State issues $25M bond for Stonehill’s new business school in Easton

Stonehill officially broke ground on the new campus building in May.

June 20, 2018 : The Enterprise, by Joe Pelletier

EASTON — Stonehill College received a $25 million tax-free boost from the state for its new school of business.

MassDevelopment, the state’s finance and development agency, announced the tax-exempt bond Wednesday. The $25 million will go toward the construction of Stonehill’s new Leo J. Meehan School of Business building in the center of campus.

The college has also benefited from a $10 million donation from Meehan (the school’s namesake), a 1975 alumnus and the CEO of Brockton-based W.B. Mason.

The three-story, 65,000-square-foot building is expected to open fully in August 2019, giving a home to the new school of business created in August 2017.

“As academic programs evolve, so should the infrastructure that houses them, MassDevelopment President Lauren Liss said in a press release.

Liss called the future building a “state-of-the-art facility.” College spokesman Martin McGovern said the tax-exempt bond will help the school complete the project while minimizing capital costs.

Stonehill officially broke ground in a ceremony on May 17.

“This is going to be a game-changer,” said Meehan, a Quincy native, at the groundbreaking event. “And I’m just so happy to be associated with it.”

The new business school is part of a major makeover at the center of campus, where Stonehill is also building a new welcome center. That building, the former student union, is expected to open in time for the fall 2018 semester. It will house several acaedmic departments, admissions, a 360-seat auditorium, cafe, bookstore and outside terrace.