About Us
Mission statement
We have a vision of rehabilitating the
existing Potter Hill Mill historic structures and re-establishing
the hydro-electric
power
generation capability at this site to create a unique and state-of-the
art “Green Mixed Use Community.” We envision that professional
and commercial tenants and residents will have their energy needs
provided through renewable energy resources and that this village
will be a positive contribution to the
community.
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Potter Hill Mill Mixed-Use Development Narrative
Renewable Resources
Inc, the owner, has a vision of rehabilitating the existing Potter
Hill Mill historic structures and re-establishing the hydro-electric
power generation capability at this site to create a unique and
state of the art “Green Mixed Use Development.” We
envision that professional and commercial tenants and residents
will have their energy needs provided through renewable energy
resources available at this site. Several types of renewable energy
resources, including hydro-electric, geothermal, solar, and fuel
cell power generation, are feasible at this site. To facilitate
this development, Renewable Resources has retained the services
of two key engineering and architectural firms, H.L.Turner Inc
and Newport Collaborative Architects.
H.L.Turner is a firm experienced
with the development of environmentally sensitive and environmentally
synergistic buildings and in renovating
hydro-electric facilities.
Renewable Resources has been granted a Preliminary Permit by the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC) to re-establish a hydro-electric power generation
capability at this site and is currently conducting engineering and environmental
assessments to identify significant constraints and to finalize the hydro-electric
system design. This effort is also consistent with the RI Governor’s recently
announced Hydro-Electric Energy Initiative to promote the development and renovation
of hydro-electric power generation sites on RI rivers.
Newport Collaborative
Architects is a firm experienced with the renovation of historic buildings
and large historic mill complexes in Rhode Island, such as
the Ashton and Slatersville Mills. Newport Collaborative is currently completing
the architectural schematic drawing package for the mixed-use re-development
of the building complex at the Potter Hill Mill site. They are also finalizing
the architectural content for the Historic Tax Credit Application package for
submission to the RI Historic Preservation Commission.
The Potter Hill Mill
is an excellent example of an Industrial Revolution Era wool mill
that evolved into a modern textile manufacturing complex. Commercial
activity began on the site prior to the Revolutionary War, as far back as 1762,
and continued as a series of cotton and woolen mills until the last woolen
mill, the Westerly Woolen Company, finally closed in 1958. At its peak, the
site was
comprised of 16 structures organized in two long rows and employed approximately
300 people in around the clock operations. The larger water-powered manufacturing
structures were constructed along the banks of the river and the smaller store
houses, stables, and storage building were located along a road behind these
shoreline buildings. The most substantial construction took place around the
1847 when the two large mill buildings, a 2 1⁄2 story wood structure
and a 3 story stone structure, were erected.
The proposed mixed-use re-development
effort will combine a mix of commercial and residential space with some space
reserved for
use by non-profit organizations. We expect that the majority
of the space will be allocated for commercial uses. The commercial
space will include a mix of office and lab space for high tech
and professional companies, a small (less than 10 room) historic
inn with associated small restaurant, a coffee shop/bakery with
a small newspaper/food store and a fishing/outdoor equipment
store
with boat/canoe/kayak rentals. Space will also be allocated for
non-profit organizations, including an historic textile mill
and river life museum to educate students, residents and tourists
on relevant topics and a Technology Innovation Institute to study
and promote
science and technology innovation and collaboration. We envision
participation by a large range of people and groups, including
individual inventors and innovators, small and large companies,
schools, universities and other non-profit institutions, and
government
organizations. Depending on space availability, small mix of
1 and 2 bedroom residential rental apartments may be included,
with
appropriate allocations for affordable housing units.
The Owner
realizes that the current zoning of RR-60 must be re-visited to
permit this type of re-development for the site. When this
property was purchased in 1992, it was zoned commercial/industrial.
The
town changed the zoning category for this property sometime subsequent
to this date. This property has been operated as a commercial
mill complex for hundreds of years, initially as a grist mill,
saw mill,
and fulling mill and then as a series of cotton, shipbuilding
and woolen mills in later years. Individual buildings have been
used
for diverse purposes over the years, including textile manufacturing,
power generation, offices, stores, storage, horse stables, carpenter,
blacksmith, and boat building shops, and boarding houses for
mill workers. The size and scale of these historic building are
appropriate
for commercial uses. These size and scale of these buildings
do not seem very appropriate for single family residential use.
We
will address these issues with the town zoning coordinator and
the zoning board.
