Our Focus: Downtown
Downtown Pawtucket
Creating a dense, pedestrian-friendly urban core with a mix of commercial, residential and civic uses is a central focus of The Pawtucket Foundation. We hope to revitalize our downtown to become a redgional hub of mixed-use buildings with active storefronts, vibrant business and retail activity within a safe neighborhood community. We are working to rebuild a residential and commercial district traditionally associated with a successful downtown.
As part of a four part series on the Pawtucket Foundation, the Times outlined the Foundation's downtown priorities. Click to download the article: Times Rebuilding Downtown (pdf)
Latest News
Foundation, Merchants leading effort to revitalize Downtown Streetscapes
In early 2011, a group of downtown residents and businesses brainstormed ways to revitalize the central core of Main Street. The group came up with the idea to implement a streetscape enhancement project using Community Development Block Grant funds. The group approached The Pawtucket Foundation to apply as a fiscal agent and project coordinator, and months later, the City of Pawtucket awarded a $50,000 grant, leveraged by donations from Shri Studio’s community revitalization yoga fund and unrestricted funds from The Pawtucket Foundation, to improve the physical character of Main Street.
The enhancement project involves the design, purchase and installation of unique planters, streetscaping, bike racks, trashcan enclosures and new banners for Main Street between Dexter Street and Roosevelt Avenue.
The project team will work with a landscape design consultant to identify ideal plants and a maintenance plan for the area. Local firm, Delin Design, is donating services to design street banners for the project. The banners will showcase the new Experience Pawtucket campaign intended to market the area an attractive and place to live, work and visit.
The streetscapes project will aid area businesses and residents by making the area a more attractive and inviting. Aaron Hertzberg, project manager and Program Director at the Pawtucket Foundation, stated “the project is as much about improving public space, as it is empowering local businesses and residents to work together for positive change.”
The effort was carefully aligned with the City’s comprehensive master plan and The Pawtucket Foundation’s strategy to adopt a multi-faceted “Main Street” approach for economic and business development in the downtown and along the riverfront. The four-point “Main Street” approach includes organization and physical design as cornerstones of revitalization. Further, the project builds on principles and recommendations outlined in the recently completed Pawtucket Downtown Design Plan.
Items are scheduled for installation by the summer of 2012.
Downtown Urban Design and Transportation Circulation Plan
New traffic patterns and streetspaces unveiled at public meeting
PDDP: Proposed Exchange Street enhancementsOn September 28, 2010, the Pawtucket Downtown Design Team presented initial plan options to the public at the Visitor Center theater in downtown Pawtucket. Foundation board member and team lead, Maia Small presented the groups findings. Small noted that the team's goals included reopening Pawtucket's historic turnpike system to two-way traffic, improving pedestrian and bike safety, retaining on-street parking and enhancing signage for off-street parking, and connecting planned transportation improvements and major developments. The team will also make recommendations regarding zoning code improvements Downtown Design Plan Zoning Improvement Summary (pdf). Click the highlighted text to view a full copy of the PDDP presentation.
The PDDP Team continues to refine elements of the plan and is looking to the community to help prioritize the project focus. A project website, www.downtownpawtucket.us has been set up and allows the public to comment on specifics. A presentation of final concepts is expected in early 2011, complete with design and engineering plans for 6 intersections.
The project has been paid for with grant funding from The Pawtucket Foundation, City of Pawtucket and a Statewide Planning Challenge Grant.
A commitment to reshape Pawtucket
The City of Pawtucket, in partnership with the Pawtucket Foundation, have begun a new project to reshape downtown Pawtucket. The Pawtucket Downtown Design Plan (PDDP) is a design study to help improve traffic patterns, parking, public space, and zoning to enhance the quality of downtown for residents, businesses and visitors. The contract for the project has been awareded to Thurlow Small Architecture, a Pawtucket based firm that built a project team of architecs, designers, engineers and communication experts. Over the course of 2010/2011 the team will host a series of community meetings to gather input, share progress and release their final report. The project website is available at www.downtownpawtucket.us. In August of 2011, the Pawtucket City Council approved a resolution encouraging the use of "complete streets" in planning, engineering and publics works. Complete Streets Resolution (pdf)
Project Information & Goals:
The primary purpose of the project is to provide design recommendations which will enhance both the economic vitality and liveability of Pawtucket's downtown district by:
- Proposing traffic circulation patterns, intersection and traffic signalization redesigns, pedestrian and bicycle access improvements, parking management approaches, streetscape and lighting recommendations, and locational signage which will help make the downtown district a better place to live, experience as visitor/customer, invest in and conduct business.
- Consider land use/zoning code modifications to the downtown district which reference and incorporate "smart growth", "transit oriented development", and "form-based" design principles.
- Better connections to downtown Pawtucket from surrounding neighborhoods by improved pedestrians, bicycle and vehicular access.
- A more walkable, safer and pedestrian friendly experience in the downtown district.
- The integration of transit oriented development principles in downtown redevelopment decisionmaking