Arrivederci Atwells: The Decline of Federal Hill–Architecture Critic Morgan
Will Morgan, Architecture Critic
Arrivederci Atwells: The Decline of Federal Hill–Architecture Critic Morgan
Atwells Avenue was one of the reasons that we decided to move to Providence. On an October afternoon, eating lunch at Roma, listening to Andrea Bocelli, and thoroughly energized by the vitality of Little Italy, Carolyn and I looked at each other, and said: This is the place!
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What foodie doesn't like Federal Hill? Dining, listening to live music, and people watching on a warm summer night in DePasquale Square, Christmas shopping at Venda Ravioli, or watching the Columbus Day parade are the events to which we bring out-of-town guests to show off our adopted city. Or used to.
Although it is summertime and we are emerging from the pandemic-imposed cocoon, the once engaging and viable Atwell's Avenue looks as though it has fallen on hard times. This not-so-long-ago grand boulevard looks uncared for, tawdry even. Iconic restaurants, such as the Blue Grotto and Sienna, have closed (these were once described to me as the sort of place where the waiters wore tuxedos and the clientele wore tee shirts and gold chains). Gallery Z is gone, too.
Smaller, traditional Italian-American shops–think the century-old Scialo Brothers Bakery, which is still there–have been replaced with vaping stores, taco shops, or Asian take-out. While the ethnic mix of our tremendously diverse city should be welcome almost anywhere, Atwells Avenue was the embodiment of Rhode Island's Italian heritage. With that Mediterranean spirit watered down, Federal Hill becomes just a strip for bar hopping and cruising.
And the most prominent signifier of la vita Italiana is the so-called bronze pineapple suspended from the gateway arch at the eastern entrance to Federal Hill. Whether you care to think of this as a gesture of welcome or as Roman fertility symbol, "La Pigna" is partly obscured by a banner declaring that the Omni Group Welcomes You to Historic Federal Hill.
Despite its unrevealing name, Omni is a strongly Italian-American development company that has contributed substantially to Federal Hill. Omni funded the restoration of Garibaldi Park just next to the arch, complete with a small bandstand called the Omni Pavilion. When I went to pay my respects to the father of modern Italy, there were two homeless people asleep not far from the bust of the brilliant general and heroic republican.
Federal Hill has long needed more and better housing. Omni is building a trio of three-story apartment blocks at the corner of Atwells and Dean Street. With the exception of the rehabilitation of the Lombard Romanesque-style Mount Carmel Church, these hardly seem to merit the "luxury" tag amended to them, making some of the tired triple-deckers nearby look stylish in comparison.
Farther along the avenue, there are some gaps in the streetscape (which can be crippling to a walkable artery like Atwells), used for valet parking. While having your Range Rover or Cadillac Escalade taken care of you while you alight at your favorite watering hole is a touch of elegance, it doesn't make a lot of sense, and the practice has contributed to the automotive chaos on Federal Hill. Is there a city department or official that decides–against sensible urban design precepts–to dedicate huge swaths of curbside to car jockeying? The hill deserves a better solution, beginning with at least a multi-story garage in one of the empty lots, perhaps accessed from Dean Street.
The Creative Capital ought to be able to float innovative ideas on how to deal with parking and traffic. Atwells Avenue does not need a total makeover, but rather could use a strengthening of its existing resources. The ingredients for a renaissance are there, but they need to be wisely developed.
Most of all, Federal Hill needs to decide what it wants to be. Does it need a new identity or strengthen its role as Little Italy? It is clear that that it is in a state of decline (it cannot even compete with Broad Street as the city's liveliest ethnic enclave). A fair prediction is that Atwells will become like Thames Street in Newport, tourism divorced from its own history.
Federal Hill is one of this city's great treasures. Yet, its value has been taken for granted, and the neighborhood could use some inspired, visionary leadership. The Cianci-Patriarca-Pastore days are past. How about a Providence version of Garibaldi, someone brave, fearless, smart, and a unifier?
