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Boston Globe
19-05-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
New R.I. program will train aspiring local real estate developers
Local Return President Q. What is Local Return and what is the Jumpstart Rhode Island program? David: Local Return's mission is to build community wealth in Rhode Island neighborhoods through community ownership and investment. We're focused on closing the opportunity and prosperity gaps in communities that have experienced decades of neglect or extraction. In 2024, we launched a fundraising offering for Rhode Island's first (and only) community investment fund. Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up Local Return has launched the Jumpstart Rhode Island program "to revitalize Rhode Island and build community wealth through training, mentoring, and networking for local aspiring real estate developers." Handout Advertisement While we are actively raising the $3.5 million for the Local Return diversified community investment fund, we also know we need to build a strong pipeline of potential investments — which is where Jumpstart Rhode Island comes in. This program provides training, mentoring, and networking for aspiring local real estate developers. It's really intended for small-scale, neighborhood-based developers. We're starting this June with a cohort focused on Providence. Where did you get this idea? Is something similar being done in other places? Jumpstart was started by real estate developer Ken Weinstein from Philly Office Retail in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia in 2015. Since then, the program has expanded to 15 other communities nationwide. To date, more than 2,900 people have graduated from Jumpstart programs in Philadelphia. They generously shared their curriculum and provided us with support as we adapted the program to Rhode Island. Advertisement What are some of the skills that people will learn in the program? The curriculum is built around seven 'Jumpsteps' that walk through the development process, from creating a strategy and team, to doing due diligence, to leasing or selling your property. We'll cover the basics of financing, zoning, and permitting. Students will learn how to develop a pro forma [projections for the potential financial return of a proposed development], find a contractor, and manage a construction process. We are also working with a few wonderful local partners to make sure our students have opportunities to learn financial literacy and construction skills. What is the need for this program in Rhode Island? There's a huge need! We urgently need to create more homes for Rhode Islanders. Neighborhood-based developers are an important piece of the solution. Plus, real estate ownership is how most people in this country build wealth for their families. But we need to create more pathways for everyday Rhode Islanders to learn how to develop responsibly, so they're not risking their own financial security or the safety of future occupants. Right now, unless you're connected to someone that has experience with real estate development or have the wherewithal to learn as you go, it's not an easy field to break into. What are the main goals you are hoping to achieve? We love this program because it aims to accomplish several things at once: create opportunities for local residents to invest in their neighborhoods, build wealth locally, and promote diversity in real estate development. Residents know their neighborhoods best, and they have the most at stake in making their community a great place to live. Advertisement How and when can people apply? Applications for our first cohort are due by 5 p.m. on Monday, May 19. Training sessions will take place on three Saturdays, June 7, 14, and 21. Providence residents and people who have a strong commitment and connection to the city are welcome to apply. To learn more about the program and submit an application, visit The Boston Globe's weekly Ocean State Innovators column features a Q&A with Rhode Island innovators who are starting new businesses and nonprofits, conducting groundbreaking research, and reshaping the state's economy. Send tips and suggestions to reporter Alexa Gagosz at . Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Demolition to begin on Reading-owned building on Penn Street
Demolition is to begin today on a Reading-owned building in the 400 block of Penn Street, the city announced. The empty structure at 431 Penn St. in the Callowhill Historic District is in an advanced state of decay, Brian Willicombe, Reading's chief building official, told the city's Historical Architectural Review Board in a series of meetings last year. The board reviews and makes recommendations on exterior construction projects in the city's historic and conservation districts. Board members unanimously voted in December to issue a certificate of appropriateness for the partial demolitions of the buildings at 431 and 435 Penn St. with the partial demolition of 441 Penn St., if deemed necessary by Willicombe. Plan would preserve fronts of 3 Penn Street buildings and put parking in the rear City officials confirmed Friday that only 431 Penn St. will be demolished at this time. The building is the most problematic in the string of five vacant buildings, 431-443 Penn St., bought by the city in 2013 for $2.6 million. City Council authorized an agreement of sale for the five with developer Philly Office Retail early last year. The city did not respond immediately to questions regarding the status of the sale. Officials in October said the city is in the due diligence phase and the transaction is pending. Officials have said adaptively reusing the buildings and saving the facades on Penn Street was part of Philly Office Retail's proposal. The parcels total 1.22-acre on the northwest corner of Fifth and Penn streets between Penn and Court streets. 'The buildings are in such disrepair, I consider them unsafe and on the verge of (causing) injury or collapse,' Willicombe said in September. The chief building official was handed the problem after being hired by the city last spring. All of the buildings are deteriorating, he told the HARB, but 431 Penn St. poses the biggest threat. A structural engineer's report from April 2022 indicated the western facing wall of the building was in jeopardy. Since then, officials said, the problem has grown worse, and the roof collapsed into the building last year. City officials considered dismantling and salvaging the structure last year, but no action was taken. Plan would save facade of Penn Street landmark, demolish rear of building, Reading officials say Waiting until the situation becomes an emergency, could preclude salvaging efforts, Willicombe said at the time. It was unclear if the city still plans to salvage parts of the buildings. Only the 1912 Beaux Arts-style front of the structure is considered historic. Originally part of the former Reading News building at 22-24 N. Fifth St., it was transplanted piece by piece to its current location in 1981 as part of the former American Bank $6 million Keystone Project. 'Safety comes before historical,' Willicombe said in October. Demolition of 431 Penn St. with the former Reading News facade is slated to begin today. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) A provision in the city's preservation ordinance allows the chief building official to take immediate action when there is a threat to public safety, and Willicombe said he would not hesitate to act if the building reached that point. A section of sidewalk and road in the 400 block of Penn Street will be closed during the demolition work, the city announced. Work is expected to begin today, the city said, and will take about two weeks to complete. Due to the nature of the work, the city said, the westbound lane of Penn Street between Fourth and Fifth streets will be closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic during all hours until deemed safe to reopen. The eastbound lane will remain open. Motorists traveling west on Penn Street will be detoured as follows: • Turn right onto Fifth Street. • Turn left onto Washington Street. • Turn left onto Fourth Street to return to Penn Street. Drivers should plan for additional travel time and use caution when navigating the detour route.
