Providence developments

[Ron Newman]

No service to Federal Hill? That's a major tourist destination.

[Mark24]

Not sure of the final route and if the railroad station branch is included, as such it still is a work in progress. Service to Atwells Ave (Federal Hill) is in the future probably continuing to Olneyville. Atwells Ave, the main restaurant street, is very narrow though and they might choose Broadway, wider and thru more of a residential area, to go thru Federal Hill to Olneyville.

[Lrfox]

Originally Posted by Mark24

Not sure of the final route and if the railroad station branch is included, as such it still is a work in progress.

You seem to know what you're talking about; but last I heard they had scrapped the spur to the rail station. Don't ask me to cite the source, because I can't. It was also over a year ago. The logic behind it was that the station-Kennedy Plaza spur could easily be served by a shuttle that just constantly runs that route. It would also be much more cost effective.

[itchy]

Originally Posted by Mark24

[New Haven's politicians] turned down [a streetcar line] because there was a feeling it would not help transit in the minority neighborhoods. The proposed line was similar to Providence's in that it connected a hospital complex, a college, thru the city and to a neighborhood that overwhelmingly had people who worked in the city, went to the college and worked at the hospital! This was a line with immediate success written all over it and then they could have expanded it.

From what I had read, New Haven turned down federal money for a study for a streetcar line ... all because it would "only" help the things in New Haven that actually work (i.e., Yale and the people connected to it). Apparently capital-intensive transit projects are not supposed to foster economic growth for an entire city but help favored constituencies get to the check-cashing place more easily.

Gotta love the shoot-yourself-and-the-other-guy-in-the-foot politics of reverse racism.

[Lrfox]

37 Richmond Street/ JWU Garage looks... surprisingly good for a garage.

This is how garages should look with ground level retail (4 retail spaces facing Richmond Street).









The garage will take the space of a surface lot near the boundary of the Jewelry District and Downtown Providence. The only real difficult part to swallow is that one building (the Mirabar building) will be demolished (here's the streetview). Architecturally, it's not landmark, but once it's gone, it's gone. Overall, the garage/retail beats the surface lot and one lonely building.

It's a preliminary step forward for a major JWU expansion. They're looking to build class and living space on many of their other surface lots in the area so starting with a new garage makes sense. The addition of 4 retail spaces in a spot occupied by a bar (only open at night) and a surface lot is certainly nothing to be upset about either. Between the light rail approval and the rather ambitious plans for the newly freed up I-195 land (not just a "greenway"), I'm getting excited again for the work taking place in Providence.

You can get a lot more info on the project from the Greater City: Providence site.

[czsz]

If ablarc were still here he'd praise it to the heavens.

Can't help but wonder if it's so great for them long term though. Can it be converted into more productive space if they decide that's more important than parking in the future?

[Lrfox]

I don't know if it can be converted. On one hand, it is right next to the Providence Performing Arts Center and a lot of the bars and clubs so it should see some use. On the other hand, there's quite a bit of parking in the area already so the market may be flooded.

[LordStanleyCup2011]

I saw online that Providence wants to add a streetcar system there.

Take alook at this site a ton of awesome ideas:

www.providencecoreconnector.com

[Frankie811]

Preservation group sees demolition of historic homes as 'impediment' to Gilbane's Thayer St. plan



PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- A proposal to build a 102-apartment building on the city's East Side "raises a number of questions" for the Providence Preservation Society, the organization says.

Gilbane Development Corp. wants to build a four-story building near Brown University. Company chairman Robert Gilbane envisions a $28-million building at 257 Thayer St. with room for 277 residents, primarily Brown students.

Generally pleased with Gilbane's willingness to discuss its plans, East Side groups have noted various concerns with the project.


http://news.providencejournal.com/bu...-to-gilba.html

According to an April 17 letter, the the preservation society sent to Gilbane, "the greatest impediment to this project is the proposed demolition of nine historic homes."

[Mark24]

Originally Posted by Frankie811

Preservation group sees demolition of historic homes as 'impediment' to Gilbane's Thayer St. plan


According to an April 17 letter, the the preservation society sent to Gilbane, "the greatest impediment to this project is the proposed demolition of nine historic homes."

Please note that in the state of Rhode Island any structure older than 50 years old can be deemed "historic". I don't want anyone from outside Rhode Island to think these homes are in the same context as Benefit Street and its surroundings. Nor are they victorian structures as one sees throughout the city. But a multi family tenement built in the early 20th century could be deemed historic by The Rhode Island Preservation Society.

[Frankie811]

Providence Preservation Society's 2012 Ten Most Endangered Properties

http://ppsri.org/ten-most-endangered.../2012-mep-list

[Frankie811]

Thayer Street proposal has been redesigned

http://pbn.com/Thayer-Street-apartme...designed,68512

[Frankie811]

Consultant suggests Providence put restrictions on Thayer apartment plan

http://news.providencejournal.com/br...tant-sugg.html

[Nexis4jersey]

Any large scale projects underway or being proposed?

[datadyne007]

Dunno, but I have some other fantastic news...

Pinkberry opened in Providence Place today!!!

[Lrfox]

Originally Posted by Nexis4jersey

Any large scale projects underway or being proposed?

There are some larger buildings proposed. Both down on the old 195 land and on College Hill. This site isn't the best place to get news on PVD as there's no PVD community here. Whenever I post something it's usually copy/pasted from http://www.gcpvd.org/ which is always updating.

