North County

MassDevelopment made 18 grants totalling more than $1.5 million to businesses, cities, towns, and nonprofit organizations in Central Mass.

The UMass Donahue Institute’s Economic and Public Policy Research group, has completed a study exploring solutions for a worker shortage in Northern Worcester County.

A 68-unit multifamily apartment complex at 75 Groton School Road in Ayer was sold for $7.7 million.

The North Central Massachusetts Development Corp. granted $10,000 to the City of Fitchburg for the development of pop-up shops for local artisans, crafters, and entrepreneurs.

Herlihy Insurance Group, Workers Credit Union, Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts, and UMass Memorial Health are among the Central Mass. organizations with recent hires and promotions.

The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency will use the Bob Eisengrein Community Center in Devens as a temporary intake center for up to 60 unhoused families beginning in early December.

The Worcester area’s unemployment rate dropped to 3.2% in October from 3.3% in September, while the Leominster-Gardner area also dropped a tenth of a percentage point to 3.5% over the month.

Workers at seven Starbucks locations in Massachusetts went on strike Thursday, including the store on West Broadway in Gardner, as part of a nationwide strike by unionized workers at more than 100 Starbucks locations. 

Leominster-based accounting firm Robert C. Alario, CPA, PC, named Christopher Aguilar to partner and changed its name to Alario & Associates, CPA, PC to reflect his promotion. 

Dr. SUBHASH PAUDEL has joined Reliant Medical Group’s department of nephrology.