PROVIDENCE – The I-195 Redevelopment District Commission is set to select a developer for Parcel 5 during its meeting Wednesday.
Nine firms originally submitted bids to develop Parcel 5, a 1½-acre plot on the east side of the Providence River between South Main and South Water streets. The plot is one of the most prominent spots left in the district, garnering much more interest than the adjacent Parcel 2, which drew three proposals and is being developed by Urbanica Inc.
The commission has whittled down the competition to three developers: Transom Real Estate, Design Center Partners, and Bluedog Capital Partners LLC. In November 2024, the commission selected these three developers, along with EQT Exeter, as finalists to develop Parcel 5. However, EQT Exeter, which pitched a six-floor, mixed-use building with 210 residential units, withdrew its proposal, according to commission documents.
The developer pulled its project because the company is shifting its focus to go “all in on industrial,” Cara Cromwell, a spokesperson for the I-195 district commission, said in an emailed statement to Providence Business News.
A spokesperson for EQT Exeter did not immediately respond to PBN’s request for comment.
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Street view of the Providence Art and Design Center / Courtesy Design Center Partners[/caption]
Design Center Partners’ proposal is titled “The Providence Art & Design Center,” with 150 apartments, 25 condominiums and a 30,000-square-foot design center. More than 5% of the residential units would be reserved for creative workforce housing and there would be 117 parking spaces. The developers have secured letters of intent for advancing pre-leases from several businesses, including Air & Anchor, DesignxRI, Myrth Ceramics, Open Projects and Angel’s Kitchen. Previous versions of the design included 200 residential units and a 50,000-square-foot design center.
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Aerial view of "The Current." / Courtesy Transom Real Estate[/caption]
Transom Real Estate is proposing a six-story building called “The Current,” with 220 apartments and more than 11,500 square feet of retail space. Plans show that the massing is curved in a way that creates several courtyards that open up to the park, waterfront and Fox Point neighborhood. A portion of the ground level is also dedicated to support local organizations and offer gallery and street wall space for artists.
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Rendering of "Vital on the River" overlooking the Providence River./Courtesy of Bluedog Capital Partners[/caption]
Bluedog Capital’s proposal, named “Vital on the River,” includes 41,700 square feet of commercial and retail space, 57,600 square feet for a hotel on the second through fourth floors, and 40,700 square feet for condos on the fifth and sixth floors. Plans also include spots for a learning center, rentable space, a restaurant, coworking space, a fitness center and a rooftop deck. The developer has noted in the plans the proposal is meant to be a lifestyle development where residents can “Live, Work and Prosper.”
Bluedog Capital’s proposal has earned support from the Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades Council – which is comprised of 17 local trade unions with 10,000 members – because the developer has committed to an all-union workforce for construction.
Kim Anderson, owner of Plant City located just a few hundred feet from the parcel, expressed support for Transom’s proposal in a letter to commissioners.
“Transom’s proposal offers a design that thoughtfully balances architecture, placemaking and the creation of new housing,” Anderson wrote in a Jan. 22 public comment letter. “The increased foot traffic and activity generated by this development will undoubtedly benefit existing businesses, like Plant City, and attract new investment to our city.”
Other residents, including Norana Caivano, support the Design Center Partners proposal. Caivano, who wrote a letter to commissioners on Nov. 19, praised the design’s unique look and the inner pedestrian street.
The I-195 Redevelopment District Commission is scheduled to meet Wednesday at 5 p.m. at District Hall on the second floor at 225 Dyer St. in Providence. The meeting will also be available to attend remotely via Zoom.
(UPDATE adds comment from I-195 commission spokesperson Cara Cromwell in paragraph 4, plus minor edits.)
Katie Castellani is a PBN staff writer. You may contact her at Castellani@PBN.com.
