Alison Bologna anchors WJAR-TV NBC 10’s “NBC 10 News Sunrise,” and when she is not on the air, she runs Shri Studio Inc., doing business as Shri Studio, Service Corps & Bark.
The company includes Shri Studio, an outreach yoga studio; Shri Service Corps, a nonprofit arm that serves more than 8,500 residents every year with yoga outreach programs delivered by more than 40 certified yoga instructors in schools, shelters, hospitals, recovery centers, veterans centers and social service agencies; and Shri Bark Snacks, a healthy snack line that helps fund its nonprofit arm while feeding more than 40,000 students every month in schools statewide.
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Shri is currently renovating the former Conant Thread Co. building at 390 Pine St. in Pawtucket, which will house a state-of-the-art wellness center, a cafe owned and operated by adults with disabilities, affordable housing and market-rate lofts when completed.
PBN: Can you explain the genesis for renovating the Conant Thread Co. building in Pawtucket, built in the early 1880s, to house your yoga and wellness operation?
BOLOGNA: Since I started Shri in 2010, the mission has been rooted in bringing light – the loose Sanskrit definition of Shri – to a physical space in downtown Pawtucket, so investing in real estate 10 years later, at a time when we desperately need more space for our programs, makes sense.
But I did not want to invest in just any building. Instead, I really wanted to find something big enough to expand Shri’s mission into affordable housing, with parking and green space on-site, along with an opportunity to salvage and reimagine [a] historically significant structure. So, when the city introduced me to the owner of 390 Pine St. in 2018, all of these possibilities became a reality, and the deal-making began.
PBN: What are your plans for the design of the space? Is there a style that you are aiming for to accommodate your business?
BOLOGNA: Yes! I love designing spaces, and I have already done quite a few in New England (alisonbolognadesign.com), so my vision here is to build upon these past projects to preserve this building’s existing, uncluttered beauty while also modernizing it in a raw, almost unfinished kind of way.
The “new office building,” as is described by the National Park Service, is built in the Italianate style. Inside there is beautiful rhythm in how the brick walls present like architectural ruins. There are walk-in safes, which we are turning into Shri’s board room and a new staircase.
Repurposing will be a huge theme as well, since I’ve collected a garage full of antique sinks: 10-foot-tall interior doors, turn-of-the-century windows, vintage sewing machines – we found 11 of them buried behind a rotting wall, antique textile equipment, stand-alone safes, stools and rolling fire doors.
All these pieces will be arranged to document this rich part of Pawtucket’s history, while juxtaposed against bright contemporary art installations and Shri-specific photographic wall displays.
PBN: How much will the renovation project cost, and when do you expect to have it completed?
BOLOGNA: Including acquisition, soft costs and construction, we’re closing in on a $3.7 million budget. I hired Pawtucket Central Falls Development Corp. to help me develop this project from start to finish, with architect Ed Wojcik and general contractor Stand Corp.
Shri board member Jennifer Boyle Hebda is helping execute my design and way-finding dreams, and the city, state and several other local nonprofits have proven to be tremendous collaborators as well. Thanks to everyone’s hard work, we hope to open in late 2022, alongside the opening of the commuter rail hub, only 500 feet away.
PBN: How did you come up with the idea for the Giving Wall campaign, and what has it meant for the project?
BOLOGNA: In line with our mission of building an accessible, creative community, we wanted to include a special space for those who love Shri and want to contribute to this revitalization project. For many, this sort of recognition in other community centers is not affordable. So, we’re changing that with an “all levels welcome” approach. Not only are all giving levels accepted, [but] this will also help us fill our real-world funding gap created by COVID-19 and the surge of construction material costs.
PBN: What are you hoping to achieve with the revitalization of the building and its surrounding neighborhood?
BOLOGNA: I hope to transform this area that’s been largely neglected and underutilized for decades. By providing yoga and wellness programs for our more than 8,500 students every year on the first floor, I’m confident this project will activate its surrounding neighborhood and turn what’s been an eyesore into a destination.
When construction is complete, this mixed-income, mixed-use property will include three first-floor social enterprise businesses – including Shri, expected to double the number of students served – and eight residential apartments, five of which will be affordable housing units. The result: a creative live, work, wellness community.
Cassius Shuman is a PBN staff writer. You may reach him at Shuman@PBN.com.