I know that Starwood has put plans for a W in Providence back on the table, but not sure where it's going to go. It'll be scaled back from the pre recession plans.

Originally Posted by datadyne007

Dunno, but I have some other fantastic news...

Pinkberry opened in Providence Place today!!!

Awesome! I'll have to try it out. All I think of is that episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm.

[datadyne007]

I'm really intrigued by W's interest in Providence. I don't think it quite has the scene they look for yet, but it's definitely coming as Providence continues to evolve and has been consistently rated as America's coolest and up-and-coming city.

[Lrfox]

I don't think Providence merits one on its own. However, I do think proximity to Boston and some Boston area venues (i.e. Gillette, Comcast Center, etc) helps. You'll get overflow and for busy/pricey dates in Boston; and for Comcast Center or Gillette, Providence is preferable (visiting NFL teams stay in PVD).

Also, Starwood has a Westin in Providence which gives them a good bead on the luxury hotel market in Providence. Surprisingly, there are only 2 hotels in the city that rate at 4 stars (Westin and Renaissance). There are no 5 star hotels. There are a couple of smaller "luxury" boutique hotels (like Hotel Providence) that have done well. W bills itself as a boutique luxury hotel and could fit in nicely on a small scale. New Orleans has a big W hotel and a much smaller French Quarter hotel. Providence isn't New Orleans by a long shot, but they are similar in size and I could see a W utilizing a historic downcity building and teaming with RISD to come up with a very cool, small hotel.

Providence's "scene" is definitely still emerging. The thing that kills me is the real Jersey Shore influence in a lot of the nightlife. Federal Hill is awesome for a meal. It has some great bars too, but man does it ever get douchey. Still, the city has some really cosmopolitan events and a very good arts/dining scene (second only to Boston in New England... and Providence's "creative" vibe is a little edgier than BOS). I lived there years ago, and I'm always surprised how urban a place it really is when I go back. Rhode Islanders are also a whiny, self-loathing bunch which is off-putting.

But yeah... for a combination of reasons, PVD will end up with a W at some point.

[Frankie811]

LrFox, how do you know that Starwood has plans back on the table for a "W" hotel? I've seen nothing as of yet.

[Mark24]

For Immediate Release Contact: Kristen Adamo
401-456-0231
kadamo@pwcvb.com

What Summer Doldrums?
Providence Hotels Surpass 80 Percent Occupancy for the First Time Since 2004

Providence, RI – July 30, 2012 – The temperature isn’t the only thing rising in Providence, as city hotels enjoy one of their best years in nearly a decade. Occupancy for June 2012 was 81.4 percent, the first time Providence hotels have surpassed 80 percent since October 2004. Overall, occupancy rate and the Average Daily Rate (ADR) for a hotel room for the first six months of 2012 are both up over 2011 levels.

“The idea of vacating a city during the hot summer months is an outdated concept, at least here in Providence,” said Martha Sheridan, president and CEO of the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau (PWCVB). “The PWCVB has booked several large meetings, conventions and sporting events this summer, which are filling restaurants, hotels and shops, while the City of Providence and our local arts and cultural community have scheduled a wide range of entertaining events that are drawing more visitors to the city.”

Among the high-profile events that Providence hosted in June were: Netroots Nation, a conference of progressive bloggers and political figures; IEEE Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Conference; and the 2012 Hearing Loss Association of America Annual Convention. The three conferences accounted for 5,549 hotel room nights.

The rest of the summer is equally busy. In July, the city has hosted the Amica Ironman 70.3 Rhode Island, the 2012 National Strength & Conditioning Conference and Exposition, and the International Association of Food Protection Annual Meeting. The three events consumed an estimated 8,250 hotel room nights. On deck in August are the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education 2012 Conference, the American Phytopathological Society 2012 Annual Meeting, and the Rock N Roll Providence Half Marathon. The three events will account for 7,796 hotel room nights.

“While meetings and conventions provide a solid base for the hotel community, it is the layering of leisure travel visitors on top of that base that makes the kind of substantial impact we’ve seen this summer,” said Sheridan. “Events like WaterFire, Providence Restaurant Weeks, the Independence Day celebration, and the community programming that the City of Providence does add vibrancy to the city and draw visitors to the region. They are all integrated into our leisure marketing efforts.”

While occupancy peaked in June, the rest of 2012 has also been strong. Overall, occupancy is up 5% over the same time period in 2011 and each individual month has bested that same month in 2012.

In addition, the Providence hotel community has seen ADR slowly rise to near pre-recession levels. Overall, the average ADR for the first half of 2012 was $137.17, an increase over the 2011 ADR of $129.68. So far in 2012, the ADR peaked in May at $159.14, buoyed by meetings and conventions, as well as area college graduations. June’s ADR was a solid $149.36, up 9.7% over June 2011.

END


"W" was originally proposed for the bottom 10 floors of a planned residential high rise that fell victim to the recession. The return of the higher rates and occupancy lends itself to a possible new downtown hotel. What isn't mentioned in the report is that this 81.4 occupancy includes two new hotels, The Hampton and Renaissance, that weren't around in 2004. Appoximately 400 rooms. Thus, as compared to 2004 without these rooms added, the occupancy rate would be much higher. Also, there is another boutique hotel in the works at the former Sportsmen Club, a longtime dive, on Fountain street. It will have about 85 rooms.