Zoning Board Approves Application For 84 Fairmount

A 24-hour towing company with trucks that run on vegetable oil.

An open air flea market that caters to green vendors on the weekends.

An auction house, a commercial parking garage, a motor vehicle specialty shop and a shop for vehicle lease, rental or sales. 

These are the suggested plans for 84 Fairmount Street, the 300,000 square foot, four-story former mill once slated for condos by Hanover Capital, LLC. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007, the hulking structure has sat vacant since the days of American Tourister.

Hanover after Rhode Island ended a historic tax credit which would have allowed the developers to recoup up to 30 percent of their qualifying rehabilitation construction costs.      

"The workmen's gloves and coffee cups are still there," said Economic Development Director Matt Wojcik. "They pulled the plug. In my opinion, that was a mistake."

Paul Mathias bought the $29,000 tax lien against the property for FY 2009 last year. The LLC for Hanover Capital has since been dissolved.

In a letter to the city's building inspector, one of the original investors, Ron L. Wierks of RLW Construction Services states "Due to market conditions the company is unable to fulfill its obligations to convert the mill into residential loft space." Wierks goes on to request the opportunity to lease the exterior portion of the property to Mathias for business purposes.

After one year, if the owners of the building have not paid the lien on the property plus interest, Mathias has the right to file for tax foreclosure in Superior Court and potentially obtain full ownership of the lot.

With this deadline approaching and FY 2010 taxes due, Mathias has taken his ideas for the building to the Woonsocket Zoning Board, gaining unanimous approval Monday night for a business plan to reanimate the abandoned property, a frequent victim of vandalism. 

"Our focus will be making sure everything is clean and aesthetically pleasing for the neighborhood," Mathias told the board. In the first phase of development, the Woonsocket businessman hopes to replace more than 125 feet of fencing around the property.

"Despite his best efforts, the property is constantly vandalized," said Charles Canto, a city resident and auto mechanic of more than 25 years who hopes to help Mathias set up the new business.

Mathias documented plans to gradually rehabilitate the massive structure, which is currently missing an estimated $30,000 in glass windows. Much of the pipe and wiring for the facility has reportedly been stolen and Mathias hopes to work from a small guard shack before moving on to the boiler room in phase two of the project.

Wojcik voiced his approval in a letter to the board. "I believe that faced with the likelihood of ongoing vacancy, a gradual, incremental plan to enliven this structure once again is our nearest and best hope for resolving safety and security issues created by leaving such a large building empty and unattended. We need to be creative if we are to save 84 Fairmount Street from further deterioration."

One of the more interesting aspects of the zoning application is the inclusion of  "Go Green," a towing company which, according to Mathias, would be the first in the country to operate trucks on vegetable oil. "We've been developing the technology for three years," he said.

For parts of the structure not slated to be occupied by his enterprise, Mathias is in talks with another potential tenant who could rent up to 170,000 square feet of the property.

The board's approval came with several stipulations including limitations on hours of operation and a ban on barbed wire. Mathias will still need approval from the City Council, including a number a special permits, to execute his business plan.

For his part, Wojcik explains "I don't care what he does. I care that he be a presence in the building and that he improves it."