NORTH PROVIDENCE – The North Providence Town Council will soon consider a village overlay zoning proposal that would allow residential units to be developed above commercial space in Centredale.
The council was set to consider the idea at its June 18 meeting, but the matter was postponed due to the board’s attorney being unable to attend.
Council President Dino Autiello said the idea was brought up by the owner of a number of properties in the area who would like to develop homes above commercial units.
He said he’s not opposed to the idea, but will want to hear more on the proposal for a commercial village area where requirements are typically a bit more stringent.
“If it brings in tax revenue and cleans up some of those buildings, I’d be in favor of it,” he said.
Mayor Charles Lombardi said the town has some of this type of development already, and he too would be OK with it under the right circumstances. One of the issues he would want to look at is making sure the necessary parking is available, he said.
Part of his issue with the state is that lawmakers are in a “just build” mentality that doesn’t necessarily account for issues that arise in communities, said the mayor. If this proposal meets necessary criteria, he added, he would be for it.
Also a topic of conversation in the Centredale area is whether parts of the one-way road system will become two-way road. Lombardi said this week that he doesn’t know if that’s ever going to happen.
There was some discussion previously about using some of the town’s $1.7 million streetscape improvement project for the area toward that effort, but at a recent council meeting, former grant writer Lisa Andoscia told the council that the money secured through Sen. Jack Reed was for true beautification and not two-way conversation, as applied for in the grant.
The money, she said, would be used to create an old-world European gardens look, including topiaries, oversized urns, herringbone accessible sidewalks, oversized fountains, uplighting, artwork, benches, bike racks, and replacing existing damaged missing light poles to reflect the character of the area.
The idea, she said, is to get people to slow down, shop here, eat here, and make it more livable.
Andoscia suggested that the town might want to apply for Community Development Block Grant funding again for additional work.
Autiello responded at that meeting that the plans look excellent, and he would love to see Centredale look as described. He said there was never a discussion with the council about creating a two-way street, and the discussion about that matter “took on a life of its own.”
Andoscia said that achieving the vision for the area would revive and beautify it for such events as the Centredale Festival, creating the kind of vibe where people are “here for a week” similar to St. Anthony’s Feast in Boston.
Asked about Andoscia’s comments this week, Lombardi said he has no comment. He added that the town’s current grant writer has the situation under control.
