Preserving Wickford Village in the Shadow of Wal-Mart

This study provides recommendations that should be considered as Wickford Village faces the location of a Wal-Mart store approximately two miles away from the village center. These recommendations are the results of observations of Wickford Village, interviews with business owners in Wickford Village, research on the effect of Wal-Mart on "Main Street, and the identification of strengths and weaknesses in Wickford Village." The recommendations are primarily concerned with the physical and economic effects on Wickford Village. While no one can predict the precise economic or physical effects Wal-Mart will have on Wickford Village, these recommendations are intended to make the ~egative effects minimal and allow Wickford Village to survive by becoming a year-round destination.

Wal-Mart is the first retail establishment that has agreed to be a part of the proposed commercial development. The proposed plaza wi ll include the fo llowing uses: #  The National Trust for Historic Preservation believes that retail sprawl and the economic threats to existing businesses are linked together (Beaumont 1994 ). This study will focus on both the economic and physical concerns for Wickford Village.
Although Wickford Village is not the typical "Main Street," that Wal-Mart has been accused of destroying, the Town of North Kingstown, the grass-roots organizations, and the independent business owners must still work together to devise and implement a pro-active plan that will allow the existing businesses and Wal-Mart to coexi st. This plan needs to be developed and implemented before the arrival of the Wal-Mart Store in North Kingstown. If the plan is reactive to the arrival of Wal-Mart it may be too late for the existing businesses to survive along side the retail giant.

Map #2 Wickf ord Village
Wal-Mart Village different from a strip commercial development, identify the strengths and weaknesses of Wickford Village, and provide economic and physical recommendations that will preserve Wickford Village in the face of Wal-Mart.

Significance of the Study
In recent years Wal-Mart, Inc. has captured not only twenty six percent of the discount retail market share but it has also caught the attention of the media. (Grover 1992) The media has ensured that "every community whether or not it has a Wal-Mart within shopping distance, knows plenty about this chain." (Mammarella 1994). Until recently New England was considered one of the few markets untapped by the Wal-Mart Corporation. In recent years Wal-Mart Inc. has concentrated on locating its stores in New England.
Although Wal-Mart is not the only big box retailer in the United States, it is by far the most successful, efficient and aggressive, making it the most visible. Wal-Mart has received most of the negative media coverage for its supposed effect on Main Street. The negative media attention focusing solely on Wal-Mart is attributed to their rapid growth and expansion which exceeds the growth of other discount retailers. Attention has also been concentrated on Wal-Mart over questions as to their location practices within a community.
Planners, preservationists, and residents cite the "preservation of traditional downtown areas and stabilization of existing markets" as reason to oppose big-box development (Johnston 1995). Wal-Mart has concentrated on locating its stores at the crossroads of small communities with diverse populations and good highway access.
Wal-Mart has shifted the retail center from the traditional downtown or main street of a community out to highway interchanges on the edge of town (Beaumont 1994). On average, Wal-Mart locates approximately one mile from the traditional downtown area.
Wal-Mart also tends to locate in towns "where there are few, if any, restrictions on maximum store size, few parking restrictions, and no design guidelines" (Johnston 1995).
Many small merchants have found that they cannot survive with a Wal-Mart Store in town. Dr. Kenneth Stone of Iowa State University, suggests that a typical Wal-Mart store has annual revenues of approximately ten million dollars, eight million of which is taken from surrounding stores. General merchandise and specialty stores seem to suffer the most from the retail chain (Rawn 1990).
Wal-Mart has recently begun a strategy of expansion into unfamiliar territory. In the past, Wal-Mart limited its store locations to rural and middle income suburban markets, however, it is now expanding into more "upscale" areas. These "upscale" areas include higher income suburbs and historic areas where the retailers are generally upscale boutiques similar to those found in Wickford Village. The effects of this new location strategy on areas such as Wickfo rd Village are yet to be documented. 6

Objectives of the Study
This study has three objectives. First it characterizes Wickford Village by identifying and comparing the village core to a strip commercial development. Second, it identifies the strengths and weaknesses of Wickford Village in relation to its unique character and the opportunity for survival along side a Wal-Mart store. Lastly it offers recommendations that address both the physical and economic effects of Wal-Mart.

