There’s agreement the state could use more housing, but there’s concern what that could mean for neighborhood traffic, especially when it comes to Centerville Road.

Traffic is the major concern being voiced following disclosure of a proposal to build a 150-unit condominium complex with access from the Kent County YMCA to Centerville Road. The plan is in the “pre-application” process, meaning formal plans have not been submitted to the city nor have abutting property owners been notified. The plan was a topic of discussion at the Sept. 11 Planning Board meeting.

A story on the proposed development in the Sept. 12 Beacon produced a blizzard of comments on the paper’s Facebook page. The bulk of the comments focused on Centerville Road and how it is not capable of accommodating traffic now and how much worse it would be with more development.

“A lot of land was cleared on the Y property along Route 2. That has already driven lots of wildlife into surrounding neighborhoods. This will take away a lot of wildlife habitat. And will increase the already heavy traffic on Centerville Road. It's very difficult getting in and out of our neighborhood currently!,” one reader wrote.

Another lamented, “The traffic on 117 is already a nightmare!! More cars = more headaches!” And yet a third wrote, “No way. Warwick is congested enough.”

Just how much traffic is there on Centerville Road and has it increased and by how much?

How much traffic?

Charles St. Martin, spokesman for the Department of Transportation, could not point to a study of Centerville Road even if limited to the corridor between Route 95 and Route 2 that at certain times of the day can be bumper to bumper. However, he was able to provide average daily counts going back to 2017 with the exception of 2019 when there was no data for a Thursday near Sept. 26 at a station near the entrance to Scott School. Those counts bounce between 23,296 in 2020 to a high of 27,346 in 2018. Last year the count was 26,811 and this year it dropped to 23,986.

Frank Paolino, of Link Commercial Properties, told the newspaper he is weighing a development of 67 single family homes or 150 condos on the 36-acre Allens Farm property next to the Y. He favors a condo development as it would reduce infrastructure and construction costs while saving about 15 acres as open space.

Paolino said he has an access easement agreement with the Greater Providence YMCA, which its president and CEO Karen Santilli confirmed, and would be looking to improve the YMCA road as well as work with the state to synchronize Centerville Road traffic signals to enhance traffic flow. Synchronization of the lights would require Department of Transportation approval as Centerville is a state road.

How might this impact Centerville Road traffic?

DOT spokesman St. Martin said in an email that, “Generally, any development of that type may be required to do a traffic impact study as part of a physical alternation permit process with RIDOT.”

Furthermore, he said no formal permits have been applied for at this time and that a study would be done at the developer’s expense.  Additionally, he said, “The developer also would be responsible for making any improvements that would be needed, based on the traffic study, for traffic signals on Centerville Road.”

Considering the bigger picture of potential future developments in the area, City Planner Thomas Kravitz looks at the YMCA land that reaches south to Cowesett Road, which opens the possibility of a connecting road between Centerville and Cowesett Roads. If not there, Kravitz points at the possibility of a connector between the two roads to the east through the Little Rhody Beagle Club property and joining the Allens Farm property with access to the YMCA road.

Looking at developed sections of Warwick, such as Greenwood, Kravitz points out there are multiple means of access and egress that enable the smooth flow of traffic. Whether Greenwood or other neighborhoods such as Norwood, Lakewood and Governor Francis Farms, however, roads feed into larger four lane highways including Post Road, Warwick Avenue and Narragansett Parkway.

Kravitz agrees a four-lane Centerville Road would improve traffic flow, but such a development would require extensive land acquisition and the relocation of utilities, which is not part of state DOT plans at this time.

Responding to questions, Ward 8 Councilman Anthony Sinapi rejected the suggestion of a connector between Cowesett Road and Centerville saying Cowesett is not built to handle more traffic. He likewise couldn’t envision the widening of Centerville Road.

In a follow up he wrote, “Fully and completely addressing the preexisting issues should come first. Once that is done, the road can be assessed to determine if and how it can handle additional traffic.”