Rhode Island

The 6 biggest business news stories to watch in Rhode Island in 2025 – The Boston Globe

Published

1 year ago

January 3, 2025

Press Room

The 6 biggest business news stories to watch in Rhode Island in 2025 – The Boston Globe

Here are the biggest business news stories to watch in Rhode Island in 2026.

1. Will Hasbro leave Rhode Island for Boston?

Hasbro Inc. has been teasing Rhode Island’s leaders in mulling a move to Boston, and officials are tossing out all sorts of ideas — tax credits, an annual “Rhode Island Hasbro Day,” special access to airport lounges, subsidies for on-site child care — to see what might keep the century-old toy company anchored in its home state.

State leaders pitched Hasbro earlier this winter on six potential locations in three cities where Hasbro could relocate. But in that same meeting, leaders from Rhode Island Commerce and Governor Dan McKee’s office also pitched a series of incentives for the maker of Monopoly, My Little Pony, and Nerf, according to a report and videos released to the Globe on Monday in response to a public records request.

Hasbro spokespeople maintain that they have “no updates” on any potential relocation, but CEO Chris Cocks told employees in late 2024 that they would hear from the company’s leadership team sometime in the first quarter of 2025 about whether they’d be heading for greener pastures beyond Rhode Island.

Antonio Afonso, McKee’s chief of staff and the state’s “point person” on Hasbro, declined to be interviewed.

The Vanderbilt hotel in Newport, R.I. was once a mansion built in the early 1900s.Auberge Resorts Collection

2. The company buying up Newport restaurants

In Newport, there’s one man who seems to be everywhere: Nicholas S. Schorsch.

A wealthy entrepreneur and investor, Schorsch has been on roll with his Heritage Restaurant Group since relocating to Newport from New York City 12 years ago, and has amassed a growing portfolio.

In 2024 alone, the group acquired restaurants Caleb & Broad, Flo’s Clam Shack, The Reef, The Red Parrot, The Brick Alley Pub, and many more. In late December, the group also announced it would acquire the historic Vanderbilt hotel, a Georgian Revival mansion. It’s not yet clear what the Heritage group paid for the hotel, but the transaction is expected to close in early 2025.

The group also operates Newport Craft Brewing, La Forge Casino Restaurant, La Costa Lobster Rolls and Tacos, Cluck Truck, Cluck House, A Mano Pizza & Gelato, Wiener Wagon, and Wally’s Wieners. It also owns Newport Lobster Company, one of the largest seafood wholesalers in the area, and runs concessions at Easton’s Beach.

Many of the restaurants Schorsch has acquired were family-run operations where the owners were nearing retirement age. His purchase, some say, was a lifeline so they could step away from their businesses. But critics are concerned about the powerhouse the group is becoming, saying that much control over businesses on Aquidneck Island could raise prices and stifle competition.

3. The expansion of Brown University Health

Rhode Island’s largest health care system, Brown University Health, previously known as Lifespan Corp., acquired St. Anne’s Hospital in Fall River and Morton Hospital in Taunton from bankrupt Steward Health Care for $175 million in 2024. This year, the hospital owner plans to expand in Foxborough, Mass., by bolstering two outpatient clinics it purchased from Steward that could generate $43 million annually by fiscal year 2027. The clinics could be an opportunity, officials told investors in December, to expand cancer care and ambulatory surgery into Massachusetts. They also plan to broaden their specialty physician groups.

Demolition on the Washington Bridge in Providence, R.I.Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff

4. Continued fallout from the Washington Bridge closure

The Washington Bridge westbound on Interstate 195 abruptly closed more than a year ago, leaving drivers scrambling, and a long list of questions about went went wrong. The bridge — meant to last at least two more decades — needs to be demolished and rebuilt. Demolition is expected to take another year, and there is no timeline currently for when a new span will be completed. Chicago-based Walsh Construction Company will compete with a joint venture of American Bridge Company from Pennsylvania and New York-based MLJ Contracting Corp. to build the new bridge.

