Providence Resources, Upcoming Town Hall, Events, Meetings - And more!

Hello Friends & Neighbors,

Happy Spring! I am already starting to see little shoots popping out of the ground & the beginnings of beautiful gardens across Ward 3! Though with the upcoming rain this week, if you're looking for a fun and very "Providence" indoor activity - check out the movie Secret Mall Apartment, ironically playing at the Providence Place Mall. My husband & I watched it last night and loved it -- and bumped into a few Ward 3 neighbors at the show!

As always, there's a lot going on in Providence and City Hall, so I'll jump right in.

Upcoming Events:

Town Hall Co-Hosted with House Speaker Joe Shekarchi - Monday, April 7th at 6pm - Hope High

I am so excited to co-host this Town Hall focused on housing with Speaker Joe Shekarchi. Issues like our housing crisis will require strong action from both state and local governments - and the Speaker has been leading on state level legislative solutions.

April 9th: Special Committee on Environment & Resiliency at 5:30pm - City Hall

The Special Committee on Environment and Resiliency will hear a report on the ProvPort Master Planning process that has been underway for the last year. We'll hear from their consultant GZA, including some early recommendations on zoning changes and the future of the port. We'll also be joined by the Dept of Sustainability.

Mayor's Budget Address - Wednesday April 16th, 5:30 at City Hall - Council Chambers

The Mayor will give his annual Budget Address in the City Council Chambers on April 16th. In his annual address, he lays out his budget priorities and what to expect in his proposed FY26 budget. The budget is then transmitted to the Council and the Finance Committee for a thorough vetting throughout April - June. We will soon have a calendar of dates for Finance Committee meetings and two public hearings, and I will share that with you as soon as it is ready.

A few neighbors have asked about the increased funding to the schools and whether we can require a financial audit. The exact amount of our increased schools funding was mandated by the Courts, which also mandated a financial audit of Providence Public Schools. That audit is underway, and as soon as I have it and can share - I will include a link in this newsletter.

April 17th: Full Council Meeting - 6pm at City Hall in Council Chambers

The full Council meets the first and third Thursday of every month at 6pm.

Upcoming Earth Day Celebrations:

There are so many great ways to celebrate Earth Day in and near Ward 3 this year!  

April 12th: - Springtime Tree Planting with the Summit Neighborhood Association & Providence Neighborhood Planting Program! See flyer for details!

April 26th: Earth Day at Lippitt Park - Hosted by the newly-formed Friends of Lippitt Park! See flyer for details!

April 27th: Earth Day at North Burial Ground: 10-1!

Join us at North Burial Ground for our annual Earth Day Celebration and work day! It'll be a great day to support NBG's work and get your hands dirty with your neighbors in the pollinator garden.  To sign up to volunteer, fill out this form. Breakfast treats will be provided for volunteers!

Morley Field Earth Day Clean up - April 13th!  

Just over the border in Pawtucket, join the Friends of Morley Field and Friends of Moshassuck River to help clean up the park and be part of the fight for environmental justice in Pawtucket!

Additional Updates:

• New 311 System: The Mayor launched a new 311 system in March. 311 is the the best place to let the City know about areas that need service -- such as potholes, broken street lights, requests for traffic calming studies, and more. You can sign up for an account here: https://311.providenceri.gov/  I will also ask the Director of the Mayor's Center for Constituent Services to join us at a future Ward meeting for a demonstration.

• New sidewalks on Hope Street: As part of our Capital Improvement Plan, the Hope Street business district is getting new sidewalks this spring -- and construction is already underway. Thank you for your patience as they finish this work!

• Yard Waste Pick up begins April 14th! You know it's really spring when yard waste pick up begins -- hold off one more week and then you can put out your yard waste in yard waste bags or bins that have the yard waste sticker on them. (I will bring stickers to all upcoming community meetings!).

• Leaf Blower Ordinance update: A few folk have asked about the status of the leaf blower ordinance that I sponsored. We had our public hearing a few weeks ago -- and a huge thank you to everyone who provided written or oral testimony (or both) or who has reached out to me since. Folks provided so much amazing data (and well over a hundred comments) that I have read through, and I committed to a few follow up conversations. I should have an amended version soon to bring back to committee (and will share a link here!).

• Community Choice Aggregation: Most residents of Providence are signed up for Community Choice Aggregation for the Supply portion of your energy bill. (You'll remember this launched in spring 2023!). The new summer rates were just announced and continue to be slightly lower than the rates offered by RI Energy's Last Resort Service -- even with higher levels of renewables! You can see the rates below & also at this website.

• Big Congrats to Ward 3 residents Helen Baskerville Dukes & Toots Zynsky for being honored as "Women Leading the Way" at Congressman Seth Magaziners' annual Women's lunch! You are amazing women, and you make us all proud!

• Join Summit Neighborhood Association: I hear from neighbors every week looking for new ways to get involved in the neighborhood. Especially with the chaos happening at the federal level, engaging in and supporting community is especially important right now.  The Summit Neighborhood Association is looking for new members! Learn more here: https://www.sna.providence.ri.us/

  
  

Gratitude:

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to join neighbors at the Unitarian Universalist Church on Benevolent Street for a conversation about housing and homelessness. I shared some of the work that my Council colleagues and I are working on and listened to the experiences and thoughts of the other panelists and attendees. I was so inspired by the passion and generosity of spirit of our neighbors and friends across Providence working to support our community.

I was also recently invited to check out Gather RI's new space on Broadway and go on a tour with Gather RI's leaders and a few badass women. What an inspiring afternoon learning about all that GatherRI will bring to women and gender expansive folks in RI. Check out their website here, and stay tuned for info on their formal launch this fall!

As always, it is an honor to serve as your City Councilor. Please reach out any time via email.  The volume of correspondence I have received recently with the revals and upcoming city budget has been quite high - but I strive to provide timely responses to every single email I receive. In between newsletters, you can find me on Facebook​ and Bluesky (@sueanderbois.bsky.social​). 

With Gratitude,

Councilor Sue AnderBois