River beckons just outside new Danvers condo

This new townhouse condo along the Porter ­River in Danvers is designed for boaters as it includes a 35-foot boat slip right outside the door.

Unit 7 at Mariners Point at 58 River St. is one of 11 new units in four buildings being built on the two-acre site of a former marina. All have attached garages, covered back porches with water views and boat slips. The energy-efficient units have beige Hardiplank siding and architectural-grade Pella windows and glass sliders. Window moldings and other woodwork is also high quality.

The three-bedroom model Unit 7 has 2,353 square feet of living space on two levels with red oak flooring, and is listed for $775,000.

The unit has a small entry porch and front door that opens into a recessed-lit kitchen with antique white cabinets with serpentine trim, a wine rack and St. Cecilia granite counters with a glass-mosaic tile backsplash. There's a center island, a pantry/coat closet and stainless-steel GE Cafe appliances.

The large, open dining/living area has recessed and contemporary light fixtures and there's a gas fireplace with a black granite hearth in the living room.

A wall of windows and a sliding glass door lead out to a columned private back porch with river views. There will be a grassy common yard around the buildings, new granite and cement seawalls and boat slips.

Behind the living/dining area is a ceramic half bath, a washer/dryer hookup and direct access to a one-car garage.

A red oak staircase leads to three bedrooms on the second floor, off a hallway with a laundry closet with a stacked Samsung washer/dryer. The recessed-lit master bedroom suite has three large windows with river views, three closets with built-in closet systems and a bathroom with white Carrara marble vanity top, floors, walls and walk-in shower, plus a deep soaking tub.

The two other bedrooms are decent-sized with a second full bathroom with tumbled marble floors and tub/shower walls with glass-mosaic tile inlays.

The unit has two zones of gas-fired heating and central air conditioning. There's a private parking space in front of the garage, plus about a dozen visitor spaces.

The condo does not have a basement, but is built out of the flood zone so flood insurance should not be required.

Home showcase

• Address: 58 River St., Mariners Point, Unit 7, Danvers
• Bedrooms: Three
• Bathrooms: Two full, one half
• List price: $775,000
• Square feet: 2,353
• Price per square foot: $329
• Annual taxes: To be determined
• Monthly condo fee: $337
• Location: One mile to retail and restaurants in Danvers Square
• Built in: 2013-14
• Broker: Francine Cecieta of 
J Barrett & Co. at 978-808-0704

Pros:

• Private back porch looks out to river and boat slip
• Red oak floors, Pella windows, quality doors and moldings throughout
• Open kitchen dining/living area with 9-foot ceilings, wall of windows facing river
• Master bedroom suite with three closets, Carrara marble bathroom

Cons

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MGM gets first Mass. casino license

MGM is the state's first official casino operator, pending the outcome of efforts to repeal the state's casino law.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission yesterday voted unanimously to grant MGM a license for its $800 million casino, hotel and entertainment and shopping complex in downtown Springfield.

"People are hungry to work," Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno said.

MGM estimates the project will bring 3,000 permanent jobs and 2,000 construction jobs to Springfield.

MGM will pay the $85 million licensing fee only after the state Supreme Judicial Court decides whether a referendum to repeal the state's casino law can be allowed on the November ballot.

That decision is expected before July 9.

If the court blocks the referendum, MGM would pay the fee in about eight business days.

If the court permits the question, MGM pays only if the referendum is defeated.

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Tundra’s great take on cargo

The Tundra SR5, Toyota's workhorse pickup truck, takes driving big cargo to a new level.

Whether in the city or on a work site, the 381-horsepower, 5.7-liter iForce V8 engine commands the road — it is the "Big Dog." Pulling into traffic and passing on the highway can be done with authority and with power to spare.

The Tundra's steering wheel-mounted shifter makes downshifting a breeze, taking some stress off the brakes and giving you more control in turns. Its big 8-foot, 1-inch-long bed is perfect for cargo, easily fitting sheetrock, plywood, mulch or anything else you're hauling. The Tundra is right at home in the lumber yard, in the backyard or the garden center.

With the test vehicle's Radiant Red paint showing significant wear after 9,000 miles, the need for a bed liner seems obvious unless you wear your scratches like a badge of honor.

Spartan, but well thought out, the Tundra's interior has some decent optional features such as a built-in 7-inch high definition touchscreen Entune GPS and Bluetooth, but lacks heated seats, lumbar support, and interior storage. A middle seat folds down next to the driver, but lacks decent storage for a cellphone and a 12-volt charging receptacle.

You may need a step ladder to climb into this vehicle, especially if some of your precious cargo includes kids who take it as a challenge to climb Mount Tundra. Even the driver may need some assistance as there is no handle and no step to help you in.

Getting used to this behemoth takes a while and squeezing into those tight parking spots in parking garages will take some practice. And with the double cab and long bed extending this truck to almost 20 feet 8 inches, you can pretty much forget about parallel parking this beast. The width and the extra row of seating makes this a very roomy vehicle.

The good news is with all of the extra cargo space you can carry plenty of extra gasoline — and you may need it as it burns 13 miles per gallon in the city, 17 on the highway.

The Tundra, with a suggested retail price of $37,101 as tested, comes standard with a 2-inch receiver hitch. Both 7-pin and 4-pin trailer wiring hook-ups sit side by side on the rear bumper with weather protective housings.

Switching to four-wheel-drive was simple — especially compared to the recently reviewed 4Runner — as was getting into tow mode. Side view mirrors set further away from the vehicle make sense after you figure out how to set them up and help you to see what you are towing.

The bottom line: this Tundra is a tough truck that likes to take on tasks.

2014 Tundra SR5

• MSRP: $34,345
• As Tested: $37,101
• MPG: 13 city, 17 highway

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Mohegan Sun can't keep lawsuit documents private

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Mohegan Sun has lost its bid to have certain documents kept out of the public eye in a civil lawsuit over its failed Palmer casino plan.

The Connecticut-based casino operator and its partner in the failed Palmer venture, Northeast Realty Associates, will not be allowed to designate materials "attorneys' eyes only" during the case's discovery process, Hampden Superior Court Judge Richard Carey ruled Friday.

But the judge also ruled that the two sides do not have the right to provide state gambling regulators copies of discovery materials, as Northeast Realty sought.

The judge said the types of materials expected to be the focus of the lawsuit would be "adequately protected" without such confidentiality agreements, which he said are sometimes needed to protect trade secrets and other sensitive information.

Northeast Realty, based in Longmeadow, said in a statement that it was pleased with the decision, which it said will "lead to the production of documents by Mohegan without delay."

Northeast Realty alleges Mohegan Sun violated an exclusivity agreement preventing the casino from pursuing a gambling license anywhere else in Massachusetts other than the 150-plus acres it leased from Northeast. It's seeking monetary damages, an amount to be determined at trial.

Mohegan Sun, which has declined to comment on the lawsuit on previous occasions, denies violating the agreement in its legal filings.

Voters in Palmer rejected Mohegan Sun's casino plan in November 2013. Within weeks, the horse racing track Suffolk Downs announced it reached a deal with Mohegan Sun to operate a casino on the Revere side of its property.

That more than $1 billion proposal is one of two plans vying for the lucrative Boston-area casino license.

