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Historic Providence Arcade Has No Tenant
  
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Architecture
By MICHELLE R. SMITH, Associated Press
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Providence Arcade was once the heart of the capital city's downtown.
Built in 1828, it was a bustling commercial center with a skylight-topped center atrium surrounded by three levels of shops and offices. It's also a nationally important example of Greek Revival architecture, boasting 12 massive granite Ionic columns and elaborate iron railings lining walkways that ring its upper floors. The oldest enclosed shopping center in the country, it was named a National Historic Landmark in 1976.
But while the building is striking to look at, it was built for another time.
It has now stood empty for months, casualty of the financial crisis and Rhode Island's dismal economy. The building's owner is looking for a way to reopen, but he and others say it will be difficult given the economy and the Arcade's particular challenges.
The Arcade was designed by architects Russell Warren and James Bucklin to mimic arcade malls that sprang up in Europe in the 19th century, and was among the first to be built in the United States.
Providence's downtown used to lay across the river on the city's East Side. The Arcade changed that.
"It was really the beginning of what is today downtown Providence," said Ted Sanderson, executive director of the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, the state agency for historic preservation.
Like other arcades, the one in Providence functioned like a covered street: it connects two streets and had open ends on either side (although those were enclosed by glass several years ago).
For years, the upper floors housed some of Providence's best-known photographers, who took advantage of the excellent light provided by the skylight, said Bernard P. Fishman, executive director of the Rhode Island Historical Society. Many other small-scale businesses and offices also called the Arcade home.
The building's first floor had been used for several years as a food court, where office workers would stop for lunch or coffee. A handful of small shops and offices were on the upper floors.
But then Johnson and Wales University, which once owned the building and more recently was leasing it, decided not to renew, said Evan Granoff, managing member of Granoff Associates, which now owns the Arcade. The school was losing about $200,000 a year managing the property, Granoff and the school said.
"Tenants in there had been declining for a number of years, and it reached the point where we thought the best thing to do was to close the building down," Granoff said.
Granoff sent out eviction notices and tenants started moving out in the middle of last year. By December, it was virtually empty. The only remaining tenant is a smoke shop in one of the building's few exterior shops.
Granoff said he's been trying in vain to find a tenant or tenants who can make the building economically viable.
Part of the problem is the failure to develop a lot immediately next door that was bulldozed amidst the city's real estate boom in preparation for a residential tower. Financing fell through when the state's economy took a bad turn a few years ago, and things only look bleaker now in the national economic crisis.
"You need to create a demand for services in the downtown area. That's an issue," Granoff said.
Another problem is with the property's most striking interior feature, its atrium. In most commercial buildings, the non-rentable common space, such as hallways and lobbies, amounts to 15 percent of the building's area, Granoff said. A more difficult building might have 20 percent common area. In the Arcade, that number is 50 percent, Granoff said.
"Someone's got to pay for the common area, and if the way that you would do that would be to make tenants pay for it, the rents would be so high that it would be uncompetitive," he said.
While the first-floor storefronts have been renovated a few times in the building's 181-year history, the upper floors are virtually unchanged.
"It's an awkward, chopped-up sort of a building that's too small for modern usages," Fishman said.
Thomas Deller, director of the Providence Department of Planning and Development, said he has spoken with Granoff several times about the Arcade and frequently thinks about what might be the best use for the building. He says the key is finding a use for the ground floor, which used to be frequented by pedestrians.
Several possibilities have been discussed, including use by arts groups or even working artists who could again take advantage of the central skylight, like those many photographers did in the Arcade's earlier days.
Sanderson and Fishman said an arts plan might have to involve some level of public support, or even public ownership of the building — but that could also be the Arcade's best bet for a successful future.
Built in 1828, it was a bustling commercial center with a skylight-topped center atrium surrounded by three levels of shops and offices. It's also a nationally important example of Greek Revival architecture, boasting 12 massive granite Ionic columns and elaborate iron railings lining walkways that ring its upper floors. The oldest enclosed shopping center in the country, it was named a National Historic Landmark in 1976.
But while the building is striking to look at, it was built for another time.
It has now stood empty for months, casualty of the financial crisis and Rhode Island's dismal economy. The building's owner is looking for a way to reopen, but he and others say it will be difficult given the economy and the Arcade's particular challenges.
The Arcade was designed by architects Russell Warren and James Bucklin to mimic arcade malls that sprang up in Europe in the 19th century, and was among the first to be built in the United States.
Providence's downtown used to lay across the river on the city's East Side. The Arcade changed that.
"It was really the beginning of what is today downtown Providence," said Ted Sanderson, executive director of the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, the state agency for historic preservation.
Like other arcades, the one in Providence functioned like a covered street: it connects two streets and had open ends on either side (although those were enclosed by glass several years ago).
For years, the upper floors housed some of Providence's best-known photographers, who took advantage of the excellent light provided by the skylight, said Bernard P. Fishman, executive director of the Rhode Island Historical Society. Many other small-scale businesses and offices also called the Arcade home.
The building's first floor had been used for several years as a food court, where office workers would stop for lunch or coffee. A handful of small shops and offices were on the upper floors.
But then Johnson and Wales University, which once owned the building and more recently was leasing it, decided not to renew, said Evan Granoff, managing member of Granoff Associates, which now owns the Arcade. The school was losing about $200,000 a year managing the property, Granoff and the school said.
"Tenants in there had been declining for a number of years, and it reached the point where we thought the best thing to do was to close the building down," Granoff said.
Granoff sent out eviction notices and tenants started moving out in the middle of last year. By December, it was virtually empty. The only remaining tenant is a smoke shop in one of the building's few exterior shops.
Granoff said he's been trying in vain to find a tenant or tenants who can make the building economically viable.
Part of the problem is the failure to develop a lot immediately next door that was bulldozed amidst the city's real estate boom in preparation for a residential tower. Financing fell through when the state's economy took a bad turn a few years ago, and things only look bleaker now in the national economic crisis.
"You need to create a demand for services in the downtown area. That's an issue," Granoff said.
Another problem is with the property's most striking interior feature, its atrium. In most commercial buildings, the non-rentable common space, such as hallways and lobbies, amounts to 15 percent of the building's area, Granoff said. A more difficult building might have 20 percent common area. In the Arcade, that number is 50 percent, Granoff said.
"Someone's got to pay for the common area, and if the way that you would do that would be to make tenants pay for it, the rents would be so high that it would be uncompetitive," he said.
While the first-floor storefronts have been renovated a few times in the building's 181-year history, the upper floors are virtually unchanged.
"It's an awkward, chopped-up sort of a building that's too small for modern usages," Fishman said.
Thomas Deller, director of the Providence Department of Planning and Development, said he has spoken with Granoff several times about the Arcade and frequently thinks about what might be the best use for the building. He says the key is finding a use for the ground floor, which used to be frequented by pedestrians.
Several possibilities have been discussed, including use by arts groups or even working artists who could again take advantage of the central skylight, like those many photographers did in the Arcade's earlier days.
Sanderson and Fishman said an arts plan might have to involve some level of public support, or even public ownership of the building — but that could also be the Arcade's best bet for a successful future.
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