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Monday, 30-Sep-2013 15:17:30 EDT
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A three-alarm fire has broken out this afternoon at a historic building on Hancock Street in Quincy.
The fire was reported just before noon at 1170 Hancock St.
Everyone is out of the building, Quincy police said. The building, the Quincy Masonic Building, was built in 1926 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989, according to the building’s website.
Authorities said people were doing work in the basement, where the fire may have started, and spread up through the ductwork.
“The fire is really strong,†said Howard Jacobs, the owner of Toodie’s Fine Jewelry, which is located directly across the street from the temple. “There are huge flames engulfing the roof and black, black smoke. There are huge clumps of ash on my doorsteps.â€
Jacobs said he saw four fire engines and three ambulances at the scene, and said he couldn’t count the number of firefighters.
“[Firefighters] are on the roof, and some went through the front door with a couple hoses,†Jacobs said. “There are firemen everywhere.â€
At around 1 p.m., all firefighters were ordered out of the building; firefighters continued to attack the blaze from outside.
TV station helicopter video footage showed firefighters atop aerial ladders pouring water on the orange flames, while black smoke billowed into the sky.
Greg Everett, owner of nearby Kenny’s Locks, said, “The roof is burning the most. It still seems fairly strong.â€
He said the walls of the building were granite and “I don’t think it’s going to burn through that.â€
The National Weather Service said the plume of smoke from the fire was so voluminous that hit had been picked up by weather radar.
The Patriot Ledger of Quincy reported July 20 that the building was up for sale for $3 million.
Sunday was all about "Breaking Bad" and bad breaks.
Or more specifically, a bad torn Achilles' tendon
The AMC show completed its run with a terrific final episode.
[No spoilers here.]
The Patriots rolled out to a 17-point lead before keeping us all entertained with a 30-27 victory over the Falcons at the Georgia Dome.
They are 4-0.
And the season appears to be over.
Or at least that's what you'll likely be hearing over the next few days.
Sunday's win was New England's most impressive regular-season road victory since a 39-26 win at Pittsburgh in Week 9 of the 2010 season. They finally pushed the offense beyond the "If we we only had Wes/Aaron/Brandon/Deion stage."
New England ran the ball effectively in the first half, giving Tom Brady endless prescious seconds to throw the ball and set up his play-action game. The battered Patriots' offensive line stood its ground, protecting their 36-year-old Golden Child from being sacked. Gisele's hubby was barely hit. There were no fumbles or interceptions.
Everyone got into the action on offense. Matthew Mulligan came from somewhere up in Maine, or the day labor pool at Home Depot, to catch a TD pass. LeGarrette Blount ran 47 yards for another score. Seven different players caught passes for New England. Well, make that eight if you count everyone's new favorite "dog" Aqib Talib .
While the "Breaking Bad" finale aired on AMC, Talib was one "Breaking Badass" on NBC.
It took a busted replay machine, a blown replay call, a non-holding call in the end zone, Butterfingers Sudfeld being unable to clutch a bouncing on-sides kick, Brady "pulling out early" on an errant fourth-down snap, injuries to Vince Wilfork and Aaron Dobson and Matt Ryan engineering a thrilling fourth quarter comeback to almost beat the Patriots.
Almost.
Nothing is fated to be easy for this team. Sunday night was just another example. Another win. Another heart-attack. No one ever said 4-0 was going to be easy.
The Wilfork injury was the ultimate bad break for the Patriots' defense. This team has become adept at filling holes and summoning the "next man up." Wilfork's hole is larger than most, but he was also being criticized earlier this season for not being the Vince of old. He had zero tackles and just three assists against the Bucs. Wilfork's presence often draws double and triple-teams, allowing the Rob Ninkovich es of the world to emerge as big-time players.
Big guy, bigger loss.
Perhaps Richard Seymour will come to the Hoodie's rescue?
