By RUSS OLIVO

CENTRAL FALLS — It’s the marine gateway to a resurgent Blackstone River, a place where visitors can climb aboard the riverboat Explorer to tour the wildlife-rich Lonsdale Marsh, or spend a tranquil night aboard the floating bed and breakfast known as the Samuel Slater.

After years of work and the infusion of hundreds of thousands in state and federal dollars, the riverside dock known as Central Falls Landing could become the backdrop for modestly upscale waterfront dining, says Robert Billington, executive director of the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council.
But a Kentucky Fried Chicken or Taco Bell?
“I think it deserves a second look,” says Billington. “We were going down this path of rejuvenation and sustainability, and sustainability means local support, local foods, local everything. There are so many local businesses on Broad Street and none of them are on the water. I’m sure one of them would like that opportunity.”
Billington and other tourism officials are raising concerns about the compatibility of the riverside setting with fast food after Planning Director Arthur Hanson told them the city may have struck a deal to put a Taco Bell or KFC there. Neither Hanson nor Mayor Charles Moreau returned telephone calls on the subject Thursday, however.
Jan Reitsma, director of the John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, said he had a preliminary conversation with Hanson about the proposal recently. Reitsma said he has been trying to schedule a meeting with Hanson and the mayor to talk about it.
“We would really like to have the opportunity to discuss it sooner rather than later,” Reitsma said. “It is confirmed there are talks going on about such a redevelopment.”
Reitsma said he doesn’t intend to make a “a blanket denunciation” of fast food chains. But he questioned whether such a proposal is the best way to take advantage of not just the Central Falls Landing, but the nearby Blackstone Valley Bikeway and a large abutting park, opposite Cumberland Town Hall, just across Broad Street. The proximity of all these resources presents an opportunity to create “a node of revitalization that could be gigantic if you do it right,” he said.
Echoing Billington, Reitsma said Central Falls is chock full of local, ethnically flavored eateries that convey a sense of the community’s spirit and individuality — the same as the Blackstone River. Such a business would seem like a more appropriate fit for the Central Falls Landing because they “have something unique to offer instead of the same old, same old,” said Reitsma.
The former director of the state Department of Environmental Management, Reitsma said the heritage commission had spent a lot of money over the years to help develop the Central Falls Landing and does not consider a fast food restaurant in keeping with its vision for the growth of the facility.
Of particular concern, Billington and Reitsma say, is the fate of an early 19th-century wooden mill building on the site last occupied by Central Braided Rug. Similar in design to the historic Samuel Slater Mill in nearby Pawtucket, the building is part of a parcel the city claimed for back taxes over a decade ago.
Billington has long dreamed that some type of restaurant, perhaps accompanied by small shops, would do business out of Central Braided Rug —- after the mill is restored. But whether the developers of a Taco Bell or KFC would preserve the building — or simply raze it — is an open question, says Billington.
“Our hope has always been to have a nice restaurant there, at least along the lines of a Gregg’s or a Chelo’s,” he says. “That’s what the dock was built for. It was built to accommodate that.”
Ironically, the incipient debate over the right kind of investment for Central Falls Landing comes at a time when Pawtucket, Central Falls and Cumberland have partnered to create an “action plan” to plot the future of Broad Street. The $102,000 Broad Street Initiative is half-funded by the Preserve America Foundation, which is interested in promoting historic preservation along the artery, according to project coordinator Alex Sommers, also of BVTC.
“They gave us this money because there is a lot of historical value along Broad Street,” he said. “We’re trying to support local small businesses. That’s the goal of this project.”
A meeting on Monday, set for 4 p.m. at Ella Risk Elementary School, is supposed to be a forum to reach out to members of the community for ideas, but Sommers won’t be surprised if there are questions about fast food.
If Taco Bell or KFC do come to town with a concrete proposal for Central Falls Landing, it will require the approval of the City Council, and not everyone on the panel thinks fast food is such a good idea.
“I don’t think a Taco Bell or a KFC would be appropriate,” says Councilor Elizabeth A. Crowley. “Don’t you think it should be something a little more classy?”
If may seem odd that Taco Bell and KFC should both be mentioned as possible suitors for the site in the same breath, but it shouldn’t. The parent company of both is Yum! Brands, Inc. Based in Louisville, Ky., YUM! is the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver’s and the A&W restaurant chains. YUM! aggressively pitches franchising opportunities to investors on its Web site.
The company boasts that it is “the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants,” with more than 35,000 eateries.