PROVIDENCE – If it looks like a dormitory, is filled with unrelated students like a dormitory, and is located near a college like a dormitory, then it probably is a dormitory, according to the chairperson of the Providence City Plan Commission.
After hearing a presentation from the owner and developer, who sought master plan approval on Tuesday to construct a five-story, mixed-use apartment building in a residential neighborhood near Providence College, City Plan Commission Chairperson Christine West called for a timeout, telling the applicants that they face a “very serious zoning problem.” West said the plans 43 market rate apartments with ground floor commercial units at 663 Admiral St., as described by Strive Realty and its CEO Joseph Colaluca, would not be allowed under the area’s C-1 neighborhood commercial district zoning since the project meets the definition of a college dormitory.
“These are very serious legal questions,” West said. “I think you have a very serious exposure to challenges. Everything you’ve described defines a dormitory.”
After giving the applicants 10 minutes to think about it, a lawyer for Strive Realty requested a continuance, and the matter was postponed until the commission’s Dec. 14 meeting starting at 4:45 p.m.
A group of neighborhood residents came out to testify against the project, but didn’t get a chance to speak out during the meeting since the meeting was cut short. But West and others encouraged them to participate in the Dec. 14 meeting.
Plans submitted to the City Plan Commission by the applicants stated that the properties would include common areas on each floor for residents, similar to common areas in on-campus college dormitories. Representatives for the applicants said it was natural that the property would gain students as tenants due to its proximity to Providence College, with the campus located less than a half-mile away.
“These are conditions that could cause disturbances when large numbers of individuals congregate,” according to a report prepared for the commission by staff at the Providence Department of Planning and Development, which recommended that the applicant should develop a plan to manage potential nuisances caused by residents. ”The behavior of college students and their effect on neighborhood character has been the subject of citywide discussion and resulted in changes to the zoning ordinance (to exclude dormitories).”
The site of the proposed 5-story building was last occupied by Joe’s Sandwich Shop in a two-story property at the site that’s now slated for demolition, according to city officials. The building was the site of a June 25 break-in and murder that claimed the life of Mai Jweinat, 50, leading to the arrest of 20-year-old Isaiah Araujo.
Architect for the project Eric Army said the property would feature controlled access and security technology, and the size of the units and common spaces are limited, with the goal of avoiding gathering areas that would “attract anything beyond reasonable.” Army said the development would help alleviate a housing shortage in the area.
“Overall, we want this to be an asset to the neighborhood,” Army said. “We’re thinking about the local residents in this design.”
Colaluca said his family raised him in the neighborhood, he got a master’s degree at Providence College, and bought his first house on Admiral Street, giving him a vested interest in the area.
“I’m not an out of state developer seeking financial gain,” Colaluca said. “Give me the opportunity to be successful and grow in this neighborhood that is so important to me.”
The commission on Tuesday also approved a master plan for a proposed apartment project at 230 Waterman St., in Wayland Square, which was proposed earlier this year by Boston Celtics co-owner and local real estate investor Stephen Lewinstein. The approval came despite criticism leveled by several abutters and other members of the public, including one neighbor who called the 5-story, 38-unit proposed building “imposing” and “looming,” with a lack of adequate parking.
The commission also approved a preliminary plan for a new for a 4-story, 16-unit residential building proposed at 113 Ives St. in Fox Point, where there’s currently a 2-family home that’s slated for demolition. The apartment is being planned by Providence Living, owned by landlord and developer Dustin Dezube.
Marc Larocque is a PBN staff writer. Contact him at Larocque@PBN.com.
