Central Mass. by the Numbers

Worcester Telegram & Gazette
·3 min read
Andrea Sciuto reads at Sciuto's Bookshop in Douglas.
Andrea Sciuto reads at Sciuto's Bookshop in Douglas.

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In opening Sciuto’s Bookshop in February last year, Andrea and Zack Sciuto fulfilled a dream that the couple had shared since their college years, selling donated books out of a small Douglas space at 295 Main St. But just over a year later, the Sciutos have decided to permanently close their bookshop, with Andrea Sciuto citing inadequate foot traffic. The couple opened the bookshop with a collection of about 2,400 titles. While the Sciutos are set to stay in the shop for the rest of April, May is still undecided, Andrea Sciuto said.

Tasty Experience Bistro is going into the Maker to Main space on Harding Street.
Tasty Experience Bistro is going into the Maker to Main space on Harding Street.

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The previous management of a Main South café has plans to open a health food bistro at the former home of Maker to Main at 162 Harding St. A limited liability company named Tasty Experience Bistro received a license to sell food from the License Commission. Before becoming the brief home of the farm-to-table grocery story Maker to Main, the site had been the longtime location of Harding Glass Co. Inc., which closed in September 2022. The new bistro plans to coffee, brunch and dinner with a health focus and vegan offerings, along with some Brazilian options.

John Davis
John Davis

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John Maddison Davis, founding father of Davis Farmland in Sterling, died at his home April 9 at 86.  Davis' son, Larry, said the cause was acute myeloid leukemia. Davis and his sons, Larry and Doug, developed the idea of a petting zoo after a 1990 fire destroyed most of the farm’s dairy operation.  Opening in 1996, Davis Farmland became a home for endangered animals, and it’s been a crowd-pleaser for thousands of children and adults since its inception. Subsequent additions to the farm include a spray park and the Davis Mega Farm Festival, which includes the famous Davis Mega Maze.

A customer looks over a vendor's wares at Rietta Flea Market in Hubbardston.
A customer looks over a vendor's wares at Rietta Flea Market in Hubbardston.

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Rietta Flea Market opened for its 54th season April 14, a week later than originally scheduled due to last week’s inclement winter weather. The multiacre flea market will remain open every Sunday through November. Rietta officials said the flea market averages around 400 vendors and 1,000 shoppers each week, numbers that fluctuate depending on the weather. The property was the site of country-and-western jamborees organized by Ronald and Rita Levesque in 1966. As the crowds attending the shows grew, vendors began setting up tables to sell merchandise, a tradition that continued even after the jamborees were no longer held.

Mike and Sarah Lemovitz will be reopening the Southbridge Airport diner as The Flight Deck.
Mike and Sarah Lemovitz will be reopening the Southbridge Airport diner as The Flight Deck.

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Sarah and Michael Lemovitz hope to combine their love for aviation with Sarah’s passion for cooking in May when they open The Flight Deck inside a diner at the Southbridge Municipal Airport, 220 Airport Access Road. While the town owns the diner, the Lemovitzes won the bid for a leasing contract with the town in March, starting work to make the diner operational. Dating to 1958, the diner was manufactured in New Jersey and brought to the airport in the 1970s when a local restaurateur, Charlie Latour, who often cooked for pilots out of hangars, hauled the diner to the airport.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Central Mass. by the Numbers