Providence Place opened in 1999 with original anchors Lord & Taylor, Filene's, and Nordstrom.[2] Lord & Taylor was repositioned and shuttered entirely in June 2004. The space was later filled by JCPenney in February 2005. Filene's became Macy's in 2006.
In September 2015, JCPenney closed down as part of a company decision to close 40 stores nationwide.
Throughout 2016, the mall would undergo major renovations. The area that JCPenney once took would be converted to parking, and a guidance system would be added in the garage to direct customers to open spots. Levels C, B, and A would be renamed to P1, P2, and P3. Levels 1M and 2M would become simply 1.5 and 2.5. Stateside Parking would be renamed to "North Garage", and Cityside Parking would be renamed to "South Garage".
On October 9, 2018, it was announced that Boscov's would replace Nordstrom, which would close on January 4 of the following year when its lease would expire.[3]
On June 1, 2020, Providence Place suffered damage after people protesting the murder of George Floyd broke in and looted 12-18 stores.[4]
Illegal ApartmentEdit
Michael Townsend, Adriana Yoto and six other artists covertly built an apartment in a 750-square-foot (70 m2) empty space in one of the mall's parking garages in 2003 after hearing an ad imagining living there and lived there for up to three weeks at a time while documenting mall life. A cinderblock wall was built to keep it under the radar. The apartment was burglarized at one point, with the PlayStation 2 being stolen. (Some sources report the security guards took it in an attempt to identify the occupants) It had no running water so the residents all used the mall bathrooms. Townsend was caught in 2007 after an artist from Hong Kong, Jaffa Lam, visited and they were detected by security guards.[5] After the fully furnished apartment was discovered by mall security, Townsend, the head of the artists’ cooperative, was initially charged with breaking and entering but it was reduced to trespassing. The story received national attention. Prior to the discovery, he was planning on building a kitchen, install wooden flooring, as well as adding a second bedroom. He pleaded no contest to trespassing and was sentenced to probation on October 2, 2007. The mall trespassed him for life, giving him a map with a red line he cannot cross.[6][7][8][9]
ArchitectureEdit
The mall was built on land previously occupied by a dirt parking lot called "Ray's Park & Lock." The proposed design was met by opposition from residents on the city's East Side; developers changed the initial design to fit better into the neighborhood. The new design included more red and yellow brick and turrets on the roof, to reflect Providence's industrial past.[10]
The design of the mall was partly done by the architect Friedrich St. Florian.[11] He also built the skybridge that connected the mall with the Omni Providence Hotel (formerly the Westin Hotel).
In total, Providence Place consists of fifteen levels. The lowest three are labeled P1-P3 (C-A). Level P1 consists of Parking-Only North Garage (Stateside), and Street Level Restaurants Cityside. There is also a level D in the North Garage. Level P2 consists of DSW shoes and Restaurants, Old Navy stateside, Bed Bath & Beyond cityside and The Skybrige to the Westin. Level P3 consists of parking only, both cityside and stateside. Levels 1.5 and 2.5 also consist of parking only, both cityside and stateside. Cityside is the mall's southern end, facing Downtown. Stateside is the mall's northern end, facing state office buildings including the State Capitol.
The fifth through ninth levels are labeled 1, 1.5 (1M), 2, 2.5 (2M) and 3, which feature the indoor galleria (excluding the .5 levels). There is a Dave & Buster's, an IMAX theatre, and a 16-screen Showcase Cinemas on the seventh level. The mall also hosts two large parking garages labeled North Garage and South Garage, one stateside and the other cityside, anchored to its back end. Bridges connect the two sides over the Woonasquatucket River.
The mall's Winter Garden is a noticeable architectural feature. The four-level structure in the center of the mall spans the Woonasquatucket River and Amtrak'sNortheast Corridor line. The area features large expanses of glass providing views of the city. The third level of the Winter Garden contains the food court and access to its fourth level, serving as the entrance to Dave and Buster's, the IMAX theater, and the cinema. Although not directly connected to the mall, Amtrak's Providence Station is located approximately 200 yards east of the mall, providing Acela Express and Northeast Regional service to Boston, New York City, and Washington, D.C.
Providence Place with the Gtech headquarters obscuring left view
The former Nordstrom entrance in the mall
ReferencesEdit
^"Providence Place is coming of age". The Standard-Times. New Bedford, Mass.
