History of NWBRV

NeighborWorks Blackstone River Valley (NWBRV) has a rich history.  Beginning in 1987 as the Woonsocket Neighborhood Development Corporation, the organization has celebrated many successes in the 20+ years it’s worked within Northern RI.

• 1987 – The Woonsocket Neighborhood Development Corporation (WNDC) begins as a city project, funded by federal money, with offices on Constitution Hill, one of the city’s most blighted neighborhoods, rife with crime, drugs, dozens of boarded-up buildings, and absentee landlords. Not much happens. In five years, WNDC rehabs six condos. The city pulls its support, but the WNDC board clings to life.
• 1991 – Enter a catalyst- the Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC).  LISC, a national helpmate for Community Development Corporations (CDCs), opens a RI office and breathes new life into WNDC with board training and money for staff. The Rhode Island Foundation chips in as well.
• 1993 – Constitution Hill: A good neighborhood gone bad. In response to the area’s soaring crime rate, the Woonsocket police open a substation on Constitution Hill.
• 1994 – WNDC gets serious. The board of directors hires Joe Garlick as WNDC’s new full-time director. He has a master’s degree in city and regional planning from Rutgers and has worked for two other RI CDCs.
• 1995 – WNDC builds 9 architect-designed (though affordable) single-family homes for first-time buyers on Marian Lane in Woonsocket as its first “official” development.  Also…
  • WNDC is noticed by the national press. The Wall Street Journal calls WNDC’s efforts on Constitution Hill a successful example of how the sale of government tax credits, a program created under President Reagan, can build affordable housing and at the same time rescue troubled city neighborhoods. The Journal quotes a policeman, “People here had just about lost all hope, and then this project started…”
• 1996 – Constitution Hill starts its comeback. Phase one of WNDC’s rehabilitation of Constitution Hill complete, with 44 family-friendly apartments in 13 rehabilitated buildings.
• 1999 – Community center replaces crime hub. WNDC opens the Chaplin-Perez Center as a community hall and after-school youth center. The structure, renovated from the studs out, previously housed a barroom notorious for drug deals and stolen goods. Also…
  • Constitution Hill turn-around complete. Phase two of WNDC’s Constitution Hill rehabilitation adds another 46 apartments in 13 more tenements throughout the neighborhood.
• 2000 – Police and neighbors celebrate. Woonsocket police declare a “victory” on Constitution Hill. A high crime area has become a low crime area. “It’s a total reclamation of the neighborhood,” a police official says in the news story. WNDC’s conversion of abandoned housing into affordable housing helps stabilize the area and reverse the devastation caused by absentee landlords.  Also…
  • Recovery housing built. In partnership with Family Resources Community Action, WNDC builds a 5-unit apartment house for women recovering from alcohol or drug addiction on Sayles Street in Woonsocket.
  • A novel community arts program starts – WNDC begins an Artist-in-Residence program on Constitution Hill. The artist gets a rent-free home and studio, and in exchange conducts art programs for neighborhood children and teens. Nationally recognized muralist and book artist, Stephen Farley of Tucson, AZ, is the first, spending the summer.
  • WNDC’s Constitution Hill project honored in Washington as one of five projects nationwide to win an Excellence in Urban Housing award from the Affordable Tax Credit Coalition.
  • Woodridge Estates wins court battle. A judge’s ruling favoring WNDC ends a three-year fight with the city over plans to build affordable homes in the Fairmount neighborhood of Woonsocket. “In a harshly worded decision,” reported The Call, Superior Court Judge Judith Savage reversed Woonsocket’s Planning Board decision, saying the board “…committed clear error of law and abused its discretion” in halting the project.
• 2002 – WNDC has developed 45 single-family homes in Woonsocket for first-time buyers, raising $4.8 million in financing. Also…
  • Our staff grew to seven.
  • A feature article in Rhode Island Monthly magazine exposes how tough it is to build affordable housing in the state. Experts heap praise on WNDC’s tenacity and accomplishments: “They’re one of the premier organizations in the state by any measure.”
• 2003 – Home buyer and landlord training. Nearly 500 families and individuals are now living in WNDC-developed affordable housing. And nearly 800 families have graduated from WNDC’s Homebuyer and Landlord training programs, which are designed to create educated and “foreclosure-proof” homebuyers.  Also…
  • WNDC purchases 200 acres of land for a proposed development in Burrillville. On the drawing board: 110 homes clustered on 10 acres, with the bulk conserved as open space. The development will be called Pascoag Village.
  • Citizens Bank and NBC 10 name WNDC a winner of their prestigious Champions in Action award.
