By WPRO News and The Associated Press
Mayor Jorge Elorza has vetoed a zoning change that would’ve allowed a proposed 46-story skyscraper in Providence.
The City Council voted last week to approve a variance raising the maximum building height to 600 feet for New York developer Jason Fane’s proposed Hope Point Tower.
Elorza vetoed the change Friday. He said he couldn’t support it because the city wouldn’t have final approval of the tower’s design.
“Given that this project would reshape our skyline and dramatically impact our streetscape, I made it clear both privately and publicly that the design of the building was my top priority. The developer has been unwilling to provide assurances that the city’s design recommendations would not be disregarded,” he said in a letter to the council.
The council could override the veto. That would take 10 of the 15 members voting to do so.
A council spokesman says he doesn’t know yet whether they’ll reconsider it. A spokesman for the Senate president says he and the House speaker want the council to override the veto.
If built, the tower would be the tallest building in the state.
Fane responded, expressing disappointment in the veto.
“We have endeavored to compromise in good faith in an effort to get an agreement done that best serves the interest of all the citizens of Providence,” the developer said in a statement. “His veto is an extraordinarily punitive action against this specific project and the economic development Hope Point represents. We will have more to say next week.”
