Freight Development Review Checklist

Freight Development Review Checklist for Planners

In the Fall of 2020, the Rhode Island Division of Statewide Planning (RIDSP) partnered with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Resource Center on a virtual “Freight and Land Use Seminar” trainings series for municipal planners. This training was offered to educate planners in Rhode Island about the relationships between land use and transportation planning for freight uses and to have a wide-ranging discussion about the level of community regulatory structures in place to manage the impacts of freight on local neighborhoods. One of the action items from this training course was for the RIDSP to develop a model development review checklist for municipal planners that would include items for planners to consider when evaluating development proposals that have freight related uses. This document is intended to fulfill that action item and was included as part of our FY24 freight planning program.

The location of freight facilities can have both positive and negative economic and social effects on municipalities. There is traffic, noise, air quality impacts, as well as stormwater runoff and water quality concerns associated with freight land uses that municipal Planners must consider when reviewing freight related development proposals. Proper site design is important for freight specific uses both to maximize their operational and economic impact and also limit land use conflicts as much as possible by identifying issues at early stages of development review.

The Freight and Land Use Development Review Checklist is a simple and concise document that provides planners with additional areas of consideration when reviewing freight related development proposals as the local level such as expansions of existing industrial or commercial areas or the submission of proposals for new distribution centers or warehouses. The checklist is advisory in nature is presented as another “tool” that planners can consult to ensure a holistic review of all the potential impacts that should be considered at the local level during the review of freight related land uses.

This checklist should be utilized in coordination with the data, analysis, and policy guidance provided by the 2022 State of Rhode Island Freight and Goods Movement Plan. The Freight Plan is updated every four years by RIDSP to inform state and local government representatives, and private sector agency representatives on the current condition and ongoing trends related to Rhode Island’s freight network; to identify needs, gaps, and inefficiencies; to offer preliminary recommendations, and to present an implementation plan for freight projects that reflects fiscal constraints and stakeholder priorities.

Freight Development Review Checklist

If you would like to know more about our Freight Development Review Checklist or Freight Planning in Rhode Island, please contact: Josh O’Neill, AICP Supervising Planner at Joshua.Oneill@doa.ri.gov or 401-222-4849.