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What 62 businesses did during your summer vacation

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What 62 businesses did during your summer vacation

Good morning,


As we prepare to celebrate our 110th year of advocacy at our upcoming Fall Business Breakfast on Nov. 7, we’ve been looking back through our chamber archives at interesting moments in our region’s economic development history.


Today, we crank the way back machine to 1961 and an all-too-familiar battle over a proposed development (plus, an also-familiar confrontation with the Newton City Council, then called the Board of Aldermen).


We also have an important reminder about a new state law that kicks in on Tuesday.


But first, please join us in welcoming the 62 companies, entrepreneurs, nonprofits and private citizens who joined your chamber this summer.


Look who became chamber members this summer

Not a member, but ready to join? Go here. 


State’s new ‘junk fee’ law kicks in on Tuesday

Depending on the nature of your business, you may want to review new guidance from the Attorney General regulating hidden charges or “junk fees,” which go into effect beginning Tuesday. (Sept 2)


For example, the law requires that restaurants do the following:

  • All mandatory fees must be built into menu prices.  A “kitchen appreciation” or “service fee” at the end of the bill is no longer allowed.
  • You may list a fee on the receipt, but only if it’s already included in the menu price of each item.
  • Restaurants can still add a service charge (18–20% for groups of 6+), but it must be disclosed in clear lettering on the menu and go to the relevant service staff.


Many other sectors are impacted too so check it out.


Friday grab bag

  • I’ll be moderating virtual conversations next week with the two candidates to be Newton’s next mayor: Marc Laredo on Wednesday (Sept. 3) at 9 a.m. and Al Cecchinelli on Thursday (Sept. 4) at 9 a.m.

  • Even though the mailing address for Gore Place is in Waltham, this gorgeous estate actually straddles the Waltham–Watertown municipal line, with some of its land extending into Watertown. That makes it the ideal location for our big Sept. 11 Business After Hours networking event with our friends at the Waltham Chamber.  RSVP

  • Seven in 10 Gen Z and Millennial renters struggle to afford their regular housing payments, as do 41 percent of homeowners in that age group, according to a new report from Redfin.

  • State Sen. Becca Rausch will host a Small Business Roundtable on Fri, Sept. 26 from 10-11 am in Needham, featuring Sen. Michael Rodrigues, chair of the Senate Ways & Means Committee, to discuss the state budget and the Massachusetts small business economy.  RSVP. for the location.

  • Needham-based startup Knownwell, a healthcare company focused on people with obesity, has opening a second location in Woburn. (BBJ)

  • The Black Economic Council of Massachusetts’ Mass Black Expo returns Oct. 3, to the Omni Hotel at the Seaport.

  • Babson College is inviting local businesses and organizations to participate in its Undergraduate Student Resource Fair, Sept. 5, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Participants complete a registration form by Aug. 29.

Watertown Council to discuss square redevelopment

On Tuesday, the Watertown City Council will receive an introduction to its new role as a redevelopment authority that could help shape the future of Watertown Square.


When councilors approved the Watertown Square Area Plan late last year, it included a provision noting their intent to use urban renewal powers. Urban renewal is the principal power of redevelopment authorities and has a controversial history, traditionally associated with using eminent domain to seize land for large-scale highway projects.


However, city leaders have made it clear they envision using it for a different purpose: reimagining the square as a vibrant hub of economic activity.


According to reporting by Charlie Breitrose of the Watertown News, one option could be redeveloping underutilized parking lots through public-private partnerships.


We will get a clearer idea of what the city has planned on Tuesday when City Manager George Proakis briefs the council on their options.


They didn’t let us testify at their meeting in 1961 either

Finally today, a look back:


In April of 1961, Newton was in the thick of heated debate over whether to allow

an ambitious proposal to build a hotel, six apartment towers and two office buildings at the past-its-prime Norumbega Park in Auburndale.


Your chamber enthusiastically supported the project.


“Never in the past hundred years of Newton’s history has there been looming on the horizon a single investment of approximately 35 million dollars, as this one does. We are not sure it will ever be repeated again,” we wrote back then in our chamber newsletter. (Our newsletter was printed in those days, but same idea!).


“[We remind] our Board of Aldermen that Newton is geographically situated on the perimeter of the broad, western movement of metropolitan Boston, and is at a crucial period in its attempt to maintain high standards for its citizens,” we added, noting that the project “should conservatively contribute one million dollars per year, or more to Newton's tax income.”


Despite support from the Planning Board and residents, including many in Auburndale, the aldermen overwhelmingly nixed the proposal, 21–1.


And guess what? The chamber wasn’t even allowed to testify at a key meeting!


Ahem. Sound familiar?


My predecessor, then-Chamber President Grenfell Swim, protested the board’s decision to exclude the business community.


“The chamber is a supporter of the project and an organization which had studied the project long and exhaustively, its presence at the meeting could be useful,” he said.


Alas, that sweeping vision along I-95 never came to be. (Although clearly Waltham has been less reluctant over the years to allow similar developments along the same highway and I don’t believe they’ve ever sought a tax override).


Ultimately, the Newton Marriott was eventually built on part of the Norumbega site in 1967.


But the housing, office towers and millions in annual tax revenue that could still be coming in 64 years later, were lost to history.



And that’s what you need to know for today, unless you want to know how you can win  $25,000, just by staying in bed.


RIP: “Five Things You Need to Know Today,” one of the inspirations for this newsletter.


Enjoy the long weekend. You’ve earned it!


Greg Reibman (he, him)

President & CEO

Charles River Regional Chamber

617.244.1688


Max Woolf contributed to today’s newsletter.

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