SUTTON - Among the most optimistic messages heard in Sen. Richard T. Moore's14-town listening tour was the good news that his constituents are finding jobs in, and around, the region. "Our last two stops during our recent visit to Sutton convinced me that the economy is beginning to really recover," Sen. Moore explained.
Sen. Moore, D-Uxbridge, met with CEO Arthur Manhassel and other leaders of Atlas Box and Crating located at 223 Worcester-Providence Turnpike in Sutton, to tour the newly opened manufacturing facility that employs over 300 workers and has grown by 60 in the past year. The company is well on its way of creating 100 new jobs in two years.
"The best sign on Route 146 is Atlas' sign that says 'Now Hiring,'" Sen. Moore told Mr. Manhassel. Atlas, which manufactures custom packaging for sometimes fragile products, has facilities in North Carolina, New Jersey,Ireland and China. The company's world headquarters is in Sutton and was the beneficiary of a state-sponsored ten million dollar bond to move their facility from Sutton's Wilkinsonville section, to the major highway location.After hearing the ongoing success story at Atlas, Sen. Moore visited H. W. Staffing Solutions located across the highway in the southbound side of Route 146 at 176 Worcester Providence Turnpike. Manager Dianne Labonte told Moore about her company's success in placing job-seekers in successful businesses.
"It's very rewarding when someone calls us and says, 'I was told this is the place where I can get a job,'" she explained. Moore discussed issues facing staffing businesses including the importance of using the federal e-Verify system to ensure legal presence of workers, the need for changes in health insurance to help both small business and employees, and the training needs for prospective workers.
"When I spend time meeting in each of the towns of the Senatorial District, I learn about ongoing and new development areas where state government could either help improve things or where the state might do better to just get out of the way," Sen. Moore explained. "It was gratifying to hear Atlas CEO Art Manhassel tell me how please he was with the level of cooperation that Atlas receives from both state and local government," he added.
Moore's day in Sutton began with a coffee hour at KP's Breakfast and Lunch, where he met with several constituents. He then moved on to Sutton Town Hall to meet with Selectmen Kevin Geraghty and Michael Chizy and Fire Chief Paul Maynard. His Sutton tour then took him to Marion's Camp where he met Town Planner Jen Hager and students from Sutton Elementary School to help plant trees at the refurbished town campsite in observance of "Arbor Day," a national effort to underscore the importance of trees in our lives. Sen.Moore quizzed the students about the designation of the "official Massachusetts tree," which is the American Elm; and Selectman Chizy quizzed them about the important uses of trees for our society.
After Marion's Camp, Moore paid a surprise visit to the Sutton Senior Center to meet with seniors enjoying a game of cards and those awaiting the hot lunch scheduled for the day. After meeting with the seniors, Sen. Moore made a quick lunch stop at Tony's Pizza - a Sutton institution before visiting the Atlas Box and Crating and H. W. Staffing Solution on his schedule.
