Framingham

In Worcester County, total opioid-related deaths increased to 331 in 2022, up from 281 the previous year. This 17.8% increase is one of the highest statewide.

MetroWest Nonprofit Network in Framingham has named Leah Parker-Moldover as its new executive director. She will begin her tenure at the organization on Thursday.

The local unemployment rate in Central Massachusetts communities remained low in May, including falling further from April figures in the North Worcester County region.

Framingham-based Sincere Corp. acquired internet company Timehop as part of its brands.

Framingham-based renewable energy company Ameresco is partnering with Ontario Power Generation subsidiary Atura Power to develop a 250-megawatt, 1,000-megawatthour battery energy storage system to power Ontario, Canada’s electricity grid.

Multifamily residential developers have been proposing thousands of apartments throughout Central Massachusetts, but communities are resisting the push for more housing to protect their resources and what residents and officials see as their town’s character.

Barnes & Noble’s newest MetroWest location will open in Natick on June 14, filling the void left when the chain’s Framingham store closed earlier this year.

Trulieve, a Florida-based cannabis company with dispensaries in Worcester, Framingham, and Northampton, will close all three of those operations on June 30.

Darrin Cook has been named as chief operating officer of Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester, as well as the Massachusetts market for parent company Tenet Healthcare, which includes MetroWest Medical Center in Framingham.

The average wait time for admission to a residential rehabilitation center for substance-abuse disorders is 34 days across Massachusetts, according to a new report from the Association for Behavioral Healthcare.