Planners give OK to new Cumberland Farms, Wilde's Corner development

By John Howell
Posted 6/14/16

With only minor revisions, the Planning Board granted Wednesday night preliminary approval for two major land development projects that will mean a revised and larger Cumberland Farms on Warwick Avenue and O'Reilly Auto Parts and Dollar

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Planners give OK to new Cumberland Farms, Wilde's Corner development

Posted

With only minor revisions, the Planning Board granted Wednesday night preliminary approval for two major land development projects that will mean a revised and larger Cumberland Farms on Warwick Avenue and O’Reilly Auto Parts and Dollar General on West Shore Road near Wilde’s Corner.

The Cumberland Farms, which will be in keeping in appearance with the new service station/convenience stores the company has in Apponaug and on Post Road near the Route 37 intersection, is projected to generate 12 to 14 new full- and part-time jobs and about $28,000 a year in tax revenues.

Being built by Frank Paolino, president of Link Commercial Properties of Cranston, the West Shore Road project is on a 7.7-acre site formerly occupied by Boat World and a burned out residence. The project, with an estimated cost of $1,750,000, is estimated to create 30 new jobs.

Both developments required the assembly of land to achieve the proposed build out.

The 2.5-acre Cumberland Farms site would be comprised of two lots in addition to the existing station, including a vacant masonry building that was once a drycleaner, and Yardworks, a landscape business. Yardworks would remain on site and, according to Patricia Reynolds of the planning department, an outdoor patio would be located on that portion of the site. The application shows a 4,250-square-foot convenience store with three fueling pumps with a total of six fueling positions. The existing six curb cuts would be consolidated to provide access from four new driveways, including two full-service driveways and an egress-only drive to Warwick Avenue and a full-service drive to Partition Avenue.

According to a traffic report prepared by McMahon Associates, the new Cumberland Farms “is expected to have a minimal impact on the operations of the study area roadways and the site access modifications will improve overall access and safety.”

Paolino’s development would have a single-access and egress on West Shore Road in an area generally opposite Dave’s Marketplace. A traffic study prepared by VHB and completed last October finds the “projected increase in traffic is well within the daily fluctuations in traffic on the study area roadways…the proposed development is therefore not projected to have any noticeable impact on traffic operations.”

“This is a small project, but a solid project,” Paolino said describing how he has long-term leases from both O’Reilly and General Dollar.

“This is doing something positive; there’s a need,” Paolino said. He noted the land has been “dormant” for the past 10 years. He bought the property at auction about two years ago.

The development would consist of two retail buildings with a total of 17,968 square feet. The property backs up to the Benny’s on West Shore Road and an access had been considered from that section of West Shore Road. Paolino said the state is anxious to minimize curb cuts and that proposal was abandoned, although access for emergency purposes will be available.

“Esthetically, it is going to be better,” Paolino said of the property. O’Reilly will be the smaller of the two buildings. The Dollar General store will also have space for two smaller tenants, which Paolino has not yet secured.

The masonry buildings will be set back from the road with landscaping in front, Paolino said. Without additional zoning or planning approvals needed, Paolino said he’s gearing up to start construction in about 30 days. He estimated it would take three months to construct the buildings.

Comments

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  • RISchadenfreude

    The area is an eyesore and has been for years, particularly the dumpy bars. Hopefully a facelift will get much-needed business to the area- I know folks who will drive out of their way to avoid frequenting ANY businesses there, particularly after dark.

    Wednesday, June 15, 2016 Report this

  • richardcorrente

    Now this is the kind of improvement Warwick needs, and if the Mayor had anything to do with it I congratulate him as well. One thing for sure; the Planning Department and Bill DePasquale did a great job. The new super-store Cumberland Farms are clean, inviting, and beautiful, and having a Dollar General Store and an O'Reilly Auto Parts store where we now have an empty lot is a great, great improvement. Frank Paolino is a smart businessman who saw an opportunity and didn't hesitate. Good for him. Good for Warwick consumers. Good for Warwick taxpayers because every tax dollar Mr. Paolino pays, is one less that the rest of us have to pay. When the new store opens I will patronize it and I recommend that you do too! Cumberland Farms is a Rhode Island success story, born and raised in Cumberland Rhode Island. Having several of them in Warwick, thanks to Mr. Paolino, is a great asset to the City of Warwick!

    See you all at the grand openings! Bring money! I will too.

    Richard Corrente

    Democrat for Mayor

    Wednesday, June 15, 2016 Report this

  • davebarry109

    Has anyone ever heard of a traffic study that stated anything other than 'minimal impact' would happen with the new construction? Just sayin.

    Thursday, June 16, 2016 Report this