Hospitality

Failed oversight: Beset by infighting, a toxic culture, and an investigation into its leadership, the Cannabis Control Commission isn’t effectively performing its functions

A months-long WBJ investigation shows how a dysfunctional agency hollowed out by turnover, bogged down by infighting, and plagued by a fuzzy leadership structure is impeding businesses in a struggling industry.

CCC selects former government affairs head as new executive director

State cannabis regulators have picked their next executive director, voting Monday to begin the process of bringing back a former head of its government affairs operation to lead the entire agency into a new chapter.

🔒That’s what they said!: Central Mass. business quotes from the last 35 years

WBJ sources over the past 35 years have contributed memorable sentiments.

🔒Fast forward to 2034: At Worcester Regional Airport, momentum building toward more flights, airlines

It’s been 35 years since Worcester Regional Airport saw its passenger traffic peak when 354,000 travelers passed through the airport’s terminal in 1989.

🔒Out of the weeds: From prohibition to profits, the last 35 years have seen big changes in cannabis

In 2016, 53.6% of Massachusetts voters cast a ballot in favor of legalizing marijuana like alcohol, kicking off the creation of an industry that has so far led to more than $6 billion in sales.

🔒Transforming communities: These three Central Mass. municipalities have taken different roads to revitalization

Central Massachusetts is a region that likes to wax nostalgic about bustling main streets and tight-knit mill communities. A lot has changed over the decades, with shifts in the way people do their shopping, the decline of traditional manufacturing, and the rise in tech industries. And our communities have shifted with the times.

🔒The company you keep … or don’t: Once synonymous with their communities, these Central Mass. businesses have moved on in distinct ways

As the economic climate has shifted over the decades, some Central Massachusetts companies have left the region.

🔒Crowd pleasers: Top tourist destinations have delivered big

Tracking Central Massachusetts tourist locations’ decisions and challenges – and how they handled them over the last three decades – is an exercise in business strategy. How do you get people to keep coming to your attraction?

🔒Where are they now? Gone but not forgotten, these Central Mass. difference-makers make their marks in new ways

As leaders, they ably represented two of Central Massachusetts’ longest-running institutions: each intricately tied to Isaiah Thomas. One turned his bequeathed library into the world’s preeminent repository of pre-20th-century print materials in what is now the United States. The other invoked the patriot printer’s name for its annual award to citizens who serve Worcester with distinction.