Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not?

Friday, January 16, 2015

Russell J. Moore, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™

 

HOT

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James Diossa: The Central Falls Mayor helped apprehend car thieves earlier this week when he noticed people driving a friend's (State Representative Carlos Tobon) car, which had been stolen earlier in the week. Diossa followed the car from a distance and phoned police who apprehended the suspects and recovered the vehicle.

Nicholas Mattiello: The House Speaker is standing firm behind a plan that would exempt social security from taxation—despite criticism from former RI Director of Administration Gary Sasse (who served under Governor Don Carcieri). The economic benefits the state would reap by protecting social security from taxation would far outweigh the short term negative impact to the state budget.

Providence School Board: The Providence Board has sought bids to privatize school bus monitors. It remains to be seen whether the move makes sense from either a fiscal or safety perspective, but kudos to the school board for doing their due diligence by looking for savings.

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The New England Patriots: The Pats prevailing in the Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs last week will have a big positive economic impact for the state. Fans coming in from Indianapolis will be using RI hotels, restaurants, and stores, and that means increased tax revenue and economic activity. Thanks Tom Brady!

MLK Commission: The Martin Luther King Jr. commission, chaired by State Representative Ray Hull (D-Providence), has set up an event to commemorate the life and teachings of the civil rights leader. The event will be held at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Providence next Monday and it will begin at 4 p.m.

Frances Gallo: The Central Falls School District Superintendent announced this week that she’ll be retiring at the end of the year. Gallo never hesitated to put the interests of the students first, and that’s a lesson all educators should emulate.

NOT

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Gina Raimondo: We’ve heard some very big talk from Governor Raimondo about how the state of Rhode Island needs to move away from the cronyism and insider dealing that's plagued us for so long. How True! So why did she appoint Charlie Fogarty, an insider’s insider, with strong ties to the state Senate, as the Director of Elderly Affairs when he has no experience in that field? You're not cutting deals, Governor, are you?

Gary Sasse: It was surprising to see Sasse criticize the social security tax cut plan that's perculating in the House of Representatives, given that he proposed tax cuts to spur the economy as the Director of Admnistration under Governor Carcieri. Sasse, for his part, has had a tendency to come off as a contrarian with respect to ideas that didn’t originate from him and has seldom proposed specific plans of his own.

5th: GoLocalProv reported on Wednesday that a report by the Institute of Taxation and Policy and the Economic Progress Institute found that the state of Rhode Island ranks the 5th worst in the nation for levying regressive taxes on the state’s least fortunate residents. That’s unacceptable and should be addressed.

Frank Ciccione: The State Senator from Providence has proposed a piece of legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants to obtain driver's licenses. That won't sit well with Rhode Islanders who think people who are not legally in this country should not be accommodated with driving privileges, because it undermines people who are following the immigration laws in place.

RI Interscholastic League: GoLocalProv reported that the RI Interscholastic League is allowing a referee with multiple drug related convictions to officiate high school basketball games. That's an ill advised decision considering that the National Alliance for Youth Sports advocates disqualifying anyone with a major legal infraction.

RhodeMap RI: The controversial state plan, approved late last year, is under fire once again. The RI League of Cities and Towns is calling for a mechanism to allow cities and towns to opt out of the plan—which would basically render the plan meaningless.

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Russell Moore has worked on both sides of the desk in Rhode Island media, for both newspapers and political campaigns. Follow him on twitter @russmoore713. Send him email at [email protected]

 

Related Slideshow: Ten Issues Elorza Can’t Hide From

Inauguration activities are now underway for the new Mayor of Providence, Jorge Elorza.  

While the pomp, circumstance, and celebration taking place over the next several days, here are the issues the new Mayor will have no choice but to soon have to deal with.

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Staffing Costs

Elorza has announced a slew of hires to date -- including the position of Chief Operating Officer in addition to Chief of Staff, as well as two Deputy Chiefs of Staff.  Outgoing Mayor Taveras' former Director of Administration was the highest paid city official at $196,086 in total compensation before departing (but retaining a private contract with the city).  To date, Elorza has not responded to requests for salary information for his administration.  Once the budget is submitted he won't be able do hide. 

