Add Middlesex County (which includes Newton and Watertown) to the growing list of Massachusetts counties where the CDC recommends indoor mask wearing, even if you are fully vaccinated.

 

Nine of the state’s 14 counties were just added, up from five one week ago.

 

While Cape Cod and Nantucket are the only areas of "high" transmission,

Middlesex, Essex, Plymouth, Worcester, Bristol, Hampden and Suffolk counties are now in the "substantial" transmission category, reports Matt Murphy at State House News.

 

(Needham and Wellesley are part of Norfolk County which is not currently part of the CDC recommendation; although the trends seem to suggest, it's only a mater of time.)

 

In spite of the CDC recommendation, Gov. Charlie Baker on Friday updated the state's mask guidance only to recommend that anyone vaccinated with an underlying health condition, or who lives with an unvaccinated or high-risk adult, wear a mask when indoors in public.

 

But in an editorial this weekend, the Globe questioned Baker’s reluctance to reinstate an indoor mask mandate.

 

“...let’s just say we miss the governor who led the fight against COVID-19 in Massachusetts in 2020,” editors wrote.

 

 

 

How attached are some employees to working from home?

 

Breeze, a disability insurance company, asked 1,000 adult Americans what they would give up if their employer offered them the option of working remotely full-time.

 

Here's highlights (or particularly in the final item, lowlights):

Breeze breaks down the data by age cohort in this interactive chart.

 
 

 

So far only a handful of restaurants and bars in Massachusetts are mandating vaccines for customers.

 

Meanwhile, Seattle seems to be all in. At least 60 restaurants and bars there are not allowing customers to dine indoors without proof they're fully vaccinated, according to the Seattle Times.

 

Many Seattle establishments imposed the restrictions after at least a dozen bars temporary shut down last week after employees tested positive for COVID-19, or came into contact with an infected person.

 

“No shirt, no shoes, no vaccine, no entry,” one restaurant operator said.

 

 

 

Every time I link to an article about how the Earned Retention Tax Credit program may be able help save your business tens of thousands of dollars, a few members write to say, ‘Thanks… I didn’t know about that!”

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Here you go. You’re welcome!

 

 

 

A proposed bill that would make it illegal to record activities in a neighbor’s backyard one of dozens of pieces of legislation set to be heard at a virtual public hearing at the Statehouse today at 10 a.m. (Watch here)

 

The bill would give the owner or tenant of a residential property the right to sue anyone who installs a video imaging device on property adjoining the residential property without the written consent of the owner or tenant, according to AP.

 

 

 

 

 

The $29 billion federal program designed to assist still struggling restaurants ran out of money long before it could satisfy the demand.

 

Nearly 200,000 applicants  — nearly two in every three restaurants that applied — were turned down, even though they qualified.

 

“Now, food service workers say, it’s splitting the industry in two: the haves, and the have-nots,” writes Janelle Nanos point out in the Globe.

 

Restaurants in our west suburban communities are among those caught in the middle of this cruel divide, to no fault of their own.

 

While some in Congress have proposed pumping more dough into the Restaurant Relief Fund, it’s unclear if that will ever happen.

 

 

 

Given the weather we’ve had this summer, my expectations were low for our 30th Annual Children's Charitable Golf Tournament, which we held for the first time yesterday at Wellesley Country Club.

 

Turned out we had textbook chamber of commerce weather!

 

It was great to see so many friends that I’ve only seen in a Zoom box over too many months and to meet new folks -- including many new Wellesley members -- for the first time.

 

Congratulations to the foursome from North Hill (Sara LaWare, Richard DiPiro, Harry Goodale and Sue Pouliot) for their first place win; second place winners from The Village Bank (John Karacalidis, Ken Brennan, John Miller and Steve Schneider) with the bronze going to the West Suburban YMCA (Jack Fucci, Kim Benzan, Ray Cicollo and Mark Mancuso).

 

Colin Boyle aced our putting contest. Closest to the Pin winners were Mark Mancuso and Sue Pouliot.

 

And a special shout out to Alden Witman who donated 100% of his 50/50 raffle earnings to our charity recipient Hope & Comfort.

 

Thanks also to tournament sponsor the Village Bank, the Chamber Golf Committee, our volunteers and to the team at the country club for making everyone feel welcome.

 

We’ll do it again (location TBA) on Aug. 1, 2022. Chamber weather included.

 

That’s today’s Need to Knows, unless you need to know where you can possibly get a 40-year-old piece of Princess Diana's royal wedding cake.

 

617-244-1688

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