Designer Regatta unit boasts luxury, views

This designer-created 20th-floor unit at the Regatta Riverview in East Cambridge has great views of the Zakim Bridge, the Charles River, NorthPoint Park, Charlestown and the Boston skyline.

The 436-unit two-tower Regatta was built on land across from the Museum of Science in 1998 as high-end apartments, and conversion to condos began in 2004. Unit 2003-2004 is actually two condos combined in 2007 as a contemporary-styled staged model by Mitchell Freedland Design. The 1,853-square-foot two-bedroom plus den is on the market for $1,549,000, which includes two deeded parking spaces­ in the complex's underground garage.

The unit opens into a light-colored marble foyer that leads to a smallish galley kitchen with Absolute black granite counters, light wood cabinets, a stainless steel Fisher Paykel refrigerator and a Bosch dishwasher, electric stovetop and oven with a matching microwave. An opening out to the living/dining space has a two-seat breakfast bar.

The open living/dining area features walnut floors and large windows on two sides with great views of the Zakim Bridge and NorthPoint Park. The living­ area has a wall-length media center built-in with a white marble-­encased gas fireplace. There's also a large dining area with a built-in wet bar featuring black lacquered cabinets, a stainless-steel sink and a wine cooler.

There's a half bath off one side of the living area that has light marble floors, bamboo wall covering, a black-marble topped vanity and a closet with a stacked washer/dryer.

Off the dining room is a small den, currently used as a home office, with glass doors out to a side balcony with views of Charlestown.

There are also sliding-glass doors out to the same balcony in the adjacent master suite, which has a carpeted bedroom with built-in glass shelving in recessed niches. A large walk-in closet has built-in wardrobe storage, and the en-suite bathroom has a marble-surround deep soaking tub and walk-in shower, a two-sink vanity and a closet with a second washer and dryer.

The second bedroom suite is off the foyer behind the kitchen and its big window offers great views of the Charles River and downtown Boston. There's a frosted-glass sliding door closet and an en-suite bathroom with black marble tile floors and tub/shower surround.

The condo fee includes heat and hot water and building amenities such as 24/7 concierge staff, a lap pool, gym, business center, clubroom and movie theater. The two deeded garage spaces include valet parking, and the unit also comes with two basement storage cages.

Home Showcase: 

• Address: 8 Museum Way, 
Unit 2003-2004, Regatta Riverview 
Residences, East Cambridge
• Bedrooms: Two, plus a den
• Bathrooms: Two full, one half
• List price: $1,549,000
• Square feet: 1,853
• Price per square foot: $836
• Annual taxes: $9,210
• Monthly condo fee: $1,398 (includes heat and hot water)
• Location: In East Cambridge across from the Museum of Science and a quarter mile from the Science Museum stop on the Green Line. About a half mile to CambridgeSide Galleria and Cambridge Street restaurants and retail.
• Built in: 1998; converted to condo 2007
• Broker: Nikki Dinari of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage at 617-620-261

Pros:

• Great views of Zakim Bridge, Charles River, NorthPoint Park, Charlestown and downtown Boston
• Contemporary interiors by Mitchell Freedland Design with living room, dining area, and master bedroom built-ins
• Two bedroom suites with en-suite marble bathrooms and two washers and dryers
• Comes with two deeded garage spaces, two basement storage cages

Cons:

• Galley kitchen on the small side

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The Ticker

Kmart hit by data breach

Retailer Sears Holdings Corp. said the payment data systems at its Kmart stores had been compromised, the latest in a series of computer security breaches to hit U.S. companies in recent months.

The U.S. Secret Service confirmed it was investigating the breach, which occurred in September and compromised the systems of Kmart, which has about 1,200 stores across the United States. The breach did not affect the Sears department store chain.

Sears said it believes hackers made off with some credit and debit card numbers.

More e-cig regs eyed on planes

Federal regulators should consider further regulations on electronic cigarettes on airplanes, the state's top fire official said after his office recently concluded one of the devices caused a small fire on a plane at Logan International Airport.