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State senate OKs $11 minimum wage

Business groups fear it will be harder to make it in Massachusetts if a compromise bill passed by the Senate that would hike the state's minimum wage to the highest in the country is signed into law.

Top House and Senate negotiators struck a deal Wednesday to raise the current $8 per hour minimum wage to $11 per hour by 2017, and the Senate quickly passed it yesterday on a 35-4 vote. The bill does not include a Senate proposal that would have tied the hike to inflation. And it goes beyond a House proposal for a $10.50 per hour wage, without automatic increases for inflation. The House is expected to vote on the compromise bill next week.

"Too many people are trying to live and raise a family in Massachusetts on the current minimum wage and failing," Senate President Therese Murray said. "These changes will make a real difference in the lives of our residents and I am proud of the Legislature for this great accomplishment. But, we can't stop here."

But Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, warned the minimum wage hike could drive many stores out of business.

"I am really concerned about the future and viability of thousands of small businesses," Hurst said. "It's a 38 percent increase in the minimum wage, far above any other state."

While Associated Industries of Massachusetts viewed the lack of indexing to inflation as a small victory, a spokesman said the higher wage will hurt businesses.

"There's plenty of economic reasons not to raise the wage," AIM spokesman Chris Geehern said.

But Jim Klocke, executive vice-president of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, said the deal is fair because it balances the higher wage with unemployment insurance reform for business owners.

Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, a Boston-based network of business owners and executives, applauded the compromise bill.

"A higher minimum wage will boost sales, keep more dollars circulating in our local economy, and reduce the strain on our social safety net caused by poverty wages," said Holly Sklar, the group's director.

Deb Fastino, co-chairman of Raise Up Massachusetts, called the bill a "positive step," but said the group for now would keep collecting signatures for a November ballot question to increase the minimum wage to $10.50.

"It has to pass ... through the House and get to the governor, and if all of this happens before the deadline, then we will make our decision," she said.

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Hate Cape traffic? Join the (Bay) Club

Like the Cape but hate the bridge traffic?

Waltham builder/developer Paul Abelite has a solution.

He's building moderate-sized single-families priced in the mid-$500,000 to mid-$600,000 range on the grounds of the toney Bay Club at Mattapoisett, a 625-acre enclave in this quaint, unspoiled town on Buzzards Bay, with no need to cross the Sagamore or Bourne bridges. Houses at the Bay Club are normally custom built and larger — up to 8,000 square feet — with the club selling the lots for $250,000 and up.

Abelite and business partner Lisa Nickerson say their 36-home subdivision, called The Preserve, is bringing a price point to the gated golf club that will draw middle-class buyers — those looking for a vacation house or a full-time residence.

"We're offering a chance to get something above and beyond your typical sub­division house," said Abelite, president of Aerie Homes. "You can have the lifestyle of a golf community in an area also surrounded by a town forest and a nature reserve that's also just down the street from Buzzards Bay."

The Cape-style homes at The Preserve come in three different styles, from traditional to more loft-like, with cedar-shingle exteriors, outdoor patios and attached two-car garages. All homes are three-bedroom, ranging from 1,900 square feet to 2,550 square feet, with master suites on the first or second floors. Owners can customize their homes with a wide variety of wood flooring, cabinets and granite counters. Upgrades include everything from a custom sunroom to a golf cart bay attached to the garage.

We took a look at the completed "Hawthorn" model unit, a three-bedroom, 21⁄2-bathroom house with 2,550 square feet offered at $650,000. It features an open living/dining/kitchen area with wide-plank oak floors and a gas fireplace, and a granite counter, dark-stained oak cabinet and stainless-steel kitchen. The first floor has a carpeted master bedroom suite with a ceramic-tiled bathroom. The second floor has a vaulted ceiling family room and two additional guest bedrooms and tiled bathroom. There's a full basement and attached two-car garage.

"We're building more modest-sized homes that buyers are looking for, but using high-quality materials and craftsmanship," said Nickerson, a partner in the project who also owns a Waltham-based public relations firm that is handling the sales and marketing. "Owners are free to join the club or not."

Homeowners can join the Bay Club as social members for $10,000, which provides access to tennis courts, a junior Olympic pool, fitness and racquetball facilities, club restaurant and cultural activities. A golf membership for the 18-hole parkland-style course designed by Brad Faxon costs $30,000.

"This club was designed from the ground up to appeal not just to golfers, but to those who want family and cultural activities," said Bay Club general manager Craig Fleming, citing a recent cooking demonstration by a Boston chef and a lecture by a Harvard professor.

Dave Andrews, director of sales and membership development at Bay Club, said 80 percent of the club's 54 custom-built homes are primary residences, with a number of residents commuting to work as far away as downtown Boston.

"We think The Preserve houses are high quality and a great buy, considering the amenities we offer." Andrews said. "And you're surrounded by green space, which takes up 90 percent of the club site."

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Firm fixing Health Connector site says it’s on target

The head of the company brought on to fix the Bay State's failed Obamacare website told the Herald he's sure his company can get the Health Connector portal ready for a crucial fall relaunch — but stopped short of a guarantee.

"Our confidence level couldn't be higher," said Sanjay Singh, CEO of hCentive, which developed the software the state hopes to use. "I've never seen so much progress in four weeks in any other state we have worked in."

Health Connector officials demonstrated parts of the software at a board meeting yesterday. They are scrambling to meet a June 30 deadline to finish the website's foundation.

"We are very, very, very, very high probability that we will hit that," Singh told the Herald.

State officials also yesterday allowed the 227,374 Bay Staters who were moved to temporary Medicaid coverage — they pay no premiums — to stay on through the end of the year. It has cost $90.5 million to keep people on the temporary insurance, as of June 5, according to Secretary of Administration & Finance Glen Shor.

Critics have pointed out that just about anyone could sign up for the temporary coverage. New state Obamacare czar Maydad Cohen, however, insisted few actually did so.

"Right now, our initial estimate is under 1 percent would be potentially ineligible for that," said Cohen.

The health insurance plans are concerned about how long the temporary coverage may stretch.

"They're not in the right coverage," said Lora Pellegrini of the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans. "It could have the impact of folks who haven't paid a premium of 'Why am I suddenly paying a bill?' That's going to be the challenge, and something we all need to work on."

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Let’s Face it, selling your data beats fee

A big fat cry-me-a-river to all the outrage over Facebook's announcement that it will sell your web-browsing data to advertisers. Did people think Facebook was collecting data about your every move on the Web just to keep itself warm at night?

Either way, here are five reasons that privacy advocates need to calm down over Facebook and start worrying about more serious threats to personal liberty:

5) You have more control than you think. Facebook is also allowing users to see why they are being shown certain ads. You can click through your full marketing dossier — your likes, web browsing history and interests — and add or change the information Facebook uses for advertisement targeting.

4) You're going to see ads anyway, so why not keep them relevant? If you long for an ad-free world, then the World Wide Web just isn't for you.

3) You can opt out of online ads at the Digital Advertising Alliance (aboutads.info/choices) or sign up for services like Ghostery that keep your browsing private. It's really not that hard.

