Providence Journal (Providence, RI) articles from September 2007

Providence Journal (Providence, RI) archives from September 2007

Providence, R.I., janitors to vote on 5-year contract.
September 5, 2007... Sep. 5--Janitors in Providence represented by the Service Employees International Union Local 615 will start voting today on a five-year collective-bargaining agreement with the Maintenance Contractors of New England that would raise wages 25...

Rhode Island town still looking for missing tax payments.
September 5, 2007... Byline: John Castellucci Sep. 5--PAWTUCKET -- The first-quarter tax payments that disappeared a couple of months ago still haven't been found, frustrating Harvey E. Goulet Jr., Mayor James E. Doyle's director of administration, who...

Transport laws lead to new rules for Rhode Island truckers.
September 5, 2007... Byline: Paul Grimaldi Sep. 5--Nearly 6,000 Rhode Island companies that operate trucks and livery vehicles will come under new federal registration rules this fall as a result of changes in interstate transportation laws. Nearly two...

Pawtucket council rejects part of contract.
September 6, 2007... Byline: John Castellucci Sep. 6--PAWTUCKET -- After saying it would for months, the City Council finally voted last night to reject part of a collective bargaining agreement containing a 1-percent increase in longevity payments for city...

Waterfront festival aims to hook New Bedford on fishing.
September 6, 2007... Byline: Paul Grimaldi Sep. 6--Government officials and business leaders in New Bedford perennially cast about for ways to help the local economy and the commercial fishing industry, which has been the backbone of the Whaling City for...

Marine equipment makes waves at three-day Ocean TechExpo.
September 6, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 6--PROVIDENCE -- Jason Cedro clicked on a computer mouse at the Rhode Island Convention Center yesterday and on the screen appeared a live, gull's-eye view of Narragansett Bay, from a camera perched miles to the...

Clinics ink settlement with FTC.
September 8, 2007... Sep. 8--Two area dialysis clinic operators -- American Renal Associates and Fresenius Medical Care Holdings -- have signed consent orders with the Federal Trade Commission settling charges that they unlawfully tried to restrain competition. ...

Workshops explain work-force programs.
September 8, 2007... Sep. 8--The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training will hold a series of workshops over the next few months to raise awareness among employers about how certain work-force programs operate. The free employer education workshops will...

Beacon pays $500,000 of $1-million fine.
September 8, 2007... Byline: Lynn Arditi Sep. 8--The Beacon Mutual Insurance Co. yesterday paid the first $500,000 of a $1-million fine to the state for violating Rhode Island insurance law after a judge ruled in favor of allowing the company to proceed with...

The Providence Journal, R.I., business briefs column.(Column)
September 8, 2007... Sep. 8--COALITION SEEKS TO STOP CAPITAL COVE PROJECT: PROVIDENCE -- After months of little to no progress, work is finally seriously under way at Capital Cove, a rental and condominium development off Canal Street downtown -- and just as...

Newport Showhouse looks beyond island for its next makeover.
September 9, 2007... Byline: Christine Dunn Sep. 9--The Newport Showhouse Guild is looking for a house to be the subject of its next makeover, but this time, the group, which has traditionally focused on residences in Newport County, wishes to look for a house...

On-the-job tips given to machine operators.
September 9, 2007... Sep. 9--The Rhode Island Manufacturing Extension Service will hold its sixth, two-week class starting on Sept. 17 to train qualified machine operators. The training is part of a program called "M.O.S.T." for Machine Operator Skills...

Abroad, ports often lack protection.
September 9, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 9--PROVIDENCE -- The shallow and unpatrolled turquoise waters flow toward a long and unguarded sandy beach. "This is an image of what border security looks like in the Caribbean," Candyce Kelshall, chief...

The Providence Journal, R.I., business notes column.
September 9, 2007... Byline: John Kostrzewa Sep. 9--The five campuses that make up the University of Massachusetts generated $41.4 million last year from the commercialization of intellectual property. That's up $13 million from the prior year. The totals...

