Hospitality

An attorney for suspended Cannabis Control Commission Chair Shannon O'Brien said Thursday he is not aware of any federal investigation into his client and has not seen the subpoena that the Boston Globe reported Thursday had been sent to state officials in the fall by federal prosecutors seeking information on O'Brien.

Worcester joined a growing list of municipalities no longer collecting community impact fees from cannabis businesses in January 2023, after collecting nearly $5.2 million in those fees from fiscal 2019 to 2023.

The state's retailers sold 232,894 pounds worth of cannabis flower to recreational consumers in 2023, about the weight of the average blue whale.

The results of a second investigation into the conduct of suspended Cannabis Control Commission Chairwoman Shannon O'Brien are in and Treasurer Deborah Goldberg was preparing to share them with O'Brien -- along with a proposed February date for the meeting that could lead to the chairwoman's firing -- when O'Brien appealed a lower court.

The bulk of the $5.05 million in federal funds were a result of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden in November 2021. 

Applications for the first grants from a new fund meant to support cannabis entrepreneurs in communities disproportionately harmed by the War on Drugs are due next month, with $2.3 million available to help qualified business licensees with urgent financial needs.

Cannabis Control Commission Chair Shannon O'Brien's challenge of her suspension is now headed to the Appeals Court.

The oldest craft brewery in Central Massachusetts will soon be under new ownership.

The hotel’s new name and branding is a reference to a line of Wellsworth glasses produced by the American Optical Company.

Residents of Great Brook Valley in Worcester are now eligible to receive technical assistance and training to become business owners and employees in the legal cannabis industry.