North County

Unitil Corp., the utility that serves Fitchburg, Lunenberg and Townsend, reported a loss of $100,000 for its most recent fiscal quarter, a 75-percent drop from the loss it declared in the second quarter of 2012.

Two Central Massachusetts communities will now vie for the state's lone slots parlor license after Millbury selectmen on Tuesday approved a host community agreement with the developer, Mass Gaming & Entertainment.

The Cordish Cos. has requested Sept. 24 as an election date for its Leominster slots parlor proposal and the city council is expected to vote on it tonight.

Leominster and Baltimore-based casino developer Cordish Cos. have reached an agreement that could make the Northern Worcester County city the site of the state's only slots parlor and provide it with nearly $4 million a year, Mayor Dean Mazzarella announced this morning.

Casino developer Cordish Cos. and Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella said they're making progress on negotiating a host agreement for a slots parlor in the city.

Unitil Corp. is asking the state to approve a rate increase that would account for $6.7 million in revenue for the company — an 11.5-percent increase — but have a minimal impact on customers due to other charges ending.

Two of the four developers vying for the state's single slots license passed initial background checks and received approval from the Gaming Commission Thursday to continue with the licensing process.

The Doctor Franklin Perkins School in Lancaster said it recently received accreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

Promising to bring at least 500 full-time jobs to Leominster, officials from Baltimore-based Cordish Cos. laid out a proposal for a slots parlor in the city at Monday night's City Council meeting.

A proposal to build a slots parlor off Route 117 in Leominster will be presented to the City Council at an informational meeting tonight by Baltimore-based Cordish Cos. and local construction management firm McCarty Cos.