Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - August 12, 2022

HOT

Emerging Art Star

GoLocal art contributor Michael Rose had the must-read profile this week on one of Rhode Island's emerging creative stars.

It is always exciting to see great artistic careers take root locally. For artist Kameko Branchaud, Rhode Island is not just the place where she grew up and attended college. It is now the launch pad for the next phase of her creative career. Branchaud, who uses the artist name of Fu’una, earned a BS in Art Education from Rhode Island College and an MA in Art and Design Education from RISD.

Having held educational leadership positions in museums, Fu’una recently returned to RI after a stint of living and working in Austin, Texas. In addition to a day job at RISD, Fu’una is a multi-talented artist whose presence will add much to the state’s cultural mix.

Explaining her artistic moniker, she states, “Fu’una is the name of the creation goddess in the Chamoru creation story. In this story, Fu’una’s brother Puntan asks her to take apart his body and use the pieces to create the world. She takes his body parts and uses them to create the earth, sun, moon and rainbows, before adding her own body to the earth. One thing I am most proud of about being Chamoru is that we are a matrilineal society that values women, and that is reflected in this story. It feels fitting and empowering to embody this creation goddess in my own creative practice.”

HOT

RI International Airport's $1.4B Impact

State officials, along with Breeze Airways executives, announced on Tuesday that Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport (PVD) will become a base of operations for Breeze Airways starting in 2023.

According to Iftikhar Ahmad, President and CEO of the Rhode Island Airport Corporation, the economic impact is over a billion dollars to the state over ten years —nearly $1.4 billion. 

“Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport is thrilled to become a base of operations for Breeze Airways,” said Ahmad. “The benefits of this wonderful news goes well beyond the airport, and will help create new jobs and new revenues throughout Rhode Island to help grow our local economy for years to come.”

Airport officials have worked for upwards of four years to bring Breeze to RI.

About New Base 

Breeze Airways has committed to opening a base at Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport beginning in 2023. Over a 5-year ramp-up period, Breeze Airways will base 6-8 aircraft at PVD, most of which will be the Airbus A-220, a brand new aircraft with industry-leading fuel efficiency. 

HOT

New Restaurants

There has been a nice new pace to exciting new restaurants opening.

This week GoLocal featured two.

Greenwich Cove Kitchen 

The team at Dig In Dining, which was founded by Ed Brady and Jeff Quinlan and counts numerous Thirsty Beaver locations and Huck’s Filling Station among its offerings — is launching their latest endeavor. 

Greenwich Cove Kitchen is slated to open on Post Road in Warwick, and “Dig In” is hiring. 

“Our team at Dig In Dining & Entertainment has immediate openings for our newest location set to open in Warwick, Rhode Island. If anyone has any friends that are interested in growing with our team we are hiring servers, bartenders, hosts, and line cooks!” Announced Brady. 

“We also have immediate opportunities for projects in Westerly and Wakefield. Interested applicants please email [email protected],” he added.

In June, Brady and Quinlan announced they were opening another Thirsty Beaver, and the team also revamped the Park Theatre over the past year.

New East Side Eatery

As GoLocal reported at the end of July, a new eatery is coming to Providence’s East Side. 

Now, more details are emerging. The buildout of the space has been going on for months.

Signage is up at the location on Elmgrove Avenue for “Food Beat Grill,” which currently has two locations in Massachusetts — and one in North Providence. 

The menu features wraps, falafel, salads, bowls, soups, and more. 

The commercial block on Elmgrove Avenue already counts a deli (the Butcher Shop) and a donut shop (Knead) among its offerings. 

HOT

Brown Scientist

The universe is in focus at Brown University -- and its early secrets may be found on the far side of the moon — according to researcher Jonathan Pober.

NASA announced this that Pober is among six recipients of the Nancy Grace Roman Technology Fellowship in Astrophysics, which will support his work in advancing an ambitious NASA-funded project to design a giant radio telescope array on the far side of the moon.

Pober is an assistant professor of physics at Brown University. NASA’s Roman Technology Fellowship aims to help young researchers develop innovative technologies that have the potential to enable major scientific breakthroughs in the future.

According to Brown, Pober will utilize the $350,000 grant over three years — and he will be eligible for another three-year grant of up to $500,000. The funding will help advance the concept of the radio telescope, simulating and designing an array of thousands of radio telescopes on the far side of the moon, shielded from the radio noise produced on earth.

“A successful mission design will require a team with expertise in radio antenna design, space systems engineering, astrophysical cosmology, and data science,” Pober said. “The Roman Technology Fellowship will provide funding to assemble key personnel with expertise spanning these areas, delivering key technological advances to make this concept a reality.”

NASA has committed to exploring this novel antenna array, referred to as “FarView” — and previously called the “Cosmic Dawn Mapper.”

