50 Park Lane
Providence RI 02907-3145

Phone: 401-222-3636

Fax: 401-222-3407

© 2026 Ocean State Media is a
501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Federal Tax ID: 22-2859005
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

New Bedford’s Next Offshore Wind Play: More Office Space

The city-owned Quest Center for Innovation was built in 1899 as a technical college for the textile industry and now serves as office spaces for government agencies, nonprofits and a coworking center.
Ben Berke/The Public’s Radio
The city-owned Quest Center for Innovation was built in 1899 as a technical college for the textile industry and now serves as office spaces for government agencies, nonprofits and a coworking center.

The city is already a hub for marshaling offshore construction, but officials seek to create more space for the industry’s white-collar workers

New Bedford’s waterfront is already bustling with the colossal maneuvers of offshore wind construction – there are cranes assembling turbines taller than the city’s biggest buildings, and ships arriving with blades as long as football fields.

But on Monday, Mayor Jon Mitchell announced the city’s latest play in the industry: creating more office space for the industry’s white-collar workers, many of whom are clustered in larger cities and state capitals like Boston, New York and Providence.

The city will lead a $3 million renovation of a building it already owns at 1213 Purchase Street, aiming to reopen the third floor as a flexible office space where international maritime and offshore companies could rent space on a short-term basis during a wind farm’s development.

This story was reported by The Public's Radio. You can read the entire story here.

Ben covers everything for Ocean State Media, as long as it’s a good story. His work appears across television, radio, social media, and our website. He joined the station in 2021 after a stint in newspapers, and now handles our metro beat in Providence. His assignments have taken our audience to jails, city halls, fishing boats, factories, museums, bakeries, environmental cleanup sites and a clambake.
Latest Stories