The Providence Journal, R.I., MoneyLine column.
September 9, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 9--When must you withdraw money from a traditional IRA? That's the question a woman from Middletown asked MoneyLine: QUESTION: I was 70 last November. I get three different answers about taking money out of my...

Neighborhood of the Week: A hidden jewel in South County.
September 10, 2007... Byline: Christine Dunn Sep. 10--There are three distinct communities within Quonochontaug, a quiet, exclusive beach village in Charlestown. Bordered by Quonochontaug Pond to the west and Ninigret Pond to the east, this oceanfront haven...

Work study: Flexibility is key for college students.
September 10, 2007... Byline: Andy Smith Sep. 10--It's the time of year when college students come back to campus, back to textbooks, term papers, exams -- and jobs. At Rhode Island's colleges, thousands of students spend at least part of their time on...

The Providence Journal, R.I., MoneyLine column.
September 10, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 10--Are you self-employed? If so, make sure you accurately report all your earnings on your federal income-tax return, and file those returns on time. Otherwise, you may not qualify for Social Security benefits...

Founder of Del's Lemonade dies at 84.(Obituary)
September 10, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 10--Angelo DeLucia, who built a corporate empire by squeezing lemons and turned his company, Del's Lemonade, into a symbol of Rhode Island, died late Thursday in Kent Hospital, Warwick. He was 84. The...

Rhode Island streamlines filing process for some new businesses.
September 10, 2007... Byline: Timothy C. Barmann Sep. 10--The Rhode Island secretary of state's office has made it easier to file the papers necessary to start certain types of businesses. The office now allows entrepreneurs to fill out articles of...

Take a seat at the Dunk.
September 11, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 11--PROVIDENCE -- The grousing starts before the show has even begun -- the seats at the state's premier arena are narrow, uncomfortable and just plain old. Now, more than two decades after they were last...

Rhode Island house prices continue decline.
September 11, 2007... Byline: Lynn Arditi Sep. 11--Prices of single-family houses in Rhode Island in July were down 4.1 percent from the same month last year, according to The Warren Group, a real-estate research firm in Boston. The median price in July...

The Providence Journal, R.I., MoneyLine column.
September 11, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 11--QUESTION: I would like to know the amount of money needed to be made last year, for 2006, to qualify to have an excess amount of TDI reimbursed. -- P.G., North Scituate ANSWER: For 2006, the maximum...

Oppenheimer & Co. fined $1 million by Massachusetts secretary of state.
September 12, 2007... Byline: Paul Grimaldi Sep. 12--A Canadian investment brokerage has been fined $1 million by the Massachusetts secretary of state in connection with the indictment of one of the company's Boston-based agents. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. was...

Latest plan for Rocky Point hits snag.
September 12, 2007... Byline: Cynthia Needham Sep. 12--WARWICK -- Developer Nicholas E. Cambio has reportedly backed out of a deal to redevelop the former Rocky Point amusement park as a waterfront residential community, jeopardizing the city's opportunity to...

2 women withdraw their bid to become minority contractors.
September 12, 2007... Byline: Katherine Gregg Sep. 12--PROVIDENCE -- The daughters in the Rosciti construction family have withdrawn their bid to become certified "minority" contractors eligible for the millions of state and federal contract dollars earmarked...

State council awards $1.5 million in grants.
September 12, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 12--The Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council is distributing $1.5 million in grants this fiscal year to bolster research at local companies and universities. The publicly financed program...

Renovations on Lincoln, R.I., slot parlor almost complete.
September 12, 2007... Byline: Paul Grimaldi Sep. 12--A two-year reconstruction project has added space to the Lincoln facility that increases the number of video lottery terminals to 4,752. The owners of the Twin River slot parlor see the Lincoln gaming...

Plenty of boats to choose from.
September 14, 2007... Byline: Tom Meade Sep. 14--NEWPORT -- The boating industry is necessarily embracing globalization, according to two Rhode Island boat manufacturers displaying their products at the Newport International Boat Show. The event opened...

