For the last 14 years, the Smart Growth Awards have brought together business, civic, government, and NGO leaders from Woonsocket to Westerly for a celebration filled with connection and inspiration. The Awards recognize Rhode Island leaders, projects, plans or policies which exemplify smart growth principles and confront the most pressing challenges of our time: community revitalization and increased access to affordable housing, transportation choices, improving public health, confronting climate change, and advancing social, racial, and economic justice. Each year, the Awards celebration alternates from a stand-alone event to being presented during our Power of Place Summit.
Honoring our 2026 Smart Growth Award Recipients!
Outstanding Smart Growth Leader:
Lilly Dick
Newport, RI
Over decades of service to Aquidneck Island, Lilly Dick has transformed the island’s civic, environmental, and cultural landscapes. Lilly’s leadership is distinguished by her track record of translating ideas into enduring outcomes thanks to her vision, persistence, and ability to unite diverse public and private partners. She contributed meaningfully to local policymaking and civic direction as a former member of the Newport City Council. Prior to elected office she developed and raised the funds for reintroducing Newport’s gas lights to bring street lighting down to a human scale and to cast a light that would bring out the beauty of Newport’s historic architecture and streetscapes. Beyond elected office, she led the reshaping of some of Newport’s most important public spaces, including Washington Square and Spring Park — projects that not only improved vehicular flow and pedestrian safety and enjoyment, but also helped preserve the city’s historic character while strengthening its future. Lilly’s influence extends deeply into environmental stewardship. Through her leadership with the Newport Tree Conservancy and Aquidneck Island Land Trust, and advocacy for the Newport Arboretum, she has helped advance urban forestry, biodiversity, and the preservation of Aquidneck Island’s natural beauty.
Outstanding Smart Growth Plan:
PVD Tree Plan
Providence, RI
Developed by community groups, nonprofit organizations, residents, City departments, researchers, experts, and urban forestry practitioners, the PVD Tree Plan has laid out a vision and strategic pathway to a just and resilient urban forest. Most notably, the initiative has centered the voices of those most impacted by the lack of tree canopy and other environmental injustices. Efforts include holding neighborhood-level community tree forums for residents to share priorities and concerns, creating networks of paid community ambassadors supporting frontline neighborhoods with their urban forestry knowledge and outreach, and building ongoing community-led governance structures to steer resources and guide the Plan’s implementation. The cooperative nature of the Plan’s creation set the gears in motion for the deeply collaborative work—across the many practitioners, sectors and communities that intersect with Providence’s urban forest—necessary to achieve the PVD Tree Plan’s ambitious vision: a Providence that is healthier, greener, more resilient, and more just.
Outstanding Smart Growth Project:
Millrace District
Woonsocket, RI
The Millrace District redevelopment transformed two vacant mill buildings into 70 units of affordable housing and integrated commercial and community space in downtown Woonsocket. The project demonstrates how strategic infill development can anchor inclusive growth, strengthen Main Street, and bring new life to historic urban centers. The $34 million historic rehabilitation created high-quality, ADA-accessible homes at a range of price points, including smaller units that meet the needs of downsizing older adults as well as younger residents entering the housing market. The development is embedded in the broader Millrace District, a vibrant, walkable environment. Nearby amenities and cultural assets include the Museum of Work and Culture, restaurants, and River Island Art Park, home to free live music. Located on a RIPTA bus route, the project promotes accessible, multimodal transportation.
Click below to learn more:
Smart Growth Awards Archive
Past Smart Growth Awards Winners
★ Barbara Sokoloff
★ Clark Schoettle
★ Chepachet Village Revitalization Plan
★ newportFILM
★ Residences at Riverside Square, East Providence
★ United Theatre, Westerly
★ Walker Farm Recreation and Resilience Improvement Project, Barrington
★ HousingWorks RI at Roger Williams University
★ The Pine Street Project, (SHRI Studio+), Pawtucket
★ East Providence Main Street Mixed-Use Overlay Districts
★ Carla DeStefano
★ Central Falls Mayor Maria Rivera
★ Downtown Woonsocket Collaborative
★ Pawtucket Central Falls Transit Center
★ Southside Community Land Trust Headquarters, Providence
★ The Studley Commercial to Residential Conversion, Providence
★ Westminster Street Revitalization, Providence
★ Representative June S. Speakman
★ Hammets Wharf, Newport
★ Zoning Amendments for Equitable Development, Newport
★ One Neighborhood Builders
★ Echo Valley Apartments
★ Rupert Friday
★ Georgiaville Village Green
★ Transit Master Plan + Bike Mobility Plan
★ Barry Schiller
★ Great Street Initiatives + Urban Trail Network Master Plan
★ Bill Hatfield
★ 122 North Main Street, Woonsocket
★ Barbara Fields
★ URI Transportation and Parking Master Plan
★ The Town of Warren
★ Fernwood & Greenridge Commons
★ South Street Landing
★ 60 King
★ Innovate Newport
★ Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott
★ Newport Transportation and Visitors Center, Newport
★ Forbes Street Solar Project, East Providence
★ Fair House, Warwick
★ Central Falls Green & Complete Streets Ordinance
★ Westerly Education Center
★ Waterfire Arts Center, Providence
★ Sankofa Apartments
★ Rhode Island Woodland Partnership Strategic Plan
★ Howard Kilguss
★ Bristol Industrial Park
★ Blackstone Valley Gateways
★ Albert Valliere
★ Neighborworks Blackstone River Valley
★ The Providence Foundation
★ Fred Lippitt Woonasquatucket River Greenway
★ The Foundry Corporate Office Center and Promenade Apartments
★ Woonsocket Downtown Overlay District
★ Providence Community Health Centers
★ Tiverton Public Library
★ Mayor Scott Avedisian
★ The Pawtucket Foundation
★ Sheila Deming Brush
★ Hope & Main
★ The Design Exchange
★ North Cove Landing
★ Center for Physician Studies at J&W
★ Scott Millar/RIDEM
★ City of Providence Zoning Ordinance
★ Bike Newport
★ East Providence Special Waterfront Development District Plan
★ Town of South Kingstown - Healthy Places by Design Action Plan
★ The Meeting Room, Queen Anne Square, Newport
★ The Arcade, Providence
★ Woonsocket Middle School Complex
★ Westfield Commons and Lofts, Providence
★ Christopher Wilkens
★ Westerly Land Trust, Westerly
★ Aquidneck Mill, Newport
★ Providence Community Garden Network, Providence
★ The Providence G, Providence
★ Rumford Center, East Providence
★ Sweetbriar, Barrington
★ Woonsocket Main Street Livability Plan
★ Arnold Chace
★ Johnnie Chace
★ Rep. Jay O'Grady
★ Hope Artiste Village Mill Rehabilitation Project, Pawtucket
★ Moran Shipping Agencies, Providence
★ Mercantile Block, Providence
★ Sandywoods Farm, Tiverton
★ Stillwater Mill, Burrillville
★ The Aquidneck Island Transportation Study
★ Town of North Kingstown/QDC Development Agreement
★ Pawtucket Downtown Design Plan
★ Warwick Station Development District Plan
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