Approach and Method of the Study
This study accepts the North Kingstown Planning Commission's decision to approve the Wal-Mart project and looks beyond the debate of whether or not Wal-Mart should be allowed to locate two and one half miles outside of Wickford Village. Instead this study will examine how to make the coexistence of Wickford Village and Wal-Mart possible. The project is divided into five chapters. Following the introduction, the study reviews the literature of Wal-Mart and its supposed effects on Main Streets. The literature on Wal-Mart can be found in many sources including the popular press and many scholarly journals. This chapter will address the major literature that address the physical expansion and growth patterns of Wal-Mart, economic impacts of Wal-Mart and commercial sprawl.
The third chapter provides a community profile of North Kingstown and Wickford Village while also comparing the village core to a strip commercial development. Using the results of business interviews and other observations, chapter four will identify strengths and weaknesses of Wickford Village.

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The fifth chapter proposes a plan that will provide physical and economic recommendations that will protect and preserve Wickford Village along side of Wal-Mart. The final chapter will also provide an overall conclusion and outlook for this project. 8

Chapter Two Literature Review
The purpose of this chapter is to review the past literature on the Wal-Mart Corporation. There has been extensive documentation of Wal-Mart and the problems it appears to cause when it enters a community. This documentation has appeared in both the popular press and in scholarly journals. For the purpose of this study, the literature review examines the expansion pattern and growth of Wal-Mart, the economic impacts of Wal-Mart on a community, and the third is the impact ofretail sprawl.

Expansion Pattern and National Growth
Several studies have been conducted studying the growth and national expansion of Wal-Mart. These include studies by Laulajainen, 1987, Graff and Ashton, 1993, Meyer and Brown, 1979, and Grover, 1992 Wal-Mart's location strategies have been studied by Laulajainen (1987) who has determined that Wal-Mart' s expansion and spatial distribution is very different from other discount retail chains. Unlike other discount retailers, Wal-Mart has targeted rural areas from the beginning. The demographics of a Wal-Mart store show that it locates in areas of low to middle income households with annual incomes of less than $20,000. The company has applied a merchandising format that appeals to small town residents. Wal-Mart also differs from other retailers in that it opens distribution warehouses before opening new stores and focuses its expansion on small markets rather than metropolitan areas. In addition Wal-Mart chooses a site that is "geographically fortified", meaning that they tend to group stores together. (Graff andAshton 1993, American Demographics 1994) Laulajainen described this process of saturating rural markets before moving into metropolitan areas was "hierarchical diffusion in reverse order." Graff and Ashton have determined that Wal-Mart' s growth and expansion has occurred in four distinctive phases of development that signify its spatial and geographical tendencies. During the first phase, between 1962-1974, Wal-Mart located primarily in Arkansas and a few adj acent states. During the second phase of development, 1975-1984, Wal-Mart expanded regionally and began competing with other discount outlets. The third phase began in 1985 and saw Wal-Mart expand nationally to serve the entire country including New England. The fourth phase includes the expansion into international markets and the creation of new retail formats.

Phase One
Wal-Mart was able to establish itself as a small-town retailer and began its regional expansion. The company began with a very conservative growth policy which can be attributed to its lack of capital (Meyer and Brown 1979). Wal-Mart was expanding in a contiguous pattern from its central location in the Northwest area of Arkansas (Figures 1 and 2). No store was located more than 400 miles from the company headquarters. The average distance from a store to headquarters was 100-173 miles. As new stores were established the distance increased. Graff and Ashton ' s data in Table 1 indicates Wal-Mart' s small market preference. During this phase 51 % of the stores were located in counties with less than 25 ,000 persons. Out of the 102 stores opened during this time, only five were in communities with more than 100,000 people.  Source: Graff and Ashton ( 1993) In this stage of development Wal-Mart avoided the competition by locating in communities and towns that were too small for the other major discounters. The median population in these communities was 8,967. The original Wal-Mart stores that opened in metropolitan areas located m strip commercial developments m low-income neighborhoods. Even though Wal-Mart avoided larger cities it had no problem in locating in small towns in the outskirts of metropolitan areas. By 1970, Wal-Mart was selling stock to raise its capital which in tum allowed for more expansion. As the amount of capital increased so did Wal-Mart' s expansion. Source: Graff and Ashton (1993 ) Phase Two In the period between 197 5 and 1984 Wal-Mart opened more than 400 new stores and began to acquire smaller discounters with financial problems. The retail chain also Source: Graff and Ashton ( 1993) 13 coverage (Figures 3 and 4). The average distance from a store to headquarters was changed to 273 to 451 miles. The increase in distance created the need to build new warehouses to serve these new store locations. Wal-Mart was also locating stores in communities with over 100,000 persons. Competition with other discounters such as K-Mart and Target, increased particularly in metropolitan locations.

Phase Three
Since 1985 Wal-Mart has emerged as the largest retailer in the United States with 26% of the discount retail market share (Grover 1992 Annual Report 1995). Wal-Mart has acquired such a large portion of the discount market that is has begun to limit its own growth within its current market focus . This has forced Wal-Mart to expand into other retail markets and retail formats .

