Sturbridge Business Breakfast - September

On Tuesday, September 12th the Town hosted its third business breakfast at Rapscallion Brewery. The event was catered by Sturbridge Coffee House. Our thanks to both businesses for their hard work and dedication to Sturbridge.

Below is a brief summary of the event. If you have questions, comments, concerns or ideas please do not hesitate to contact Kevin Filchak, Economic Development and Tourism Coordinator for Sturbridge. The next breakfast will be held in the 4th quarter of this year. When a date and location have been chosen we will announce it on the Town website.

Town Update

Kevin Filchak noted the Town's recent development of its new website. Mr. Filchak drew attention to the new Business Directory and asked that businesses check their Google Listing to ensure that their information is up to date. On October 3rd the Town is offering a Business Class taught by Christine Tieri of Idea Agency on the subject of improving a business's online presence; all interested participants should contact Kevin Filchak to reserve a spot. Mr. Filchak discussed the formation of  the Town's new Business Focus Group and how this organization of private sector professionals will help to provide necessary feedback for the Town; anyone interesting in serving on the focus group should contact Kevin Filchak by September 30th. Finally there was a discussion on the new Sturbridge Events Committee which begins meeting this month, and the Town's participation in travel shows starting this fall.

Commercial Tourist District Improvement Plan - Update

Jean Bubon, the Sturbridge Town Planner, talked about the Town's 2014 plan to improve the Commercial Tourist District in Sturbridge. She reviewed the plans for the infrastructure improvements and discussed the history of the project, existing infrastructure concerns, the initial study and the preferred design alternatives that came out of that study. Ms. Bubon discussed the next steps for the process which include conducting a utility study, incorporating the improvements in new building projects, adding the project to the Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP) and seeking further funding. If you would like to read more about the study and or have further questions, you can read the study by clicking here or you can contact the Town Planner.

Inspectional Services Panel

Jamie Terry the Health Agent, Jaime Rice the Health Inspector, and Nelson Burlingame the Building Commissioner all spoke about their various efforts to improve business interactions with the Town. They discussed various items that are specific to their inspections, but their universal message was that they are here to help businesses with assistance by providing information and support. Finally they talked about their plans to streamline the process for renewing permits; the Town will provide more information on this project as it becomes available. If you have questions, comments, concerns or ideas please contact the Board of Health, the Building Commissioner or the Fire Inspector.

After all of these presentations, there was an excellent discussion with business owners. Questions ranged on topics that included (but were not limited to) improving the name recognition of Fiskdale, the Town's Route 15 study, Zoning Bylaws, the Town's 2011 Master Plan, the role of the Economic Development & Tourism Coordinator, increasing business collaboration and the use of STA funding to improve the Commercial Tourist District.