Comcast is closing its 66 Emerson St. office in downtown Haverhill early in April. (Frank Komola photograph.)
Future Comcast office at Methuen Plaza. (Frank Komola photograph.)
Comcast is closing its Haverhill and Lawrence offices, consolidating the two at a Methuen shopping center April 10.
The Haverhill office, at 66 Emerson St., has been used by Comcast since it took over the cable television franchise from Cablevision nearly 20 years ago. The new office will be located at Methuen Plaza, 70 Pleasant Valley St., near Market Basket and Wal-Mart. It will be known as the Xfinity store. City Council Vice President Melinda E. Barrett, a former member of the city’s Cable Television Advisory Board, said the new location will prove inconvenient.
“It would be horrible for the citizens and consumers who use Comcast in the city. It is a very busy office,” she said.
Notice of the closing began appearing on recent customer bills. A customer service representative at the Emerson Street office this morning confirmed the closing. He said no staff layoffs are anticipated and noted, because of the consolidation, there would be more representatives available at the new location.
According to city’s contract with Comcast, the company is allowed to maintain offices anywhere up to 12 and a half miles away from Haverhill’s border. Haverhill Mayor James J. Fiorentini has named a new committee to begin contract renewal negotiations with the company.
we need two cable / telephone providers
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Exactly Donnie Trump!!
Where is the chamber on this? Must be having another after hours celebration.
Exactly DannyB….the Chamber is essentially a social club. Name the last “real” issue that they took a stand on in Haverhill?
If people are upset with Comcast’s departure they have no one to blame except the incompetent Mayor. Had he negotiated the contract with them whereby they had to maintain a presence “within the borders of Haverhill” and not 12 miles away, they wouldn’t be moving.
Why would the city if Haverhill allow a contract to have in writing a clause that allows Comcast to have a office 12 miles out if the city? Who’s hands are getting greased by Comcast?
Councilor Barrett….you know why it’s a busy office, don’t you?
Because of it’s proximity to The Acre and surrounding neighborhoods that house the criminal trespassers from other countries illegally living in Haverhill. They go directly into the store to pay their monthly bills with actual cash because they have no means of establishing credit, or are too afraid of even trying to do so.
The good news is once they’re gone their parking lot will open up “free” parking spaces until a new tenant moves in.
Even though it is a private lot watch for Mayor Taxman to start ticketing cars anyway. He never misses the opportunity to generate a new revenue source for his failing administration.
Each and every time I am forced to enter the Comcast facility on Emerson Street in Haverhill to exchange equipment, there is a line out the door. You are right, Jack….. My observation was that customers appear to be going to that office to pay their cable bill, and every now and then to return equipment because they are moving out of the city.
Or another reason is that they are returning and exchanging equipment that doesn’t work. In the case of the forced equipment upgrade a few months ago, everyone was there to take back the old equipment because they don’t trust Comcast personnel to credit their bill when the old equipment is returned, and it was a rare instance that people did not have questions about the new equipment. That’s the reason I was there.
Great job by chamber of non commerce
The Chamber has nothing to do with this. The Mayor negotiates all of these contracts. Look at the Haverhill cable tv’s bank account and you will see why there is only ONE company. It is a sham and must stop.
The Mayor HAD the chance to bring Verizon into the city way back, but he blew it when he tried to extort more money out of them. Now I am told, due to the large % of satellite dishes in the city, there is not enough market share for Verizon to be profitable and invest the money in infrastructure. Great job Mr. Mayor. Now, how are you going to explain this one to your residents when they are bombarding your office with phone calls ?? Another bad storm ??