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Taylor Swift in RI; Atlantic Mills sale; rebuilding Republicans: Top stories this week

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Taylor Swift in RI; Atlantic Mills sale; rebuilding Republicans: Top stories this week


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Here are some of The Providence Journal’s most-read stories for the week of Aug. 25, supported by your subscriptions.

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Here are the week’s top reads on providencejournal.com:

WESTERLY – Rhode Island’s most famous part-time resident spent time this week at her Watch Hill home, along with her football star boyfriend, at least according to People magazine and TMZ.

Both outlets report that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce – along with pals Patrick and Brittany Mahomes, Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds and Bradley Cooper – were in Rhode Island this week, as the singer takes a break from her Eras tour, which resumes in October, and the Kansas City Chiefs tight end prepares for his Sept. 5 season opener against the Ravens.

Read on for more details on the celebrity sightings around Swift’s Watch Hill mansion, dubbed the “Holiday House.”

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Entertainment: Taylor Swift is in Rhode Island this weekend (and she brought some famous friends with her)

PROVIDENCE − The owner of the Atlantic Mills in Olneyville has put the giant mill building up for sale after backing out of a deal with the city and the Providence Redevelopment Agency to buy the sprawling property.

Those who work in the building say they are worried about being kicked out of one of the cheapest manufacturing, warehouse and office spaces in the city, which could mean the end of business for some of them. 

Unlike downtown Providence, where offices have remained empty since the pandemic, the Atlantic Mills is almost full, with an estimated 88% of its occupiable space leased. Tenant businesses say that alternative spaces elsewhere in the city are far too expensive and lack the sense of community they prize at their current location.

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“We call this a hidden gem,” said tenant Mike McNulty, who runs a woodshop there.

Real estate: ‘Hidden gem’: Pending sale of Atlantic Mills leaves tenants worried about their future

All summer long, American Mussel Harvesters’ 8-acre oyster farm south of the Jamestown Bridge sat idle.

The problem wasn’t the oysters. It was the 90-minute voyage to get there. And Adam Silkes, who oversees the operation, just couldn’t justify burning all that time and fuel.

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Until a few years ago, American Mussel Harvesters kept its boats at a marina near the company’s Quonset headquarters, so shellfish only had a five-minute trip from dock to cooler. Then, according to Silkes, the cost of dock space more than doubled.

“It’s reaching crisis proportions, honestly,” said Bob Rheault, executive director of both the Ocean State Aquaculture Association and East Coast Shellfish Growers Association. If you can’t access your farm, he said, “it’s a death knell.”

Read the full story to learn what’s causing the shortage of affordable dock space, and what solutions are being proposed to protect the state’s aquaculture industry.

Local news: Rising prices leave oyster farmers, quahoggers searching for places to dock their boats

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“It just makes sense to be a Republican in Rhode Island!” proclaims a whiteboard in the unassuming headquarters of the Rhode Island GOP.

GOP chairman Joe Powers, who came up with the slogan, argues that people are “sick and tired” after almost 90 years of Democratic rule. But when asked about the main obstacles that he faces when trying to enlist candidates, he answers bluntly: “Being a Republican in Rhode Island.”

Rhode Island voters have gone nearly two decades without electing a Republican to any of the state’s top offices or to Congress. And GOP members are shut out of many of the positions that typically serve as a pipeline to political advancement.

Political Scene explores how Powers and the state GOP’s new executive director, 22-year-old Aidan Carey, are trying to build the party’s bench and chip away at Democrats’ supermajority.

Political Scene: Is there a path for Republicans in RI? Inside the party’s effort to build its bench.

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Journal columnist Mark Patinkin was scrolling through Instagram one day when he came across a post with stunning aerial nighttime footage of Providence, backed by classical music.

Curious about the person behind the page captured.by.marc, he tracked down Marc Bontemps, a Montreal native now living in Providence who wanted to show off the beauty of his adopted city. Bontemps became a licensed drone pilot, capturing images ranging from WaterFire to tugboats on Narragansett Bay, and he displayed his craft while being interviewed on Providence’s pedestrian bridge.

Mark Patinkin: Drone pilot’s videos hold Providence in the highest regard. How he works his aerial magic

To read the full stories, go to providencejournal.com. Find out how to subscribe here.

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Rhode Island AG to unveil long-awaited report on Diocese of Providence clergy abuse

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Rhode Island AG to unveil long-awaited report on Diocese of Providence clergy abuse


PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha will release on Wednesday findings from a multiyear investigation into child sexual abuse in the Diocese of Providence.

According to the attorney general’s office, the report will detail the diocese’s handling of clergy abuse over decades.

While the smallest state in the U.S., Rhode Island is home to the country’s largest Catholic population per capita, with nearly 40% of the state identifying as Catholic, according to the Pew Research Center.

Neronha first launched the investigation in 2019, nearly a year after a Pennsylvania grand jury report found more than 1,000 children had been abused by an estimated 300 priests in that state since the 1940s. The 2018 report is considered one of the broadest inquiries into child sexual abuse in U.S. history.

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Neronha’s investigation involved entering into an agreement with the Diocese of Providence to gain access to all complaints and allegations of child sexual abuse by clergy dating back to 1950. Neronha’s office said in 2019 that the goal of the report was to determine how the diocese responded to past reports of child sexual abuse, identify any prosecutable cases, and ensure that no credibly accused clergy were in active ministry.

Rhode Island State Police also helped with the investigation.



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St. Patrick’s Day 2026: Your Guide To Fun In Rhode Island

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St. Patrick’s Day 2026: Your Guide To Fun In Rhode Island


Rhode Islanders who plan to join in the global celebration of Irish culture can choose from big and small events, including a parade in Providence.

The March 17 holiday falls on a Tuesday this year, and many big events will be held the weekend of March 14-15. Originally a modest, religious feast day honoring the patron saint of Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day today is a vibrant, boisterous holiday observed by millions of people regardless of their heritage.

The Providence parade is March 21.

We’ve rounded up 10 more events to help you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. But first, are you planning an event this spring? Feature it, so nearby readers see it all across Patch — including in roundups like this!

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Here’s your guide to St. Patrick’s Day fun in Rhode Island:





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Married couple from R.I. identified as victims in fatal Swansea crash

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Married couple from R.I. identified as victims in fatal Swansea crash


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The two victims were identified as a husband and wife from Rhode Island, local officials said.

A Rhode Island husband and wife in their 50s were identified as the two people killed in a Swansea car crash Friday night.

Carlolyn Carcasi, 54, and James Carcasi, 53, of Bristol, Rhode Island, were killed in the Feb. 27 crash, the office of Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn said in a press release Monday.

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The crash occurred at the intersection of Route 136 and Route 6 in Swansea, Quinn’s office said.

Police in Cranston, Rhode Island identified the driver who allegedly hit the couple as Demitri Sousa, 28. Sousa allegedly shot and killed a man in Rhode Island nearly four hours before the crash, Cranston police said.

At around 12:18 a.m. Friday, Swansea police spotted Sousa’s Infiniti barreling down Route 6, Swansea officials said previously.

The couple was driving southbound on Route 136 when the Sousa crashed into the side of a Subaru Ascent. Both cars had “catastrophic damage,” and the Subaru was engulfed in flames, Swansea fire and police officials said. 

Both occupants of the Subaru were declared dead at the scene, Swansea officials said.

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Sousa was transported to a local hospital, where he is being treated for serious injuries. He is expected to live and will be held in Cranston police custody until he is medically cleared, police said Sunday.

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