Mayor Walsh seeks ideas for Roxbury Innovation Center in Dudley Square

Today Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced the City of Boston released a Request for Ideas (RFI) for the 3,350 square foot Innovation Center planned for the redeveloped Ferdinand Building in Dudley Square. The call for ideas and proposals for innovation related programming, concepts, and business models for the site will assist the City in gauging interest and understanding the current state of the marketplace and the potential economic impact of the Roxbury Innovation Center on the surrounding community. 

“I want to bring the future economy to every Boston neighborhood, and the Roxbury Innovation Center will be the catalyst for Dudley Square,” said Mayor Walsh. “I’m looking to Boston’s vibrant innovation community for ideas on how to shape this opportunity, and to lay the groundwork for this exciting approach to economic development.”

Mayor Walsh announced plans for The Roxbury Innovation Center during his Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce speech in April 2014. The center will be located on the second floor of the Ferdinand Building, which is currently being redeveloped and will be the future headquarters of Boston Public Schools. The building is slated to open in the first quarter of 2015.

The RFI is not a formal procurement process to select an operator, but rather an informal solicitation to gauge interest and gather information. The RFI is available here: http://www.cityofboston.gov/procurement/events/. Responses are due on or before September 1, 2014.