Providence River Pedestrian Bridge: Civic Impact — and Economic Impact

Working closely with the Project for Public Spaces and the Rhode Island Department of Transportation for over a decade, the team led by inFORM Studio, BuroHappold and landscape architect BETA Group designed a universally accessible, efficient and highly memorable new pedestrian bridge that has had real return on investment (ROI) for this New England City.

The project team’s vision for the bridge as a monument to the social and economic revitalization of downtown Providence has been borne out in a range of new colocated investments near the landings of the $21.9 million structure. Examples include:

• Brown University’s Medical School, South Street Landing, Peti Laboratory and New School of Professional Studies are now linked directly to its main campus, while Johnson and Wales University and Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) are also fused by the new bridge.
• Notable new residential developments in the area include South Street Landing, a 423,000-square-foot residential development by Brown University that includes the “River House” and a 744-car parking garage. Nearby it is Chestnut Commons, a 111,000-square-foot, mixed-use development with 92 residential units. Three other projects, all mixed-use residential tower complexes, are also currently proposed for the bridge’s vicinity.
• Important nonresidential developments nearby the newly bustling area include the 71,000-square-foot John J. Bowen Center for Science + Innovation and the 200,000-square-foot Wexford Science + Technology Center. A new hotel is currently up for consideration, too.

These new investments and developments reflect the vibrant makeup of Providence evan as its population has remained relatively constant. According to BuroHappold’s Cities Team, about 14% of the city’s population lives within walking distance — under one mile — of the bridge. On top of that, about 59,000 people work within walking distance of the bridge, led by the education and healthcare industries.