A recent proposal to increase economic growth in Padanaram starts with a basic idea: give pedestrians a place to walk.

A group of five civil engineering seniors from Northeastern University have proposed a major overhaul to the way pedestrians and drivers navigate Padanaram. The idea is make the business district more of a destination by making it easier — and safer — to access.

The proposal, which was presented to the Select Board last month, was part of the students’ capstone project. Professor Daniel Dulaski said he assigns students real-world projects, and in his six years at Northeastern, his students have worked on 24 such projects in 18 different communities.

“My charge for the students from the transportation perspective is think about this as more than just moving vehicles,” said Daniel Dulaski, the students’ professor. “Look at it from a holistic perspective.”

The proposal includes additional sidewalks, 243 marked parking spaces throughout the business and residential districts and a roundabout to replace the five-point intersection near St. Mary's Church. The entire project is estimated to cost $2.5 million.

“After making several site visits, it was clear that facilities for pedestrian travel throughout the village were imperative,” said Tyler Matt, the team’s project manager. “The challenge was finding the space to implement these facilities.”

The group settled on turning some of the roads into one-way streets — particularly Water, Hill and Elm Street. In their current model, Water and Hill Street are fully one-way and only the east end of Elm Street would become a one-way road.

This adjustment would allow for the inclusion of wide sidewalks, bike lanes, parking space and safe crossings.

“This also helps to limit paved roadway and slow vehicular traffic, in turn increasing pedestrian safety,” said Matt.

The group used Newport, Rhode Island, as a model due to its layout, comparable proximity to the waterfront and its extensive history.

“One of the things that makes Newport a destination is the wide sidewalks that accommodate for large volumes of pedestrians,” said student Amy Black.

The group said the benefit of wide sidewalks is two-fold: pedestrians will have an easier time making their way through Padanaram and businesses can use the extra space for storefront displays, planters and outdoor cafes.

“Currently in the village, the roads are mostly designed for vehicle use. Pretty much everywhere, there’s a large expanse of pavement for travel in both directions,” said Black.

While some drafts of their project included two-way streets, the group determined that one-ways streets were the best use of the space.

With a project this scale, the group suggested renovating the business district first — a process, they believe, that would take less than six months. A second phase of renovations in the residential areas could begin thereafter.

During the presentation before the Select Board, Chairman Shawn McDonald said he was impressed with the design, especially the idea of a rotary.

“We know we’re not going to get a hundred percent agreement on it because there are going to be some issues,” said McDonald. “Just like any village, people have opinions on how things should be done. But this gives us a very large starting point for discussion and for implementation.”

Matt’s group described their proposals as a “buffet,” meaning the town could pick and choose the ideas they felt worked best.

Dulaski stepped forward at the end of the presentation to acknowledge that one-way streets are not always a popular idea.

“Time and time again I hear from community members who say ‘this is such a change from what we’re used to,’” said Dulaski. “But, at the same time, think of the benefits you can get from that.”

The project is in the discussion phase and does not yet have a time line.

"I don't foresee them taking every recommendation in this plan," said John Hansen, town planner. "It's going to be a matter now of picking which items to implement."