Emergency Repairs For City Hall

Sidewalks along Main Street were shut down Monday afternoon after large granite bricks at the top of Woonsocket City Hall became loose, potentially creating a hazard for nearby pedestrians. 

"It's the same type of damage that caused several roof collapses," said Building Official Chris Chianese. An abundance of snow and rain over the past two months has caused water to get into the brick structure and freeze. Warm temperatures today may have melted the ice, loosening bricks on the building, which is more than a century old.

"Some of the large granite stones need to be reset," Chianese said. Representatives from Eagle Cornice and RD Preservation were en route at 4 p.m. today to assess the situation and order emergency repairs.

The damages were confined to the left portion of City Hall, built in 1891, which houses Treasury and Tax Assessment. Chianese warned that the front side walk of the building will be closed until repairs are complete and that visitors to these offices should use the main entrance.

The building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and has held City Hall for more than 100 years. The National Register nomination form for the building states, "No structure has greater significance in the history of the city."

"Woonsocket City Hall is an important building both architecturally, as a anchor of Main Street and historically, as it dates back to the early days of the city," said Jeffrey Emidy, Project Review Coordinator for Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission.

Although the front of the building is first priority for engineers to secure pedestrian safety, Chianese said there were issues with the side and rear portions of the building as well. Bricks at the top of the mural on the side of the building are currently visibly loose.

According to Emidy, the mural depicts some important city landmarks that once abutted city hall: the Patriot's and Slocum buildings. Demolished in the 1950s, the Slocum building once held McCarthy's, Woonsocket's largest store.

"The preservation of City Hall is important to maintain the historic appearance, and its continued use is an important part of life on Main Street," Emidy said. 

"While bricks falling from the side of the 1891 addition to City Hall is clearly an important issue, this alone does not indicate that the building is structurally unsound.  It is extremely important that the city continue its commitment to preserve Woonsocket City Hall.  The building is the architectural anchor of Main Street, and its historical significance as the seat of government of the city, and as the site of Abraham Lincoln's March 6, 1860 speech, are unparalleled in the city."