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Why they all have confetti in their hair

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Why they all have confetti in their hair

NB Bank

A team of folks from Needham Bank took a chartered bus to the Big Apple yesterday to ring the Nasdaq Stock Market Closing Bell.

They were celebrating their successful public launch as NB Bancorp (Nasdaq: NBBK).

Don’t miss chance to weigh in on electrification rules  

The state pilot program that would require all new building construction and major renovations to be all, or mostly, electric is heading to Newton, Brookline and eight other Massachusetts communities.

The Newton City Council will hold a public hearing (zoom link) on its approach to the program on Monday (Feb. 26) at 7 p.m.

Moving away from fossil fuels is an ecological imperative. 

But how we do it and the impact rules could have on housing affordability and economic viability matter.

This will likely be the best and last time for businesses and property owners to weigh in on these proposed regulations before the ways we have to build and renovate buildings change.

Newton (along with our three other chamber municipalities and other communities) have already adopted the MA Stretch Energy Code. That code does not mandate electrification but it does require wiring to enable easy conversion to all-electric construction in the future.

In contrast, this new ordinance mandates electrification: The use of fossil fuels would not be allowed, although there are some exemptions for renovations, because all-electric retrofits can be more challenging and expensive than all-electric new construction and possible waivers.

The Ten Communities pilot also exempts research laboratories, hospitals, and medical offices from any electrification requirement.

Newton’s proposal would exempt freestanding outdoor cooking and heating appliances that are not connected to the building’s natural gas or propane infrastructure; emergency generators; and in certain circumstances, appliances to produce domestic hot water.

Getting this right matters. I'd be interested in your feedback.

New rules for Newton restaurants start next week

Last summer, when the Newton City Council was considering an ordinance that would ban a variety of plastic materials used by restaurants and other businesses, the council appointed a committee that met regularly with restaurant owners for input.

It was a long, but productive process. The result was a new set of rules which go into effect one week from today (March 1) that the chamber and our restaurant owners agreed were workable.

Among the provisions: It requires to-go containers larger than 4 oz be recyclable or compostable and requires full service dine-in restaurants to use washable dishware instead of single-use.

Also, starting next week restaurants can no longer automatically provide single-use items, such as forks, spoons, knives, straws, chopsticks, stirrers, condiment packages, or napkins in take-out orders.

Instead we’ll have to get in the habit of asking for those items we need when placing to-go orders. Reasonable, right?

It will take time for customers and restaurants to get used to the “Skip the Stuff” concept. But it’s a win-win: It eliminates tons of waste and saves businesses money.

Fig City News story here.

And here's what wasn't included

There were also provisions in Newton’s early draft that never made it to the final plastic waste ordinance, the biggest being a proposed ban on plastic water bottles.

Before I go any further, let’s acknowledge plastic bottles can be harmful to our planet and our health. Getting them out of the waste stream, waterways and off the sides of roads are appropriate goals.

But, as our fast casual restauranters (think of your local pizza, burrito, sandwich, shops, etc.) pointed out; bottled water sales typically have the highest markup of any item on their menus. A ban could mean a loss of thousands of dollars in revenue – sometimes many thousands – for our small independent merchants.

In addition, wouldn’t banning water bottles lead consumers to choose less healthy drink options?

Thankfully Mayor Ruthanne Fuller, Councilor Vicki Danberg and the council listened. They agreed to leave the water bottle ban out of the ordinance for now.

And we agreed to stand with environmentalists across the state in support of adding water bottles and other noncarbonated beverages to Sen. Cindy Creem's bottle deposit bill, something many business groups have been hesitant to do. (Read our testimony here.)

But, surprise, here comes Needham's bottle ban! 

Much to our surprise, we discovered the other day that a citizen’s petition that’s slated to go before Needham Town Meeting in May seeks to eliminate plastic waste.
 
The proposal (starting on page 2) includes provisions most Needham restaurant operators can get behind, such as banning polystyrene (Styrofoam) containers, or making plastic straws available upon request.

But it also would ban the sale and distribution of water bottles!

I only wish those behind Needham's proposal met with us first.

We could have suggested ways we believe can make a substantial dent in reducing plastic waste – such as the Skip the Stuff rules and to-go container guidelines -- while not endangering our restauranteurs' livelihoods. 

Warren tired of waiting for 'Right to Repair' fix 

Warren at Direct Tire


Yes that was U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren was at Direct Tire in Watertown yesterday. 
No she wasn’t there because she hit one of our many local pot holes.

Warren was there to call attention to the delay by federal courts to approve “Right to Repair,” the 2020 voter approved state law that gives consumers a right to access the digital information that controls their cars.

Direct Tire President Bob Lane (on right) told the Globe’s Hiawatha Bray that failure to enforce the law is taking a toll on local repair shops.


Friday grab bag

  • Congressman Jake Auchincloss is hosting a Needham Virtual Roundtable Monday (Feb. 26) at 4 p.m. Auchincloss will begin with a brief Congressional update before opening for Q&A. Needham businesses and residents urged to join. RSVP

  • The Brookline Chamber is searching again for a new director, following the departure of Lisa Leger, nine months after starting the job. (Brookline News)

  • Newtonville Camera is shuttering its aperture for the last time today (Feb. 23) at 5 p.m. The beloved 49-year-old family- owned and locally operated camera store will reopen as Hunt's Photo & Video next month at the 45 River Street location in Waltham. Professional and amateur photographers alike will miss it.
 
  • The signs for another iconic local retailer, Harvey’s Hardware, have been removed from the building that housed the Needham Center destination for nearly 60 years. Union Pharmacy will be opening its first location outside of Newton at the site later this year. (Needham Observer)



  • Mark Altman, of MindsetGo hosts a webinar March 1, 9 a.m. on how to apply and write to the MA General Grant Program for funded training solutions. RSVP


Another way the Newton teachers strike hurts 

Many families across our communities are off enjoying school vacation this week.

Just not in Newton, where kids (well, most of them anyway) were in class, making up days missed due to the 11 day teachers strike.

And that means a significant financial impact for many Newton nonprofits and other businesses that had to cancel school vacation week camps.

For example, the New Art Center’s various school vacations programs account for 40% of their earned revenue.

“The cancellation of February break and the extension of the school year will have an impact on our revenue for FY24,” according to New Art Executive Director Emily O’Neil.

Some Gen Zers are from Mars, others from Venus 

Gone are the days when you could define every generation in terms of its shared politics and general ideology.

Increasingly the research shows that’s not the case with Gen Z, where an ideological gap has opened up between young men and women.

That includes those who occupy the same cities, workplaces, classrooms and even homes, writes John Burn-Murdock at the Financial Times.

“After decades where the sexes were each spread roughly equally across liberal and conservative world views, women aged 18 to 30 are now 30 percentage points more liberal than their male contemporaries. That gap took just six years to open up,” Burn-Murdock writes.

Studies in Germany, the UK, Poland, South Korea, Tunisia and China shows the same pattern.

Notably, in every country the split is either exclusive to the younger generation or far more pronounced there than among men and women in their thirties and upwards.

Welcome these new members! 

Finally today, please give a great big chamber welcome to these new members who joined, or reinstated their membership after a long absence, in January. 

Is your business or nonprofit missing from the list above? Or this one?

It's leap year so you have a full extra day to be added to our February new member list. Go here or email.

And thanks for belonging!

That’s what you need to know for today – National Hospitality Workers Day -- unless you need to know what in month you're most likely to die.

Make it great day.

Greg Reibman (he, him)
President & CEO
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