Brownfield Redevelopment in the Jewelry District
| South Providence |
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Why look at South Providence? The recent and ongoing brownfields redevelopment of the Jewelry District has brought the attention back to this area as a valuable area of commercial and educational opportunities. To put this into perspective, we can look at its connectivity to adjacent neighborhoods, in particular South Providence. As an economically depressed area, South Providence could potentially benefit the most from the growth in the Jewelry District. To explore the relationship between these two districts, we ask the following questions:
Background | Current Situation | Brownfields | Challenges | JD Impact | Community | Recommendations Defined as the area “bounded by Interstate 95 to the north and east, Public Street to the south, and Broad Street to the west.” South Providence has experienced significant land use changes over the years (RI Historical Preservation Committee, 1979). Used primarily as pasture land when first settled, South Providence today is a primarily residential area. South Providence, though never as industrial as the Jewelry District, did see some industrial expansion beginning in the 1900s. An “odd variety of industry, including a packing-box factory, a rubber-tubing plant, a paper-collar factory, and a textile concern” eventually located in the area. These were replaced in turn by the metal products firms and jewelry manufacturers that also filled the Jewelry District, as early as the turn of that century. South Providence’s most prominent industry was Gorham, the internationally known silversmithing firm. Around 1889, Gorham’s old plant on North Main Street—which had housed a heavy concentration of businesses—became outgrown and the company constructed a new complex on Adelaide Ave overlooking Mashapaug Pond. This lot, a 37-acre area now divided up into four parcels, is now a brownfield. 1950 to 1977 saw significant urban decay in South Providence as industries abandoned the area. The flight of capital, combined with the deterioration of industrial sites, resulted in South Providence experiencing an increase in environmental problems and few resources available with which to solve them. The mix of industries, as it was discovered later, logically left behind a mix of contaminants left behind. Among the possible contaminants, the ones associated with silver plating operations of the type that South Providence had, include: • TCE (trichloroethylene) The potential health effects caused by inhalation of the first three chemicals’ vapors include lung irritation, developmental and reproductive problems, liver damage and cancer. The developmental problems caused by lead poisoning have also been well-documented, as has lead’s above-average impact on low income and minority communities. It is not surprising, then, that South Providence has had 148 cases of children with elevated lead levels in their blood, while Downtown and College Hill have each had less than 20 incidents (Providence Plan, 1995). Despite this situation, there have been a few isolated brownfields developments in upper South Providence in recent years. 17 Gordon Ave was a former lead pencil manufacturing facility, which, funded by a Community Development Block Grant, was renovated using green technology and completed in 2004. It now houses environmentally sensitive businesses, and hopes to stimulate economic growth in South Providence as well as provide job opportunities for local residents. The Southside Community Land Trust is another community revitalizing project, for its objectives are food security and community development. ____________________________________________________________ The exact number of brownfields in Providence is unknown, but is has been estimated that Rhode Island is home to around 300 brownfields. As of 2006, South Providence had over 100 square acres of brownfields in small, spread-out parcels (Brown News Service, April 25 2005). The area also houses Allens Avenue, an industrial strip running directly against the waterfront with some brownfield lots. Minorities make up 79.3 % of South Providence’s population, with 41.2% of that being Hispanic, and 36.4% of families fall below the Federal poverty line (Providence Plan, 2007). ____________________________________________________________ The aforementioned Gorham brownfield site presents a good example of potential problems with brownfield redevelopment in South Providence. “Unlike the Jewelry District, South Providence is a densely populated, residential neighborhood, which can complicate the redevelopment of brownfields. The City believed that using the Gorham property in part for a new public high school was both necessary and appropriate. The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) approved cleanup and redevelopment plans for the property and apparently concurred that it could be made safe to serve as a site for a school. Problems arose at the Adelaide Avenue site when Textron—the current owner of the site—claimed that the remediation and future monitoring plans were sufficient, and that the school was ready for use September 2005. Owing to pressure from the Adelaide Avenue Coalition for Environmental Justice, DEM has since strengthened some of the original remediation requirements for the site. One example is Textron’s claim that it had taken care of the lead in the slag-pile, which was found by RIDEM in concentrations of 14,000 milligrams per kilogram (Heislein, 2006) while the national “acceptable levels” for lead is 10 millionths of a gram of in one-tenth of a liter of fluid. Textron was content to leave it the slag-pile, until RIDEM demanded that they remediate the site more effectively, either by dredging up and treating all of the soil, or permanently removing it from the site. This has caused tense relations between the community and both the City and Textron, with RIDEM largely acting as a mediator between them. One South Providence community member, at a meeting regarding the Adelaide Avenue brownfield site, remarked that the so-called Providence “renaissance” affecting the rest of the city had not touched South Providence, and that most likely the Jewelry District redevelopment would not benefit South Providence either. So why does South Providence lack its own renaissance? Read on to find out.