“It’s an ambitious project,” Pober said. “This grant is just for simulation and design of a future experiment that could be on the far side of the moon.”

HOT

RI Ranked 5th Best State in U.S. to Have a Baby, Says New Report

Aside from the difficulty of giving birth during a public health crisis, new mothers will also have to worry about the cost. One of the biggest expenses to keep in mind is medical bills. The average conventional delivery in the U.S. costs over $3,000 with insurance, and without insurance it could cost over $10,000.

"Birthing costs, however, won’t hit your wallet as badly in some states as they will in others. Expenses can vary significantly, considering the wide disparities in cost of living. They can also differ from one pregnancy to another, given that some women experience delivery complications. But there’s more to think about than just cost. Some states provide better quality health care service and better environments in which to care for children," states WalletHub in releasing its new report.

HOT

A Grammy Award-Winning Superstar Loves Providence

He’s been nominated for nearly 150 music awards and has won nearly 50, from a Grammy for his 2016 album “Dale” to an American Academy of Achievement award for arts and philanthropy. 

And on Wednesday — he was dining in downtown Providence. 

Rapper and singer “Pitbull,” who has sold over 25 million studio albums and over 100 million singles worldwide, was in New England for his concert at the Xfinity Center in Massachusetts — and opted to dine at Public Kitchen and Bar across from the Rhode Island State House.

“[He] had a private dinner in the restaurant in one of our rooms,” Public Bar and Kitchen manager Christopher Moore, who added “Pitbull” — Armando Christian Pérez — had one guest and then was joined by others for drinks.

Moore said the party dined on fresh squash blossoms, lobster mac and cheese, and Faroe Island salmon.  

“He was literally in the restaurant for over five hours,” said Moore, calling the performer “incredibly kind and gracious.” 

NOT

Diossa's Struggle to Complete Ethics Forms

According to James Diossa’s Ethics Commission Financial Disclosure Statement, he, as Mayor of Central Falls, traveled across the world funded in part by payment by third parties. That is not illegal.

However, he is refusing to answer questions if the financially strapped city of less than 25,000 paid for portions of the trips.

According to Diossa's 2020 Financial Disclosure, his travel for 2020 included 26 trips to locations ranging from China, England, Colombia, Israel, and one of the poorest countries in the world — East Timor. Ten of the trips were international. All the trips did not take place in 2020.

It appears that Diossa improperly filled out the Ethics Commission Financial Disclosure Statement and may have reported many of the trips in 2020, but some of those trips took place in earlier years. The 2020 Financial Disclosure Statement should only list those trips which occurred that year.

Diossa, who is running for the Democratic nomination for General Treasurer of Rhode Island, refused to answer questions about the dates and the total costs.

His campaign spokesperson Alisha Pina, issued the following statement, "These were trips that happened over the eight years that James Diossa was Mayor of Central Falls. On these trips, the Mayor benefited from ideas and relationships that made him a better leader for the city."

Pina refused to respond to questions about the total costs of the travel, dates of the trips, and if the Financial Disclosure Statement is correct. 

NOT

Fung's McCarthy Blunder

One of the keys for Republican Allan Fung to win the second congressional district seat is not to allow Democrats to paint him as a right-wing extremist tied to Donald Trump. 

This past weekend he provided Democrats with a perfect photo. Fung and House GOP Leader and top Trump defender Kevin McCarthy appeared at a Fung fundraiser together.

We are sure to see this photo again.

NOT

Where Does Magaziner Live?

Second congressional district candidate Seth Magaziner has a brand new ad. The ad features him, his wife, and their young child in front of a simple ranch house.

However, that house in the ad is not his official residence — his home is on the East Side of Providence, not in the second congressional district, but in the first congressional district.

According to Providence real estate records and Magaziner’s own filing with the Rhode Island Board of Elections Campaign Finance Division, as of August 1, 2022 he lives on Catalpa Road in one of Providence's most expensive sections of the city. 

According to one real estate pricing company, Magaziner's home is worth nearly $1M

Magaziner’s real home is estimated to be worth more than $900,000, according to one real estate pricing firm, and is far-removed from a simple one-floor ranch.

His home has five bedrooms and three and a half baths. The 1900 historic Colonial was purchased by Magaziner in 2016 when he was 33 years old for $530,000, according to records. According to Providence - A Citywide Survey of Historic Resources --  the homes on Catalpa were designed by architects Murphy & Hindle and the development was built by Gilbane Construction Company.

So how does the Magaziner campaign explain the TV house versus his East Side home? They refused to respond to multiple questions about the TV house.

After GoLocal's report over the weekend -- Magaziner announced he is renting an apartment in Cranston.