On November 12, 2002, the Dialogue program arrived in Warwick. Special thanks to host Cynthia Trainer, Librarian for Adult Programming, of Warwick Public Library's Sandy Lane branch for her assistance before and during the program and to Felicity’s Coffee Shop for the refreshments.
Here's a recap of the Dialogue. Some participants came from several of Warwick’s 28 neighborhood associations, which represent such diverse areas as Apponaug, Connimicut, Buttonwoods, Nausauket, Hillsgrove, Pontiac Mills, and various Bay neighborhoods, including Pawtuxet, Rhode Island’s oldest village. The neighborhood associations are very engaged in community life and help bring local needs and activities to the attention of the city’s government.
Having the associations as a centralizing force is important to Warwick. In the early 20th century West Warwick split off from Warwick and took the "downtown" with it. Members of the Dialogue group wondered if Warwick has ever recovered. Even though Warwick Town Hall and the Warwick Museum are located in Apponaug, recent city growth has taken place along Route 1/Post Road and Route 2/Bald Hill Road. There, the mixed business-residential development has both brought new revenue to Warwick and had a negative impact on clarifying a "city identity." These economic and population changes also affect the city’s housing market: near the airport, householders suffer from noise and reduced market values for their property. Elsewhere, condominiums are replacing the notion of a neighborhood composed of single-family homes. Many people spoke about their concern for the city’s youth—where do they fit into a city identity? What's in Warwick for them?
Arising from these themes, participants wondered, "What unifies Warwick these days?" and began to consider the question, "How can neighborhood associations work together to help create a 'city of Warwick?'"On Monday, December 9, at 7:00 p.m., Drake Patten is returning to the Warwick Public to help a committee shape Warwick’s Fund for Community Engagement project. It may be that Warwick’s FCE process will include more community representatives and address some of these civic engagement issues.
|
| Fund
for Community Engagement After each of Rhode Island's 39 cities and towns participates in the Dialogues Program, The Rhode Island Council for the Humanities (RICH) offers it a one-time Fund for Community Engagement (FCE) award of up to $1,000. The Fund for Community Engagement grant gives each community an opportunity to address--through a public humanities project--issues raised during the Dialogue meeting. Please use the highlighted link here to access the guidelines for Fund for Community Engagement grants. |