^"Photos: From the Archives: 20 years ago Providence Place opens". The Providence Journal. September 27, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
^Krause, Nancy; Steve Nielson (October 9, 2018). . WPRI News. Archived from the original on October 10, 2018.
^"Providence Protesters Break into Mall, Loot Stores, Burn Police Cruiser". WBZ News. June 2, 2020.
^"Trummerkind". wrafwraf.com. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
^"Artist gets probation for building secret mall apartment". NBC News. Associated Press. October 2, 2007.
^Selin Davis, Lisa (August 15, 2008). "The couple who lived in a mall". Salon.
^Mulvaney, Katie. "Where Are They Now: Artist wishes he could go 'home' again to Providence Place mall". The Providence Journal. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
^"The Accidental Room". 99% Invisible. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
^Kostrzewa, John (December 25, 2016). "John Kostrzewa: A winter night's tour of the Providence skyline". The Providence Journal. Retrieved December 25, 2016. Just across Memorial Boulevard, you can't miss Providence Place, the huge mall built in 1999 on land once used by Ray's Park & Lock, a dirt lot for 450 cars. ... When the mall was proposed, some East Siders ... complained it looked like an aircraft carrier. They convinced public officials to change the design to include more red brick (and special yellow brick for Nordstrom) and turrets on the roof to fit the city's industrial past.
^"Bell Gallery Displays Retrospective of Friedrich St.Florian's Career" (Press release). Brown University). May 12, 2006.
External linksEdit
Official site
August 27, 2023
providence, place, american, shopping, mall, providence, rhode, island, with, gross, leasable, area, been, largest, shopping, mall, rhode, island, since, opened, 1999, 2022, mall, anchored, macy, boscov, features, premier, brands, such, abercrombie, fitch, ado. Providence Place is an American shopping mall in Providence Rhode Island With 1 400 000 sq ft 130 000 m2 of gross leasable area it has been the largest shopping mall in Rhode Island since it opened in 1999 As of 2022 the mall is anchored by Macy s and Boscov s and features premier brands such as Abercrombie amp Fitch Adore Me J Crew Brooks Brothers Tiffany amp Co and Free People Providence PlaceProvidence Place with Omni Providence Hotel at far left in the background LocationProvidence Rhode Island United StatesCoordinates41 49 40 58 N 71 24 59 24 W 41 8279389 N 71 4164556 W 41 8279389 71 4164556AddressOne Providence PlaceOpening dateAugust 20 1999 23 years ago 1999 08 20 DeveloperCommonwealth Development 1 ManagementBrookfield Properties Brookfield Asset Management OwnerBrookfield Properties Brookfield Asset Management No of stores and services160No of anchor tenants2Total retail floor area1 400 000 sq ft 130 000 m2 No of floors3Websiteprovidenceplace wbr com Contents 1 History 1 1 Illegal Apartment 2 Architecture 3 List of anchor stores 4 Gallery 5 References 6 External linksHistory EditProvidence Place opened in 1999 with original anchors Lord amp Taylor Filene s and Nordstrom 2 Lord amp Taylor was repositioned and shuttered entirely in June 2004 The space was later filled by JCPenney in February 2005 Filene s became Macy s in 2006 In September 2015 JCPenney closed down as part of a company decision to close 40 stores nationwide Throughout 2016 the mall would undergo major renovations The area that JCPenney once took would be converted to parking and a guidance system would be added in the garage to direct customers to open spots Levels C B and A would be renamed to P1 P2 and P3 Levels 1M and 2M would become simply 1 5 and 2 5 Stateside Parking would be renamed to North Garage and Cityside Parking would be renamed to South Garage On October 9 2018 it was announced that Boscov s would replace Nordstrom which would close on January 4 of the following year when its lease would expire 3 On June 1 2020 Providence Place suffered damage after people protesting the murder of George Floyd broke in and looted 12 18 stores 4 Illegal Apartment Edit Michael Townsend Adriana Yoto and six other artists covertly built an apartment in a 750 square foot 70 m2 empty space in one of the mall s parking garages in 2003 after hearing an ad imagining living there and lived there for up to three weeks at a time while documenting mall life A cinderblock wall was built to keep it under the radar The apartment was burglarized at one point with the PlayStation 2 being stolen Some sources report the security guards took it in an attempt to identify the occupants It had no running water so the residents all used the mall bathrooms Townsend was caught in 2007 after an artist from Hong Kong Jaffa Lam visited and they were detected by security guards 5 After the fully furnished apartment was discovered by mall