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One Time Fixes

The current Administration loaded up this current year's budget with one-time stop gap measures.  So while next year's budget gap is projected to be anywhere between $17 million and $24 million, Elorza's also got to factor in where the city will get the money -- roughly $7 million -- from the one time fixes in FY15 that won't be on the table in FY16.  

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Council Relations

When Elorza was elected, and announced his transition team, he didn't give likely council-President Luis Aponte heads up or prior notice. The council has two new faces in the way of Mary Kay Harris and Jo-Ann Ryan, but the remaining 13 seats are returning.  Will Elorza work in tandem with the council -- or will it be a more hands-off approach from the Mayor's office?  

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Body Camera Funding

Since Elorza was elected, the fallout from grand jury decisions Ferguson and New York has brought a new reality to cities -- both in protests and policing.  While law enforcement members said they would support the use of body cameras -- and some community members sided with them, while others did not -- the question is where the funding of both the technology, and manpower to oversee it would come from, given the current constraints of a force that is looking to get up to full complement . 

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195 Development

Developments since election day have included the purchase and sales agreement for a dorm on 195 land -- and reaction from those who are opposed to tax breaks for such a project.  Will Elorza work in tandem with the 195 commission to articulate a vision for the future use of the land, or will it largely be dictated by outside interests?  And with minority contractors looking to be sure to be part of the process, there are more questions than answers at this point.

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East Side Crime

East Side Crime:  In December, residents, and a City Councilman, flagged crime issues on the east side as and issue, and Elorza did not respond to request for comment.  Whether it was a seasonal aberration, or indicative of a long-term trend, the uptick of crime has residents concerned about the safety of the community.  

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Superman Building

Whether it be Citizens Bank or another bidder, the looming behemoth at 111 Westminster continues to need to be addressed.  High Rock Development failed in its attempts over the past two years to gain traction for apartments coupled with retails space.  Will Elorza play a driving role in determining the fate of the downtown anchor?  With the reconfiguring of Kennedy Plaza, whether or not the Superman building can find a tenant is an issue Elorza cannot hide from. 

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Blackstone Boulevard

The initial proposal for a sub-division of the Granofff property on Rochambeau and Blackstone Boulevard -- which faced vocal opposition from neighbors -- did not pass the City Planning Council.  But could the team of Granoff, Moses, and DeRentis, husband of Chief Operating Officer Brett Smiley, come back to the table for a new lot subdivision based on new lot allotments? If so, Elorza will have a major issue on his hand that he's been able to stay out of until now.  

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Labor Issues

Following an election that saw most of labor's support got to Cianci, labor issues are at the forefront.  "Right now one of my top priorities is to get a tentative agreement and subsequently a collective bargaining agreement that respects Providence teachers and the amazing work they do everyday," said Providence Teachers Union head Maribeth Calabro.  However, even labor leader Paul MacDonald said he sees bigger issues -- the council. "Can he get the support of the city council will be a bigger challenge for him than labor.  The big question for the Mayor is he willing to work with the Teachers, firefighters, hotel/bartenders and the big one the Laborers union 1033," said MacDonald in Decemb

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Affordable Housing

During the campaign, Elorza's announcement that he would create a bonded $5 million revolving loan program to redevelop foreclosed and abandoned properties in Providence was met with questions from affordable housing advocates as to its impact both on the market, and neighborhood redevelopment.  

"There are lots of questions here.  I'm not sure it's been completely vetted for a long term strategy.  You can't just fix a house and sell it, and cross your fingers and hope it works," said SWAP's Carla DeStefano.  "What this program needs to do is work within the greater context of neighborhood revitalization, and incorporate best practices from other states, and our knowledge."  How Elorza will work with the affordable housing community to articulate his vision -- and succeed -- will be a major test

 

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