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Civic and Community Engagement Commons

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Growth and Development

Rhode Island College

Society

Articles 1 - 22 of 22

Full-Text Articles in Civic and Community Engagement

Now We Are Counted, Chester Smolski Apr 1990

Now We Are Counted, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"There is an unusual clock in the Department of Commerce building in Washington. Looking like an auto's mileage odometer, it records the nation's population. Another single number is added to the total every 14 seconds. On March 6, the population odometer reached 250 million, which should be the number reported from this year's tally by the U.S. Census Bureau, the 21st decennial census in our country's history."


Columbia A Successful Forerunner Of New Towns, Chester Smolski Sep 1988

Columbia A Successful Forerunner Of New Towns, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"When center city developments such as Faneuil Hall in Boston, South Street Seaport in New York City, Harborplace in Baltimore and others are mentioned, the name of James W. Rouse is also noted in the same breath. In fact, the word "Rousification" is applied to such downtown developments. It is a tribute to his work in creating these lively retail centers in what were previously dying downtowns."


The Cities And Towns Look Ahead, Chester Smolski Aug 1988

The Cities And Towns Look Ahead, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"What do you want your community to be? Over the next two and one-half years all communities in the state will be required to address this question, and to come up with a formal statement of what these goals and objectives are to be. And it's about time."


Tourism's Full Potential Waiting In Wings For R.I., Chester Smolski Apr 1983

Tourism's Full Potential Waiting In Wings For R.I., Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Question: What industry in this country involves 8 million consumers daily, employs between 4 and 6 million people directly, generates nearly $200 billion in annual expenditures and is our second largest retailing activity? If you answered tourism, you are correct."


Providence: Arts Can Improve The Image, Chester Smolski Nov 1981

Providence: Arts Can Improve The Image, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Providence has an image problem. Whether one asks as state resident or a Providence native about our capital city, the response is usually negative. And the image of our city held by non-Rhode Islanders is one that should not make us proud."


Some Good Things Are Happening, Chester Smolski Oct 1981

Some Good Things Are Happening, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It is easy to be critical and to single out the wrongs of a society: the reporting of such wrongs is what sells newspapers. Too often the good things that happen are not recognized nor deemed newsworthy, and the result is they go unnoticed. So it was more than refreshing to read recently in these papers about some very positive actions on the part of a private citizen, a small business, and yes, even a politician--actions that are helping to make our communities better places in which to live."


Boost For The Downtown: Splendid New Arcade, Chester Smolski Oct 1980

Boost For The Downtown: Splendid New Arcade, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The sign hanging from the center of the building reads '7 Days to Opening.' The countdown number changes dailty to remind carpenters, electricians, tile setters, merchants, and a whole host of others that construction must be finished, stocks placed, and shops ready for the Grand Opening of America's first indoor shopping mall--the Arcade.


Union Traditions And Economic Policy In Ri, Chester Smolski Jul 1980

Union Traditions And Economic Policy In Ri, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"When compared with the rest of the nation, Rhode Island stands out as a highly unionized state. A recent study released by the Department of Labor shows that 108,000 of the 398,000 employed in the state in 1978 were union members. Membership in associations such as the National Education Association and others adds a further 11,000 persons to the list. This total of 119,000 union and association members represents 29.9 percent of total employment on non-agricultural payrolls, ranking Rhode Island 13th in the nation and highest in New England which, as a region, averages 26.6 percent, and the same figure, …


Improving Commercial Streets Is Possible, Chester Smolski Apr 1980

Improving Commercial Streets Is Possible, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It was only a small gesture, but a nice one. The two park benches were placed on the sidewalk in front of a small shop on the busy Thayer Street in Providence. Somewhat of a harbinger of Spring, the brightly painted, red benches added a little color to a street coming out of the throes of a long, dreary and colorless winter season."


Expert Sees A Revival Of Urban Church And The City, Chester Smolski Mar 1980

Expert Sees A Revival Of Urban Church And The City, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Douglas Walrath, recognized church consultant and author, was at the Epworth United Methodist Church in Pawtucket to address a recent conference of the Urban Ministry Division of the Rhode Island State Council of Churches on the topic of urban churches. At the end of the day, more than 100 who attended from throughout the Providence metropolitan area left the meeting considerably more optimistic about the future of their churches and of the urban centers in which they are located."


New Federal Initiatives For City Revitalization, Chester Smolski Oct 1979

New Federal Initiatives For City Revitalization, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"'We have never really had a comprehensive urban policy in this country...and in the absence of understanding and coordinated assistance among government leaders, many of our cities are caught in a vicious cycle, a downward spiral that can only be broken by new attitudes, new initiatives, and a new partnership.'"


