Architecture Commons^™

Financing Difficulties Stall Linkage In Providence, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"When the India Point Club luxury condominium development, scheduled to be built on the Providence waterfront, was announced in 1987, there were many local skeptics who said it was too expensive for the Providence market. After all, selling penthouse condos overlooking the dirty Providence River for over $1 million was quite ambitious--and some said impossible."

Notable Efforts To Meet Emerging Housing Needs, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"This is a landmark year in the historical development of housing in the nation, ad Rhode Island almost became a part of this bigger picture. One noteworthy event has already taken place, and two special birthdays are observed throughout the year."

Helping Communities Determine Development, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The word uppermost in the minds of many communities these days is 'development,' a process that manifests itself on the land in the form of the built environment. Alarmed at the speed with which land is being used--and often abused--communities are being faced with touch decisions on how to cope with development, either by directing it, managing it or even stopping it."

Designing The Cityscape, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"A new structure has recently been erected in the Providence downtown, and criticisms of the building's design continue to fly. An editorial in these newspapers, for example, referred to the 'failed example of quickie construction with a outsized Erector set.'"

Accepting The Townhouse Idea Requires New Attitudes, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"To change actions is easy; to change attitudes is more difficult. This is a truism that one finds whether one deals with race relations, sexual equality or ethnic stereotypes. It is also true in housing."

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: Barrington Italo-American Community, Gasbarro's Liquors, Arthur Avenue, And Depasquale Plaza, Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

No abstract provided.

Roger Williams Project-Potential Industrial Site?, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"In a neighborhood analysis done in 1969, the Providence Department of Planning and Urban Development stated it succintly: "The Roger Williams public housing project contains some of the poorest quality housing in the area."

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: "The Broadway-Armory Historic District" (February 28, 1980), Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

This week we continue with a series of pictures and descriptions of homes along the Broadway-Armory Historic District. These pictures are of the more elaborate and well-designed homes of the outlying district of Federal Hill. These homes indicate the pattern of growth that radiated, on which these dwellings were built. The homes, not only reflect the beauty of the houses that were erected, but also indicate the opulence of the era.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: "The Broadway-Armory Historic District" (February 21, 1980), Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

No abstract provided.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: Historic Districts Of Federal Hill, Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

I have dwelt at length with the Historic Districts of Federal Hill, because of the importance of the dwellings that are still in existence, which are a carryover of the first homes erected in this area. These homes are structures which represent a period of the past, and fortunately, have been preserved to this date. They should continue to be preserved, in order that the fine architecture, the opulence of the era, and the pattern of development of the past, can still be seen, and to the direction that Federal Hill developed, and how it radiated from certain focal points.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: Historical Broadway Armory, Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

As we mentioned in our previous article, we would give in further detail, the inventory of those structures which are, or have been, proposed to be registered on the National Register of Historic Places, in the Broadway-Armory Historic District. The following is a list of those homes by street names and addresses.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: "The Broadway Armory Historic Distinct", Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

No abstract provided.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: Post Civil War: A Time Of Development, Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

The estates along Broadway, of the post-Civil War period were large and of varied designs and type, in contrast to the more conservative East Side homes of Providence. Their owners strove to have flamboyant and pretentious structures which were similar to the comtemporary villas of Newport, only being miniatures of them.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: "The Development Of Federal Hill", Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

No abstract provided.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: "The Hospital Trust Tower. A Tower Of Italian Travertine Marble", Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

No abstract provided.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: "Connie Mac" Captures The Story Of Federal Hill, In Colorful Paintings, Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

Connie MacDonald, "Connie Mac," as she has become to be known, a photographic artist from Federal Hill, has captured the Federal Hill story in her paintings.

She has painted many truly colorful and artistic scenes of people, events, occasions and landmarks so vividly that whenever they have been placed on display they have brought back memories for many old enough to remember and for many who were youngsters.

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: History Of "The Echo", Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

To appreciate the present Echo, we must understand what transpired to arrive at the present, voluminous, expressive voice of our community.

Sharing Ideas For A Better City, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It was billed as 'Rebuilding the Medium-Sized North American City,' and representatives from nine cities throughout this country and Canada assembled in Providence to discuss ideas, ingredients, processes, and problems related to restoring the physical fabric of the city."

