March 29, 2024

Strong Mayor Coming to EP? Not So Fast:

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Recreation Center, Mayor, Council Terms - All Approved by Voters, But Where Are They?

Could an elected Mayor type of government be in EP soon? Although just about 75% of East Providence voters approved a major change in its' form of government, there is no guarantee it will happen. Many questions remain and in the end it may be lawyers who have the last say, not the voters. City management is not quick to comment on the matter. Acting City Manager and city solicitor Tim Chapman would not comment directly on the subject because he will be asked to advise the new city council on the matter. New Ward 3 councilman Joe Botelho has long favored the strong Mayor form and some on the council agree that the hiring and firing of 6 recent city managers may influence this outcome.

However precedence has been established in squashing the will of the voters before. Twice voters in East Providence have strongly approved the construction of a new recreation center. Voters wanted to replace the ancient center which is housed in the old Riverside Junior High on Bullocks Point Avenue in Riverside. That overwhelming mandate was stopped by former councilman and Mayor Joe Larisa who twice, refused to let the matter go forward procedurally.

Recently voters also approved a measure to switch council terms from 2 to 4 years. That vote was also not honored by city and state officials. Incoming at-large councilman and former ceremonial Mayor Jim Briden, has spoken out against the strong mayor form of government in the past. Mayor Briden now has told the Reporter that "the Charter Amendment passed and so it now needs to be ratified." That ratification process remains the key.

Ward 1 councilman Robert Britto has supported the strong Mayor before and was the sponsor to place the matter on the 2016 ballot.

Returning Ward Three councilman Joe Botelho had an extensive response in support of the voter-approved change in government. "The last election saw the residents of East Providence support a move to an Elected Mayor form of government by an overwhelming 73%. There may have been a number of reasons as to why such a large majority voted for the change, including the carousel of six city managers that the city council has ushered in and out of that of office over the last six years. Two big reasons, however, rest with the fact that the voters became aware of the lack of transparency and accountability of the council/manager system and more importantly, residents felt they were being ignored," said Botelho.

"Lack of accountability has always been a challenge for this form of government since the city’s CEO, if you will, is selected by only five council people, or really only three of five council people representing a majority. The city manager serves at the will of the council, and as has been illustrated over the last six years, can get turned out of office on whim if they don’t comply with even the most unreasonable council requests," continued Councilman Botelho.

Sources also indicate that state leaders - some elected and some behind the scenes - will be involved in this process. Some observers point out that General Assembly involvement will be needed to decide the eventual outcome. So even though an overwhelming majority of EP voters in November said they want a strong Mayor form of government, it may not happen. Some say that the charter calls for 75% plurality to change and the actual margin was 73%. Others state the lack of a charter commission is a problem.

It was behind the scenes maneuvering that brought former City Manager, Richard Kirby from a post in the State House to East Providence. After losing support from some of those same state leaders and others, Kirby was fired.

"As someone who is now serving their fourth term on the city council, I can assure the people of this city they made the correct decision and have wisely moved our city in a positive direction. With an elected Mayor, we will now know exactly where the buck stops, and instead the power being seized by a handful of politicians, it will rest with everyone," added Botelho.

Ward Two councilwoman Anna Sousa told the Reporter that she is not opposed to the idea of a strong Mayor but didn't vote for the measure as it is currently written. "I didn't like the wording of the ballot question. It was vague and needed more information for the public to make a more informed vote," Sousa said. "I think the voters need consistency in the language and an opportunity to consider this question with a better understanding of its procedure," Sousa added. Sousa thinks that if the current vote to approve were "to stick", it probably needs state legislative ratification. "Our first step going forward is to get an opinion from our legal department," she said. "I want voters to be prepared and provided as much information as needed. That wasn't done."

Some of the cities in Rhode Island with strong Mayors are Providence, Cranston, Warwick, Pawtucket, Woonsocket, Cumberland while smaller towns like Barrington, Narragansett, South Kingstown, and Westerly have appointed managers.

(Pictured above are members of the new EP City Council. L to R: Joe Botelho, Ward 3, Anna Sousa, Ward2, Jim Briden, At-Large, Bob Britto, Ward 1 and Brian Faria, Ward 4.)

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