Top PBN.com stories of 2014

A NEW $40 MILLION, 60,000-SQUARE-FOOT academic building is being planned by Johnson & Wales University at the corner of Pine and Chestnut streets in Providence's Jewelry District. Construction is expected to begin in April. This story was one of the most-read on PBN.com in 2014. / COURTESY JOHNSON & WALES UNIVERSITY
A NEW $40 MILLION, 60,000-SQUARE-FOOT academic building is being planned by Johnson & Wales University at the corner of Pine and Chestnut streets in Providence's Jewelry District. Construction is expected to begin in April. This story was one of the most-read on PBN.com in 2014. / COURTESY JOHNSON & WALES UNIVERSITY

PROVIDENCE – Business accolades, economic development, scenic restaurants and Rhode Island’s capital city took center stage in 2014, making the list of PBN.com’s 12 most-read stories.
The top story was “PBN names 2014 40 Under Forty,” a list of the top businessmen and businesswomen under 40 years old culled from more than 100 applicants. The winners were selected based on career success and community involvement. The story, published June 20, generated 9,314 page views, according to Google Analytics.
Next on the list was an Aug. 15 story about the 2014 Fastest-Growing & Innovative Companies, which had 8,860 page views.
Coming in third was “Providence named America’s favorite city by Travel + Leisure”, which was published Oct. 8 and had 8,550 page views. Providence topped the list of 38 cities after more than 50,000 votes were tallied from readers. The city was lauded for everything from food and art to architecture and culture.
In fourth place was “Providence wins $13 million federal grant to build streetcar system between East Side and Upper South Providence”, published Sept. 11.
The story said the grant, through the federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program, would pay for 11 percent of the estimated $117.8 million cost of the streetcar line and is less than half of the $29 million in federal funds the city had applied for, according to information provided by U.S. Rep. David N. Cicilline’s office.
PBN naming the 2014 Best Places to Work was No. 5 on the list; another PBN promotion, the Business Excellence Awards, was No. 10.
No. 6 was “JWU reveals $40M academic building plan for Jewelry District”, published Sept. 2. Construction is expected to begin in April on the building, which will be sited on former Interstate 195 land in Providence. With a completion date set for July 2016, it would be the first building constructed on the former highway land being marketed by the state as The Link.
“Three R.I. restaurants rank highly for scenic dining”, published Aug. 6 was No. 7.
Boat House Waterfront Dining in Tiverton, the Castle Hill Inn in Newport and Seasons at the Ocean House in Westerly received Diners’ Choice Awards for ranking among 100 restaurants nationwide with the most scenic views.
No. 8 was “Alex and Ani CEO Feroce launches investment firm”, published July 1. Giovanni Feroce’s firm, GF Asset Management LLC, will focus on backing retail and media ventures, PBN reported.
No. 9 was “Apparel maker Teespring raises $35M in venture capital”, from Nov. 18. The Series B round from Khosla Ventures will allow Teespring to grow and build its own manufacturing plant in Kentucky, a company official said at the time.
Brown graduates Walker Williams and Evan Stites-Clayton founded Teespring after an effort to save a Providence bar grew into an online crowdfunding platform that allows people to design and sell their own T-shirts.
Other stories of note with high reader engagement were:

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