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Heritage Landscape Inventory
Pawtucket Riverfront
New Website
Open Space Residential Design

Daniels Farm - Blackstone, MA

Heritage Landscape Inventory Program Comes to the Blackstone Valley
Through its Heritage Landscape Inventory program, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) seeks to identify significant landscapes throughout Massachusetts, working with local communities and regional organizations in an effort to enhance the protection and preservation of these valuable resources. The DCR is partnering with the Corridor Commission and the Quinebaug–Shetucket National Heritage Corridor in order to bring this exciting program to south-central Massachusetts. 

The first phase of the project, recently completed, involved the preparation of a historic context, which explores how the region’s present-day landscape reflects its historical development. Subsequent phases will include public meetings, fieldwork and the preparation of community-specific reconnaissance reports. Ultimately, a training program focused on heritage landscape preservation will be developed, based on the project findings. In the coming weeks, Massachusetts communities located in the Blackstone or Quinebaug-Shetucket National Heritage Corridors will be invited to participate in the program. 

For more information on the DCR’s Heritage Landscape Inventory program, see their website. For more information on the Heritage Landscape Inventory in the BlackstoneValley – including finding out how your municipality can participate – contact Joanna Doherty, at the Corridor Commission, at 401-762-0250 or e-mail us.

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Aerial view of the Pawtucket Riverfront

Pawtucket Riverfront Development Planning Moves Forward
The City of Pawtucket opened its doors to discuss options for the development of the waterfront area between the State Pier and the DivisionStreetBridge and the Town Landing area across the SeekonkRiver. With funding from the Corridor Commission and other sources, the City has been working with Pare Engineering Corp and Gates-Leighton and Associates to develop recommendations for the public areas along the waterfront.

Ideas for recreational and commercial uses, physical and visual connections, parking, and links to the surrounding neighborhoods are being incorporated into conceptual designs. For more information on the project, contact Diane Wendland, (401) 762-0250 or e-mail us .

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Heritage Corridor, NPS unveil new websites
If this is your first visit to the the Heritage Corridor Commission's new website, welcome. The website launched on August 25, the 90th anniversary of the founding of the National Park Service. This change was part of a service-wide project to improve all of the National Park Service websites. Our new home address is www.nps.gov/blac.

Please feel free to explore this site, as well as the rest of NPS.gov to see what is going on in your national parks. This site will be continueally updated and expanded, so please bookmark it for return visits.

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Corridor Commission to Host Workshop on Open Space Residential Design
The Corridor Commission will host a workshop on Open Space Residential Design on Thursday, November 16 at 7:00 p.m. at the Brigham Hill Community Barn in Grafton. The workshop is part of a series developed and presented by the Citizen Planner Training Collaborative, which offers training to local land use officials in Massachusetts. The workshop will address the preservation of open space through cluster developments or other, similar mechanisms, with an emphasis on how to ensure that the open space is permanently protected. Public access, stewardship and easement issues will also be addressed. Given the development pressures in the region, this workshop should be of particular interest to communities in the BlackstoneValley, though all Massachusetts municipalities are welcome to attend. For more information, see their website or contact Joanna Doherty at the Corridor Commission, at 401-762-0250 or e-mail us.

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