It's hard to imagine just how much they'll miss Wilfork until he's gone. We had those same fears about Seymour, Tedy Bruschi , Willie McGinest and even Rodney Harrison . Not to mention Troy Brown .
The Patriots managed to persevere and reach, if not win, the Super Bowl following the departure of those other defensive stars.
[Here's our attempt to try, albeit feebly, to help mitigate the loss of Wilfork. In the Super Bowl XLVI loss to the Giants, he had just three of the team's 49 tackles. Now don't you feel better.]
One top of all this, we're hearing the Rob Gronkowski 's father and agent are pushing to keep the tight end out of the lineup until he's 100 percent healthy.
Sounds like Clay Buchholz has found a soul-mate in the NFL.
Bill Belichick was probably the only person on the planet who had Mulligan active in their fantasy or reality league this week.
This game cannot be completely discounted or negated because of the loss of Wilfork, who was lost early in the game. The Patriots still managed to keep Ryan off balance until his Manning-to-Manningham-esque completion to Julio Jones late in the fourth quarter. The Falcons went 1-for-6 in the red zone, thanks in large part to the Patriots defense. They even got Atlanta to flinch early in the game, passing up on a sure field goal by going for it and failing on a 4th-and-2 from the New England 7.
The only player completely indispensable on this roster is Brady. The Patriots are still a deep playoff contender without No. 75 plugging up the middle. They'd be 8-8 without No. 12, and that's only because they're off to a 4-0 start.
Brady lost about three-fourths of his offense before the season and has managed to scrape together a 4-0 start. Does anyone think Peyton Manning or Alex Smith would be 4-0 in Denver if he had the likes of Mulligan, Dobson, Zach Sudfeld , Julian Edelman , Kenbrell Thompkins and Josh Boyce as the primary targets on his radar screen?
Give Manning that lineup card and he'd hope into his Buick and drive off into early retirement.
The Patriots had to make two plays to win Sunday's game.
On offense, the signature play of the night, if not the season, was Brady's completion to Thompkins on 3rd-and-19 to start the fourth quarter. The Patriots were pinned deep on their own 12. Brady spread the field and found Thompkins with a missile over the middle for 26 yards.
A 15-yard penalty at end of the play left the ball at Atlanta's 47 yard line. Blount ran off the left guard and carried the ball into the end zone on the next play putting New England ahead 27-13.
Defensively, Aqib Talib saved the best for last, breaking up Ryan's last pass attempt to Roddy White in the end zone with the Falcons facing 4th-and-7 on New England's 10.
The Patriots have reached 4-0 this season using their running game, a stout defense, making defensive plays when they had to be made, limiting turnovers, giving Brady time to throw the ball and not trying to put up 55 points a game through the air. In short, they're winning in ways we're not accustomed to seeing in the past nine years.
Of course, it's been that long since they won a Super Bowl.
Don't forget to visit our Obnoxious Boston Fan blog. As always, let us know what you think. Post your thoughts here, on our Obnoxious Boston Fan Facebook page, on Twitter @realOBF or e-mail me at obnoxiousbost onfan@hotmail.com.
Wilfork was injured on the Falcons' first drive of the game and had to be carted to the locker room. It was reported he had suffered a torn Achilles’ tendon and could be out for the rest of the season. Head coach Bill Belichick, in a conference call Monday morning, would not confirm any of the reports.
“I really don’t have a lot of information,” he said. “We got back late last night; I know they’re going to look at [Vince] and do some tests this morning… I really don’t know much right now, I haven’t had a chance to meet with our medical people and I don’t even know what they have done yet.”
The 10-year veteran and team captain has been a staple of the Patriots’ defense for the past decade, making the Pro Bowl five times. Wilfork is the only remaining Patriot from any of the Super Bowl championship teams besides quarterback Tom Brady.
Belichick knows what a big loss it would be if Wilfork cannot play.