The state has sued 13 companies who were previously hired by the state to inspect the bridge, or do construction or design work. Several defendants have already pushed back on the suit, calling it a political “blame game.” A judge is expected to consider their motions to dismiss the lawsuit this month.

5. More shakeups at the state Housing Department

On New Year’s Eve, Tara Booker, the executive director of homelessness response for the R.I. Department of Housing, submitted her resignation. In a phone conversation with the Globe, Booker declined to comment as to why she would leave, and said she would remain at her post “through at least Jan. 31, and potentially longer.”

“I have a transition plan,” said Booker. “I don’t really want to comment on anything right now. I’m still working and want a productive transition.”

Booker also declined to comment on any winter shelter plans, which is a program she has overseen at the department since she was hired in March 2024. She is one of several of the department’s high-ranking leaders who have given their notice in the last year. Over the summer, former secretary Stefan I. Pryor resigned. Under his leadership, the department faced internal struggles and incomplete projects, and was circumventing procurement rules that may have cost taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars, the Globe reported. In November, after less than a year on the job, deputy housing secretary Deborah Flannery resigned.

Leaders in the General Assembly, including Senate President Dominick Ruggerio, said they have been “disappointed” in the department’s former leadership. In late November, agency consultant Deborah Goddard was appointed by Governor Dan McKee as the department’s fourth housing secretary since it was created in 2022. Her appointment will need the Senate’s approval.

Like her predecessors, Goddard will face a housing crisis that has been worsening for more than 30 years, developers who may want to build affordable housing but are facing red tape, and inflation.

Work at the “Superman” building in Downtown Providence has been limited.Lane Turner/Globe Staff

6. A funding request from the ‘Superman’ building developer

It’s been two years since the state unveiled plans to redevelop the long-vacant “Superman” building in downtown Providence ― the tallest building in the state ― into apartments with room for commercial space. It was seen as a major win for the McKee administration, but not much has been done since. When asked if the idea of redeveloping 111 Westminster St. from office space into 285 residential units was dead, Senate President Dominick Ruggerio said, “They’re hanging on by their fingernails.”

“They want money,” Ruggerio told the Globe. “The problem is, they never told us how much.”

In August, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley told the Globe that the owner of the Industrial National Bank Building is asking for more than $10 million in additional support to convert the 26-story skyscraper into apartments, but wouldn’t say exactly how much.

Alexa Gagosz can be reached at alexa.gagosz@globe.com. Follow her @alexagagosz and on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.

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Rhode Island

Clergy sex abuse bill passes RI Senate on unanimous vote. What’s next

Published

7 hours ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

Clergy sex abuse bill passes RI Senate on unanimous vote. What’s next

The Rhode Island Senate unanimously passed legislation to allow victims of clergy sex abuse to sue the institutions that failed to protect them.
The bill provides a two-year window for victims to revive claims that are currently barred by expired time limits.
This action follows the release of the attorney general’s report detailing a systematic cover-up by the Catholic Church over decades.

PROVIDENCE – Victims of clergy sex abuse scored a long-sought victory in the Rhode Island Senate on Wednesday, June 3.

Legislation to allow the victims to sue the Catholic Church – and any other institution that failed to protect them from molestation when they were children – won unanimous Senate approval and now goes to the House for final votes.

The fast action from Senate Judiciary Committee approval – to a full Senate vote – within an hour and a half was not unexpected after the announcement on Monday of a compromise backed by the Senate’s top-tier Democrats, including Senate President Valarie Lawson, Majority Leader Frank Ciccone and Senate Judiciary Chairman Matthew LaMountain.

If passed, as now appears likely, the legislation will allow the victims of sexual abuse by clergy to sue the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence and any other entity that knew, but failed to stop – or concealed – the abuse they suffered as children at the hands of trusted elders.

The legislation would also provide the long-ago victims – many of them now in their 60s and 70s – with a two-year window to revive claims currently barred by expired time limits.

