Hub Security and Investigative Group provides trusted security in Andover, MA, pairing guards with genuine local knowledge of the community.
ANDOVER, MASS. — Andover recorded a violent crime rate of 0.95 per 1,000 residents in 2024, according to FBI data compiled by NeighborhoodScout, well below the Massachusetts state average of 3.15. The town of 37,014 residents (U.S. Census Bureau, July 1, 2025 estimate) is home to Phillips Academy, the oldest incorporated boarding school in the country, and to a Raytheon campus that builds the LTAMDS air and missile defense radar and handles Patriot testing — two very different security profiles inside one Essex County community.
By Derek Kreymer, Operations Manager
Andover stretches from the Phillips Academy campus on Academy Hill to the Ballardvale mills on the Shawsheen River, with Interstates 93 and 495 crossing town and New England Business Center sitting where I-93 meets River Road. Hub Security and Investigative Group provides security guard services in Andover, MA for all of it: armed and unarmed guards, mobile patrol, event security and private investigation services. Downtown Main Street fills for Andover Day each September, and on Thanksgiving morning the Feaster Five starts in Shawsheen Square, where Routes 28 and 133 meet. This Essex County town of 37,014 residents (U.S. Census Bureau, July 1, 2025 estimate) sits about 20 miles north of Boston.
Security in Andover, MA
The American Woolen Company built Shawsheen Village from 1919 to 1924; its old mills are now offices at Brickstone Square. Shawsheen Plaza, at 209 North Main Street, draws shoppers to Stop & Shop and Planet Fitness. Security in Andover, MA starts with a property walk and site-specific post orders.
Security Built Around Andover’s Districts
Downtown Andover, centered on Main Street’s retail strip and restaurant row, draws steady foot traffic and benefits from our retail security services.
Shawsheen Village, the former American Woolen Company mill complex now leased as offices at Brickstone Square, requires the kind of building coverage handled by our corporate security services. The Phillips Academy / Academy Hill area, one of the oldest sections of town with large historic homes, is a priority zone for our residential security guard patrols. And Andover’s ongoing commercial and residential development near I-93 and River Road keeps our construction site security guards busy on active builds.
What Local Crime Data Actually Shows
Andover recorded a violent crime rate of 0.95 per 1,000 residents in 2024, according to NeighborhoodScout’s analysis of FBI-reported data — below the Massachusetts state average of 3.15 per 1,000. Property crime came in at 7.83 per 1,000 residents, also under the statewide average of 11.12 per 1,000. NeighborhoodScout’s overall index ranks Andover safer than 45% of U.S. cities, and the most recent reporting year showed zero murders in town.
The numbers do not erase risk at specific property types. A prep school campus with valuable art and archival holdings, a defense manufacturing site, and a commuter-heavy downtown each carry exposure that a single town-wide crime score does not capture. Hub Security and Investigative Group builds Andover coverage plans around the property in question — not just the town’s overall safety ranking.
Coverage by District
| District | Key Local Features | Hub Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Downtown Andover / Main Street | Retail strip, restaurants, commuter rail station | Retail patrol, foot traffic monitoring |
| Shawsheen Village | Former American Woolen Company mills, now Brickstone Square offices | Corporate/office building security |
| Academy Hill / Phillips Academy area | Historic homes, prep school campus | Residential patrol, campus-adjacent coverage |
| I-93 / River Road corridor | New England Business Center office park (five buildings, 255,000 SF) | Construction site security, corporate site coverage |
What Hub Provides in Andover
- Armed and unarmed guard coverage for downtown Andover retail and commercial properties
- Corporate security for office and medical tenants inside the Shawsheen Village complex
- Residential patrol services for the Academy Hill area and surrounding neighborhoods
- Construction site security guards for active development along the I-93 and River Road corridor
- Mobile patrol routes covering multiple Andover properties on a single overnight schedule
- Background check services and corporate investigations for Andover businesses and property managers
Serving Andover and the Surrounding Area
Andover sits along the I-93 corridor between the Merrimack Valley and Greater Boston, and Hub Security and Investigative Group covers the same stretch for businesses that operate across multiple towns.
Why Andover Businesses and Residents Choose Hub
- Massachusetts-licensed for both security guard services and private investigation work
- Fully insured, with officers who are background-checked and trained before assignment
- GPS-tracked patrol routes and unannounced supervisor inspections to verify coverage
- Local management that knows Andover’s downtown, Shawsheen Village, and I-93 corridor — not a national call center or app-based guard broker
- 24/7 emergency dispatch at (617) 857-1200
Condo, Apartment, and Business Park Security in Andover
Andover’s condo and apartment communities — including The Andover condominiums at 22 Railroad Street and the 220-unit Andover Place apartments on Bulfinch Drive — face a security gap individual homeowners don’t: shared entryways, parking areas, and mailrooms mean a single unlocked door or unmonitored lot puts every unit at risk, not just one. A condo association can split the cost of a Hub officer across the whole property rather than each resident arranging separate coverage, covering evening patrols, monitoring shared entrances, and responding to package-theft or trespassing complaints for less per household than residents would pay arranging security in Andover, MA individually.
