FALL RIVER – The Fall River Office of Economic Development has granted three new business loans to popular eateries that serve Fall River’s North End, downtown, Niagra and Maplewood neighborhoods, totaling $138,000.
Swede’s Café, Tony’s Fish & Chips and the new Subway franchise in Riverview Marketplace received low-interest financing from the office, and additional financing was provided by FirstFed and Fall River Five Cents Savings Bank. These projects represent a collective $500,000 in private investment and will provide 20 new jobs.
Swede’s Café is owned by John Brandt Jr. and Ronald Travassos. Debbie and Manny Silveira own Tony’s Fish & Chips, and Andy Tuong owns Subway at Riverview Marketplace, the office said.
Straumann USA moves operations to Andover
ANDOVER – Straumann AG, a Swiss medical device manufacturer, will locate its first North American headquarters in Andover, Mass., creating more than 300 new manufacturing jobs over the next five years, Gov. Mitt Romney announced.
The announcement follows news that the Massachusetts unemployment rate dropped to 4.8 percent in the month of April, the governor said. The state also added 5,500 jobs in April in addition to 2,700 new jobs in March, the first time the state has seen two consecutive months of job growth since February 2001.
Straumann considered seven states, including New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Florida, as potential locations for its first American manufacturing facility, Romney said.
