Building a bright future for the old Polish Home

It’s been a long time since the Polish National Home, at 66 Chaffee St. in the heart of Olneyville, was a vibrant social club. The ethnic makeup of the Providence neighborhood has changed. The big old landmark seemed almost out of place.
No more.
Three community development groups – the Olneyville Housing Corporation, YouthBuild Providence and Building Futures – this month announced plans to renovate and remodel the building to serve as their offices and as a building trades-focused education center.
The building has more than 9,000 square feet of interior space split between two levels. The OHC will occupy the first floor. YouthBuild Providence, which trains high school-age students to enter the construction trades, will occupy the second floor, gaining so much space that it anticipates a 20- to 30-percent increase in admissions for its next class cycle, in September. Building Futures, an initiative that helps assess, place and support urban workers in the construction trades will launch in April.
The renovation project will draw on a number of grants, charitable contributions and in-kind services from donors including Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse, the Rhode Island Chapter of the Associated General Contractors, the Providence Economic Development Partnership, the R.I. Housing Resources Commission, the Rhode Island Building Trades Council and the city.
“The story of the transformation of Olneyville is the story of neighbors, nonprofits and city government coming together as partners to reclaim the community,” said Mayor David N. Cicilline. “The new life of the Polish National Home is a perfect example of the triumph of that spirit.”