DESTROYED: Providence Fruit & Produce Warehouse

[Cotuit]

The way the mall cut everything off is really terrible. Where was the Capital Center Design Review Commission on that one? Even with the railroad tracks, Finance Way could have been extended across Francis and under the mall to Harris and The Promenade, with little impact on the current structure of the mall. The way it was built makes that impossible now though.

[Recchia]

I think that if Harris becomes a mixed use community, people who already drive around to the rear parking garages, or leave them, will be drawn into the valley and flow to Eagle Sq and beyond. But it is akward.

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Something's gotta be done to make Harris Ave at Jefferson more of a real street with stoops, cause right now it's like its entire street frontage is fake and those front doors don't even open. It's almost like a regular suburban apartment building disguised by a fake streetfront. Making the Farmer's Market into something like you said has the potential to do that, so it would be a neat idea.

[Frankie811]

The way the mall cut everything off is really terrible. Where was the Capital Center Design Review Commission on that one? Even with the railroad tracks, Finance Way could have been extended across Francis and under the mall to Harris and The Promenade, with little impact on the current structure of the mall. The way it was built makes that impossible now though.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The mall didn't cut off anything!!! Where the mall is today use to be several buildings that housed the state dept of education and the URI extension college so you couldn't drive through anyways.

[EPBOY]

The mall didn't cut off anything!!!  Where the mall is today use to be several buildings that housed the state dept of education and the URI extension college so you couldn't drive through anyways.

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True... the property was was basically an urban wastland before the mall was build.

The land that is now occupied by the Nordstroms half of the mall and parking gargarge had two building on it. The old Rhode Island Normal School shown below, and another building that housed the URI extension. I watched them rip them both down.

Interestingly, if you watch the movie "Federal Hill", which was filmed while Waterplace Park was being constructed, those old empty buildings were used as the outside facade of Rhode Island College!

The Filene's side of the mall, from the rail road tracks to I-95 exit ramps was a huge empty dusty lot, used for parking for the civic center.

Rhode Island Normal School:

[Frankie811]

Rhode Island Normal School ? What was that?

[gregw]

Rhode Island Normal School ? What was that?

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A Normal School is an old fashioned word for a teacher's college.

The RI Normal School later became RIC. When RIC got its own campus in the 60s, the bldg became the Dept of Ed and the adjacent Henry Barnard School became URI Extension.

Both were torn down to make way for the mall. Luckily, the loss of these not particularly prepossessing buildings meant that the then derelict but beautiful Shepard Building on Westminster was saved from the wrecking ball. It was to be a surface parking lot but was instead renovated to house the displaced Dept of Ed and URI Extension.

As far as the Promenade area goes, just west of 95, there was the neon and chrome Silver Top Diner and the huge brick Merchants Cold Storage Warehouse.

Unfortunately, the Warehouse could not be anything other than what it was designed to be--a giant refrigerator. It had 6' ceilings and incredibly thick walls. As for the Silver Top, there was supposed to be some kind of outdoor marketplace at the site but I guess that fell through.

I'm not a big fan of the Jefferson, but I think the area is better off now than before the Mall. If it weren't for the Mall, not only would there be no Jefferson but I doubt we'd be seeing the Foundry or the Produce Market projects.

[EPBOY]

Rhode Island Normal School ? What was that?

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The Normal School is the predesessor to Rhode Island College (from what I can tell).

From Rhode Island History link, Chapter Six: ... In the area of public education, the defunct state normal school -- the forerunner of Rhode Island College -- was reopened in Providence (1871) and furnished with an impressive modern building in 1898.

[Cotuit]

You can see here that the roads flanking the river at one point made it all the way into what is now Capital Center.

[Recchia]

I know this is off topic, but that picture is raising so many questions in my mind. First off, what's that church looking building next to the DOT building? And is that a parking lot southeast of the state house? ITS MASSIVE, it reminds me of that vision for Providence made in the 60's or something that was posted on this site. After lookin at that pic, wow Providence has come an incredibly long way.

[Mij]

Im sorry to the good folks over in the promanade and harris section, but, Id much rather have the mall blocking my view to the state house then that mop up job that we have evolved from. im not sure if the Design Review committee missed much on that one, but how great could it have been if some one thought to add a road under the mall to connect that area. That picture should be plastered all over providence so those of us who never knew that time could get a better understanding of where we have been and where we are heading--- Just a thought---

[Liamlunchtray]

I think this has already been addressed, but by the time the Mall was built the promanade area was pretty much exactly as it is now (in terms of roadways). It still came to what was essentially a turnaround at the end where it now goes under the garage. There was a little side street that went further towards Francis st, but it didnt connect through. The RIC, URI, and School department buildings were in the way and they all sat down much lower than Francis street, with a weird stairway that lead from Francis street down to parking lots below. This is where the shooter is in the movie Federal Hill. The street that comes down from Smith Street and goes under the Garage was pretty much exactly as it is now. So basically the Promanade area being kind of cutoff and isolated was done long before the mall, and also long before they made the attempt to pretty it up with the railings and fancy streetlights and benches and whathaveyou. If bloodyrocker chimes in he may be able to give more detail as he is a bit older than I am and probably hung out at the old Living Room in the Foundry more than I did.