security Townsend the head of the artists cooperative was initially charged with breaking and entering but it was reduced to trespassing The story received national attention Prior to the discovery he was planning on building a kitchen install wooden flooring as well as adding a second bedroom He pleaded no contest to trespassing and was sentenced to probation on October 2 2007 The mall trespassed him for life giving him a map with a red line he cannot cross 6 7 8 9 Architecture EditThe mall was built on land previously occupied by a dirt parking lot called Ray s Park amp Lock The proposed design was met by opposition from residents on the city s East Side developers changed the initial design to fit better into the neighborhood The new design included more red and yellow brick and turrets on the roof to reflect Providence s industrial past 10 The design of the mall was partly done by the architect Friedrich St Florian 11 He also built the skybridge that connected the mall with the Omni Providence Hotel formerly the Westin Hotel In total Providence Place consists of fifteen levels The lowest three are labeled P1 P3 C A Level P1 consists of Parking Only North Garage Stateside and Street Level Restaurants Cityside There is also a level D in the North Garage Level P2 consists of DSW shoes and Restaurants Old Navy stateside Bed Bath amp Beyond cityside and The Skybrige to the Westin Level P3 consists of parking only both cityside and stateside Levels 1 5 and 2 5 also consist of parking only both cityside and stateside Cityside is the mall s southern end facing Downtown Stateside is the mall s northern end facing state office buildings including the State Capitol The fifth through ninth levels are labeled 1 1 5 1M 2 2 5 2M and 3 which feature the indoor galleria excluding the 5 levels There is a Dave amp Buster s an IMAX theatre and a 16 screen Showcase Cinemas on the seventh level The mall also hosts two large parking garages labeled North Garage and South Garage one stateside and the other cityside anchored to its back end Bridges connect the two sides over the Woonasquatucket River The mall s Winter Garden is a noticeable architectural feature The four level structure in the center of the mall spans the Woonasquatucket River and Amtrak s Northeast Corridor line The area features large expanses of glass providing views of the city The third level of the Winter Garden contains the food court and access to its fourth level serving as the entrance to Dave and Buster s the IMAX theater and the cinema Although not directly connected to the mall Amtrak s Providence Station is located approximately 200 yards east of the mall providing Acela Express and Northeast Regional service to Boston New York City and Washington D C List of anchor stores EditName Yearopened Yearclosed NotesNordstrom 1999 2019Boscov s 2019 Replaced NordstromLord amp Taylor 2000 2004JCPenney 2005 2015 Replaced Lord amp TaylorFilene s 1999 2006Macy s 2006 Replaced Filene sGallery Edit Inside Providence Place Providence Place with the Gtech headquarters obscuring left view The former Nordstrom entrance in the mallReferences Edit Providence Place is coming of age The Standard Times New Bedford Mass Photos From the Archives 20 years ago Providence Place opens The Providence Journal September 27 2019 Retrieved September 2 2022 Krause Nancy Steve Nielson October 9 2018 Nordstrom at Providence Place closing Boscov s moving in WPRI News Archived from the original on October 10 2018 Providence Protesters Break into Mall Loot Stores Burn Police Cruiser WBZ News June 2 2020 Trummerkind wrafwraf com Retrieved November 23 2020 Artist gets probation for building secret mall apartment NBC News Associated Press October 2 2007 Selin Davis Lisa August 15 2008 The couple who lived in a mall Salon Mulvaney Katie Where Are They Now Artist wishes he could go home again to Providence Place mall The Providence Journal Retrieved November 23 2020 The Accidental Room 99 Invisible Retrieved November 23 2020 Kostrzewa John December 25 2016 John Kostrzewa A winter night s tour of the Providence skyline The Providence Journal Retrieved December 25 2016 Just across Memorial Boulevard you can t miss Providence Place the huge mall built in 1999 on land once used by Ray s Park amp Lock a dirt lot for 450 cars When the mall was proposed some East Siders complained it looked like an aircraft carrier They convinced public officials to change the design to include more red brick and special yellow brick for Nordstrom and turrets on the roof to fit the city s industrial past Bell Gallery Displays Retrospective of Friedrich St Florian s Career Press release Brown University May 12 2006 External links EditOfficial site Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Providence Place amp oldid 1169789720, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