2) There are bigger fish to fry. Please direct all this privacy outrage toward a preemptive strike on the next frontier of invasion: wearables and implantables. That's where the real threats to liberty and security lie. Facebook ads are a lost cause, but how about pharmaceutical ads that target whatever ailment is registering on those fitness wristbands of the future? Not only is that invasive, it's actually a hazard to your health.

But there's still time to act. So let's talk about that instead.

1) It's either you or the ads. Because Facebook is a public company, it has to make more and more revenue each quarter (as Wall Street demands). It can either do that by stepping up its ad game or by instituting a steadily increasing membership fee.

If Facebook wanted to keep to its current schedule of revenue, it would have to charge $4.10 per user per quarter right now. And that's assuming it doesn't lose any of its 609 million active daily users by instituting a fee.

So unless you want to pay $12 this year, and more next year and the year after that, thank Facebook for finding a way to make money that doesn't take dollars from your pocket.

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Noncompetes to get hearing

A top lawmaker is reversing course, saying his committee will hold a hearing on a bill that would ban noncompete agreements as business groups on both sides of the divisive issue say they are standing firm.

"Over the past several weeks, there has been a healthy and productive dialogue about the proper role of noncompetes in our state's economy," said Rep. Joseph Wagner (D-Chicopee), co-chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies. "There are more options than either accepting noncompetes as they exist currently or banning them altogether. There is a middle ground that should be explored."

Gov. Deval Patrick has proposed a ban on noncompete agreements — a clause in employment contracts barring workers who leave a company from joining or starting another company in the same field for a year or two — as part of his economic development bill. Just two weeks ago when House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo unveiled his economic development bill that didn't include a ban on noncompete clauses, Wagner, who helped craft that bill, said the issue was "not the most significant matter."

While the omission in DeLeo's bill was seen as a setback for supporters of the ban, now the tide appears to have shifted with plans for a hearing on a standalone bill.

"It looks promising that a bill could be pushed forward during this legislative session," said C.A. Webb, executive director of New England Venture Capital Association, which represents many tech companies that want to see noncompete agreements banned.

Critics say the agreements stifle innovation and prevent employee mobility, while supporters say noncompetes are crucial for protecting intellectual property and trade secrets.

Yesterday, Patrick said the ultimate success or failure of the proposed ban would come down to the various business groups that have an interest in the issue.

"If we can get the industry to come to the table and work together and compromise, I think we'll get something done," Patrick said. "The extent to which it gets pushed depends on people who are working in the field."

Chris Geehern, a spokesman for Associated Industries of Massachusetts, said there has been no change to the group's staunch opposition to a ban.

"We think the current law governing noncompetes works well," Geehern said. "We frankly don't see any need to change the law."

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Deval Patrick inks pact with Japanese trade organization

Officials expect a new pact with a Japanese trade organization will strengthen the growing economic relationship between the Bay State and the Asian industrial giant.

"We've already seen a trend of Japanese life science companies choosing Massachusetts," said Angus McQuilken, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. "We expect to see that trend accelerate."

Gov. Deval Patrick yesterday signed an agreement with the Japan External Trade Organization to formalize a partnership "facilitating business and investment opportunities," according to the agreement.

"Japan is important to us," Patrick said. "(This is) an umbrella agreement, we will build out from here."

The state and the trade group began working on the Memorandum of Understanding after Patrick's economic development trade mission to Japan in December.

"Today is a new beginning in the history between Massachusetts and Japan," said Hiroyuki Ishige, chairman of JETRO.

Patrick said there are roughly 130 Japanese companies doing business in Massachusetts, which account for 10,000 jobs.

"That is important economic prosperity for us," Patrick said.

Japanese life sciences companies MBL International and Scivax will open a new lab today in Woburn, McQuilken said. The agreement is expected to have an impact throughout the Bay State business community.

David Brewster, president of energy intelligence software provider EnerNOC, said: "I firmly believe that the MOU that (was) signed will continue to foster collaboration and will bolster innovation between these two economies."

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The Ticker

Bain, Goldman Sachs 
settle antitrust suit

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bain Capital Partners LLC agreed to pay a total of $121 million to settle claims they suppressed competition in some of the biggest deals of the leveraged buyout boom before the financial crisis.

Goldman Sachs will pay $67 million under the agreement to settle the antitrust lawsuit while Bain Capital will pay $54 million, according to the preliminary settlement filed today in Boston federal court.

Shareholders of companies that were acquired accused Goldman Sachs, Bain, and banks and private-equity firms of conspiring to carve up the market for large leveraged buyouts, suppressing prices and depriving investors of billions of dollars.

Alex Stanton, a spokesman for Bain Capital in New York, declined to immediately comment on yesterday's settlement. Michael DuVally, a spokesman for New York-based Goldman Sachs, didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Legislature strikes minimum wage deal

State House and Senate negotiators have reached a compromise on a bill hiking the minimum wage in Massachusetts.

The bill would increase the current $8 per hour minimum wage by $3 over the next three years. The hourly minimum for the state's lowest paid workers would go to $9 on Jan. 1, 2015, to $10 the following new year, and finally to $11 on Jan. 1, 2017.

The measure would not tie future increases to inflation.

The bill — a compromise between a Senate bill calling for an $11 minimum wage indexed to inflation, and a House-passed bill calling for an increase to $10.50 per hour, without indexing — must be approved in both chambers. It also seeks to rein in unemployment insurance costs.

Today

• Commerce Department releases retail sales data for May.
• Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims.
• Freddie Mac releases weekly mortgage rates.
• Commerce Department releases business inventories for April.

TOMORROW

• Labor Department releases the Producer Price Index for May.
• The American Red Cross of Massachusetts has announced the appointment of Ralph Boyd, left, as its new CEO. Boyd has previously served as chairman and CEO of the Freddie Mac Foundation and been a U.S. assistant attorney general.
• Waltham-based AMAG Pharmaceuticals Inc., announced the appointment of Melissa Bradford Klug as senior vice president of business development and strategy. Klug joins AMAG from Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals.

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Lawyers: GM seeks bankruptcy shield from lawsuit

DETROIT — Lawyers for a Georgia family that is trying to reopen a wrongful death lawsuit against General Motors say the company is trying to move the case to federal court so it can use bankruptcy as a shield from the claim.

The lawyers, Lance Cooper and Jere Beasley, said Wednesday in a statement that GM's court filings run counter to a promise made by GM CEO Mary Barra to fairly compensate families of people killed or those injured in crashes caused by defective ignition switches.

GM spokesman Greg Martin called the company's filings procedural.

A federal bankruptcy judge in New York ruled in 2009 that the new GM is shielded from claims stemming from cars made before the company emerged from bankruptcy protection. Instead, the claims go against the old GM, which has limited assets. The judge now is being asked to decide if he will allow claims against the new company.

Cooper and Beasley say moving the case to federal court would allow the company to use the bankruptcy to send claims to the old GM.

Ken and Beth Melton sued GM three years ago in Cobb County, Georgia, in the death of their daughter, Brooke Melton, in 2010. The 29-year-old nurse died when her 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt skidded on a county road, hit another car and ended up in a creek.

The lawsuit alleged that Brooke Melton, a pediatric nurse, was killed after the Cobalt lost power due to a faulty ignition switch, causing her to lose control of the car. The Meltons settled the case last September, but Cooper and Beasley filed a lawsuit in May seeking to set aside the settlement and reopen the case, alleging that GM fraudulently concealed evidence.

