June 18, 2025 – In June, Scenic Jacksonville’s executive director Nancy Powell attended CNU33, the conference of the Congress for New Urbanism in Providence Rhode Island as a way to learn more about CNU principles and practices. Providence is a city that has dramatically transformed over the past 30 years in big and small ways, with significantly influence from CNU founder Andres Duany and his team at DPZ, and the new urbanist movement.
Among the values of New Urbanism are creating walkable mixed use and welcoming neighborhoods that are pedestrian and transit friendly, planning with connectivity and density done well, quality architecture, sustainability, and human scale urban design. Many of these are aspects of historic cities and towns built prior to the urban renewal and zoning approaches of the 1950s and 60s, which people now realize were largely misguided.
CNU’s focus on excellent design, walkability and way the built environment influences the livability of successful places is especially relevant to the work of Scenic Jacksonville.
One delightful aspect of CNU conferences is the many different workshops, tours and excursions to see the work of revitalizing cities in real life.
“The Art of the New Urbanism” session featured our upcoming 2026 Great Cities Symposium Speaker, Victor Dover of Dover, Kohl & Partners. Victor is an early leader in the CNU movement and has experience across the country designing streets, towns, and neighborhoods. His session celebrated the Art of New Urbanism artists.
One highlight was a tour of the 195 District, led by executive director Caroline Skuncik. The 195 District is a 26 acre state owned agency managing the waterfront property made available as a result of the land opened up by moving the I-195 highway. Another city project opened up the Providence River, and built a beautiful and innovative pedestrian bridge. The area now encompasses the bridge, a 7 acre waterfront park, historic renovation and adapted reuse of a decommissioned power plant, and smart development in multiple parcels (partially completed) provide for the “Innovation District” with mixed use office, residential and commercial and connecting the places to adjacent downtown districts.
Buff Chace and the team from Cornish Associates led a tour of the restored and now-active Westminster Street in the core of the downtown. The tour covered the buildings Chace bought and began to develop in the 1990s, sparking the investment and revitalization by bringing beautiful old buildings and the streets back to life.
The Downtown Providence Parks Network tour included downtown parks programmed and coordinated by the nonprofit and its executive director Nora Barre, along with a boat ride down the Providence River that had been covered in parking decks. In the summer, the Providence Rink alternates with pop up pickleball, roller skating, and other events. A popular “Waterfire” program, managed by its own nonprofit, brings tens of thousands to the river to see the beautiful fires lit in a series of wood fire pits stationed through the middle of the river.
Providence is an example of new urbanism, old urbanism and conventional development wall working together. “I follow a number of downtowns across the country, especially waterfront cities, and have watched Providence grow and improve over the 30+ years since I went to school and lived here,” said Powell, “Andres Duany said in his opening remarks that Providence is now a fun and agreeable place, a worthy goal for any city. However, no city is static. The next generation has to come in and carry the principles and the movement forward.”
We look forward to hearing more about the principles and practices of new urbanism at the 2026 Great Cities Symposium, planned for February 5, 2026.