Rhode Island congressional delegation urges Bush to free heating-fund.
September 14, 2007... Byline: Timothy C. Barmann Sep. 14--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- With utility shutoffs on track to set a new record in Rhode Island, the state's congressional delegation and legislators around the country are calling on President Bush to release...

Restoration of neglected Rhode Island lighthouse set to begin.
September 14, 2007... Byline: Arline A. Fleming Sep. 14--JAMESTOWN, R.I. -- Keepers of the Dutch Island Lighthouse would see the coasts of Narragansett and Saunderstown from one direction while tending the 42-foot tower, and the Jamestown shore from the other...

Will 'No Child Left Behind' pass the test?
September 14, 2007... Byline: Jennifer D. Jordan Sep. 14--Five years after President Bush's far-reaching education reform plan, No Child Left Behind, was signed into federal law, its effects are evident throughout Rhode Island schools, from the yearly testing...

Rhode Island waterfront businesses fight influx of residential development.
September 14, 2007... Byline: Peter B. Lord Sep. 14--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- When Joel and David Cohen look out on their shipyard, they see workers painting or repairing row after row of Coast Guard cutters, fishing boats, a schooner and a tugboat. But just beyond,...

University of Rhode Island program to combine business, oceanography.
September 15, 2007... Byline: Timothy C. Barmann Sep. 15--The University of Rhode Island is developing a graduate degree program that would offer studies in both business administration and ocean and climate science. The two-year dual degree, which the...

A piece of suburban 'utopia' with a rural flare.
September 16, 2007... Byline: Christine Dunn Sep. 16--Abbott Run is a neighborhood of suburban subdivisions, but in keeping with much of northern Cumberland, there is a distinctly rural flavor here. Many of the roads twist around large trees, old farmlands and,...

Seller's are learning that it's now a buyer's market.
September 16, 2007... Byline: Christine Dunn Sep. 16--As the summer draws to a close, the slowdown in the Rhode Island housing market has settled in, with a drop of about 3 percent in both the median house price and the number of houses sold in the first half...

The Providence Journal, R.I., People in Business column.(Column)
September 16, 2007... Sep. 16--WASHINGTON TRUST: Peter R. Phillips, of Warwick, has been appointed vice president and investment officer for the bank's wealth management division. He is responsible for managing investments and researching and analyzing investment...

Seminars for employers target labor laws, standards.
September 16, 2007... Byline: Andy Smith Sep. 16--Can the cost of uniforms be deducted from an employee's paycheck? Can an employee under 16 frost a doughnut? What happens if Christmas falls on a Sunday? Are there exceptions to the minimum-wage laws? Are lunch...

The United Way partners with businesses to help workers hone skills.
September 16, 2007... Byline: Andy Smith Sep. 16--Justin Marks, 22, said he's been working at doughnut shops since he was 16. With a wife, two children, and one (possibly two) more on the way, he's looking for something better. Mouhamadou Kandji, 23, is a...

The Providence Journal, R.I., John Kostrzewa column.
September 16, 2007... Byline: John Kostrzewa Sep. 16--The reemergence of former Providence Mayor Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci Jr. has reignited the debate over who gets credit for the rebuilding of downtown Providence -- Cianci, the savvy but corrupt...

The business of nonprofit.
September 16, 2007... Byline: Paul Grimaldi Sep. 16--WESTPORT, Mass. -- Small-business owners have many things in common, no matter where they're based. Long on good ideas, they are typically short on money. In need of dedicated workers, their employees...

The Providence Journal, R.I., MoneyLine column.
September 17, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 17--QUESTION: My wife passed away in 2005 at age 59. I will be 60 this year. My understanding is that I will be eligible for widower's survivor benefits based on my wife's record. If I collect this benefit and...

The Providence Journal, R.I., business briefs column.(Column)
September 18, 2007... Sep. 18--GOETZ TO LAUNCH NEW FACILITY: Business leaders and public officials will gather in Bristol on Friday to celebrate the opening of Goetz Custom Boats' new 43,000-square-foot construction facility. Its inaugural project will be the...

