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POSTPONED: 110 Westminster Street

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Claremorris 2 Crossroads

Claremorris 2

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Whoa, whoa, whoa! I am someone who has been reading this website for years and have wanted to join the discussion, but just never actually did it. However, this conversation about Providence vs. Boston has compelled me to join, mainly because what I have read is utterly ridiculous. I lived in and attended college in Providence for four years and currently live in Boston. Great time. I really enjoyed just how far Providence has come because, even though I am young, I remember what it used to be like. There are great schools in the city, one of the most underated art musuems (RISD), and the restaurants are some of the best.

HOWEVER, I'm sorry to break it to you but Providence gets a little bit boring after awhile. You can only go to the mall, Thayer-Wickedon-Westminster-Atwells, Waterfire, etc. so many times. Don't get me wrong, compared to many other smaller cities, Providence is amazing in these aspects. But there is no way you could possibly say Providence is better than Boston. Boston has truly lived up to its nickname as the Athens of America and the Hub of the Universe. There are far, far more resturants, bars, museums, sports teams, students, etc. than Providence. I won't even begin to talk about how much more exciting the architecture prospects are for Boston.

Moreover, the reality is that Boston's metro area is growing. Towns that are located in southeastern MA (especially the 146-495 area) and yes, RI, are beginning to rely more and more upon Boston. I believe that towns have recently left the Providence metro and gone into the Boston (look up Bellingham, MA in wikipedia). I know many people who rightfully consider Providence a part of Boston's metro (and one blatant example of this are sports teams: Red Sox/Pawsox, Bruins/PBruins). Additionally and more importantly many people live in Providence and work in Boston; and most only because Providence is cheaper, not because it has cultural significance.

New York is too much, Providence is too little, and Boston is just right. Providence just is not there yet. That's why RI has a problem with keeping college graduates in the state. That's why 110 is having problems going up; people don't want to move to a city that quite frankly becomes boring. I know that this post will draw many disgruntled responses and I welcome them, but please just realize how silly you look when you say Providence is better than Boston. Thanks for your time.

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Pseudo_Work Hamlet

Pseudo_Work

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Whoa, whoa, whoa! I am someone who has been reading this website for years and have wanted to join the discussion, but just never actually did it. However, this conversation about Providence vs. Boston has compelled me to join, mainly because what I have read is utterly ridiculous. I lived in and attended college in Providence for four years and currently live in Boston. Great time. I really enjoyed just how far Providence has come because, even though I am young, I remember what it used to be like. There are great schools in the city, one of the most underated art musuems (RISD), and the restaurants are some of the best.

HOWEVER, I'm sorry to break it to you but Providence gets a little bit boring after awhile. You can only go to the mall, Thayer-Wickedon-Westminster-Atwells, Waterfire, etc. so many times. Don't get me wrong, compared to many other smaller cities, Providence is amazing in these aspects. But there is no way you could possibly say Providence is better than Boston. Boston has truly lived up to its nickname as the Athens of America and the Hub of the Universe. There are far, far more resturants, bars, museums, sports teams, students, etc. than Providence. I won't even begin to talk about how much more exciting the architecture prospects are for Boston.

Moreover, the reality is that Boston's metro area is growing. Towns that are located in southeastern MA (especially the 146-495 area) and yes, RI, are beginning to rely more and more upon Boston. I believe that towns have recently left the Providence metro and gone into the Boston (look up Bellingham, MA in wikipedia). I know many people who rightfully consider Providence a part of Boston's metro (and one blatant example of this are sports teams: Red Sox/Pawsox, Bruins/PBruins). Additionally and more importantly many people live in Providence and work in Boston; and most only because Providence is cheaper, not because it has cultural significance.

New York is too much, Providence is too little, and Boston is just right. Providence just is not there yet. That's why RI has a problem with keeping college graduates in the state. That's why 110 is having problems going up; people don't want to move to a city that quite frankly becomes boring. I know that this post will draw many disgruntled responses and I welcome them, but please just realize how silly you look when you say Providence is better than Boston. Thanks for your time.

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TheBostonian Hamlet

TheBostonian

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Based on nightlife, restaurants, culture, architecture, downtown and overall atmosphere, PVD is better than a number of cities several times its size like Charlotte, Phoenix and Houston.

apples and oranges folks, apples and oranges...

on the whole, Providence cannot be accurately compared with a city 5 times its size. Certain aspects perhaps, but not in general.

Hartford on the other hand, well, nevermind...

lol

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RLucas83 Whistle-Stop

RLucas83

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Buckhead is an area within Atlanta. Would you say "the suburb of the Upper West Side" or "the suburb of SoHo" in reference to NYC?

That said, yes, Atlanta does have 4 "skylines" if you like, but the Downtown and Midtown skylines are sort of getting conglomerated, thanks to the massive buildup of towers in between.

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Pseudo_Work Hamlet

Pseudo_Work

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While i know its "within Atlanta" Buckhead is as far away from downtown as Warwick is from Providence, which is why i refer to it as a "suburb"

# 1 reason why a centralized downtown is better = TRANSIT..... something Atlanta knows absolutely nothing about!

Once Prov gets more commuter rail and hopefully some light rail, prov will have a better transit system than Atlanta.

