The Zoning Board of Review gave CLUCK!, an urban farm supply store, permission to open on 399 Broadway for the second time on Monday, after the first approval was denied by the Superior Court. The store’s neighbors appealed the original approval on the grounds that CLUCK!’s management failed to notify its neighbors, but have since reached an agreement with the store’s owner, Drake Patten, to not contest the second zoning approval under various conditions about the store’s operation. Residents within 200 feet of the property may appeal the zoning decision until early June.

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Members of Rhode Island’s congressional delegation announced that two Providence organizations are receiving $800,000 total in federal grants to clean up contaminated city sites labeled as ‘brownfields.’ WaterFire will be funded $600,000 to treat the former U.S. Rubber Co. site, contaminated by metals, arsenic, and PCBs. WaterFire will relocate to the site on Valley Street after it has been cleaned. West Broadway Neighborhood Association is receiving $200,000 for the former L&L Gas and Service station site on West, where such contaminants as inorganic materials, metals, PCBs have been found.

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The West Side Diner will reopen within the next few weeks after a decade of research, planning, and construction. The revival of the diner was overseen by Jon Özbek, who has specialized in historic renovation and neighborhood development projects on Providence’s West Side and purchased the diner in 2003.. Originally known as Poirier’s Diner at 581 Atwells Avenue, the establishment catered to nearby manufacturing industries, including General Electric and U.S. Rubber. The building has been relocated to 1380 Westminster Street, where it has been attached to a 1930s garage. The building has been restored with sheet metal panels, ceramic tiles, and doors to complement the original details of the diner.

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The Providence Redevelopment Agency has expressed interest in the vacant three-story building at 94 Washington Street, known as the George C. Arnold Building.  It has now been several years that the structure has sat vacant and boarded up, shut-off to the public.  The Agency has been working closely with Providence Mayor Angel Taveras regarding plans and financial assistance for the purchase of the building.  A meeting has been planned with the agency to discuss possibilities.  

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Until recently, Kennedy Plaza has essentially been reserved for use as a transportation hub.  Citizens have, for some time, dreamed of a more vibrant, multi-purpose, and exciting use for the site.  People might just get what they’ve been yearning for; as of April 18^th, a new plan has been announced and thus, set into motion.  This plan offers up a vision of a more practical, safe, and fun iteration of the current space. 

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