Meet Newton's newest and largest employer
Meet Newton's newest and largest employer
Good morning,
It’s nice to be back in your inbox after last week’s special editions: 10 developments we’re watching and remembering 30 people we lost on 9/11.
This week, we begin with news about a Fortune 500 company that’s just moved to Newton — instantly becoming the city’s largest private-sector employer — and end with a local bank initiative that’s helping launch a new generation of retailers.
Meet Newton's newest and largest employer
Nearly a century ago, Polish immigrant Abraham Slifka and his wife, Sonya, opened a fuel delivery business in Dorchester with a single truck.
Abraham (in photo) lugged buckets of oil to businesses and apartments across greater Boston. Sonya kept the books.
As New England shifted from coal to oil, the Depression-era business grew. Their son Fred joined at 18, made the company’s first acquisition and, with his brother Richard, used an SBA loan to buy its first fuel terminal in Revere.
Many acquisitions later, Eric Slifka — Abraham’s grandson and Fred’s son — is now president and CEO of the company, now known as Global Partners, a publicly traded Fortune 500 company that supplies and owns gas stations and convenience stores nationally.
Yesterday, Eric (along with his son Max, who’s also in the business) celebrated Global’s move to its new headquarters at 275 Grove Street in Newton.
Up to 650 of the company’s 3,000+ employees worldwide will be based there, making the company Newton’s largest private-sector employer. (Only Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Boston College and the City of Newton itself have larger workforces.)
Global’s new digs include 38 conference rooms, a stadium-style staircase connecting all three floors and roughly 75 percent more space than its former Waltham HQ.
The move is a feather in the cap for Newton — which has struggled to attract large employers — and a win for Geatland Realty Partners and Barings, which purchased the property in 2023 and have invested $16 million in upgrades. Global, meanwhile, is more than a tenant: It also holds a minority ownership stake in the property.
At a ribbon-cutting yesterday, Mayor Marc Laredo pledged that his administration is committed to bringing more large employers to the city.
Businesses want to hear both sides: one side isn’t talking
We're planning a virtual forum this month on Needham's upcoming Pollard Middle School debt exclusion tax override vote.
The only problem is, so far, only the proponents of the project have agreed to participate and not for lack of trying. If anyone affiliated with a No campaign wants to present its case to the business community, contact Max Woolf.
Meanwhile, Needham has a property tax calculator to estimate how much commercial and residential taxes would increase if voters approve the measure on Nov. 3.
A 99-year future for 99 Kent
115 affordable homes in Brookline Village now have a chance at permanent preservation.
With affordability protections at 99 Kent Street set to expire next year, WinnCompanies is proposing a major rehab that would keep 115 of the building's 117 senior apartments affordable for another 99 years.
The project would renovate units, upgrade common areas and accessibility, and make broader building improvements. Winn is asking Brookline for $4 million from its Affordable Housing Trust and support extending its MBTA air-rights lease, since the project is built over the Green Line.
Winn is also seeking more flexibility for its parking garage, including relief from the town's parking requirements, to rent excess spaces beyond building residents.
Tuesday grab bag
- The public plaza at Bram Way (between Caffe Nero and Starbucks) in Newtonville will be renamed the Setti Warren Plaza, in honor of the late former mayor. Dedication is Sunday (Sept. 20), 12:30 p.m.
- Wellesley College will become the first women’s college and only the second liberal arts college in the nation to guarantee free tuition for students from families earning $200,000 or less, with typical assets. (Boston.com)
- Following a recount that secured his reelection, Sen. Will Brownsberger published a letter thanking voters and his opponent and reflecting on election accuracy.
- Fortunately, the Brownsberger/Daniel Lander contest did not need to be decided like this.
- Volunteers are needed for the annual Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration in Newton, Oct. 12 at Albemarle Park & Field.
- Fig City News has launched a free new Business Events newsletter. Subscribe here. Newton businesses, contact calendar@figcitynews.com to learn how to add your events.
- The Brookline Select Board is holding an executive session tonight (Tuesday) to discuss the “purchase, exchange, lease, or value of real property” involving the Coolidge Corner Theatre.
- The Boston Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Advancement and the Office of Small Business are collaborating with community partners like Pathway for Immigrant Workers to provide resources for immigrant entrepreneurs, Friday (Sept. 18), 4-7 p.m. in Boston. Register.
- Newton Cultural Council is celebrating last year's grantees on Thursday (Sept. 17) from 5-7 p.m. at the War Memorial Auditorium at Newton City Hall. RSVP by 9/11.
- Kosher Mediterranean restaurant Za’Tar on Cypress Street in Brookline has a new GM and a refreshed space and menu. They go through 375 pounds of hummus weekly. (Brookline.news)
- Pizza Roma at 212 Waverley Ave. in Watertown is no longer in business, and a photo shows a sign out front at the Waverley Avenue spot indicates that Bougie Pizza Co. will take its place. (Boston Restaurant Talk)
- Fig City News has this update on Beacon Communities’ plans to purchase the former Santander Bank building at 1314 Washington Street in West Newton from Mark Development, to create 72 affordable housing units.
- Turns out those icky spotted lanternflies make a tasty meal — if you're a spider
- Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll was in Needham recently to celebrate a $41 million infusion of state funds to Needham Housing Authority’s redevelopment and expansion plan for its Linden Chambers property. (Needham Observer)\
Village banks on a new generation of retailers
There’s a statistic from a Mass Retailers Association survey that continues to haunt me.
More than half (51%) of retailers report being likely to close or sell their business in the next five years, with approaching retirement age and high-cost business challenges as the main factors behind their decision.
That’s what makes an innovative new effort by the Village Bank so important and, I hope, groundbreaking.
Tomorrow (Weds), Village opens its first branch in Wellesley, only with a twist.
The 4,300-square-foot branch at 579 Washington Street in Church Square will house a rent-free retail incubator—rotating pop-up shops that give local makers exposure, new audiences and operational support, while bringing steady foot traffic to Wellesley Square.
UpNext will curate the shops; Piper&Cloth, a minority owned kids’ clothing retailer, has been selected as the site’s first small business.
The shop is integrated into the bank's lobby but has its own entrance, so it can operate when the branch is closed. (There’s also a small community room, with separate access.)
Piper&Cloth founder Yvonne Piper says the pop-up provides a unique way to grow her brand and connect with customers, something “that is not possible through online shopping.”
The Village Bank has already announced plans to bring the same pop-up model to Needham and Newtonville next year.
That’s what you need to know for today, unless you need to know that we’re very happy.
Let us know how we can help.
President & CEO
Charles River Regional Chamber
617.244.1688
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Max Woolf contributed to today’s newsletter.