Two Tales of the Same City - Gleaming Buildings and Roving Violent Teens in Providence
Friday, August 23, 2019
Providence is a city of contradictions.
In the same ten-day period, there were press conferences for gleaming new structures -- in sharp contrast with youths on hi-jacked JUMP bikes terrorizing and assaulting pedestrians.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTProvidence is a city that is building the new, but failing to maintain the old. New initiatives and new structures are popping up while Providence is struggling to provide basic city services.
GoLocal talked to a range of community leaders and elected officials to identify the failures -- and identify solutions to the growing number of complex problems facing the capital city.
“As far as the Jump Bikes are concerned, look, these bikes work in New York and Boston. Crime hasn’t increased [in Providence] because we have Jump Bikes. We've always had crime — the only difference is the Jump Bikes gives them the ability to get away quicker,” said Pilar McCloud, who is the CEO and founder of A Sweet Creation youth organization, which was founded in the Olneyville section of Providence.
“The Mayor says crime’s down — clearly it’s not. Perhaps the reports aren’t as accurate as they should have been,” she adds.
Providence and state officials have been on a string of high profile press events unveiling bridges, innovation centers and plans for revamped train stations.
At the same time, residents and visitors have suffered through a series of violent incidents, failed Providence city services and the national embarrassment of a failed school system.
Governing by Press Conference
“In launching any new product or service most successful businesses apply effective strategies such as market research among diverse populations, revenue forecasting, economic feasibility, tools to measuring outcomes to determine if desired results are being accomplished or if such an idea has a significant demand within its targeted audience, as well as testing a new initiative before making that product/service permanent or expanding it,” said Dwayne Keys is the Chair of the South Providence Neighborhood Association.
“Did the City of Providence apply such principles to these projects that are now facing such challenges? From my assessment it appears that such methods were not applied, either not entirely or not at all, and thus no plans were created for the City to be prepared to deal with such outcomes,” said Keys.
New Initiatives - Lack of Planning
From Jump Bikes and scooters to 311 apps and a series of social services announcements, the administration of Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza has rolled out an endless number of new initiatives, but is criticized for keeping up with basic city services and proper maintenance of new programs.
“Are the ‘shiny objects’ working? No — they are creating an attractive nuisance, and it’s becoming serious. The Jump Bikes are aiding and abetting in [crimes]," said State Representative John Lombardi. "We had an incident in my district where we had a robbery [by someone on a Jump Bike]. Isn’t anyone telling anyone you’ll go to jail for this? Again, we need to be doing more. There should be faith-based initiatives — I’m sure the churches would be willing to work with rec centers and the schools. And shouldn’t the schools be open longer."
“I believe that a lot of these new programs are great ideas, but they sometimes lack follow-through and attention to detail necessary for enjoyment. The new pedestrian bridge is a good example of this. I don’t believe the City anticipated the amount of foot traffic, and with that trash, this new bridge would attract. I have spoken to the administration and I believe that they have this now under control,” said Providence City Council President Sabina Matos.
“As for the JUMP Bikes, other cities have done this successfully, and I think we need to look at how New York and Boston have created successful programs and look at best practices,” she added.
Providence Councilman Michael Correia said, “We really need to sit down and look at all the specifics of added pressures that [these initiatives] will place on city departments. The pedestrian bridge I think will be the Parks Department — and when we open both sides, the grass will need to be mowed — it will put stressors on our parks department. We need to look at the big picture with the city and with the developers.”
“It’s great that we’re doing this but it comes with a price tag in the long run. I would recommend that in our discussions in taking on these responsibilities, that we look at more private-public partnerships to help. Maybe with the Downtown Improvement District and working with the yellow jackets, if we can expand them. And this is another burden on the police department. It’s a big draw — and [police numbers] are at an all-time low,” added Correia.
Pedro Espinal, a candidate for the Ward 10 City Council seat tells GoLocal, "The best way to manage new initiatives is to plan for them properly. When these become ‘pop-up’ initiatives like we saw with the scooters, where they literally popped up overnight, they are bound to become problems. The first step in any city-wide initiative is community input and involvement before implementation. I think it is great when we innovate and increase alternative transportation methods, but there is only one right way to do it and that is for the city and private entities to include the residents at every stage of planning, development and implementation."
Need to Fund and Plan for the Ongoing Costs
As GoLocal reported, just three days after the VIP-laden press event unveiling the new $21.9 million pedestrian bridge, the city had failed to clean and remove piles of garbage from the new facility.
"Should the city take into consideration the associated issues when weighing undertaking new initiatives -- especially in light of the needs of the Providence schools, understaffed police and fiscal realities of the city? Of course! Before implementation, every aspect of a new initiative should be considered. These include fiscal impact, community input, the potential strain on public resources, and potential issues post-implementation. As a city, we need to do better about thinking ahead before problems arise," said Espinal.
Similarly, Nick Cicchitelli, President of the Fox Point Neighborhood Association said, "Whether it's Jump [Bikes] or growing pains at the pedestrian bridge, what we're really talking about are quality-of-life issues. And that absolutely should be a priority of the city of Providence. Structural problems in certain departments deserve criticism, and reform, no question. But we cannot be a city that says no to beautification and other quality-of-life issues and then practically thinks there's going to be a magic economic beanstalk."
Downtown Neighborhood Association's founder Rich Pezzillo says, “The Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) is committed to working with the City to ensure that the necessary attention and funds are allocated to projects like the new pedestrian bridge to ensure that it is properly maintained and remain safe. The DNA has seen firsthand what neglect can do to areas of the City. When the Riverwalk was installed over 20 years ago, there was no long-term plan to maintain and update it. In just three years we established a partnership with the Providence Parks Department and had nearly 200 volunteers paint and repair over 1.5 miles of our Riverwalk from the Hurricane Barrier to WaterPlace Park. The hard work and dedication of so many has been transformational to this part of the City."
Lack of Experience in City Hall
One community leader says it is critical to have local and experience community leadership.
McCloud said, "Get people who live here. If we have housing issues, there’s no reason Dwayne Keys isn't asked to be on a commission — or on education, that you don't have Kobi Dennis or myself. There are enough people that do community service — I’m not talking about the flashy non-profits and people getting a check — we’re the ones who give it to you raw. The city doesn’t seem to value its residents until something goes wrong, and then they say don't point fingers, don’t place blame. Look --- there are no clean hands."
She adds, "Get people from the neighborhoods to sit on these committees, not your first-job out of college staff on their Fisher Prices and My First Sony, these new babies that came here for college and now they have a job with a city they never lived in."
