Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - September 20, 2024

HOT

Those Who Help Make Rhode Island Great 

The Providence-Warwick Convention and Visitors Bureau (PWCVB) has honored 28 frontline industry workers, nominated by the leadership at their organizations, with Hospitality Hero Awards.

They are:

- Josh Antuna, Archery Host at Archery Games
- Jonathan Campion, Bartender at Bally's Tiverton Casino & Hotel
- Manny and Raul Colon, Housemen at Bally's Twin River Casino Resort
- Christopher Manfredo, Bartender/Barback at Bally's Twin River Casino Resort
- Emma Corcoran, Server at Crow's Nest
- Eriq Isom, Customer Service Representative at Fogo de Chao
- Alberto Gomes, Busser at Fred & Steve's Steakhouse
- Bryan Sawyer, Chief Operating Officer at Gloria Gemma Foundation
- Surania Montes De Oca De Amarante, Front Desk Agent at Hampton Inn & Suites Providence Downtown
- Jeanet Yanez, Laundry Attendant at Hilton Garden Inn Providence
- Vilma Rodas, Housekeeping Supervisor at Hilton Providence
- Jairo Padrino, Banquet Captain at Hotel Providence
- Odena Gutierrez Chacon, Room Attendant at Hotel Viking
- Marie Smith, Banquet Lead at Newport Harbor Hotel & Marina
- Quilcia Moronta, Barista at Omni Hotel
- Nicholas Vitale, Senior Account Executive at PEAK Event Services
- Claudia Hatfield at the Providence G Pub
- Michael Houston, Engineer at Providence Marriott Downtown
- Patricia Sammartino, Tour Guide at Providence Tour Company
- Adam Good, Group Housing and Sales Coordinator at Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel
- Scott Leonard, Engineering Supervisor at Residence Inn Providence Downtown
- Angie Fields, Server at Rooftop at the G
- Seth Brown at Sarto
- James Louis, Guest Service Agent at The Dean Hotel
- Jeffery Gauvin, Server at The Vig
- Brandon Rivera, Director of Sales at TPG Hotels, Resorts and Marinas
- Frank Garguilo, Busser at Wicked Good Bar & Grill

HOT

NCAA’s Dan Gavitt: The Legacy Continues

Kevin Stacom writes:

It’s a well-known and often used theatrical device to begin a story in the present only to quickly jettison the audience back in time to give context and a better understanding of the main character involved.            

In putting together this article on Danny Gavitt and considering his background and the scope of his experience before his current job as Senior Vice President of Basketball for the NCAA, I  couldn’t help but recall in my mind’s eye conversations I had with his Dad, Dave Gavitt, the year I had to sit out a year after transferring into Providence College to play basketball.

Coach Gavitt was very gracious in going out of his way to make me feel included and connected. Even though I was allowed to practice with the team, I couldn’t play in any games that year, which can be very disorienting to any young player. It was great to be around someone you instinctively knew from whom you could learn so much.              

It was in one of these conversations when he was taking me out to lunch one afternoon that I remember Coach saying, “Why do all those players you know of from NY all leave the City and the northeast to go out west to places like UCLA or go down south to North or South Carolina, or the Midwest, etc., it’s because all those places are able to offer the excitement and facilities associated with Conference play.”

It wasn’t till a few years later in 1979 that I realized Dave was already formulating in his mind how to conjure up the concept and execute a plan to formulate and establish a basketball conference of his own to compete for the best talent in the eastern corridor by offering them a great reason to stay - The Big East.

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HOT

TIME Magazine Names Ken Block "Defender of Democracy"

TIME writes:

Voting booths had been closed for less than 24 hours four years ago when Ken Block’s phone rang. On the other end was a lawyer from the Donald Trump campaign in need of a data pro who could help suss out voter fraud, possibly enough to keep the President in the White House for a second term.

Block, who had spent the seven years leading up to that Nov. 4, 2020, phone call investigating voter fraud, was candid with Alex Cannon: it was going to be really tough, if not impossible, to help Trump’s lawyers find sufficient voter fraud that would stand up in court. After all, voter fraud before 2020 had rightly been treated as a minuscule misdeed and never enough to make a lick of difference in the outcome. 

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HOT

SWAP - Playing the Long Game

There is a lot of talk about trying to solve the housing crisis.

Well, for decades, SWAP has been doing it house by house and street by street.

This week, SWAP announced five newly constructed 2-family homes for sale in Providence…for only $309,000.

These new homes are designed to be affordable for families who otherwise would be unable to purchase a home in most Rhode Island communities.

The Portland Street homes, nestled together on what was previously blighted and unbuildable property, are now part of a new neighborhood.

Sometimes, the answer is staring you in the face.

HOT

Studio Visit with Artist Luke Morrison

Art columnist Michael Rose has a great profile of one of Rhode Island's great emerging artists:

Outside Luke Morrison’s new studio on Harris Avenue, the sounds of the train and the highway blur together, creating a symphony of urban noise. Inside, the artist is at work on a series of modestly scaled acrylic paintings that explore cities and narratives. A painter and teacher, Morrison is making a place for himself in the Providence cultural scene and producing unique artworks in the process.

Morrison earned a BA in Drama from Vassar College and was originally drawn to Rhode Island for Trinity Repertory Company, where he worked in the Costume Department. Alongside his experience in the world of theatre, Morrison has continuously developed his skills as a visual artist, earning his MFA in Painting from Boston University in 2023. He has already exhibited his work in New York, Philadelphia, and Kentucky and through January Morrison is the featured artist at the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts’ Gallery at Block Island Airport.

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NOT

EXCLUSIVE: Drone Shows Dust Blowing Towards Neighbors’ Homes During Washington Bridge Demo

Overnight demolition of the Washington Bridge is spewing dust on the homes in the Fox Point neighborhood in Providence.