The Aug. 9 fire, confined to a single piece of luggage in the cargo hold, forced an evacuation of the plane. It was extinguished before the JetBlue aircraft took off. State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan said his office's investigators confirmed that an e-cigarette in a passenger's checked luggage turned on, causing the fire.

Coan sent a letter to the FAA this week about the incident, and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey said he'll ask the FAA to investigate whether e-cigarettes should be allowed on airplanes at all.

Corcoran Jennison files hotel plan

Corcoran Jennison Co. has filed a project notification form with the city to expand the DoubleTree Club by Hilton hotel in Dorchester's Columbia Point.

The Boston developer proposed a six-story, 89,500-square-foot addition that would include 96 new rooms for a total of 187 rooms, an expanded ground-floor restaurant, kitchen and back-of-house space, function rooms and a ballroom.

The addition would take the place of a parking lot on the northeast side of the Mount Vernon Street hotel, which is next to the former 20-acre Bayside Exposition Center site that Corcoran Jennison lost to foreclosure in 2009 and is now owned by the University of Massachusetts-Boston.

Raytheon, UMass Lowell open center

Raytheon and the University of Massachusetts Lowell yesterday officially opened a new collaborative research facility that will advance innovative technologies in a state-of-the-art setting.

The Raytheon-UMass Lowell Research Institute is located at the university's Mark and Elisia Saab Emerging Technologies and Innovation Center. Raytheon has committed $3 million with options to $5 million throughout the next 10 years to establish the facility. Initial research will focus on technologies for radar and communication systems.

Boston-based Phoodeez catering services has hired three new employees: Ian Danielson as director of business development, Brian Vicente as director of operations, and Tyler Smith as part of the business development team.

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State report asks business to close gender wage gap

Gov. Deval Patrick is challenging businesses to close the wage gap and recruit more women to senior positions as a task force yesterday released a report showing women still earn less than men in comparable positions.

The "Successful Women, Successful Families" task force, led by state Secretary for Labor and Workforce Development Rachel Kaprielian, outlined recommendations, including promoting science, math and technology careers to young women, and developing training programs to increase the number of women executives.

It also called for more family-friendly policies such as flexible work schedules.

"This is an ongoing, important issue, and will become an even greater issue over time," said Kaprielian. "To have the kind of talent we need to compete in a global economy, we need to have all our players dressed and ready to play."

The report found that women earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by men in the state, creating a $12.2 billion wage gap.

Patrick yesterday said that 14 businesses had agreed to take part in a corporate challenge and work with Bentley University's Center for Women and Business to close the wage gap and put more women in leadership roles.

"I appeal to other business leaders to participate in this program and help break down the barriers facing women in the workplace so we can even the playing field and ensure that Massachusetts strengthens its leadership position in our global economy," Suffolk Construction CEO John Fish said in a statement.

C.A. Webb, executive director of the New England Venture Capital Association and a task force member, said it's up to the private sector to address workplace inequality.

"The governor and his staff are only in office for a few months ... We have to see what efforts private entities can take on," Webb said. 'We can't just keep talking about this stuff."

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US investigates failures in Michelin truck tires

DETROIT — U.S. safety regulators are investigating reports that some Michelin heavy truck tires can fail and cause crashes.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it has six complaints and a police report about seven crashes involving the 2014 model of Michelin XZA tires.

The agency said in documents posted Friday that about 10,000 of the 22.5-inch diameter tires are in use.

Documents say the tires could fail catastrophically when used on the front steering axle. No injuries were reported in the crashes.

Five reports came from the same fleet. All reports involved auto-hauling tractor-trailers.

The agency said it opened the probe to figure out how often the problem happens and how many tires it affects. It could seek a recall.

Michelin, part of the France-based manufacturer, said in a statement that it is cooperating with the NHTSA investigation.

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Bowman: Microsoft CEO’s comments on awaiting raises thoughtless

Some men just don't get it.

Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, is one of them.

More than 8,000 people from all over the world traveled to Phoenix this week to attend a conference to celebrate women in technology and to hear Nadella speak on the topic, "Building the Career of Your Dreams."

