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IN PROGRESS: Capitol Cove


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  • 1 month later...

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This afternoon I sent an email to David Brussat over at Projo to ask if he knew of any recent developments at parcel 6. This is his reply.

Sorry, no. Fences went up over the summer around the parcel. So far as

I

know, there's been no further consideration of the project before the design

review panel of the Capital Center Commission, which approved the first phase

of

the project last spring, if not winter. (Parcel 2, the phase-one residential

project of Intercontinental, has continued to amend its plans for the

buildings

since they received approval last spring, including some major changes in

material.) I've seen no sign of construction activity on Parcel 6. Maybe I

just

haven't really looked.

- Dave

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This is interesting. Here is the address for Robert Roth/Capital Cove LLC

Longyear Museum & Historical Society

120 Seaver St.

Brookline, MA 02146

617-277-8943

An independent historical museum featuring Mary Baker Eddy's life. Founded in 1926, it maintains six historic houses, exhibits and archival/library materials.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I can't help but to consider this. With the Jefferson going condo and leases not being renewed leaving renters to find other units, how advantageous would it have been for Capital Cove to have been in the ground already!? :shades:

I was thinking the exact same thing! Last I heard Parcel 6 was going to contain apartments and not condos. Has the market for apartments downtown dried up?

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Capitol Cove has financing in place, however, the dollars committed are less then the most recent constrution bid. The developer is working to lower the construction cost. Hope to have a better idea on whether or not this project happens in the next few days.

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Including commitments to extend the riverwalk.

I would think they would have to do this, otherwise their development wouldn't be a fraction as desirable...

The NYTimes recently had an article about Ratner's development for downtown Brooklyn (new Nets stadium,Gehry design, condo and commercial towers, etc) and how much it's changing during its planning process (more condos, less commercial, less flamboyant) as construction prices start to soar with costs of raw materials.

I was beginning to wonder when this trend was going to hit Providence. Could Capitol Cove be the canary in the mine?

- Garris

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  • 2 months later...

So there's no construction out there yet?

Nope. Word is, the construction quotes exceed the budget and they've gone back to tweek the design a bit. As far as anyone knows, it's still supposed to happen, when is the question.

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I know there are supposed to be apartments but that is a really great location for rowhouses. Too bad doing real brownstones would be such a financial burden as to price the places out of the market. I just hope it is something a little more architechturally interesting than the903.

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Too bad doing real brownstones would be such a financial burden as to price the places out of the market.

Is this really true? Considering the impressive prices that brownstones seem to go for in urban areas (into the millions in Boston and NYC, and try finding something nice even in Philly for under 500K) is doing them really such a burden? Can someone who knows the development field comment on this?

I've always been really perplexed by the lack of rowhouses or brownstones in Providence. Boston and NYC are full of them, both old and new, and they're going strong in Philly. Even in New Haven, some new brownstones have been built in the Northern part of the city, but in Providence, they're converting brownstones on Benefit into multiunit condos.

Why don't brownstones work here?

- Garris

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This depends on what definition of "brownstones" we're using.

Are we using the word literally, which means rowhouses like those you see in Manhattan from the c. 1850s that are faced with brownstone, the reddish colored sandstone?

Brownstone is beautiful but it ages poorly as it erodes when exposed to moisture. I wouldn't expect to see a modern developer using it.

Or are we just talking about rowhouses that are faced with brick? Not technically brownstones, but people often use the term anyway.

As far as why you don't see more rowhouses here, Providence was never quite as densely settled as sections of NYC, Boston, Philly. Also local builders were accustomed to building detached wood frame housing and through the years tended to stick to what they were familiar with.

Is this really true? Considering the impressive prices that brownstones seem to go for in urban areas (into the millions in Boston and NYC, and try finding something nice even in Philly for under 500K) is doing them really such a burden? Can someone who knows the development field comment on this?

I've always been really perplexed by the lack of rowhouses or brownstones in Providence. Boston and NYC are full of them, both old and new, and they're going strong in Philly. Even in New Haven, some new brownstones have been built in the Northern part of the city, but in Providence, they're converting brownstones on Benefit into multiunit condos.

Why don't brownstones work here?

- Garris

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This depends on what definition of "brownstones" we're using.

Are we using the word literally, which means rowhouses like those you see in Manhattan from the c. 1850s that are faced with brownstone, the reddish colored sandstone?

Brownstone is beautiful but it ages poorly as it erodes when exposed to moisture. I wouldn't expect to see a modern developer using it.

Or are we just talking about rowhouses that are faced with brick? Not technically brownstones, but people often use the term anyway.

As far as why you don't see more rowhouses here, Providence was never quite as densely settled as sections of NYC, Boston, Philly. Also local builders were accustomed to building detached wood frame housing and through the years tended to stick to what they were familiar with.

True. Also, one needs to consider the signifigant changes that have occured both in the trades and with material supply and demand since the days when guys were building brownstones. Which of the few remaining quarries would you get the material from, and who would you have put it together? Brownstones were built with materials that were being produced in large quantities by many companies to meet demand, often using low-wage labor. The masons, and other trades putting them together got very good (read very quick) at it through apprenticeship and journey. Lastly, many older rowhouses were built without the overhead cost of architects and general and sub-contractors. Just some guys slapping stone together however they knew how.

The general complaint in the construction world is that so few people stick with a particular trades training that architecture has to re-think the way things are constructed to gear towrds unskilled labor. That's why Jefferson Commons was shipped-in pre-fab.

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