Liam

[gregw]

Actually I remember that Promenade St. used to stretch all the way to what was then Memorial Circle. That's right about where Citizens is now. Promenade not only went under 95 but closer to the East Side it went under a really dark railroad viaduct.

Check out these pics:

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collI...p/~ammem_CgIJ::

[gregw]

Here are some more great pre Capital Center pics.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collI...p/~ammem_u9gv::

[Liamlunchtray]

Here are some more great pre Capital Center pics.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collI...p/~ammem_u9gv::

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Those are some great pictures! I love going through those archives. Anyhow, am I totally offbase in my memory that Promanade did not continue through by the time the Mall was built? I always remember it just ending right where it does now, aside from the little side streets that went to the parking lots and whatnot for URI. When I first saw the plans for the mall I was happy to see pedestrian access under the mall, but its just kind of a dark barren wasteland. When they had proposed the retail development where the Jefferson is I had hoped for there to be a flow of people under the mall to the other retail area. I would love to see better integration from the mall to the Promanade.

Liam

[EPBOY]

Here are some more great pre Capital Center pics.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collI...p/~ammem_u9gv::

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Great PIX!! They really show how far we've come!! These pictures clearly show why anyone who came to Providence in the 50, 60's & 70's considered it to be the armpit of New England. We truly are the Renaissance City!

[Cotuit]

When I first saw the plans for the mall I was happy to see pedestrian access under the mall, but its just kind of a dark barren wasteland. When they had proposed the retail development where the Jefferson is I had hoped for there to be a flow of people under the mall to the other retail area. I would love to see better integration from the mall to the Promanade.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

We are a city of designers, that space should be turned into a design competition. It's too late to run Finance Way down to the Promenade, but there is no reason that pedestrian passage needs to be the dark pigeon poo'ed shame-hole it is currently.

Real interesting things could be done with lights and metal and glass to make it a place people want to explore, not a place people seek to avoid.

And then turning on the traffic lights at Promenade and Park under the 95 overpass at the parking garage entrance will allow pedestirans to actually be able to cross the sreet, instead of dodging traffic sailing through the flashing signals that are there now.

[gregw]

Those are some great pictures! I love going through those archives. Anyhow, am I totally offbase in my memory that Promanade did not continue through by the time the Mall was built? I always remember it just ending right where it does now, aside from the little side streets that went to the parking lots and whatnot for URI.  When I first saw the plans for the mall I was happy to see pedestrian access under the mall, but its just kind of a dark barren wasteland. When they had proposed the retail development where the Jefferson is I had hoped for there to be a flow of people under the mall to the other retail area. I would love to see better integration from the mall to the Promanade.

Liam

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I just checked an old map. Promenade used to run all the way to Canal and Steeple. It must have been cut off in the 80s when they relocated the railroad tracks.

[Frankie811]

o

I just checked an old map. Promenade used to run all the way to Canal and Steeple. It must have been cut off in the 80s when they relocated the railroad tracks.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

No, I can never remember Promenade running all the way to Canal St. If it did it must have been in the early 1900's. As I said in another posting there was a building complex which block travel from Park St to Francis St. along Promenade.

[Recchia]

^Here's an aerial from 1951. Unfortunately I don't know how to make it bigger....I guess save it and open it in a pic viewer.

[gregw]

o

No, I can never remember Promenade running all the way to Canal St. If it did it must have been in the early 1900's. As I said in another posting there was a building complex which block travel from Park St to Francis St. along Promenade.

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I remember Promenade going to Memorial Square in the 1980s. I used to walk it every day. The map I looked at was from the 1960s, BTW.

[gregw]

You can see Promenade St. in the upper right of the photo here. It runs along the north bank of the Woonasquatucket River past the old light colored URI extension bldg and then goes under 95 in front of the Foundry (then CIC) Complex. It was one way heading west.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/displayPhoto...isplayProfile=0

[gregw]

Back to the Produce Warehouse (Farmers Market), does anyone know what type of use it's going to have after Carpionato redevelops it and what the timeframe is?

It looks like there's going to be some kind of addition on the south facade (facing the Mall exit ramp) based on those funky 80s style renderings that Artinruins posted.

Also any word on the parcel to the east where the Silver Top used to be?

[Frankie811]

Back to the Produce Warehouse (Farmers Market), does anyone know what type of use it's going to have after Carpionato redevelops it and what the timeframe is?

It looks like there's going to be some kind of addition on the south facade (facing the Mall exit ramp) based on those funky 80s style renderings that Artinruins posted.

Also any word on the parcel to the east where the Silver Top used to be?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I would have thought JPI would have found a use for the land where the Silver Top once was. My guess is some kind of retail.

[Frankie811]

http://rhodeisland.cox.net/cci/newslocal/l...rticleId=780939

[gregw]

Here's the RIHPHC press release. The bldg apparently cost $1 million to build in 1929!

http://www.rihphc.state.ri.us/pdfs_zips/ne...uce05-07-05.pdf