This remarkable building can be found at 11 Higgins Avenue in the Elmhurst neighborhood, very near the Oakland Avenue Historic District. The property, owned by the John Hope Settlement House, is on the Providence Preservation Society’s annual list of Most Endangered Places. According to PPS’s records, this 8-bedroom Queen Anne-style home was built by Tobias […]
(2.6) No square inch of the interior of this 19th-century pile has been left unadorned. All around one finds custom tiles, wallpaper, carpets, and even light fixtures. The good news is that the decor here was created by local artists and you can find out who they are. See for yourself this Thursday when the
The Providence Preservation Society has come out with its annual list of Most Endangered Places. The ‘P’ used to stand for ‘properties’ but ‘places’ is a better fit as the list now includes privately owned public places (Collier Park) and even the zip code around Providence College. (We will be covering both at a later
Big thanks to the enlightened city workers and department heads who have secured the future of this extraordinary tree branch in the most beautiful way imaginable. These traditional Japanese tree brace supports are called “hoozue,” the act of resting one’s chin on one’s hands. The Providence Preservation Society has just issued its biennial Preservation Awards
The Providence Preservation Society has released its 2024 Most Endangered Places List and the unique Atlantic Mills Complex — the Susan Lucci of endangered buildings — is back after years of being nominated: 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017. In the past the issue has been deferred maintenance and hazardous conditions, but the PPS has
Gone. The last of the Angell Street Three has been razed to the ground. All that remains is rubble and questions for city officials. No one seems to know who ordered the demolition nor what is planned for this space. The Mayor has released this statement: “At this time, there are no active proposals for
This wide-ranging program from the Providence Preservation Society provides people with training that can lead to employment opportunities as well as DIY skills for homeowners and renters. What could be better: architectural preservation, jobs, and windows that work! The Building Works Programs support two goals. First, we want to support the work being done by
(8.17) Artist and former RISD Museum artist fellow Xander Marro shares excerpts from a book in progress: Ready for the House, which focuses on the Wedding Cake House, the gorgeous Victorian pile on upper Broadway which operates as a Bed & Breakfast and has hosted artist residencies since its renovation in 2017. Ready for the
(6.18) Should we tear down this marvelous old pile and throw up another crappy new apartment building? Are we really going to replace this Victorian gem — with its gables, dormers and decorative brackets — with more of the fungible, featureless Anytown Architecture currently draining all character and beauty from our city streets. The Providence
The Providence Preservation Society is seeking nominations for the next Most Endangered Properties List and this year they are expanding the category. For decades, our annual list has advocated for buildings at risk due to neglect, threat of demolition, or critical underuse. However, PPS wants to take it to the next level. Providence is also
Most Endangered Properties List — Nominations Wanted Read More »
This little fixer-upper is conveniently located on Harris Avenue between the the Mall and Dusk. From the Providence Preservation Society’s Most Endangered Property List for 2023: An extension constructed in the 1920s, it originally was the Standardized Wholesale Liquors Co. building. Its location makes for a distinctive shape, notable for an oversized and recessed opening
Erected in 1769, the Old Brick Schoolhouse made history in 1828 when it became a public school for pupils of color, known then as the Meeting Street Grammar School. And it was a Black woman, Elizabeth Howland Smith, nee Brown, whose rigorous educational standards as teacher and principal brought honor to both the school and
The Providence Preservation Society (PPS) has announced its Most Endangered Properties for 2023. This year’s list puts a focus on publicly-owned buildings, an effort to emphasize the urgency of decades of deferred maintenance, neglect, or under-utilization that is reaching a critical point. The Humboldt Fire Station was built in 1906 . . . [and] decommissioned
(11.15) Make way for the Wayland Condominium Development and more of that cheesy, modular crap getting thrown up all around town. Unfortunately, developers want to demolish the existing 19th-century building. (McBride’s Pub will stay.) From the Providence Preservation Society: Myles Standish Associates on behalf of Capstone Properties will appear before the City Planning Commission to
Here we go again. The plan is to raze these two buildings and replace them with a five-story apartment building with commercial space on the first floor. Neighborhood groups, abutters, and City Council members Helen Anthony and John Goncalves expressed their concern for the size and nature of this proposal before the City Plan Commission,
“WTF are you guys doing!” The Providence Preservation Society has lost at least one member; architecture critic David Brusatt has tendered his resignation in response to PPS plans for a glass-and-steel addition to the back of their own headquarters, the Old Brick School House built in 1769. From his website Architecture Here and There: That
Addition To Old Brick School House Raises Hackles Read More »