Central Mass. by the Numbers

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Drew Day, winner of the Iron Chef Competition and the Stanley J. Nicas Trophy at the 13th annual Worcester’s Best Competition in 2020, recently opened Ruby Doo’s at the Worcester Public Market. Day of Leominster brings “a Korean American culinary experience and crafted global cuisine made with locally sourced ingredients” to Ruby Doo’s table.  Day was executive chef at the Flying Rhino Café & Watering Hole in Worcester when he won Worcester’s Best Chef. He also was the first chef to receive the trophy honoring the late Stanley J. Nicas, executive chef/founder of the Castle Restaurant in Leicester.

121,000

Amazon has officially begun operations from its new warehouse at the former site of the Greendale Mall. The 121,000-square-foot warehouse was completed in late 2022 but has sat dormant since. Earlier this year, Murphy confirmed the building was slated to begin operations in time for the holidays. Amazon, which has other warehouses in the region, has said the facility was designed as a “last mile” delivery station. Delivery stations accept packages from Amazon fulfillment centers before sorting and loading them onto vehicles for direct delivery to customers. In 2021, the Greendale Mall was razed for the warehouse.

490

A pretzel franchise with roots in Philadelphia is looking to open a store at the former Grafton Street location of Wholly Cannoli. Philly Pretzel Factory, a Pennsylvania-headquartered franchise, is eyeing the modestly sized building at 490 Grafton St., according to Madison O’Brien, an associate for Kelleher & Sadowsky, who marketed the building for owners CSE Real Estate LLC. The location was home for 24 years to Wholly Cannoli, which pumped out the last of its cannoli in July when the owners closed for good to retire. The vacant building shares a lot with a CVS Pharmacy and a TD Bank branch.

3.5M

Thousands of low-income Massachusetts residents unaware that they qualified for lower gas and electricity bills will now get them.  A partnership involving several agencies and five utility companies doing business in Massachusetts will ensure the discounts are given, according to Gov. Maura T. Healey’s office.  It will deliver automatic discounts for those receiving MassHealth, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children, and Emergency Aid to the Elderly, Disabled, and Children.  Berkshire Gas, Eversource, Liberty Gas, National Grid and Unitil are participating utilities. The companies serve more than 3.5 million Massachusetts residents. 

4.6

A Grafton company is the target of a lawsuit that claims its operations emit noxious odors that negatively impact the lives of nearby residents and businesses.  Feedback Earth Inc. processes food waste from manufacturers, grocery stores and restaurants into animal feed. The lawsuit filed in Suffolk Superior Court by the office of Attorney General Andrea Campbell claims the odors from seven large exhaust stacks wafted into nearby properties. Complaints have rolled in from as far as 4.6 miles away from the facility that residents can’t enjoy the outdoors. There have also been reports of nausea and migraine headaches, according to the lawsuit.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Central Mass. by the Numbers