GrowSmartRI

How many vacant spaces are in your Main Street district? Where is there room to add more housing, businesses, and gathering spaces?

Main Street America recently launched a property and vacancy inventory tool, the Building Opportunities on Main Street (BOOMS) Tracker. Join the Main Street America Research Team for a webinar on July 30th where they’ll showcase the tool’s functionality, lead a live demonstration of how quick and easy it is to enter data, and answer any questions you might have about how you can use this tool to understand and unlock opportunities in your community.

Link to register for free in Bio!




Main Street America

The 2026 Power of Place Summit is a Wrap! Wish you could rewind on what you saw or missed? We've got you covered. View the recordings, read the stories and follow up blog posts, find your friends in the picutures . . . and please take the survey!

All of these goodies on our Summit homepage. Link in bio!

If you've registered for the Power of Place Summit, watch your inbox today (6/23) for two important emails:
📨 a link to event FAQs -- info on parking, session locations, lunch, and more
📨 a parking placard to print and bring along in your car if you ordered reduced-price parking when you registered for the Summit.

STILL haven't registered?? Today's the day. After midnight tonight we'll take walk-up registrations at the Summit but we can't guarantee spaces in every breakout session or box lunch.
https://growsmartri.org/power-of-place-summit-2026/

We share Preserve Rhode Island's disappointment and frustration with the loss of our state's Historic Tax Credit Program — and we share the resolve to continue our advocacy and education about why tax credits matter: they stimulate local economies, encourage more sustainable building practices, and revitalize brownfield sites across the state.

For years, Preserve RI has partnered with GrowSmartRI to advocate for the state’s Historic Tax Credit (HTC) program. This program has a proven track record – it has generated over $2.18 billion in total investment into the state and has generated approximately 20% of all new housing from 2013 through 2023. After unsuccessful efforts to include funding for the program in the Governor’s budget, we worked with key allies in both the House and Senate to introduce two pieces of legislation (H8408 and S3151) in both houses that would address issues with the program, including an extension of the sunset (“sunset” refers to the expiration of a particular law/program). Despite the Senate passing S3151 with a minor Sub A revision, the House did not take action prior to the close of the legislative session. This is likely due to the last-minute change in House Leadership. Without any action by the House, the HTC program will be sunsetting at the end of June.

Preserve RI and Grow Smart RI are currently working with the Division of Taxation to better understand the implications of the program sunsetting. We will provide updates on this critical matter as they arise.

A special thank you to Senators DiPalama and Bissaillon, and Representative Speakman (and all other bill sponsors) for spearheading our legislative efforts. Also, thank you to Senate President Lawson and Majority Leader Ciccone for prioritizing passage in the Senate.

We're capping off our June 26 Power of Place Summit with a R.I. Gubernatorial Candidates Forum.

Award-winning investigative journalist Jim Hummel will moderate Q&A sessions with the audience and three major candidates* (pictured from left) Aaron Guckian (R), Helena Foulkes (D), and Ken Block (I), with a focus on issues of smart growth: housing, transportation, economic development, and environment.

*Governor Dan McKee was invited to participate but indicated, through his campaign manager, that he can't attend.

There's still time to register for the Summit:
https://growsmartri.org/power-of-place-summit-2026/

We need to ask you a favor!

Your fellow advocates and experts in transportation, housing, climate & environment, community engagement, and more are offering 15 terrific breakout sessions — panels, workshops, and walking tours — at our upcoming Power of Place Summit.

It's a lot to choose from, but please do, ASAP! We're assigning rooms for the breakouts based on expected attendance and we don't want to have to shut anyone out because a room has reached capacity.

➡ If you've already registered for the Summit, follow the link in the email you received about downloading the Whova app 📱, sign in, and select the sessions you want to attend.

➡ If you haven't registered for the Summit yet, do it! The clock is ticking... ⏰

https://growsmartri.org/power-of-place-summit-2026/

Four breakout sessions at our upcoming Power of Place Summit will look at the power of community voices and cultural memory.

Presenters include:
Richard Godfrey, Consultant and Educator
Carla DeStefano, SWAP Inc.
Ron Crosson, Urban Ventures
Rochelle Lee, City and Regional Planner

Carolyn Belisle, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island
Melissa Clark, Brown University School of Public Health

Christine West, AIA, KITE Architects
Kristina Brown, Neighbors Welcome! Rhode Island

Marta V. Martínez, Rhode Island Latino Arts
Dr. Christopher West, African American Museum of Rhode Island
Jeannie Solomon, Asian American and Pacific Islander History Museum

Spots are still available for the June 26 Summit — register now!
https://growsmartri.org/power-of-place-summit-2026/

Four breakout sessions at our upcoming Power of Place Summit will look at the Ocean State's climate and environmental challenges along with sustainability solutions.

Presenters include:
Chris Martin, City of Providence Department of Planning and Development
Alban Bassuet, Arup

Isaac Bearg, Rhode Island Food Policy Council
Jed Thorp, Save The Bay - Narragansett Bay
Emily Howe, Clean Water Action Rhode Island

Brianna Jordan, Providence Preservation SocietySociety
Jenna Yu, Build With Nature

Michele Jalbert, Cliff Wood, and Luisa Murillo, Providence Resilience Partnership
Kira Wills, Community Facilitator

Spots are still available for the June 26 Summit — register now:
https://growsmartri.org/power-of-place-summit-2026/

The Boston Globe's Dan McGowan talked with Executive Director Scott Wolf about his perspective after three decades of helping to shape Rhode Island's approach to growth, housing, transportation, and economic development.

Asked where he might contribute over the next 20 years, Scott told Dan:

"There are several ways I think I can contribute to this important needle threading exercise, including:
-- Continuing to be a sharer of smart growth best practices from within and outside Rhode Island;
-- Being an advocate and thought leader for better regional transportation and employment connectivity, as well as for housing and transit-friendly investments land use reforms that accelerate the revitalization of our downtowns and Main Streets and defy the predictions of population decline;
- Mentoring a new generation of creative economic and community development change agents.

Read more in McGowan's daily Rhode Map:

view.email.bostonglobe.com

Two Power of Place Summit breakout sessions will focus on transportation issues:

🚍 “Small State, Big Headaches: Getting Rhode Island’s Transportation System Right” presents a mobility policy blueprint focused on transparency in decision-making, affordability and accessibility, and long-term economic resilience.

Panelists: Dylan Giles and Nicole O'Loughlin, Providence Streets Coalition; and John Flaherty, Green Street Associates.

🚶🚴 “Moving From Policy to Projects: A First Look at Rhode Island’s Complete Streets Toolkit” looks at a new resource to help municipalities and stakeholders move transportation projects from vision to implementation.

Panelists: Bonnie Nickerson and Rosie Jaswal, Toole Design Group; and Meredith Brady, Rhode Island Department of Administration.

Register now for the June 26 Power of Place Summit! Early bird pricing ends Friday, June 12.
https://growsmartri.org/power-of-place-summit-2026/