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Joining in a Friday tour and ceremony to spotlight the issuance of a $1 million line of credit from the state's quasi-public Massachusetts Growth Capital Corp., State Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante hit the nail on the head when she suggested that a sign outside Gloucester Engineering in Blackburn Industrial Park should read, "Home of the Comeback Kid."
Now 50 years old, Gloucester Engineering may not be a kid anymore, even by industrial standards. But its comeback from bankruptcy less than two years ago and its continued new growth back up over the 100-job mark is important not just for the company and its workers, but for the city itself.
And the $1 million capital boost should further ensure the firm can indeed fill the kinds of current and future orders that it and its international clients need.
The truth is, Gloucester's economy remains extensively tied to a commercial fishing industry that remains under siege by overwrought government regulation and other issues, and much of the city's tourism is rooted in the fishing and the seafood industry, along with a growing cultural economy as well.
With Gloucester's unemployment rate still above the state's and national averages, companies such as Gloucester Engineering — like Blackburn neighbor Varian and an also-growing Bomco Industries, across the Route 128 Extension on Gloucester Avenue — may be counted on to play an even greater role in the city's economic future,
Congratulations are indeed in order for the "comeback kid" of Gloucester's industrial sector — and may it enjoy continued success as it embarks on its next 50 years of operation as well.
