FAIRFIELD, CT — The Verizon-sponsored iHub facility in the Jack Welch College of Business & Technology at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield will close in September, the university and Verizon confirmed to Patch.
When it opened in 2019, iHub was described as “the epicenter between students and businesses. We offer companies of all sizes an opportunity to work with students through internships, capstone projects, and other programs.”
A few dozen small businesses worked out of iHub, and those companies have been notified of the upcoming shutdown.
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“We were recently informed by Verizon that they will no longer manage the iHub on our campus or at any other campus location as they sunset the program,” Deb Noack, Sacred Heart’s Executive Director of Communications, told Patch. “The university is currently assessing the situation and discussing options after the center closes in September.”
The iHub facility is in the former Fairfield corporate campus of General Electric, which Sacred Heart purchased for $31.5 million in 2016. When iHub opened, it was the first time Verizon had partnered with a college to create a coworking space on a campus.
Find out what's happening in Fairfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Prices for the co-working space — a shared desk, dedicated desk or private office — ranged from $150 per month to $1,000 per month. The 8,000 square foot iHub space also contained an artificial intelligence lab and business analysis lab, among other labs.
Kate Jay, a spokesperson for Verizon, said that the company “routinely evaluates” its programs and offerings in the communities it serves, which led to the decision to close iHub.
“As part of that ongoing process, we have made the difficult decision to sunset this program due to changing market conditions and the needs of the business,” Jay told Patch. “We appreciate the partnership with Sacred Heart University and the local community, and started notifying tenants this week to give them ample time to make other arrangements before the iHub closes in mid-September.”
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