• 2004 – WNDC’s Woodridge Estates opens after years of opposition from city hall. The development begins to make its 26 affordable homes available to first-time buyers in Woonsocket, at prices ranging from $110K-140K.  Also…
  • Study finds lack of affordable housing a drag on state’s economy. A comprehensive new report, commissioned by the Housing Network of RI and WNDC, and endorsed by the Northern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce, finds that Rhode Island needs to increase its production of affordable housing fourfold by 2010 to meet demand and keep pace with economic trends.
  • WNDC celebrates the “hidden” city. Led by WNDC, 10 local organizations launch “Unearthing Woonsocket,” a day-long celebration that features a walking tour led by teen guides trained in WNDC’s Artist-in-Residence program.  Business-supported coalition formed to relieve housing crisis.
  • WNDC organizes a Northern Rhode Island housing coalition including business people, town officials, real estate professionals, and advocates.
  • Phase 3 of Constitution Hill begins. WNDC continues to develop its landmark neighborhood. Phase 3 includes several expanded apartments specially designed for home-based child-care businesses, to provide qualified tenants with income-producing opportunities.
• 2005 – Mixed-use flagship with views of the Blackstone River opens. Costing $7 million, WNDC’s new Heritage Place has 43 affordable multilevel apartments, wired for high-speed internet access, with an enviable view of the Blackstone River. Retail spaces (neighborhood small businesses preferred) occupy the ground floor. Also on site: Dunkin Donuts and Champ’s Diner, a Woonsocket landmark, restored to service.
• 2006 – Completion of  the 26 homes in Woodridge Estates in Woonsocket on Steve Lopes Way for first time homebuyers.  Also…
  • From WNDC to doing business as NeighborWorks Blackstone River Valley.
  • The official opening of our Home Ownership Center.
• 2007 – Renovation of Hope Street School into family center for Connecting for Children and Families is complete.  Also…
  • The Constitution Hill, Fairmount and Main Street areas of Woonsocket are chosen as 1 of 10 pilot sites to participate in LISC’s Sustainable Communities initiative that will build relationships and inspire quality-of-life improvements throughout all three  adjacent neighborhoods.
• 2008 – Grand opening of The Meadows.  The town embraces the 80 units elderly housing in North Smithfield.  Also…
  • NWBRV is award the Community Builder Award by Bank of America.
• 2009 – Ground is broken on the historic Stillwater Mill development in Burrillville.
• 2010 – The Our Neighborhoods (formerly Sustainable Communities) Community Contract is released in March.  Process heralded for breaking down silos.
• 2011 – The redevelopment of Stillwater Mill in Burrillville is completed.  The new development (now called the Clocktower Apartments) includes 47 affordable and market rate rentals, smart growth designs, geothermal heating and cooling, community space, and a business incubator.
• 2012  – The organization celebrates the grand opening of the Mary A. Longtin C3 Center, a mill redevelopment in Woonsocket that features 6 rental units for Community Builders-in-Residence and a youth learning center. Also…
  • Ground is broken on Marshfield Commons, a new rental development featuring 38 new units in North Smithfield, RI.
• 2013 – The Marshfield Commons development in North Smithfield, RI is completed. The new development includes 38 town-house style rental units, smart growth designs, solar panels, and community space. Also…
  • NWBRV partners with the Woonsocket Housing Authority to begin work on H.U.D.’s Choice Neighborhood’s Planning initiative.
• 2014 – The organization completes the rehabilitation of 5 John St. in Woonsocket, a partnership with Seven Hills.
• 2016 – 40 South Main Street, Woonsocket, RI rehabilitation complete. This work transformed the old Mulvey Hardware Store into 6 affordable apartments, a Kitchen Incubator, and a 125 person rentable event space. 
• 2016 – The Self-Help Housing project at Fernwood, Burillville completes the first 7 homes. Through the USDA’s Self- Help Housing Program, homeowners contribute 30 hours a week towards the build of their own home. After a year, they’ve reduced the cost of their 3 bedroom home by a third through their sweat equity. 
• 2017 – Greenridge Commons opens in Burrillville, RI. This 96 unit development includes 75 units on a newly constructed cul-de-sac off or route 100 and 21 downtown units on Pascoag’s Main Street. The development of these 96 units aided Burillville in achieving its 10% affordable housing goal. In addition to the housing units, the downtown development provides commercial space for Well One and Bravo Brewing, a local micro brewery. 
• 2019 – Fernwood II complete adding 8 single family homes to the affordable homeownership development on George Eddy Drive in Burrillville, RI. 
• 2022 – The multifamily home at 542 Front Street, Woonsocket, RI is completed and raffled off to a local Woonsocket resident to purchase. The second unit is deed restricted affordable housing available for rent and to serve as an income source for the owner.