Fitchburg

Fitchburg and Worcester have each received $60,000 in state funds to help with small-business grants meant to aid overcoming the coronavirus pandemic.

Fitchburg State University is planning to have a fully in-person fall semester, while Worcester's Quinsigamond Community College is expecting a return to normalcy after a more than a year of remote learning.

The North Central Massachusetts Development Corp. announced Tuesday it has approved two loans amounting in $30,000 to go towards 290 Auto Body Inc. and American Transport, both in Worcester.

Six Central Massachusetts communities earned a total of seven state grants announced late Thursday aimed at improving urban neighborhoods.

The North Central Massachusetts Development Corp. has awarded Kimatra Maxwell, owner of Leominster mental health counseling provider Connecting to Greatness, a $20,000 loan, the Fitchburg organization announced on Wednesday.

Four Central Massachusetts cities have secured nearly $9.8 million in federal housing aid, including for programs providing affordable housing and community development.

Housing authorities in Central Massachusetts brought in more than $9 million in federal funding announced Tuesday for public housing improvements.

A recession coinciding with the start of the coronavirus pandemic last spring sent the American economy into its largest contraction in modern history. Now bankers are wondering, will pent-up demand lead to explosive economic growth? Or are people saving more than ever out of worry or survival? 

Cannabis company Garden Remedies, which maintains a dispensary in Marlborough and cultivation facility in Fitchburg, has named Jeff Herold and Brian Moran as the company’s new co-CEOs.

Alden Global Capital LLC, a New York hedge fund which backs the parent company of Fitchburg’s Sentinel & Enterprise newspaper, has agreed to acquire Tribune Publishing Co. for about $430 million.