The Independent Townie

Endorsed Mayoral Candidate Roberto 'Bob' Dasilva with Democratic City Committee Chair John Faria April 24, 2018 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE East Providence Democratic City Committee C/o Julie Silva, Corresponding Secretary East Providence, RI 02914 EPDCC Announces Endorsement for 2018 Election The East Providence Democratic City Committee met under the direction of Chairman John Faria with a large member turnout on Monday, April 23, 2018 at 6:30pm at the Riviera Inn Restaurant located at 580 North Broadway, East Providence, RI 02914 for the sole purpose of our April Business Meeting and Candidate Night. At this meeting we deferred from our regular meeting format and gave each Democratic Candidate running for State & Local office an opportunity to give a presentation and Q&A’s during a 15 minute time slot. All candidates were well received and found the committee interested with strong questions for each office presented.   The Ea...

Ward 4 Councilman Brian Faria Perhaps the most bizarre matter to come out of the LED streetlight discussion was one of Assistant City Solicitor Dylan Conley's reasons for not being able to "drive forward" the LED matter. In a memo that he passed out to the City Council and made available publicly as well as in his public statement, Conley cited an investigation into Councilman Brian Faria, who represents Ward 4. The memo stated "...it was determined that the complaints and allegations dealt with the creation of a hostile work environment, possible violations of the City Charter § 2-12... and accordingly, Rhode Island General Laws §28-50-1 et seq, The Rhode Island Whistle Blowers Protection Act." Section 2-12 of the City Charter relates to interference in the daily administration of the city including directing employees. Violating Section 2-12 is considered a misdemeanor and someone found guilty is removed from the Council. Historically Section 2-12 ha...

"The lawyer's truth is not Truth, but consistency or a consistent expediency." - Henry David Thoreau As was the case at the previous Council meeting , the topic of the LED petition was again a controversial matter with pointed criticism between Councilman Brian Faria and Assistant City Solicitor Dylan Conley, a City Council appointee. At the start, Faria explained his interest in the project since he was elected, but that he became very passionate about it after the death of a colleague of his daughter, who was struck by a vehicle while riding his bike in a poorly lit area. Ward 4 Council Member Brian Faria Faria brought up how frustrated he was at the previous meeting. "I'm a team player, I would ask what is the LED streetlight update" Faria opined "What we really need is good communication between council members and the law department." Faria then called up Assistant City Solicitor Dylan Conley with an update on the matter. ...

Learn about mammals, reptiles and amphibians by Dave Marchetti!    All ages welcome.  Riverside Library Thursday, April 19th 1st Show - 2pm 2nd show - 3pm

Come enjoy Portuguese music, food and fun! Weekend of May 18th - 20th Location 51 North Phillips Street East Providence, RI 02914

Purchase tickets at Ticket Master or Jordan's Liquors in East Providence, RI

Tickets are on sale for Primus and Mastodon!  Saturday, May 26th 5:30pm Location Bold Point Park  600 Waterfront Drive East Providence, RI  Purchase tickets at:  http://bit.ly/BPP_Primus

May Breakfast Location St. Martha's Church 2595 Pawtucket Avenue East Providence, RI 02914 Date and Time May 6th 7 am - 11 am

East Providence Jr. Townies 2018 Football and Cheerleading  April & May Sign-ups Dates Registration will be at East Providence Public Libraries  Weaver Library  41 Grove Avenue East Providence, RI 6 pm - 7:30pm Thursday April 19th Tuesday May 15th - & - Riverside Library 475 Bullocks Point Ave Riverside, RI 6 pm - 7:30pm Thursday April 24th Tuesday May 17th

It's been a little over two months since the notices started hitting East Providence mailboxes regarding a violation in our water supply. The notice, couched in a bunch of required legalese, notified residents of elevated levels of Trihalomethanes (TTHMs) which is a disinfectant byproduct (DBP). TTHMs are formed when disinfectants such as chlorine react to organic matter, like grass, that enters the water supply from the source (Scituate Reservoir). City officials assured residents that the water was safe to drink, citing that exposure over a period of years is required to cause health effects and citing that only one out of four testing points were over the limit. Many residents were confused by the initial notice, the lack of immediate information on the city's website and social media pages and the actions of school officials to cover water fountains and issue bottled water. The matter was reviewed in detail at the February 20th Council meeting . Recently, residents h...

