The Ardent Companies and Ironwood Development Partners have brought a new Class-A self-storage asset online in Woonsocket, RI, marking a notable addition to the city’s commercial real estate inventory. The three-story property, located at 153 Hamlet Ave., totals 80,000 square feet and houses 913 climate-controlled storage units. Extra Space Storage has been engaged to manage the facility, extending its operating platform to this newly completed location.
The development represents Ardent’s first completed project in Rhode Island, underscoring the firm’s expansion into the state’s self-storage market. It is also the 10th asset delivered through Ardent’s Self-Storage Development Fund II, reflecting continued deployment of the fund’s capital into purpose-built storage properties. By reaching this milestone, the fund adds another stabilized, income-producing asset to its portfolio strategy focused on modern storage facilities.
The site itself had long been a vacant brownfield before the current project was launched. Prior to construction, the property underwent remediation through the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management’s voluntary cleanup program. That process cleared the way for redevelopment and enabled the land to be repositioned from a dormant site into a fully utilized commercial asset.
According to the developers, the location offered a combination of high visibility and access to a dense local population base, making it well suited for self-storage. With 913 climate-controlled units, the facility is designed to serve a wide range of storage needs for households and businesses in and around Woonsocket. The climate-controlled specification is intended to support consistent conditions for stored goods throughout the year.
Ardent executives emphasize the project’s role in bringing a previously underutilized property back into productive use. The transformation from a long-vacant brownfield into a Class-A storage facility is positioned as part of the broader revitalization taking place in the surrounding area. By adding new space for storage and helping activate a remediated site, the project contributes to the ongoing evolution of the local built environment.
Ricardo De Rojas, managing director at Ardent, noted that the Hamlet Avenue property aligned with the firm’s focus on locations that pair strong demand drivers with the opportunity to enhance community value. He cited the combination of visibility, local density and the chance to reposition a neglected parcel as key considerations in moving the development forward. With construction complete and operations commencing under Extra Space Storage’s management, the asset is now positioned to serve as a long-term community resource.
