Several suburban Boston areas are hoping to attract more technology startups. These suburban cities and towns believe they have skilled and intelligent employees, and that they can often provide office space much more cheaply than spaces in Boston would cost. Cities like Salem are doing what they can to attract the attention of technology entrepreneurs to help fill office space or to build more. Salem is already home to many technology professionals according to its mayor, and the city hopes it will continue to grow the numbers of jobs in the technology field. The city is trying to attract these companies in particular with the hope of adding more sustainable and well-paying jobs for its citizens.
What the city of Salem is doing is working together with technology companies and leaders that are already located in the city of about 40,000 citizens to attract more technology companies and workers. The new program is called InnoNorth for the small North Shore city. They hope to develop what they refer to as the next great innovation hub in Massachusetts. With local businesses and professionals working with the city to grow its technology footprint, it is hoped that new businesses and individuals will see the possibilities that Salem has to offer.
Already existing companies in Salem are unlikely to view new businesses as direct competition as the training that these employees for different companies may be very similar, but the work can be very diverse. The more skilled and qualified employees that come to work in Salem, the better each of these companies will be. The greater demand there is for these employees, the more secure the employees will be through livable wages and benefits.
The initial mission of InnoNorth is simple: inform people and companies that Salem is capable of supporting them. Whether quality young people who need to be trained, or spaces for new companies or to expand, Salem is ready. The InnoNorth website also lets these potential companies know that Salem is a great place to live, and people who move here for work have an easier commute than driving into Boston, or going from the city to the suburbs.
One of the things that the innovators see by moving to a suburb is that these city councils can pay more attention to the needs of a business than the council in the city of Boston can. A smaller city means that if a business with one or two hundred employees sticks out. In Boston, even if they would like to accommodate a business, it can impact hundreds of thousands of others. It is simpler to get accommodations in the suburbs.
When new jobs are created in industrial and manufacturing jobs, there is far less security for the employees. Supplies routes and the quality of supplies can change, trends can change, or the environment can change. Many cities in Massachusetts are seeing the negative impact of fishing quotas on some species, which harms generations of people who have made their living on the ocean. By attracting technology companies, there are fewer of these concerns of jobs impacted by problems the industries cannot control.
Hudson, Massachusetts may not be a traditional suburb since it is 50 miles from Boston, but as far as moving a business or finding a great place to expand it isn’t too far for most companies. This town of 15,000 residents has seen a lot of industry and business growth over the past few years. There has been an increase in places to eat and for entertainment which indicates that it has not been ignored by younger people from the city, or from Worcester which is nearby. Buildings are also being converted, built, and added to in an effort to create more office space.
This summer the town is opening what it refers to as a co-working space which is an old Victorian home that has been turned into an office. People in Hudson see this venture as a way to get more tech savvy investors and entrepreneurs to consider moving to town. The hope among people in Hudson is that not only will technology businesses create jobs through services or production, but that they will also be able to support other business in the community.
The founders of the new business are offering shared offices for $250 a month and private offices for $700 a month. These rates are much less expensive than they would be in the city. The folks in Hudson hope that lower prices will help entice younger people with money, intelligence, and business acumen to their community as part of the new trend in suburban Boston office space growth.
Technology is changing quickly all over the world and the office space in Boston, as in any city is finite. Suburbs in the Boston are hope to take advantage of both of these truths and attract more opportunities for technology startups or for existing companies to expand.
If you would like more information regarding office space available in the greater Boston market, contact Jeremy Cyrier at jeremy@mansardcre.com or by phone at 617-674-2043.