Keystone For Renewal: City Neighborhoods, Chester Smolski Jan 1979

Keystone For Renewal: City Neighborhoods, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"If the heart of a city is its downtown, that central area of concentrated jobs and economic activity, then there is no question that its soul is its neighborhoods, that surrounding community of people and homes. Here in residential areas, the largest, single use of land in cities, one finds the strength, deprivation, flavor and other characteristics which congtribute to the diversity of city life."


Despite The Heartaches, Urban Renewal Deserves High Marks, Chester Smolski Oct 1978

Despite The Heartaches, Urban Renewal Deserves High Marks, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The term "urban renewal" draws a mixed reaction. For some, it has meant relocated families, destroyed neighborhoods and heartache, even years after the fact. For others it has meant new construction, new jobs, increased taxes, reconstructed neighborhoods and visible signs of process."


'Down City' Has Gone Downhill, Chester Smolski Oct 1978

'Down City' Has Gone Downhill, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"There is essentially only one downtown in this city-state of Rhode Island, and it is accessible to the entire state in less than one hour's driving time. Yet over the past 10 years the Providence downtown has been in a steady decline, with a limited selection and lowered quality of goods offered from fewer shops. The familiar names of a few years ago, such as Shepards, Gladdings, City Hall Hardware and others, no longer serve as retail focal points in the captial city's central business district (CBD)."


Baltimore: A City On The Move, Chester Smolski Jun 1978

Baltimore: A City On The Move, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"On the way to Washington D.C. one drives through a part of America's seventh largest city and, based upon the popular image of this city, there is no reason to stop in Baltimore. But if one does stop, he would be surprised and impressed by the dynamism of a city on the move."


How Cubans Reshaped Downtown Miami, Chester Smolski Mar 1978

How Cubans Reshaped Downtown Miami, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It was just this past week that the last flight of refugees likely to come out of Castro's Cuba arrived at Miami International Airport. The hightly emotional reunion of familites that had been seperated for years was a reminder of the freedom which we enjoy in this country and for which many others are still waiting to come here to also enjoy."


Jacksonville's Commitment To Downtown, Chester Smolski Mar 1978

Jacksonville's Commitment To Downtown, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The largest city in the Sunshine State is quite different from the cities we know in the Northeast, especially in its downtown."


Soul City Deserves To Succeed, Chester Smolski Jan 1978

Soul City Deserves To Succeed, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream--a dream of equal opportunity and justice for all. An assassin's bullet prevented him from realizing his dream. His friend and well-known leader in the civil rights movement also had a dream--a dream to build a new town in which the injustices of society would be lessened. Today, in the rolling farmland country of North Carolina, Floyd McKissick is working to fulfill his long sought dream."


Revival Of Downtown Providence, Chester Smolski Oct 1977

Revival Of Downtown Providence, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Finally, on September 29, more than two years after the initial correspondence and subsequent competition, design, debate, public hearings and more public hearings, the proposal for the Kennedy Plaza auto restricted zone (ARZ) was passed by the Providence City Council. This necessary approval cleared the last barrier before the September 30 deadline of the Urban Mass Transit Administration (UMTA) so that Providence may be considered for nearly $5 million of federal funds to implement this project."


Rhode Island Has A Large Stake In Its Capital City, Chester Smolski May 1977

Rhode Island Has A Large Stake In Its Capital City, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"If you are number two, you try harder. But what do you do if you are number four? Figures recently released by the United States Census Bureau estimate that Providence lost 11,000 persons between 1970 and 1975, and now ranks as the fourth largest city in New England."


Providence Needs More Than Parking Space, Chester Smolski Mar 1977

Providence Needs More Than Parking Space, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The automobile has made us highly mobile. Today we think nothing of driving 30, 40 or 50 miles to do different kinds of shopping. The success of suburban malls attests to this fact: with good access from interstate and highways, these asphalt oases have sprung up like mushrooms throughout our suburban areas. And with few exceptions, they have successfully fulfilled the single function for which they were intended--retailing.


Make The Full Investment In Downtown Renewal, Chester Smolski Jan 1977

Make The Full Investment In Downtown Renewal, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Just how much money is the city of Providence willing to invest in revitalizing its downtown? The answer to this question is soon to be given when the City Council acts on the recommendations of the Committee on Urban Redevelopment headed by Councilman Ralph R. Fargnoli. the committee voted Wednesday in favor of a $6-million downtown renewal project."