Loss of Historic Tax Credits Impacting Downtown Pawtucket Redevelopment

Looks like we lost another developer for the Old Colony Bank building at 347 Main Street.

The ProJo reported that after the General Assembly voted to exclude new development projects from receiving historic tax credits developer Lawrence J. Platt decided to pull out of the Old Colony Bank building. According to Mike Cassidy, Director of Planning and redevelopment, “He was deeply disappointed...[the] state’s elimination of historic tax credits for any project going forward just killed this project.” According to the paper “the Providence-based developer had been planning to spend up to $3 million to convert the Old Colony Bank building into stores and offices, combining state and federal historic tax credits to raise part of the money.”

Basically the same facts reported by the Pawtucket Times who added only that the redevelopment of the former Pawtucket School District’s administrative offices at 81 Park Place by developer Everett Amaral of Amaral Revite may also be endangered by the loss of historic tax credits. At the Pawtucket Redevelopment Agency meeting (PRA) last Tuesday, Planning Department officials “said that there is a draft purchase and sales agreement between the city and Amaral Revite but said they do not know the current status pf the deal as that negotiation is taking place with City Council.” They went on to say, “according to the latest information from the General Assembly, there will be no state historic tax credit for projects that had not been qualified by Dec. 31, 2007″ but that “federal historic tax credits offering tax breaks of 20 percent are still available” if a building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places

Don’t worry though, at their meeting the PRA also announced that construction of CVS on the site of the Pawtucket-Central Falls Railroad Depot has begun. So, while downtown residents have few amenities, our drug store needs – already well served by the several chains established in and around downtown – will be met. If we are lucky CVS will decide they can take advantage of the walking population just like Walgreen’s does by charging a little extra for the “privilege” of shopping there!

Let’s hope somehow there are more developers like J. Hogue and Michael Lozano of The Grant who might be interested in the Old Colony Bank building and the rest of downtown. The Grant also has a blog folks might want to check out.