The compromise – after years of pleas and inaction – follows the long-awaited release on March 4 of Attorney General Peter Neronha’s report detailing the systematic cover-up by the Catholic Church of the sexual abuse of more than 300 Rhode Island children.

His report laid bare, for the first time, the scope of more than a half century of alleged child sexual abuse by Rhode Island Catholic clergy and the breadth and depth of the alleged cover-up, which often included destroying key files or shuffling priests from parish to parish, where they would reoffend.

Sen. Mark McKenney, the lead Senate sponsor, told colleagues that the proposed new law not only states “this conduct unacceptable, but from now on, the institutions that have enabled it will be held accountable as well.”

As to whether the law would survive a legal challenge, McKenney said the Rhode Island Constitution “contains a provision that is somewhat unique in the United States: a victims’ rights clause. That provision has been largely overlooked in the debate that’s gone on about the constitutionality of this and … previous versions of this bill,” but retired U.S. District Judge William Smith drew attention to it when he testified.

He said Article 1, Section 23 “of our constitution provides that crime victims, including child sexual abuse victims, not only may receive compensation from perpetrators, but also, and this is a quote from the constitution, ‘Shall receive such other compensation as the state may provide,’ with that power ‘entirely committed to our authority as the General Assembly.’”

Co-sponsor Dawn Euer applauded “the victims and survivors, both the ones that we know of and the ones that we don’t, as well as the ones that we have lost. The strength and courage that it takes to go through what [these] people have gone through … is incredible.

“And then to be able to come up here and advocate …. for passage of this legislation over years [of] legislative turmoil and back again, it’s really incredible the strength and determination that you all have shown,” she said to the group of survivor-advocates in the Senate gallery.

“We get used to it,” she said of the process by which “the proverbial sausage is made. But for issues like this that have real impacts on people’s lives, it can be an additional trauma,” she said of the year after year of public hearings and testimony, followed by inaction.

On Wednesday, she said, the Senate sent the “strong signal that Rhode Island stands with survivors and victims.”

This story has been updated with new information.

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Rhode Island

Shifting Sands in Rhode Island – Rhode Island Monthly

Published

17 hours ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

Shifting Sands in Rhode Island – Rhode Island Monthly

A rising tide of beach garbage plagues local wildlife. Fortunately, there’s something you can do about it.

A wide array of beach trash found on Napatree Point, from balloons and ribbons to Styrofoam, cellophane, nylon rope, bottle caps and a hypodermic needle. Waves break plastic into tiny particles that mix into beach sand and are ingested by marine life. Photography courtesy of Robert L. Mitchell

It’s easy to overlook the detritus along Rhode Island’s shoreline, but as the amount of beach litter has increased over the last few years, its effect on seabirds, seals, fish and other wildlife has risen dramatically.

Between 2011 and 2023, the Mystic Aquarium animal rescue program admitted fifty-eight seals into rehabilitation due to entanglements.

“Between 2024 and 2025, we have already passed that number, with fifty-nine entangled animals reported in just a year and a half,” says MaryEllen Mateleska, the aquarium’s senior director of education and conservation.

During an early summer walk at Watch Hill’s Napatree Point, much of the litter wasn’t noticeable at first because it had been ground down into little pieces along the high-tide mark. So it came as a surprise when my wife and I, after picking up everything we could find on a milelong stretch of sand, came away with a grocery bag full of trash. Most of it wasn’t whole bottles or cans, but micro trash — bits of things that had been pulverized by the surf.

Our haul included fifty-seven pieces of cellophane, twenty-five balloons (many with ribbons attached), twenty-four bottle caps, twenty-four pieces of nylon rope and netting fragments, twenty-four hard plastic fragments and ten cigarette butts (the plastic-based filters are not biodegradable). We also picked up fishing line, rubber lobster claw bands, tin foil, a shoe heel, one plastic bottle, one toothpaste tube and a syringe — all in the off-season.

“We are seeing more smaller plastic particles make their way to the beach,” says Mateleska.