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. ·.:.·r • repref'enls one store Source: Graff and As hton ( 1993) 15 The Wall Street Journal reports in 1996 that Wal-Mart has decided to enter unfamiliar territory with its expansion into upper middle class areas where the retail format is considered "upscale" or boutique. After decades of rural expansion, Wal-Mart's greatest potential for sales exists in areas where there are high income shoppers.
In these communities Wal-Mart is paying closer attention to its image and appearance while also carrying more high end merchandise such as computers, sporting goods, jewelry and different apparel lines. The Wall Street Journal attributes this new expansion pattern to the pressure for the retail store to keep growing after three years of stagnant growth. Wal-Mart is also changing its retail format with the expansion of its supercenter stores. These supercenters include a full si~e Wal-Mart store in addition to a Wal-Mart grocery store. Table 2 shows the number and distribution, by state, all of the Wal-Mart owned stores including the distribution warehouses in 1995.

Economic Impacts
There have been many individual economic impact studies conducted on Wal-Mart however the authors that have received national attention include Stone 1983Stone , 1995Beaumont, 1994;Daniels and Keller, 1991. In 1988, Dr. Kenneth Stone of Iowa State University conducted a study of Wal-Mart' s expansion in Iowa towns . The purpose of the impact study was to "document changes in retail sales in the host community and in surrounding communities" (Stone 1995). He argues that once the economic impacts are identified programs could be designed to promote a coexistence between local merchants and Wal-Mart. The study conducted over four years reported that most merchants in retail and service firms experienced economic losses when Wal-Mart came to town. Although the store claims that it provides an increase in consumer traffic the only stores who benefited were those that did not directly compete with Wal-Mart such as grocery and lumber stores. Profit losses in all retail categories ranged from eight to twenty five percent over the four year period. When estimating that a discount general merchandise store, such as Wal-Mart, "averaged annual sales of $20 million, he found that the host town' s total sales rose by only $9 million. His conclusion: the existing merchants lost $11 million" ( Figure   7) This conclusion stems from the fact that money generated by local stores typically recirculates in the community while that ge_ nerated by superstores often goes directly to out of town corporate headquarters. (Beaumont 1994  Stone claims that there is a fundamental change in consumer habits after the introduction of a Wal-mart, resulting in more spending occurring at Wal-Mart and less at the local store level. This study indicates that there is a fixed "retail pie" that is reallocated in Wal-Mart' s favor when the retailer comes to town. Beaumont (1994) believes that economic losses are caused when more commercial space is built in a community than the local economy can handle. The new discount centers displace existing jobs and businesses. The loss of revenue for existing merchants in small towns due to discount retailing has been compared to the impact regional malls had on larger cities.
Similar to Stone, Beaumont believe~ that too much retail space does not enlarge the economic pie, it simply reallocates the pieces. In most cases, independently owned businesses have slim profit margins and deal in small volumes of merchandise. The introduction of a discount retailer such as Wal-Mart may reduce the gross sales of a businesses by ten to fifteen percent, which may easily put a merchant out of business.
Although this can be viewed as "Economic Darwinism" , progress and the "American Way'', Beaumont disagrees. She feels this is leading to the homogenization of the retail economy that will result in only a few national retailers in the United States. Beaumont also believes it is small business that creates economic diversity and is the important part of the American Way and culture. Daniels and Keller (1991) comment on why Wal -mart is able to have such an effect on local businesses. They feel that Wal-Mart has four advantages over local merchants including price, cost, merchandising, and advertising. They compare Wal-mart to a general store stocking varied merchandise but on an extravagant scale that usually equals the square footage of the traditional downtown stores (Keller and Daniels 1991).
Keller and Daniels believe that Wal-Mart is able to beat small retailers on cost of operations by utilizing their location strategy. That is locating and building stores on land outside of towns or cities which is often cheap and unzoned. In some counties this location practice may also result in lower property taxes. Many small retailers however are located downtown and rent their property which results in a higher cost of operations.
The most important economic advantage of Wal-Mart that they identify is their inventory control system. A satellite systeID: connects each cash register to a computer in Bentonville, Arkansas that tracks the inventory as it is sold. It is this inventory system coupled with the location of nearby regional distribution warehouses that allows Wal-Mart to secure the lowest inventory and distribution costs in the retail industry even though they primarily serve outlying rural areas.
Wal-Mart also beats small retailers when it comes to advertising. Most retail stores publish a weekly flyer advertising sales and special offers. Wal-Mart, however, publishes its sales and special offers only once a month. This allows Wal-Mart to have the highest ratio of sales to advertising costs among the top 100 advertisers (Daniels and Keller 1991 ).
Wal-Mart ' s practice of advertising, inventory control, and cost cutting location strategies all result in a reduction of operation costs. This allows Wal-Mart the 20 opportunity to provide items at a lower cost. This is the most visible and harmful advantage Wal-Mart has over small retailers.

