The issues with the Washington Bridge have affected all of us, and will for years to come. This week we launched Breaking Point: The Washington Bridge, a new, community-centered project exploring how we got here, the impact of the bridge on our lives, and what the future holds. And we want to hear from you. Also, the threat of climate change is making it harder and more expensive for Rhode Islanders to insure their homes. How can the state and homeowners prepare? Plus: We hear about Track 15, a food hall opening in March that will transform Providence’s historic Union Station, featuring seven restaurants from local chefs. That and more on this week’s show.
Business
Posted inBusiness, Education, The Weekly Catch
What Education Department cuts would mean for R.I., crypto scams, and more
The Trump administration has threatened to cut back or even eliminate the Department of Education, which is responsible for enforcing civil rights protections, overseeing student loans, and funding things like special education. What would those cuts mean for Rhode Island? Also, scams involving cryptocurrency ATMs are on the rise. We learn about a new law that would regulate crypto kiosks in Rhode Island – and we hear from a Brown professor who explains how he was recently scammed out of more than $2000. Plus, the WaterFire Arts Center is hosting an exhibit of over one hundred posters spanning 70 years and a dozen countries throughout Latin America. That and more on this week’s show.
Posted inBusiness, Local
New bill aims to regulate crypto ATMs in Rhode Island
As cryptocurrency ATMs are becoming more popular, so are crypto scams. FBI data shows that Rhode Islanders lost over ten million in 2023 to fraud linked to crypto kiosks. A new bill in the General Assembly aims to establish rules for those kiosks to better protect consumers. Morning host Luis Hernandez spoke about the issue […]
Posted inBusiness, Local, Politics
Some Rhode Island craft brewers say state regulations throttle their businesses
Matt Richardson and his wife opened Tilted Barn Brewery on an old family farm in Exeter in 2014. Craft beer was exploding in popularity at the time and Tilted Barn was an immediate hit. Richardson, however, quickly discovered a problem he’s still dealing with more than a decade later: Customers who want to take home […]
Posted inBusiness, Local, Politics
Caught in foreign aid freeze, R.I.’s Edesia gets good news
It’s been a roller coaster week for the folks who work at Edesia, a Rhode Island nonprofit that helps feed hungry children around the world. Senior staff members were in Sierra Leone, visiting one of their feeding programs, when the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) issued an immediate stop-work order for all of its […]
Posted inBusiness, Local, Politics
Hasbro said to be moving closer to a decision on new HQ
Can an almost-free offer for a prime riverfront parcel in Providence’s long-touted, semi-developed I-195 District compete with the razzle-dazzle of new-money energy in Boston’s Seaport District? That’s the choice facing Hasbro, the venerable Pawtucket-based toymaker-turned-entertainment company, as it narrows in on a future home. Rhode Island’s effort to retain the headquarters of Hasbro is seen […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, Local
Bankruptcy court hearing may clarify deal to sell RI hospitals
A Feb. 12 hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Texas could determine whether the Centurion Foundation can proceed with its plan to buy Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence and Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence. The hospitals are among the CharterCARE Health Partners assets owed by California-based Prospect Medical Holdings, which filed […]
Posted inBusiness, Environment, Local
Can Trump really shut down the offshore wind industry?
President Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to shut down the offshore wind industry. Before he even took office, the region saw an impact. Last Friday, a company announced it was abandoning plans to build a factory in Somerset that would’ve supplied undersea cables to American offshore wind farms. Then, on Monday, during his first […]
Posted inBusiness, Local, South Coast Bureau
Prysmian abandons plans for offshore wind cable factory in Somerset
An Italian company has abandoned plans to build a factory in Somerset that would have supplied undersea cables to American offshore wind farms. The proposed factory would have created between 200 and 350 manufacturing jobs at the site of an old coal fired power plant in Somerset’s Brayton Point neighborhood. The Prysmian Group announced on […]
Posted inBusiness, Political Roundtable, Politics
Providence Chamber President Laurie White
Elected officials in Rhode Island have been trying to reinvent the state’s economy practically since the Great Depression — and it remains a work in progress. During his State of the State speech on Tuesday, Governor Dan McKee cited an upbeat message. He says Rhode Island is flipping the script on outdated narratives about being an economic laggard. But polling shows Rhode Islanders do not share McKee’s optimism about the state being headed in the right direction. The state still lacks the kind of more diversified economy found in Massachusetts. And the possible move out of state by Hasbro shows how unexpected changes can quickly emerge. As president of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce since 2005, Laurie White has a front row seat on these issues. So what are the top obstacles to building a better economy — and does the chamber have any bright ideas for making things better?
This week on Political Roundtable, I’m going in-depth with president of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce Laurie White.
