PVD's Amended FY26 Budget & Other Updates

Hello Friends & Neighbors,

It is officially summer in Rhode Island! While the summer brings so many great things in our City and State, heat waves like the ones we just experienced can also be very dangerous. Please remember to check on your neighbors and friends and take advantage of the City's cooling shelters as needed.

As always, there is a lot going on in the City. While a large part of my focus the last few weeks has been on the City's FY26 budget -- the other work of the City also continues. Because of that, this is a longer than normal newsletter - but please reach out with any questions:

Providence's FY26 Budget:

After a very thorough review of the Mayor's proposed budget, careful listening to the testimony given by residents, a good deal of analysis and negotiation within the City, and additional engagement with the General Assembly -- the Council has released our amended version of the City's FY26 budget. You can see the press release here. Below I'll share more detail on the major changes that have been made & the process from here. Chairwoman Helen Anthony also included a detailed summary of the changes in her latest newsletter, which you can read here.

Next Steps:

• We will be holding our final public hearing on the budget on Monday at 5:30pm in the Council Chambers. Please feel invited to come testify in person and/or submit written comments on the changes to the City Clerk at CityClerk@providenceri.gov

• Finance Committee Vote on Amended budget: Monday June 30th after the Public Hearing

• First Passage of FY26 Budget: July 7th

• Second Passage of FY26 Budget: July 14th

Changes in Amended Budget:

This was an extraordinarily difficult budget year, and I am grateful to serve on the Finance Committee to be at the table every night as part of the process to thoroughly vet this proposal. The Council was able to make several changes that I believe are responsive to the testimony we heard at our Public Hearing -- and the feedback that I heard from many of you who personally reached out to me to discuss your questions and concerns.  

• Overall Levy Increase of 5.85%, well below the 8% authorized by the State legislature. This will be from a combination of changes to our fines and fees throughout the City  & some carefully weighed changes to property taxation. Because the City's finances are challenging, we worked with the Finance Department to provide analysis and ensure we should not need to ask for levy exemption again next year.

• Sustainability Policy Associate: I am particularly pleased that we were able to add this position back into the City budget and prevent a termination of an employee doing important work. The Sustainability Department has been doing an amazing on many initiatives - and has also saved the City money through their investments in energy efficiency and clean energy, as well as through better management of the payment of our utilities. A lot of residents testified in support of this position, and you were heard.

• Seasonal Recreation Programming: This was a smaller, but essential line item for seasonal needs in our Recreation Department that we added back to the budget. These programs are vital for our kids and families.

• Bulky Item Pick-Up fees:  We added back funding to remove fees for residents for bulky item pick ups from Waste Management. While many municipalities do charge for these pick-ups, many Councilors had concerns it would lead to illegal dumping, which would just increase and shift the cost to clean up.

• Additional State Aid: Big gratitude to Speaker Shekarchi and the General Assembly for increasing aid to the City in their final state budget. This was instrumental in allowing us to reduce the overall levy. The State also approved changes to the tax classifications that allowed us to consider different tax rates for single family homes compared with 2-5 unit residential buildings (1-5 unit buildings were previously all required to have the same tax rate).

• Increasing Fairness across tax classes: In the most recent revaluation, 2-5 unit residential buildings saw the largest increase in valuation.  Chairwoman Anthony's team did an extensive analysis of these properties.  Owner occupied 2-5 unit buildings are a critical piece of our housing economy - and oftentimes owner-occupied landlords will keep the rents as low as possible for their tenants while maintaining high standard of living. Unfortunately, these properties are also the target of investment companies, who are aggressively buying them across our city. These properties are also subject to the state's new lead removal programs, which while vital for health and safety of renters, has been an additional added costs for "mom & pop" landlords.   A dramatic swing in their taxes could put a key element of affordable housing at risk, and we were committed to increasing fairness.  The new tax classification and rates in our proposed amendment are below.