When he was asked to give his advice to women who are uncomfortable requesting a raise, Nadella told them to "have faith that the system will actually give you the right raises as you go along." He also said "not asking for a raise was good karma that would help a boss realize the employee could be trusted and should have more responsibility."

Nadella's comments were obviously thoughtless and irresponsible, and they set off a predictable firestorm. And naturally he apologized.

But was Nadella really sorry? Would he have apologized had there not been all this hoopla?

I don't think so. I believe Nadella went into CYA mode and said sorry to save face.

As a woman in business who has worked, fought, lobbied and negotiated for every raise, promotion, advancement, praise, new title (often in lieu of more money) — and helped pave the way for my sisters — it was hard for me to read Nadella's words.

In light of Cheryl Sandberg and others who encourage women to "lean in," Nadella's advice was unworthy of a man and a technology leader, all the more so because he was addressing a historic conference for women.

"Smile and everything will be fine"… "believe in destiny and karma" — and we will all get our raises?

Sorry, karma doesn't cut it in the real world. If a woman is self-confident and projects a positive attitude, she will advance. But it's up to all of us, women and men, to manage our own careers. If you make it clear that you are team-oriented, adaptable, flexible, passionate and capable of building relationships, you will advance. That's the cornerstone of success in the business world.

Satya Nadella's faux pas has circled the world. He's apologized. We've been warned. Let's forgive him perhaps, but let this incident serve as a reminder — we expect more from our leaders.

Next time, Mr. Nadella, a gentle suggestion: prepare your remarks, don't wing them.

Judith Bowman is president of her own business protocol consulting company.

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Artists for Humanity to be big draw

A South Boston nonprofit that pays Hub teens to work with professional artists and designers is planning a major expansion of its flagship facility that's a model for economical green building.

The Artists for Humanity EpiCenter would nearly quadruple in size under an approximately $25 million, 63,500-square-foot expansion that would create an "energy-positive" building.

"We'll create more energy than we'll use, using a lot of solar and geothermal and some wind and really illustrating some of the great and progressive technologies that are out there," executive and artistic director Susan Rodgerson said. "It's a big challenge, but I think we can do it."

There currently are no such buildings on the East Coast that are 50,000 square feet or larger, according to the organization.

The expansion would allow the 23-year-old Artists for Humanity — which counts itself as the largest single employer of Boston teens — to double the number of youths served. This year 250 teens are working with artists to create fine art, industrial design and provide digital graphic services.

"The need to create jobs for teens is really important," Rodgerson said. "And the fact that there will be this space in the Innovation District providing access to technology and maker space and innovation … is really important for the kids in the city who don't really have access to that kind of stuff."

The teens, who work on projects ranging from a video for National Grid to public art for State Street Corp., are paid wages plus commissions. Last year they received close to $1 million.

The expansion also would add a "maker's studio," new gallery, meeting and conference space, a retail store and a cafe in addition to 25,000 square feet of leasable space for creative industry tenants.

Artists for Humanity plans a capital campaign to raise funds for the expansion, which will take advantage of a 9,000-square-foot parking lot donated by Gillette last year. It already has received some funding commitments, which Rodgerson declined to divulge.

The group moved into the 23,500-square-foot EpiCenter, built at a cost of $7 million, in 2004.

The Platinum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified facility has become a popular place for weddings and other events.

"It was built on a budget, and we've become a really popular place for folks to come and see sustainability at a value," Rodgerson said.

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Oil, natural gas prices confound New England

HARTFORD, Conn. — Pipeline bottlenecks that drove up natural gas home heating prices in New England last winter could cause trouble when the weather again turns cold, but oil prices that once climbed to record territory continue to fall.

That unusual sequence of events — higher prices for natural gas prices, which is promoted for its cost advantage relative to oil that's falling in price — was detailed by the U.S. Department of Energy's recent annual outlook. The wild card is the weather and how cold this winter will be.

If temperatures plunge as they did last year, natural gas prices could soar 6 percent in the region, far higher than the forecast of 3.6 percent in the rest of the United States, the U.S. Department of Energy said in its recent annual outlook.

