South Kingstown is one of the fastest growing communities in the state. In 2000 South Kingstown ranked 12th in population among Rhode Island's 39 cities and towns. South Kingstown contains 57.09 square miles of land area. In 2000 the population density of South Kingstown was about 490 people per square mile of land area. The growth rate in South Kingstown has been 13.4% for the past decade. Following previous population trends, the projected population in 2010 for South Kingstown would be 31,662 and 35,904 would be the total population for the year 2020.

It is a relatively young, seasonal population due to the University of Rhode Island, and the year 2000 U.S. Census data has South Kingstown’s population at 27,921; Kingston (here this includes the village of W. Kingston) has a population of 5,446. There are approximately 11,000 enrolled students and 2,800 employees at URI. American Power Conversion has about 1,300 employees.

The total number of housing units in South Kingstown for the year 2000 was 11,291. This represented an increase of 1,485 units from the 9,806 housing units in 1990. Of the 11,291 housing units 2,023 were vacant. There are 664 housing units in Kingston - 631 occupied housing units and 33 vacant units. (2000 U.S. Census)

5.3% of the population in South Kingstown (~1,480 people) had median incomes in 1999 below the poverty line, while 8.8% of the population in Kingston (~480 people) had median incomes in 1999 below the poverty line. Currently affordable housing in South Kingstown accounts for only 5.3% of total housing, meaning that of the available housing in South Kingstown, about 107 units are offered as subsidized housing, while in Kingston, less than 2 units are offered as subsidized housing.

The limited amount of vacant subsidized and unsubsidized housing within Kingston, and throughout all of South Kingstown, coupled with the large volume of URI student commuters could be addressed through TOD and additional RIPTA service around the Kingston Station. While South Kingstown is currently focusing their development around Wakefield and Peacedale, should additional space be needed to meet housing needs, the area around the Kingston Station should be considered as optional third site.