Side of the Rhode: Who's Hot and Who's Not
Russell J. Moore, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™
Side of the Rhode: Who's Hot and Who's Not
Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not - April 24, 2015
HOT
Michael Stephens
What a year it's been for Providence native Mike Stephens. First, the NCAA basketball referee officiated the league's most important game, the national championship, last month. This week he's been named the City of Providence's Recreation Director - a job to which Stephens is well-suited and qualified.
HOT
Miriam Hospital
The hospital located on Providence's East Side has attained the Magnet Recognition as part of the American Nurses Credentialing Center's program for the fifth time--one of only four hospitals nationwide to do so. The nurses at the hospital deserve a serious hat tip for their professionalism and devotion to their patient
HOT
Diego Luis Perez
The owner of Flan restaurant, located in Providence, pointed out that the permitting process and regulatory environment in our state is downright Byzantine. He also pointed out that our state politicians love to talk about helping small businesses, yet treat them harshly, while simultaneously rolling out the red carpet for well-connected insiders like Pawtucket Red Sox President and owner James Skeffington. That's leadership. Good for Perez!
HOT
Hasbro
The Pawtucket based company was ranked second in the nation for the category of "Best Corporate Citizen" by Corporate Responsibility Magazine. The company scored high marks for the human rights and philanthropy categories, which catapulted the company to the high distinction, being bested only by Microsoft.
HOT
Kris Dunn
That loud exhale you heard on Wednesday afternoon was the collective sigh of relief from Providence College basketball fans across the state when the news broke that Dunn will return to PC next year instead of going into the NBA draft. With Dunn returning, PC's immediate future is once again bright.
HOT
St. Joseph's Health Center
St. Joseph's Health Center's Fresh Food Program celebrated its one-year anniversary yesterday. In partnership with the Rhode Island Food Bank and the Federal Hill House, the program has distributed about 36,000 lbs of fresh food to low-income Rhode Islanders over the last year. Let's hope the the program continues going strong.
NOT
Laurie White
The President of the RI Chamber of Commerce told GoLocalProv.com that conceptually, the plan from the Pawtucket Red Sox ownership which would have taxpayers pay the wealthy ownership group $120 million over 30 years so that they can build a stadium, is "exciting." The Chamber of Commerce should oppose this monstrosity because it is unfair to all the other businesses in this state who try to succeed in a horrific tax and regulatory climate--without any help from the taxpayers.
NOT
Gina Raimondo
The Economic Development Corporation, chaired by Governor Gina Raimondo, (who told us she was an expert in business and economic development during last year's campaign), voted to spend $150,000 to study the proposal to that would force taxpayers to spend upwards of $120 million (over 30 years) to build a stadium for the team's well-connected owners. It doesn't take a huge study to know that the proposal would be a godsend for the team's wealthy owners, but a ripoff of taxpayers.
NOT
100th Anniversary of Armenian Genocide
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the attempted genocide perpetrated against the Armenian people by the Ottoman government, and this is important to our state since RI has one of the largest percentages of Amernian-Americans in the nation. Let's use this day to remember the victims and to remind us that a government that doesn't respect the rights of the ethnic minorities of the population is no legitimate government at all.
NOT
Tiverton Casino Proposal
Does the sleepy town really need a casino? The owners of Twin River, who now own Newport Grand, have proposed to close the facility there and move it to Tiverton, which may not be so welcoming to that sort of facility.
NOT
Pawtucket Red Sox Owners
GoLocalProv reported this week that the Pawtucket Red Sox ownership group has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Rhode Island political leaders. Let's hope they don't think that means that our political leaders are for sale. And if they do think so, let's hope they're wrong!
NOT
Wealth Inequality
GoLocalProv's Stephen Beale reported yesterday that there's some serious wealth inequality here in Rhode Island, with East Greenwich, Jamestown, and Providence leading the pack in that undistinguished category. The solution--economic growth--is simple, but elusive. Here's hoping that our leaders adopt policies that encourage economic growth for everyone in Rhode Island.