“[Vince is] an outstanding player,” he said. “He gives us great leadership, is a strong contributor on and off the field, in the locker room, and everything else … Obviously if he’s not there then everybody [will have to] pull a little bit more weight on their end.”
One player who had to step in and try to fill Wilfork’s shoes was rookie Joe Vellano, who had a sack on Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Vellano came in as an undrafted rookie and made the team out of training camp, getting opportunities to play in the preseason and making the most of them.
“Joe's a hard working kid,” Belichick said. “He was a productive player in college; he played a lot of spots at Maryland: he played end, he played tackle, [and] he played some on nose … He’s got good instincts, kind of has a nose for the ball and a good feel for what’s going on.
“[There are] a lot of things he has improved [upon] in terms of technique and recognition and reaction and all that. He’s still got a long way to go, but [he’s] definitely making progress. He works hard every day: he’s usually the first one on, last one off the field or close to it, [and] puts in a lot of time trying to get better at the things he needs to work on and that’s helping.”
A bright spot on the Patriots’ defense has been the play of cornerback Aqib Talib. He recorded his fourth interception of the year on Sunday, and has made many key defensive plays this season, including Sunday's breakup of an attempted touchdown pass to Roddy White on fourth and 7 from the Patriots’ 10 yard line that would have tied the game with half a minute to play.
“Aqib has done a good job for us,” Belichick said. “[He’s a] smart player, good communicator, really competes hard, [and he] really competes well every day in practice, competes well on the field [in] whatever he’s asked to do, [whether it be] man coverage, zone coverage, tacking, [or] special teams, whatever it is he really works hard and competes hard … He’s one of our offseason award winners. He’s put in a lot of work and has had some good results.”
The Patriots were given the day off on Monday, but will re-group on Tuesday to begin preparations for their Week 5 matchup against the Bengals in Cincinnati.
The attorney for Shayanna Jenkins today accused Bristol County prosecutors of using “abusive’’ legal tactics in an effort to pressure Jenkins into providing information against her boyfriend, Aaron Hernandez, the former New England Patriots player who is accused of orchestrating the murder of Odin L. Lloyd this June.
Jenkins, who has a child with Hernandez and who began dating him when both were high school students in Bristol, Conn., was indicted last week by a Bristol County grand jury on a single count of perjury.
Under state law, since Jenkins is accused of perjury in a capital case, she faces a possible sentence of up to life in prison.
“The government actions in this case are abusive and overreaching,’’ said Janice Bassil, a veteran Boston criminal defense attorney representing Jenkins. “I don’t believe they have sufficient evidence’’ to charge Jackson with perjury.
Hernandez, who has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and gun charges, allegedly summoned two friends from his hometown of Bristol, Conn., to Massachusetts in the hours before Lloyd was found shot to death in a North Attleborough industrial park.
Those two men, Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz, are both now charged with being accessories after the fact to Lloyd’s murder.
Bassil said that Jenkins — who has not faced any criminal charges until her indictment last Friday — is now being targeted because of her connection to Hernandez.
“I believe they are just simply trying to add pressure,’’ said Bassil. “They are trying to pressure her, but perhaps they are also trying to pressure him [Hernandez] through her.’’
Bassil said she has not seen the indictment, and was not informed her client had been charged by Bristol District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter, whose office is investigating the Lloyd murder.
Instead, she said, she learned about it because she follows Sutter on Twitter.
“I think it would be more appropriate to notify counsel rather than to release it on Twitter,’’ Bassil said.
Bassil said her client testified before a Bristol County grand jury for two days. Nothing her client said, Bassil insisted, supports accusing Jenkins of perjury in a capital case.
“There is a famous saying, a grand jury will indict a ham sandwich,’’ said Bassil. “ I look forward to challenging this in court. I really do. If a grand jury is supposed to protect citizens from overreaching prosecutors, then there is a lot of work to be done here.’’
Bassil said Jackson is tentatively slated to be arraigned in Bristol Superior Court in Fall River on Oct. 15.
