Cottages In East Greenwich Win 'Best In American Living' Award

EAST GREENWICH, RI — The Castle Street Cottages in East Greenwich have been honored by the National Association of Home Builders with the 2019 Best in American Living Award, for the category of communities comprised of single-family homes with fewer than 100 units. The Silver Street Cottages — one of the first "pocket neighborhoods" in New England — also were awarded with being the suburban infill community of the year.

According to East Greenwich Cove Builders, who developed the neighborhood, the Castle Street Cottages is a new development that is a national example of a "pocket neighborhood," an increasingly popular concept that creates an intimate yet luxurious community on a small plot of land. The cottages represent a new urban design concept that rarely exists in the Northeast region, the company stated.

East Greenwich Cove Builders, along with architects from Union Studios, George Bennett and designer Debra Zarrella, created what is the third recognized "pocket neighborhood" in New England and the first in Rhode Island.

The Castle Street Cottages are located on Rope Walk Hill, at 15 Castle St. The cottages are in the densely populated and historic Hill and Harbor neighborhood of East Greenwich, just steps from the town's waterfront and downtown districts.

According to East Greenwich Cove Builders, "pocket neighborhoods" are more popular in the Pacific Northwest. They are built to be sensibly sized with a shared common area to promote a close-knit sense of community and neighborliness with an increased level of contact. The term "pocket neighborhood" was coined by architect Ross Chapin, who has said, "When a small group of people are together, conversation is spontaneous. This fact of our human nature is what pocket neighborhoods are built around," according to Cove Builders.

"[The Castle Street Cottages neighborhood] is a terrific location. Jerry has done a fantastic job and is well set up for the future," said Chapin. "This is a cherry."

East Greenwich Cove Builders Principals Jerry Zarrella Jr. and Chris Santilli are second- and third-generation builders who have sought to advance the industry locally and beyond, the company said.

"East Greenwich Cove Builders is a new age innovation that utilizes old school know how and work ethic to revolutionize the building industry," said Santilli.

The Castle Street Cottages were built on a 0.72-acre lot, which was previously home to dilapidated buildings. Now, the newly build community maximizes space, efficiency and economy, beginning with an elevated and intimate shared garden courtyard, Cove Builders said. Grand stone steps lead to the outdoor kitchen. There are gathering spaces and oversized front porches in this luxury community.

In total, the neighborhood is comprised of nine highly efficient cottage-style and coastal-inspired homes, four two-family townhouses and one single-family home, offering multiple price options.

Each cottage comes with large windows and views of the East Greenwich harbor. The homes range from 1,000 to 2,000 square feet.

"We truly wanted to bring something transformative to the area, and I believe we've done that," said Zarrella. "We hope this development brings back a sense of community, where you can feel safe in the comfort of knowing your neighbors, while providing repeatable lessons for building densely in historic neighborhoods."

The Castle Street Cottages will host a "Grand Reveal," to showcase its vision, on Nov. 23 and Nov. 24. For more information, photos or to schedule a tour, visit www.castlestreetcottages.com.