Research by Cooper's firm and depositions in the original lawsuit exposed a GM engineer's move to fix the defective switches and conceal his actions.

GM ended up recalling 2.6 million older small cars starting in February to fix the switches, which the company says have caused 54 crashes and at least 13 deaths. GM acknowledged that it waited more than 10 years to recall the cars. A report from an outside attorney hired by GM blamed the delay on a dysfunctional corporate structure and misconduct or poor decisions by some employees. The attorney's report also indicates that the Meltons' case was settled for $5 million.

The case has brought investigations from Congress and the Justice Department. Also, GM has agreed to pay a $35 million fine to the government's road safety agency. The automaker has hired attorney Kenneth Feinberg to come up with a method of compensating victims.

Feinberg said last week that a compensation plan is weeks away. So far, GM has announced or taken charges of $1.7 billion to cover the cost of the ignition switch and dozens of other recalls.

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State Street bets on Seaport

State Street Corp.'s new South Boston offices will help unite two distinct areas of the neighborhood still separated by empty lots and parking facilities.

The 11-story building will connect traditional South Boston with the rapidly growing Seaport District, Mayor Martin J. Walsh said at the ribbon-cutting for 1 Channel Center, located at Iron and A streets.

"I'm sure, month by month, you'll see commerce emerge" from people who recognize that State Street's employees — which will number 3,500 in the building by the fall — need places to work out and eat, State Street chairman and CEO Jay Hooley said.

The financial services firm, which has a 15-year lease for the new building, started consolidating employees there in February from four Boston locations where leases were expiring: the John Hancock Tower, Copley Place and the Prudential in the Back Bay and Lafayette City Center in Downtown Crossing. About 1,500 employees have moved in so far. State Street will offer a shuttle between there and its 1 Lincoln St. headquarters, which will be maintained.

The Boston Redevelopment Authority polled Seaport District workers, visitors and residents about Seaport District retail needs in December. A grocery store, pharmacy and more sandwich/salad shops were the top responses.

But although State Street touts its new facility as being in the Innovation District — a term coined by the Menino administration as another name for the Seaport District — it's actually closer to traditional Southie. It's just 0.2 miles from West Broadway, while twice as far from Congress Street in the Fort Point neighborhood.

With its leases expiring this year, Hooley said State Street considered several options, including relocating workers outside of Boston. "We examined that and quickly dispensed that," he said, citing the company's expertise in the city.

State Street bills its new building as the "workplace of the future," designed to support mobile and flexible work schedules and promote employee collaboration through shared and more open work spaces. Close to 70 percent of its employees have some type of flexible work arrangement, whether it's working from home or other locations, compressed or reduced schedules, or job sharing.

The building includes a "flex center" with 28 computer stations and three offices where employees from other locations can plug in and work.

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Wrentham woman charged with embezzling

A Wrentham woman was charged yesterday with embezzling $2.7 million from the Plainville medical supply company where she worked as a bookkeeper and spending it on gambling junkets and shopping sprees.

Laurieann Richard, 39, pleaded not guilty in Wrentham District Court to three counts of larceny over $250. Judge Emogene Johnson Smith set bail at $35,000 and ordered Richard to stay away from Dale Medical Products in Plainville, where she managed the company's accounts payable, as well as the corporate credit cards, before she was fired April 7, according to prosecutors and a Dale executive.

"I can tell you she had been an employee for almost 25 years — a trusted employee — so it did come as a surprise," said John Welch, Dale Medical's executive vice president and chief operating officer. "The company feels like something of a victim."

Between July 2007 and April 2014, Richard used an unauthorized American Express corporate account to make more than $990,000 in purchases at stores and restaurants and online retailers, prosecutors said. The credit card was also used to make more than $9,000 in payments on her 2007 Jeep Commander, prosecutors said.

Richard also used Dale's corporate credit accounts with Citizens Bank for retail purchases and cash advances worth more than $750,000 prosecutors said. "Scores" of the cash advances were at Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., according to court papers.

Richard also used her knowledge of Dale's Juniper Mastercard corporate credit accounts to obtain about $977,000 in cash advances, prosecutors said.

"Her family is absolutely devastated," said William J. Galvin, Richard's attorney.

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Nintendo reveals 'Skylanders'-like toy line at E3

LOS ANGELES — Nintendo is taking a cue from "Skylanders" and "Disney Infinity."

The Japanese gaming giant unveiled a toy figure line called "amiibo" that will work in tandem with its video games like the toys-meet-games franchises from Activision Blizzard Inc. and the Walt Disney Co. The announcement was made in an online video released Tuesday during the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the industry's annual trade show.

"We see 'amiibo' as a brand-new platform for us," Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of America, said on the E3 show floor Tuesday morning. "We use the term 'platform' specifically. Today, it's figures. In the future, it could be other things that tie into the near-field communication technology built right into the GamePad."

Similar to Activision's "Skylanders" and "Disney Infinity," the characters' virtual histories will be stored on the plastic figures and transmitted through the Wii U GamePad, the controller for its slow-selling Wii U console that features a touchscreen and NFC capabilities.

"There's a special chip that's embedded in every figure," said Fils-Aime. "Any Wii U system will recognize the figure by touching them on the Wii U GamePad, and when that happens, they spring to life in compatible games in cool new ways."

The "amiibo" figures, the first of which are due out later this year, will include characters from well-known Nintendo franchises, such as the Villager from "Animal Crossing"; the "Wii Fit" trainer; sword-wielding Link from "The Legend of Zelda"; intergalactic solider Samus Aran from "Metroid"; Pikachu from "Pokemon"; iconic gorilla Donkey Kong; pink shape-shifter Kirby; and Mario, Princess Peach and Yoshi from "Super Mario Bros."

The company said the figures would be compatible with the upcoming Wii U fighting game "Super Smash Bros." and would eventually work with other games, including the recently released racing title "Mario Kart 8" and the forthcoming platformers "Yoshi's Woolly World" and "Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker."

Bill Trinen, product marketing director at Nintendo of America, said the company was working on a peripheral reader scheduled for release next year that would connect the figures to its hand-held Nintendo 3DS system. He said other "amiibo" figures and games are "in the works." The price of the figures and details on which characters would initially be available wasn't announced.

"Combining 'amiibo' with our games opens up a whole range of potential new gameplay experiences," Trinen said. "It's one of the most exciting things that Nintendo is announcing at E3."

For the second year in a row, Nintendo opted against hosting a flashy E3 presentation in Los Angeles and instead streamed videos showcasing the "amiibo" figures and other upcoming games.

"For us, what we want to do is find great ways to tell our stories," said Fils-Aime. "So much of our content is created by our Japanese developers. We wanted to make sure we could provide consumers a full backstory. A digital event is much more effective than trying to do it in a live press conference."

Nintendo hyped several upcoming games due out later this year for the Wii U and 3DS, including "The Legend of Zelda" battle game "Hyrule Warriors," hack-and-slash sequel "Bayonetta 2," and the "Omega Ruby" and "Alpha Sapphire" installments of the "Pokemon" series.

