Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1239297
NORTHSHOREMAG.COM 30 MAY 2020 L I V E + P L AY The first time Edward Greeley walked into the historic mill building on Pulaski Street in Peabody, the space was packed, from floor to ceiling, with broken old equipment and decades of trash. The structure was dilapidated, and the only tenants were junk dealers and motorcycle clubs. But where previous visitors to the build- ing had seen obstacles and risk, Greeley saw potential. "No one wanted to invest in the property, no one could see it," he says. "But I had a plan for exactly what I wanted to do." Now, five years later, Greeley has brought his plan to life, transforming the mill into an eclectic and vibrant collection of businesses including a coworking space, fitness and dance studios, a salon, a daycare center, a brewery, antique dealers, and photographers. "It's a unique place," Greeley says. "A fun place, a family place." The building was originally a tannery during the first half of the 20th century, when Peabody was one of the nation's leading leath- er producers. Greeley happened upon the mill in 2015 when he was searching for a location for his kitchen and cabinetry business, New England Cabinet. He was immediately interested in buying the building, but initially just rented a space. In 2018, he came to a deal with the owner, completed the purchase, and got to work. He named the project Mills 58, a reference to its historical use and its street number, and start- ed cleaning out the detritus and assembling a group of tenants who would form what he hoped would become a genuine community. "What piqued my interest was Ed's de- scription of his vision for the building," says Matt Genzale, co-founder of WorkTank, the coworking space that was one of the project's first tenants. As he recruited tenants, Greeley wanted to create a roster of businesses that would make Mills 58 an appealing and useful place all day long. The first business to go in was a daycare to provide child care options for the entrepre- neurs who would fill the other vacancies. The coworking space was another early occupant; the space tries to keep rates lower than some of its competitors so it can be accessible to a range of income levels. At Graceful Home, a light-drenched room Top to bottom, WorkTank, Caroline Talbot of Caroline Talbot Studios, Julian Miller of Essex County Brewing Co., and Graceful Home