Last week the city and state released the so-called Krieger Report, which offers detailed recommendations for the redevelopment of the land that will be opened up by the 195 relocation. GCPVD has it up, and a brief analysis, over here. It’s 169 pages long, and I’ve not yet had the chance to go through all of it, but will hopefully have time to write more about it later.
In very broad strokes, it encourages relatively dense, mixed-use development, with a few prominent new public/open spaces. It sees expansion of the universities as the engine for much of this growth — the city is branding a new “Knowledge District” through much of Upper South Providence (the Jewelry District, Hospitals, etc.). It’s easier said than done, because the interests of the city and state are not aligned: The state sees expansion of non-profits as a boon, because it gets to collect taxes from new income that they generate; the city sees it as a potential burden, as new land gets eaten up without providing new property tax revenue, the city’s major source of income. We desperately need to reconcile this conflict.
The report, and public critique of it, will be of great influence on the City Council as it completes the ongoing process of updating the City’s Comprehensive Plan, which sets development guidelines for all of Providence.