Retail Sprawl
There have been many studies done on the effects of suburban, urban, and commercial sprawl. This literature review is examining only those that pertain to the effects of Wal-Mart or retail sprawl. The studies on retail sprawl include those by Beaumont, 1994;Peterson, 1995;andAnderson, 1994 andYoung, 1995 . The National Trust for Historic Preservation defines sprawl as low density, land consumptive, automobile-oriented development located on the outskirts of cities and towns. Sprawl is a consequence of both federal , state and local public policies and private development. The National Trust believes commercial sprawl is an epidemic throughout the United States. The indices they use to demonstrate this theory include the square footage of vacant shopping centers, increase in auto dependency, the existing amount of retail floor space in relation to population, and the amount of asphalt created for both driving and parking.
The public policies that have contributed to sprawl can be divided into federal , state and local policies. The federal policies that have effected sprawl include its housing policies, water and sewer grants, office location decisions, and mostly its transportation policies. The federal government has encouraged automobile dependence by promoting and subsidizing highway construction, and failing to prevent the deterioration of public transportation systems (Beaumont 1994 their tendencies to locate outside of the downtown, and act as a magnet for additional commercial outlets, including competitors. These retailers also rely on the design of a window-less box regardless of whether or not that is compatible with the community.
The one story format requires the store to be spread out over many acres on the outside of town which also requires many acres of paved surface for cars making it difficult for pedestrian or public transit access.
Moore (1995)  Wal-Mart becomes an attraction for other commercial development which contributes to and increases the negative effects of commercial sprawl.
Young (1995) defines sprawl as low density development on the edges of cities and towns that is "poorly planned, land consumptive, automobile-dependent, designed without regard to its surroundings." One of the major causes of sprawl is the retail development that occurs along major arteries and at highway interchanges. Young states that historic preservationists should be interested in sprawl because it has "helped drain the life out of thousands of traditional downtowns." He is concerned that sprawl is corroding the sense of community that binds us together as a nation.
This chapter has provided a brief history and overview, of Wal-Mart' s expansion pattern, and an examination of the physical and economic impacts of Wal-Mart on America' s "Main Streets, that has appeared in the major literature." The following 23 chapter provides a historical overview of North Kingstown, and exammes Wickford Village as a "Main Street."

Chapter Three Wickford Village
Wal-Mart has launched an expansion strategy that is taking it beyond familiar territory. In the past Wal-Mart has concentrated its stores in rural areas of low to middle income markets. Their new strategy for growth is taking Wal-Mart to higher income and historic areas such as the Wickford area, where the stores and clientele are very different.
This chapter provides a community profile of North Kingstown and Wickford Village.
This chapter will also contrast Wickford Village with strip commercial developments in order to examine the usual location of Wal-Mart versus its location in North Kingstown.

History of North Kingstown
The town of North Kingstown, Rhode Island is located on the western side of  Population projections indicate a consistent growth rate for the town in the future.
While the actual number of persons predicted may be effected by the changes in the economy, the population trend in North Kingstown will lean toward growth. Table 4 shows the population projections for North Kingstown from 1990 to 2010. ,.

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Customs District and by 1820 there were twenty to thirty vessels registered and engaged in coastal trading and fishing.
By the 1830s the economic boom of the village came to an end when Brown and Ives, Providence traders, did not invest in the port due to high wharfage fees. This decline continued when the Providence and Stonington Railroad bypassed the village.
Although the physical expansion of the village was halted, it remained a vital secondary port. The economic base was shifting to the textile mill villages in the surrounding areas.
There was a handloom weaving operation that operated in Wickford form 1812 to 1842 employing six hundred area families. A jewelry manufacturer employing sixty to seventy persons, a bobbin mill, and a fish pressing plant were also located in Wickford. The village also supported two banks, two distilleries, a goldsmith, silversmith, and several taverns (Fanning and Scanlon 1995).
During the Nineteenth Century much of the existing architecture was updated in a Greek revival style. In 1888 the iron bridge to Boston neck was completed, opening new areas for development, including the location of the town hall. Wickford still remained the commercial center of North Kingstown.
The Twentieth Century was a period of great economic stagnation for Wickford.
However, this was also the period in which the town was discovered by tourists. The tourists were drawn to Wickford because of its historical ambiance and beauty (Rhode  Harbor to the east. The commercial core of the village is also well defined and surrounded by residential uses with a higher density than in most of the town. The residential uses surrounding the village are directly linked with the commercial center of the village. The following describes the uses, by type, in the village. Table 5 shows the types of uses in Wickford Village.   zoned village residential which is 10,000 square feet or less (Fanning and Scanlon 1995).

