At a June 26 public workshop at the William Hall Library, residents gathered to weigh in on the city’s future: how to develop housing without sacrificing the character and safety of its neighborhoods.

The event, hosted by the Cranston Planning Department in partnership with Ward 1 City Councilwoman Bridget Graziano, was part of a series of ward-based meetings aimed at engaging the public in updating the city’s Comprehensive Plan – a long-range blueprint meant to guide everything from land use and public transit to economic development and climate resilience for the next 20 years.

Big mandates, local limits

Driving the urgency is Rhode Island’s Housing 2030 plan, a statewide mandate from the Department of Housing that calls for cities and towns to approve permits for a combined 15,000 new housing units by the end of the decade. For Cranston, that translates to an average of 273 new units per year, or 1,367 by 2030.

Local planning officials remain skeptical.

Steven Frias, chair of the Cranston Planning Commission, said the state’s targets are unrealistic. The lack of housing supply, he said, is caused by forces that go beyond local policy.

“Municipalities have a limited role in housing production,” Frias said. “Municipalities cannot set interest rates. Municipalities are not housing developers.”

In recent years, the city has approved projects totaling more than 600 apartment units, according to Frias. One hundred units are in development at Cranston Print Works, for example, and up to 75 units could be built at a Park Avenue site that currently holds Legion Bowl and Pub on Park.

Frias said about 75 of these units will be government-subsidized to meet state law housing affordability standards.

Housing takes center stage

In a presentation to lead off the meeting, Toby Arment, a municipal housing fellow with the city Planning Department, outlined key data behind the city’s housing needs.

The number of active listings has steadily decreased and the median sale price has doubled over the last decade. (In May 2025, Cranston homes sold for a median price of $445,000, according to the most recent data from Redfin.)

One slide from the meeting shows the income needed to afford housing in Cranston and how much residents actually earn. The difference is stark. For median-price rentals, the income gap is more than $32,000; for home purchases, it’s $34,000.

What residents are saying

About 30 residents, mostly from Ward 1, the city’s eastern and most densely populated area, attended the workshop. They rotated through interactive stations, including a zoning map of Cranston where they could suggest locations for new housing. In Edgewood, some participants proposed “upzoning” streets with large Victorian homes to allow two-family conversions.

In an open-floor session, residents raised concerns that went beyond housing. One pointed out the absence of bike racks in walkable, business-friendly neighborhoods like Pawtuxet Village and Rolfe Square. Another called for a transit connection to better link Cranston’s east side and waterfront to western areas.

One mother urged traffic calming near the intersection of Broad Street and Park Avenue, worried for her children’s safety walking to the local library. Another suggested rededicating a one-way road through Roger Williams Park to two-way traffic during off-season times to relieve congestion along Park Avenue.

“This meeting is about collecting input from stakeholders on where we go from here,” Graziano said. “It gives the planning team an idea of what our community members are thinking. That’s super important.”

The suggestions will feed into Phase 2 of the city’s Comprehensive Plan update. While the City Council adopted a technical update last fall to meet state requirements, the current phase emphasizes community engagement before final decisions are made about zoning or development.

Balancing act

Frias was among several officials to also attend the workshop, including fellow Planning Commission member Kathleen Lanphear and City Council members Jessica Marino and Dan Wall.

“We all agree that we need more housing,” said Lanphear. “But you can’t ignore the issues it creates, like parking or increased density. Once we start to look at implementation of the Comprehensive Plan, the goals and policies often come into conflict. One goal might be to increase housing. Another might be to maintain neighborhood character. You have to weigh those together.”