Insurance Center of New England officially opens

Date: 4/5/2011

April 6, 2011

By Debbie Gardner

Assistant Editor

AGAWAM — City and state politicians, members of the Agawam business community, representatives of the West of the River Chamber of Commerce and area heath care providers gathered on March 31 to help celebrate the grand opening of the Insurance Center of New England Inc.'s (I.C.N.E.) new main offices at 1070 Suffield St.

Chief Operating Officer William Trudeau said his company, which also has offices in Gardner and Winchendon under Heritage Insurance Agency and agents in credit unions in Fitchburg, Orange, Danvers and Haverhill, chose to relocate from West Springfield to the parcel formerly occupied by the Oaks Banquet House both for its convenient location and potential for growth in the future.

I.C.N.E. Marketing Coordinator April Miles said the company had been "looking for something not in the heart of a city but centrally located." Trudeau said the majority of I.C.N.E.'s 45 employees "live west of the river. "

Trudeau added that when I.C.N.E. began searching for a relocation site, there weren't many commercial properties available that fit their criteria.

"The Oaks was available [and] we decided we could make it a good space," he said.

Conversion of the 18,000 square foot building from banquet house to office space took approximately 10 months.

"The town was very cooperative," Trudeau said of the permitting and construction process.

Mayor Richard Cohen said Agawam was "very fortunate" to have a successful, locally based business such as I.C.N.E. choose to relocate to their town.

"It's an absolute positive redevelopment and an asset to our community," Cohen said. "It's amazing what they have done with this building."

Trudeau said the I.C.N.E. is very pleased with the end result of the renovations.

"We want to show our customers we are a successful business and we will be here for a long time," he said.

Founded in 1866, I.C.N.E. is one of the largest locally owned independent insurance agencies in New England, servicing clients in the areas of personal, commercial and employee benefits insurance needs.

Trudeau said that I.C.N.E. is hoping to expand its business in the future, but for now is looking for a tenant to occupy approximately 4,500 square feet of the new building.

"The insurance business is very competitive," he said. "We're constantly at work, looking for better ways to service our customers and reach new customers."