Grow Smart RI has named the Tiverton Public Library as a 2016 Rhode Island Smart Growth Award winner.

The awards recognize those “helping to shape a stronger Rhode Island

through innovative revitalization and preservation initiatives.”

"Each year, passionate, creative and resourceful Rhode Islanders show us

the way to tap our state's full potential through projects, plans and

policies that play to Rhode Island's strengths and generate enduring

economic benefits, both statewide and in specific neighborhoods," said

Grow Smart's Executive Director Scott Wolf.

The award citation stated: First set forth as a goal within Tiverton’s Comprehensive Plan, the Tiverton Public Library was part of a town vision to develop a new town center for municipal buildings and a library with community meeting space. Decades of local advocacy, along with a federal grant, a

successful local capital campaign, and a narrowly won bond referendum resulted in a new civic building that has been labeled the “crown jewel in the network of libraries across the state of Rhode Island.”

The Town passed a commercial form-based zoning code to accommodate this new vision for an activity center sited in Bliss Four Corners. Designed by Union Studio Architects, the building is harmonious with the community and recalls the classic simplicity of the original Essex Library. The

interior reflects a flexible, modern and data-rich 21st century community gathering place. The new library is located in a mixed-use neighborhood that includes homes, two schools, public ballfields and

commercial enterprises.”