Also today, Hernandez’s cousin Tanya Singleton is slated to be arraigned in the same court on a charge of conspiracy to commit accessory after the fact of Lloyd’s murder.
The indictments of Singleton, Jenkins, and Ortiz were disclosed Friday by Sutter’s office. Ortiz had previously faced gun charges stemming from the investigation.
Prosecutors have alleged that Hernandez, 23, who has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and several gun charges, orchestrated Lloyd’s June 17 killing after the two had a disagreement in a Boston nightclub in June.
The Globe reported in August that prosecutors were investigating a phone call and text message Hernandez allegedly sent to Jenkins on June 18 instructing her to“get rid of†firearms he allegedly stashed in the basement of their home.
Video from the home monitoring system shows Jenkins carrying a large, heavy object consistent with the shape of a lock box or safe to a car, leaving Hernandez’s home and driving toward Landry Avenue in North Attleborough.
She returned 35 minutes later without the large object. Police have not found the .45-caliber weapon used to kill Lloyd, but on June 19 they found a .22-caliber handgun along Landry Avenue. Police said the weapon appeared to have been “recently discarded.â€
Those photos stored on your smartphone could be worth a few bucks. We’ve all seen breaking news reports featuring photos and videos shot by passing amateurs. But even everyday snapshots can be of value; magazines and advertising companies often buy “stock” photos to decorate their pages.
A Boston software startup called Supshot wants to help smartphone owners cash in on these opportunities, by uniting photo buyers and sellers in an online marketplace. “It’s a platform to sell your photos and videos to any interested buyer,” said co-founder Azeem Khan.
Supshot has created a free app for Apple Inc. iPhones and iPads. It gives users an easy way to upload interesting photos and videos to the company’s cloud service, where interested parties can look them over and decide whether to buy. Before accepting the photo, the Supshot app lets the user choose a licensing plan for selling rights to reproduce the image. You can choose an open license that lets anybody reproduce the image for free. Or you can charge flat fees of $15 or $30 per photo. There’s also a custom option where you can demand a bigger payout for a photo or video that you consider especially valuable. Supshot plans to make money by taking 30 percent of whatever a seller receives.
Meanwhile, Supshot is peddling the service to news outlets and publishing houses. The company plans to open an online marketplace where businesses can purchase uploaded photos. Companies will also be able to post “assignments,” offering to pay a certain amount of money for photographs of specific events.
Supshot will have lots of competition. There are already several online markets for smartphone photographers, including Snapwire, Scoopshot and Rawporter. Khan is unfazed; he figures that the horde of competing services proves there’s a lucrative market for amateur photos, and he thinks Supshot can become the dominant player.
Before taking in a Bruins exhibition game last week, my wife and I stopped at the new Paulaner Bar for a couple of beers. The bar is located directly below TD Garden on the platform where commuter rail trains leave North Station. It had an unofficial grand opening last week.
You may have noticed a watering hole on the platform last year while rushing to catch your train or riding the escalator into the arena, but the space has been revamped with wood from Munich and a tap lineup from the German brewery. Included among the tap offerings are Original Munich Lager, Hefe-Weizen, Oktoberfest, Pils, and Salvator, a bottom-fermented dopplebock that packs a punch with an ABV of 7.9 percent. The beers are authentic and are a welcome offering in a neighborhood packed with sports bars.
Paulaner has some 30 bars around the world. This is their first official outpost in the US. Joe O'Grady, Paulaner's VP of national accounts, says that many Paulaner bars contain an on-site brewpub, allowing each to brew a unique beer. With limited space inside a working train station, there won't be a brewpub at the Boston location. Modeled after a German beer garden, the bar has a metropolitan feel. Big cities should have real food and drink options at their train stations and airports. Given the remodeling of South Station and new restaurants at Logan, this feels right.
