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The name of the UMass Lowell Innovation Hub in Haverhill is changing, but the two dozen businesses it hosts will remain in the new year after arrangements were made to keep the co-working space open.
While the office, desk and event space remain open at 2 Merrimack St., in Haverhill, UMass Lowell is vacating both its former classroom space on the second floor as well as the iHub on the third floor, ending an experiment it began in 2017 to add a Haverhill campus.
“UMass Lowell is no longer operating in the Harbor Place location in Haverhill. The university has been working with city leaders, the Greater Haverhill Chamber of Commerce and Rep. Andy Vargas to develop a transition plan for the property,” UMass Lowell Assistant Director of Media Relations Nancy Cicco told WHAV Tuesday by email.
She wrote, however, “UMass Lowell remains dedicated to serving Haverhill students through online and on-campus course offerings in Lowell, while partnering with businesses throughout the Merrimack Valley to advance our education and research missions.”
As WHAV first reported in September, UMass Lowell tenants were initially given until the end of October to leave the third-floor space at White’s Corner. That date was pushed back to the end of the year after Mayor Melinda E. Barrett and state Rep. Andy X. Vargas intervened less than a week later.
UMass Lowell, then under the direction of Chancellor Marty Meehan, played a role in helping the Greater Haverhill Foundation and the Archdiocese of Boston’s Planning Office for Urban Affairs secure financing in 2014 for what would become Harbor Place. When Meehan, also a former congressman, was tapped to become president of the University of Massachusetts, Chancellor Jacquie Moloney went on to open the iHub in 2017 and begin classes on the partially built-out second floor of the building.
Third floor tenants first received an emailed notice the day after Christmas that they could remain. The notice said the efforts by Barrett and Vargas “have paid off” and there would be an as-yet unannounced new name. The email was signed by a group of Harbor Place tenants including George A. Peters Jr., New England Invents; Seth Cordes, Uncommon Catalyst; Kate Martin, Greater Haverhill Chamber of Commerce; Erin Padilla, Creative Haverhill; Richard Juknavorian; Alexandra Chandler; Habrom Andemariam, New England Solar Initiative; Lawrence P. Zale, Zale Patent Law; and Shanyn A. Toulouse, school nurse.
“Thank you to everyone for your support, patience and to those people who have worked very hard behind the scenes to begin a new chapter, for what is the BEST office, co-working, community and event space in New England,” the email concluded.
Tenants were further briefed Monday in an online video conference.
WHAV emailed officials questions about structure and leadership of the new entity, numbers of remaining tenants, fees, status of UMass Lowell’s payment and more. Haverhill Chamber interim President Martin told WHAV she expected an announcement to come from Barrett and Vargas, but answers were not received by news deadline.