City, EP Waterfront and Churchill & Banks break ground on East Point

East Providence, RI The City of East Providence, together with Churchill & Banks and its subsidiary Noble Development as well as the East Providence Waterfront Commission, broke ground on a new ambitious $120 million waterfront development.

The site, known as the former home to Washburn Wire and the Ocean State Steel Company, was a former brownfield site. The property was left in environmental ruins.

The property was placed into a court-ordered receivership and was mired in a legal dispute since 2009.  The city, under the leadership of mayor Bob DaSilva, brought everyone to the table to overcome a number of challenges with the property.

“This went through a number of twists and turns to get to this point,” special master Mark Russo said “We wouldn’t have gotten to this point without the city and its team and mayor DaSilva’s commitment to helping the process.”

The site has been remediated and reclaimed and will now be developed into 392 single and multi-family units in addition to apartments adding to the housing stock in East Providence. The development includes 39 age-restricted affordable housing units.

Noble Development, led by Richard Baccari II from Churchill & Banks and rounded out by Northeast Engineers on civil design, Union Studios on architectural design and Kevin Alverson on Landscape design, will develop the 27-acre site and breathe new life back into three parcels that have laid dormant for many years.

“This is a big win for our city,” DaSilva said “This development will help retain and attract residents to our community which will strengthen our local economy. “We are thankful for the dedication of Richard Baccari II and the team at Noble and the members of the East Providence Waterfront Commission.”

“Thousands of homes need to be built in Rhode Island to keep pace with the demand,” Richard Baccari II said. “The reuse and repurpose of vacant, industrial land for residential development is smart growth policy that will help Rhode Island’s future.”

The former industrial area will feature six acres of public access to the waterfront, provide an accessible kayak launch and public access along Omega Pond and the Seekonk River as part of the Urban Coastal Greenway.

The city of East Providence had the foresight to create the Waterfront Commission which includes high-density zoning for the working waterfront areas of the Providence and Seekonk Rivers in order to someday transform the abandoned industry complexes into mixed-use or residential neighborhoods. East Point Development is another example of the Waterfront Commission’s success.

“It has been a long road to arrive at this point today,” East Providence Waterfront Commission chairman William Fazioli said. “Fortunately we have city leaders and development partners who share this approach and who know how to transform potential into reality.”

The sale of this property also freed up $1.6 million in Community Development Block Grant funds that will now be available for use in other projects.