Providence developments

I was in Providence this past weekend and stumbled upon this modern gem (Brown's Creative Arts Center):

building_new_web.jpg

designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro

More info here: http://www.archdaily.com/112338/per...arts-brown-university-diller-scofidio-renfro/
 
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bdurden said:
I was in Providence this past weekend and stumbled upon this modern gem (Brown's Creative Arts Center):

http://brown.edu/academics/creative-arts-council/sites/brown.edu.academics.creative-arts-council/files/imagecache/homepage_featured_image/homepage-featured/building_new_web.jpg[\img]
designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro

More info here: [url]http://www.archdaily.com/112338/perry-and-marty-granoff-center-for-the-creative-arts-brown-university-diller-scofidio-renfro/[\url][/QUOTE]

I wonder why this didn't post?

[img]http://brown.edu/academics/creative-arts-council/sites/brown.edu.academics.creative-arts-council/files/imagecache/homepage_featured_image/homepage-featured/building_new_web.jpg
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RIPTA has approved plans for Providence Light Rail.

Funds put plan for streetcar line in motion

The board of directors of the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority approved plans for a $126.7 million Providence streetcar system, with preliminary plans for a two-and-a-half mile route that would connect Rhode Island Hospital, downtown Providence and College Hill.
The idea was originally proposed by the Transit 2020 Action Group in 2006 as part of a greater initiative to invest in the growth and improvement of Providence transit over the long term.
The approved plans are based on findings from the Providence Core Connector Study, which considered multiple options for routes and technology, including enhanced buses as an alternative to the streetcar.
Ultimately, the study concluded that a streetcar would be the better option, citing its potential to incite economic development, its community impact and its better passenger experience.
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Link to source
 
Let's get this straight. Starting from scratch, and including rolling stock, a 2.5 mile light rail in Providence would cost $126.7 million.

Meanwhile, Dudley GL extension, no new rolling stock needed and existing tunnel in place, was estimated to cost $160 million... why should that have been more expensive? (And why was the "solution" BRT with a $72 million natural gas fueling facility and all new specially designed buses?)
 
Shepard said:
Let's get this straight. Starting from scratch, and including rolling stock, a 2.5 mile light rail in Providence would cost $126.7 million.

Meanwhile, Dudley GL extension, no new rolling stock needed and existing tunnel in place, was estimated to cost $160 million... why should that have been more expensive? (And why was the "solution" BRT with a $72 million natural gas fueling facility and all new specially designed buses?)
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I don't know about the cost structure, but Mass's infatuation with BRT is pretty disappointing. I hope that fades sooner rather than later.
 
NEW: Providence and Portland Named Top Hipster Cities by Travel + Leisure



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Thursday, April 05, 2012

Tracey Minkin, GoLocalProv Features Editor








Hipster Central, according to Travel + Leisure: Providence's AS220
Providence nails another Top 10 nationwide today as Travel + Leisure names it among the Top 10 Cities for Hipsters in the United States.

The capital city, home to hipster hangouts like the Steelyard, AS220, and Olneyville Square is in fact the #6 Best City for Hipsters, according to latest ranking of America's largest cities released by the internationally renowned travel magazine. Seattle, WA crowned the list at #1, followed by Portland, OR (#2), San Francisco, CA (#3), New Orleans, LA (#4) and Portland, ME (#5). Providence was followed by Austin, TX at #7, and San Juan, PR, Philadelphia, PA, and Denver, CO at #8, #9, and #10. New York City ranked #12 and Boston #17.

What makes a city a hipster hangout?

The hip honor for Providence is the latest round of Travel + Leisure's America's Favorite City Survey, where readers ranked 35 metropolitan areas on culturally relevant features like live music, coffee bars, and independent boutiques. To zero in on the biggest hipster crowds, T+L says it factored in the results for the best microbrews and the most offbeat and tech-savvy locals.

"This academia-rich New England city has a concentrated mix of artists and nerds," writes T+L, "scoring high in the survey for its performance art and cafés." T+L names AS220 as the "artsy nerve center" of the city, which the magazine says boasts of stimulating Rhode Island’s “cultural mulch” through shows, a restaurant, a coffee bar, and a meeting space for the tech group Providence Geeks.