Garbage found on Napatree Point includes
ribbons from discarded balloons. Birds weave it into their nests, where it may entangle young birds. Photography courtesy of Robert L. Mitchell
Seabirds can mistake balloons for jellyfish and ingest them with serious consequences. Bits of rope and string are particularly dangerous for birds, which may use the material when building nests or get tangled in it. Photography courtesy of Robert L. Mitchell
Larger pieces of net or fishing line can also entangle larger marine animals such as seals. Photography courtesy of Robert L. Mitchell

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The litter accumulates from trash left on the shoreline, refuse that blows in from cars, bins and local roadways, and garbage that travels to the ocean by way of rivers. Waves then break down the plastics into smaller pieces of micro- and nanoplastics.

“Plastic pollution is incredibly dangerous to aquatic species,” she says. Fish and other animals ingest the microplastics and can become entangled in ribbons, nets and fishing lines. Other items that entangle wildlife include six-pack ring holders, hair ties, fishing line, netting or pieces of netting, fishing lures, hooks and plastic bags.

Sea birds are especially vulnerable because they use those bits of fishing line, rope, string and other materials to build their nests. Balloons, in particular, are deadly to seabirds, which often mistake them for jellyfish or other prey.

“Plastics are now in every ecosystem, almost every seabird, and almost every human body,” Mateleska says, with the long-term health impacts unknown.

They also take an extremely long time to break down, which is harmful to the state’s delicate coastal ecosystem.

“[Plastic] material that is in the environment may present itself on a shoreline very far away many years or decades later,” says Dave McLaughlin, sustainability coordinator at the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.

___________________________

What You Can Do

Beach walkers can help by picking up garbage wherever they go to enjoy the outdoors. But you don’t have to go to the beach to help. Better management of beach trash starts at home, Mataleska says.

“Refuse single-use plastics and look for sustainable alternatives, pick up trash wherever and whenever you see it, and support legislation that stops plastic at the source,” she advises.

Volunteer for coastal cleanups, use reusable materials, carry in and carry out your trash, recycle, and don’t litter. And consider joining a nonprofit group such as those sponsored by Coastodians (coastodians.org) or Save the Bay (savebay.org) that organize beach cleanups. When it comes to beach trash, even small groups can make a big difference.

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Rhode Island

RIIL title-game spots were on the line Tuesday. Here’s who earned them.

Published

1 day ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

RIIL title-game spots were on the line Tuesday. Here’s who earned them.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Coaches are reminded to send in game results each weeknight by emailing pjsports@providencejournal.com from 6 to 10 p.m.

🥍Games of the Day

La Salle will play Moses Brown for the 2026 RIIL Boys Lacrosse State Championship, like there was ever any doubt.

Tuesday was semifinal day for the two best boys lacrosse programs in Rhode Island and turned into their annual victory party. The top-seeded Rams didn’t play their cleanest lacrosse, but that didn’t stop them from taking No. 4 Hendricken apart with a 19-6 win.

Across the city, the second-seeded Quakers didn’t get off to a quick start, but took advantage of a man-up situation in the second to build a comfortable lead that turned full reclining chair in the second half in a 14-2 win over No. 3 Barrington.

La Salle handled Hendricken with ease during the regular season and the playoff match was more of the same. The Rams didn’t light the scoreboard on fire – at least not by their lofty expectations – but Dylan Fitzgerald’s FOGO dominance never gave the Hawks a chance to climb back into the game. La Salle improved in the second half and turned a 9-2 halftime lead into a 13-goal victory.

Lachlan Got led the Rams with five goals and Quincy Marino scored four. Tanner Poirier and Kian Parker both scored two goals and Nick Loo, Charlie Rodehorst, Thayer Got, Tyler Loo and Reid Kelley also had goals. Fitzgerald won 18 of 21 faceoffs and Connor Kelley made six saves before giving way to Sam Melanson, who made three to close things out.

Max Casten scored twice in the loss for Hendricken, with Richie Sousa, Will Kornacki, Karlton Lough and Dom Vacca getting the other scores.

Over on the east side, it took a little longer for Moses Brown to get cooking.

