Tag Archives: Capital Center Commission

The Capital Center Plan

Posted on November 18, 2022 by David Brussat

Here this series of chapters from Lost Providence skips back to Chapter 18, “Capital Center Plan” to describe the origins of the plan, announced in 1978, to revitalize downtown by providing a new business district to rival the old downtown. … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Lost Providence | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

A review of design review

Posted on April 23, 2022 by David Brussat

When I first started writing architecture columns for the Providence Journal, I would get up early every so often and attend the design review committee meetings of the Capital Center Commission at 7:00 a.m. I cut my critic’s teeth on … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

‘Ask Dr. Downtown’ revisited

Posted on August 22, 2020 by David Brussat

In my last post, “Modern Diner, USModernist,” I promised USModernist talk host George Smart (aka Mr. Modernism) to send him an example of my old “Ask Dr. Downtown” columns, from when I did a column of architecture criticism every Thursday … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

R.I. State House at risk

Posted on July 13, 2017 by David Brussat

Rhode Island transportation officials want to spend millions in tax money to accomplish a goal achievable for mere thousands, and to do so in part on the State House Lawn. The Capital Center Commission, which has overseen the development district’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Tower on State House lawn

Posted on June 15, 2017 by David Brussat

And for no good reason. Grok this, fellow Rhode Islanders: The state wants to place a new transit hub along with a tower on land near the State House, possibly right on the State House lawn. The original proposed site … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Providence | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Two lovely local buildings

Posted on January 7, 2016 by David Brussat

I don’t know what’s gotten into me, but I thought I’d just post photos of a couple very nice local buildings, a house and a school office, on the East Side of Providence. Maybe the 40th anniversary of the East … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Preservation, Providence | Tagged , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Update on Parcel 12 hotel

Posted on December 16, 2015 by David Brussat

The civic leadership of Rhode Island and its capital, Providence, is using taxpayer dollars to initiate a series of development projects that may or may not be economically viable but will certainly undermine the city’s beauty – one of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Development, Providence, Rhode Island, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

A new design for Parcel 12

Posted on August 6, 2015 by David Brussat

The Capital Center Commission’s design-review panel took a look Tuesday morning at a pleasant, forthrightly classical hotel design presented by architect Eric Zuena, of ZDS, in Providence. There’s a lot to like in the new design for an eight-story extended-stay … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Art and design, Development, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Bad Scupture Park Hotel?

Posted on October 9, 2014 by David Brussat

A new proposal has arisen for Parcel 12, the triangular Capital Center District land at the northeast corner of Kennedy Plaza that I’ve long called Bad Sculpture Park, in honor of its cast of uninspiring works of art. The Journal’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Providence | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment