John Barros, the interim director of the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority, told the Boston media today he plans to divest from a company he founded with Conan Harris - connected to the troubled Springfield courthouse bid - but as of this afternoon both Barros and Conan Harris, husband of Congresswoman Pressley, are still listed as “managers” of Cojo Real Estate LLC.

Early this month, the Healey administration awarded the $2B Springfield courthouse contract to Liberty Junction - a team comprised of Cojo Real Estate, Suffolk Construction and Stonewater, a Virginia-based company.

Jeb Balise and Dinesh Patel, local Springfield businessmen who also bid on the courthouse said, “this selection was irrevocably tainted, and no retroactive exit can undo that after the contract is already awarded…our lawsuit will continue“

Last year Suffolk Construction was ensnared in a massive service plaza bidding debacle. Suffolk/Applegreen originally won a 35 year contract to manage the state’s rest stops only to bail after irregularities were uncovered in the bidding process, including back channel text messages between Suffolk’s John Fish and the state official overseeing the bid.

Earlier this month a 18 year old young woman, Liani Marte, was found dead from a single gun shot wound in a Mattapan rental home owned by Harris. The medical examiner has not yet publicly determined the manner of death.

Harris signed all four required documents to revive the LLC which were filled out by hand. The required $1600 fee due the Commonwealth is marked as being paid in cash.

Last week we reported that Cojo Real Estate LLC has been dissolved by the Secretary of the Commonwealth on December 31, 2025, but nevertheless was still part of the winning Springfield courthouse contract which is now being challenged in court by Balise and Patel.

Harris and Barros filed annual reports for 2024, 2025 and 2026 ($500 fee to file per report) which allow the pair to apply for reinstatement ($100 fee) to “revive” the venture Monday afternoon.