The Quakers struck first on a Christian Smith bounce shot 1:22 into the game, but the Eagles tied the game with a Peyton Hillier goal with 2:08 left in the quarter. MB quickly responded, with a goal by Reece Chace with 1:32 left to take a 2-1 lead into the second quarter.

Barrington picked up a stick penalty between quarters and Moses Brown took advantage of the man-up situation, getting a goal from Chace 1:12 into the second and then another score from John Cerce 30 seconds later. Chace added his third goal of the game with 6:59 left to play and Hugo Harrell popped one home with 5:11 left that gave MB a 6-1 lead it took into halftime.

The Quakers didn’t let up in the third quarter, outscoring the Eagles 3-0, before playing out the fourth.

Chace and Harrell led Moses Brown with four goals apiece. Cerce and Smith both scored twice and Ben Magiera and Matt Azevedo had the other tallies.

Hillier scored both goals for Barrington in the loss.

Nothing has been made official, but if tradition holds La Salle and Barrington would meet in the state title game on Saturday morning at Brown University.

🥍GIRLS LACROSSE – D-II semifinals

Westerly 21, Cranston West 3

The Bulldogs showed why they were the top seed in the D-II tournament, putting together an unstoppable performance in a 21-3 win over fourth-seeded Falcons.

Westerly has scored in bunches all season, but it picked a great time to have its best offensive performance of the season. The Bulldogs owned possession and finished what seemed like every time up the field, leaving Cranston West in their wake.

Eight different players scored for Westerly, led by six goals from Casey Macera. The Bulldogs got three apiece from Ella Seltzer, Gianna Falcone and Sienna Fizzano, while Phoebe Brennan and Jenna Parker scored two apiece. Macy Antoch and Sienna Mathieu added one goal each and Vittoria Illiano made five saves in the win.

Ashley Budano scored two goals to lead the Falcons and twin sister Zoe Budano had the other tally.

Westerly moves on to the Division II title game and will play No. 2 Cumberland.

Cumberland 12, Burrillville 6

The Clippers offense made a statement in the opening quarter and kept their foot on the gas, beating the Broncos, 12-6, to earn a spot in the Division II championship game.

When the teams met on May 8, No. 2 Cumberland had too much firepower for No. 3 Burrillville to contain. The trend continued in the rematch, as the Clippers poured on five goals in the first quarter before going up 8-2 at halftime. Up 10-3 late in the third, Cumberland played a man down but the Broncos couldn’t take advantage.

Lucy Biggs led the Clippers with five goals and Brooke Tellier and Leanna Parrillo scored three goals apiece in the win. Cumberland moves on to the D-II final where it will play No. 1 Westerly.

Alexis Novicki and Gia Marini scored two goals apiece for Burrillville and Grace Doughty made 11 saves in the loss.

🥍GIRLS LACROSSE – D-III semifinals

Toll Gate 15, East Providence 5

It’s tough to beat a team three times in one season, but the Titans made it look easy as the offense played practically perfect in a 15-5 win over the Townies.

No. 2 Toll Gate beat No. 6 East Providence – the defending D-III champs – in a defensive battle, 6-5, on May 13, then outscored them 13-7 on May 20. That second game showed the Titans something and the offense was even better in the third meeting of the season.

Delanie Wheeler could not be stopped, scoring seven goals to lead all scorers. Aubrey Rubeira was also terrific, scoring four times. Jenna White had a pair of goals and Tate Payne and Stella Kraus had the other two scores. Olivia Napolitano made five saves in the win.

Alyssa Karalekas left it all on the field in her final game for EP, scoring four times. Sydney Olson added one goal in the loss.

Toll Gate moves on to Sunday’s Division III final and will take on the winner of Wednesday’s semifinal between No. 1 Smithfield and No. 4 Pilgrim.

🥍GIRLS LACROSSE – D-IV semifinals

Scituate 7, Coventry 2

The Spartans offense owned the first half and the defense took care of business in the second as they pull out a 7-2 win over the Oakers and earned their spot in Sunday’s Division IV title game.

