Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - May 14, 2021

HOT

Evan Granoff

Innovate, innovate, innovate.

Evan Granoff shocked the world when he transformed the historic downtown Providence Arcade into micro-lofts. 

Now, he is continuing to transform urban living by selling off the units at condos.

In January of 2020, developer Granoff exclusively confirmed to GoLocal that The Arcade in downtown Providence would be going condo.  America’s first indoor shopping mall will be offered to the tenants first and then to other potential future buyers.

Then, the pandemic hit.

Now, they are on the market, and oh, what a real estate market it is.

HOT

Trinity Rep. Will Be Back

Trinity Rep has announced its 2021-2022 in-person season.

Trinity Rep in Providence has announced that live, in-person shows are coming back -- starting with A Christmas Carol in November.

"The plays in our 2021-22 Season excite us as art-makers, story-tellers, and community-builders. They embody both the intimacy and the spectacle that exist only in the theater. They will inspire us to think differently about our world and our place in it. These are plays that allow us to celebrate our shared humanity, and shine a light on experiences and worlds different from ours," says Trinity. 

"And what’s more, we will do all of these things together – with you. We will rediscover the magic of the communal experience that is live theater. Soon, theater will be live again, and we will all get to live again," the added. 

HOT

Biden Administration Moving Renewables Forward

On Tuesday President Joe Biden’s administration moved forward on the largest offshore wind project. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issued the Record of Decision for Vineyard Wind, the nation’s first large-scale offshore wind project. 

With this final approval, Vineyard Wind should be able to move forward with construction this year and begin operation and provide power to Massachusetts in 2023. 

Last week, Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee has addressed the ongoing regulatory issues facing another major wind project now pending before the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council and said that “the future is here for renewables.”

Rhode Island was once the leader in the country in offshore wind, but is now beginning to fall behind. 

“Those things are going to happen," said McKee addressing the proposed Revolution Wind project — a partnership between Ørsted and Eversource.

The project is slated to create “704 MWs of clean, affordable offshore wind power - providing 304 MW to Connecticut and 400 MW to Rhode Island.”

It is not clear when Rhode Island's regulatory process will be completed.

HOT

Hendricken Football

It is good times for Bishop Hendricken football. Just ten days ago, Hendricken graduate and Michigan edge rusher Kwity Paye was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts with the 21st pick in the first round of the NFL draft.

On Saturday, in the D-I power division, Hendricken won the RI state title 43 to 22 making them state champs for the ninth time in the last 10 years.

See photos here. 

HOT

The Newport Folk Festival is Back

After being canceled during the pandemic in 2020, event organizers have announced a new format for this summer, called "FOLK ON."

"We're excited to announce that we'll be releasing general public tickets for both FOLK ON events at 11 AM ET on Tuesday, May 18," event organizers announced Tuesday.

"This year’s Newport Folk will be configured as two unique 3-Day events (instead of one) taking place July 23-25 and July 26-28," they continued. 

"We will only be offering 3-Day passes for each event at $230 plus fees," said event organizers. "Children are welcome, but we will not be selling children tickets this year. Children 2 and under are free."

Organizers said they are "working intimately with state and local government as well as health officials to ensure our events will set a benchmark for safety and transparency throughout our protocols and communication."

To learn more, visit https://newportfolk.org/2021-info/.

NOT

Elorza's Advisor

Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza on Thursday outlined his new proposal to borrow more than $700 million to pay off the city’s pension fund obligation.

The financial firm that designed the new plan has done bond work for the Elorza administration and is also tied to one of the biggest controversies in modern Rhode Island history.

That same firm, Dallas-based Hilltop Holdings Inc. unit Hilltop Securities Inc. agreed to pay $16 million to “settle any and all claims in a litigation involving the Rhode Island Commerce Corp.” over the infamous failed video gaming company headed by former Boston Red Sox Pitcher Curt Schilling.

Read more here. 

NOT

State Employee (or Quasi) for Life

Former top State House staffer Frank Montanaro has landed a new job at RIPTA as the Executive Director of Facilities and Maintenance.  His salary is $113,100.97.

Under Mattiello, Montanaro served as the head of the Joint Committee on Legislative Services. In that role, he earned $167,948.56 according to state records.

Montanaro was involved in a number of high-profile controversies in his role on Mattiello’s team.

One controversy centered around Montanaro receiving $50,000 in free tuition.

After much outrage and a State Police investigation, he later agreed to pay portions of those funds back and notified Rhode Island College of his plans to repay $41,083 of the nearly $50,000 in free tuition he received.

In 2019, Montanaro was involved in a controversy between Mattiello and the RI Convention Center Authority. In his role as chair of the JCLS, he pressed for an audit of the Authority after the organization disciplined a close political ally of Mattiello.

Those events ended up before a statewide grand jury.

NOT

Dan McKee

When Dan McKee was Lt. Governor he was an outspoken watchdog, calling out Governor Raimondo for failing to support small businesses or when National Grid tried to get huge rate increases.

Now, as Governor, McKee seems to be significantly more muted.

What did he half to say about inside Montanaro getting another $100,000 plus job:

“RIPTA is a quasi-public agency. As a quasi-public agency, RIPTA has its own hiring process. Mr. Montanaro went through that hiring process and the agency determined that he was the most qualified candidate for the position. Any additional questions about RIPTA’s hiring process should be directed to RIPTA.”