Massachusetts casino plan revives issue in Rhode Island.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Paul G. Grimaldi Sep. 18--House Speaker William J. Murphy said yesterday that the General Assembly would study in January whether the state should allow table games at its two slot parlors -- Newport Grand and Twin River -- or even...

Providence, R.I., city council questions planning procedure timetable.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Daniel Barbarisi Sep. 18--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Given its first chance to look over the city's new Comprehensive Plan last night, the City Council quickly balked -- fearful that granting approval too easily would cost council members...

Prominent Rhode Islanders concede to being swindled by lobsterman.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Gregory Smith Sep. 18--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- More prominent Rhode Islanders have stepped forward to acknowledge that they fell victim to a con game run by former lobsterman John P. Kluth Jr., including the state jury commissioner and...

Schools buy more produce from local farmers in Cranston, R.I.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Barbara Polichetti Sep. 18--CRANSTON, R.I. -- Idaho potatoes? Georgia peaches? Not quite. In its continuing effort to incorporate more fresh fruit and vegetables in school lunches, the Cranston School Department is...

Local experts differ on effect of expected interest rate cut.
September 18, 2007... Sep. 18--Local economists, academics and business leaders forecast that the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee will cut short-term interest rates by 25 basis points, from 5.25 percent to 5 percent, when it meets today and announces its...

Pension plans seen fragile in 4 area communities.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Talia Buford Sep. 18--WEST BAY -- Area municipalities are weighing their options when it comes to the future of their locally administered pension systems in light of a report from state Auditor General Ernest A. Almonte that...

WRNI to launch fundraising campaign with live radio theater, music, interview.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Andy Smith Sep. 18--It's not quite the Fourth of July, but Rhode Island public radio station WRNI will be celebrating its independence -- and formally kicking off a $4-million fundraising campaign -- Thursday night at the Pell...

Cianci's landlord puts him to work as a pitchman.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 18--PROVIDENCE -- Former Mayor Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci Jr. has traded his place at a New Jersey prison for a two-bedroom, riverside apartment in The 903 Residences, the luxury condominium complex that hired...

Supporters make case for historic tax credits.
September 18, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 18--PAWTUCKET -- Call it a pre-emptive strike. Supporters of Rhode Island's controversial historic tax credit program gathered yesterday to draw attention to what they described as the program's chief...

LIN TV to sell licenses to Rhode Island-based firm.
September 18, 2007... Sep. 18--Providence-based LIN TV Corp., the owner of television stations in 17 U.S. markets, including WPRI-TV Channel 12, yesterday agreed to sell 32 broadcast spectrum licenses to Aloha Partners LP, also based in Providence, for $32.5 million...

Pawtucket union votes to keep contract.
September 18, 2007... Byline: John Castellucci Sep. 18--PAWTUCKET -- Angry city employees have dropped plans to defy the City Council by junking a one-year contract that the council passed to placate them. Local 1012 President Augie Venice said unionized...

The Providence Journal, R.I., MoneyLine column.(Column)
September 18, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 18--QUESTION: Could you help us? We have 100 shares in Eastland Financial that we have just found. Are they worth anything? --H.R., Lincoln ANSWER: Sorry, you're out of luck. Eastland Financial, of...

Pawtucket, R.I., bakery recalls bread.
September 19, 2007... Sep. 19--A Pawtucket, R.I., bakery is recalling 76 loaves of sweet bread that contain egg, which was not declared on the ingredient statement. Luzitania Bakery, of 312 Barton St., is recalling the bread, the state Health Department...

Diocese of Providence, R.I., selling property.
September 19, 2007... Byline: G. Wayne Miller Sep. 19--The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence is selling seven properties it no longer needs, diocesan officials announced today. Proceeds from the sales will be used to establish a maintenance fund for other...

