A recent meeting of the 195 Redevelopment Commission reviewed ideas for a water feature in the new park on the west end of the new pedestrian bridge over the Providence River.

As the Providence Journal reported in its August 5, 2014, edition, the emphasis in the ideas varied from the fanciful to the practical. Read Kate Bramson's article here.

Writing in the Providence Journal, Kate Bramson details the proposals currently on the table for land parcels in the 195 Redevelopment District.

"PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The developer preparing to renovate the old South Street Power Station near Davol Square into nursing schools, university offices and apartments proposed buying a nearby parcel of former Route 195 land for as much as $2.25 million to build a 150-room hotel, potentially a Starwood Hotels property.

But the bid by CV Properties, which has offices in Southport, Conn., and Boston, is among three proposals rejected by the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission, which released the proposals to The Providence Journal in response to a request for records."  Read her article here.

Kate Bramson, Providence Journal, July 24, 2014 reports that Hecht Development, among the companies that submitted proposals to develop land along the former path of Route 195, is no longer in the running, founder and CEO Ken Hecht said Tuesday.

Jan A. Brodie, executive director of the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission, recently told Hecht that it wouldn’t make sense to meet with the commission unless he had firm plans to build on the parcel, about half an acre adjacent to his property at 95 Chestnut St. that he rents to the Betaspring business accelerator program and other tenants.

“The commission, to their credit, is armed with the mission to have development occur — to have development occur now — and I understand it and appreciate that,” Hecht said. “And my proposal was not necessarily ‘Here’s the plans for the building; we’re going to start building next month.’” Click here for the complete article.

For some 21 years, the South Street Cafe has been part of the restaurant and bar scene on Richmond Street. Passersby and a large and loyal group of patrons have read, with dismay and sympathy for the owner, the notice pasted inside the front windows:

To My Friends/ Customers of South Street:  I have made a decision based on the past couple of weeks with my personal health and new medical conditions that I am no longer able to continue with the South Street overall daily operation. South Street will be closing indefinitely on June 29th. I feel very fortunate to have been able to develop friendship with so many people over the past 21 years.
Thank you again for so many memories.
Paul

At a hearing on Monday, June 23, the Providence Historic District Commission denied an application to demolish the Ward Baking Company Building at 145 Globe Street in Providence's historic Jewelry District.

The structure stands prominently at the entry to downtown Providence at the intersection of Eddy Street and Allens Avenue. It is the last remnant of a much larger (and less characteristic) complex of buildings, that last was in use as Victory Plating. The rest of the property was cleared in recent years in preparation for re-development. The JDA campaigned to save the Ward Baking building. 

Ward Baking was included on the Providence Preservation Society's 2014 list of Most Endangered Properties. Constructed between 1908 and 1956, the structure is a post-World War II Deco/Moderne industrial building, a style that is rare in Providence.

As the 2014 legislative session wound to a close, the long-planned/awaited Garrahy Courthouse parking garage came closer to realization. The lot, pictured at left, would become a multi-story garage with retail on the ground floor and a possible satellite RIPTA bus depot.

Things appear to be on the move all around that lot. The legislature  enabled the joint Brown, Rhode Island College and University of Rhode Island re-purposing of the abandoned power plant on Dyer Street. That project alone will bring hundreds of new people into the district on a daily basis. Developers have expressed interest in several 195 parcels as the infrastructure work nears completion.  That means more people coming into the area.

As development proceeds and daily activity increases, additional parking will be sorely needed. So will the improved mass transit capabilities the proposed bus depot would bring to the District.

One of the 195 parcels mentioned as a possible site for a "life science incubator" is just off-camera diagonally across the Clifford and Richmond intersection from the southwest corner of the current Garrahy parking lot.

In its issue for June 23d, Providence Business News provided background and full details.