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In the news… for the week ending for Sept. 30, 2023
RHODE ISLAND & VICINITY
Lack of referees for local sports – 106 games have been moved from “Friday Night Lights” to Thursday night
Cranston Fall Festival rescheduled to October 1st
Cranston Fire Dept event (fundraiser for Oaklawn Ave. residents outplaced due to flood) rescheduled to Sept. 30th
The National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification will hold their 26th Professional Practices Institute at the Renaissance Hotel, October 18th to the 20th.
Del’s Lemonade is struggling to keep their new flavor, Apple Cider, in stock.
Tolgate & Pilgrim HS will be built new with $350 bond in Warwick
RI NCAA President, Gerard Catala, recently replacing Jim Vincent, had a charge of assault dropped – still faces campaign finance charges from a former run for office
RI Shark license plates will start to appear on RI cars next week
$1.4Billion being invested in rail infrastructure
Textron will produce a 1,500 fleet of jets for NetJets
Woonsocket Middle School, long vacant, is being targeted for 150 apartments
Columbus Statue from Providence has been installed on the island in Johnston on 9/26
Pawtucket Apex building proposal to bring pickleball to the building denied due to concerns about asbestos
Johnston War Memorial Park new home for the Providence Columbus statue – will be unveiled Columbus Day weekend (Mon)
URI adds a fall graduation ceremony for undergrads and graduate students who complete in this timeframe
Five Taunton police officers get slashed by a person being taken into custody. Police Chief subdues assailant, even though he was also wounded.
RI Energy electric bills expected to rise by 25% in RI
Butler Hospital will add a short stay area for 25 people – will be ready next year
Venus de Milo is reopening for functions and take-out in early October
RI Energy will replace our electric meters with “smart meters” starting late next year – they will feed energy info to the company every 15 minutes
RIPTA’s pilot free bus program continues another month
COVID vaccine has had some glitches in availability – if not available at your choice location it should be within a week
Brown Univ. is experiencing an uptick in COVID – as soon as the university can get the vaccine, they will be offering it to students
Brown Univ. School of Public Health celebrated its 10-year anniversary
West Warwick and other local police are warning the public that certain panhandlers are an organized group from Romania (via Texas), who have been aggressively panhandling at street intersections throughout the area
Former Rep. Anastasia Williams will work at the Providence Recreation Department as a liaison to the community. Widespread rumors that she will run for her prior office again
The AMP has installation of a new roof, state of the art flooring and seating going in
The RI AG office will take over investigation of the Block Island fire that destroyed the Harborside Hotel
US Coast Guard Tall Ship “Eagle” is in Boston for 3 days.
A gallery type auto store in Pawtucket near the new train station will sell classic, exotic, and muscle cars in “more of a museum-type atmosphere,” with a showroom making cars easily visible from outside.
The Director of the RI Coalition to End Homeless, Caitlin Frumiere, has resigned and a temporary director is in place while the board conduct a search
Robert Rapoza, head of the RI Board of Elections will retire before the 2024 election period
Encampments are being addressed, with one of the longest, by an individual near the state house, being removed after he refused shelter. Others were engaged with in Woonsocket, as winter is 82 days away.
RI announced $10M more in homelessness service awards to 26 agencies
Gabe Amo, who won the CD1 primary for the Democratic party has agreed to only 1 debate, not several as his challenger has requested – there has been pushback by local media that he needs to do more to engage prior to the election.
Washington Trust has agreed to a settlement on federal charges of redlining, while vehemently denying the charges
39th All New England Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off Winner was Steve Sperry of Johnson, RI – his pumpkin weighing 2,198 lbs – his third time winning
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NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
50K referee shortage for high school sports, particularly football
Pope Francis says Europe does not face a migrant crisis and calls upon European countries to open their borders
Dallas Mayor Johnston switching from Democrat to Republican party
First sample of rock/sand from an asteroid has been parachuted to ground, arriving intact
States that had limited SROs, School Resource Officers, are now demanding they come back to schools – Washington, Maryland, Virginia and Colorado are some states.
Usher will perform at this year’s SuperBowl
Pres. Jimmy Carter and his wife, Roslyn, took a car ride to the annual Peanut Festival. Carter has been at in-home hospice since January of this year.
The Pandemic Action Network, an international group of leaders of nations met at the GA meeting at the UN – most countries sent their health ministers – and the group agreed that the world is not prepared – just as it wasn’t during COVID – for the next pandemic.
Lahaina, Hawaii residents begin to return to the land where their homes were.
Russian official says Ukraine must resign
COSTCO recalls 48,000 mattresses that are growing mold
Target will close 9 stores in high crime cities where safety is a concern
WGA Strike is over.
Pres. Biden’s dog, Commander, bit his 11th person, a Secret Service member, who was treated in the White House medical office.
Judge rules Donald Trump committed fraud in financial statements in some businesses.
Hunter Biden had payments from Russia go to Pres. Biden’s home address, while he was not living there.
JPMorgan to settle Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking suit by U.S. Virgin Islands for $75 million
The CIA had a meeting with Dr. Fauci to craft a “where did COVID come from” theory – he was taken into the building without documentation
United States to let Israelis enter visa-free
Amazon set to hire 250K workers for holidays
UPS will hire 100,000 workers for holidays
Ringling Bros returns to the “ring” – 3 of them – but with humans performing aerials, and other tricks, and no animals.
Bruce Springsteen canceled all concerts through 2023
Over 50K culinary workers are striking in Vegas
$20 minimum wage for California fast food workers approved
UAW strike has expanded to over 25,000 workers
NYC is under water as we publish, with months of rain accummulated in several hours
Congress will come into session on Saturday to prevent government shutdown at end of day
Extreme flooding is taking place in NYC as months of rain is received in less than 2 days – subways, rail, streets, etc. are impassable as of Friday night. Many people who managed a way into the city in the morning were stranded with no way to return. Mayor called a state of emergency.
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PASSINGS
Sen. Dianne Feinstein 90, hours after casting her last vote in the Senate
Sir Michael Gambon, 82, played Dumbledore from Harry Potter
David McCallum, 90, surrounded by family. Man from UNCLE – The Great Escape – NCIS – he was also a philharmonic conductor
Joseph Razza, former Johnston Police Chief, after a battle with cancer
Brother Michael Reis, 81, founder of Tides Family Services in RI