Grow Smart award winners announced

GROW SMART RI has named its 2016 smart growth award winners.
GROW SMART RI has named its 2016 smart growth award winners.

PROVIDENCE – Grow Smart RI on Wednesday announced seven winners of its fifth annual Rhode Island Smart Growth Awards given to groups and projects that help shape a stronger Rhode Island.

“Each year, passionate, creative and resourceful Rhode Islanders show us the way to tap our state’s full potential through projects, plans and policies that play to Rhode Island’s strengths and generate enduring economic benefits, both statewide and in specific neighborhoods,” Grow Smart’s Executive Director Scott Wolf said in a statement.

The award winners are:
Outstanding Smart Growth Leaders:

  • NeighborWorks Blackstone River Valley. For 30 years, NeighborWorks Blackstone River Valley has spurred neighborhood revitalization in the communities of the Blackstone Valley using smart growth principles. It developed nearly 400 affordable apartments and homes for low-income families, 16,500 square feet of community facilities and 34,200 square feet of commercial space. Joseph F. Garlick Jr. has led the organization for more than 20 years.
  • The Providence Foundation. Formed in 1974, the Providence Foundation helped transform and revitalize downtown Providence. Under the leadership of Dan Baudouin for more than 20 years and supported by 140 of the leading companies and institutions in Rhode Island, the Providence Foundation has advocated for difficult, but necessary, projects. Its leadership of public-private partnerships led to the Capital Center District, WaterPlace Park, the relocation of Interstate 195 and railroad tracks, the Convention Center, Providence Place Mall and a revitalized Westminster Street.

Outstanding Smart Growth Projects:

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  • Fred Lippitt Woonasquatucket River Greenway. Described by Grow Smart RI as “more than a bikeway, the greenway has helped affirm the Providence neighborhoods it connects and has become a model for public investment to help revitalize urban neighborhoods.”
  • The Foundry Corporate Office Center and Promenade Apartments. Fully occupied for the first time since the early 1960s, the former Brown & Sharpe manufacturing complex is home to more than 50 companies and 2,000 employees in 500,000 square feet of high-end office space, with an additional 433 luxury apartments, all within walking distance of downtown Providence.
  • Providence Community Health Centers. Its new campus sits on a 3.5 acre site at 355 Prairie Ave. that included the historic buildings of the Federated Lithographers, a printing company, and Beaman & Smith, a tool shop. Abandoned for years and declared a brownfield site, it became a catalyst for PCHC’s commitment to revitalize the South Providence community. The dilapidated mill complex was transformed into a $45 million state-of-the-art medical and health service campus that supports 200 staff and the community, encouraging a green and smart environment. Designed by Vision 3 Architects, the campus encompasses an entire city block, and was developed over an 11-year, four-phase period ending in September 2014. The completed development includes a 41,750-square-foot LEED Silver Certified, primary care health center, a 50,000-square-foot medical office building listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and a 4,800-square-foot retail building, which is a pharmacy.
  • Tiverton Public Library. The Tiverton Public Library was part of a town vision to develop a new town center for municipal buildings and a library with community meeting space. Decades of local advocacy, along with a federal grant, a successful local capital campaign, and a narrowly won bond referendum resulted in a new civic building that has been labeled the “crown jewel in the network of libraries across the state of Rhode Island.”

Outstanding Smart Growth Policies/Plans:

  • Woonsocket Downtown Overlay District. The city of Woonsocket used this zoning tool in an effort to redefine itself and adapt to the growing national and regional market for walkable urban places. The new district zoning allows for many uses such as entertainment and the arts, including outdoor cafes, live/work units, artist studios and galleries, hotels, restaurants and theater. Upper floor residential units and lowered parking requirements will increase foot traffic while also improving the fiscal viability of redevelopment proposals … With eyes on the continued rehabilitation and revitalization of its landmark Main Street area, the city is positioning itself to better welcome investors and developers.

Awards will be presented on June 21 at a luncheon during Grow Smart RI’s Power of Place Summit at the Rhode Island Convention Center.

Since 1998, Grow Smart has provided statewide leadership for public and private interests seeking sustainable and equitable economic growth.

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