PROVIDENCE – The Providence Preservation Society has launched a new multimedia website detailing urban renewal in Providence from 1950 to 1975.
This period saw the redevelopment of more than 1,000 acres – about 9% of the city – at a cost of $95 million, displacing more than 5,000 households and 800 businesses while demolishing more than 3,000 buildings.
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The website, created with ArcGIS software, features 15 maps, more than 500 photographs, and plans highlighting changes at each of the 14 urban renewal sites. It also includes themes and discussion questions for educators and reading groups.
The organization said this guide complements its existing Guide to Providence Architecture, which attracts nearly 80,000 visits annually and illustrates how Providence was a leader in urban renewal.
It also discusses community resistance against eminent domain, such as Samuel Corrado’s lawsuits concerning the East Side Renewal Project, and the society’s influence on urban renewal and the resultant gentrification, especially on the East Side.
Providence Preservation Society staffers and guide authors Katy Pickens and Keating Zelenke said the lasting effects of urban renewal on community dynamics “are still felt today as neighborhoods undergo new redevelopment.”
“Understanding this history is essential for fostering a more equitable city,” Zelenke said.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.
