The coronavirus pandemic continues to dominate Massachusetts news this week as global COVID-19 cases break through the 1 million mark with the worst yet to come. As of the beginning of April, the number of documented cases was approaching 9,000 with more than 150 deaths.

Gov. Baker held a news conference Tuesday to update residents on the situation in Massachusetts. A stay-at-home advisory is still in effect until the end of the month.

The New York Times has published infographics tracking Mass. COVID-19 cases statewide and by county.

Planning ahead for the upcoming rash of new cases, Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced the development of a 1,000-bed field hospital at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

According to the Boston Globe, there are plans for “500 beds for the city’s homeless and 500 for overflow patients coming from the city’s hospitals.” The city has launched a request for proposals to operate the facility from health care providers.

More Massachusetts Coronavirus News

The Globe has published the governor’s charts and projections on the coronavirus surge in Mass.
All travelers to Mass. are being urged to self-quarantine for two weeks.
The New England Patriots have pitched in by sending their plane to fetch more than 1 million medical masks . Watch the video.
Mass. logged more than 329,000 unemployment claims — almost 9 percent of the workforce — in just two weeks. Read the report.
Mass. hotels and vacation rentals have also been shuttered.
The state does not track coronavirus hospitalizations, and the Globe’s attempts to do so have been met with “spotty success.”

IN OTHER NEWS:

Clean Peak Energy Standards Draft Released

The Mass. Department of Energy Resources has finalized a major rule for promoting clean energy during the most expensive hours of electricity production. The measure involves credits for clean energy delivered during peak hours.

According to a report in Mass. Green Tech:

“Utilities in the state must obtain clean peak credits equal to a percentage of total electricity delivered in the year, starting at 1.5 percent in 2020 and growing annually.”

The new Clean Peak Standard regulations, originally called for in legislation passed in 2018, will now be open for a 30-day review period and is expected to take effect in June.

The brownfield redevelopment investment envisioned by Commercial Development Company (CDC) is becoming a reality as the site evolves towards becoming a logistics and manufacturing center, renewable energy hub and port.

Plan to Import Canadian Hydropower Now Uncertain

A plan to bring Canadian hydropower into Massachusetts via a Central Maine Power Company faces opposition from activists. The $950 million New England Clean Energy Connect project calls for delivering 9.4 million megawatt-hours per year of hydropower over the next two decades — roughly 17% of the state’s peak electricity needs.

Under the plan, electricity generated by Hydro-Québec’s hydroelectric dams would traverse a 145-mile transmission line that would cut through western Maine. Opponents of the plant complain that the lines would damage recreational forest land leading to a loss of recreational tourism in Maine.

According to Salem News, enough signatures have been gathered to put the project before the state’s voters in November. Should voters shoot down the initiative it will put a damper on Mass. clean energy plans.

Transit Relief on the Way

Massachusetts public transit is set to receive roughly $1 billion in federal emergency aid intended to keep bodies moving during the coronavirus crisis. The package, part of a $2 trillion relief bill signed by President Trump on Friday, includes $25 billion in grants for mass transit nationwide.

The funds will be divided between the MBTA and the state’s 15 regional transit authorities.

The Worcester Telegram reports:

“At the T, their budget cycle is from July 1, and they would have been facing a gaping operating deficit,” said Eric Bourassa, director of transportation for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council. “This really is a lifeline for the MBTA and the regional transit agencies.”

The MBTA is currently running under a reduced schedule.

No Movement On Recreational Cannabis

In cannabis news, Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration decided that medical marijuana dispensaries are considered pharmacies and are therefore essential and may continue to operate during the crisis. Recreational facilities, on the other hand, still remain closed until the end of the state at home advisory, April 30th.

As a result, small cannabis businesses are warning that they may not survive if their non-essential classification drags on. From a Boston Globe report:

“These businesses are in a pretty dire situation,” said Laury Lucien, a Boston lawyer and consultant who works with small cannabis firms. “If what you sell is federally illegal, you don’t have access to those funds. It really is unjust, especially for stores that just opened."

Gov. Baker has labeled calls to reopen recreational marijuana shops a ‘non-starter,’ according to the Globe.

Innovative Industrial Properties Acquires Athol Plant

Pioneering real estate investment trust (REIT) Innovative Industrial Properties, Inc. (IIP), has announced the acquisition of a 199,000 square feet of industrial space in Athol, Mass for approximately $26.8 million - slated for use as a cannabis cultivation facility.

According to Yahoo Finance:

“Concurrent with the closing of the purchase, IIP entered into a long-term, triple-net lease agreement with a subsidiary of Ascend Wellness Holdings, LLC (AWH) for continued operation as a licensed cannabis cultivation and processing facility. AWH is expected to complete tenant improvements for the property, for which IIP has agreed to provide reimbursement of up to approximately $22.2 million. Assuming full reimbursement for the tenant improvements, IIP’s total investment in the property will be $49.0 million. The lease provides for an initial annualized aggregate base rent of 13.5% of the sum of the initial purchase price and tenant improvement allowance, subject to a phase-in of the base rent associated with the tenant improvement allowance at the beginning of the term.”

More of the Latest Massachusetts News:

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