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Garris Town

Garris

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Well, last I checked, the "W" isn't under construction yet, I'll jump into the obvious flame ambush...

...mainly because what I have read is utterly ridiculous.

HOWEVER, I'm sorry to break it to you but Providence gets a little bit boring after awhile.

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Baines Hamlet

Baines

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Well, last I checked, the "W" isn't under construction yet, I'll jump into the obvious flame ambush...

First, welcome to UP!

Second, in my experience, every urban area gets "boring" (or, perhaps more appropriately, "familiar"). For example, I lived in Manhattan for over four years and, much as you put it, how many times can you go to Times Square? Or the Village? Or Union Square? Or the Upper West Side? Etc, etc, etc...

As Cotuit put it, you develop a routine and wear down a path that becomes second nature whereever you are, from the most to the least exciting place in the world...

I won't touch the first statement... You can have that argument with someone from, oh, say, Chicago...

Regarding the second statement, my impression has been that from the construction of City Hall to the present (essentially, the new bridge and the breakout ICA), Boston architecture has been in suspended animation...

Regarding your first statement, as people say, "your miles will vary." After doing tons of dating of women in Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville for over two years, it really reinforced my decision to have taken the position I did in Providence (over Boston, BTW). I hardly feel "silly" at all. While not declaring one place "better" than another (it's' apples and oranges, like comparing While Plains or Stamford to Seattle), I can say with complete certainty that it's been "better for me."

While nice and certainly not without its positives, the Boston metro also has some serious negatives both as a place to live and as an urban area, negatives I won't bother to list here. For me, there are many other cities in which, for a variety of personal reasons, I'd rather live than Boston (Philly, Twin Cities, Chicago, Portland, Seattle, and SF, amongst others). But that's just me...

Regarding the second comment I quoted above, I agree with you. Providence isn't "there" yet, whatever various people define as "there." I define "there" as being a sustainable livability represented by a durability as an urban area which avoids the "boom-bust" cycles of more "marginal" communities. Living in New Haven many years ago, I got the feeling of fragility, where if the economy would catch cold, New Haven would be in intensive care. It felt like New Haven required a boom economy to feel livable. Baltimore often felt similar to me as well.

Such fragility isn't as prominent in NY, Chicago, Boston, While Plains, etc because they have more developed communities, stable neighborhoods, dependable employers, and deeper overall reserves. And you're 100% right that Providence needs a more robust economy to keep its educational grads (although, looking at my friends, I can think of very few people who live in the same area as after any education they did, no matter how "attractive" the city).

However, many of us feel that reaching Providence's potential as an attractive, stable, livable city is well within reach and are voting with our feet and dollars by choosing to live here...

- Garris

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Claremorris 2 Crossroads

Claremorris 2

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Garris - Well stated. I agree with what you have said. I too think Providence has come a far way and will only become more livable in the future. I guess I was responding more to posts about "hating Boston" and how it was a "big city cost without the payoffs".

But enough of my "tirades" on this issue. For the sake of the future development of Downcity this W hotel project has to go though. I worked in the Turks Head for three years and the last thing that part of the city needs is another paved lot. I (and I know you all do) really hopes it happens for the sake of the city.

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JJK5 Hamlet

JJK5

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I loved every minute of living in Providence. I was only there for a short time, but it was a great experience and so many improvements are happening down there that it's no wonder it's been on the national radar these past few years. I did my best to "reintroduce" friends and relatives who are lifelong New Englanders to the reborn Providence. I just got a call from one of my aunts that they went down and stayed in Providence again for a Waterfire weekend. I introduced them to it last year. They loved it.

However, I will echo the sentiment that Providence doesn't have much to retain or attract recent college graduates. My friends that went to school in Worcester, Providence, or elsewhere in New England ended up in either NYC or Boston. There's just not many jobs for new graduates.

That was one of my chief reasons for moving, that and Boston had a bit more to offer a young-twenties chap like myself. I could definitely see myself returning though, just not at this stage in my life.

It was also really disappointing that I didn't get to see steel rise for the W while I was living in PVD. I think demolition was just beginning when I first arrived, and it's upsetting that it is still an empty lot. I'm still keeping up hope that in a few years I'll be able to exit the train station and look up at a new addition to the skyline. It certainly was exciting to be there while the Westin and Waterplace towers rose.

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tangorre Unincorporated Area

tangorre

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On the actual topic of the thread:

The Sept. '07 issue of Lodging Magazine (a hospitality industry mag) listed this project in its Development Report. Only Blue Chip Properties was listed as the owners, no mention of Granoff, and referred to the W Hotel Providence as still in a planning phase.

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Pseudo_Work Hamlet

Pseudo_Work

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On the actual topic of the thread:

The Sept. '07 issue of Lodging Magazine (a hospitality industry mag) listed this project in its Development Report. Only Blue Chip Properties was listed as the owners, no mention of Granoff, and referred to the W Hotel Providence as still in a planning phase.

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