Commercial
The commercial core of Wickford is centered on along Brown Street.
Commercial establishments line the east side while a mix of commercial and residential line the west side. These commercial and service uses include financial institutions, bakeries, grocery market, restaurants, professional offices, and a variety of gift and boutique stores. Commercial establishments can also be found at the intersection of Brown and Main Streets with a marine facility located at the eastern end of Main Street.
Commercial establishments on West Main Street include a post office, a gas station, dry cleaners, and a florist. Professional offices are located throughout Wickford Village.

Open Space and Recreational Facilities
Wickford  Table 6 shows the parks and areas identified and the recreational uses they contain.

Municipal and Educational
The diversity of the village is increased with the inclusion of municipal and educational facilities. There are three key municipal buildings within Wickford Village. These

Wickford Village vs. Strip Commercial Developments
The following section will compare and contrast the different characteristics of a village core to a strip commercial development in general and more specifically in North

Chapter Four Strengths and Weaknesses of Wickford Village
As a compact and mixed use area, Wickford Village has many strengths and weaknesses that must be addressed when formulating a plan for coexistence. The strengths and weaknesses that are identified will be addressed within the plan for coexistence. The strengths and weaknesses identified in this chapter were determined through telephone interviews with Wickford Village businesses, interviews with public officials and observations of Wickford Village. A few of the characteristics that were identified in Wickford Village can be described as both strengths and weaknesses. The strengths of Wickford Village and its core can be divided into the following areas: historic character, retail uses, marketing, clientele, and parking. The weaknesses of Wickford Village can be divided into the following: merchants attitudes towards Wal-Mart, perceptions of Wickford Village, parking, and the lack of public sanitary sewers.

Historic Character
One of the major strengths of Wickford Village is its historic character and village charm. Wickford Village maintains a unique character with a mix of municipal, residential , retail and financial uses amidst the historic homes and harbor. The historic character of Wickford Village is protected by its inclusion in the National Register of Historic Districts. Wickford Village is also protected by a historic zone. The historic zone permits the local historic commission to review changes to buildings within the historic zone.
The historic character of Wickford is identified as a strength because it seems to be one of the major tourist draws. The unique character that has been preserved in Wickford Village and its mixed use-core is what separates it from other main streets and strip commercial corridors.
The location of Wickford Village along the harbor was also identified as a character strength. Although the town of North Kingstown has an extensive shoreline, many of the waterfront views have been blocked by poor roadway alignments, woodlands and private property. Wickford Village not only provides views to the harbor but public access. The harbor location of Wickford Village provides tourists and others the opportunity to access Wickford Village by boat via the harbor.

Mixed Use Core
One of the strengths identified through the business interviews was the village core itself. The strength is the diversity of uses including residential, institutional, commercial, municipal and open space. The type of compact mixed use core found in Wickford Village is an example of what neo-traditional planners are trying to replicate in many new communities. Table 9 is a list of the positive consequences that occur in a traditional development. The table shows that Wickford Village benefits from these consequences.

Positive Consequences
By bringing most of the activities of daily living into walking distance, everyone, but especially the elderly and the young, gain independence of movement.
By reducing the number and length of automobile trips, traffic congestion is minimized, the expenses of road construction are limited, and air pollution and traffic congestion is minimized , the expenses of road construction are limited, and air pollution and traffic generated noise are reduced.
By providing streets and squares of comfortable scale and defined spatial quality, residents walking in the neighborhood come to know each other and to watch over their collective security, thus creating "eyes on the street" and a sense of "defensible space" within their Neighborhood.
By providing appropriate building concentrations at easy walking distances from public transit stops, public transit becomes a viable alternative means of circulation to the automobile.
By providing a full range of housing types and work places, age and economic classes are integrated and the bonds of an authentic community are formed.
Source: North Kingstown Comprehensive Plan 1995 .
Wickford Village has not been commercialized in the sense that there are currently no chain stores within Wickford Village. The retail uses in Wickford can be described as independently owned and operated boutique stores and services such as financial , institutional and office. The very diverse specialty stores carry a mix of merchandise featured from all over world, New England, and with some merchandise exclusive to Wickford Village (Table 5). Many of the merchants purposely do not carry merchandise that is carried by chain stores or even other stores within the village. This makes shopping in each store a unique experience.
The diversity of uses and services within Wickford Village are identified as a strength because it allows Wickford Village to .be different from other shopping areas.
Many of the items sold by the merchants can only be obtained in Wickford Village.

