Archive - News Article
February 10th, 2011
PROVIDENCE – In one of the biggest turnouts in recent memory, several hundred proponents and opponents of same-sex marriage descended on the Statehouse Wednesday for a rally, a press conference, speeches and a night-long hearing of the House Judiciary Committee.
The committee convened to hear two bills, one to make same-sex marriage legal in Rhode Island and the other to put a proposed constitutional amendment on the 2012 ballot that would define marriage exclusively as the union of one man and one woman. Both bills were held for further consideration before the hearing started.
February 9th
LINCOLN – Twin River opened a new campaign to win full casino operations Tuesday night with a state-of-business address by the chairman of its Board of Directors, John E. Taylor, during the Northern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce’s annual dinner at the redeveloped former greyhound park facility.
Taylor gave his pitch for a statewide referendum on Twin River’s expansion to full casino gaming after Gov. Lincoln Chafee spoke briefly to the gathering and said he was “looking forward” to working with Taylor in the future “to make sure this facility stays viable.”
February 7th
CUMBERLAND — The Relay for Life of Cumberland Wednesday will hold its kick-off celebration to what event co-chairwoman Amy Moor likes to describe as “an 18-hour carnival.”
Relay for Life is a nationwide effort in which teams of people spend an evening walking around a track to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
Wednesday's kick-off celebration, to be held at 6 p.m. at the Diamond Hill Ski Lodge, 4097 Diamond Hill Road, is the official start of Relay for Life 2011, which will culminate with the 3rd Annual Relay for Life of Cumberland event to be held June 10-11 at Tucker Field.
LINCOLN — The Police Department has a new friend to aid in their pursuit of service, integrity and justice, the qualities named on every officer's badge.
It's called a UTV, or utility terrain vehicle, and the department purchased it recently courtesy of a federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant — one available through the U.S. Department of Justice — worth $13,784. Chief Brian Sullivan indicated the all-electric side-by-side Transport Pro Police UTV would be used to trek to areas ordinary cruisers can't.
February 6th
The Times is seeking photos of Blackstone Valley military veterans, whether they served in war zones or not. Please send photos to our email box: veterans@pawtuckettimes.com or drop them off in the Veterans mail basket located on the front desk of The Times' office, 23 Exchange St., Pawtucket.
Please include the following information with your photos:
Name of soldier:
Hometown:
Service branch: Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard.
Years served:
Location of tours:
Highlights:
PAWTUCKET – Jimmy Brennan graduated from St. Raphael Academy in 1936 at the height of the Depression. Four years later, as Hitler’s army overran much of Europe, the United States revived its military draft.
“I was going to beat the draft,” Brennan, now 91 years old, said last week. “I enlisted in December of 1940. The way the draft worked in those days, if they drafted you, you could end up in the army for 10 years, either active or in the reserves. So I enlisted in the army for three years.
PROVIDENCE – Voters would get to decide whether homosexuals should be allowed to marry in Rhode Island if legislation that Woonsocket Rep. Jon Brien filed this past Thursday passes.
Brien wants a referendum question on the 2012 ballot asking voters to approve or reject a constitutional amendment specifying that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in the State of Rhode Island."
A self-proclaimed conservative Democrat, Brien says he believes the issue of what constitutes a marriage is very important because marriage "serves as a societal cornerstone."
February 5th
PAWTUCKET — The Rhode Island ACLU has asked a federal judge to rule as unconstitutional —and therefore without need for a trial -- the city's alleged longstanding practice of giving preferential treatment to parochial schools over public schools when granting permits for the use of city athletic fields, as a lawsuit contends.
PAWTUCKET — Councilor-at-large Albert Vitali Jr. responded on Friday to questions that were raised by a local TV station about his involvement in an Armistice Boulevard spa that is alleged to have been offering illicit sexual acts to customers along with massages.
