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IN PROGRESS: American Locomotive Works (ALCO)

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eltron Hamlet

eltron

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I know I've said it before and I know I represent the evil developer side of things, but if you start "taxing" developers you will see less housing being built, fewer abandoned buildings being revitalized, etc. I agree that preserving affordability, protecting artists and low-income families should be a priority, but I don't believe that forcing a developer to cover these costs is the way to do it. It is a community burden to be shared by--the community.

continued disagreement on this. And it has never been said that developers are "evil" (though some I think most definitely fall into that category).

I've said it before and I'll say it again, it has been proven over and over again that inclusionary zoning/linkage works, both for the community in increased affordability and public amenities, AND the developer, through "bonuses", other improvements, and predictability. It is hardly a "tax", and most definitely does not result in less development where it has been implemented.

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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Data and studies, particularly those motivated by political objectives, can be made to say/show what anyone wants them to, I've found. cynical and sad, yes, but true I think.

this is very true. i tend not to believe any studies until they are independently analyzed.

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Garris Town

Garris

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I have no experience here, just intuition, and I intuit that everyone's probably right to a degree. Certain mandated "taxes" or "percentages" for the arts and/or IZ probably do work in hot markets (look at Seattle, Vancouver, and Chicago for examples) where people are tripping all over each other for the opportunity to build, but I'm not sure it would fly here yet.

If Providence stays hot and then the 195 land opens up, then we should think about it.

- Garris

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eltron Hamlet

eltron

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Data and studies, particularly those motivated by political objectives, can be made to say/show what anyone wants them to, I've found. cynical and sad, yes, but true I think.

Of course ya can. I certainly don't dispute that.

You can look at the studies and make your own informed decisions. Thats up to you. I'll just keep pointing them out.

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eltron Hamlet

eltron

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I have no experience here, just intuition, and I intuit that everyone's probably right to a degree. Certain mandated "taxes" or "percentages" for the arts and/or IZ probably do work in hot markets (look at Seattle, Vancouver, and Chicago for examples) where people are tripping all over each other for the opportunity to build, but I'm not sure it would fly here yet.

If Providence stays hot and then the 195 land opens up, then we should think about it.

- Garris

Median rents and sales prices that have risen 150% or so in five years seems pretty hot to me, but I'm no expert...even with things slowing, they're not going down...

I hear what you're saying though...the key really is to make serious improvements in other impediments to development - cleaning up the zoning codes throughout the state, streamlining the permit process (this is gigantic), providing alternative financing vehicles for all sorts of project...

IZ is just one part of a comprehensive solution to making things happen faster, cheaper, and better for ALL (top , middle and bottom).

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Jerry2 Hamlet

Jerry2

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Where is this project going? Do they have any prospective "big-box" tenants? After hearing the REI's reasons to completely avoid PVD and my recent drive-by around Eagle Square, I left a little disappointed and frustrated. Eagle Square is still not even close to capacity....not the retail nor the office space. It is almost depressing. I would hate to see this project suffer the same fate. With all the office and retail space due to come onto the market soon, it is imperative that the city does something to make it more attractive for business to locate here.

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dgreco City

dgreco

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Where is this project going? Do they have any prospective "big-box" tenants? After hearing the REI's reasons to completely avoid PVD and my recent drive-by around Eagle Square, I left a little disappointed and frustrated. Eagle Square is still not even close to capacity....not the retail nor the office space. It is almost depressing. I would hate to see this project suffer the same fate. With all the office and retail space due to come onto the market soon, it is imperative that the city does something to make it more attractive for business to locate here.
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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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Where is this project going? Do they have any prospective "big-box" tenants? After hearing the REI's reasons to completely avoid PVD and my recent drive-by around Eagle Square, I left a little disappointed and frustrated. Eagle Square is still not even close to capacity....not the retail nor the office space. It is almost depressing. I would hate to see this project suffer the same fate. With all the office and retail space due to come onto the market soon, it is imperative that the city does something to make it more attractive for business to locate here.
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Jerry2 Hamlet

Jerry2

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what were REI's reasons?

i think as the area improves, we'll see more investment in it. it's hard for businesses to really invest in an area that looks like that, but i think once ALCO gets through some work, we'll see more businesses move in over there.

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AriPVD Hamlet

AriPVD

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For whatever it's worth Struever Bros. and Feldco are very, very different kinds of developers. Struever has a vast network of retail contacts and are a high-profile firm when it comes to urban projects in "transitional" (define as you will) neighborhoods. They tend to know what they're doing from a business perspective.

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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I'm completely skeptical of this project now. Seeing that it is essentially underway, I envision a sea of vacant stores. For the few hundred that may occupy its dwellings and the few that occupy the gated communities to the south, it may be a selling point.However, I'm failing to see what kind of benefit this will bring to PVD and the surrounding neighborhoods. If this same area has 60K people within a 1 mile radius, why is Eagle Square still empty? :huh:
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TheAnk Hamlet

TheAnk

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you're quite the pessimist. while i agree that eagle square doesn't make the area look worth investing in, i still think that once some of the mess is cleaned up (mess being abandoned buildings), there will be some rethinking of the area, which is a stone's throw from the mall and the 903, as well as rising sun.
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mental757 Burg

mental757

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this project should get a boost once any one of the 3 segments (retail, commercial, residential) start moving in. Each should attract the other 2 kind of thing. Isn't the EDC moving in first? It should only take a few other small entities to commit for this to begin to blossom.

I also agree that SBER has plenty of potential clients to work worth.

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