The Landmarks Of Federal Hill: Amos Atwell, Businessman And Leader, Joseph R. Muratore

Joseph Muratore papers: Newspaper Columns

In the 1780's, most of Federal Hill was still open fields - a place for the cows to graze on, overlooking the great salt cove to the north and the east, and there were marshes to the south, (now, South Providence), and the wild open spaces were to the west.

In 1788, Amos Maine Atwell (named after a ancestory who owned the entire Province of Maine) and several other businessmen formed a syndicate (a type of corporation) to improve and develop the West side of the city of Providence.

Farewell To The Bucklin Bldg., Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"How does one write an obituary for a building? Does one concentrate on its architecture and long history, or does one single out the actors and forces which killed it? The current razing of the Bucklin Building can only bring sadness to the heart and the need to express, in a few, final words, a tribute to a fine and familiar structure."

Momentous Decision: Capital Center Project, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It may very well be the most important decision facing Providence in this century; it would provide new commercial space approximately one and one-half times that found in the present downtown; it would remove black and ugly 'dead' space (parking) from the foot of the state Capitol and replace it with acres of greenery and enhanced riverfront; it would provide better access into the downtown and facilitate the east-west flow of traffic; it would drastically alter the focus of the downtown; and it would greatly increase the tax base of the capital city. The Capital Center Project, with its proposed …

Downtown Buildings That Link Us To Our Past, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It is sickening and it is sad. A building that has withstood the ravages of time throughout its 103 years of life deserves a better fate; yet there it stands, disembowled and broken by the wrecking ball. The Hoppin Homestead Building on the Westminster Mall will soon be only a memory, and its site will be marked by that ubiquitous asphalt reminder of our automobile addicted age--the parking lot. Is this the cure for old buildings in a downtown that is moving on the road to regeneration?"

More Inner City Jobs, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Congressman Henry S. Reuss of Wisconsin has given the answer most succinctly: "The most straightforward way to help cities is to provide jobs...From a city's standpoint, jobless citizens make no contributions to a community's revenues. But they add greatly to its costs for welfare, crime, and assorted ills."

Various Alternatives To High-Interest Crunch On New Home Building, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The recent announcement by two major savings and loan mortgage lenders in California of higher home mortgage rates portends a problem already evident in the country--the inability of an increasing number of Americans to buy their own homes."

Better Year Ahead For Ri Builders, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Building permit figures recently released by the Rhode Island Builders Association indicate that housing construction in the first quarter of 1978 is well ahead of the comparable period for 1977. The signs are encouraging that this year will be better than the last and that the recovery continues from 1975, the poorest year for the housing industry in the 1970s."

Bringing Buildings Back To Life, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The name of the game in building use today is historic preservation, conservation and restoration. In cities all over the country major efforts are directed toward the saving of existing buildings and, in some cases, converting of them to other uses, a process called recycling or adaptive reuse."

Superlative Atlanta, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"With the passing of each year a new superlative is added: the third largest convention city; the third city in the post-war period to construct a rapid transit system; the second busiest airport in the world; the safest mass transportation system in the country; and with direct flights to London in the offing, this major commercial, industrial and financial center of the Southeast can truly claim to be a New International City. Atlanta is all of these."

Soul City Deserves To Succeed, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream--a dream of equal opportunity and justice for all. An assassin's bullet prevented him from realizing his dream. His friend and well-known leader in the civil rights movement also had a dream--a dream to build a new town in which the injustices of society would be lessened. Today, in the rolling farmland country of North Carolina, Floyd McKissick is working to fulfill his long sought dream."

Parallel For Providence To Consider, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"They have done it here. The Grand Opera House has nearly been restored and it is now the Deleware State Performing Arts Center. A lively activity center located on the recently opened, pedestrianized Market Street Mall, the Grand is serving as a major focal point in bringing life back to downtown Wilmington."

New Office Building Is Good News, But Questions Of Planning Raised, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The latest piece of news concerning a possible new office building for Providence is just another example of the renewed interested in the downtown of Rhode Island's capital city. Revitalization, resurgence, renewwal--call it what you will--there is no question that the prognosis for the ailing city center is excellent and the "patient" is now on the road to recovery.