EDITOR’S NOTE: This has been corrected to reflect that Nelson and Bonnie Ludlow left Intellicheck Mobilisa in Sept. 30, 2014 and now serve only as landlords of the building outside Port Townsend.
Also, the amount that will be paid to the Ludlows as landlords was from a form filed by Intellicheck Mobilisa with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
PORT TOWNSEND — Intellicheck Mobilisa, a high-tech company that once offered security and wireless solutions from an office in the Glen Cove business park, is closing down its office in Port Townsend, where the company began.
The company announced Wednesday an agreement to repurchase 979,114 shares of common stock from company founder and former CEO Nelson Ludlow and his wife, former Senior Vice President Bonnie Ludlow, for $1,096,067, and intends to vacate its leased building at 191 Otto St. outside Port Townsend by April 1.
The Ludlows left the company on Sept. 30, 2014. Since then, they have served only as landlords for the building outside Port Townsend.
Operations at that location have apparently ceased, as doors are locked and moving is in progress, as observed during a visit to the outside of the facility Thursday.
Cynthia Walden, who identified herself as the company’s assistant controller, declined to say how many people worked at the Port Townsend facility or whether they will remain with the relocated company.
Calls to the company’s public relations firm were not returned Thursday.
Final step
The move marks the final step in the company’s closing out of its operations in Port Townsend, according to the company’s news release.
In October, the company announced relocation of its headquarters to the New York City metropolitan area.
25 patents
The company’s portfolio of 25 patents, many developed during Ludlow’s tenure, includes many pertaining to identification technology.
In an email, Ludlow said the company had more than 100 different people in the 13 years the company — formed as Mobilisa and merged with Intellicheck in 2008 — operated in Jefferson County.
“My view is Port Townsend is an excellent place to grow a business, with above-average access to talent and below average in costs than big cities,” Ludlow said.
“I spent energy to attract talented computer scientists and engineers to our community, and there is a definite cost advantage to having a company in Port Townsend compared to a large city.”
The repurchase of the Ludlows’ stock was approved by the company’s board Feb. 23. The transaction is expected to close by today.
Additionally, according to a document filed by Intellicheck Mobilisa with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company will pay the Ludlows, who own the property, $100,000 to satisfy the lease agreement, which expires in August 2017.
The company said it anticipates finding a new Washington state location.
According to the release, Intellicheck is a leader in identity authentication, verification and validation technology solutions to scan, authenticate and analyze components of identity documents including driver’s licenses, military identification cards and other government forms of identification containing magnetic stripes, barcodes and smart chip information.
The information can be used to provide safety, security and efficiencies across markets including the customers the company supports in the national defense, law enforcement, retail, hospitality and financial markets, the release said.
Remain in Port Townsend
Ludlow and his wife, Bonnie — the company’s co-founder — will remain in Port Townsend, he said.
He is focused now on teaching at universities and developing new technology for Brain Computer Interfaces, a process that allows computers to be controlled through thoughts.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
