Late last month, the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, mandated that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration get rid of 31 of its rental offices and facilities, including three in New England, The Public’s Radio has learned. Former NOAA scientists say they especially fear the ramifications of losing a building on the list in […]
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Posted inLocal, Politics, TGIF
TGIF: Ian Donnis’ Rhode Island politics roundup for March 7, 2025
I’ll take the deal if an hour less sleep brings more daylight. You can follow me through the week on Bluesky, threads and X. Here we go. *** Want to get my column in your inbox every Friday? Just sign up right here. *** 1. STORY OF THE WEEK: Tariffs “will always tend to crush […]
Posted inHealth, Local
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of R.I. reports job cuts and operating losses
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island has announced plans to reduce its workforce by 3% amid reports of ongoing operating losses. The job cuts will impact about 30 of its 946 full-time equivalent employees in Rhode Island, the company said in a statement released earlier this week. The jobs cuts’ primary “focus” is […]
Posted inArts And Culture, Local, Politics
Arts groups sue Trump administration over ban on ‘gender ideology’
The American Civil Liberties Union has filed suit in the U.S. District Court of Rhode Island on behalf of several arts organizations over new requirements from the Trump administration that prohibit federal funds being used to “promote gender ideology.” Applicants for National Endowment for the Arts grants must now tick a box on their application […]
Posted inEnvironment, Local
Cuts to jobs and research funding mount in Rhode Island’s academic sciences
Sarah Gaines worried something was up when she and her colleagues at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography got called into a morning meeting last Thursday. The Ivy-league educated scientist lives with her husband and two school-age children in South Kingstown. And she leads a project in marine conservation in Madagascar. But […]
Posted inArtscape, Education, Local, South Coast Bureau
UMass Dartmouth’s $660 million problem: preserving its Brutalist campus
Brutalism had its heyday 60 years ago, but this polarizing style of architecture is back in the spotlight. At the Oscars, Adrien Brody won Best Actor for his performance of a Brutalist architect. In Washington, President Trump has re-issued an executive order deploring Brutalism. And in southeastern Massachusetts, our reporter Ben Berke brings us this story about a Brutalist college campus designed by a celebrated architect whose buildings are disappearing across the country.
Posted inArts And Culture, Local
‘Nashville North’: New partnership brings Music City singer-songwriters to Westerly
Beginning this fall, Westerly’s United Theatre will host a series of intimate live shows featuring Nashville singer-songwriters, presented by the city’s legendary Bluebird Cafe. Dubbed “Nashville North,” the initiative is a new collaboration with the Bluebird and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, which is home to the Taylor Swift Education Center. “We […]
Posted inEconomy, Local, Politics
Rhode Islanders caught in the crossfire of trade war
A trade war between the U.S. and Canada will likely be costly for Rhode Islanders. That’s because Canada is by far the state’s largest international trading partner, accounting for 22% of Rhode Island’s exports to the world. Rhode Island exports $487 million in goods, plus another $166 million in services to Canada every year. Canada, […]
Posted inArts And Culture, Local, Metro Desk
Atlantic Mills tenants plan to hire lawyer, escalate fight against building buyers
Tenants renting studios and offices at the Olneyville artists’ hub Atlantic Mills say they plan to escalate their fight against developers who are under contract to purchase the historic building. That’s after, they say, the buyers declined to recognize their commercial tenants’ union in a meeting last week. Tenants say they need the union to […]
Posted inEconomy, Immigration, Local
‘People are scared’: Fear of ICE raids causing Central Falls businesses to suffer
Haga clic aquí para leer en español. Walking into La Fruta Loca, you’re greeted by rows of large stuffed bears lining the windows of the Central Falls frutería and ice cream shop. I stopped by on a recent weekday afternoon, to talk with the shop’s owner, 51-year-old Lorena Vicente. Originally from Guatemala, now a U.S. […]