UnitedHealthcare's rate-hike request is trimmed.
September 19, 2007... Byline: Scott Mackay Sep. 19--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- State Health Insurance Commissioner Christopher Koller has denied UnitedHealthcare of New England's request for a 12.5-percent annual increase on rates charged to group health insurance...

Manufacturing company moves jobs from Pawtucket, R.I., to India.
September 19, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 19--Vitrus Inc., a longtime manufacturer in Pawtucket, is laying off most of its employees as its corporate parent, Tecumseh Products Co., shifts production to India, Vitrus acknowledged yesterday. ...

West Warwick, R.I., mulls joining state retirement system.
September 19, 2007... Byline: Talia Buford Sep. 19--WEST WARWICK, R.I. -- Local officials and residents last night got a glimpse of what the town's joining the state retirement system would mean. Frank J. Karpinski, executive director of the Employees...

Governor Patrick's casino plan charges up floor debate.
September 19, 2007... Byline: Paul Grimaldi Sep. 19--BOSTON -- A casino proposal promoted as a revenue generator for Massachusetts is producing one thing for sure -- plenty of debate. More than 100 people, politicians and lobbyists among them, turned up...

Traffic in Providence, R.I., area not that bad, study finds.
September 19, 2007... Byline: Bruce Landis Sep. 19--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- We may curse the traffic on Route 95, but a national study released yesterday says that drivers in the Providence area have less to cuss about than drivers in most other urban areas of...

Fit and with a ready quip, it's showtime for former Providence, R.I., mayor.
September 20, 2007... Byline: Scott Mackay Sep. 20--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Vincent A. Cianci Jr. waltzed into the Starbucks at the Biltmore Hotel yesterday morning, intent on getting coffee. Then he spied a queue snaking almost to the door. "Let's find...

Retail-residential project pitched for site off Route 95 in Rhode Island.
September 20, 2007... Byline: Maria Armental Sep. 20--RICHMOND -- The prospective developers of a large-scale project near Route 95's Exit 3A unveiled updated plans last night that call for 590,000 square feet of retail space, including big-box stores, and 399...

Warren, R.I., boat firm faces fines from EPA.
September 21, 2007... Sep. 21--Pearson Composites, a maker of fiberglass sailboats and powerboats, is facing a proposed penalty of $264,349 for alleged violations of the federal Clean Air Act. The violations were cited in a recent Environmental Protection...

Rhode Island planning council approves commercial development.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 21--PROVIDENCE -- The State Planning Council yesterday approved the Quonset Gateway project, a $144-million development at the Quonset Business Park that advocates say will generate more than 2,000 jobs and...

Providence, R.I., mayor sounds the alarm on foreclosures.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Lynn Arditi Sep. 21--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Mayor David N. Cicilline warned state housing officials yesterday that home foreclosures in the city have reached the level of a "crisis" that could spread to other communities. "The...

Well-wishers embrace Cianci's return.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Karen Lee Ziner Sep. 21--EAST PROVIDENCE -- Out of prison, back on the airwaves, and bathed in love. Thus went Buddy Cianci's return to talk radio yesterday on the WPRO (630-AM) midday show. "As I was saying, before I was...

Teen employment rate during summer falls to record low.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Stu Woo Sep. 21--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- When the summer began, Shawn P. Leonard applied for jobs at Wal-Mart, Burger King, Wendy's and a few landscaping firms. They all told Leonard they weren't hiring. So instead of working, the...

Canadian company to reopen Quaker Fabric Corp.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Benjamin N. Gedan Sep. 21--A Canadian textile company has acquired the bankrupt Quaker Fabric Corp.'s equipment and real estate in Fall River, and the company says it will reopen the plant Quaker shuttered in July. The purchase...

Rhode Island dodges jobs cascade.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Lynn Arditi Sep. 21--The nationwide job loses last month that sent tremors through the financial markets and spurred the Federal Reserve on Tuesday to cut its benchmark interest rate apparently spared Rhode Island. The state's...