Other Updates:

• Miriam Wave to Work Program Launch:  This month, we celebrated Miriam Hospital joining RIPTA's Wave to Work Program! When Miriam presented on their anticipated construction at both a recent Ward 3 meeting and to the North Main Street Task Force that I lead, we discussed parking challenges for their staff. I helped facilitate a new partnership between RIPTA and Miriam and now over 200 Miriam employees are signed on to the Wave to Work program! A win-win for reduced congestion in the neighborhood, employee benefits, and reduced pollution from cars! Thank you to Miriam and RIPTA for being excellent partners.

• Summer Meal Sites: With school out of session, there are free summer meals sites across the City - including many Parks and Libraries!  See the full list here: https://epl.providenceri.gov/community-meal-locations/  

  
  

• Updates to North Main Street: The North Main Street Task Force is funning full steam ahead -- we reported a good deal of progress at our June meeting, including:

  • Installation of 35 new LED Streetlights to increase visibility across the corridor

  • Progress toward installation of pedestrian level decorative lighting between Olney and Doyle to increase safety and walkability -- installation planned for early summer.

  • Tree trimming across the whole corridor by the City and RIDOT for increased visibility, while maintaining trees.

  • Updates to intersection of North Main and Benefit: This has been a much-cited intersection for safety and confusion among drivers merging into North Main from Benefit. After a brief trial with cones, DPW will be installing more permanent infrastructure to fix this intersection by early July. Keep an eye out for upcoming installation of planters at this intersection, courtesy of Bloom RI and the Providence Streets Coalition!

  • To see an update on the Metro Connect project from RIPTA, you can watch the presentation on the City's Open Meetings Portal

  • After long-last, the City and RIDOT are finally signing paperwork on the State Transportation Improvement Program funds designated for North Main Street!  Future North Main meetings can begin digging in on the larger design questions and processes for the corridor!

• Parking near Moses Brown:  Thank you to everyone who weighed in on the parking adjustments on Morris and Olney near Moses Brown school. As DPW and I shared in our community meeting, these types of restricted parking initiatives are very common across the City near large institutions - Moses Brown was not being singled out in any way. After listening to the comments at the meeting and through the emails and calls and meetings I have had, we are keeping the signage, but will have conversations with Moses Brown over the summer with the Parking Administrator as well as RIPTA to see what ways we can be great neighbors to each other moving forward while addressing these congestion concerns. As any adjustments are planned, I will share via this newsletter and upcoming community meetings.

Upcoming Meetings & Events:

• Ward 3 Community Meeting on July 14th at 7pm:  Join me for our next Ward 3 Community Meeting in July -- location is still being finalized! We have invited staff from 311 to discuss changes that have been made to the system, and I can share more information about the City's budget and other community updates!

• Roger Williams Memorial Celebration - August 21:  The Roger Williams National Memorial is turning 60! This national park has been dedicated to the teachings of religious freedom and diversity of thought for well over half a century, and I am looking forward to celebrating this big milestone with them! Come join the celebration!

• Events at NBG:  North Burial Ground is always having great events! Are you following their social media to find ways to engage?  

• Rochambeau Library:  We are so lucky to have the Rochambeau Library in our community - and they do a lot of events throughout the year, particularly in the summer!  Don't forget to follow their social media: https://www.facebook.com/RochambeauLibrary

  
  

Sue in the Community

While it's been an extraordinarily busy time on Council, I have made it a priority to attend community events and meetings! Between newsletters, you can follow where I've been/what I've been up to via my Facebook or Bluesky accounts. But recently, I was particularly thrilled to help celebrate the Ribbon Cutting for Empire Guitar on North Main Street (at 10th) and the Pride Parade and Festival!

Gratitude:

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you on the Providence City Council. Especially right now, it is vital for local governments to be actively working on behalf of our constituents. I am at City Hall just about every night, and am meeting with constituents or replying to emails and working on legislation every weekend. It's a true honor that I don't take lightly. Thank you for enabling me to serve.

With Gratitude,

Councilor Sue AnderBois