by Billy Kepner | Mar 3, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-5, Ward-9
City Council Majority Leader Jo-Ann Ryan (Ward 5) and Councilman James E. Taylor (Ward 8) will introduce a resolution at Thursday’s Council meeting calling for the City to create a 5-year plan for the City’s aging fleet of public safety vehicles after a series of incidents with our fire trucks breaking-down.
“I was astounded to learn that we did not have a ‘plan’ for the maintenance and upkeep of our fire trucks and other safety vehicles,” stated Majority Leader Jo-Ann Ryan. “It is unacceptable that the largest Fire Department in New England has an aging fleet, has no 5-year plan for replacement and maintenance – as is the national standard, and the maintenance records are being kept manually with scant internal controls or management oversight. Due to the high cost of these vehicles, it is critical that the City’s Public Safety and Public Property departments work together to create a 5-year plan that is annually vetted by the Council. This will help ensure proper budget appropriations for the safety of the men and women of the Fire Department and that of our resident’s life and property.”
The resolution calls for the Commissioner of Public Safety and the Department of Public Property to provide a five-year safety and maintenance plan for all city-owned public safety vehicles. The plan will include condition assessments, maintenance records, replacement schedules, and a completed inventory of all public safety vehicles and must conform to minimum national industry standards. Due to the high cost for these vehicles it is critical for the City’s public safety officials make proper long-range plans. Because this hasn’t been done, the Council is planning to bring back the City’s Master Lease for review.
Councilman James E. Taylor stated, “As a former Fire Battalion Chief, I understand how critical it is to have safe fire apparatus’ for not only the men and women who serve in the Fire Department but for the residents of our City. I commend Derek Silva, President of Providence Fire Fighters IAFF Local 799, for bringing the state of our fleet to the attention of the City Council. Minimum industry standard calls to move any front-line vehicles over 15-years old to serve as a back-up for a maximum of five years and a third of our fleet is over 20-years old. It’s my sincere hope that the Mayor will allocate adequate public safety funding in his budget, including funding for a full-time Fire Chief.”
Established national standards put forth by the National Fare Protection Association calls for the maintenance and replacement of fire engines and ladder trucks no more than 15-years as a front line vehicle, with an additional five years as a reserve, prior to replacement. With a third of the City’s fleet being 20-years or older the City is creating an unnecessary safety risk for the public as well as for the personnel that have to operate those vehicles.
by Billy Kepner | Mar 3, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-10
First and foremost, I want to thank my neighbors – the residents of Lower South Providence and Washington Park – as well as the local community organizations and businesses for joining me in expressing our shared concerns that this project is not only bad for our neighborhood but could potentially have long-lasting environmental effects on our Port and quality of life for our residents.
Also, I wish to extend my gratitude to the staff of the City Planning Commission (CPC) who have found that the Commission as a whole should deny this project because it does not adhere to the City’s Master Plan and because of the potential adverse effects to our environment. These findings reflect what we, as a community, have been saying all along.
Thank you to Mayor Elorza, who earlier today came out against this proposed facility, my colleagues on the City Council, and my colleagues in the General Assembly who have been supportive and have spoken out against this facility as well.
The fight does not end today; we still have work to do.
I encourage my colleagues and my neighbors that are opposed to this project to join me at the March 17, 2020 CPC meeting, which will take place at 4:30 PM at 444 Westminster Street to speak up and out against this proposed facility. If you are unable to attend, you can still share your concerns by sending a letter to the CPC at the address listed above to the attention of Deputy Director Robert Azar, AICP of the Department of Planning and Development, or via email at razar@providenceri.gov.
Again, thank you to my neighbors and all those who have joined me in advocating to keep our Port clean, and who have the shared goal of making our Port area something to be proud of.
Pedro Espinal
Providence City Council
Councilman – Ward 9
by Billy Kepner | Mar 3, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-15, Ward-6
In light of the two recent presumptive cases of Coronavirus in Rhode Island, our offices have been in communication with our state and city colleagues to ensure a coordinated response.
We want to commend our first responders and our State Department of Health for their swift action and for their levelheadedness.
We want to take this opportunity to reiterate that risk of transmission of the virus is low for Rhode Islander’s, but we should take basic steps to stay safe from all viruses – like the flu – by following these helpful tips:
- Wash your hands, and do so often. In the absence of access to soap and warm water, use a hand sanitizer.
- Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose, and mouth.
- If you are going to cough or sneeze, do so into your elbow or by covering your mouth and nose with a tissue.
- If you are feeling ill or someone you care for is ill – stay at home. If your/their condition gets worse, you should call your/their primary care physician and ask if you/them should be seen.
- Clean and disinfect surfaces regularly, especially those that are frequently touched like light switches and doorknobs.
- Remind those in your care of the above tips to keep them safe as well, especially children and seniors.
As of now, our public events and meetings will proceed as scheduled until advised to do otherwise by state health officials. As always, the Council will communicate with our constituents should anything change.
For more information regarding the Coronavirus we encourage you to visit the CDC’s webpage: CDC-Coronavirus
by Billy Kepner | Feb 28, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-5
I wish to thank Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio for his leadership on this important issue.
It is with pride that I share in this historic victory in the Senate and hope that the House will pass similar legislation so that our Governor can sign this important piece of legislation into law. A statewide bill is not just a big win for the state of Rhode Island, but for our planet.
Since my first term on the City Council I worked with my colleagues in state and local government, ZeroWaste Providence, the Racial and Economic Social Justice Committee, and several community organizations to bring Providence’s Single-Use Plastic Check-Out Bag Reduction Act to fruition. It was passed unanimously twice by my Council colleagues and had its final passage, serendipitously, on Earth Day 2019. It was one of the proudest moments in my legislative career, and I could not have done it without their support.
Since then, I have worked to support a statewide bill banning single-use plastic bags.
I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the Conservation Law Foundation and the other Rhode Island communities that came before us, they led the way and provided support and information that helped shape my legislation, and I stand with them urging the House to pass statewide legislation so that we can rid our towns, streets, and waterways of this very harmful contaminant. I urge the House to pick-up and pass the legislation that Senate President Ruggerio shepherded through the Senate.
The Rhode Island Resource Recovery Center is overly burdened by these single-use plastic bags. In Providence, we spent nearly $1M on rejected recycling loads every year. It’s not just about our physical health that these contaminants do harm to, but also our fiscal health as a city and state.
Earth Day 2020 is not that far off, I could think of no better way to honor this day then the great state of Rhode Island having a Plastic Bag Ban.
Jo-Ann Ryan, Majority Leader
Providence City Council
Councilwoman – Ward 5
by Billy Kepner | Feb 20, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-15, Ward-6
Tonight Council President Sabina Matos (Ward 15) and President Pro Tempore Michael Correia’s (Ward 6) amendment to the Code of Ordinances that creates a $40K fund specifically for the support of Providence youth sports programs was passed for the second and final time.
The fund will support funding for equipment, costs associated with travel for sports competitions, and participating in sports-related activities. These funds are in addition to other funding that youth sports organizations may already receive from the City. Any youth sports group that applies for and is granted monies will have to refrain from the practice of “canning” (which is when young people raise money by standing on the corner at a stop sign or redlight and ask drivers to donate monies to their group).
“As a mother seeing young athletes trying to raise money while standing on our busy streets, and looking for donations from drivers at stop signs or red lights causes me great concern,” stated City Council President Sabina Matos. “These young athletes are risking their personal safety to get the funds they need to support their programs. I am glad that we have finally brought this Fund to fruition.”
The Youth Sports Fund & Grant Program will be held in a separate permanent fund of the city and will be held in trust by the City Treasurer. The fund will be administered by the City’s Recreational Advisory Board who will grant funding to Providence-based local non-profit youth sports organizations. The fund will be seeded with $40K annually through an appropriation from the City’s budget.
City Council President Pro Tempore Michael Correia added, “The Council President and I introduced this last November, and I am thrilled that we will now have this fund in place for our City’s young athletes. It is a highlight of my time on the Council that we have found a way to support our local non-profit youth sports programs that do so much for our community and our young people. This fund will provide access to youth sports clubs in every neighborhood of our city, and it will go a long way to ensuring that our young athletes are spending time practicing and not having to raise money.”