GoLocal launched a drone on Sunday night to capture the demolition and the impact on the adjacent homes just a few hundred feet away.

Fox Point residents know they live next to a busy highway, but they did not sign up for oversight jackhammering and dust — dust that neither the State of Rhode Island nor the City of Providence are monitoring.

The demolition is five nights a week for eight more hours.

Drone Video Captures Dust Blowing

At the beginning of the video — filming started a little after 9:30 PM —  a worker can be seen spraying water in an effort to minimize the dust, but that only lasted a few minutes.

Even while the worker was spraying, significant dust can be seen blowing towards the homes.

As GoLocal first reported, Fox Point neighbors have repeatedly complained about the noise from the overnight jackhammering.

In other states, specific environmental controls are required to address the environmental risks relating to demolition. 

In California, the Department of Transportation, known as Caltrans, has regulations to control dust emissions. 

According to Caltrans: 

Nuisance dust can be a hazard and adequate control is required. Water is a common dust palliative used during bridge removal.

Often, dust generated by bridge removal activities has an increased hazard potential. Saw cutting or grinding concrete, or any activity that places silica into the air, is a concern. Excavations that disturb the aerially deposited lead near transportation facilities might produce hazardous dust.

The Contract Specifications, Section 14-11.04, Environmental Stewardship – Hazardous Waste and Contamination – Dust Control, requires any activity that might generate hazardous dust must not result in visible dust migration.

Silica Dangers — Workers and Neighbors
Silica came to prominent attention due to its link to illness and deaths of emergency responders and workers tied to 9/11.

NOT

Warwick's Big Mess

The City of Warwick, after denying a number of sexual harassment claims by a former employee in a federal lawsuit, has reversed course and now admitted to some of her allegations. 

As GoLocal first reported in June, former Warwick Water Division employee Bree Boulais filed a 50-page federal lawsuit alleging she was sexually harassed during her time at the city department — and that, despite reporting the incidents, she was subject to continued harassment, including by Director Terry DiPetrillo. 

Boulais alleges the harassment became so severe that she needed to seek mental health treatment and that she was deprived of her Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) rights before ultimately resigning. 

Following the filing of the federal lawsuit, Warwick Mayor Frank Picozzi announced he was returning DiPetrillo’s donations. 

DiPetrillo took one month of paid sick leave in the summer, followed by a second. 

In August, lawyers for the defendants, who are the City of Warwick, the Warwick Water Division, and Picozzi, backed DiPetrillo and the division, denying the majority of Boulais' claims. 

The city is being represented by Marc and Jeffrey DeSisto of DeSisto Law. 

Now, the same lawyers for the City of Warwick have admitted to a number of Boulais' claims that they initially denied. 

GoLocal has obtained screengrabs of communications that allegedly show Boulais' communications with key individuals that the city first denied, and have now admitted as evidence in the lawsuit.

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NOT

Dirty Dealing: ProPublica's Investigation on Auto Loans Is an Important Look at Industry Practices

"CarMax’s Lender Told Customers, “We’re Here to Help.” Then It Took Their Money and Their Cars."

Jessica Patterson tensed as she tore open the letter from Exeter Finance. “This notice is being sent to you concerning your default,” the company wrote.

She didn’t need to keep reading to know she was in trouble.

It was January 2018. Seven months earlier, she’d borrowed $14,786.07 to purchase a silver Kia Rio. The interest rate was sky high — 25.17% — and the $402 monthly payment was more than a quarter of her take-home pay. But she needed the car to keep her job and support her three young children.

For months she had skimped on groceries, eaten at soup kitchens and even skipped Christmas gifts to pay the car loan. But most of the time it wasn’t enough, and now Exeter was threatening to seize the Kia.

Panicked, she dialed the number in the letter. Can we work something out, Patterson asked.

Exeter’s response came easily, she recalled. It offered to extend her loan.

The company would simply move the December and January payments to the end of her five-year payment schedule, the representative told her, adding two months to the loan’s term. “It was instant relief,” Patterson said.

The extension seemed to be a courtesy from Exeter in a time of need. In fact, the company’s disclosures at the time stated “Extension fee: $0.00.”

The pause in payments, however, was anything but free. What Patterson didn’t know, and what she said Exeter didn’t tell her, was that every penny of her next five payments would go to the interest that built up during the reprieve. That meant she didn’t pay down the original loan balance at all during that time.

While the extension allowed her to keep her car, it added about $2,000 in new interest charges, which the lender did not clearly disclose.

Patterson’s experience with Exeter was not unusual. A ProPublica investigation has found that it’s an integral part of how the company runs its business.

Exeter is one of the largest auto lenders in the nation, specializing in high-interest loans to people with histories of not paying bills or defaulting on debt, a practice known as subprime lending. The company, which has more than 500,000 active loans and a partnership agreement with CarMax, the country’s largest used car retailer, casts itself as a provider of second chances. “We’re here to help,” it says on its website. In reality, Exeter’s practices often do the opposite.

When the company allows a borrower to skip payments, it typically adds thousands of dollars in new interest charges to the customer’s debt. Dozens of customers told ProPublica that Exeter didn’t tell them about the added costs.

When it’s time to make their final payment, many are faced with a huge bill, which they often can’t afford to pay.

At that point, Exeter often repossesses a car and sends the bill to a debt collector, regulatory records show. In some cases, the company makes more money on loans that default than on ones in which borrowers pay on time, ProPublica found.

Critics, including some former employees, say the company’s practices are predatory. “I really hated extensions once I found out what they did to people,” said Tyhara Ross, who worked at Exeter for nearly nine years. “You think you’re getting something for nothing, and you’re not.”

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