Rhode Island
Local boards know better – Warwick Beacon
To the Editor,
It’s clear to me that Rhode Island Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi (D-Warwick) is trying his best to fix that which isn’t broken.
In his recent 15 bill package, addressing housing throughout Rhode Island, he is intent on side-stepping local Zoning Boards and taking State control (H-7062).
The motivation is to develop multi-unit housing in areas where it’s never been before. These areas would include business districts and industrial zones.
This is not to mention the possibility of apartment buildings and condominiums, conceivably, in residential areas reserved and designed for single family homes. Imagine, if you will, a second separate house in your next-door neighbor’s backyard. With no Zoning Board to intervene, YES it could happen under this plan.
It’s obvious there’s a shortage of housing throughout Rhode Island and this issue needs to be addressed, but in a thoughtful and precise way. A cookie-cutter approach statewide is no way to cure this problem. What’s right for Central Falls or Providence is not what’s right for Johnston or Cranston.
This legislation would eliminate the authority of local Boards allowing developers to simply erect multi-unit, or other housing, wherever they want with little or no local permitting. The elimination of local Zoning Boards or the combining of local Planning and Zoning Boards is a thinly veiled means of putting all control in the hands of the State by statute.
Local boards understand their towns, their comprehensive plans and the local neighborhoods. Most importantly, these boards understand the people who live and work there and are accountable to those same people.
Clearly the Speaker’s intent is to override all local control, creating tracts of housing like a runaway train, with no consideration for consistency of local architecture or neighborhood design, but most importantly no consideration for homeowners and businesses.
The Johnston Zoning Board has done a remarkable job of guarding the interests of our town. We dare not put that decision-making responsibility in the hands of the State or remove it by statute. You can imagine how that will turn out.
Let’s remember, these are our neighborhoods, this is our Town and we have the right to plan and shape it free of State interference, the way we see fit.
Richard Fascia, of Johnston
Member of both the Johnston Zoning Board & Johnston Republican Town Committee
(WJAR) — About 20,000 Rhode Island Energy customers were without power on Friday afternoon.
Storm Team 10 issued a Weather Alert on Friday before of the strong storm system that was moving through the area.
That would include wind gusts and moments of heavy rain.
The Rhode Island power outage map reported that 14, 905 customers were without power.
The outages were all over the Rhode Island.
Some of the largest numbers were in the Valley neighborhood in Providence.
The Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority issued a warning for the Newport Pell Bridge and the Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge.
In its warning, it said only automobiles, pickup trucks, flatbed trailers, and commercial busses were permitted to cross those bridges around Noon.
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The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 18, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Numbers numbers from Dec. 18 drawing
Midday: 1-4-0-0
Evening: 5-5-4-5
Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Wild Money numbers from Dec. 18 drawing
09-28-30-31-36, Extra: 21
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.
Rhode Island
‘Just knock it off’: Neronha, Whitehouse urge RI to ignore Brown shooting conspiracy theories | ABC6
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Law enforcement are urging Providence and Rhode Island residents to only trust information from official sources in the Brown University shooting.
This follows the doxxing of a student related to online speculation about the shooting suspect’s identity.
According to Brown University, a student’s personal information was shared online, and now Attorney General Peter Neronha is attempting to stem the flow of internet rumors.
Rumors gained more traction after information about the doxxed student was seemingly removed from Brown’s website.
Neronha said that any online rumors about political, religious or racial motivations behind the shooting are unfounded.
Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse didn’t mince words when he weighed in on the online discourse in the case.
“So whether it’s to protect the law enforcement investigation from a lot of unnecessary and ill-informed noise cluttering up the ability of the many agencies working on this to do their jobs, or whether it’s out simple courtesy and sympathy to the families who are going through this awful moment, just please shut up with the speculation,” said Whitehouse.
“All the conspiracy theories, all the creepy weird plot ideas, please, just knock it off.”
School officials said it is not unusual to take steps to protect a person’s safety in the event of online targeting.
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