PROVIDENCE – Philadelphia firm Pennrose LLC recently celebrated a groundbreaking for the first phase of construction on Parcel 9 in the Fox Point neighborhood, kicking off plans to transform the vacant 1-acre property between Our Lady of The Rosary Church and Interstate 195 into a 127-unit, mixed-income, mixed-use apartment development.
The first phase of construction, including 66 apartment units, is on track to be completed next summer and the building will be open in September 2024, according to Pennrose.
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The first phase includes a five-story apartment building with ground floor retail space, a child care facility and a mix of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments, available to residents making between 30% to 120% of the area median income, along with market-rate apartments, according to Pennrose.
The Parcel 9 property is part of the I-195 Redevelopment District, the former highway land that’s been built up for the past 12 years with the oversight of a quasi-public state agency, the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission.
“It was important to the I-195 commission to provide affordable housing and child care options within the Innovation District and we look forward to fulfilling that mission with a completed complex,” said Charlie Adams, regional vice president at Pennrose. “We are thrilled to be here today alongside project partners and the community’s many advocates to celebrate the exciting first step in transforming I-195’s Parcel 9.”
The I-195 Redevelopment District Commission approved a final overall design for the $48 million Parcel 9 redevelopment project in September 2021, including the $25 million, 66-unit building referred to as Fox Point West in its project renderings.
The child care facility planned on-site is being operated in partnership with the Providence-based Children’s Friend, the longtime local nonprofit child care provider offering affordable care for infants, toddlers and preschool-age children within a 6,800-square-foot space in the Fox Point West building.
“We are thrilled to be bringing a new option for early education and family support services to Rhode Island families,” said David Caprio, CEO and president of Children’s Friend. “We are excited to incorporate feedback from our teaching staff across our sites to inform the design of this new space.”
Caprio said the child care operation is being financed with grant funding from Local Initiative Support Corp. Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Early Childhood Care and Education Capital Fund and the R.I. Department of Human Services.
Providence Mayor Brett P. Smiley said the redevelopment of Parcel 9 was positive news for the city as it addresses a “housing crisis” by increasing the local housing supply at every price point.
“The redevelopment will benefit from its location near Interstate 195, local bus routes, the restaurants and commercial activity along neighboring Wickenden Street,” said Smiley, adding that the project is also being aided by a “growing Innovation District, and recently improved parks and open space along the Providence River.”
Marc Larocque is a PBN contributing writer. Contact him at Larocque@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter @LaRockObama.
