ProJo: Ashton Mill hums with activity once again

Those buildings were a symbol of the state's economic rise in the 1800s, and they have become symbolic once again, this time showcasing how aging architectural relics can be reinvented for, and be relevant in, the 21st century.

CUMBERLAND, R.I. — Look out your car window as you drive across the Ashton Viaduct from Lincoln into Cumberland and below you'll see a sprawling relic of the state's 1800s industrial heritage, the towering Ashton Mill and 10 squat, square brick houses where the people who worked there lived 150 years ago.

Those buildings were a symbol of the state's economic rise in the 1800s, and they have become symbolic once again, this time showcasing how aging architectural relics can be reinvented for, and be relevant in, the 21st century.

In its late 1800s heyday, the Ashton Mill was a pioneer in weaving technology. Its industrial career ended in the 1980s and since 2005 the mill has been home to about 200 loft apartments, now known as River Lofts. The building features a fitness center, outdoor pavilion and billiards room. Units there rent for between $1,128 and $2,162 a month, varying with how many bedrooms and bathrooms in each unit, according to the complex's website.

Across the parking lot, the old mill houses have enjoyed a rebirth as well. Purchased by Valley Affordable Housing Corp. in 2012, they have been converted into 57 units of two- to four-family houses, once again home to working families, thanks to state and federal affordable housing and historic tax credit programs.

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