Other games teased for release in 2015 included the "Super Mario" level-designing game "Mario Maker," online paint shoot-'em-up "Splatoon," sci-fi role-playing game "Xenoblade Chronicles X," cutesy platformer "Kirby and the Rainbow Curse" and a "Legend of Zelda" game for the Wii U set in an open world.

Nintendo Co. could use a boost from new toys and games. Sales of Nintendo's Wii U console have lagged behind the newer PlayStation 4 and Xbox One systems released by Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp., respectively, last November. Nintendo has sold 6 million consoles since the Wii U was released in 2012, while Microsoft has sold 5 million, and Sony has sold 7 million units in the past six months.

___

Follow AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang .

___

Online:

http://www.nintendo.com

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Facebook, Twitter brace for World Cup fever

NEW YORK — This year's World Cup will play out on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and messaging apps like WhatsApp just as it progresses in stadiums from Sao Paulo to Rio De Janeiro.

Nearly 40 percent of Facebook's 1.28 billion users are fans of soccer, better known as football outside of the U.S. and Australia. On Tuesday, the world's biggest online social network is adding new features to help fans follow the World Cup — the world's most widely viewed sporting event — which takes place in Brazil from June 12 to July 13.

Facebook users will be able to keep track of their favorite teams and players throughout the tournament in a special World Cup section, called "Trending World Cup." Available on the Web as well as mobile devices, the hub will include the latest scores, game highlights as well as a feed with tournament-related posts from friends, players and teams. In addition, an interactive map will show where the fans of top players are located around the world. The company is also launching a page called FacebookRef, where fans can see commentary about the matches from "The Ref," Facebook's official tournament commentator.

Social media activity during big sporting events such as the Olympics and the Super Bowl has soared in recent years and should continue as user numbers grow. In 2010, when the last World Cup took place in Johannesburg, South Africa, Facebook had just 500 million users. Now there are just that many soccer fans (people who have "liked" a team or a player) on the site, the company says.

Facebook has recently focused on making its mobile app usable on simple phones that use slower data speeds since many of its newest users are in developing countries. As a result, Rebecca Van Dyck, head of consumer marketing at Facebook, said the World Cup hub will also be available on so-called "feature phones." Here the section will be "little less graphical" than what's shown on smartphones and on the Web, she said, but will include the same information.

Users can get to the World Cup hub by clicking on "World Cup" in the list of trending topics on the site.

In a nod to Twitter, Facebook, earlier this year, began displaying trending topics to show users the most popular topics at any given moment. The feature is currently available in the U.S., U.K., India, Canada and Australia.

"This is our first foray into this, especially for a big sporting event like this," Van Dyck said. "We're going to see how this goes. If people enjoy the experience it's something we'd like to push on."

Facebook, which counts 81 percent of its users outside the U.S. and Canada, is unveiling its World Cup features at a time when the company is working to become a place for more real-time, public conversations about big events— a la Twitter. Such events attract big advertising dollars, though the company is not saying how much money it expects to make from World Cup-related ads.

Not to be outdone, Twitter touted in a blog post last week that the "the only real-time #WorldCup global viewing party will be on Twitter, where you can track all 64 matches, experience every goal and love every second, both on and off the pitch."

Fans can follow individual teams or players and use the hashtags #WorldCup to tweet about the matches, and follow official accounts such as @FIFAWorldCup, @ussoccer for the United States team and @CBF_Futebol for Brazil's soccer governing body, for example. Clicking on the #WorldCup or #WorldCup2014 hashtags, meanwhile, will take you to Twitter's hubs for the event.

Twitter is also bringing back the "hashflags" it introduced in the 2010 World Cup. Users who tweet three-letter country codes for participating nations — such as BRA for Brazil or ESP for Spain — will see the country's flag appear in their tweet. Twitter says it will then tally the mentions in its "World Cup of tweets."

The World Cup is the planet's most widely viewed sporting event. According to FIFA, which organizes the tournament, an estimated 909.6 million viewers watched at least one minute of the final 2010 game when Spain beat the Netherlands. In comparison, nearly 900 million people watched at least part of the opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics. On Twitter, more than 24.9 million tweets were sent out during this year's Super Bowl, up from 13.7 million just two years earlier.

Because it takes place over several weeks, marketers are gearing up for "a marathon, not a sprint," said Debra Aho Williamson, an analyst for research firm eMarketer.

"Developing countries will be a key target for global brands," she said. "They will work hard to capture the attention of soccer fans in Latin America, Asia, Africa. The challenges (include the fact) that all the games are taking place in one place and the customers and marketers are in multiple time zones. This will require around the clock marketing."

For fans traveling to Brazil for the game and hoping to tweet and post about it on Facebook, the country's mobile communications services might pose their own challenge. Dropped voice calls are common even without the hundreds of thousands of soccer fans descending on the country. Accessing the Internet can be incredibly slow, and there's even some worry about network blackouts.

"World Cup visitors won't be able to communicate the way they want to," Christopher Gaffney, a visiting professor at Rio de Janeiro's Federal Fluminense University whose research focuses on Brazil's preparations for the World Cup and Olympics. "Instagram, Twitter, social media will not function at world class levels but at Brazilian levels, so people visiting Brazil will experience the frustrations we face every day."

___

Online:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/worldcup and www.facebook.com/FacebookRef

Twitter: https://blog.twitter.com/2014/follow-the-worldcup-action-on-twitter and https://blog.twitter.com/2014/gearing-up-for-all-things-worldcup

Associated Press writer Luis Andres Henao contributed to this story from Rio De Janeiro.

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Idenix stock soars after Merck buy

Merck & Co.'s announcement yesterday that it will acquire Cambridge-based Idenix Pharmaceuticals for $3.85 billion could be a four-way coup — for the two companies, as well as the Boston hedge fund that backed Idenix and the tens of millions of people afflicted with hepatitis C.

Idenix's hepatitis C drugs, combined with Merck's experimental medicines, could amount to a lucrative, faster, more effective cure of the blood-borne virus.

"Idenix has a nucleotide (antiviral) that Merck doesn't," said Jason Kolbert, an analyst at Maxim Group. "If you're a hepatitis C company and you don't have a nucleotide, you really need one."

Merck spokeswoman Pamela Eisele said Idenix will retain its name, "but with regard to its employees and facilities, no decisions have been made."

Merck is willing to pay a "significant premium" — a per-share bid more than triple Friday's closing price for Idenix — because the hepatitis C market is so large, Kolbert said, and pharmaceutical companies are willing to invest billions of dollars in drugs that look promising because the returns can be so lucrative.

Gilead Sciences' groundbreaking new drug Sovaldi, for example, has already made back billions of dollars for that company.

The hope, he said, is that any combo drug from Idenix and Merck will be equal to Sovaldi, a once-a-day pill that cures 80 to 90 percent of patients, without the need for interferon injections and without side effects.

Yesterday's announcement caused shares of Idenix to close at $23.79, up 229 percent, and also was a big win for Baupost Group, which owns a 35 percent stake in the company.

The hedge fund did not return a phone call seeking comment. But by the end of the first quarter, it reportedly had more than 53 million shares, which could translate into a profit of more than $900 million.