Defining today's hipster

Travel + Leisure admits this new ranking reflects its take on the debated term hipster, "which can inspire eye rolls or admiration," Katrina Brown Hunt writes. "Once used to describe counterculture types, hipster is now so prevalent it’s at a possible tipping point. Whatever your take, you generally know hipsters when you see them—most likely in funky, up-and-coming neighborhoods. A smirking attitude toward mainstream institutions means they tend to frequent cool, often idiosyncratic restaurants, shops, and bars—the same kinds of venues that appeal to travelers looking for what they can’t find at home. (Yelp.com now even has a search feature for “hipster” ambience.)
 
Lrfox said:
RIPTA has approved plans for Providence Light Rail.



Link to source
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Wow. So it sounds like this is really happening now. I hadn't heard much about it in awhile, so I was wondering what the status was. This is incredibly exciting, both for Providence, and to show that mid-sized cities can support strong public transit. Really, though, this will be huge for Providence, I think.
 
FrankLloydMike said:
Wow. So it sounds like this is really happening now. I hadn't heard much about it in awhile, so I was wondering what the status was. This is incredibly exciting, both for Providence, and to show that mid-sized cities can support strong public transit. Really, though, this will be huge for Providence, I think.
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Hopefully they will partner with private business in this venture. Other transit organizations have turned to this. The HRT in Norfolk built their light rail with minimum private capital and hope to expand on that process. The vote in Providence was quite the opposite of the recent vote in New Haven. They turned it down because there was a feeling it would not help transit in the minority neighborhoods. The proposed line was similar to Providence's in that it connected a hospital complex, a college, thru the city and to a neighborhood that overwhelmingly had people who worked in the city, went to the college and worked at the hospital! This was a line with immediate success written all over it and then they could have expanded it. It is not a time for citites to be shortsighted on mass transit.
 
It's a great decision for Providence and the cost is quite a bit lower than I would have expected (even for a single 2.5 mile long line). If this is the line I think it is, it'll be GREAT for the Jewelry District.
 
Providence has at least one unused railroad or trolley tunnel. Will this system use it?
 
Ron Newman said:
Providence has at least one unused railroad or trolley tunnel. Will this system use it?
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Do you mean this tunnel? It's currently used by buses and I know that it's at least been mentioned for light rail, but I'm not sure if they actually plan to use it. To be honest, I'm not sure what type of grade the LRV can handle. I know Muni Metro in SF has a some steeper slopes, but all of the streets from downtown Providence to College Hill are VERY steep. I'd almost assume they'd have to use the tunnel.
 
Oh, and a little publicity form across the pond:

Providence, Rhode Island: New England's coolest city

Providence, Rhode Island, is the coolest city in New England. I would even put it on the shortlist of coolest small cities in the United States. (It has about 170,000 people, with another million in the surrounding area.)
Like Rome, Providence congregates around seven hills. The two to keep in mind are Federal and College. Like many cities, it’s traversed by a river; unlike most, its river had been paved over by the world’s widest concrete bridge until the Nineties, when it was uncovered and brilliantly lit afire. More on that later.
Like few other cities, Providence gives tax incentives to artists not institutions. And unlike any other, it was founded by Roger Williams, one of the great iconoclasts of the 17th century. Williams was kicked out of Massachusetts Bay for daring to believe in religious freedom and the separation of church and state. He founded Providence as a haven of tolerance.
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Full story from the Telegraph
 
Ron Newman said:
Providence has at least one unused railroad or trolley tunnel. Will this system use it?
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first, nice picture LrFox. That is the tunnel that will have the streetcar service as it initially had and now has buses thru it. This was finished around 1913 to avoid the steep climb of College Hill. In fact, Providence was one of the few cities using a counter balance system to get the streetcars up College Hill. The old railroad tunnel, finished in 1908, doesn't have street access to downtown Providence. It was removed when the new train station was built. The area in front of the west portal is now a raised parking lot. The east portal of the tunnel still connects to the now unused row and unused Seekonk River railroad bridge. Much of the trackage is now gone in East Providence. This route was the first choice of Amtrak's electrical service, it would have saved 5 miles, but at double the cost of the present route.
 
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^Great info!

So the are going to use the current bus tunnel for light rail? Providence will have a subway?!(kidding).
 
Is this close to the final route? Any deviations? Updated map?

suggested-streetcar-route-14Feb11.jpg
 
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