When Herb Weiss came to Pawtucket in 1999, economic development in the city was more an aspiration than a reality. Though the city had fallen far from its days as a bustling industrial hub, Weiss and others believed it could be revitalized as a haven for artists and artisans.
Over the last eight years that has been Weiss’ mission, and he has much to celebrate, including the transformation of mills into more than 500 artist condos and work spaces, an influx of new small businesses, and last month, the addition of downtown Pawtucket to the National Register of Historic Places.
PBN: What brought you to Pawtucket?
WEISS: It was a job opportunity for a position that opened up on economic development. I came into the job with almost 19 years of journalism and marketing, and I realized that economic development, when you get down to the basics, is image building, and I felt I could do that even though I didn’t have a degree in economic development policy.
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PBN: How would you describe Pawtucket when you started in the position?
WEISS: We had mills that were empty, and we had image problems. We were looked at as being hardscrabble. But the arts initiative that kicked off in 1999 has pointed us in the right direction. It’s increased our city’s pride in what we’ve been able to accomplish.
PBN: How do you see Pawtucket now?
WEISS: There is a buzz around the state, and even nationwide, that Pawtucket is a city that caters to the artistic and creative community. One of the things we’ve realized as a city is that artists are small businesses, and we’re a city of small businesses. So our economic development strategy is to keep these businesses in Pawtucket and help them expand and create jobs.
PBN: What have you done to do that?
WEISS: We’ve created brochures about loan programs, tax incentives and business services in the city. A couple of these loans programs we have developed were specifically developed to help small businesses and the artists meet fire and safety codes. We also created a restaurant loan program to bring restaurants and cafés into our downtown. These loans are out of the Pawtucket Business Development Corporation, the nonprofit lending arm of the city. …
We’ve also streamlined our regulatory process. We now have weekly meetings where a developer can come to a meeting with the fire marshal and the zoning director, and we’ll take a look at your project. Then they become familiar with your project, and you know exactly what you need to do upfront. That is very important. …
We really feel that people should roll out the red carpet and try to ratchet up the level of customer service in the things that we do.
PBN: What does the National Register designation mean for the city?
WEISS: This took over two years to carve out a historic district. Mayor Doyle and Mike Cassidy, the director of planning and redevelopment, brought together many people to accomplish this feat. … Federal recognition was given to create a 14-acre historic district that encompasses about 50 commercial buildings – and out of those 50 buildings, 35 are considered historically contributing structures that are eligible for federal and state tax credits.
PBN: What do you see as the most exciting things happening in the city?
WEISS: We are extremely excited about the hotel project that is going to be coming about. It’s a Hampton Inn right on the river. The initial phase is going to be 100 rooms, and a future phase will include another 100 rooms and a 20,000-square-foot office building. And it’s going to have a freestanding restaurant.
We’re trying to develop the riverfront, with a riverfront commission. We are going to see in the future a bike path in the city along the river. We’re currently at 10 percent design, and the city has ownership or agreements for approximately 80 percent of the land.
The train station has been saved through the assistance of CVS, the cities of Pawtucket and Central Falls and the developer. We now have an agreement which is beneficial to everyone. We’re working hard to make the train stop operable, which will have a major effect on the city where a person can walk over to Montgomery Street and catch the train to Boston.
And there is now a purchase and sales agreement on the Jabbour Electronics building [on Fountain Street], which will be turned into an antiques mall called Rhode Island Antiques Mall. That may be open as soon as late August, with 150 dealers.
PBN: And Counting Crows is headlining the Pawtucket Arts Festival this year?
WEISS: We are very excited about having Counting Crows kick off this year’s arts festival with Collective Soul. Our arts festival has grown from a $15,000 budget in 1999 to a $107,000 budget this year.
PBN: What is your vision of Pawtucket in 10 years?
WEISS: I’d like to see an operating train station, a commuter rail, the hotel up and running and the riverfront around the hotel developed. I would like to see the downtown more developed with restaurants and services for the people living downtown. And I hope to see the Gamm Theater expand and the city become a destination for antiques. We have several antiques stores, and we’ll also have an antiques mall, and the Elks Club building is in the planning stages to become an international auction house. These things will take time, but everything is fitting together like a mosaic.
Interview: Herbert Weiss
Position: Economic and cultural affairs officer, City of Pawtucket
Background: Before joining the city’s Department of Planning and Redevelopment in 1999, Herb Weiss was a freelance writer for six years, focusing on aging and health care issues. Previously, he was the editor of several health and aging-related publications, including the Aging Network News in Maryland, which he founded in 1985. He also served as legislative assistant to then-U.S. Sen. Larry Pressler, R-South Dakota, in 1988, and from 1980 to 1985, he was director of education and research for the Health Facilities Association of Maryland.
Education: B.S. in psychology, 1977, University of Texas-Austin; two M.A.s in aging, one from the University of Texas at Austin in 1977 and another in 1979 from the Center for Studies in Aging, North Texas State University; doctoral work in public policy administration, University of Maryland
Residence: Pawtucket
Age: 52