Today the mill buildings exist in various states of deterioration
but certain waterfront buildings have retained much of their
original architectural integrity and structure. While these structures
have
experienced significant water damage, they are important buildings,
representative of Westerly’s rich history and worthy of
restoration. The site contains vast archaeological resources
such as masonry
raceways and industrial machinery that are all worth preserving,
along with the original historic structures
Potter Hill Mill
contributes visually, historically and culturally to the town
of Westerly. The renovation of the stone, brick and
wood buildings would re-create
the impressive and attractive waterfront complex of years past, representative
of the former rich commercial life and culture along the Pawcatuck River.
This site is unique to Westerly because it illustrates the continuous
evolution
of industrial architecture, in terms of style, material, and construction
techniques, from the early 19th century to the mid 20th century.
At one time, this property
was generally regarded “as one of the finest manufacturing sites in
all of Rhode Island”.
Due to the historic significance of this property,
Renewable Resources has submitted an application to have the Potter Hill
Mill added to the “National
Register of Historic Places”. This application is under review by
the RI Historic Preservation Commission. This designation will ensure that
re-development
is designed in a manner that preserves the original historic configuration
of the site. Construction will be limited to the restoration of existing
structures and the reconstruction of new structures only on historic footprints.
All designs
for new construction will be historically appropriate and modeled on photographic
evidence.
Ultimately, The National Parks Service will be
responsible for determining the extent to which individual buildings
can be reconstructed
on the site.
For this reason, it is anticipated that the design of buildings and structures
on this site evolve in response to comments from the National Park Service,
Rhode Island Historic Preservation Commission, RIDEM, and the Westerly
Planning Board. It is the intention of the developer to restore all existing
structures
and to restore some of the other original buildings on historic footprints.
It is also the goal of the developer to fabricate two additional historically
realistic structures, a water tower and a trolley bridge, and to install
these structures on the property on the foundations where they were originally
located.
The historic documentation depicts a water tower with 3 legs near the
southwest property boundary and a trolley bridge crossing over
the Pawcatuck River
near the north end of the property. The re-installation of the water
tower will
provide additional functional capability for the site. The re-installation
of the bridge will enable improved traffic flow through the property.
Other
site parameters which will constrain this development (such as
parking and septic design) are being assessed to ensure that
the final
planned
medium density mixed- use development design properly allocate resources
in balance
with the intended commercial, non-profit organization, and residential
uses. Parking for the proposed uses is schematic at this time, showing
only general
locations for vehicles. An Advanced ISDS system is being proposed for
this development as well, and is depicted in its proposed location. This
location
is subject to change with further soil testing, percolation rates, water
table and final square footages for the uses programmed within the buildings.
In
summary, Renewable Resources Inc is committed to creating a “green” and
historically appropriate development at the Potter Hill Mill site. This
project is an ambitious preservation effort that has the potential
to resurrect a lapsed
historical era in Westerly. This development will enable the continuation
of an important commercial tradition that began at the Potter Hill
Mill complex
almost three hundred years ago. This project will revive an area of the
town that once thrived, and will also enable the environmentally
sensitive use of
renewable resources for current commercial and housing uses.
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to top Significant Benefits for The Town of Westerly,
Rhode Island
Historical and Cultural Resource Benefits:
- Preserve
an important historic landmark. & leverage historic tax
credit monies
to improve community
- Establish an historic textile and river
life museum for students, residents & tourists
- Establish a technology & learning
institute for students, residents, & tourists
- Promote recreational
activities on river (river life monitoring, canoe rental, fishing
gear shop, …)
- Provide small historic inn & event
center for community, corporate, and non-profit activities.
- Consistent
with Historical & Cultural Resource Element of Town’s
Comprehensive Plan
Economic Benefits:
- High-end professional office
spaces will attract new companies and jobs.
- High-end professional
office space will enable local companies to expand & remain
in area
- Valuable tourist attraction to bring visitors and
money to area
- Improve town’s image “Town
that Preserves America’s Villages & Supports
Green, Renewable Energy”
- Increased number of affordable housing
units in town
- Facilitate jobs for students (summer, intern, and
part-time)
- Increased property taxes for town (from increased
village and nearby property values).
- Increased sales and income taxes
for state with local town benefits (from new & higher
paying jobs)
- Growth without increased demand on town infrastructures
(such as sewer and water)
- Consistent with Economic Element of Town’s
Comprehensive Plan & SMART
GROWTH RI 2005/07 reports
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Mission statement
Development Narrative
Significant Benefits for The Town of Westerly, Rhode Island |
