First, i don't recommend to modify Innovator db tables column types through SQL.
To have the behavior you should:
1. Edit Project ItemType, set data_type=string, stored_length=16 for project_number property (see Properties tab).
2. Edit Activity2 ItemType, set data_type=string, stored_length=16 for proj_num property.
3. Edit Wbs Element ItemType, set data_type=string, stored_length=16 for proj_num property.
Hope it helps.