New Jersey-based Merck has been a major player in hepatitis C since acquiring Schering-Plough in 2009. In 2011, the FDA approved two drugs in a class called protease inhibitors, Merck's Victrelis and Incivek from Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Those work by blocking an enzyme needed for copying the virus, and boost the cure rate to about 75 percent. But they require patients to take a dozen pills a day and still endure flu-like side effects, making the race to develop a combination therapy without injections and debilitating side effects a high priority.

Herald wire services contributed 
to this report.

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Zogenix contests Mass. regulation

A federal judge will consider whether the state's latest attempt to restrict a powerful new painkiller violates the U.S. Constitution.

Zogenix, the San 
Diego-based manufacturer of Zohydro, is asking the court to temporarily halt enforcement of Gov. Deval Patrick's restrictions until the case is decided on its merits.

Zohydro is a 
hydrocodone-based prescription drug that comes in higher doses than Vicodin and other comparable drugs. Some restrictions on the drug took effect mid-April and others in early May.

The company argues that the restrictions are pre-empted by federal law because they represent a "de-facto ban" on a drug already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in cases of severe and chronic pain. It also claims that the rules improperly single out 
Zohydro.

Attorney General Martha Coakley wants U.S. District Court Judge Rya Zobel to dismiss the case entirely, arguing that states have the right to regulate the medical and pharmacy professions within their borders.

State public health 
officials have said the new regulations, which are similar to ones already in place in Vermont, do not run counter to the FDA approval process. They allow qualified patients to access the drug, but help prescribers better evaluate a patient's likelihood of abuse, officials say.

Patrick has declared a public health emergency around prescription drug abuse and has said he does not want Zohydro to exacerbate the epidemic. A federal judge has ruled the state's previous attempt to ban the drug outright was likely unconstitutional.

Under the new rules, doctors, dentists and other prescribers are required to examine a patient's substance-abuse history and current medications before submitting a "letter of medical necessity" to a patient's pharmacist explaining the diagnoses and treatment plan. Pharmacists, meanwhile, cannot dispense the drug if they do not receive the medical need letter. They also must go over the drug's precautions and warnings with the patient.

Meanwhile, Patrick is expected to unveil a plan today for addressing opiate drug abuse, which he declared a public health emergency in Massachusetts in March. Patrick established a 36-member "Opiate Task Force" that in May issued recommendations calling for $10 million to help recovering addicts transition from detoxification centers to residential treatment programs and from prison back into the community.

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Adidas, Nike face off at World Cup

Nike is challenging Adidas for global soccer dominance in this year's FIFA World Cup that starts Thursday in Brazil.

This year's monthlong quadrennial tournament — the world's largest sporting event — marks the first time official FIFA partner Adidas isn't sponsoring the most teams.

"It's going to be very interesting how it all plays out," said Matt Powell of Princeton Retail Analysis. "Obviously with the team that wins, whoever has the license to make those jerseys sells millions."

Powell predicts Beaverton, Ore.-based Nike will overtake Adidas.

As a sponsor, Adidas is supplying the official 
"Brazuca" match ball and benefits from souvenir sales. But Nike is outfitting 10 teams to Adidas' nine. And Brazil — a favorite to win — is in Nike's stable.

Nike also isn't spending millions as a sponsor and got an early marketing bump with its "Winner Stays" video with Cristiano Ronaldo and other soccer legends, which launched in April and has more than 73 million views.

Locally, Gillette — a longtime World Cup sponsor from 1970 to 2006 — will be a major advertiser on 
Univision and ESPN's coverage, promoting its new Fusion ProGlide razor with FlexBall technology. Three of the Boston razor company's global ambassadors are playing in the tournament: Argentina's Lionel Messi, England's Joe Hart and Germany's Thomas Muller. Gillette launched special-edition country 
razors in soccer teams' national colors in February.

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'Uncharted,' 'LittleBigPlanet' coming to PS4

LOS ANGELES — Sony Corp. announced Monday that it's bringing new installments of the popular video-game franchises "Uncharted" and "LittleBigPlanet" to the PlayStation 4 as it celebrated the 6-month-old game console's marketplace triumph.

Sony also premiered "Abzu," an undersea odyssey from the creators of the award-winning "Journey" and "Entwined," a psychedelic 3-D flying game. And it showed new highlights from the steampunk thriller "The Order: 1886" during its annual presentation at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.

On the hardware side, the company said it will bring PlayStation TV, its video- and game-streaming device, to North America and Europe this fall. The $99 device lets users stream video, older PlayStation titles and games for Sony's hand-held Vita system to any TV. The "micro-console," which debuted in November in Japan as PSVita TV, also lets PlayStation 4 players send the action to a second TV.

On July 31, Sony will launch the open beta of its cloud-based PlayStation Now service, which will allow players to stream classic games from Sony's older consoles onto newer devices such as the PS4, the hand-held Vita, Xperia cellphones and Bravia TVs.

Sony is also demonstrating Project Morpheus, its virtual reality headset, at E3. That project, however, won't be available to consumers for at least another year.

Sony has led Microsoft Corp. since both companies began selling their latest consoles in November. Sony has sold 7 million PlayStation 4 consoles to Microsoft's 5 million Xbox One units. However, both companies have outpaced the sales of their predecessor consoles — the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 — during the same amount of time. And Sony's lead is far from insurmountable.

That makes exclusive titles like the just-announced "Uncharted 4: A Thief's End" and "LittleBigPlanet 3" more important. But one much-hyped PS4 exclusive, the racing game "DriveClub," was conspicuously absent at this year's E3 presentation. Many of the games Sony showcased Monday — including Ubisoft's "Far Cry 4," Warner Bros.' "Batman: Arkham Knight" and Deep Silver's "Dead Island 2" — will also be available on the Xbox One, although Sony promised exclusive content or early beta access for each.

One exclusive that will appeal to comic book fans: A live-action drama based on Brian Michael Bendis' popular series "Powers" will begin airing on Sony's PlayStation Network in December.

___

Online

http://www.playstation.com

___

Follow Lou Kesten on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lkesten

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Low-wage protests planned in Massachusetts cities

SPRINGFIELD  — Hundreds of low-wage workers from various industries are planning to gather in three Massachusetts cities to demonstrate for higher wages and protest wage inequality.

The protests will be held Thursday in Boston, Springfield and Worcester.

Workers in the fast food, retail, transportation, home care and health care fields are expected to attend.

In Boston, a rally is planned at Copley Square, followed by a downtown march and protests.

In Worcester, organizers are planning a protest at Wal-Mart. In Springfield, a rally is planned at Mc. Calvary Church followed by a protest at McDonald's.

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Springfield site may sway issue

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission's anticipated vote Friday to license the state's first casino in Springfield may spur economic activity experts say could boost public confidence in expanded gaming and counter the negative view pushed by the repeal campaign.

"We've heard a lot of discussion about the potential negative impacts, but we haven't seen any of the benefits," said Clyde Barrow, a gaming expert at University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. "It's been an asymmetrical debate up to this point. I think it becomes very important to see some of the benefits starting to occur, with construction jobs and hiring. It will certainly shift it back to the direction of where it was two years ago, when most of the discussion was about the benefits."

The commission will decide whether to license MGM, the only player left for a western Massachusetts casino after four others shifted sites or pulled out of the state. Chairman Stephen Crosby called the upcoming vote the culmination of "a tremendous amount of work" that "was required to take this several-page law and turn it into an industry."

