PROVIDENCE – The long-winded saga of the controversial Fane Tower project might be far from approaching its finish line, as the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission said it is considering granting yet another extension to the developer.
Almost seven years since it was first proposed, the Fane Tower’s fate will likely be decided next month, at the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission’s meeting on March 15. Currently, the New York-based Fane Organization holds a contract for Parcel 42, where it is hoping to build the 550-foot, $300 million luxury tower. But the current contract is set to expire at the end of March, after receiving numerous extensions over the past few years, and Jason Fane, president of the Fane Organization, has already said he is unable to close on the purchase by the deadline.
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“We were focused on the design,” said Jim Malachowski, spokesperson for Fane. “Yes, there was a timeline with deadlines that, because of the court case, Fane is not able to meet.”
This puts the commission at a crossroads: it can choose to grant another extension, or let the contract expire and select a new developer. Whatever happens, commission Chairman Marc Crisafulli said he knows there will be disappointed reactions among many of the interested parties.
“I know this is an emotional, intense issue,” he said at the commission meeting on Wednesday. “Everyone’s going to be a little bit dissatisfied with however this plays out, but our job as a commission is to try and balance all of the competing interests as best we can and come up with a solution that advances the most interest.”
At the meeting, in which the floor was opened to more public comment on the tower’s latest design, Crisafulli said the commission is carefully considering its next steps.
“We’re going to discuss with the Fane team the prospects and possibilities of an extension on terms that protect the commission and the state going forward,” Crisafulli said. “And we’re going to continue to have everyone working on the design.”
If the commission and Fane’s team reach an “acceptable design” and “effective terms” for another extension, the chair said both matters will be brought up at the commission’s next meeting and a vote will take place. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement, the commission will let the contract expire and “begin the process of finding a new development partner and plan for Parcel 42.”
Malachowski said the Fane team was happy to hear the chairman say the commission is willing to discuss a new extension and that the team will continue to collaborate with the commission to hopefully reach an agreement. It is unclear at this time when the new deadline would be and Malachowski said he is unable to give an estimate.
“Fane has worked cooperatively with the I-195 Commission and its consultants to address the suggestions and achieve a design that is feasible and safe,” Malachowski said in a statement. “Fane is eager to get approval of the latest design without further delay so we can move forward with this exciting project.”
During Wednesday’s meeting, the Fane team presented the modifications it made to its tower’s design in response to the commission’s and public’s feedback from January’s meeting. In December 2022, after months of quiet over the project’s status, the Fane organization submitted a new design, a choice triggered by budget constraints and made necessary to “maintain project feasibility,” Fane said.
The new design changes the building’s façade, adding “curvilinear lines and rounded corners” and reducing the number and size of balconies. The podium, or lower portion of the building, was reduced in height, going from six to four stories, which allows the tower to have three additional floors of residential units but also reduces the number of available parking spaces from 330 to 166.
The new design was slammed by the commission’s consultant, Utile Architecture and Planning, which pointed out several shortcomings of the project’s new design, citing unsatisfactory podium and tower designs, unsatisfactory site plan and potential negative impact on wind patterns.
Much of the public also rejected the new design at a commission meeting in January, raising concerns about the project’s lack of parking spaces and questioned whether there is a market to support it.
During the Feb. 15 meeting, Fane presented the changes it made in the last month. To address the concerns related to wind impacts, the team introduced some design modifications to mitigate wind impacts, such as horizontal fins, a large glass canopy and a series of screens. Fane had already conducted a wind study in 2021 and said it adapted the findings to the new design.
Regarding the podium, the team added “complexity and animation,” adding some horizontal and vertical panel elements and lighting to the podium. But it stood by its choice to stay away from the original design.
“In terms of the relationship to the 225 Dyer building across the street, as new buildings are built in the neighborhood, they will each have their own look,” the Fane team said in a memo. “The juxtaposition of the variety of buildings creates the urban streetscape, without all buildings being required to relate to the façade materials of the earlier construction in that neighborhood. The Fane Tower should be viewed as a stand-alone modern entity.”
Lastly, the team addressed concerns over pedestrian and vehicular traffic around the building. Utile had criticized the three garage doors on Dorrance Street and potential consequences on pedestrian traffic. The Fane team said it will not return to its single access door, but it will introduce signaling and patterns to help control traffic.
After hearing Fane’s latest modifications, Tim Love, representing Utile, said some concerns still linger. He thinks issues around the access point for vehicles and parking situation around the building have not been resolved yet, and there needs to be more conversations on how this will be addressed. In terms of wind impact, while the Fane team addressed potential impacts on and around the tower’s parcel, Love said it failed to address impacts on the wider park.
“There are wind impacts in the park that the solution we saw this evening won’t mitigate,” Love said.
But Malachowski said wind impacts on the park cannot be attributed solely to the Fane Tower.
“Fane is one developer, it’s one building. It’s a large park,” Malachowski said. “There’s a lot of different buildings and topography that affect the winds all across that park. … Every building in and around the park, and other buildings yet to be built, is going to impact that.”
Members of the public also expressed their opinions during the meetings, reiterating many of the concerns brought up in the past. Some support for the project survives among labor unions, but neighborhood groups and the Providence Preservation Society continue to oppose the development. Many are frustrated with the lengthy process that has dragged on for almost a decade and are hesitant to believe Fane will ever build the tower. But according to the commission, a decision will be made soon.
“I know this has been a long process,” Crisafulli said. “Some of you have been at this for years. We’re going to come to the conclusion one way or the other very soon.”
Claudia Chiappa is a PBN staff writer. You may contact her at Chiappa@PBN.com.
