Greater City Providence

Downtown Design Review Committee Meeting – May 14, 2018

[alert type=”muted” heading=”Downtown Design Review Committee Notice of Regular Meeting”]Monday, May 14, 2018 – 4:45pm
Doorley Municipal Building
444 Westminster Street, 1st Floor Conference Room
Providence, RI 02903
Agenda [/alert]

drc-roundOpening Session

  • Call to Order
  • Roll Call
  • Special Meeting Minutes of March 27, 2018 and April 5, 2018, and Regular Meeting Minutes of April 9, 2018

New Business

275 Westminster Street – Image from Google Street View

1. DRC Application No. 18.12: 275 Westminster Street (Cherry & Webb Building) – Proposal by 275 Westminster Partners, LLC to modify the existing storefront by creating a secondary lobby entrance on the Westminster Street elevation.

2. DRC Application No. 18.07: 100 Sabin Street (former Fogarty Building site) – The subject of the hearing will be an application by TPG 100 Sabin Hotel LLC, requesting a waiver from Zoning Ordinance Section 1607(H), Projecting Signs, which limits the number and square footage of projecting signs in the D?1 Zone. The applicant is proposing to install two internally illuminated projecting signs on the building currently under construction at 100 Sabin Street, Providence, RI. At the conclusion of the hearing, the DDRC will take action with respect to the requested item.

Old Business

Rendering of building proposed at 131 Canal Street

3. DRC Application No. 18.05: 131 Canal Street (parking lot) – Public Hearing and Conceptual Design Review – The subject of the hearing will be an application by Steeple Street RI, LLC requesting a development incentive in the form of a height bonus, and requesting waivers from Providence Zoning Ordinance Section 606, Design Standards for New Construction, for a new 11-story mixed-use building to be constructed at 131 Canal Street, Providence, RI. The height bonus requested is from Section 603.E.1, Schedule of Development Bonuses/Active Ground Floor Uses. The waivers requested are from Sections 606.A.4, Building Height and Massing/Recess line, 606.D.1, Building Height and Massing/Façade Design, 606.E.1, Façade Design/Ground Floor Transparency, and 606.E.3, Building Facades/Upper Level Transparency. The DDRC will be reviewing the building design at the conceptual design stage. At the conclusion of the hearing, the DDRC will take action with respect to the requested items.

The applicant was granted the height bonus at the March 27, 2018 DDRC meeting. The portion of the public hearing related to the waivers and the conceptual design review was continued from the April 9, 2018 DDRC meeting.

[alert type=”muted” heading=”See also:”] Greater City Providence: Edge College Hill 2, Take II[/alert]

Other Business

4. Pre-Application Review 580 South Water Street* (East Side Overlay District) – Proposal to construct a new 5-story mixed-use building on the site. This item is for discussion only. No action will be taken by the DRC at this meeting.

Adjournment

*I think 580 South Water is the corner of South Water and Tockwotton, down by the hurricane barrier.

Greater City Providence

Promoting the smart urban growth of the Greater Providence region.

4 comments

  • Now this is the type of development downtown everyone should be in favor of – 11 stories, dense mixed use, removes a parking lot right on the river.

  • Yes, they should. Problem is that a lot of people are not. This project has been to the DRC numerous times already and all anyone talks about is how much they need that parking lot, even though the absence of parking is legal in new development in this location and is a zoning issue, not an issue for the DRC.

  • The anti-change, anti-progress Rhode Islanders always have a problem with new development. Add four stories to this project. Ground level retail will ‘complete’ this area of North Main, and bring back touches of “Cheapside”.

    There is a total disconnect between the elites, and young professionals or empty nesters that are trying to buy a home downtown. There is zero inventory, and no condos currently under construction. It is great that there are apartments being built, but there is nothing to purchase. Why isn’t this a priority to the decision makers? Let’s hear some solutions for the middle class housing crisis that is going on. I constantly hear this “luxury condos? who is going to buy them?” argument; there are hundreds of people currently looking for downtown condos. If you don’t believe that, go to a open house for one of the rare listings. There are plenty of people renting right now that don’t want to be, that can afford to purchase a condo.

    Home ownership is great for every community, and for downtown to become more of a community it needs home ownership.

  • The agenda for this meeting has a been updated. Review of a 5-story mixed-use building on South Water Street (I think next to the hurricane barrier) has been added.

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