Transit-oriented Development

(TOD)

W. Kingston: Transit leads Development
In W. Kingston, there is neither the physical infrastructure nor the will to create dense development near the train station. There is hardly any commercial or residential development to speak of, and any dense development will be many years in the future. Water/sewer infrastructure will need investment before dense development can proceed. Commuter rail will almost certainly arrive in W. Kingston before any major development. The surrounding community, URI, and RIPTA will be able to enhance the commuter rail if they provide transit options to travel to the station.

Westerly: Development leads Transit
TOD has real potential in Westerly. New development is already occurring, and there is good infrastructure to support development. The station is located adjacent to a vibrant downtown. The only infrastructure potentially missing is parking. Development should occur with near future commuter rail in mind.

Why It Makes Sense to Extend Commuter Rail to Both Sites
RI DOT has approached commuter rail with an incremental expansion strategy. Through the Pilgrim Contract – an agreement with the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) – RI pays for costs within RI, only. For this reason, RI DOT is slowly expanding – first to Wickford Junction in 2006 and possibly beyond several years later. When the state finally decides to go to South Kingstown, it should also go to Westerly. Despite much lower ridership estimates in Westerly, there are relationships between Westerly and South Kingstown that will enhance the commuter rail for both towns. Already, 5% of Westerly commuters go to South Kingstown, and there are opportunities to create further connections.

South Kingstown and Westerly are both major providers of health care in Washington County; together, they account for 2/3 of total health care and 3/4 of volume of sales. Commuter rail can create new training and exchange options for workers in both towns, as well as enhancing commuter numbers.

Commuter rail connections in both towns will also enhance broader education options in Washington County. URI is within easy striking distance of Westerly. A planned vocational/education program at Quonset and the Chariho Center – a youth vocational program – will both be more easily accessible with rail.

Strategies that Both Towns Can Use

There are some general strategies that both South Kingstown and Westerly could employ to enhance TOD and accomplish some of their goals:
• Re-zoning for higher density and providing incentives for higher-density.
• Creating urban land trusts, as a way to preserve affordability. This also can lead to density. 7% of Rhode Island's land is preserved in traditional land trusts, so there's already a framework with which to start.
• Simplifying permit/approval processes for affordable housing.
• Leasing land to someone who then provides low/moderate income housing.
• Growth boundaries, which limit the range to which a town/city can develop.
• Taxing just land value instead of land value with the value of any buildings as well. This removes the incentive to build single homes on large plots. This could be coupled with TDR. Because developers often build where tax rates are lowest, modifying land valuation through regulation could be a key component where land around transit is or would be more valuable in the context of a TOD proposed setting.

Recommendations to the State
Though there is a great disconnect between planning at the local level and planning at the state level, there are several concrete actions the state can take to improve the potential for TOD beyond extending the commuter rail.

Affordable housing is an essential complement to TOD. Not only does TOD enhance affordable housing by encouraging denser developments with better transit options for low/moderate income households and allowing for reduced car costs, but affordable housing also enhances TOD by creating a diverse commuting base that can adjust to shifts in state growth patterns.

The state’s affordable housing mandate is a good platform from which to influence local planning. First and most importantly, the state should maintain the developer loophole that allows expedited permitting if a development has 20% affordable housing – but only if the development is located within a quarter mile of a transit hub. Secondly, the state should only allow inclusionary zoning (allowing greater density for the developer in exchange for affordable housing) to be used to reach the 10% affordable housing goal if there are good transit options near the development in question. Finally, the Rhode Island Housing and Mortgage Finance Corporationshould channel more affordable housing construction loans to developers who build near stations or transit hubs – especially when the project is for redevelopment, because this saves towns money that would otherwise go to new infrastructure. Generally, it is more useful for towns to reward building dense developments near transit hubs than to penalize sprawl; this way, they can guarantee revitalization and redevelopment that provide transit options.

Another essential step the state can take to enhance TOD is to facilitate regional partnerships and agreements. The towns need to have a framework for thinking more broadly about which regions have the comparative advantage to handle growth and the density levels that are preferable for affordable housing. In the spirit of a cap and trade market, certain towns have better infrastructure and already existing areas of density, and these towns should be absorbing more of the growth pressure than regions with lower density and more open space. For example, Charlestown could help pay for Westerly’s municipal services – sewer/water, schools, roads – in exchange for Westerly taking on part of Charlestown’s affordable housing goal. Another type of framework could employ transfer of development rights across town boundaries.

Rhode Island should also coordinate to capture seasonal tourism in South Kingstown and especially in Westerly. With good RIPTA links from the stations to beaches, the commuter rail could help mitigate tourist congestion within Westerly and along I-95 from the north. Watch Hill, a heavily touristed spot in Westerly, is only 4 miles from the downtown but lacks any public transportation connections.

Finally, the state should take advantage of the prestigious design institutions in the area, such as RISD, URI, Harvard, and MIT, to involve both students and professors in the design process of TOD proposals throughout the state by holding mini charrettes, design competitions, and semester-long study projects.