RhodeMap RI to host open house events seeking community input

RHODEMAP RI, an outreach and research initiative of the R.I. Division of Planning, will host a series of open house events to share information with the public about its proposed strategies and goals, and receive feedback. The first event will be held at 5 p.m. on Monday the Southside Cultural Center in Providence.
RHODEMAP RI, an outreach and research initiative of the R.I. Division of Planning, will host a series of open house events to share information with the public about its proposed strategies and goals, and receive feedback. The first event will be held at 5 p.m. on Monday the Southside Cultural Center in Providence.

PROVIDENCE – The first of six planned RhodeMap RI open house events will be held Monday at the Southside Cultural Center to offer Rhode Islanders an opportunity to learn about policies and strategies proposed under the initiative and to provide feedback.

The open house series is the culmination of an ongoing outreach and research effort that began in August 2013 as an initiative of the R.I. Division of Planning. Since its inception, hundreds of Rhode Island citizens have participated in 23 regional workshops and more than 30 focus groups and meetings. The RhodeMap RI team has incorporated feedback to help identify intersections between the state’s environmental, economic and social resources, and determine where and how future development should happen, the Division of Planning said.

“Our Division of Planning team has been very impressed with the range of ideas they have heard from our Rhode Island citizens over the last eight months,” said R.I. Director of Administration Richard Licht. “These ideas have already helped Planning’s comprehensive economic development and housing planning efforts, and our team looks forward to hearing even more feedback in May.”

Topics for discussion at Monday’s open house will include transportation improvements, open space preservation, housing and economic development. The event, to be held from 5-8 p.m. at the Southside Cultural Center at 393 Broad St. in Providence, is free and open to the public, and no registration is required.

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The full schedule of RhodeMap RI open house events for the May is as follows:

  • Monday, May 5: Southside Cultural Center, 393 Broad St., Providence (5-8 p.m.)
  • Thursday, May 8: St. Lucy’s Parish Center, 909 West Main Road, Middletown (5-8 p.m.)
  • Saturday, May 10: Navigant Credit Union, 693 Broad St., Central Falls (9 a.m. – 12 p.m.)
  • Monday, May 12: Warwick Library, 600 Sandy Lane, Warwick (5-8 p.m.)
  • Tuesday, May 13: Wickford Middle School, 250 Tower Hill Road, North Kingstown (5-8 p.m.)
  • Wednesday, May 14: Woonsocket (time and location to be determined)

The RhodeMap RI strategic planning program is funded with a $2.3 million Sustainable Communities Initiative Grant, one of several offered through the Federal Partnership for Sustainable Communities in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Transportation. Rhode Island is the only state in the country to receive a Sustainable Communities Initiative Grant.

The R.I. Division of Planning expects to complete the RhodeMap RI planning process this year.

For more information about RhodeMap RI or the open house event schedule, visit http://rhodemapri.org/events/.

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