Stakeholder members float concerns of wind farm.
September 21, 2007... Byline: Timothy C. Barmann Sep. 21--NARRAGANSETT -- Will military-submarine traffic get in the way of the wind-turbine towers? Will lights on the turbines blind ship captains? Will wind turbines suck away the energy from the wind, leaving...

The Providence Journal, R.I., business briefs column.(Column)
September 21, 2007... Sep. 21--PROCACCIANTI BOOKS 2 MANHATTAN HOTELS: Cranston-based real estate developer/hotelier The Procaccianti Group has acquired two New York City hotels: the 300-room Tudor Hotel at The United Nations and the 227-room Holiday Inn SoHo. ...

Portsmouth, R.I., boat builders gain recognition at boat show.
September 22, 2007... Byline: Tom Meade Sep. 22--NEWPORT -- Judges selected two boats built by Portsmouth companies as the best new models in the Newport International Boat Show last week. More than 700 boats were displayed by scores of international...

The Providence Journal, R.I., John Kostrzewa column.
September 23, 2007... Byline: John Kostrzewa Sep. 23--Business schools are hot. Applications for admission have surged. Corporate recruiters are flooding campuses to look for job prospects. Graduates are being offered big salaries. All that, however,...

Providence, R.I., Journal selects new vice president for advertising.
September 23, 2007... Sep. 23--Scott C. Connolly, of Canton, Mass., has been named vice president-advertising at The Providence Journal Co. In his new position, he will have overall responsibility for advertising, including strategic planning and new-product...

Living the high life in a Providence, R.I., penthouse.
September 23, 2007... Byline: Christine Dunn Sep. 23--Penthouse -- the very word is evocative of big views, big spaces, big prices and big cities. And although Providence's skyline is still relatively low-key, the city does have its share of penthouse...

Twenty-eight Rhode Island companies share state grants.
September 23, 2007... Sep. 23--Twenty-eight companies in Rhode Island have received $481,098 in matching grants awarded by the Governor's Workforce Board to help train about 900 workers. Awards ranged from $2,170 to the $49,900. The maximum award is $50,000. ...

Immigrant-advocacy groups protest money-transfer fees.
September 23, 2007... Byline: Tatiana Pina Sep. 23--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- For five years, Paola Roca faithfully sent money in increments of $100 or $200 to her mother in Bolivia. The Western Union she used in the Olneyville neighborhood has charged her as...

The Providence Journal, R.I., business briefs column.(Column)
September 24, 2007... Sep. 24--SENTENCING SET IN ATM CASE: PROVIDENCE -- Sentencing for one of four California men convicted of rigging ATM card readers and stealing information from shoppers in Rhode Island was rescheduled for Oct. 30 in U.S. District Court....

The Providence Journal, R.I., MoneyLine column.
September 24, 2007... Byline: Neil Downing Sep. 24--TRANSFERRING OWNERSHIP OF SAVINGS BONDS MAY TRIGGER TAX: QUESTION: I have some EE bonds that we got through payroll deductions in the '80's and early '90's. Most of them are in $50 and $100 denominations....

Storm brews over port development project in Providence, R.I.
September 24, 2007... Byline: Peter B. Lord Sep. 24--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Patrick T. Conley loves a good fight. The former amateur boxer, historian, lawyer and businessman has gone chin first into battles over Rhode Island's constitution, gambling, ethics, Buddy...

Rise in passengers at Green Airport in Rhode Island.
September 25, 2007... Sep. 25--Passenger traffic at T.F. Green Airport increased last month compared with August of last year, the first month-to-month increase in more than a year and a half. But nobody is saying it's the start of a trend. Patti Goldstein,...

The Providence Journal, R.I., business briefs column.(Column)
September 25, 2007... Sep. 25--GAS PRICES RISE IN R.I., REVERSING TREND: For the first time in 10 weeks, gasoline prices in Rhode Island have increased, according to a survey yesterday by AAA Southern New England. Self-service regular gasoline averaged $2.679 a...