If you're catching an upcoming B's or C's game, Tom Michienzi of the Craft Brewer's Guild recently sent me a list of the craft beer selection inside TD Garden this season. On the concourse outside Section 324 you'll find a craft beer garden featuring Allagash White, Brooklyn Lager, Cisco Whales Tale, Ipswich Red Ale, Lagunitas IPA, Magic Hat #9, Original Sin Hard Cider, Oskar Blues Dale’s Pale Ale, Smuttynose Old Brown Dog, Troegs Hopback Amber, and Wachusett Blueberry. There are stand-alone booths offering Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and Sierra's seasonal offering at Sections 312 and 21.
composite photo
It’s finally feeling like summer in Boston, and nothing screams summer more than a delicious burger. If you’re craving one just as much as we are but are feeling to lazy to chef one up yourself, take a look back at burgers that have already captured the hearts of our taste buds. Here’s what local chefs have been doing with the best bites you can get on a bun.
The following text first ran in the Globe magazine, and was written by Anna Burgess, Devra First, Sheryl Julian, Matt Mahoney, Anne V. Nelson, Barbara Pattison, Jason Pontin, Rachel Travers, Eileen McEleney Woods, and Lisa Zwirn.
What a Catch! Scenes from the Boston Seafood Festival
Pictures
Game 4: Patriots 30, Falcons 23
What the Fluff in Somerville
Scenes from the second annual Running of the Bridesmaids
Hardee's plans a return to Massachusetts within the next 12 to 18 months, reports BusinessWire. According to their reps, "We’ve heard from residents all across the region for years, begging us to bring our food back to them."
Hardee's had gradually closed throughout the area in the mid-1990s. The chain, which also operates Carl's Jr., expects to open about 200 franchises throughout the Northeast. They're known for burgers, pork chop 'n gravy biscuits, and burritos. See their menu — and feel your cholesterol begin to rise — right here.
For the last half-decade or so, the Patriots have had two players who could be designated as irreplaceable without a moment's consideration.
One on offense. One on defense.
Sure, there were others who were vital to the Sunday cause. At left tackle, Matt Light always had Brady's back. Randy Moss was a downfield dynamo in 2007. Wes Welker 's injury at the end of the '10 season was a gut-punch they could not overcome.
Then there's the double what-if with Rob Gronkowski : had he managed to remain healthy the past two postseasons, there may well have been another pair of duck boat parades in our city.
But Brady and Wilfork, the two remaining holdovers from the last Super Bowl championship nine years ago, are on a different level. They are the respective fulcrums of the offense and defense, and when they are absent, everything changes.
We found this out with Brady a half-quarter into the 2008 season. Matt Cassel was more than passable in relief after Brady's brutal knee injury that year ... and yet he was nothing close to Brady.
He had his moments where he played great, and it was fun to watch him grow into a quality quarterback. But it's another request entirely to replicate true greatness over a full season, time and again. Cassel could not do it. Of course he couldn't. Who could?
Five seasons later, a similar if more subtle burden will fall on someone -- or more likely, Joe Vellano and a someone or two who aren't on the roster at the moment -- to attempt to replace Wilfork.
During the Patriots' 30-23 victory over the Falcons last night, the 10th-year nose tackle departed early after suffering what the team said was a right ankle injury. But when he required a ride from the cart to get off the field, it was hard to avoid fearing the worst.
Unfortunately, the morning brought confirmation that dread was the correct instinct. According to the Globe's Shalise Manza Young, Wilfork suffered a torn Achilles' tendon and is probably headed for season-ending injured reserve.
A few well-chosen curses aimed at the football gods might feel cathartic, but it doesn't change the reality. The Patriots are left trying to replace the irreplaceable.
No, Wilfork wasn't having anything approaching his finest season, and I suspect we'll find out that he was hurting more than anyone outside of his own huddle knew.
