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Boston Business Journal
Settlement dictates wages, benefits for app-based drivers
Uber and Lyft will pay Massachusetts drivers some of the highest guaranteed wages in the country under a landmark deal with state prosecutors that also brought a halt to a years-long campaign seeking to rewrite how state law defines those workers.<\p> Attorney General Andrea Campbell and the companies agreed on a $175 million settlement Thursday evening that ends the nearly four-year-old lawsuit against Uber and Lyft, lays out a slew of new wage, benefit and job protection requirements, and sidesteps the legal question at the heart of the case.<\p>
BU buys Allston site approved for 17-story residential tower
Boston University has agreed to pay $19.8 million to purchase a site on the edge of its campus that has city approval for a 17-story tower with more than 250 residences.<\p> The property is next to the planned future home of West Station, a new transit hub featuring commuter-rail service. The transaction means that what had been set to become a large, transit-oriented apartment building could instead become student dormitories.<\p>
Boston boatmaker to launch its own line of vessels this fall (PHOTOS)
Boston Boatworks founder and CEO Scott Smith takes a deep breath before blowing deeply into a conch shell, creating deep, resonant horn-like sounds. Everyone knows what that means — a new maiden voyage of one of the company's crafts.<\p> Nearly 100 workers who helped build the company’s first electric boat gathered near a dock along the Mystic River in Charlestown recently. Along with Appalachian Mountain Club representatives, they were there to celebrate the completion of a new 25-passenger vessel, a cleaner replacement for current diesel-burning boats.<\p>
Boston can lead the 'longevity economy,' and why the world needs one
We are living in a world where half the children in industrialized economies can now expect to live to 100 and the fastest-growing population segment worldwide is people older than 85 years. In fact, by 2034 — for the first time in U.S. history — there will be more Americans over the age of 60 than those younger than 18. Longevity will bring enormous new economic opportunities and will force us to profoundly rethink and re-engineer virtually every major aspect of our lives.<\p> Boston has long been recognized as a world-class leader in many sectors — higher education, healthcare, life sciences and financial services, to name just a few. The time has come to harness our expertise and best creative minds from each of these fields to also make Boston a world-class leader in longevity planning and innovation.<\p>
Here's why life sciences companies have such 'choppy' revenue
Our annual list of the fastest-growing Massachusetts public companies has a few common names from year to year. But life sciences companies typically comprise the majority of those on the list — and there tends to be a lot of turnover among them.<\p> Life sciences companies are more likely to move up and down the list — or jump on and off completely — compared to companies in other industries. <\p>
Pine Street Inn head oversees shelter’s shift into housing development
Lyndia Downie has been with the homeless shelter Pine Street Inn for 40 years, and has been its top executive for the last 24 of those years.<\p> Yet Downie, who was born in Glasgow and grew up in Connecticut, graduated from the University of Vermont with plans to go to law school. Coming to Boston was happenstance.<\p>
Barnstable estate sells for $22.75M, a Cape Cod record (PHOTOS)
An oceanfront Barnstable mansion has sold for $22.75 million, a record price for a Cape Cod residential property.<\p> The 15,500-square-foot home at 835 Sea View Ave. has seven bedrooms and 14 bathrooms, nine of them full-size. The property also features a 280-foot private beach overlooking Nantucket Sound, a resort-style swimming pool and a 5,000-bottle wine cellar.<\p>
Massport strikes deal to allow housing at Southie power plant project
The Massachusetts Port Authority board approved an agreement Thursday that lifts a restriction on residential development at the one-time Edison power plant in South Boston in exchange for a $12 million upfront payment from the developer transforming the site.<\p> The deal removes a key hurdle to HRP Group’s planned redevelopment of the power plant to include up to 636 housing units, in addition to new lab buildings and other big changes. Until recently, Chicago-based HRP was known as Hilco Redevelopment Partners.<\p>
Many managers are posting fake jobs. One reason may surprise you.
