CENTRAL FALLS – State officials on Wednesday announced that 26 municipalities and nonprofits received $2 million in Placemaking Initiative awards to support outdoor and public space capital improvement projects and event programming across Rhode Island.
Gov. Daniel J. McKee and R.I. Commerce Secretary Elizabeth M. “Liz” Tanner announced the grants, which were approved at the Jan. 27 R.I. Commerce Corp. board meeting, in a ceremony at City Hall. The Placemaking Initiative is a statewide push to support businesses within the tourism and hospitality industries.
The grants ranged from $13,100 to $200,000. The organizations and municipalities that received the grants, their amounts and their spending plans, are:
Outdoor and Public Space Capital Improvements
- City of Central Falls: $200,000 to support the restoration of the Cogswell Tower for future-planned placemaking and tourism initiatives.
- City of Pawtucket: $100,000 to support site preparation, installing lighting and landscaping, and obtaining sculptures for the Riverwalk Sculpture Park in 2025.
- City of Providence: $150,000 to support constructing and installing an immersive lighting installation above the Providence Parks Department’s City Center Rink for year-round event programming initiatives.
- Discover Newport: $200,000 to support constructing and installing an elephant sculpture trail in either the East Bay Bike Path, Weetamoo Woods in Tiverton or the Sakonnet Greenway Trail in Portsmouth and Middletown.
- New Shoreham Tourism Council: $81,900 to support creating a mobile greenway guide to Block Island walking trails in 2025.
- South County Tourism Inc.: $107,500 to support expanding the South County Troll Trail by constructing and installing a third Thomas Dambo troll sculpture in Washington County.
- Town of North Kingstown: $107,500 to support constructing and installing a Thomas Dambo troll sculpture in the town.
- Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council: $68,000 to support constructing and installing six sculpture foundations, three RainKeep sculptures, and three metal sculptures throughout the Woonasquatucket River watershed area in Providence to increase foot traffic, remove blight, and attract commerce to the surrounding community.
Event Programming
- AS220: $50,000 to support Foo Fest, an all-day summer street festival in downtown Providence featuring art and music in 2025.
- City of East Providence: $50,000 to support eight cultural feast events in the city in 2025.
- The Contemporary Theater Company: $68,877 to support a three-day renaissance fair in South Kingstown from Aug. 29-31.
- The Empowerment Factory: $52,175 to support the ninth annual Healthy Living Community Event in Pawtucket in 2025 as part of the Pawtucket Arts Festival.
- Federal Hill Commerce Association Inc.: $75,000 to support Christmas on the Hill in December 2024 and the 40th Anniversary Columbus Festival from Oct. 10-13 on Federal Hill in Providence.
- FirstWorks: $75,000 to support the FirstWorks Summer Beats concert series in Providence and its expansion into Central Falls in 2025; $75,000 to support the Global Journeys event series occurring in Providence in 2025.
- Newport Festivals Foundation Inc.: $46,860 to support the creation of the Newport Folk Festival Baseball Classic as part of the Newport Folk Festival on July 24 at Cardines Field in Newport.
- Newport Film Inc.: $15,000 to support newportFILM Outdoors, a 10-week summer film series in the city throughout 2025.
- Providence Children’s Film Festival Inc.: $25,000 to support the 2025 Children’s Film Festival occurring in the city throughout February.
- Providence Children’s Museum: $40,950 to support various event programming throughout 2025 including: Boo Bash, Play ON!, Cultural This Connections, Children's Theater Program, Summer Fest and April School Vacation Week.
- Providence Cultural Equity Initiative: $75,000 to support the Meshanticut Cultural Placemaking Confestival occurring in the city from Aug. 19-24.
- Roger Williams Park Conservancy Inc.: $75,000 to support Illuminated Summer: A Summer Spectacle in Roger Williams Park from May through September 2025.
- Town of North Providence: $72,640.82 to support the Centredale Village Festival in the town in September 2025.
- Town of Warren: $75,000 to support the town’s Family Fun Day, Summer Outdoor Concert Series, Summer Outdoor Movie Series, and Community Take it Outside Night throughout 2025.
- The Westerly Land Trust: $50,000 to support the Outdoor Environmental Film Festival in the town in 2025.
- The Wickford Art Association: $13,100 to support the 62nd Wickford Art Festival in North Kingstown in 2025.
- The Wilbury Theatre Group: $66,800 to support Providence Fringe Fest and the Southern Rhode Island Encore Series in 2025.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on X at @James_Bessette.