The same logic applies to Andover’s business parks. Multi-tenant office campuses like the five-building New England Business Center at I-93 and River Road benefit from a single security contract covering the whole property — consistent after-hours patrol of parking areas and building entrances, a documented point of contact for access issues, and one bill instead of several separate vendors. Retail centers such as Shawsheen Plaza are a similar fit for Hub’s retail security services and mobile patrol, since a visible officer during business hours deters shoplifting and parking-lot incidents.
Andover’s biggest crowds come on known dates. Andover Day, sponsored by the Andover Chamber of Commerce, brings more than 240 businesses, nonprofits and schools to downtown Main Street, with a main stage behind Old Town Hall and a farmers market at the Town Common. On Thanksgiving morning about 7,000 runners and walkers gather in Shawsheen Square for the Feaster Five. Hub staffs public and private events in Andover, from a street festival or road race to a single private function, and our new hires get Massachusetts Crowd Manager certification through the MA Department of Fire Services plus CPR, First Aid and Narcan training. You can book us for one event; you don’t need a year-round contract.
Recurring and One-Time Patrol Scheduling in Andover, MA
Andover has two commuter rail stops: Andover station at 17 Railroad Street, and Ballardvale at 195 Andover Street, whose lot has 123 spaces and no overnight parking. Owners nearby can book a recurring mobile patrol, or coverage for one season or one event. Patrols are GPS-tracked, and officers scan door checkpoints that log each walk and its time.
Consolidated Route Savings: A single patrol loop covers multiple properties across Andover without separate, site-by-site billing fees.
Fleet Accountability: Marked patrol vehicles feature real-time GPS monitoring and dash cameras for full site transparency.
Vetted Officers: All mobile patrol guards hold valid driver’s licenses, clean driving records, and safe-driver training.
Hub is proud to deliver reliable, state-licensed security in Andover, MA.
Serving Every Part of Andover, MA
Properties throughout Andover — residential, commercial, and retail alike — fall within Hub’s regular coverage area. Patrol routes and guard assignments are planned around where the property actually is, not just around the busiest part of town.
The Hub Standard: Guards in Andover, MA
Every guard we place on an Andover post has been background-checked and vetted, and every armed guard carries an unrestricted Massachusetts License to Carry. Before the first shift we photograph entrances and check-in points into a post-orders book kept on site, so an officer covering an Academy Hill home or an office lobby at New England Business Center works from written instructions for that building. Our operations manager visits sites unannounced, and all coverage is delivered in-house, never subcontracted.
Emergency Coverage That Doesn’t Clock Out in Andover, MA
A Andover property doesn’t get to choose when an alarm trips or a break-in happens, so Hub’s dispatch doesn’t clock out either — it’s staffed 24/7, with a live person answering instead of an answering service. That person can send a guard or bring in local police as needed. The number is (617) 857-1200, answered around the clock.
Ballardvale: Andover’s Other Mill Village
Shawsheen Village gets most of the attention, but Andover has an older mill village on the Shawsheen River. Ballardvale grew up where Andover Street crosses the Shawsheen River. John Marland directed the Ballardvale Manufacturing Company, organized in 1836, and the first attempt to make delaines, a light wool fabric, in the United States was made in a Ballard Vale mill by Marland. The Ballardvale dam on Andover Street was still the last working dam on the Shawsheen River in Andover in 2017, and the village is a National Register historic district.
Old mill buildings that now hold offices, workshops or apartments come with their own security questions. Long corridors, several entrances, loading areas, and tenants who keep very different hours all make it hard to know who belongs in the building. Hub’s mobile patrol officers can check doors and lots on a set schedule, and a property manager can add a guard during a renovation or a tenant changeover.
Ballardvale also has its own stop on the MBTA Haverhill Line, at 195 Andover Street. The station lot has 123 parking spaces and no overnight parking. Under the MBTA’s Haverhill Line double-track project, construction at Ballardvale is planned from early 2028 into 2029, with accessible platforms and a short stretch of second track. Construction near a working station and a historic district means equipment, materials and commuter cars sitting side by side. Hub’s construction-site guards and overnight patrol give contractors and nearby owners a record of who was on site and when.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Andover, MA a high-crime town?
No. NeighborhoodScout data shows Andover’s violent crime rate of 0.95 per 1,000 residents and property crime rate of 7.83 per 1,000 residents both fall below the Massachusetts averages of 3.15 and 11.12 per 1,000, respectively.
Does Hub provide armed guards in Andover?
Yes. Hub Security and Investigative Group provides both armed and unarmed guards in Andover, assigned according to the property type and risk level of the assignment.
Can Hub cover a corporate or manufacturing site in Andover?
Yes. Hub can staff corporate offices and light-industrial and manufacturing sites in Andover, including office parks such as New England Business Center at I-93 and River Road.
Q: Is Hub Security and Investigative Group insured?
Yes. Hub Security and Investigative Group carries $3 million in general liability insurance coverage, providing our commercial, residential, and institutional clients with complete protection and total peace of mind.
Is Hub licensed for private investigation work in Massachusetts?
Yes. Hub Security and Investigative Group holds Massachusetts licensing for both security guard services and private investigation services, including background checks and corporate investigations for Andover businesses.
For a Main Street shop or Ballardvale mill, call (617) 857-1200 for a free consultation on security in Andover, MA, or request a quote online. New accounts typically get a guard within 24–48 hours.