NOTE: Max Brandle is our School Affairs Contributor and a Senior at East Providence High School  East Providence High School has been standing since the Eisenhower Administration. Since it opened its doors in 1952, it has generated thousands upon thousands of citizens who have contributed to our community, and our nation. It has employed countless teachers who possessed a complete devotion to professionalism. The city is always grateful to what has remained the cornerstone of our community for more than half a century. As the ancient maxim goes, “He who opens a school door closes a prison door.”   On March 5th the city council approved the new school bond in a 5-0 vote. The choice of finalizing this bond will now be up to the voters this November. As of early estimate, the new school would cost between $115 to $120 million. Renovating it would cost almost as much, and would only kick the can further down the road. The final cost is now placed at $189 million, wi...

At the tail end of an already testy April 3rd City Council meeting. Ward 4 Councilman Brian Faria questioned the progress of the LED streetlight initiative that he had championed. On October 17th of last year, the City Council approved a resolution , sponsored by Faria, to purchase the current streetlights from National Grid and upgrade them to energy saving LEDs, which would be more energy efficient and cheaper to operate. Faria and other city officials met with National Grid representatives on January 2nd, two and a half months after the resolution, however they were unable to reach a deal with National Grid on the purchase of the current lights. National Grid is demanding $300,000 for the lights, significantly more than other communities, some of which had more lights than East Providence. "It didn't align with the other municipalities that I went out and I inquired with." Faria stated "I met with the DPW in Cranston, they paid $4,400 for I believe it was ...

While the 2018 ballot remains uncertain for the 2018 City Council hopefuls, it just had one more item added. At a special meeting of the City Council last night (April 5th), the Council approved, 5-0 a resolution to move a bond referendum to the next stage. The high school proposal will now proceed to the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), the state Board of Education and eventually to the voters this fall. The Council will have more work to do as a formal bond ordinance will need to be approved per the city's charter. State Fiscal Advisor Paul Luba The Council heard first from the state appointed fiscal advisor, Paul Luba, who is nearing the end of his term in East Providence. Luba took the Council through the fiscal impact of the high school on the five year plan. While Luba cautioned that the city would need to manage its finances carefully, he did not caution against the proposal. The high school would raise the projected tax increases in the five year plan, a...

Dropkick Murphys & Flogging Molly Summer Tour 2018 Saturday, June 16th, 7pm All Ages Bold Point Park 600 Waterfront Drive East Providence, RI 02914 Purchase tickets at: www.ticketmaster.com

  Come Join the   Annual Shore Clean Up by Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse Saturday, April 14 at 9 am - 12 pm Squantum Association 947 Veterans Memorial Pkwy East Providence, RI 02915

"Every single societal issue ends up on the doorstep of the police" Chief Christopher Parella remarked during his introductory remarks at the beginning of Tuesday's Council meeting, where fifteen new officers were sworn in. Nine of the new officers were recruited through the Lateral Entry Program, an initiative started by Parella last year. This includes both K9 Officer Chiko and his handler. The city has saved at least $270,000 on the Lateral Entry Program in training costs. Parella noted that the officers were sworn in by the City Manager but that he wants them to be sworn in front of their elected leaders and the community they serve.  Ceremonial Mayor James Briden swore in the recruits and in most cases, badges were pinned on by loved ones of the newly sworn officers, overseen by Chief Parella and Acting City Manager Malcolm Moore in his capacity as Public Safety Commissioner.

School Committee Member & Building Committee Chair Nate Cahoon Parents, teachers and community members packed the City Council Chamber Tuesday night eager to learn what the City Council would decide on a potential new high school. They were immediately disappointed to hear that the decision would not be made and instead pushed to a special meeting on Thursday night (April 5th). The meeting was not well advertised as many parents and even a school committee member did not know of the change. Still the council heard a presentation from the school department and held a vigorous discussion in the hopes of informing their vote on Thursday night. The School Committee presentation was led by School Committee Member Nate Cahoon, who also serves as the Chair of the Building Committee that has been working on this project. Cahoon, a former Air Force officer, started his remarks by saying that the work he has done on the high school is "the most important thing I've ever done,...

The World of Owls - presented by Julie Anne Collier of Wingmasters, will be at the Weaver Library on Saturday, April 14th at 10:00am. There will be five different native New England owls to see along with a mystery guest.  Learn how the owls use their hearing, powers of sight and flight to survive and thrive in the wilderness. Julie will give a wealth of information including facts and folklore about these wonderful creatures. For adults & Children Please arrive early.  Space is limited.

Event Date, Times & Location Wednesday, July 11th, 7pm Gates open at 6 pm Music starts at 7pm At Bold Point Park on the East Providence Waterfront ⧫ Ticket Information https://www.ticketmaster.com - or - Jordan's Liquors: 199 Taunton Avenue, East Providence, RI