The fund will be set-up by the City Treasurer who will work with the Recreational Advisory Board to help implement a grant submission application process.
by Billy Kepner | Feb 20, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-12, Ward-13, Ward-14, Ward-3
Councilwoman Nirva LaFortune (Ward 3), Councilwoman KatherineKerwin (Ward 12) and Councilwoman Rachel Miller (Ward 13) tonight will introduce a resolution calling on the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) to increase funding for social and emotional learning and support services. They are also requesting that RIDE eliminate school-based School Resource Officers (SROs) in the City’s school district.
In multiple studies that assess the overall effectiveness of counselors, social-emotional support and learning generate positive student outcomes. An increase in funding for social, emotional support and learning; the implementation of a comprehensive safety plan that includes protocols for emergency drills; and the creation of a School Safety, Culture, and Climate Team in each school provides a more engaged and supportive learning community where students can thrive. The two resolutions provide a framework for the role of SROs, an increase in social and emotional support and learning, elimination of school-based School Resource Officers and most importantly, an avenue for more robust community engagement with students, families, teachers and administrators in the planning and monitoring of school safety.
“I have met with our young people and student groups on multiple occasions over the past year to discuss student needs. I have also researched numerous educational structures and models around safety and climate in public schools. The need across the board is for additional school counselors and social-emotional support. Our students want to learn and thrive in an environment where they feel safe and where they can escape adverse experiences and encounters that happen outside of school walls,” stated Councilwoman Nirva LaFortune. “Students want to be able to walk through the building without fear of being arrested for nonviolent criminal infractions. Teachers and administrators see the need for social-emotional support in our schools. They want to work in an environment where they feel safe and can focus on educating and developing our young people. It is our responsibility to provide the tools and resources to create an environment where teachers can effectively teach, our students can learn and thrive, our administrators can focus on developing strategies and opportunities to move our schools forward and our families can feel supported and know that their children are safe. School Resource Officers can serve as excellent partners and resources but not as a first line of defense when addressing minor and common adolescent infractions, which could be better addressed by school administrators. Our schools are not prisons; they are environments for learning. It is time that we invest in proactive approaches that do not lead to violent incidents or create a pipeline to prison instead of a pathway to success. We need counselors, social-emotional support and learning in our schools, not armed officers.”
According to Leadership for Educational Equity, studies conducted by the University of Maryland in 2011, and a study included in 2015’s Adolescent Research Review, schools with an increased police presence saw higher rates of incidents than schools without. Other studies cited that a disproportionate amount of students of color and those with disabilities were referred to law enforcement for school-based incidents over their Caucasian counterparts.
Councilwoman Kat Kerwin stated, “I am so proud of the youth organizers of Providence who have spent hours of time advocating for a school district that no longer accepts the school to prison pipeline as the norm, but instead demands dignity. This is an excellent first step to ensuring that school resource officers are not the first line of defense for disciplinary issues as we begin to envision a district with more social and emotional support rather than armed school police officers.”
The resolution clearly lays out that it is the role of principals, teachers and other educators to administer school disciplinary action, and that any disciplinary action must support personal growth, as well as provide opportunities for the students and their peers to learn from any incident that might occur. Most importantly, any discipline administered needs to be done in a way that keeps students in their classrooms whenever possible. School-based incidents should not be punished by harsh or exclusionary measures or through the justice system.
With the takeover of the Providence Public Schools by RIDE late last year, changes to the current school culture are necessary to improve the overall holistic health of our system and the students within the care of the district. Organizations like the Providence Student Union (PSU) have galvanized students across the City to ensure that their “frustrations, demands, and dreams are heard.” One of PSU’s main objectives is ending the racist and arbitrary disciplinary practices in and out of Providence’s city schools.
In addition to this resolution, Councilwoman LaFortune, along with her colleagues, Deputy Majority Leader Mary Kay Harris (Ward 11), Councilwoman Katherine Kerwin (Ward 12), and Councilman David A. Salvatore (Ward 14) will put forth a resolution requesting that the Providence Public School District and the Providence Police Department enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the role of SROs in Providence city schools.
The MOU would set forth guidelines to ensure that the School District and Police Department have a shared understanding of the role and responsibilities in maintaining school safety, improving the climate in city schools, and supporting the educational opportunities and outcomes for every student in the City’s care.
The primary role of the SROs is to improve school safety and the educational climate of schools; any disciplinary action should fall to the school’s principal and educators and must support personal growth and learning opportunities.
