A screenshot of L3Harris’ website, describing its subsea cable technology. Credit: L3Harris.com
Newest ProvPort Tenant L3Harris to Process UnderSea Communications Cables, Local Residents Protest Business Ties to Defense Economy
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Providence’s newest portside tenant is L3Harris, one of the largest defense contractors in the world. The company plans to build a 50,000 square foot warehouse in ProvPort worth $6 million to load and offload subsea telecommunications cable.  The news comes as ProvPort looks to complete [...]

01
May
A dual language classroom in Minneapolis. Photo: Wikimedia.
Will New De la Comunidad Bilingual Charter School Really Expand Dual Language Access for Providence Students?
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In January of 2026, a new charter school proposal that plans to provide dual language instruction to over 600 students from Providence, Cranston and Pawtucket earned preliminary approval from the the RI Board of Education’s K-12 Council. De la Comunidad Bilingual School would be the [...]

29
Apr
A Sheldon Street resident talks to a tour group. Photo: Sarah Gleason.
Global Walking Festival in Honor of Jane Jacobs Returns to Providence with Focus on Community Insights of the City
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On the first weekend in May, the global walking festival “Jane’s Walks” will return to Providence, with volunteer-led walks to help residents discover surprises and wonders both in their own backyards and in corners of the city they have yet to explore.  Today, Jane’s Walks are [...]

29
Apr
Candidates on stage from left to right: Incumbent Mayor Brett Smiley, State Representative David Morales, Democrat Michael English and Independent Allen Waters. Photo credit: Eric Halvarson
Rent Stabilization, Blizzard Cleanup and a City “at War”: Highlights from First PVD Mayoral Candidate Forum
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Just days after City Council and Mayor Brett Smiley traded votes and vetoes on rent stabilization, candidates took the stage at Brown University for the first mayoral candidate forum of this year’s race. On Wednesday April 22, student organization Brown Votes hosted four candidates headlined [...]

24
Apr
Josselyn Wolf (left) and Angel Cruz (right).
Two Providence Students Selected as 2026 Rhode Island Youth Poetry Ambassadors
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Every year since 2018, former Rhode Island Poet Laureate Tina Cane has collaborated with the Rhode Island Center for the Book to select a Youth Poetry Ambassador from among the state’s high schools. In addition to winning a cash prize, youth poetry ambassadors have their [...]

24
Apr
Rudy Cabrera as Bert (background) and Taavon Gamble as Kenneth (foreground). Photo: Mark Turek.
Primary Trust at Trinity Rep Finds the Extraordinary Inside an Ordinary Life
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Trinity Rep’s production of Eboni Booth’s Primary Trust, directed with gentle precision by resident company member Tatyana-Marie Carlo, offers a softly illuminated evening of theatre, one that locates grace in the smallest human gestures. Led by a deeply felt performance from Taavon Gamble as Kenneth, [...]

22
Apr
Photo: Eric Halvarson.
Providence’s Largest Primary Care Provider Searches for New Leadership. What’s Next for Patients?
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Providence’s largest primary care provider is seeking new leadership.  Providence Community Health Centers (PCHC) President and CEO Merrill Thomas is retiring at the end of 2026 after leading the organization for the past 25 years. According to a job listing posted on March 31, PCHC [...]

22
Apr
Yacouba Diabate on Kora in 195 District Park on June 5, 2025. Photo: PVD World Music/Ian Lyle.
PVD World Music Opens for Eighth Season, Despite Federal Policy on Arts Funding and Immigration
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Beginning this year, the Trump Administration fully or partially suspended issuing visas to 40 countries and territories, with 26 of them located in Africa. At the same time, Trump’s federal government is slashing federal arts programs or redirecting funding towards a conservative agenda. One of [...]

17
Apr
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley prepares to speak to reporters in a City Hall conference room after unveiling his proposed fiscal 2027 budget in the City Council chambers Wednesday, April 15, 2026. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)
Smiley Unveils Proposed FY2027 Providence Budget with Lowest Spending Growth in at Least Five Years
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Editor’s Note: The following article was originally published by Rhode Island Current on April 15, 2026. Reprinted with permission. Providence Mayor Brett Smiley’s fiscal year 2027 budget aims to continue his administration’s regimen of restraint. The $635.7 million proposal boasts no property tax increase and represents [...]

17
Apr
Haimbodi, left, demonstrates how to cut back Buckthorn and tie a black bag over the plant to discourage growth. Suppressing Buckthorn growth is important to open up space in the forest understory for red maples to grow. Photo: Amber Ma
Residents Most Impacted by Climate Injustice are Trained to Nurture and Restore the Urban Forest
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Micah, one of the youngest in a group of “Forest Care Days” volunteers at the Woonasquatucket Greenway in early April, thinks finding and digging up invasive Japanese knotweed rhizomes from the soil is easy—with her shovel, she swiftly scoops out one, then two rhizomes with [...]

15
Apr