Transfer of Development Rights Report - Rhode Island Department ...

that would be most effective in South County but could also serve as a model for other rural and
suburban communities. Some, like the Design Manual, are primarily educational in nature; others
offer specific tools and regulatory language for shaping development – it is hoped that together, these
will help towns on many levels as they work to plan for growth in this unique corner of New
England.
THE DESIGN MANUAL APPROACH
The Design Manual is a record of a process the Advisory Committee went through in order to
identify the key issues and potential solutions to problems faced by South County Towns. From a
list of about 25 possible sites, eight were chosen to represent a cross section of possible development
types, transportation issues, environmental challenges and social contexts. Some of the sites, for
instance, are directly off I-95, while others have potential rail access or are constrained by poor road
connections. Some of the sites are within or on the edge of existing towns and villages, while others
are out in the countryside. Ranging from tens of acres to several thousand, the sites also explore
issues at a range of scales, from detailed issues of infill within a streetscape, to large-scale
development patterns across a rural district.
Base maps and resource overlays were prepared for each site based on information from Rhode
Island Geographic Information System. Aerial photographs of each area were taken to serve as the
basis for illustrations. Grouping the sites by theme – residential, commercial, mixed-use, etc. –
Dodson Associates led a series of workshops with the Advisory Committee to explore how each site
could be developed. First, the group examined how each site would most likely be developed under
current zoning regulations and market trends. For residential zones in South County, this usually
means subdivision roads and one or two acre house lots. For commercial zones, the conventional
development plan most often leads to development of frontage lots along existing highways – the
commercial strip. The second scenario explored how it might be possible to fit the same amount of
development on a site as allowed under the conventional plan, but in more creative and sustainable
way. This often means allowing more of a mix of uses on sites, promoting pedestrian access, and
encouraging flexible development standards within an overall master plan. Each of the design
scenarios, then, is completely imaginary – but they are based on careful study of the physical and
regulatory constraints that affect actual sites. As a result, many of the issues and problems inherent
in developing in South County were identified early on, so that the consultants could look for
potential solutions, whether through zoning changes, flexible development standards, planning
concepts or detailed design approaches.
4 Transfer of Development Rights