PROVIDENCE – The I-195 Redevelopment District Commission on Wednesday agreed to cut the price of Parcel 6 by $900,000, a concession before closing that board members said recognizes unanticipated site-work expenses for the developers who have the site under contract.
The parcel, on the East Side of the city, has “very poor soil conditions” that will not be able to support a conventional foundation system without expensive ground-improvement work, according to Caroline Skuncik, the commission’s executive director.
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“It is customary for sellers to reduce … purchase prices in situations such as these where unforeseen subsurface conditions are discovered,” Skuncik said.
The commission board voted to reduce the purchase price for the parcel from $1 million, the sale price agreed upon in August 2019, to $100,000. The $29 million project is still moving forward on schedule, Skuncik said, with a groundbreaking planned in 2021.
Put forward by Providence-based DP Real Estate and Truth Box Architects Inc., the project involves new construction of a mixed-use building, with a grocery market as an anchor tenant at street level, and apartments on the floors above. A total of 52 apartment units will be created, and 22,000 square-feet of commercial space, including 13,100-square-feet for a grocery store. About half of the apartments will be leased at rates affordable to moderate-income residents, according to the commission.
In a separate decision, the commission approved the project for its final design approval, called Level 2 approval. It’s intended as the last level of review for the commission prior to closing.
Mary MacDonald is a staff writer for the PBN. Contact her at macdonald@PBN.com.
Why not leave as a park if it is only going to bring in $100K? Granted we want tax money on buildings but maybe this is one parcel to let go.