The R.I. Department of Transportation earlier this month gained approval from the R.I. State Properties Committee to start the bidding process to sell the Fox Point waterfront parcel that was once home to the Shooters nightclub. The future of the property has been a banner issue for several neighborhood groups, including Head of the Bay Gateway, which would like to see the parcel become public land and, barring that, responsible development.
Providence Business News asked Head of the Bay Co-chair Arria Bilodeau about the future of the parcel and how it could best serve the East Side community.
PBN: What would Head of the Bay like to see happen with the Shooters parcel?
BILODEAU: The state should retain ownership of the site and designate it as a future water taxi and ferry terminal and waterfront attraction for the capital city region. It would be leased to a marina developer/operator and a restaurateur/venue operator and would generate operating income through leased space to marine-related organizations or industries.
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PBN: What are Head of the Bay’s issues with the Department of Transportation’s plan to sell the property with a starting bid of $3.5 million?
BILODEAU: The state has not given assurances that $3.5 million would be a minimum and therefore is likely to sell off this asset at a lower price, given the current economic realities. The $3.5 million appraisal of the site was obtained in March 2008 and is probably not a realistic appraisal in February 2009.
Selling this site forever would take it out of the control of any planning for the city and state.
The strategic location of the site at the gateway to the bay, the city, the interstates and the bike path and walkways make it imperative that planning and vision be brought to bear on disposition of it. Public opinion is adamant – as expressed at the citywide and Fox Point planning charrettes and other forums – that the space be used for public attractions and amenities. The capital of the Ocean State has no avenue onto or off Narragansett Bay to the city that can accommodate the general public. This is the opportunity and the key location to create that gateway.
While the state will probably have to pay back the federal government the funds spent to acquire this site, it was stated at the recent State Properties Committee hearing that there is no deadline for doing so and it is not specified that the funds must be derived from selling this property. They can be generated by other means.
The proceeds from this sale for the purpose of paying back the feds is dismally similar to the $3 million in Interstate 195 costs that the feds are forcing DOT to pay because of its insufficient oversight of the quality of concrete used in the Iway construction. Should DOT really be allowed to throw away this site in order to reimburse itself for failing to perform due diligence on the job?
PBN: What does Head of the Bay see as the best option for a developer to pursue in building on the site and would you support residential use? What type of building would be best?
BILODEAU: A three-story building incorporating a restaurant, an event venue, a marina and ferry landing, a festival site and public amenities would be desirable. Public access to the water and a generous multi-modal path along the shore connecting seamlessly with India Point Park and the bike path should be incorporated as well. Tourist information about the city, state and bay ideally would be provided. Offices for marine-based organizations would be income-generating. All these uses would greatly enhance public use of the adjoining park.
Residential use is not compatible with public enjoyment of the park or with the 24-hour operation of the adjacent tugboat company, a picturesque, vital part of the working waterfront that has been plying the bay’s waters since 1881. To make residential development of such a site profitable, a high-rise building would be required. The scale and cost of such a building would require higher income residents, but the isolation and location outside the hurricane barrier would limit its attraction.
Such a development would be an anomaly positioned between the working waterfront and the popular park. It would be at odds with public festivals and other crowd-attracting events and would require generous, dedicated parking close to the units. Standalone, single-purpose residential buildings have been less than successful in other cities and they often end up privatizing adjoining public spaces, leaving them under-utilized and thus largely defeating their public purpose, as has happened in Vancouver and elsewhere.
There is not a strong likelihood of such a development being undertaken in this economic climate. Providence has seen several developers recently start such unlikely enterprises, only to have them turn out to be stuck unsold, un-rented, or unrealized. This site is too valuable an asset to be squandered on such a gamble. We – the city and the state – can do better than hope for this kind of a fast buck.
PBN: At one point last year, the City Council was mulling a zoning or use change for the property. Is that still being considered?
BILODEAU: The Planning Department characterizes this possibility as being a “taking” because down-zoning the property decreases its value. But the property is owned by the state, which has the right to hold it “for any public purpose,” under the state Constitution. Improving this asset by creating a waterfront destination will increase the value of the parcels to the north and will add to the quality of life for the capital of the Ocean State, making it more attractive for businesses and residents to move here.
PBN: Going forward, what steps are you going to take to push for the best use for this property – and for the other state parcels that will be opened up during the next three years?
BILODEAU: • We’ll enlist state officials who have the vision to see the importance of this asset.
• We’ll press the city’s planning department to take notice of broad public support for placing controls on future uses of the site to bring about public amenities and waterfront attractions.
• We’ll enlist marine interests in specifying this site as a future location for a water taxi and ferry terminal for Providence on Narragansett Bay