"It's very exciting," Crosby said. "This is the beginning of the jobs and the revenue, and that's what it's all about."

MGM says it can break ground in Springfield as early as July if it receives approval Friday. The company expects to generate $500 million annually — a quarter of which will flow to the state — and pay $25 million a year to Springfield. The project, which has a 2017 completion date, is expected to create 3,000 permanent jobs and 2,000 construction jobs.

"The MGM team and the City of Springfield have worked cooperatively and diligently to reach this point in the licensing process," MGM President Michael Mathis said in a statement. "Springfield and its people have earned this moment, and MGM looks forward to sharing this milestone with them."

The casino repeal campaign — which is awaiting the Supreme Judicial Court's ruling on if a repeal question will be allowed on the November ballot — says "momentum is clearly on the side of repealing this wrong-headed law" and "investing instead in sustainable economic development for Springfield and the rest of Massachusetts."

"Springfield is struggling and we know it can do better than a casino to sap local jobs, kill local businesses and profit on the backs of local residents," a repeal spokesman said. "MGM is obviously worried about our momentum — their local leaders sat in on the SJC arguments and they have asked for a delay in the awarding of their license until voters have a chance to vote on repeal."

But Boston College professor and gaming expert Richard McGowan said construction in Springfield will provide a powerful example of the stimulating effect a casino can have in a community that wants it.

"I think it's going to make it even harder for the repeal to go through to be quite blunt, especially in the western part of the state," 
McGowan said of Friday's vote. "What might change things is if MGM doesn't deliver on what they say they're going to do out there. That would hurt."

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Grocers try out cart for special-needs kids

People taking care of children with disabilities can grocery shop with more ease thanks to Caroline's Cart.

The shopping cart, 
specially designed to accommodate children and adults with special needs, is now at a number of Massachusetts supermarkets, including certain Wegmans, Hannaford, Stop & Shop, Big Y and Whole Foods stores.

"It's been very successful," Wegmans spokeswoman Jo Natale said. "We're getting tremendous feedback from our customers. They get used quite frequently."

Wegmans has two carts at its Northboro store, and a pair is headed for its Chestnut Hill location.

The chain had tested the cart in Rochester, N.Y., but took it out of commission when customers without special needs children were using it. It then put an Americans with Disabilities Act label on the cart to ensure its proper use. And in the last couple of months, it's ordered the carts for all of its stores.

Feedback from parents kept Caroline's Cart creator Drew Ann Long going when she started pursuing the idea six years ago after dealing with the challenge of grocery shopping with her daughter Caroline. Once Caroline grew out of fitting in the seat of a conventional shopping cart, the Alabama mother found herself unable to push her in a wheelchair while also pushing a shopping cart.

"I said, 'Well this is what I think is needed, let me put it out there,' " Long said. "It went viral so fast. I knew, clearly, that I wasn't the only mom in America who had a disabled child. We're in every neighborhood in America."

Features of the $850 cart, which can hold up to 250 pounds, include swinging handles for easy access to the seat, the back of which has a 5-degree tilt to increase comfort for children with low muscle tone. There's a harness to help keep the child secure and an abductor in the seat to help keep the child upright.

"Anything that improves the ability to have people with disabilities in the community — participating in shopping and other things — is absolutely great," said Christine Griffin, executive director of the Disability Law Center in Boston. "This cart may not be for every kid with a disability that a parent wants to take shopping, but it certainly would work for some kids."

Hannaford has the carts at its Waltham, Leominster, Dracut and Lunenberg stores. "We have been getting customer requests in some stores for this, and it's certainly a service that we want to try to provide where it's needed, as much as possible," spokesman Eric Blom said.

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Educational session planned on prescribing opioids

WORCESTER  — More than 100 doctors and other medical professionals are expected to attend an educational session on prescribing opioids.

The session is part of a FDA-supported educational initiative created by Boston University's School of Medicine. It's set for the University of Massachusetts Medical School on June 14.

The daylong event will feature some of the nation's leading experts on opioid analgesics and addiction. Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Health Cheryl Bartlett will participate in a panel discussion.

Through online and live programs, BU has educated more than 20,000 prescribers nationwide.

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Startup tests resistance to HIV drugs

A simple, fast, affordable test developed by a Boston-based MassChallenge finalist is able to determine which drugs HIV is resistant to, saving money and lives.

Using a technology called Pan Degenerate Amplification and Adaptation, Aldatu Biosciences allows doctors to match patients with drugs the HIV won't be resistant to, based on the genetics of the virus.

"If resistance is present, switching people to effective drugs improves quality of life and saves money by reducing the risk of new infections," Aldatu CEO David Raiser said. "If resistance is not present, money is saved by not switching patients to more expensive drugs unnecessarily. There are clear economic and public health benefits to performing the test, regardless of the result."

Aldatu's test produces results in about two hours, compared to roughly two days for current tests, Raiser said, and the price is $99, about one-third the cost of other tests.

"Ours is a simple 'sample in/answer out' format, whereas the current tests have multiple steps and require several pieces of equipment," he said.

Raiser and co-founder Iain MacLeod, Aldatu's chief scientific officer, plan to bring their test first to Botswana, where one in four adults has HIV and about 10 percent of those receiving treatment don't respond to it, but the price of the prevailing drug-resistance test prevents most doctors from using it.

"Presently, (doctors) give everyone the same drugs and wait for them to fail to see if they're resistant to the drugs," Raiser said.

If they are, they are put on a second line of drugs, which typically costs four times as much as the first, he said. And if they're resistant to that, they're put on a third line, which can cost 15 times as much.

"In some cases, people are being switched to a second or third line of drugs because doctors don't realize the virus isn't resistant; the patients just aren't taking their meds correctly," Raiser said.

"There's the ethical question of leaving people on ineffective drugs when their quality of life is poor and they're at risk of infecting other people with drug-resistant HIV," he said.

There is also the economic question, one that countries around the world are wrestling with.

"What happens in Botswana can and will impact what happens in the U.S.," said John Hallinan, chief business officer at the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council. "What's happening is a drain on the entire global health system. We think (Aldatu) has a very promising technology."

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Drones fly with Mass. users

Some Bay State businesses are already putting drones in the air to boost their bottom line as the Federal Aviation Administration hints it may be open to some commercial uses of the hovering craft.

"It's a novelty now, but I think it will become more of a mainstay," said Missy Cummings, a drone expert at MIT. "These drones can really improve business processes."

Lexington Realtor Jonathan de Araujo has been using a drone to take aerial shots of properties he is listing since last summer, and the birds-eye view has quickly found a place in de Araujo's real estate arsenal.

"The end result is just unparalleled," he said. "Everything we can do to give a more positive impression means more people at the open house. The idea is to just give a better, more positive, a more thorough impression of what you're looking at."

De Araujo uses his drone, a model outfitted with a camera and available to any consumer, to give his homes more context, including offering a complete view of a backyard, or showing how close the park down the street is.

"When you're taking stills from ground level, you're seeing one angle, one shot," he said. "It just made sense to add that extra dimension."

