PROVIDENCE – Moving on with life as a retiree, a Providence businessman recently parted ways with the Hotel Dolce Villa property at DePasquale Square on Federal Hill, saying arrivederci to the boutique hotel business that his company established in 2005 at the urging of former late Mayor Vincent A. “Buddy” Cianci Jr.
Gianfranco Marrocco and his company GFM Realty LLC recently sold the 63 DePasquale Ave. property and a neighboring 15-space parking lot for $2 million to PVD LLC, according to public records kept by the city. PVD LLC is owned by Providence real estate developer and landlord Dustin Dezube, who plans to turn the hotel into apartments, adding the property to a portfolio of more than 280 rental units that he’s been building up since 2010 through his company Providence Living.
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Marrocco said “it was time” to sell the hotel property as he fully enters retirement, shedding much of the real estate that he acquired since arriving in the U.S. from Italy in 1970, including mostly restaurants with names like Blend (sold in August 2020), Caffe Dolce Vita (sold in 2018), and Mediterraneo (sold in 2015).
Marrocco said he’s still hanging onto five apartments to fund his retirement.
“With all those rents, God willing, all I need is my health so I can enjoy it,” said Marrocco, 60, reached by phone. “I’ve been trying to exit the business for the past 10 years. My famous line is that everything is for sale except my mom and my children. They made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”
The Hotel Dolce Villa was the only hotel ever owned by Marrocco, who added that he was motivated to start the boutique hotel business in Federal Hill at the urging of Cianci, the longest-serving mayor of Providence who died in 2016. Cianci also had a regular table reserved at Mediterraneo on Atwells Avenue, which was known for attracting celebrities who came through Providence, Marrocco said.
“I have to give credit. It was always Buddy Cianci’s idea,” Marrocco said. “He said we need a boutique hotel on Federal Hill. I hadn’t been in the hotel business. I jumped into it and learned a lot on the way.”
Dezube, the new owner of the Hotel Dolce Villa property, who in September also bought the former Club Karma on Richmond Street for residential development, plans to transform the 3-story hotel property into more than 20 apartments, mainly studios, with a few one- and two-bedroom units as well, said realtor Lindsay Pettinelli, of Churchill & Banks Companies LLC , who orchestrated the $2 million sale without having to advertise it on the open market.
The hotel business closed in late October, Pettinelli said.
Pettinelli said the Hotel Dolce Villa property is in a prime location “at the heart of Federal Hill,” including several rooms featuring balconies that overlook the DePasquale Square plaza area, which “helped sell the building.”
Marrocco said he still loves the “amazing” location.
“I call it Vatican City,” he said. “There’s no better place than this plaza.”
When Marrocco first acquired the property, it was essentially a “vacant warehouse,” Pettinelli said. A sweeping renovation, including the addition of two floor to the building, turned it into a successful hotel business for many years, she said.
“He put a lot of time and effort into that building,” Pettinelli said. “Selling it, I think, was a successful end of the story. I think it was a great addition to Dustin’s portfolio as Providence Living continues to grow. I think both parties were satisfied with the transaction. I was happy to put it together.”
Marc Larocque is a PBN staff writer. Contact him at Larocque@PBN.com.
