May 18 Ward 3 Newsletter - Updates, Budget, and Upcoming Events

Hello Friends & Neighbors,

I hope that this note finds you all well and enjoying these sunnier and warmer days of spring. I know for many, these are difficult and disheartening times. I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Bill Bartholomew on his podcast and discuss things like - how do we bring heart & empathy into government work; how do we build connections among community members and the role of local and state government. Give it a listen here.

As always, there's a lot going on in Providence, so I'll hop right in.

Upcoming Meetings & Events:

Light up Hope for Democracy: Wednesday May 21rst at 7:30pm

Darlene Allen and I would like to invite you to come out, connect, and care for each other as we  “Light up Hope for Democracy.” Bring yourself, your family, and your friends for a peaceful stand out on Hope Street. This is a peaceful stand together - not a protest or an event with political speeches.  You can bring signs. You can sing or play music. You can come and just be. We will have some candles or you can bring your own. We will be a community that stands together against the chaos. We will shine a light for democracy. More information on the Facebook Event.

Share Comments on Billy Taylor Park proposed updates by Friday, May 23rd:

A big thank you to everyone who joined us for our community meeting at Billy Taylor Park last week! The Parks Department is proposing several updates to Billy Taylor Park -- and they want your feedback! If you missed the meeting, you can see more about the proposed improvements on the Parks StoryMap at this link. You can email your comments to Nicole at Nmodi@providenceri.gov.

Ribbon Cutting at Billy Taylor Park Bridge over Cypress St- Thursday May 22nd at 5pm

The Parks Department did an amazing job updating the bridge connecting Billy Taylor Park over Cypress Street with art designed by local artists and fabricated at the Steelyard. Come join me, the Parks Department, the Mayor, and community members to celebrate this amazing new public art!

North Main Street Task Force: May 28th at 5:30pm

Join us for our next North Main Street Task Force meeting on May 28th at 5:30pm on the 3rd floor of City Hall.

Meetings at City Hall:

Interested in following and attendings meetings at City Hall? The Council meets the first and third Thursday of the month at 6pm.  This and all committees can be found on the City's Open Meetings Portal.

FY26 Budget Process Updates

We are mid-way through our evaluation of the Mayor's proposed FY26 budget. A big thank you to everyone who testified at our first public hearing or who submitted written testimony. (There was a high percentage of comments from Ward 3 residents!). You can see the dates of the final department review public meetings and our final public hearing on this calendar managed by Chairwoman Anthony here. The final public hearing will be on June 9th at 5:30pm, and written comment is accepted until then to the City Clerk at CityClerk@providenceri.gov.

I wanted to address two questions I have received about the budget process:

• Are there tax exemptions or discounts for folks who are older, veterans, or disabled?  

Yes!  Currently there are several discounts already in place for folks who meet certain criteria. You can see the current list available here.​

 You need to go to City Hall to apply for these with the Tax Assessor. The City does not have any way of knowing if you qualify if you do not explicitly apply with the Tax Assessor. 

The Mayor's proposed budget also increases several of the exemptions - particularly those for veterans and elderly residents. I am glad to see these exemption increases proposed and will support them in our amended budget.

• Why can't we just ask the Governor for money from the State to offset our budget difficulties?

  
  

The State budget follows a process similar to ours - except the Governor proposes his budget in mid-January (per our Charter, the Mayor shares his/her proposed budget in mid-April). The Governor's proposed budget did not include these types of increases - and in fact, the increased payments to PPSD (which is still under state control) are a big piece of what is driving our budget gap.

The General Assembly is now undergoing their review of the budget. Similar to the City's budget, the State's budget is also tight. The General Assembly is also going to be having to make some difficult decisions as they amend the Governor's proposed budget - particularly also in light of the expected  cuts that are coming from the federal government. While the City is advocating for a number of things that would help alleviate some of our revenue shortfalls through additional fines & fees and local authority, additional general revenue support from the Governor is not a very likely outcome of the State's budget process.

I have been spending most of my nights at City Hall going through the city budget process in Committee, asking a lot of questions, and trying to find some tough solutions. I also want to extend gratitude to the City's Finance Team - Chief Finance Officer Larry Mancini, Director of Finance Sarah Silveria, and Deputy Chief of Finance and Budget Officer Krystal Lindberg. They have been presenting the budget to us in a transparent and thorough way - and spending long nights in the Committee room with us!

Other Updates:

Street Repavement by DPW:

There are several streets scheduled for repavement by DPW in the coming weeks. These are the ones that are coming up in June/July for Ward 3.

• Hillside Ave (North Main St to Swan St/90 Hillside Ave)

  • Concrete/Prep: 06/23/25 – 06/26/25

  • Mill/Pave: 07/10/25 – 07/17/25

• Larch St (Ivy St to 116 Larch St)

  • Concrete/Prep: 06/17/25 – 06/21/25

  • Mill/Pave: 07/10/25 – 07/17/25

• Orms St (at Charles St)

  • Mill/Pave: 06/07/25 – 06/10/25

    
    

Overnight Parking Permits:

A few neighbors have reached out to share that they received tickets for parking overnight on the street. Overnight parking on the street currently requires a permit. To apply for an annual permit, you can fill out the form on this website.

The current system uses your license plate as your permit. So if you see folks parked overnight on your street without a sticker in their window, this does not mean they don't have a pass.

Flag Flying Policy at City Hall

Many folks have reached out to ask me about flag flying policies at City Hall. Throughout the year, as part of cultural and other celebrations, City Hall will fly flags. Among the many flags we've flown include the Peruvian flag, the Dominican flag, the Irish flag, the pride flag, the Israeli flag, and recently the Palestinian flag. The American flag is never removed from our Chambers.

Some folks have asked me why we fly any flags off of City Hall -- and much of the goal is  celebration of our rich and diverse population in the City (and the populations of folks who visit us) in a demonstration that all are welcome here.

One gap we have discovered is that we do not have an official flag ordinance or policy that guides a decision process for when we receive requests to fly flags, which is something we will work on. Without a specific ordinance guiding the process, there could also be serious first amendment issues about picking and choosing which flags we would fly.

Lippitt Park Fountain:

I just wanted to give a big high five to the Parks Department. After a long time trying to find a contractor willing and qualified to fix the fountain at Lippitt Park, Parks Department staff underwent training and fixed the fountain themselves. It is back up and operational! (See below pic!). 

Council passes ordinances to prohibit price-fixing algorithm:

The Council recently unanimously passed an ordinance that will prohibit the use of price-fixing algorithmic software by property owners. This type of software can be used to share information about rental prices among larger landlords and use technology to drive up rental prices. Our housing crisis is both an issue of lack of adequate supply and ensuring protections and fair practices for renters in existing properties. I was quoted in this Providence Journal story about this legislation that this is part of, "figuring out all the tools in our toolbox to lower rent for constituents."

Gratitude:

It is such an honor to represent you at City Hall. As a part-time legislator, there's often more good work to do than hours available in the day, and I am working hard every night at City Hall and in our communities. I hope to bump into you soon at the Farmers Market, on Hope Street for our Light up Hope for Democracy, at a City Hall hearing, or just out and about in the community.  In between newsletters, you can see more about what I'm up to on my social media on Facebook​ and Bluesky​. 

With Gratitude, 

Councilwoman Sue AnderBois

Ward 3, Deputy Majority Whip