Bliss Properties has announced plans to renovate the Bellevue Gardens Shopping Center and parking lot located at 181 Bellevue Avenue in Newport, Rhode Island. Construction began earlier this month and will be completed in June 2016.

The scope of the project includes enhancing the building’s front and rear facades, installing new LED lighting, and redefining the parking lot with improved drainage, new granite curbing, and red brick walkways that pass through a garden setting. The design team includes Northeast Collaborative Architects, Beta Engineering, VHB and Behan Brothers, Inc.

During the construction phase, the Bellevue Avenue entrance will be closed temporarily.  The shopping center’s main entrance will be located on Jones Avenue near CVS.  Retail customers will be able to exit the shopping center on either Jones Avenue or William Street.

To ensure there is adequate parking for the shopping center’s retail customers during the construction phase, security will monitor the parking lot. Bliss Properties is requesting the public’s cooperation and encouraging neighboring businesses to provide alternative parking for their employees until the project has been completed.Bliss Properties President Aram Garabedian says, “We are very excited about this project that is designed to not only beautify the shopping center but to also improve traffic flow.”  He adds, “Throughout our tenure in Newport, we have generously made our parking lot available to people who work at businesses located on Bellevue Avenue and William Street in the off season free of charge. During construction, we ask employees from neighboring businesses to seek alternate parking and help make spaces readily available to our retail customers and service providers.”

Bliss Properties has operated the Bellevue Gardens Shopping Center since 1957. Bliss Properties manages the property on behalf of Bellevue Gardens Shopping Center Associates, a partnership that includes a number of partners including members of the Garabedian and Bliss families. Bellevue Gardens Shopping Center features the following retailers and service providers: A Market, Bank America, Bellevue Wine & Spirts, CVS, Newport Creamery, Post All and Wavelengths Salon & Spa.