Tag Archives: Providence Preservation Society

R.I.H., a place for healing?

Posted on May 7, 2023 by David Brussat

Rhode Island Hospital’s Southwest Pavilion, 1900, Stone, Carpenter & Willson. (PPS) Editor’s note: Two days ago I received a pacemaker at Rhode Island Hospital. I was discharged yesterday, and just by chance I happened upon this old post from 2016 … Continue reading →

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

Lessons from the Fane ouster

Posted on April 22, 2023 by David Brussat

The so-called Hope Point Tower threat is gone, done in by inflationary costs and a dodgy market. Lessons from this interlude abound, chiefly that neighborhood opposition to poorly conceived proposals works. Jason Fane’s proposal for a 550-foot tower in a … Continue reading →

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The College Hill Study

Posted on October 28, 2022 by David Brussat

This is the first half of the second chapter in this series, which reprints segments from Part II of Lost Providence, published in 2017 by History Press. Chapter 16, “The College Hill Study,” looks at how the city intended to … Continue reading →

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Beauty, Ma’am, if you can keep it

Posted on September 29, 2022 by David Brussat

Raised river walk of boardwalk with chain-link fencing, its ugliness mitigated by ugly building. (City) Forces are gathering to undo much of the good work done in recent decades to improve the city of Providence. Our beautiful new waterfront seems … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Flub at Brick School House

Posted on June 11, 2022 by David Brussat

I drove up downtown’s beautiful Westminster Street yesterday and saw director Brent Runyon of the Providence Preservation Society sitting outdoors at a café around noon. I wanted to scream at him: “WTF are you guys doing!” PPS plans to add … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Preservation, Providence | Tagged , , , , , | 22 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 →

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New life for Industrial Trust?

Posted on April 14, 2022 by David Brussat

On Tuesday, officials gathered in the State House to announce a plan to renovate the Industrial Trust Bank Building (ITBB), Rhode Island’s tallest tower, known also as the Superman Building. It has been vacant since 2013, and sits on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Duck & Bunny mystery

Posted on April 18, 2021 by David Brussat

On Easter weekend a colonial-style building at 312 Wickenden St., in Providence, was razed by its new owners, who also owned the Duck & Bunny Snuggery, which was shut for the pandemic. I heard about this calamity on Sunday and … Continue reading →

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Wrong building, wrong place

Posted on February 15, 2021 by David Brussat

A friend just sent me William Morgan’s piece at GoLocalProv.com, published today, about the proposed Corso Building, which was approved by the city in 2019 but has recently been downsized from twelve to nine stories. I repled, “I totally agree … Continue reading →

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

Capt. Aubrey’s dad’s house

Posted on December 4, 2020 by David Brussat

Here is a May 2016 post, quoting from the late Patrick O’Brian’s The Surgeon’s Mate, written in 1979. His novels are – and I truly hate to say this, as it verges on sacrilege – as good as those of … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Books and Culture | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment