The southern rhode island conservation district (sricd) seeks funds from snep's soar grants to further implement the resilient riverfront renewal project underway in westerly, rhode island

Along the tidally-influenced pawcatuck river, in the business district of main street and surrounding DAC neighborhoods, the overall project seeks to: improve the health of our watershed with nature-based solutions for stormwater quantity and quality; promote safe community engagement with business services and the pawcatuck river; create long-term resiliency with assessment of vulnerabilities to sea level rise and climate change; engage DAC community participants in workforce training and employment for maintenance of nature-based solutions.activities:design, permit, and install green infrastructure for stormwater management on private properties along main street to engage the public, collect feedback on the masterplan, and launch the final design of the streetscape so that IT is ready for permitting. The streetscape includes vegetated green infrastructure for stormwater management in the street right of way (row); curb cut redesign to improve traffic flow and pedestrian safety (per the already completed traffic study); and improvements to the street diet, sidewalks, passive plantings, and signage. With 70% design in hand, we will be able to attract the larger funding needed for permitting and implementation. Subrecipient:no subawards are included in this assistance agreement.outcomes:task 1: design of streetscape and row green infrastructure for stormwater management task 2: public outreach task 3: initial planning and development of sricd's 'greenstreet stewards work team' task 4: project management between the engineering firm, the town of westerly, and main ST. Stakeholders task 5: project administration and reporting. Intended beneficiaries include the disadvantaged communities on/around main street as well as the town of westerly. Sricd serves all towns in its district (south of warwick, RI). This project's outreach efforts and connection to other significant regional efforts in stormwater and environmental management will help ensure its continued sustainability and momentum for future investments. The planning efforts for developing a greenstreet stewards work team will directly engage DAC community members in learning about the values of nature-based stormwater solutions and prepare to train them in transferable work skills which will be put to use in cost-effective maintenance help to landowners and the town of westerly.