No. 3 Coventry beat No. 2 Scituate for the Division IV title last year and came away with a win in the regular-season rematch this spring, giving the Spartans plenty of motivation.

The offense was ready to put on a show and did in the first two quarters to take a 5-1 lead. Coventry tried to battle back, but the Scituate defense was too tough and didn’t let the Oakers find a rhythm,

Julianna Pimental led Scituate with seven goals and Grace Jacavone and Bella O’Leary scored two goals apiece. Maelie Bowden had three assists and Lainey Nelson made eight saves in the win.

Hailey Duggan and Addie DeMarzo scored the goals for Coventry, who hung tough despite an injury to star goalie Maddy Vorro in the third quarter.

Scituate will look to win a title that evaded it last season when it takes on the winner of Wednesday’s semifinal between No. 1 Lincoln and No. 3 Tiverton.

🥍BOYS LACROSSE – D-III semifinals

Lincoln 5, Narragansett 2

Jake Rousseau’s story on the third-seeded Lions’ upset over the second-seeded and defending Division III champion Mariners can be found here.

🥍BOYS LACROSSE – D-IV semifinals

Rogers 9, Ponaganset 2

The Vikings gave up a goal early, then took over the game in a 9-2 win over the Chieftains, giving the defending Division IV champs a shot at winning another title.

No. 3 Ponaganset took the long ride to Newport and showed up ready to play, as Otto Pearson scored the first goal of the game 1:12 in, giving his team a boost of energy.

Rogers, the No. 2 seed, came back in a hurry, getting four goals from four different players before the quarter was over to go up 5-1 at halftime, then second the first four goals of the second half to put things away.

Luke Mathews led the way for the Vikings with four goals. Brady McCombe scored twice for Rogers and Quinaln Green, Aidan O’Connell and Jayvia Perez had the remaining goals. Rogers moves on to the Division IV final against top-seeded Scituate in a rematch of last year’s championship game.

Pearson scored the first goal of the game for Ponaganset and the last was scored by Owen Machan.

🏐BOYS VOLLEYBALL – D-II semifinals

West Warwick 3, Central Falls 1

The Wizards came in looking for revenge and got it while earning a title-game spot in the process, downing the Warriors 25-19, 22-25, 25-16, 25-23.

No. 1 West Warwick’s only loss to a Division-II team this spring came in four sets at the hands of No. 4 Central Falls on May 6. The Wizards took down the first set to gain momentum, but gave it back as the Warriors played great late in the second set.

West Warwick’s vaunted offense took over in the third set and the team rode that energy into the third, closing with a fury. Ian Degnan ran things to perfection and finished with 58 assists, with Colin Kelly leading the Wizards with 16 kills. Alex Osmena came through with 14 kills and Liam Sisson had nine kills and four aces in the win.

Emmanuel Tavares led Central Falls with 12 kills and Nicolas Goncalves had 10 kills in the loss. Daniel Rojo, did what he could in the back, coming up with 16 digs.

West Warwick advances to Saturday’s Division II title match and will take on No. 2 Westerly.

🏐BOYS VOLLEYBALL – D-III semifinal

EWG 3, St. Raphael 0

The Scarlet Knights weren’t going to let the Cinderella Saints pull off another upset, winning big points when it mattered most in a 25-21, 27-25, 25-22 win that sends them to the Division II title game.

No. 3 Exeter-West Greenwich knew what No. 7 St. Raphael was capable of after its 3-1 home win on May 20 and then seeing the Saints take down No. 2 North Providence in the quarterfinals.

The Knights had a balanced offensive attack, with setter Will Edwards finishing with 29 assists and using all the weapons at his disposal. Zoltan Libertini led the way with 10 kills, Derik Payette had eight kills and Casey Kretchman finished with seven kills in the win.

Jameson Taylor left it all on the court for the Saints, finishing with 19 kills. Joe Clifton had five kills and three blocks and Brighton Champagne finished with 32 assists in the loss.