Intel to hang onto Hudson land after demolition

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By Emily Micucci

Town officials are pleased that Intel Corp. remains a strong presence in Hudson after it halted manufacturing operations last year. The computer chip maker still has about 850 employees working in its Massachusetts Design Center, a research and development facility at 75 Reed Rd.

But that doesn’t mean the officials are not not curious to see what Intel will do with the land on which the vacant manufacturing facility rests. Manufacturing operations officially ceased in May after the company announced in 2013 that they would end, because the facility wasn’t fit for production of today’s chips.

A fruitless search

Since that time, California-based Intel has searched for a buyer for the 600,000-square-foot facility, built by Digital Equipment Corp. and acquired by Intel in 1998, while maintaining operations in the other two buildings on the site.

In May 2014, the international real estate brokerage Binswanger was hired to market the site. But it became apparent that it was either too large or too small for buyers looking for a manufacturing facility, according to Ann Hurd, spokeswoman for Intel’s East Coast operations.

Alternative users, such as data center operators, wanted the building within a timeframe that wasn’t feasible for decommissioning the facility, Hurd said. So demolition was the most practical option.

Hudson officials were notified of that possibility in May. Executive Assistant Thomas Moses said there has been constant dialogue between Town Hall and Intel during the nearly two years in his role.

“They’re a big part of our economy here and that’s important,” Moses said, adding that Intel will work closely with nearby neighborhoods to ensure demolition has minimal impact. The tear-down process will likely be lengthy, he said.

Will Intel expand R&D in Hudson?

Intel’s current plan is to hold onto the property, rather than sell it for redevelopment. Moses recognized that this is not ideal from the town’s standpoint, because it will lose tax revenue. But he thinks that eventually, Intel will find a productive use for it. He noted that another option would be to release the land to the town for protection as open space, but Intel is not pursuing that.

“I would think that they’re holding it for their future use,” Moses said.

Moses speculated that there may be potential for Intel to expand its research and development operations on the site, but he said there are no immediate plans to do so. For his part, Moses said he’d like to see another high-tech user eventually build a new facility on the lot. The property is ideal for a high-tech cluster, he said.

But Hurd said there are no plans to expand operations in Hudson. She noted that the existing research and development facility has ample room should Intel decide to add staff. However, she said retaining the land after demolition begins leaves the door open to that possibility.

The company also isn’t interested in selling the property at this time, but Hurd said those plans could change. She reiterated that Intel is committed to maintaining its Hudson operations, and that the company is not “abandoning Massachusetts,” though she recognized that ending manufacturing operations here was a blow to the industry.

“It’s certainly disappointing to have to cease that,” Hurd said.