The vacant building is the poster child for urban office building failure.
The local embarrassment is now a national embarrassment.
The headline on the homepage of the Wall Street Journal is:
The Landmark U.S. Office Buildings That Are on Life Support
Providence’s Superman Building has been empty since 2013, despite a revival effort; ‘It’s dead down here now’
America's leading business publication writes:
The beloved 26-story office tower that defines this capital city’s skyline has been empty since Bank of America pulled out in 2013. Its owner proposed converting it into apartments, but local officials balked, insisting it remain a commercial hub. It swiftly became a symbol of downtown blight.
This July, a solution finally seemed in reach. The 70-year-old developer who owned it, David Sweetser, had cobbled together a $308 million financing package for a conversion plan blessed by local officials. Then Sweetser died, once again clouding the future of the tower known locally as the Superman Building, for its resemblance to the fictional Daily Planet headquarters.
The Superman Building’s failure is juxtaposed with some reuse successes around the country.
“Some have made it to the other side of the conversion process. New York’s Woolworth Building, once the world’s tallest, reinvented its top floors as high-end condominiums. Both the PSFS Building in Philadelphia and the Foshay Tower in Minneapolis were reborn as hotels,” wrote the Wall Street Journal.
But nothing says state and local governmental failure more than the 12 years of vacancy at Providence’s tallest building.
"But by all accounts the boarded-up Superman Building has dragged down the local economy, especially in the area near City Hall where it’s located. The tower used to be the hub of an area with lively stores and restaurants. Today many nearby retail locations are closed," adds the Wall Street Journal.
