Yesterday, Governor Baker announced that several business restrictions put in place late in 2020 to address a spike in COVID-19 cases around the holidays will be lifted in the coming days. Effective Monday, January 25th at 5:00 AM:

Effective with the rescinding of the Early Closing Order, liquor stores and other retail establishments that sell alcohol will be permitted to sell alcohol past 9:30 PM; adult use cannabis retailers will also be permitted to sell cannabis after 9:30 PM.

Gatherings and events will also be permitted to continue past 9:30 PM. All gatherings and events will remain subject to current capacity limits of 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors.

Phase 3, Step 2 businesses must remain fully closed.  

Capacity Limits: Under the current restrictions that are being extended today until Monday, February 8th, most customer-facing businesses operating in Massachusetts remain subject to a 25% capacity limit. For a list of sectors subject to the extended capacity restrictions, click here. 

Gatherings Limit: The current gathering limits in place since December 26th are being extended to Monday, February 8th. Indoor gatherings and events will remain limited to 10 people. Outdoor gatherings and events will remain limited to 25 people outside. The gatherings limit applies to private homes, event venues, and public spaces.  

Click here to access the full text of the administration's announcement. For complete state-level reopening information, visit Mass.Gov/Reopening.

Yesterday, the Baker-Polito Administration announced the launch of the "Community One Stop for Growth" program, a joint application process that will allow applicants—including municipalities, public entities, community non-profits, and private companies—to use a single portal to access ten different grant programs. 

 

The new One Stop process includes a single application portal to multiple grant programs offered by the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (EOHED), the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), and MassDevelopment. The One Stop also incorporates direct referrals to additional programs, offers tailored guidance, and features collaborative review, all organized around a single timeline.

The portal also includes an optional "Expression of Interest" that allows an applicant to indicate economic development priorities and seek feedback from EOHED and its partner agencies prior to submitting a full application. To help guide applicants, the One Stop uses a Development Continuum, or lifecycle, that describes how a typical economic development project moves from concept to reality within diverse communities.

 

This coordinated effort for accessing state grants and agencies originated out of a series of regional engagement sessions held in 2019 during the crafting of the administration’s economic development plan, Partnerships for Growth. During those sessions, leaders from municipal government and the community development sector routinely cited a number of long-standing challenges to securing state funding, including difficulty in identifying available funding sources, understanding the purpose and requirements necessary for successful access, and navigating a complex patchwork of different timelines, processes, and guidelines. 

Complete details on the Community One Stop for Growth are available online at Mass.Gov/OneStop.  

The Massachusetts District Office of the Small Business Administration (SBA) is collaborating with the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, Retailers Association of Massachusetts, and the National Federation of Independent Business to host a webinar focused on COVID-19 financial resources available to restaurants and retailers. The webinar will provide an update on the Paycheck Protection Program, and will include a Q&A session on other financial programs.

The free, virtual event will take place on Monday, January 25th at 9:00 AM, and will cover new relief programs available through the recently passed Consolidated Appropriations Act, including: 

Click here to register for the event. 

Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM) recently produced a webinar featuring three experts focused on COVID-19 vaccination, focused on the implications for vaccines, including for employers. The discussion, available online at this link, was moderated by AIM Executive Vice President of Government Affairs Brooke Thomson, and featured:

The full webinar video can be accessed online at this link; a companion "key points" document can be accessed here.

The City of Framingham's Planning and Community Development Department and the Framingham Marketing Group (FMG) will host a free, online webinar for Framingham small businesses on Monday, January 25th at 6:30 PM.

During the first 30-minutes, professionals from FMG will share their expertise on how to grow small businesses. FMG is an affiliation of related businesses that provides assistance on strategy, marketing, and promotional needs.

There will be at Q&A session in the second half of the webinar.

FMG participants include:

This event is free and open to all Framingham businesses; click here to register. To learn more about Framingham Marketing Group, click here to visit their website.

in 495/MetroWest Panel Discussion on February 9th

The Energy and Sustainable Development Committee of the 495/MetroWest Partnership invites you to a special forum as part of its series on the impact of COVID-19 on our region, Municipal Government Response to COVID-19 in 495/MetroWest. This panel discussion will focus on how municipal governments across our region have responded to the pandemic.

Our panel of municipal leaders from across our service region will address topics that include COVID protocols put in place in their municipal operations, CARES funding allocations, permitting, efforts to support the local business community, working remotely while serving the public, and next steps with vaccination now in sight. Our panel is currently in formation; panelists will be announced in the coming weeks. Attendees will have an opportunity to submit questions for panelists to address.

This event will take place remotely via Zoom on Tuesday, February 9th at 8:30 AM; click here to register. The event is open to all interested persons, though registration is required.

The 495/MetroWest Partnership's Energy and Sustainable Development Committee focuses on issues related to land use, energy, brownfields remediation, low-impact development, broadband connectivity, placemaking, and environmental stewardship. Committee meetings and events are open to all interested participants.