PROVIDENCE − At night, the lights are back on in Rhode Island's tallest building, the Industrial Trust Tower, the subject of an estimated $94 million in public financing.

At some point, the 1928 Art Deco office building is supposed to become apartments, following a deal with city and state leaders to provide tax breaks, grants and low-interest loans (with Providence footing 46% of the financing bill). The building has been empty since 2013, when Bank of America left.

The developer, David Sweetser of High Rock Development, is making it known to state leaders that he wants more public money to continue with the project amid soaring interest rates and construction costs that have been rising since the pandemic.

That combination has been pushing the pause button and sending planners scrambling, on big projects across the state, from new schools to golf courses to the Tidewater Landing soccer stadium.

Scary times: From soccer stadium to Superman Building, 'scary' times for big construction projects

High Rock Development's spokesman, Bill Fischer of True North Communications, wrote in an email that the project has been hit by rising construction costs and rising interest rates, which do not appear to be coming down any time soon, as the Federal Reserve is expected to either maintain interest rates at their current level or raise them to check inflation.

Construction costs for big projects could even see more cost increases as President Joe Biden plans to triple tariffs on the small amount of Chinese steel and aluminum imported into the country.

"We continue to monitor these impacts and we continue to have conversations with federal, state and city leaders on this front," Fischer wrote. "These conversations have included discussions related to a federal program that supports eligible projects with lower interest rates."

The last estimate for the total project was $223 million and two years, but no new estimate has been released.

What permits have been taken out so far this year?

According to Providence's online permitting system, there are five active permits taken out as of 2024 for the so-called "Superman Building" (known by its address at 111 Westminster St.). Two permits are active from 2023, one is active from 2022, one is active from 2019, and one taken out in 2020 (a temporary boiler in the alleyway) has been marked as complete.

The start of the "rehabilitation and construction" was estimated at $25 million in an October 2023 permit taken out for the project. In October 2023, the developer wrote in a news release that the initial phase of construction will be "a top-down process beginning on the upper floors of the building."

"An exterior elevator (hoist) will be installed on the building to aid in the removal of construction debris. Pending the approval of the City of Providence, trucks and dumpsters will be staged on the Fulton Street side of the building for truck staging and debris removal," according to the news release.

The five 2024 permits taken out, at a cost of $1.5 million, are for:

• Demolition of fourth floor sprinkler system and install 1 sidewall sprinkler head above egress stair door (cost of $7,600)

• Installation of temporary fire alarm system in vault, lower banking level, main banking floor, floors 2-12 and 14-26 (cost of $256,107)

• Furnish and install temporary domestic water riser with two hose bibs on each floor for construction use on floors 1-26 (cost of $79,000)

• Furnish and install hot water pipe and unit heaters for temporary heating in floor 1-26 (cost of $940,000)

• Installation of temporary service and lighting (cost of $1.1 million)

The two 2023 permits taken out are for:

Temporary boiler in alley next to the building (cost of $12,560)

"Allow for the commencement of the rehabilitation and construction process for the redevelopment" of the Superman building (cost of $25 million)

One permit in 2022 was taken out for:

• Put in a temporary boiler (cost of $65,000)

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Reporter Patrick Anderson contributed to this story.

Reach reporter Wheeler Cowperthwaite at wcowperthwaite@providencejournal.com or follow him on Twitter @WheelerReporter.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Demolition continues inside Superman Building in Providence