But even when he was playing just adequately by his standards, he tied up multiple linemen while holding his ground, allowing the linebackers behind him an unobstructed path to the football. It's a thankless and utterly essential job, and he's so good at it that it may someday lead to acknowledgment in Canton.
When Wilfork was at his best, watching linemen attempt to move him was like watching children attempting to move a refrigerator. It wasn't happening, sometimes to the point of laughter. Once, the end result of his dominance was what we now and forever call a buttfumble.
Now, it's next-man-up mode for a player who cannot be replaced by any single player. Rather than appreciating that the Patriots are 4-0 with yards and yards of room for improvement, we're left wondering whether Richard Seymour and Bill Belichick might mend fences and how the Patriots ended up in a spot where someone named Joe Vellano is now being counted on.
The Wilfork injury is a bummer for a lot of reasons. Not the least of which is that it puts a damper on the good feelings we should have for this team this morning.
These Patriots are a work in progress, particularly on offense. At times they can be hard to watch, at least by their recent Brady-at-his-peak standards. Sunday's game did get unnecessarily tense late, and if you demand dazzling aesthetics with your spotless won-lost record, this isn't the team for you.
But they are progressing while deftly deploying the personnel -- and the various skill-sets belonging to that personnel -- to play to their strengths and exploit mismatches.
Their workmanlike approach and full utilization of their offensive depth isn't going to help your fantasy football team, but it's pretty fun to watch, especially the mix-and-match running game of Stevan Ridley , LeGarrette Blount , and Brandon Bolden . Anyone pining for Danny Woodhead isn't paying attention.
In getting off to this 4-0 start -- their first since 2007 -- the defense has picked up the slack for the offense. Aqib Talib has been sensational at cornerback, there is an existent and fairly consistent pass rush, and the continuity from last season's unit seems to be having a positive effect.
On both sides of the ball, the Patriots do an extraordinary job of getting production out of players who are lucky if they have their own football card.
Gronk's out another week or two? Well, hey, here's a touchdown for Matthew Mulligan , another overachieving misfit from Jack Cosgrove's Maine program.
But there does come a tipping point with injury and attrition. There are very few players who are truly essential and irreplaceable in the Patriots' scheme of things.
Vince Wilfork was one -- was the one -- on the Patriots' defense. Years ago, Richard Seymour was another.
It might be time to mend that fence and give Seymour a New England sequel.
Next-man-up is a fine concept in most circumstances. But this isn't most circumstances.
Wilfork went down just when things were looking up. Extraordinary measures may be the only way to replace such an extraordinary player.
Norwood police say they stopped a man who was driving more than 100 miles per hour in a 45-mile-per-hour zone on busy Route 1 Friday night.
The man, who was pulled over at around 10 p.m. Friday, told police that he was using one hand to drive and one hand to capture video of his speedometer to show how fast his car could go to potential buyers, said Norwood Police Officer Kevin Grasso.
Police said the driver, whose name was not released, acknowledged that he knew he was being pulled over for speeding and that he was going “at least a buck†(100 miles per hour).
The driver is being summonsed to court on charges of speeding, impeded operation, and reckless operation, Norwood police said in a statement posted on their Facebook page.
The department’s item about the incident was titled “File Under Speeders Say the Darnedest Things.â€
“Now more than ever: Drive Defensively – Watch Out for the Other Guy,†the Facebook posting said.
In an apparent reference to the fines the man may have to pay after his court appearance, the posting said, “The asking price of the vehicle may go up accordingly.â€
The affluent town of Norwell could be home to one of the first places in Massachusetts where people can buy medical marijuana. Since the town of 10,500 is one of the few communities in the state opening its arms to the newly legalized enterprise, local officials hope their tolerance will pay off in big bucks.
Pictured: A medical marijuana plant grows at the Northwest Patient Resource Center medical marijuana dispensary in Seattle.