Last week, the FAA said it is considering letting seven movie and television filming companies use drones. Now, the only commercial drone flights permitted by the FAA are those by one company off the Alaskan coast. The FAA has been working for the past decade on potential safety regulations that would allow widespread commercial drone use, but those regulations have been repeatedly delayed. Most recently, the FAA has said it will release proposed regulations for operating small drones by November. That would be followed by a potentially yearslong process to finalize the regulations.

Dan Kara, a robotics and drone industry analyst with Myria Research, said the FAA is under pressure to clarify the guidelines because many, from individual real estate agents to Amazon.com, are using or expressing interest in making drones part of their toolkit.

"It's happening organically," Kara said.

Marcella Hoekstra, who runs wedding video company Heirloom Pictures, is planning on buying a drone soon.

"I've seen what these drones can do, and I've seen some really beautiful, sweeping shots of landscapes and architecture," Hoekstra said. "It's a wonderful way to explore ... and give the bride and groom a bird's-eye view."

Kara said some are looking to drones for the novelty — a club in Las Vegas is delivering high end champagne to its high-rollers by drone.

But others are advocating for the permitted use of drones for search and rescue missions, to get a good view of wildfires and to help farmers track their crops.

"There's no question drones can revolutionize (agriculture)," Cummings said.

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MGM poised to become state's 1st casino operator

BOSTON — MGM Resorts International is nearing a final ruling on its bid to become Massachusetts' first licensed casino operator, with a proposed $800 million project in Springfield.

Starting Tuesday, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission will hold a series of meetings in Springfield and Boston leading up to a Friday vote in Springfield on who receives the western region casino license.

MGM, which owns the Mirage, Bellagio, MGM Grand and other casinos, is the lone operator standing in a once-crowded field.

Plans by Penn National Gaming and Ameristar Casinos never went before Springfield voters, while proposals by Mohegan Sun in Palmer and Hard Rock International in West Springfield were defeated in local referendums.

MGM's plan for a casino, hotel, shopping and entertainment complex on 14 1/2 acres straddling the city's downtown and South End neighborhood was approved by Springfield voters last July.

Still, commission members have been reluctant to describe MGM as a shoe-in, noting the panel has reserved the right to not issue a license now or to impose stipulations or conditions on issuing the license.

Stephen Crosby, chairman of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, said recently he doesn't expect the five-member commission will need all four days to make its decision. Each commission member is expected to present findings on one of five areas of MGM's 236-page application that they have been tasked to review.

Crosby, for example, will give an overview of the proposal, including how it "manifests an appreciation" for the Massachusetts "brand," ''leverages Massachusetts' existing assets" and enhances the state's existing tourism and leisure venues, according to the commission's evaluation guidelines.

Other commissioners will look at the project's finances, economic impacts, building and site design and impacts on local traffic patterns, gambling addiction and the state lottery.

One open question is whether the commission will take up MGM's request to delay formal "awarding" of the license at least until early July, when the state Supreme Judicial Court decides whether a voter referendum to repeal the casino law outright should be allowed on the November ballot.

Michael Mathis, CEO of MGM Springfield, has said the Las Vegas-based casino giant is concerned about some $200 million in fees and payments that effectively come due if it is awarded the license.

Those payments could be lost if the casino law is ultimately repealed.

Crosby and other commissioners have declined to say whether they support the delay. But MGM Springfield spokeswoman Carole Brennan says the casino is hopeful.

"The license isn't going to be awarded, we hope. We will be designated the licensee," she said.

The western region casino license is one of three authorized under the 2011 casino law.

In the eastern region, Mohegan Sun is proposing a more than $1 billion casino on the Revere side of the Suffolk Downs horse racing track, and Wynn Resorts has proposed a $1.6 billion casino on a former chemical plant in Everett. The commission anticipates awarding that license by the end of August, at the earliest.

In the southeastern region, Foxwoods and other casino operators have expressed interest, but no proposal has yet been put before local voters. The commission will likely not award that license until February.

The commission has already awarded the state's sole slot parlor license to Penn National Gaming. That slot facility, located at the Plainridge harness racing track in Plainville, is expected to open by June 2015.

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When there’s white smoke, check first for coolant leak

I own a 2003 Honda Accord. In April a large amount of white smoke came out of the front of the car when I started it. It has happened three more times, coming from the rear of the car. Three times the engine was cold, once warm. The Honda dealer found nothing, but told me to keep track of these instances. Nothing has leaked on the garage floor.

White smoke from an automobile can be caused by three things: condensing moisture, heated coolant and vaporized fuel. In your case I'd be suspicious of an external coolant leak that collects on some part of the exhaust system and is heated into smoke as the exhaust system heats up, leaving no evidence on the garage floor.

Do you smell the semi-sweet odor of antifreeze/coolant? Before you start the cold engine next time, open the hood and visually inspect for any coolant in the engine compartment. Make sure you are monitoring the coolant level in the radiator/reservoir.

If the white smoke is exclusively from the exhaust pipe, a leaking cylinder head gasket would be a suspect. In this case the coolant would end up being heated in the combustion chambers and blown out the exhaust as the engine starts.

White smoke from the exhaust on a cold morning start is normal condensation of moisture that has collected in the exhaust system overnight, and is of no concern.

White smoke from vaporized but unburned fuel — unlikely in this case — can be caused by a failed or stuck fuel injector allowing raw fuel to be carried through and vaporized in the exhaust system as it is heated.

My 2011 Subaru is squeaking so loudly I'm ready to tear my hair out! It started on the driver's side just behind the driver's seat, moved to under the driver's seat near the middle, and then under the console. All three areas are squeaking! It's been on a lift and nothing that can be seen is an issue, according to the mechanic. A body shop owner with 40 years experience found that the back of the rear seat hadn't been put in place properly and the spare tire was not tightened down securely. The noise lessened, but is still a major nuisance.

The most common causes of body squeaks and rattles are something flexing or something loose. The entire exhaust system and its hangers should be inspected for evidence of flexing, movement or contact. Next, all engine, transmission and drive shaft mounts should be checked.

If the squeaking is rhythmical and varies with engine or road speed, the noise may be coming from the transmission or drive shaft CV joints. Subaru issued a service bulletin addressing a high-pitched sound originating in the transmission extension housing. Thermal expansion can potentially damage a pre-loaded bearing, causing the noise.

I have a 2007 Dodge Caravan with the automatic door lock feature. When I drive in the rain, the locks start locking and unlocking rapidly for 60-90 seconds then quit for a while, then do it again. This continues even after removing the key, but quits after being parked for a while. I tried to disable the auto lock, using the instructions in the manual, but was unsuccessful. There is no separate fuse that controls this. Any thoughts?

Water/moisture is grounding the electrical circuit that operates the locks. A scan tool should be able to identify specific fault codes with the power door lock system, but you could try "watering" each window for a minute or so, one at a time, with a garden hose. Water may be getting by the window seals, running down the inside of a door and grounding the circuit, causing the rapid cycling of the locks. This may help you pinpoint which door or cylinder lock switch or connector is getting wet.

Paul Brand, author of "How to Repair Your Car," is an automotive troubleshooter, driving instructor and former race car driver. Readers may write to him at: Star Tribune, 425 Portland Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. 55488 or via email at paulbrand@startribune.com. Please explain the problem in detail and include a daytime phone number.

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