In contrast, weakening international demand helped North Sea Brent crude oil spot prices fall to an average of $97 per barrel in September, the first month Brent prices have averaged below $100 a barrel in more than two years. U.S. production also is at the highest level in nearly 30 years, federal energy officials say.

That's good news in the Northeast, where 23 percent of households depend on oil for heat. In the rest of the country, 5 percent of households use heating oil, the Energy Department said.

The agency's report relies on winter forecasts that will be warmer than last year, giving consumers of all sources of energy a break.

Nationally, projected average household spending for heating oil is 15 percent lower and reduced heating demand and higher prices contribute to natural gas spending that's also projected to be down, but by only 5 percent from last winter. Natural gas is still the cheapest heating source.

Declining oil prices are vindication to New England oil dealers who are fighting state officials seeking to expand natural gas pipeline systems when oil prices spiked several years ago. Oil dealers have insisted that higher oil prices in previous years were a natural response to market changes and will decline in response to shifting supply and demand.

"It's 'I told you so,'" said Chris Herb, president of the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association, which represents oil dealers and sued state officials Friday, accusing them of violating state environmental laws to push through a plan favoring natural gas. "Government is horrible in predicting outcomes."

Jamie Py, president of the Maine Energy Marketers Association, which represents heating oil and other dealers, said oil prices have become more sensitive to rising and falling world demand than the frequent and destabilizing cycles of violence in the Mideast.

"There was a time when someone sneezed the wrong way in the Middle East you could see a spike," he said.

Chris Recchia, commissioner of the Vermont Public Service Department, said the benefits of natural gas over oil, such as the production of less carbon dioxide, make it a preferable source of energy. And the narrowing price gap "won't be there for long," he said.

New England states are seeking to rely more on natural gas, which in the past has been cheaper than oil. Toward that limited goal, the plan is working: Natural gas powered 45 percent of electricity generated in New England last year, down slightly from 52 percent in 2012, but up significantly from less than 30 percent in 2001, according to the Department of Energy.

But pipelines can't catch up with the greater supply, with power plants forced last winter to buy on the costly spot market that pushed up natural gas prices for consumers. It's not likely to change.

"Pipeline constraints still exist in the area and day?to?day price volatility is likely," the Energy Department said.

Although several pipeline construction plans are in various stages of development and planning, consumers shouldn't expect prices to fall soon because of the time needed to build pipelines. Prices are not expected to budge until 2017, said Cunningham said.

"The question is, what do we do now?" he said.

More extensive storage of natural gas to ensure deliveries during periods of extreme cold would help utilities avoid high prices for emergency supplies, Cunningham said. A few dozen very cold days each winter put the biggest strain on supplies, he said.

"It's those 40-odd days that kill," he said.

Connecticut's largest utility, Connecticut Light & Power, plans for colder-than-normal temperatures by staggering purchases to include the off-season when the cost is lower, spokesman Mitch Gross said. It also stores reserves in a liquefied natural gas facility.

But Cunningham says the outlook for lower prices due to a less severe weather is "something of a feel-good story."

"It's at least a prediction for some degree of relief," he said.

___

Follow Stephen Singer on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SteveSinger10

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Box Office Mojo site disappears into IMDB

BoxOfficeMojo.com has vanished with the site redirecting to Amazon.com's IMDb.

The Box Office Mojo site was acquired by Amazon in late 2008. Reps for Amazon were not immediately available for comment.

The Box Office Mojo site was widely used by the movie industry for up-to-date box office results along with historical data. It was founded in 1999 by Brandon Gray.

When Box Office Mojo was acquired in 2008, it was operated in a Los Angeles office by Gray and Sean Saulsbury.

IMDb provides cursory coverage of box office data, leaving out such information as the specific distributor, the number of theaters and international grosses. Its subscription-based IMDb Pro subscription site has slightly more information.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Netflix now charging extra for 4k Ultra HD content

Netflix offers only a handful of titles in eye-popping Ultra HD -- including the first season of NBC's "The Blacklist" -- but to watch them, subscribers will have to pay for its most expensive service tier.