February 4th
PAWTUCKET — Concern about the snow and ice build-up on the roofs of the city's schools has prompted the schools superintendent to call off school today so the matter can be addressed.
Schools Supt. Deborah Cylke said she made the decision after consulting with both the city's building official and a structural engineer who had been asked to assess the load bearing weights of each of the schools' roofs in the current snow and ice conditions.
February 1st
WOONSOCKET — If you liked yesterday’s weather, you’re going to love what Mother Nature has in store for us today.
The latest in a series of unusually fierce winter storms turns out to be a double-dipper. After dumping four to seven inches of snow across the Blackstone Valley Tuesday, a second wave — a hard-to-predict combo of snow, sleet and rain — is expected to whack the region by nightfall.
January 31st
The Times has begun publishing photos each Monday on its new Military Page of Blackstone Valley veterans, past and present.
Please submit photos by email (veterans@pawtuckettimes.com) or in person at The Times' office, 23 Exchange St., Pawtucket. A special Veterans basket is located on the front desk. Photos submitted in person should include a stamped envelope with return address so that we may return your photo.
Please include the following information with your photo:
Name:
Hometown:
Service branch: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard.
Years of service:
Location of tours:
January 30th
WOONSOCKET — Tax season is here and Community Action Rhode Island wants working families to know they can receive help with the preparation of their tax returns and applications for federal income tax credits.
In fact, low income families may be eligible for tax credit refunds averaging $2,100 per filer and as much as $5,666 per filer under the federal Earned Income Tax Credit guidelines.
January 29th
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Kilmartin joined fellow Attorneys General from across the country Friday to promote National Data Privacy Day, which is celebrated on January 28 in the United States, Canada, and 27 European countries.
PAWTUCKET — Four storefront locations on Main Street in the downtown and a concession stand in Slater Park are among some high visibility real estate with ownership ties to the city that is either available for lease or will soon be coming on the rental market.
The Benjamin C. Chester Building at 175 Main St. has two spaces in need of tenants. Fresh on the market is the 2,200-square-foot site that until recently housed the Mixed Magic Theatre.
January 27th
PAWTUCKET — Is the city's manufacturing past coming back to life? Two companies that used to produce goods elsewhere in the state have recently purchased buildings and relocated to Pawtucket, bringing with them a combined total of about 50 jobs.
Philip Machine Co., a manufacturer of wire formed and stamped metal products, moved into a 21,000-square-foot building at 190 York Ave. in October and has been operating in its new location.
Jeremy Schupp of Pawtucket smokes a cigarette after his Atlas Van Lines tractor trailer crashed into the front of Lou’s Cafe on Summer Street in Manville shortly after noon Wednesday. Schupp said he lost control on the steep, slippery, unsanded hill while heading down to Railroad Street on his way to pick up a load on Flat Street. No injuries were reported, and only minor damage to the front of Lou’s Cafe.
January 25th
PAWTUCKET — A Newport Avenue Mediterranean bakery that currently sells pizza and gyros is looking to drum up business in two new ways: by selling liquor and offering flavorful puffs from a waterpipe.
The owner of Amy's Mediterranean Pizzeria & Cafe at 842 Newport Ave. has applied for a full liquor license from the city. The application, filed under the name of Nasser Enterprises Inc., will be considered at a public hearing of the Pawtucket Board of License Commissioners at City Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 9 at 6:45 p.m.
January 24th
LINCOLN — Brian McKinnon readily admits it's a strange way to discover a child's talent for vocals, but that's just what happened in the family's bathroom one night back in January 2003.
He decided to give his then-two-year-old daughter, Alexis Clare, a bath one night, and – as always – he turned on the radio to amuse her, maybe keep her mind off soap in her eyes.
January 23rd
PAWTUCKET — It's been about three weeks now since Mayor Donald Grebien moved into the spacious, second-floor office that goes with his new position, and besides rearranging the office furniture to be more computer-friendly, one of the things he says he has learned by trial and error is to “try and pace myself.”