____________________________________________________________ Development in South Providence is at odds with the factors involved in the complex economic analysis that developers use to site their facilities; risk, expected return on investment, and cost to build. In essence, the market does not favor development in South Providence.
____________________________________________________________ Redevelopment in South Providence could largely be driven by the growth of the hospitals and public health schools in the Jewelry District, and also by how the city sees the port near South Providence as an area for future development. The new hub around Allens Avenue proposed by the Providence 2020 will definitely mean a greater interest in the redevelopment of the area. By this reasoning however, development in South Providence will be a slow process. Thus far, South Providence has seen very little development while the Jewelry District has seen significant redevelopment activity for several years already, and this trend cannot be expected to change unless policy changes occur. ____________________________________________________________ Bringing the Community to the Table Most brownfields redevelopment works to bring “cleaner” commercial and light industrial use of the formerly contaminated sites. Yet by listening to the community’s concerns, it is clear that what they need the most are public improvements such as parks and access to libraries, schools, and health care (Braswell, 1998). However, the district will need a stronger infrastructure to organize any significant improvements that would work towards revitalizing the whole district. In addition, these urgent priorities are unlikely to be carried out without more employment opportunities and access to these opportunities. Thus, planning and commercial/industrial development should keep in mind these crucial goals of meeting community needs. The South Providence community has often had to struggle simply to be considered a stakeholder in any brownfield redevelopment plans; developers—and, to an extent, the City of Providence—tend to lack information transparency, effectively cutting the community out of proceedings (Steve Fishbach). The Woonasquatucket River Greenway Project and the redevelopment of brownfields in Olneyville is a good example of the kind of redevelopment strategy that could work in South Providence. There, community involvement was extensive, as people participated in river cleanups and land beautification, and a class of middle schoolers gave a presentation of the river’s history (Braswell, 1998). However, a major issue facing relations between communities and city planners and developers is trust; residents of South Providence have long felt exploited by Rhode Island Hospital, which took much of the land for its construction. For the Olneyville community, it took many meetings in a variety of locations (schools, churches, community centers, etc.) for the community to believe that the master plan genuinely would invest money to improve the neighborhood (Braswell, 1998). The most common request of Olneyville’s residents, a similar demographic to South Providence, was for green space with attractive foliage and for a bicycle path to create a safer, more direct way to access local stores and service facilities (Braswell, 1998). It is reasonable to assume that South Providence’s residents would desire the same improvements, considering the state of public transportation and lack of green space currently there. The health benefits of a bicycle path are numerous and extensive, and also promote greater independence for the community, as it is a transportation alternative for the “welfare-to-work” program. ____________________________________________________________ The redevelopment pattern of the Jewelry District would most likely have to be altered to fit South Providence. While the Jewelry District can be considered an extension of downtown (David Everett), South Providence, both Upper and Lower, is far removed. It is also a residential area with a total population of 10,709 individuals; by comparison, the Jewelry District is sparely-populated with only 2,678 individuals. Additionally, South Providence’s 100 square acres of brownfields are commonly found in small, spread-out parcels. One of the larger parcels, found on Adelaide Avenue in the Reservoir Triangle area, is only 37 acres. Compared to the Jewelry District South Providence does not receive a significant amount of attention from developers, despite being an area which also needs economic revitalization. It only garners four mentions in the expansive and inspired 2006 Providence 2020 Plan. However, South Providence can provide many opportunities for economic growth that would be beneficial to the incoming business, the City and the community. The City Planning Department could do more to increase its influence in bringing this kind of change about. One of its major aims in redevelopment is to generate tax revenue, especially since Providence is in a hole. State government could significantly help brownfields redevelopment in South Providence through regulatory frameworks designed to facilitate cleanup by the private sector. Governments (state and federal) can refuse to accept lower clean-up and health goals in South Providence, and develop more powerful tax incentives similar to the federal Community Reinvestment Act (Kibel, 1998). They could also adopt policies that link prospective purchaser and lender liability protections as long as the proposed development would have tangible health and economic benefits to the community. This would encourage positive development in South Providence, and attract more business. ____________________________________________________________ References Braswell, Barbara J. “Brownfields and Bikeways: Making a Clean Start.” Public Roads (1999): 32-39.
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