's commencement on Sunday. Brown, a Natick resident, has worked at the university for 25 years.By Jaclyn Reiss, Town Correspondent The following is based on a prepared statement from Framingham State University: While Framingham State’s 2012 commencement ceremony this past Sunday primarily celebrated the next generation of highly-educated young people who will drive the Massachusetts economy, the two loudest Continue reading >>>

Almost everybody says they love children, but that tunes changes when topics like development and schools come into play. Almost every new development is scrutinized closely by cities and towns concerned about expanding their school populations and neighbors worried about noise. Below is a chart comparing the percentage of households with kids under 18 in communities in Boston and across the region. The statewide average is 28.3 percent, and Boston comes in at 20.4 percent. Beacon Hill is well below both. Only 6.9 percent of households have kids under the age of 18, making it one of the most adult Continue reading >>>

Mandarin Oriental Boston  It always bums us out a little when our dinner companions are too stuffed to even glance at the dessert menu. Dessert has so much potential, but it just happened to draw the short straw and makes it's appearance at the very end of the night. Dessert-loyalists, this one is for you: a whole night of sweet-tooth fare, from the creme de la creme of the city's pastry chefs. Continue reading >>>

Anyway, here's Anatol: As cities naturally grow, new construction is inevitable, but the Globe missed a bigger and more worrisome problem - urban sprawl ("Teardowns on the rise," Globe West, May 6). When McMansions proliferate, the less affluent are moving farther and farther out, extending roads and devouring open space. Municipal authorities don't know how to stop this process, because owners of small homes want to sell their properties for profit. These people have a choice: Either buy a larger house in exurbia or a condominium in an urban center. The growing aging populace wants to buy condos, Continue reading >>>