Cohesive Marketing
The Wickford Village Association currently has a membership of fifty to sixty business persons. The Association is dues driven based on gross income. The dues are used mainly for advertising the Village as a whole, and maintenance of the village core.
The Association is a definite strength for the Village because it brings the merchants together regularly to discuss marketing strategies for the village as a whole.
Recently the Association has begun a series of television advertisements to inform those The lack of sewers in Wickford Village is perceived as a strength because it allows the town to inadvertently control the type of development that may locate in the Village Core. There are many types of retail and service use that would require sewer systems in order to locate in Wickford. It sets a limit, in addition to the historic zoning ordinance, on the type of establishment that locates in Wickford Village.   The workshops were poorly attended. The Chamber of Commerce also brought in representatives from Wal-Mart to talk to merchants to discuss opportunities to work together. This session had better attendance but the merchants resisted any offers or ideas from Wal-Mart.

Map #10 Pedestrian Circulation
Overall the merchants are taking a reactive stance to the location of Wal-Mart based upon their perceptions of the retail store. Many of the merchants interviewed say they will wait to see what happens. This is a major weakness. If the businesses of Wickford Village wait to see the effects or ignore the effects of Wal-Mart they may find that it is too late to make the changes necessary to survive along side of Wal-Mart. They need to seriously investigate if Wal-Mart will have an effect on their business. The merchants of Wickford cannot ignore the impact of Wal-Mart simply because they are unhappy with its presence in North Kingstown. There is also a strong feeling among the merchants interviewed that they are not willing to work with Wal-Mart, even if it were to mean a peaceful coexistence between the two entities.

Perceptions of Wickford Village
Merchants identified that they think there is a prevailing perception held by surrounding residents that Wickford Village is too expensive and simply for tourists.
Since tourism is a seasonal occurrence in Rhode island it is a definite weakness if the merchants cannot draw surrounding residents to shop during non-tourist seasons. Many merchants worry that Wickford Village has moved away from providing services that can be used by the surrounding communities and are concentrating too much on boutique and specialty retail stores that only attract tourist dollars.

Parking
While the lack of parking is considered as a strength to the village by some, there are many other merchants who believe it is one of the major weaknesses. They believe the lack of parking and even the perception of lack of parking discourages customers from coming to the village. Merchants believe the amount of parking is critical to how well their business does financially. The merchants who were interviewed were less concerned about pedestrian safety than they were about bringing people to the village.

Lack of Sewers
While the town may enjoy the additional control the lack of sewers in the village provides, almost all of the merchants cited the lack of sewers as a major weakness to the Village as a whole. Many merchants blamed the lack of sewers for limiting the growth of the village and contributing to the concentration of boutiques and away from certain services. The construction of a sewerage system would allow Wickford Village to provide additional services to tourists such as restaurants, and additional bathrooms.
The major strengths and weaknesses of Wickford Village and its core need to be addressed. The strengths of the Village identified by merchants and public officials needs to be encouraged to ensure that they will continue to be strengths of the Village. The weaknesses that have been identified by the merchants and public officials also need to be 64 addressed and made into positive attributes for the Village. The recommendations which addresses the strengths and weaknesses of the Village are the first step in making it stronger and more able to survive near Wal-Mart.

Chapter Five Recommendations for Preserving Wickford Village
The recommendations that are presented in this chapter were determined from the strengths and weaknesses identified by the merchants of Wickford Village. It is very important that the Town of North Kingstown and the merchants of Wickford Village work to maintain and improve upon the strengths identified in Wickford Village by addressing the following recommendations. These recommendations were designed to maintain and improve upon the strengths identified while also addressing ways to tum the weaknesses identified into strengths. The recommendations are divided into physical/visual recommendations and economic" recommendations.

Protect the Historic Character of the Village
The first recommendation is for the Town of North Kingstown to ensure the historic character of Wickford Village is not harmed. This can be accomplished by assuring that the historic district, already in place, is actively maintained throughout Wickford Village particularly in the core of the village. North Kingstown should also follow through on the recommendation made in the Community Guide Plan to expand the historic district, however any expansion should not include Post Road. Instead, large retail uses should be encouraged to locate along Post Road, since there are similar uses that are already present along the commercial strip. Any parcels of land or buildings in 66 Wickford Village that are within the National Register Historic District, but not under the historic zone, should be included within the historic zone.

