Greater Worcester

A drop in inventory pushed down sales of single-family homes in Massachusetts last month, halting more than a year of monthly gains, according to two reports released today.

Should Massachusetts follow some other states in allowing private firms to design, build, operate and maintain bridges, roads and other transportation assets? We're still far off from the Chicago Skyway, which was leased to a private operator in 2006 for $1.8 billion for 99 years, or New York City, which has done similar deals with some of its bridges. But with a deeply indebted transportation system, Massachusetts is looking at different ways to meet its infrastructure needs. And a policy expert from MetroWest will be playing a role.

City Councilors will be meeting behind closed doors tomorrow with developers interested in building a $200 million slots parlor and hotel near Worcester's Kelley Square.

Supports of the Higgins Armory, the 82-year-old armor museum in Worcester slated to close at the end of the year, have launched an interactive website aimed at keeping the museum open.

Less than two weeks after announcing that it would seek the states' single slots parlor license for a Worcester location, Mass Gaming & Entertainment LLC confirmed that its development would be on vacant Wyman-Gordon property near Kelley Square.

The economic benefits from a slots parlor in Worcester would be overshadowed by the harm it will cause to the city's quality of life, says a new report from the Worcester Regional Research Bureau (WRRB).

The Hotel Worcester on Summer Street, which had been a Hampton Inn until last year, will be rebranded as a Holiday Inn Express. The property owners are investing in $1 million in upgrades to the site, according to the company that owns the Holiday Inn Express brand.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) announced a five-year strategic partnership for research and educational programs in the health care industry.

Worcester-based ThermoEnergy Corp., which makes wastewater treatment and power generation systems, grew its revenue 25 percent in 2012.

New Englanders gambled less in 2012 than they did in 2006, according to a recently released survey that could yield some insight into what a slots parlor could mean for Worcester or a resort casino could mean for Milford.