by Billy Kepner | Aug 25, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-4
In 2016, we were all saddened to hear that a fire destroyed the Parks Department Grounds Maintenance Facility at Roger Williams Park.
Today, the Parks Department Grounds Maintenance Facility will officially be opened along with the renovated Carriage House. Roger Williams Park is one of the City’s most iconic places, and as a member of the Board of Parks Commissioners, I know how hard Superintendent of Parks Wendy Nilsson and her team worked to rebuild the space.
Public tours are being offered today from 9 am – 1 pm, pre-registration is required. You can do so by visiting the following site:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4caeaa2ba3f8c25-grounds
Congratulations to the Parks Department on these great new upgrades.
Nicholas J. Narducci Jr., Senior Deputy Majority Leader
Providence City Council
Councilman – Ward 4
by Abigail Appel | Aug 24, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-14
I am calling on Mayor Jorge Elorza and the Providence Police Department to take action regarding the illegal and dangerous use of ATVs on our City Streets. Over the past week, I have received numerous phone calls and emails from constituents who are concerned about and troubled by the frequent ATV traffic throughout Ward 14 and the rest of the City.
Not only is the loud noise created at night by ATVs disrespectful to families with children and workers with early morning shifts, but ATVs also pose a serious threat to the safety of Providence residents, including pedestrians, children, and other drivers. Just last week, an eight-year-old boy was injured in an ATV accident.
I understand that we live in a city and what is not tolerated in other municipalities might be given leeway in dense populations, but putting residents in harm’s way when these vehicles are speeding through our streets and on our City sidewalks is unacceptable.
The current ‘no pursuit’ policy is not working. While our police officers have a responsibility to mitigate any potential for traffic accidents, other drivers and pedestrians live in fear of being hurt or worse by an ATV or dirt bike.
For these reasons, I am asking Mayor Elorza and the Providence Police Department to take decisive action against the illegal use of ATVs and to mitigate threats to the quality of life and safety of our neighbors.
David A. Salvatore
Providence City Council
Councilor – Ward 14
by Abigail Appel | Aug 24, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-6
Fire Engine 15, Located on Mt. Pleasant Avenue, Reopened Saturday
After Months of Renovations
City Council President Pro Tempore Michael Correia announced that the Fire Station located on Mt. Pleasant Avenue, Engine 15, has fully reopened, as of Saturday, August 22, and the men and women stationed there have moved back in.
“The fire station needed several upgrades and renovations and after months of work I happy to announce that the project is complete,” stated City Council President Pro Tempore Michael Correia. “This project was very important to me and my constituents as Engine 15 is our local station. The station was in desperate need of upgrades and I’m glad that our men and women are back home on Mt. Pleasant Avenue.”
Upgrades and renovations to Engine 15 included new doors and new apparatus bays, lounge area for the firefighters, new bathroom, boiler and emergency generator, and upgrades to plumbing and electrical work.
Pro Tempore Correia continued, “I want to thank the men and women of Engine 15 for bearing with us as we underwent the renovations and would like to thank our contractors and crews for working so hard to get this project completed and this station back online.”
Renovations for Engine 15 came from the City’s Capital Improvement Plan that was passed by the City Council in 2019.
by Billy Kepner | Aug 21, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-14
In recent weeks, violence has risen in our City to an unacceptable level. We have had five deadly shootings in two weeks. Sin Bakery in Providence’s Federal Hill Neighborhood was robbed, and thousands of dollars were stolen. A home on Hawkins Street in the Wanskuck Neighborhood was robbed of 52 firearms in addition to an early morning homicide inside of a smoke shop. Gun violence and other crimes have occurred in almost every corner of our City. As an elected leader in the City that I love, I won’t sit idly by and watch this happen.
I have been calling on our state and federal leaders to enact legislation that would make it harder – not easier – to access a firearm for those that would do harm to a fellow resident. I have called on our leaders to follow the lead at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and recognize gun violence as a public health crisis, and to reinstate funding for research and other programs that would protect communities like ours. Congress has to get off their hands and stop looking to the NRA and start listening to their constituents.
We can debate the issues of the root causes of this deadly public health crisis. Still, we know they stem from systemic racism, poverty, access to affordable housing, organized crime and in some cases, an individual’s mental well-being. Change has to come, and not just from the top down.
If we are to succeed in stemming the violence and addressing this public health crisis, we must do so together.
We must work with our community members who are in need; we must work with our schools and those entrusted in our care; we must work with our colleagues in government to affect change that can serve the many and not the few and demand that important legislation like prohibiting renter discrimination based on source of income get passed out of committee and become law; we must work with our social service agencies who have their boots on the ground and provide them the support they need, and we must work with our police department to ensure that they have the resources and skills to work inside our culturally diverse communities while holding those accountable who wish to inflict harm on our community.
Until we take this public health crisis seriously and demand that leaders at all levels address the systemic issues at hand, we won’t be able to stem the violence.
I pledge today that I will continue to advocate and work with my colleagues to ensure that we can do whatever is within our power at the local level to keep our city safe from violence. We will continue to urge our state and federal leaders to make change a reality and to invest in finding solutions to this ongoing public health crisis.
David A. Salvatore
Providence City Council
Councilor – Ward 14
by Billy Kepner | Aug 21, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-15
Our City has suffered five homicides in the last two weeks alone.
In the throes of a global pandemic, as we as a City wrestle with the resulting economic fallout, and as we as a nation confront centuries of systemic racism, we are witnessing widespread frustration manifesting itself in many ways.
Cities all across the country are experiencing a spike in homicides indicative of deeper-rooted issues that have led some to turn to senseless violence.
There isn’t a single agency, organization, elected official, or municipal department that can quell this surge alone.
The remedy will require a community-wide response that holistically addresses the causes and not the symptoms.
We must support our diversion programs and non-violence advocates like our City partners at the Nonviolence Institute. We must continue to work towards increasing the affordable housing stock in our City, so no parent turns to desperation to pay their rent. We must strictly adhere to mask-wearing and social distancing guidelines to help fully reopen our economy as soon as possible and get our community members back to work. We must fully commit to a long-term school turnaround plan if we want to provide our youth with new pathways for success. We must support legislation that reduces the number of firearms that end up on our streets.
We must do everything possible to pull in our most at-risk community members and instill in them a sense of purpose and dignity and not push them away when they need us most.
Violence is the manifestation of lack of resources in our community and a sad reminder that we are all connected and like the virus, requires that all of us take part in the process to eliminate it.
Sabina Matos
President-Providence City Council
Councilwoman-Ward 15
by Abigail Appel | Aug 20, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-1, Ward-10, Ward-14, Ward-3, Ward-6
Several years ago, the City of Providence asked taxpayers to borrow $40 million to repave some of our worst roads. Included in the road improvement program was Admiral Street, which was repaved by the City of Providence. In short order, National Grid completely destroyed the street. I have been asking politely for years that National Grid fix the street that they have torn up repeatedly.
If this were a City issue, I would have had it fixed the day it happened. National Grid has an obligation to fix this street, and after years of me asking and demanding, they must comply.
When the City Council returns in September, I will be introducing a resolution demanding that the City of Providence cease issuing National Grid permits to conduct work on our streets until they repair the damage they have caused.
Per their permit agreement with the City, National Grid is required to return streets that are opened to their original composition. Admiral Street was newly repaved when they first began the work there, and I expect nothing less than a curb to curb complete re-pavement from beginning to end.
David A. Salvatore
Providence City Council
Councilor – Ward 14