Maintain the Mixed Use Core of the Village
The Town should also maintain the "village planning and the traditional neighborhood" concept in the Village. The core of the village should be maintained as a diverse mixed-use area of residential, commercial, and institutional. The core of Wickford Village is what many neo-traditionalist planners are striving to recreate today: mixed use activity centers surrounded by compact residential development. Every effort should be made to encourage the business development within the core remain a mix of uses while also working to strengthen the links to the residential component of the village. The addition of new restaurants may work to improve the diversity and vitality of the village core, however the lack of sewers is a major impediment. Maintaining sidewalks and paths to surrounding residential areas will work to ensure the village core is connected to the residential areas.
The Town should ensure that businesses or residences that propose to locate in Wickford Village will support and encourage the mixed use concept and existing characteristics in the village core. North Kingstown should also ensure that the addition of new zoning and public policies in the town work to protect and preserve the diversity of the mixed use core. The Comprehensive Plan should be followed closely, particularly in Wickford Village.

Strengthen and Improve Waterfront Area
In addition to the historical core of the Village, Wickford Village has the unique opportunity to be located on the harbor. Consistent with the recommendations made by the URI Advanced Planning Studio in 1988, the Town should focus on expanding access, visibility, and aesthetics of this waterway to further enhance the village core. The harbor provides the Town with the opportunity to expand tourism and access to Wickford Village, while also protecting and improving the environmental quality of the harbor.
One way to expand the presence of the waterfront in Wickford Village is for the town to create waterfront walkways along the existing breakwalls. Expanding the visibility of the waterfront area will capitalize on this unique Main Street characteristic, expand the recreational areas, expand access to Wickford Village, increase the views in the village core, and further strengthen the mixed use component of the village.

Preserve Pedestrian Friendly Environment
The emphasis on pedestrian orientation in the village core is a strength that needs to be maintained and preserved. The high density, compact nature of the village makes it ideal for walking and biking. This means maintaining the narrow streets which ultimately slows traffic down through the core area, improving quality and providing upkeep for the sidewalk areas throughout the village. While the current sidewalk system provides pedestrian linkage, it is important to have sidewalks in newer residential areas to ensure that the entire village remains linked to the village core. Also, the existing crosswalks in the commercial area should be maintained to make it safer for pedestrians 68 to cross. Every effort should be made to discourage additional curb cuts throughout the area, and if possible reduce the number of existing curb cuts. The Town also needs to address the handicap accessibility within the village core.

Initiate Parking Strategies
Parking in Wickford Village was identified as both a strength and a weakness.
The apparent lack of convenient parking bothered merchants while others were content with using peripheral parking areas because it maintained a pedestrian friendly environment. No additional parking should be added to the village core. The existing peripheral parking is adequate and the pedestrian friendly environment adds to the charm and historic character of Wickford.
There are certain times of the year, however, such as the Holiday season, where there is a shortage of parking. The Comprehensive Plan recognizes that to improve access to Wickford Village an additional satellite parking lot should be utilized. The Wal-mart parking lot provides a perfect opportunity to expand parking for Wickford Village. A shuttle bus, whether private or RIPTA, could be run from the Wal-Mart parking lot to Wickford Village at frequent intervals throughout the day. The shuttle bus concept would also allow Wickford Village to capitalize on the Commuter Rail Station which will be located at Wickford Junction Shopping Plaza. The rail station will allow persons located in the northern part of the state the opportunity to access Wickford Village without an automobile. This connection between the commuter rail station and Wickford Village may also increase year-round shopping. The availability of public transportation may further reduce the perception of parking as a problem in North Kingstown.
This recommendation, however, would reqmre an agreement and cooperation between the Town, the merchants of Wickford Village and Wal-Mart.
Another recommendation which could be used alone or in conjunction with the concept of shared parking is the marking with signage of the existing peripheral parking as public parking for the village. Satellite lots need to be marked with unified signage to alert shoppers that those areas are used for public parking. The signage used for these lots should conform to the historic character and theme within the area. Currently the Merchant Association prints a map of Wickford Village delineating store locations. In addition to delineating the stores, the Association could also mark satellite parking areas on the map. The identification of the satellite parking areas could reduce the perception that there is a lack of parking in the village and encourage people to take advantage of the pedestrian orientation of the village.

