Planning officials, neighborhood groups and developers are gathering Thursday at the Rhode Island Convention Center for Grow Smart Rhode Island’s Power of Place Summit. The annual summit is meant to showcase ideas for developing stronger, more vibrant communities. Grow Smart RI’s executive director, Scott Wolf, said one of the new obstacles to smarter development is what he calls “renewable energy sprawl.”

One of the state’s top political reporters, Ian Donnis joined The Public’s Radio in 2009. Ian has reported on Rhode Island politics since 1999, arriving in the state just two weeks before the FBI...