Massachusetts
What’s open and closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Massachusetts – The Boston Globe
Convenience stores: Open at owners’ discretion on both days.
Taverns, bars: Open at owners’ discretion on both days.
Movie theaters: Open both days.
Drug stores: Open both days.
Coffee Shops: Open at owners’ discretion both days.
Banks: Most are closed or open for limited hours both days.
Stock market: Closes at 1 p.m. ET on Christmas Eve. Closed Christmas Day.
Municipal, state, federal offices: Open on Christmas Eve. Closed Christmas Day.
Libraries: Open with varying hours on Christmas Eve. Closed Christmas Day.
Schools: Closed both days.
Mail: Post offices open with varying hours on Christmas Eve. Post offices closed Christmas Day; express delivery only.
MBTA: Subways, buses, commuter rail, the RIDE, and ferry routes will operate on regular weekday schedule on Christmas Eve. Silver Line service to and from Logan Airport will be increased.
On Christmas Day, subways, buses and the RIDE will operate on a Sunday schedule. Commuter rail will operate on a weekend schedule. There will be no ferry service. For more information, visit https://www.mbta.com/holidays.
Trash/recycling collection: Collections on Christmas Eve and no collections on Christmas Day in Boston. To monitor your neighborhood’s trash and recycling schedule, download the Trash Day App at: https://www.boston.gov/trash-day-schedule.
Sources: boston.gov and mass.gov.
Correction: This story has been updated to correct the time the stock market closes on Christmas Eve.
Sabrina Lam can be reached at sabrina.lam@globe.com.
Mega Millions lottery tickets will more than double in 2025, but the Massachusetts Lottery says you’ll have a better chance of winning.
The Lottery says, “Mega Millions, the multi-state lottery game that has produced a record six jackpot wins exceeding $1 billion, is getting ready for a ‘mega’ overhaul with plans to be bigger and better than ever when the new and improved game launches in April of 2025.”
The Massachusetts Lottery promises “improved odds to win the jackpot, bigger jackpots more frequently, larger starting jackpots, faster-growing jackpots, a built-in multiplier on every play, automatically improving every non-jackpot win by 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X, or 10X – up to $10 million for matching the five white balls, and no breakeven prizes, meaning when a player wins they’ll always win more than the cost of the ticket.”
Five jackpot prizes have been paid out in Massachusetts since the Mega Millions game began in 2022.
Forty-five states and two U.S. territories participate in the Mega Millions game.
Massachusetts Gamers To Pay More To Play Mega Millions in 2025
The Associated Press quotes Christian Teja, the Massachusetts Lottery Director of Communications, as saying that “They’re constantly looking at ways to enhance the games, maybe make them a little bit different than Powerball.”
“You have probably heard about jackpot fatigue, it used to be $100 million and everybody was playing. Then it became $300 million,” Teja said. “Then it was $500 million. Now, it’s really approaching a billion dollars before you see the sales kick up.”
It currently costs $2 to play Mega Millions but the ticket price will increase to $5 in April 2025. Perhaps the lure of bigger prizes and better chances to win will overshadow the higher ticket cost.
25 Times SouthCoasters Won $1 Million or More in the Massachusetts Lottery
Since 2006, the Massachusetts State Lottery has kept a record of every winning ticket of $1 million or more. Here are 25 sold on the SouthCoast.
Gallery Credit: Gazelle
America’s Top 10 States With The Most Lottery Wins
Just how lucky is your state? A new list has determined which states have won the most money from either the Powerball or MegaMillions in the last 10 years.
Gallery Credit: Jahna Michal
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Massachusetts
Ocean State Job Lot taking over 3rd former Christmas Tree Shops store in Massachusetts
NORTH ATTLEBORO – Ocean State Job Lot announced this week it is taking over a third former Christmas Tree Shops location in Massachusetts and sixth overall in New England.
Ocean State Job Lot opening in North Attleboro
The Rhode Island-based discount retail chain will open its 53rd Massachusetts store in North Attleboro after buying the Cumberland Crossing shopping center. The store is scheduled to open sometime in the second quarter of 2025. Other shops at the plaza include a trampoline park, Guitar Center, Planet Fitness and David’s Bridal.
Ocean State Job Lots says its growth strategy includes a “repurposing of former retail sites.” Old Christmas Tree Shops stores in Avon and Pembroke, as well as locations in Augusta, Maine; St. Albans, Vermont and Warwick, Rhode Island have also turned into Ocean State Job Lots.
What’s happening to old Christmas Tree Shop stores?
The last Christmas Tree Shops stores closed more than a year ago, after the New England retailer declared bankruptcy and went out of business.
The once-popular chain known for its “Don’t you just love a bargain?” jingle began on Cape Cod 50 years ago. Not long before closures began, ownership decided to rebrand as “CTS” because some confused shoppers outside of New England thought the stores only sold Christmas trees.
A former Christmas Tree Shops location in Dartmouth has been turned into a “Spirit Christmas” store for the holidays. Other Christmas Tree Shops have become furniture stores, supermarkets and potential real estate development opportunities.
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