The [RIEDC], which used to have its offices in The Westin Providence, opened its doors last Tuesday in a new office suite in [Baltimore-based Struever Bros's] American Locomotive Works project in Olneyville. The move of the 46-person staff to 20,000-square-foot space makes the RIEDC the first tenant of the $333 million project, which is slated to bring office, commercial and residential uses to 22 acres previously used mostly for industrial purposes.

"We want to be a catalyst for economic development within the state," [RIEDC Executive Director Saul] Kaplan said.

Several things jump-started the Valley area's revitalization...First came The Providence Journal Co., which built a new production facility on the outskirts of Olneyville. Then came the redevelopment of The Foundry, which put a cluster of offices in a former Browne & Sharpe facility and is now adding housing.

But Struever's projects are among the largest in the area, and they have...generated a new level of interest. "Struever has set the bar very high, and they do it with money and actions rather than words"...