APA Rhode Island

05/12/2026

Thank you to everyone who attended our Awards Party! We had a great time. Congratulations to all our awardees!

04/30/2026

Tonight is the APA RI Awards Party at River Falls in Woonsocket… we hope to celebrate with you and all our award winners!

Celebrate our award winners at the annual party and meet other RI planners for food, drinks, and fun!

04/27/2026

The 2026 APA/RI Award for Resilience & Sustainability is going to a team led by the RI Department of Environmental Management for “Resilient Rhody 2025.” The plan is the state’s first comprehensive strategy to address the impacts of climate change and outline actions for our state’s resilience.

Help celebrate our awardees on April 30 at 6P at the River Falls Restaurant on Woonsocket! Tickets are $35 fir members, $45 for non-members, and are available here:

Celebrate our award winners at the annual party and meet other RI planners for food, drinks, and fun!

04/21/2026

Today’s APA-RI Award winner is Ashley Sweet, winner of the President’s Award.

Ashley is a former Chapter President and was Co-Chair of the Legislative Committee for many years, still serving as an active member of the committee. Ashley’s intelligence, humor, determination, and deep knowledge of regulations and their impact on local planners has been invaluable to the growing influence of APA-RI.

Thank you, Ashley, and congratulations!!

04/19/2026

We’re continuing our spotlights on this year’s APA RI award-winning plans and people. Today, we celebrate the implementation of the Woonasquatucket River Greenway in Providence, which includes two neighborhood parks that were former brownfield sites, miles of bike paths, river access, and many other improvements. Congratulations to the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council and the Providence Planning Department on this amazing achievement!

Want to know the latest plans for expanding and connecting the Woonasquatucket Greenway to Downtown Providence? View the plans.

04/08/2026

We're continuing to spotlight the winners of the 2026 APA-RI Awards. This week, we salute Annette Bourne, the winner of the Dan Varin Leadership Award.

In addition to her impactful leadership at HousingWorks RI where she oversees the annual "Housing Factbook", her work at RIHousing included the formulation of the Low and Moderate Income Housing (LMI) chart, an essential planning and compliance tool used by municipalities across the state.

Annette also started the Health Equity Zone (HEZ) in the City of Cranston, where she lives. She played a pivotal role in the creation of the Cranston Housing Commission, which she served on for several years, including a term as Chair.

Annette understands that meaningful change is built through relationships, shared responsibility, and a willingness to listen. She is deeply committed to public service and the firm belief that effective policy must be informed by both rigorous data and lived experience. Annette demonstrates a rare combination of analytical
rigor, collaborative leadership, and deep respect for community voices.

Congratulations, Annette!

03/31/2026

We're spotlighting the winners of the APA-RI 2026 Annual Awards. Congratulations to the RI Division of Statewide Planning for winning the "Best Transportation Plan" award!

"Moving Forward RI 2050" is Rhode Island’s long-range transportation plan, outlining a 25-year vision to improve mobility and accessibility statewide. Designed for implementation, it is supported by strong coordination among state agencies and partners, establishing new standards for engagement, analysis, and accountability in transportation planning.

Help celebrate all our award winners at our annual Awards Party on April 30 at 6PM at the River Falls restaurant in Woonsocket. Tickets are available here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-apa-ri-awards-party-tickets-1986001645383?aff=oddtdtcreator&keep_tld=true

03/26/2026

Every year, we celebrate the best in plans, projects, and people in the RI planning community. This year's award winners are:

President’s Award: Ashley Sweet
Dan Varin Memorial Leadership Award: Annette Bourne
Award for Excellent Plan: "Moving Forward RI 2050 - Long-Range Transportation for Rhode Island"- RI Diision of Statewide Planning
Award for Affordable Housing Planning Achievement: "Housing 2030: Building Rhode Island's Future"- RI Executive Office of Housing
Award for Excellence in Plan Implementation: Woonasquatucket River Greenway
Award for Planning for Resilience and Sustainability: "Resilient Rhody 2025: Statewide Climate Resilience Plan"- RI Dept. of Environmental Management
Student Award: "A Vision for Jamestown: Reimagining the Mackerel and Sheffield Coves Waterfront"- University of Rhode Island, Dept. of Landscape Architecture
Distinguished Planning Firm / Agency: Community Housing Land Trust of Rhode Island
Paul Davidoff Award: Rochelle Lee
Special Award for the Advancement of Planning in Rhode Island: Dr. Farhad Atash, Professor, URI

The APA-RI Annual Awards Party will be held on Thursday, April 30 at 6PM at the River Falls restaurant in Woonsocket. Stay tuned for more information!

03/16/2026

When Detroit’s enterprise GIS team first launched Detroit Street View (DSV) in 2017, they had no idea the mobile mapping program would help with the city’s U.S. Census challenges — or inspire a Massachusetts police chief to take up a similar project.

03/04/2026

We're just two weeks away from this year's RI Compost Conference. We're very excited about the tremendous lineup of speakers and activities planned for this year's event, we don't want you to miss it!

See the entire lineup of events and get your tickets today!

www.ricompostconference.com

02/13/2026

Rachel and Andy will outline key considerations for using data most appropriately and will offer approaches for determine the amount of level of content to present to different audience types.