New Netflix members who want access to Ultra HD must sign up for the "family" plan at $11.99 monthly, which allows simultaneous streaming of up to four programs. Previously, Netflix offered 4K content to subs of its standard plan, now $8.99 per month for new customers, which allows for two HD streams.

"We decided to move 4K UHD video into our four-stream plan for new members who sign up and care about the highest-quality video Netflix offers," a Netflix spokesman said. "We have a modest and growing catalog of titles in 4K, including 'House of Cards,' 'Breaking Bad,' 'The Blacklist' and a slate of upcoming Netflix original series."

According to Netflix, the reason for the change was that producing and acquiring 4K content costs more that conventional HD, so it has repositioned Ultra HD as a premium offering.

The Ultra HD price change went into effect Aug. 12. Early adopters of 4K technology who currently are Netflix members were grandfathered indefinitely under their existing price plan.

In addition to all 62 episodes of "Breaking Bad" and "House of Cards" season two, Netflix's Ultra HD lineup in the U.S. includes "Smurfs 2," "Ghostbusters," "Ghostbusters 2" and the four-part "Moving Art" nature documentary series.

The subscription VOD company doesn't disclose how many selections it offers in Ultra HD format, which provides four times the resolution of standard HD and richer color palette. The 4K content is available on select models of Ultra HD TVs from LG, Samsung, Sony and Vizio, and Netflix subs with compatible sets will see an additional row displaying 4K TV shows and movies in their on-screen menus.

In addition to paying more for Netflix service, users will need a beefy broadband connection as well: The streamer recommends an Internet connection speed of at least 25 megabits per second downstream to watch Ultra HD content.

Netflix's rate change for Ultra HD content was reported earlier by HD Guru.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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'Gone Girl' draws blood with $26 million, 'Dracula Untold' tops Friday box office

Despite losing the Friday race to Universal's horror actioner "Dracula Untold," "Gone Girl" is headed for its second consecutive box office win. Fox's thriller looks to draw blood with $26 million this weekend, while "Dracula" is close behind with a $24 million launch.

Both films topped two big newcomers this Columbus Day weekend: Robert Downey Jr.'s "The Judge," which is headed for a disappointing fifth place, and Steve Carell's "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day."

"Gone Girl," which stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as a highly dysfunctional couple, grossed $8.15 million Stateside on Friday. The pic launched to a stunning $37.5 million last weekend -- the best opening in director David Fincher's career.

If estimates hold, it could earn $78 million by weekend's end, which would mark a mere 29% drop.

Aside from capitalizing on Affleck's recently revived star power, "Gone Girl" is also effectively leveraging rave reviews and the popularity of Gillian Flynn's novel, which the film is based on.

"Dracula Untold" opened to a winning $8.9 million on Friday. The Universal-Legendary release tells the story of how Vlad the Impaler (played by Luke Evans) became Dracula. The $70 million production is part of Universal's ongoing effort to revive its monster movies.

Another newcomer, the family comedy "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day," came in third with an estimated $5.2 million on Friday. It looks to stay in that position for the duration of the weekend as it heads for a $19 million debut.

Disney's $28 million adaptation of Judith Viorst's children's book also stars Jennifer Garner.

Meanwhile, "Annabelle" is still showing strength at number four. New Line's horror-thriller earned $5.2 million Stateside on Friday in its second frame. "The Conjuring" spinoff is on track for $15 million-plus this weekend, which would mark a 57% decline following its stellar $37 million launch.

With its targeted audience of adult moviegoers swarming to "Gone Girl," the R-rated "Judge" was relegated to fifth place. The Warner Bros. courtroom drama opened to $4.4 million on Friday on its way to north of $12 million.

With a 48% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Downey doesn't seem to have the critics or his "Iron Man" fanbase in his corner. His $50 million passion project also stars Robert Duvall, Billy Bob Thornton and Vera Farmiga.

Lionsgate's R-rated thriller "Addicted" opened to a solid $3 million, coming in seventh, in the mid-size market. The pic is en route to an $8 million weekend.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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