Cassidy, business owners trumpet further growth in Main Street area

PAWTUCKET - Walk through the heart of this city this fall and it's hard to find a building not under renovation.

Some structures are receiving new windows and facades, others getting tens of thousands of dollars in interior work, while still others are undergoing a floor-to-ceiling, foundation-to-roof overhaul in the Main Street area of Pawtucket's downtown.

Director of Planning and Redevelopment Michael Cassidy said this week that despite the many negative stories people keep hearing on the state and national level, a diverse mix of motivated businesspeople are investing heavily in an area of the city they believe is headed in the right direction.

"Even in this bad economy, people are opening businesses up," said Cassidy.

Cassidy told The Breeze that despite many harsh realities - like a city unemployment rate he believes is now exceeding 15 percent, and a continued foreclosure crisis in Pawtucket - the groundwork is being laid for future economic vitality.

Unlike some past downtown redevelopment efforts, the modern-day overhaul of the area is backed by a cohesive network of public and private entities like the Pawtucket Foundation and the continued growth of an upscale residential district, say business owners in the downtown.

Many are following the adage that a bad time is the best time to invest in the future, said Cassidy, and they're recognizing that downtown Pawtucket is one place worth investing in.

Bob Plouffe, a former Cumberland restaurant owner who will open the new Cup 'N Saucer at 267 Main St. next week, said he has "tremendous confidence" in the future of the entire downtown area, so much so that he will operate a restaurant and catering facilities only out of his new city location.

Across the street from the Cup 'N Saucer, a new leather repair shop, Old School Leathersmith at 272 Main St., is gaining a clientele in space leased by new business owner Mark Bessette in front of Main Street's public garage.

"The downtown is on its way up, no doubt about that," said Bessette last week.

Along with Bessette's and Plouffe's endeavors, the exterior of the Grant Building has also had a facelift in recent days. Beautiful new signage informs customers that Kafe Lila and Flying Shuttles Studio are open for business in a building now containing 17 or more businesses.

Other business owners are also considering renovations, according to Plouffe, as part of a more unified effort among owners to root for each other to do well at attracting customers to the area.

Next door to Bessette, between Old School Leathersmith and the Grant Building, a design studio is also in the process of opening. Just up the road, at 23 Broad St., the new owners of the McDevitt Building continue their push to renovate the historic structure and turn it into a mixed-use business facility.

Cassidy said that the Farietta family has now reached an agreement to bring a yoga studio to the McDevitt Building and are in talks with several other business owners as part of a mixed-use plan for the facility.

Just around the corner, workers are renovating the exterior of a building at 33 Summer St. for future use as an Italian restaurant, according to Cassidy.

Cassidy said that several business owners led by Plouffe have now approached city officials about shutting down one-way Main Street once a month as happened for the first-ever "Rocktucket" concert event during the Pawtucket Arts Festival earlier this year.

Cassidy said closing the street off to one-way traffic could very well happen soon.