Articles by Philip Marcelo

Judge Upholds Massachusetts’ Vaping Products Ban for Now

A federal judge upheld Massachusetts’ four-month ban on the sale of vaping products on Friday, at least for now. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani denied the vaping industry’s request for a temporary reprieve from the ban while their legal challenge …

Massachusetts Construction Industry Confronts Drug Addiction Among Ranks

Massachusetts construction companies and labor unions held work stoppages at project sites across the state on Wednesday as their industry attempts to confront a high rate of fatal opioid overdoses among its ranks. Robert Petrucelli, CEO of the Associated General …

Is Sea Rise Wrecking Coastal Home Values? The Answer: Maybe

For sale: waterfront property with sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean. Waves erode beach regularly. Flooding gets worse every year. Saltwater damage to lawn. Asking price: anyone’s guess. Some research suggests rising sea levels and flooding brought by global warming …

Massachusetts Shop Owners Frustrated with Natural Gas Disaster Response

More than six months after natural gas explosions rocked Massachusetts’ Merrimack Valley, small business owners in the region say they’re still reeling. Convenience store, grocery and salon owners complained at a forum in Lawrence, Mass., on March 6 that the …

Massachusetts Lawmakers Grill Natural Gas Execs After September Explosions

Natural gas companies in Massachusetts are compromising safety by increasingly turning to outside contractors for pipeline work while cutting back on staff that would oversee these projects, state lawmakers said Tuesday at a hearing following September’s natural gas explosions in …

Massachusetts Senators Say Utility ‘Woefully’ Unprepared for Gas Explosions

The natural gas company at the center of the explosions north of Boston last month was “woefully unprepared” to prevent or respond to the unfolding disaster, Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey said Friday after a review of internal company …

In Boston’s Booming Seaport, the Namesake Is Also the Threat

In Boston’s booming Seaport District, General Electric is building its new world headquarters, Amazon is bringing in thousands of new workers, and Reebok’s red delta symbol sits atop the new office it opened last year. Three businesses are testing self-driving …

Power Outages, Flooding Linger Following Powerful Nor’easter

Utility workers in the Northeast are racing to restore power to more than 1.5 million homes and businesses days after a powerful nor-easter caused flooding and wind damage from Virginia to Maine. Conditions slowly improved on Saturday as the cleanup …

Female Workers in Massachusetts Sue McCormick & Schmick’s

Female kitchen workers at the McCormick & Schmick’s seafood restaurant in downtown Boston were subjected to constant groping and lewd comments from male supervisors and co-workers, and their complaints to the company were routinely ignored, five women said in a …

Future of Boston’s July 4th Celebration In Doubt Without a Successor to Sponsor Liberty Mutual

This Fourth of July, the cannons roared and the fireworks burst in brilliant colors as a world class orchestra drove home the climactic finale of Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” as they have for decades over Boston’s Charles River. Pop stars Nick …