Interview with John Virgilio

John Virgilio is the executive director of Kent County Community Development, a non-profit community development corporation focused on the acquisition and operation of affordable housing in RI. He has extensive experience in the real estate industry, spanning ownership of single and multi-family rentals, extensive renovations and management of rental property for others, and as a licensed realtor. He has worked side by side with his brother Mike on the operation of Virgilio Builders, a design-build firm in Wakefield performing a mix of design, new construction residential, commercial and historic restoration. He has three children and lives in South Kingstown.

1.     What is Kent County Community Development and what is the purpose of Weaver House?

Kent County Community Development (KCCD)’s organizational mission is the acquisition and operation of affordable housing in RI. The actions we take are centered around acquiring property using a mix of public and private funds and operating it for the express purpose of housing. Our board of directors is a collection of people who all have specialties in this area, and those skills allow us to navigate the public finance process, manage and perform construction, and operate the rentals.

Weaver House was built in approximately 1833 by the EG Manufacturing Company (EGMC). It was used as housing for mill workers. That included the Pierce Brothers, who were also shoemakers. It was originally part of a larger property with multiple buildings, including a shoemaking shop and barn.

The property played an important part in housing for people working at the mill. It provided adequate accommodations that were within walking distance to their work and the town’s commercial center. When EGMC ran into financial issues, the property was sold. William Weaver acquired the property after that and operated for some time. He sold the property to Thomas Jefferson Hill, a prominent local manufacturer. The property was sold in 1921 to Michael Casamas, an Italian immigrant. Since then, it has transferred between different owners, including owner occupants, and has been operated as a multi-family residential building. It is currently owned by KCCD, and we operate it as Affordable housing.  

The property has played an important role in East Greenwich’s history. It has continued to conform to historical aesthetics within the EG Historic District. Originally built as modest housing for working class residents, it continues that same purpose today. Its well-maintained clapboard siding, wood divided light windows, traditional colonial architecture and defined trim around corners and doors all add to its historical character.

2.     How was the process of receiving a Certificate of Lead Conformance for the Weaver House and what had to be done to have the wood windows pass inspection?

The process for securing lead certificates was labor intensive, expensive, and time consuming. Each individual apartment had to meet a strict standard for compliance with wood and painting, and the common areas were all held to the same requirements. With three interior staircases and five separate dwelling units, it took a considerable amount of work to address each surface. In addition to a visual inspection, dust samples are taken from throughout the building and lab analyzed. Beyond visually conforming, all dust needed to be thoroughly cleaned from all surfaces and removed from the home. The exterior of the building was held to the same standard, and repairs were made throughout the exterior to meet these lead safe standards.

The wood windows presented their own challenges. Fortunately, they have aluminum tracks. The presence of these tracks made it feasible to repair, rather than replace, the windows. Otherwise, a wood-on-wood track was highly unlikely to pass a lead inspection. Each window was carefully scraped, prepped and cleaned. The sashes, mullions, trim and glazing were all cleaned one by one. Once prep was complete, all of those elements were painted twice on both interior and exterior. The end result was wood windows with a true divided light grid pattern that have been restored to good working condition. The windows were brought back to life with this effort, and it contributed to the character and charm of the home and neighborhood.

3.     What was the cost difference between new windows and restoring the wood windows?

The cost to remove and replace 39 existing windows with 39 new wood windows was $97,000, inclusive of all labor, materials, windows, haul away and permitting. The cost to repair the existing windows was $10,000. The repairs of the entire building was managed by Virgilio Builders, Inc. Our network and good working relationships with our subcontractors, combined with the volume of work we do with them, allowed us to perform this repair work at a modest cost.

4.     What other historic preservation/ adaptive reuse projects have your company Virgilio Builders completed and why do you choose to work on historic properties?

We completed the complete restoration of the historic train station at 145 Boon St in Narragansett. The property is operated today as a mixed use building, with four residential units and a market-style restaurant on the ground floor (Boon Street Market). We took an ownership stake in the project when the property was acquired. The property was in complete disrepair prior to purchase. The ground floor had lost its character through the continued carving up into smaller units for commercial use. The residential units were in horrible shape. The property was an eyesore in Narragansett Pier.

As part of the restoration, the interior commercial space brought down to the stone and wood exterior. All interior elements of the commercial space were removed to the bare walls. A steel building structure was built inside the building, and is partially visible today. The exterior of the building was preserved as much as possible, and restored carefully with attention to historical detail when replacements were made. Looking at the exterior of the building today, it looks almost identical to historical photographs of when it was used as a train station.

The interior units were updated and repaired, with a special focus on preserving as much interior historical detail as possible. While it would have been more cost effective to replace these items, many were restored and preserved instead. One of the three upstairs residential units once served as the telegraph room for the train operators. That room remains in its same form and footprint today.

The project was a three year effort at restoration, and the finished product is beautiful and historically accurate contributor to what Narragansett Pier has to offer.

5.     How did you first become interested in working with historic properties?

Virgilio Builders has completed many renovation and new construction projects on homes throughout RI. Some have been homes we purchased, renovated and sold. Many were projects we were hired for by clients. Those projects are managed to meet owner requests and designs and with a budgetary guideline. Taking on a restoration of a historically significant building like 145 Boon St presented an opportunity to not only complete the construction and commercial aspects of the project, but also the pride of seeing such a beautiful budling restored. My brother and I both grew up in Narragansett and we live in the community today. It’s wonderful to see the building brought back to life.