The affluent town of Norwell could be home to one of the first places in Massachusetts where people can buy medical marijuana. Since the town of 10,500 is one of the few communities in the state opening its arms to the newly legalized enterprise, local officials hope their tolerance will pay off in big bucks.
Pictured: A medical marijuana plant grows at the Northwest Patient Resource Center medical marijuana dispensary in Seattle.
Ted S. Warren/AP
“We’re looking at it like the casino process: We want to see what kind of benefit we can get,” said Town Administrator James Boudreau. Possibilities include a flat annual fee, contributions to local youth groups, and a percentage of the net revenues, he said.
Pictured: Michael Cardenas showed medical marijuana he purchased outside Arizona Organix, the first legal medical marijuana dispensary to open in Glendale, Ariz.
Ross D. Franklin/AP
Nineteen businesses have applied for state permission to open medical marijuana dispensaries in Plymouth County, including two actively courting Norwell officials, Boudreau said. Another three companies had been talking to the town, but did not apply with the state to operate specifically in Plymouth County, he said.
Pictured: Tyler Delker, dispensary supervisor and 'Head Budtender,' watered medical marijuana plants ready for harvest in the growing room at 3-D Medical marijuana Center in Denver, Colo. on Jan. 23.
Bob Pearson for the Boston Globe
“We want to make sure that the community that we operate in, they want us there,” said Jeffrey Roos, whose Mass Medi-Spa also wants to take advantage of Norwell’s willingness — for a price — to host a medical marijuana site.
Statewide, 181 businesses applied in August for what ultimately will be up to 35 permits to cultivate, process, and provide medical marijuana and marijuana-infused products. No more than five are allowed per county, according to the law approved by voter referendum in November 2012.
Pictured: Medical marijuana is packaged for sale in 1-gram packages at the Northwest Patient Resource Center medical marijuana dispensary on Nov. 7, 2012 in Seattle.
Ted S. Warren/AP
Norwell voted overwhelmingly — by a 60 percent majority — in favor of the medical marijuana ballot question. And at the town meeting last May, the town quickly approved a zoning change to allow dispensaries in the town’s two industrial parks at the far northwest edge of town: 122-acre Accord Pond Park and 150-acre Assinippi Industrial Park.
Pictured: Customers browsed the showcases at the Harborside Health Clinic in Oakland, Calif., on June 30, 2010.
ROBERT GALBRAITH/Reuters
Town planner Christopher DiIorio said both Mass Medi-Spa of Nantucket and Holistic Health Center of Boston are waiting to hear whether they have passed initial state scrutiny. The state Department of Public Health must first rule that they are nonprofit companies with at least $500,000 in capital and clean criminal histories.
Pictured: Different varieties of medical marijuana in their containers at the dispensary at the 3-D Medical marijuana Center in Denver, Colo.
BOB PEARSON for the Boston Globe
Health department spokesman David Kibbe said the state expects to make its “Phase 1” decisions this fall. He noted that companies are not limited to the county they initially select and “can propose a new location as they move into Phase 2 of the process.” That next step entails securing a specific site and getting the blessing of the local community, he said, before going back to the state for a rigorous review of the plans.
Pictured: Attendees looked at marijuana paraphenelia displays at the HempCon medical marijuana show at the Los Angeles Convention Center on May 24. Thousands of marijuana enthusiasts gathered for the three-day event for exhibits of medical marijuana dispensaries, collectives, evaluation services, legal services and equipment and accessories.
ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images
The state anticipates selecting a final list of dispensaries and sites by the end of the year, he said. After that, the projects go back to the host community for approval.
Nantucket-based Mass Medi-Spa has applied to operate on its home island and in Norwell. Roos, its chief executive, said he could not comment while his company’s application is pending with the state, but he referred to the company’s Web page, which said local plans call for a facility to grow, process, and sell medical marijuana products.
Pictured: U.S. Justice Department said Aug. 29 that it wouldn't sue to challenge laws legalizing marijuana in 20 states.
David McNew/Getty Images