Sewers
Sewers is a very controversial issue in Wickford Village. Sewers was also identified by merchants as both a strength and a weakness. Some merchants interviewed believed it was a strength because it was an additional control on the type of development that could locate in Wickford Village while other merchants believed it was a weakness because it limited the growth of the village and contributed to the concentration of boutiques. The Town' s sewer advisory committee was formed during the comprehensive plan process, but has yet to present its final recommendations.
Based on the other strengths and weaknesses identified in this study, it is recommended that the availability of sewers would not be a weakness to Wickford Village. As for those who feel the lack of sewers is a strength because of the additional control on development, the expansion of the historic zoning area and the adjustments to the allowable maximum building size should protect the historic charm and pedestrian scale of the area. Enough control measures exist already that provide for extensive review of proposed projects in the village core.
The addition of sewers would allow for an increase in more diverse uses in the village core such as restaurant uses. This would provide another draw to the village shopping area and a step towards convincing persons in the surrounding areas that Wickford Village is not simply a boutique area for tourists. It would also address some concerns about the "odor" of the existing restaurants, caused by the lack of sewers. The addition of sewers would also have a positive impact on the water quality of Wickford Village Harbor.

7 Maintain Strong Organizational Structure
It is very important that the merchants of Wickford Village maintain the strong organizational structure of the Wickford Village Merchants Association. All businesses in the village core should be urged to join the Merchants Association. The Merchants Association is responsible for the current television and print advertisements and has recently undertaken a general clean-up of the Village. It has given the merchants of Wickford Village the opportunity to work together on advertising, and maintaining the aesthetics of the core. It allows the individual businesses to act as one entity. The Association needs to provide a forum for merchants to share ideas on how to compete effectively as a whole against Wal-Mart and other large retailers that threaten the commercial vitality of the village. The Association should gather and provide information on strategies that will allow individuals businesses as well as the entire

Marketing and Advertising
Another important recommendation for the economic preservation of Wickford Village is marketing and advertising. Currently, the Merchants Association is responsible for advertising. The strong print and television advertising of the village should continue.
Both these mediums are effective at reaching local residents and attracting new clientele.
Many of the stores maintain individual mailing lists to contact previous customers. This practice should be encouraged by the Merchants Association and utilized by the association to send customers mailings not only concerning an individual store but the Village as a whole. Since Wickford Village is tucked away and not on a main thoroughfare it is important to remind people, through advertising, where Wickford Village is and what it has to offer.
The Merchants Association, through its advertising and marketing, needs to address the perception that Wickford Village is solely a seasonal tourist destination.
Since this perception negatively affects the merchants in the non-tourist season, steps must be taken to correct this perception. The Association could address this in future advertising campaigns by promoting the retail stores and services that could be used by residents and tourists as a year-round destination.

Individual Business Plans and Strategies
The goal for all retail and service activities in the village is to make Wickford Village a tourist destination year-round, while also encouraging year-round use for the residents. In order to achieve this goal the individual merchants will have to become more creative and innovative especially when competing with the nearby Wal-Mart.
The common attitude among Wickford Village merchants is that Wal-Mart does not pose a threat, will not have an effect on their business, or is an entity that is best left ignored. Many of the merchants interviewed, do not believe Wal-Mart is a threat nor do they plan on taking a pro-active stand against Wal-Mart. Most of the merchants believe that because they are specialty store in a historic area that they will not be harmed by Wal-Mart. Even if this proves to be true, Wickford Village merchants need to recognize their new neighbor as a possible commercial threat.
They need to be pro-active instead of re-active to the arrival of Wal-Mart.
Merchants in other areas that have been reactive and waited to see what will happen have not been able to survive alongside of Wal-Mart because there was no game plan, no strategy for what to do if business slowed down.
A marketing professor from Umass-Dartmouth suggests merchants face the challenge of Wal-Mart head on by determining their own niche. In order to do so however the merchant needs to confront the commercial threat. Many of the stores that fail in the face of Wal-Mart are those who dicl not stay competitive and did not know enough about their competitor to begin to stay competitive. These recommendations can be used by individual businesses or can be utilized by the Merchants Association to strengthen the entire village. When possible, it would be more effective for these recommendations to be utilized by the entire commercial center.
The types of stores and retail activities in the village are diverse and not all businesses will find themselves competing with Wal-Mart. Those types of stores in Wickford Village that might compete with Wal-Mart include adult and children' s apparel, bookstores, children's toys, florists , some food and beverage services, gift stores, home furnishings, stationary, and jewelry. These are the types of stores that should concentrate on the ten tips for competing effectively. These types of stores in addition to the other services and retail uses should concentrate on marketing themselves as both a year-round destination to tourists and year-round destination for residents. preserving and improving its strengths, while also addressing its weaknesses, it will survive and prosper based on these strengths. Wickford Village has a viable opportunity to rise above the shadow of Wal-Mart.