Union Trust Co. building sold

THE LANDMARK Union Trust Co. building downtown has been sold to the development group that produced the Providence G complex, with plans to convert part of it to an apartment building. / COURTESY SCOTT KINGSLEY/JUST ASK
THE LANDMARK Union Trust Co. building downtown has been sold to the development group that produced the Providence G complex, with plans to convert part of it to an apartment building. / COURTESY SCOTT KINGSLEY/JUST ASK

PROVIDENCE – The landmark Union Trust Co. building downtown has been sold to the development group that produced the Providence G complex, with plans to convert its offices to apartments.
The building, at 170 Westminster St., includes The Dorrance restaurant on the ground floor. The restaurant will remain, and a second floor converted to commercial space. The remaining 10 floors of the mid-rise building will be renovated over five years into rental apartments, according to Brendan Moran, property manager for both the Providence G complex and the Union Trust building.
Providence Capital LLC purchased the Union Trust Co. building on March 5 for $4.4 million, according to the city assessor’s office. The property, on the corner of Westminster and Dorrance streets, had been assessed at $4.9 million. It was last sold in 2007 to 170 Westminster Street LLC for $6.7 million, according to city records.
Vincent J. Geoffroy, a New York-based developer who is the authorized agent of Providence Capital LLC, and the primary investor in the Providence G project, could not be reached this week for comment.
The 12-story Union Trust Co. building was built in 1901 and 1902, and is on the National Register of Historic Places. At the time of its completion, it was among the tallest buildings in New England. The structure features an ornate exterior of brick and rusticated granite, of a French Renaissance-revival style, according to the Register’s description of the building. “The Union Trust Company Building is an example of grandiose revivalist and eclectic turn-of-the-century architecture, a symbol of the high status in which the financial community saw itself in this era,” the register description states.
The renovation plan will retain the historical details of the building, according to Moran.
About half of the 62,000-square-foot structure is occupied, Moran said. The plan for the redevelopment would allow crews to work initially on the empty floors, without disrupting the tenants.
“The plan is to do a five-year renovation of the building … eventually turning it all into residential,” he said.
Moran estimated the 170 Westminster renovation on completion would create about 60 apartment units. Studio Meja, which also designed the Providence G mixed-use complex, will be the architect.
Moran said he could not disclose the value of the planned conversion to apartments. It was not immediately clear if the project will seek either state historic preservation tax credits or city tax incentives. Moran referred questions on the project financing to Geoffroy.
The resident agent for Providence Capital LLC, attorney John Mancini, also could not be reached.
The Providence G project, which created 62 apartments, three restaurants and a 60-space garage, was a $20 million development, according to a project summary by Kelly & Mancini PC, the law office whose attorneys represented the owners. The project involved the renovation of three historic buildings: the former Providence Gas building, the Teste Block and the Narragansett Garage.
The development plan is another indication that downtown Providence is a desirable location for apartment conversions.
“We’re seeing it here at the Providence G,” said Moran, who noted its apartments are fully leased, with a waiting list.
Renovations will begin as soon as possible at the Union Trust Co. building, Moran said. The first apartment units could be ready for tenants by year’s end, he said.
“The plan is to start leasing by the end of 2015,” he said.

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