Employers are turning to fake job listings as a means of boosting staff morale in the current unsettled hiring market, but those ghost postings could have consequences. <\p> That’s according to a recent Resume Builder survey, which found 40% of 649 hiring managers surveyed have posted a fake job listing in the past year. Three in 10 responded they have an active fake-job posting. <\p>
BU's first Black woman president will begin in that role next week
Boston University is transitioning from an interim to a permanent new president this week, the first Black person, and the first woman, to hold that role in the university's history. <\p> Boston University Interim President Kenneth Freeman is finishing out his time as president and making way for Dr. Melissa Gilliam to take over in the leadership role on Monday, July 1. <\p>
AbbVie pays $250M to acquire Cambridge biotech
AbbVie is shelling out $250 million in cash to buy Cambridge-based Celsius Therapeutics Inc., whose lead drug is in inflammatory bowel disease.<\p> The Cambridge company’s IBD drug, CEL383, is an antibody directed towards a gene known as TREM1. AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) said that TREM1 is a disease driver in inflammatory bowel disease and worsens inflammation. CEL383 is meant to inhibit TREM1 signaling.<\p>
2seventy splits up again, with sale to Novo Nordisk
After deciding to focus its efforts exclusively on one cancer drug, 2seventy bio Inc. — a company created in 2021 as a spinout of bluebird bio — is splitting up once again and has found a home for some of its technology. <\p> Cambridge-based 2seventy announced a deal with Novo Nordisk on Thursday in which the Danish pharmaceutical giant is buying 2seventy’s hemophilia A drug program and rights to its in vivo gene-editing technology except for the fields of oncology and autologous or allogeneic cell therapies for autoimmune disease. 2seventy had already been working with Novo Nordisk on hemophilia A research and development for several years.<\p>
Suffolk University buys downtown office building to convert to dorms
Suffolk University has acquired an 11-story Tremont Street office building for $30 million and plans to convert the property into residences for up to 290 students.<\p> The university bought 101 Tremont St. from an affiliate of Australia’s Macquarie Group, according to a deed posted Wednesday. The Beantown Pub is on the building’s ground floor. Suffolk said the well-known pub will continue to operate there after the conversion.<\p>
SJC clears way for dueling ballot questions on app-based gig workers
A pair of potential ballot questions that would reshape the work landscape for drivers on platforms like Uber and Lyft will be permitted to advance, the state's highest court ruled Thursday, clearing the way for decisions this fall with national implications.<\p> The Supreme Judicial Court deemed constitutionally eligible all five versions of an industry-backed measure seeking to define app-based drivers as independent contractors, not employees, and a union-supported proposal allowing drivers to organize and collectively bargain.<\p>
Boston's fireworks gets new sponsor on 50th anniversary: Herb Chambers
The iconic Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular has a new presenting sponsor. <\p> Herb Chambers Co. will present the 50th anniversary of the fireworks, taking over for last year's sponsor, Morgan Stanley. The company confirmed it was offered a three-year deal to sponsor the fireworks. The company declined to disclose how much it paid.<\p>
Director of MIT's Lincoln Lab to step down after 18 years
MIT has named a new leader for its Department of Defense-funded Lincoln Laboratory, replacing Eric Evans, who led the center for 18 years.<\p> Melissa Choi, previously the assistant director of the laboratory since 2019, will officially take over as director on July 1.<\p>
Gov. Healey tried to lure Citizens Bank from R.I. to Mass. Here's why.
Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee signed a bill into state law this week that seemingly will keep Citizens Financial Group in the Ocean State instead of across the border in Massachusetts.<\p> The bill — H7927 — thwarts Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey's courting of Citizens to relocate to the commonwealth, according to Rhode Island House Speaker Joe Shekarchi.<\p>
Commentary: Climate change solutions must involve the global economy
I strongly believe we can stop climate change. We are already making great strides transitioning from fossil fuels to clean energy; researchers at MIT and other universities are working hard every day to invent the future. Still, change is not happening fast enough. But by involving everyone in the solution, we can reduce greenhouse gas emissions in time to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. <\p> In many fields, inventions that challenge the status quo can be profitably commercialized by start-up companies, with modest investment. This happens all around us in the Boston area.<\p>
The Petri Dish: Curie.Bio closes $380M; Avrobio interim CEO’s new gig
The comings and goings at Boston-area biotechs this week included two notable CFO appointments. Akebia brought on its new CFO from Cambridge’s Avrobio, which recently completed a reverse merger with a Watertown company. And Frontier Medicines has a new financial leader who was previously an investment banker and violinist. Read the latest on the state’s life sciences, biotech and medical device industries.<\p> Cambridge’s Curie.Bio has closed $380 million for its latest fund. The firm expects most of this capital to support its portfolio companies through Series A rounds for clinical proof-of-concept studies. Curie.Bio says its portfolio is made of 20 early-stage biotech companies. This new capital brings the total funds raised by Curie.Bio to nearly $1 billion.<\p>
Nonprofit that involves youth in the music industry gets $50K
A Boston nonprofit that aims to make the music industry accessible to underrepresented and economically disadvantaged youth was one of seven nonprofits to get $50,000 from Citizens Bank's Champions in Action grants. <\p> Boston Music Project serves 2,100 students across the city. It has a staff of 56 teaching artists and provides private lessons and programs like its signature paper orchestra program, digital music tech classes and student composition workshops. <\p>
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