Washington County Route 1 Corridor Study
In June 2006, the WCRPC received a grant from the RI State Planning Program for $113,650 to conduct a study of the Route 1 Transportation Corridor from North Kingstown to Westerly. Through a competitive process, they selected a team comprised of the landscape architectural, planning and engineering firms of Gates, Leighton & Associates, Inc. of East Providence and Maguire Group Inc. of Providence to complete the study. Working with the five towns along Route 1, the Council is examining land use, inter-modal transportation, safety, growth centers, transportation needs, and signage along the corridor. The main goals of the study are to:
- Help the five communities identify what makes the corridor special and find ways to protect that rural character,
- Establish useful design standards and policies that can be used to guide development along the corridor, and
- Offer practical solutions to existing and potential transportation and land use problems.
Advisory participants include the South Kingstown Land Trust, the RI Rivers Council, South County Tourism Council, Grow Smart Rhode Island, the RI Public Transit Authority, RI Statewide Planning Program, Amtrak, town planners from North Kingstown, Narragansett, South Kingstown, Charlestown, and Westerly and the URI Department of Community Planning & Landscape Architecture.
Click here to view the goals of the study.
Public School funding and Local Property Taxes
A preliminary Public School Funding Study was undertaken in September
2005 to identify and clarify the issues involved in public school
funding and recommend possible solutions to escalating costs while
maintaining or improving the quality of education in Washington
County public schools. The goal of this study is to create a comprehensive
listing of the hurdles Washington County towns face in providing
cost effective education to its children without compromising quality.
Town officials, town council members, WCRPC board members, and public
school financial department directors of the towns and school districts
were interviewed to collect information on the factors affecting
public school operations and funding.
Click here to read the final Report on “Public School Funding:
Factors in Washington County Rhode Island”
The
Washington County Regional Planning Council Affordable
Housing Initiative
The Washington County Regional Planning Council Affordable
Housing
Initiative provides a regional strategy for addressing affordable housing
in Washington County and includes individualized housing plans
and zoning ordinances amendments for each participating municipality. The
recommended town housing plans are crafted as updates to
the Housing Elements in the local Comprehensive Plans. This
initiative includes a collaborative component that
addresses affordable housing issues on a broader
regional and, where appropriate, a statewide scale.
Click here to
read the entire report.
Washington County Regional
Affordable Housing Entity Feasibility
Study
The WCRPC, with grant funding provided by the Rhode Island
Foundation,
conducted an exhaustive study to determine what type
of regional housing
entity would best meet the affordable housing needs
of Washington County
communities. A strategic planning committee worked
with a team of
consultants to identify the range of possible collaborative
models to
consider.
To access documents describing the Washington County
Regional Affordable
Housing Entity Feasibility Study click on: Executive
Summary, Interim
Report, Power Point, and Final
Report.
The South County Greenspace Report
The South County Greenspace Report met the need to create a regional
plan for preserving and connecting greenspace in South County. The project
was made possible through
the commitment and leadership of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental
Management and funded primarily by the U.S. Forest Service. The report was
supported by a
partnership of many Rhode Island organizations including Washington
County Regional Planning Council, the Rural Lands Coalition, four South County
Watershed Organizations,
Statewide Planning, the Nature Conservancy, Audubon Society, the
Rhode Island Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission, URI, local
land trusts, Grow Smart Rhode Island, the South County Planners and residents
of the nine South County Communities.
The project assisted communities in inventorying and prioritizing
natural, cultural and recreational resources on a town-by-town basis, which
was then compiled into
a regionwide map and inventory. The final report assists in linking
greenspace priorities throughout each town and region to create unfragmented
corridors of
open space. The local and regional maps that were created can now
be utilized by municipalities when planning for future preservation and/or
development so that
the shared regional vision for large scale open space preservation
is considered. The Greenspace Project was produced in conjunction with the
South County Sustainable
Economy Project to ensure coordination of economic growth goals with
the environmental, cultural and recreational needs of South County towns.
The South County Sustainable Economy Project
The Washington County Regional Planning Council and Grow Smart Rhode Island commissioned
the South County Sustainable Economy Project to help address a complex series of
questions that face Washington County's mainland municipalities. These questions
include whether the communities can attract sufficient business and industry to
meet their goals for economic growth, what types of economic development should
be pursued
and where should it be located. Finally, the Report asked if Washington County
can achieve the desired level of growth without damaging the environment or significantly
changing the character of the region. The Sustainable Economy Project addressed
these
questions with viable approaches to sustainable economic development. Ultimately,
the Project provided South County municipalities with a roadmap toward achieving
a thriving economy that protects environmental resources and community character.
South County Commuter Rail Transit Oriented Development
Study – An Opportunity to Shape Regional Growth
The Rhode Island Statewide Planning Program, Washington County Regional
Planning Council (WCRPC) and the Town of North Kingstown conducted
a study of potential growth and land use impacts of the planned
extension of commuter rail service south of Providence to Wickford
Junction in North Kingstown. The study was completed in June, 2005.
Click
here to access the North Kingstown web page that includes the study
reports.
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