Pawtucket’s big bet that low-level professional soccer will be a catalyst for development is beginning to pay off.
Rhode Island FC’s highly anticipated first home game in the gorgeous Centreville Bank Stadium is May 3, and today the team at Fortuitous Partners has announced plans to build two residential buildings, along with a separate apartment complex along School Street.
Fortuitous is partnering with Wood Partners and Pennrose – two well-known real estate developers – on the project, which they say will offer market-rate and affordable housing. Wood Partners is leading the effort to build one 300-unit complex and an additional 250-unit building that will also include commercial space. Pennrose is leading the School Street complex, which will offer 72 mixed-income units.
The bigger picture: This is a big deal for Pawtucket and for Fortuitous Partners.
The soccer stadium is going to be an initial hit. People like new shiny things, and they’ll want to visit this summer. The first game is already sold out. There are concerts in the works. And soccer is going to remain a hot topic as the US hosts the World Cup next year.
But in order to fully justify the cost of the soccer stadium, the rest of the Tidewater Landing project has to come together. That means apartments, more commercial space, and restaurants and bars that would make the area feel like a mini version of Patriot Place. This is the first step.
What isn’t yet known is whether the residential component of the project will require more public subsidies, and if so, where that money will come from (the state, the city, or both).
This story first appeared in Rhode Map, our free newsletter about Rhode Island that also contains information about local events, links to interesting stories, and more. If you’d like to receive it via email Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.
Dan McGowan can be reached at dan.mcgowan@globe.com. Follow him @danmcgowan.