Rhode Island

Johnston, R.I., follows through on seizure of land by eminent domain, halting 250-unit affordable housing project – The Boston Globe

Published

9 months ago

March 17, 2025

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Johnston, R.I., follows through on seizure of land by eminent domain, halting 250-unit affordable housing project – The Boston Globe

According to Polisena, the now-previous owners of the property can still fight to have the title returned.

And officials are already facing a legal challenge.

Owners SCLS Realty LLC and Sixty Three Johnston LLC – or family-owned homebuilding firms whose members are Lucille Santoro, Salvatore Compagnone, and Ralph Santoro – filed a lawsuit against the town in US District Court in Providence on March 10.

They argue their constitutional and civil rights have been “threatened by an outrageous abuse of government powers.” The lawsuit describes the seizure of their property as a “sham taking.”

“The town claims it needs to use eminent domain to build a new municipal campus. But this is false,” the court filing states. “The real reason the town is forcibly depriving the Santoro family of its land is to stop the building of over 250 desperately needed affordable homes.”

Despite the lawsuit, Polisena said he will move forward with plans to build new public facilities on the site and noted officials already put out a request for qualifications.

“I’m very confident in our legal argument,” he said in an interview.

Developers initially proposed plans for the 252-unit, low-and-moderate-income housing complex late last year.

Polisena quickly vowed to “use all the power of government that I have to stop it,” and in January, moved to take the property by eminent domain. The mayor said the site would become home to a new Town Hall and a public safety complex, as the town’s police and fire stations are in disrepair.

To fund the new projects, Johnston will also scrap plans to construct a new high school, and will instead return to its original plans to renovate the existing buildling, he said.

In their lawsuit, the Santoro family, through its attorneys, challenges the notion the town took their land for the purpose of constructing the new buildings, arguing that under the law, the town is prohibited from “concealing or colluding to hide its real reasons for taking the Santoro property.”

“Eminent domain cannot be employed to stop property owners from using their land in legal ways, under the guise of a public use or purpose,” the lawsuit states. “Defendants are abusing the eminent domain power to block affordable housing for low-to-moderate-income families, simply because they don’t want that kind of thing in their town.”

Kelley Morris Salvatore, an attorney representing the family, did not immediately return a request for comment on Monday.

Polisena pushed back on the allegations that officials are hiding their true intent. He said he had been looking for a solution for the town’s ailing public safety facilities since after he took office in early 2023, when he succeeded his father, Joseph Polisena Sr., who served as mayor for 16 years.

In January, Polisena said he approached other developers about buying land from them to no avail and only became aware that the property now in question was as large as 31 acres after the developers approached the town with their housing plans in December.

“If I just came up with this municipal complex idea off the top of my head to stop the project, why do I have written correspondence in my email about multiple sites?” Polisena said recently, referring to emails he had from March 2023.

The town even paid to do engineering work on another site, but that property didn’t pan out, he said.

“We said, ‘Let’s put this on the back burner, but we’ll keep it in the back of our mind,’ and then, once this got proposed, like I said, I just put two and two together and said, ‘This could be the spot that we’re looking for,’” he said.

Christopher Gavin can be reached at christopher.gavin@globe.com.

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Rhode Island

RI Lottery Mega Millions, Lucky For Life winning numbers for Dec. 16, 2025

Published

11 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 16, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers from Dec. 16 drawing

20-24-46-59-65, Mega Ball: 07

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Dec. 16 drawing

03-04-19-24-39, Lucky Ball: 11

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Numbers numbers from Dec. 16 drawing

Midday: 0-5-9-8

Evening: 8-5-3-5

Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Wild Money numbers from Dec. 16 drawing

03-14-15-29-38, Extra: 30

Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize of $1,000 a day for life and second prize of $25,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.

When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Rhode Island

RI schools urged to review safety protocols in wake of Brown University shooting

Published

23 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

RI schools urged to review safety protocols in wake of Brown University shooting

The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) is urging local elementary and secondary schools to review safety protocols following the mass shooting at Brown University.

Days after two people were killed and nine others were injured in a shooting on the college campus, the department reminded schools statewide to ensure they are following existing safety policies, including keeping exterior doors closed and locked at all times.

“While the events of this weekend are tragic, they are also a reminder and an opportunity to re-train, reinforce, and go through the necessary safety steps, once more,” Commissioner Angelica Infante-Green said in a statement.

She emphasized the importance of following the protocols, including visitor policies, “as designed and written.”

In its latest announcement, RIDE also provided a list of resources for students, families, and school staff for “navigating difficult conversations” about topics such as violence and hate.

Rhode Island schools reminded to keep interior doors closed, exterior doors closed and locked

While all exterior doors should remain closed and locked, the department said, all interior doors should also remain closed. All visitors should go through a single, secure point of entry, according to RIDE.

In Providence, all elementary, middle, and high schools are also required to establish staff “crisis teams” and conduct 15 safety drills each year, according to the district’s existing safety protocols.

In the wake of the Brown University shooting on Dec. 13, Providence Public Schools said students should expect an increased police presence on and near their campuses.

All after-school activities, sporting events, and field trips at Providence schools planned for Monday, Dec. 15, and Tuesday, Dec. 16, were canceled out of an “abundance of caution.”

The district said that it would announce its plans for the rest of the week as soon as possible.

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Rhode Island

RI Lottery Powerball, Lucky For Life winning numbers for Dec. 15, 2025

Published

1 day ago

December 15, 2025

Press Room

The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 15, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from Dec. 15 drawing

23-35-59-63-68, Powerball: 02, Power Play: 4

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Dec. 15 drawing

12-16-27-34-41, Lucky Ball: 12

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Numbers numbers from Dec. 15 drawing

Midday: 4-9-8-3

Evening: 1-3-5-3

Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Wild Money numbers from Dec. 15 drawing

10-13-28-33-37, Extra: 35

Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize of $1,000 a day for life and second prize of $25,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.

When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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