While Cicilline’s first-term interest in priming the development pump is understandable, the mayor now seems more inclined to support inclusionary zoning proposals that might expand the city’s supply of affordable housing. Whether efforts to address the situation will receive enough backing, though, remain to be seen.
Pay more attention to the residents
While Cicilline likes to invoke “openness” and “transparency” as watchwords for his administration, residents tell a different story when it comes to the city’s approach to charting planning and development around Providence.
As first reported in the Phoenix (see “Boiling Point,” News, October 8, 2004), neighborhood groups around town fumed, almost two years into the mayor’s tenure, about a perceived lack of development policy. In particular, the city’s plan to pursue zoning changes, before articulating a comprehensive policy, struck many observers as wrongheaded. Although an outpouring of opposition ultimately led Cicilline to reverse course on the process, critics could only wonder why the move took so long.
Looking forward, Cicilline talks about ensuring that the land freed up by the relocation of Interstate 195 will be “developed in a responsible way.” He cites the importance of physical context and the placement of projects as “part of a larger vision for the city.” Sounds good. Yet when it comes to the land being made available by I-195, critics have faulted the city’s vision of less — rather than more — public space, as well as the process for pursuing it. The resolution of these competing concepts, as well as the relative integration of residents into the city’s planning process, will have no small impact on the future of Providence.
Offer more than lip service for nightlife
If New York City can get a lid on its crime problem, shouldn’t Providence be able to do a better job in managing its nightlife issues?
This rhetorical comparison, raised in a Phoenix story six years ago, would seem like a relative no-brainer. Yet despite changes at the top of city government, Providence remains locked in a cycle of using a punitive approach to try to squelch the hassles that inevitably come with vibrant nightlife in a city. And although the Providence Board of Licenses last month rejected the Providence Police Department’s attempt to label Club Diesel (disclosure: a Phoenix advertiser) as a disorderly house, it’s fair to wonder whether it’s only a matter of time before police unleash another such effort.
As I’ve written in these pages, there’s probably more than enough blame to go around, although the root of the problem — the end-of-the-night mass exodus from the concentration of bars and clubs in and around downtown — remains unaddressed. Allowing some venues to stay open longer through a pilot program, without additional alcohol sales, offers a possible solution, but Cicilline has remained unwilling to publicly embrace the concept. One can only hope that a second term would make him more willing to show some leadership on this issue.
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Ian Donnis: idonnis@phx.com
