The long-term goal of the JDA's planning efforts is to ensure that the Jewelry District/Old Harbor is unique among Providence’s neighborhoods - providing a vital, balanced, and rich mixture of institutional, commercial, residential and cultural uses. As a pedestrian-oriented district, it will be distinguished by the range of different open spaces and pedestrian routes that connect the district’s uses to one another, to the riverfront and to the neighboring area of the City. Innovative new buildings will stand in contrast to preserved and renovated commercial and industrial structures. The scale and height of the buildings will vary through the district, but will be located and designed to preserve a high quality ground-level experience. The district will be well served by transportation modes and supporting facilities (transit, motor vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrian routes) that allow highly efficient use of the land. The district will join other Providence neighborhoods in contributing to an environmentally sustainable city.

Periodically, the Jewelry District Association has undertaken an in-depth process to plan for the future development of the District.  The first such plan was completed in August 1999 by the Thompson Design Group.  It was developed after months of public forums and intensive research.  The reports from that process can be downloaded or viewed below in the document library.

In 2007, in preparation for the city's upcoming public charrette's to complete their new Comprehensive Plan and new Zoning Regulations, the JDA decided a review and update of that 1999 development plan should be undertaken.  The JDA hired the Cecil Group to do research and hold public forums and present an updated development plan for the District.  Complete details of this new plan, currently underway, can be found in the subsection here.

Note that most of our plan documents are formatted as PDF files.  They can be read using Adobe Acrobat Reader.  If you do not have a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can download and install a free version here: