WPRI: Store’s opening squashed by judge
Federal Hill and West Side friends and neighbors rallied on Sunday morning in support of Cluck!, an urban farm supply store that is trying to open at the site of a former gas station on Broadway.
The business was approved by Zoning to open but was challenged in court on a technicality and lost, forcing owner Drake Patten to begin the Zoning process from scratch. Read Drake’s commentary on what has happened.
Mayor Taveras unveiling his economic development plan this morning. Photo from the Mayor’s Facebook page
Mayor Taveras is unveiling his Economic Development Report
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Update: Media reports
Update: Press release from the Mayor’s Office
‘Putting Providence Back to Work’ report presents roadmap to improve the business climate, infrastructure and human capital in Rhode Island’s Capital City
PROVIDENCE, RI – Mayor Angel Taveras today announced a 20-step economic development action plan to put Providence residents back to work and jumpstart the economy of Rhode Island’s Capital City.
The Mayor said that Providence’s economy must be built on the success of a broad range of industries and sectors, and pledged swift action to improve Providence’s business climate, infrastructure and human capital.
“When we work together, we can compete head to head with any city or state in this country,” said Mayor Taveras. “Nothing will change minds about Providence as much as continuing our track record of success.”
The Mayor outlined five immediate steps his administration will pursue to support and grow Providence’s economy:
2013 State of the City Address
Tuesday, January 29, 2013 • (as prepared for delivery)
Photo of the Mayor delivering the State of the City from the Mayor’s Office.
Governor, Mr. President, honorable members of the Providence City Council, distinguished guests, and my fellow residents of our great Capital City –
One year ago I stood before you in this Chamber with an urgent message for our City and the entire State of Rhode Island. Providence was in peril. Despite many difficult decisions and painful sacrifices made to pull Providence back from the brink, we were still $22 million short of closing a $110 million structural deficit.
Crucial steps necessary to navigate our City safely through our Category 5 fiscal hurricane had not yet come to pass. We still needed to reform our unsustainable pensions. And we needed Providence’s large, tax-exempt institutions to contribute more.
As I stood before you on February 13, 2012, Providence was running out of cash, and running out of time. In the months that followed, there were some who said Providence could not avoid filing for bankruptcy.
Today it is my privilege to deliver a much more hopeful report on the State of our City: Providence is recovering.
Through collaborative efforts and shared sacrifice, we have all but eliminated our City’s $110 million structural deficit, and we expect to end this year with a balanced budget. Working together, we have accomplished what few believed possible.
We were determined to address the root causes of Providence’s fiscal emergency and prepared to act unilaterally if necessary. And we knew our City would never achieve a lasting recovery without addressing our unsustainable and spiraling pension costs.
In April, following months of actuarial analysis and public testimony, this City Council unanimously approved a pension reform ordinance that put Providence’s pension system on a sustainable path.
We recognized that passing the ordinance would likely lead to a high-stakes lawsuit with no real winners – because a decision in favor of the status quo would push our City over the brink. However, faced with the challenge of negotiating pension changes with more than 2,000 retirees who were not represented by a single entity, we saw no alternative.
WPRI’s Ted Nesi speaks with Urbanophile’s Aaron Renn about the Providence metro area and economy on this week’s Executive Suite.
The fiscal cliff would have profound and draconian consequences for the City of Providence. If we go over the cliff, federal support for 21st Century Community Learning Centers will be cut by 20 percent which could force Providence to close up to four after-school programs that serve our highest-poverty neighborhoods. More than 100 young children could be denied access to Head Start — an early education program that helped me and so many other poor, young children start school ready to learn. More than 150 teachers could be locked out of high-quality professional development, putting our students at a disadvantage.
Beyond our schools, the fiscal cliff would cut energy assistance, elderly and handicapped transportation services, employment training and other vital services the newly reorganized Community Action Partnership of Providence provides.
This letter was sent to the Providence College campus by college president Rev. Brian J. Shanley regarding the college’s agreement with the City to acquire public streets in exchange for payments in lieu of taxes:
A Message to the Providence College Community:
Providence College is, and always has been, mindful of the significant role that the city of Providence plays in the decision our students make to attend this institution. Providence is a vibrant city with rich history, great restaurants, and myriad tourist and cultural attractions. It is both an alluring and attractive setting for our students and their families. As the leaders of all of Providence’s higher education and major healthcare institutions have noted on multiple occasions, a financially sound city of Providence is critical for the continued prosperity of each of our organizations going forward. With that in mind, I am pleased to announce that the College has reached an agreement with the City that will benefit both parties. The College has agreed to pay the City $3.84 million over a 10-year period to purchase portions of three City streets: Huxley Ave., which runs through the eastern end of the College campus, and both Wardlaw Ave. and Cumberland St. which are part of the northwest border of the campus across from Alumni Hall. (Specifically, the College will purchase Huxley Ave. from Eaton St. to Ventura St., Wardlaw Ave. from Lucille St. to Cumberland St., and Cumberland St. from Wardlaw Ave. to the property line at 30 Cumberland St.)
The College proposed the purchase of these streets in response to the City’s request for additional payments in lieu of taxes. As you may know, the City reached similar agreements of mutual benefit with Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design, and Johnson & Wales University earlier this year. Mindful of the City’s willingness to structure these agreements on a quid pro quo basis, and knowing that they were hopeful of striking some type of arrangement with all of the major non-profit institutions in Providence, the College felt this was the appropriate time to seek the purchase of these streets.
Hasbro is moving about 350 of its employees to downtown Providence. The workers should be sitting at their new desks after the first of the year.
Johnson & Wales University has signed a new 10-year lease for One Park Row West, the former Capitol Cove condominium complex on the banks of the Moshassuck River the school has used as a student dormitory since 2009.
On the one the hand, it is kind of sad it will be a dorm for the next decade, on the other hand, at least it is not vacant.
The Rhode Island Foundation will host “Make It Happen RI” on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 7 and 8. The event is designed to identify specific plans, along with the path to implement them, that in the end will help to create economic activity in the state that supplements what the private sector is doing currently.
Providence Community Library System to Close September 10 Through 15 Due to Cut in City Funding
Sacrifice by PCL Staff Minimizes Extenet of Closures
The Providence Community Library system will close Monday, September 10 through Saturday, September 15 due to a cut of $205,000 in funding from the City of Providence. Regular library operations will resume Monday, September 17.
To address the bulk of this devastating cut in City funding, the employees of Providence Community Library (90% of whom are members of United Service and Allied Workers of RI) have agreed to forego the 401(k) contribution made by the Library during the current fiscal year. PCL and its employees hope that this great financial sacrifice by all of PCL’s employees, together with the closing of the libraries for one week, will be sufficient to address this budget shortfall.
PCL’s employees have agreed to forego this year’s contributions to their only pension plan in the hope that this sacrifice will allow PCL to continue providing full library services at all nine of its libraries and with the expectation that the City of Providence will show its support for continuing library services in the City’s neighborhoods by committing to increased funding for the libraries from this point forward.
| Today | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
 Thunderstorm 77°/61° | Thunderstorm 72°/52° |  Chance of a Thunderstorm 66°/45° |  Chance of Rain 66°/39° |
City Meetings
