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IN PROGRESS: Royal Mills in West Warwick

sharky10

By sharky10
in Rhode Island

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Cotuit Megalopolis

Cotuit

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I'd go with some nice roman blinds that scroll down from the top so I could have a little privacy but still get the light streaming in from the top of the window. If I lived in a nice loft space with huge windows I'd probably splurge in the window treatment department.

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Lone Ranger Burg

Lone Ranger

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Today glassnsteel & I were in West Warwick together. We got a decent look at this project.

Thumbs down on the parking in front of the building. Extra thumbs down because the developer moved the street to create that parking.

But this project is massive and looks very promising. Its effect on downtown West Warwick will be very extensive. And when the riverwalk is complete, glassnsteel & agree that NewCo building (Arctic Mills) will follow the example of Royal Mills in short order.

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edgarmousha Unincorporated Area

edgarmousha

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I got a full tour today and the units are really nice. Being used to walkable city life though, I'm not sure I could live there in West Warwick. No offence to anyone from around there but once you get used to being able to stumble home on foot and hoof it to great restaurants its hard to go back. I got the feeling there weren't many tenents in yet and some of the units were not finished in the Ace Dye Building. Plans for retail and a cafe/restaurant seem a bit distant.

Regarding the windows, all the units have developer hung venetian blinds that run the entire length of the windows. They would have cost a fortune to have made (weird size) if they didn't come with the units.

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glassandsteel Whistle-Stop

glassandsteel

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Although I agree that the area is far from real city-life, during our extensive tour, Lone Ranger and I came to the conclusion that it is ripe for urban development in the holes that keep it from it's potential. The pattern is already there and only needs to be encouraged to be built upon.

These shots are what the street scape is like only a short walking distance from the mills in various directions. They are from different locations along the Main st. corridor from the middle of Arctic Village to Phenix Square (a stretch that covers about a mile or so), the forth being a few blocks from Royal mills. DSCN3762.jpgDSCN3767.jpgDSCN3728.jpg

DSCN3806.jpg

DSCN3821.jpg

Of course, the issue is that there are huge holes that currently stand as psychological barriers and are at risk of becoming permanently so (in the form of surface parking or other suburban-style developments). These are the result of fires, poor zoning, and lack of investment.

DSCN3760-1.jpg The result of a fire. DSCN3748.jpg The result of a fire. DSCN3800.jpg A failed and abandoned car dealership. dscn3811.jpg Has always been vacant.

These of course could just as easily become an extension of the urban character of the town and eventually bridge the gap to these large developments. The hope is that these mills (and hopefully other large-scale residential projects in the future) bring the sort of peripheral population density to create a critical mass for the urban core.

So although I do agree with you to an extent about the shortage of amenities immediately around this, I should note that this project is great in it's potential to be a catalyst for greater urban living conditions.

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Lone Ranger Burg

Lone Ranger

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GNS, I dunno if you checked out the free pamphlets we found in the municipal building, but those other mill complexes I was asking about are the Agawam and Centreville Mills.

That flyer is a very interesting little read. Very glad I snagged me one. :thumbsup:

Oh, and BTW, you have a pretty good eye. I thought you were kinda taking pictures at random whenever you saw something you liked. Shows what I know. This is why I warn you about my own photographic skills ...

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lastvisiblerat Unincorporated Area

lastvisiblerat

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Lone Ranger, I would be interested in knowing what sort of things this pamphlet mentions. Where did you pick it up, WW town hall? Thank you for any info.

G&S, thank you for sharing the photos. I don't live in the area (I don't even live in RI, but that may be changing later this year) but I've really become very interested in W.W. and its possibilities. I would love to see WW's traditional central commercial districts revitalized and I hope the alternate use of the mills will play a large role in that happening. It's too bad the housing market is so weak at the moment, as I know that is delaying some of the mill projects. The possibilities are truly great, though, those beautiful 19th century mills within walking distance of what could be a vibrant urban center.

I can't wait to see what they do with the other mill buildings. Centreville is a nice one and it has a lovely horseshoe dam (the building across the water in this photo is the Agawam Mill).

364035121_953bfda018_o.jpg

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mental757 Burg

mental757

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the first picture is my old church (of 20+ years) Saint John the Baptist

the picture with the horseshoe falls I think might be the old Agawam dye works because I took my kids to a few birthday parties at a craft place (Krafty Sisters or somehing) - the 3 windows with the white shades pulled down to the left. Anyway, Crompton Mills is slated for mixed use redevelopment down Main Street towards Crompton (south of Arctic). http://www.sber.com/providence/crompton_mills.php

WW has lots of potential, the empty lots in many cases are an improvement to the delapidated abandoned wrecks as well as the many fires over the years. The redone square with the gazebo (where the old majestic building was) is a nice touch. The centreville bank HQ was redone nicely a few years back as well. There is a CVS and a Jerry's market in the area as well as my beloved Que Pasa (went there last night!) and one of the pictures above is my 2nd favorite chinese place - the Hong Kong.

I know, blah, blah, blah - I told y'all I know WW inside and out...

BTW - Jen, I know lots of short-cuts in/out of town!!!

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Lone Ranger Burg

Lone Ranger

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That is a good read.

I didn't know this:

Throughout the 1940s and '50s, the village of Arctic, the town's center, enjoyed a reputation as the shopping destination for southern Rhode Island and Connecticut. People poured onto Main Street sidewalks each Thursday and Friday night. All roads led through Arctic and it was in Arctic where storefronts glowed.
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mental757 Burg

mental757

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my parents said that WW and Garden City were 'the' places to be, and be seen growing up in the 50's in terms of shopping and socializing, etc.

IMHO, WW has fallen the farthest from grace from any other municipality in RI and has only begun to scratch the surface of it's potential. It will never be close to what it was, but it has a lot of room to improve in many ways.

go wizards!

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