Wayland Bakery & Opt Eyewear

A two-unit commercial strip once home to a 100-year-old bakery business is razed in Wayland Square

About this Property

Reason for Demolition

Owners of Wayland Bakery, Luis & Elizabeth Rodriguez, decided to close the bakery and sell the building in 2022. They continue to own and operate Zacccagnini’s Pastry Shop on Smithfield Avenue in Pawtucket.

At a July meeting of the City Plan Commission (CPC), a proposal for a new five-story, 23-unit residential building with ground floor detail came forward. The owner/applicant was listed as Elevator Properties Inc and Slim Investments LLC with David Sisson Architecture as the designer. No parking was required as the lot measures less than 10,000 SF (the lot is 4,500).

The proposal was approved by the CPC. The area is not within a designated historic, therefore, no Historic District Commission approval was required.

Current Events

Opt Eyewear moved across the street to 141 Wayland Avenue in 2023. After operating for almost 100 years, Wayland Bakery closed at the end of 2022 and did not relocate.

History

Since the property is not within a historic district, there is no documentation of it in our usual sources. We pinpointed its build date around 1961 using Polk’s Providence business guides and aerial photos.

1930
No listing for Wayland Bakery. The Providence Directory and Rhode Island State Business Directory, 1930
1932
Wayland Bakery is listed at 204 Wayland Ave, page 1342. The Providence Directory and Rhode Island State Business Directory, 1932
1934–1948
Wayland Bakery continues to be listed at 204 Wayland Avenue.
In 1948, it is listed at 202A, a slight change which may have been due to postal numbers changing, page 1077. Polk’s Providence (Providence County, R.I.) city directory, 1948
1956
Sanborn Map shows a wood-frame house at the corner of East Manning and Wayland Avenue, number 126 East Manning. Number 138 Wayland does not exist. 1920–1956 Sanborn Insurance Map, Volume 2, plate 33 (page 38)
Wayland Bakery remains at 202 in the 1950, 1952, 1954, and 1956 directories.
Directory lists number 126 East Manning as “Vacant,” page 91. Polk’s Providence (Providence County, R.I.) city directory, 1956
1960
Wayland Bakery is listed at 202 Wayland Avenue, page 202. Polk’s Providence (Providence County, R.I.) city directory, 1960
East Manning no longer lists a number 126, page 124 (same source).
1961
Wayland Bakery is listed at 138 Wayland Avenue, page 394. Polk’s Providence (Providence County, R.I.) city directory, 1961
1962
Gibson’s Card Shop is listed alongside Wayland Bakery, the first adjacent tenant, page 338. Polk’s Providence (Providence County, R.I.) city directory, 1962

In the News

Wayland Bakery Closing—East Side Institution Since 1928

by GoLocalProv News Team and News Editor Kate Nagle
GoLocalProv | December 28, 2022 (abridged)

Wayland Bakery is closing after nearly 100 years.

Known for its classic cakes and desserts, the shop has been one of the East Side’s longest-standing businesses. It opened in 1928.

It will cease operations on Saturday.

GoLocal spoke with former owner Anthony “Buzz” Basilico, whose family owned the bakery from 1957 to 1999, before selling it to current owner Luis Rodriguez, and his wife Elizabeth.

Basilico recalled how his father Ponfilo — known to everyone as “Ponpie” — was an artist and accomplished cake decorator.

“He made cakes for quite a few famous people,” said Basilico. “I know he made one for Pope [John] Paul… he also made one for [former President Dwight] Eisenhower.”

All baking was done on the premises, and was “of the highest quality,” says the bakery.

“When my father bought Wayland Bakery, it was next to Dorothy Williams,” Basilico told GoLocal. “Then, he built the building further down Wayland Avenue, where it is today.”

Basilico recalls how the bakery — and Wayland Square — became a major shopping destination, in the days before Garden City.

And Wayland Bakery played a major role.

Basilico said his father asked him to “come into the business” after college, and Buzz Basilico ran the bakery for 20 years, after attending culinary school in Minnesota.

In addition, Basilico was also a computer science professor at the Community College of Rhode Island while owning and running the business.

Basilico came to know Luis Rodriguez from The Daily Bread in Providence, and when he went to sell the bakery in 1999, he knew he had the right successor.

“We stayed very close. He’s been like a son,” said Basilico.

Now, Rodriguez has decided it is time to move on, and is selling the business — and the building — which is expected to be finalized this week.

“We always had great clientele,” said Basilico, of the East Side institution.

And for those who are seeking out what will soon be lost from Wayland Square — Rodriguez still owns Zacccagnini’s Pastry Shop on Smithfield Avenue in Pawtucket.

Captured 11 January 2025 from https://www.golocalprov.com/news/wayland-bakery-closing-east-side-institution-since-1928


SMALL BUSINESS Q&A - A bar for glasses

by Lilli Paknis
Providence Journal | February 26, 2017 (abridged)

When a neighborhood optical shop near the Rhode Island Eye Institute went out of business, Jessica and Jed Leach saw an opportunity.

The couple opened Opt Eyewear Boutique in 2010 at 138 Wayland Ave. in Providence.

Until 2009, Jessica Leach worked in construction finance and Jed Leach worked in the family business manufacturing jewelry. When her industry hit a rough patch and his family sold their business, both were inspired to explore new opportunities. […]

— Paknis, Lilli. “SMALL BUSINESS Q&A: A bar for glasses.” Providence Journal (RI), sec. RI News, 26 Feb. 2017, p. B1. NewsBank: America’s News, https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info%3Asid/infoweb.newsbank.com&svc_dat=NewsBank&req_dat=D4BD6B42F1AB4706B5E1244D477DEE03&rft_val_format=info%3Aofi/fmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Actx&rft_dat=document_id%3Anews/162D197C4F704158. Accessed 11 Jan. 2025.