News Briefs

Dr. Robert Perry

Bill Fazioli. RIIB photo

Henderson Bridge work continues

Posted Monday, February 6, 2023 1:05 pm

portions of this article contributed by Bob Rodericks

City Hires New HR Director
East Providence Mayor Bob DaSilva has appointed Dr. Robert S. Perry as the city’s new human resources director, filling a vacancy in that position. Perry will oversee all personnel matters in the city’s Human Resources Department. Perry will leave his job as principal of Riverside Middle School to accept the offer to be the new HR Director, starting in February.

Dr. Perry will be responsible for management training, recruitment, performance evaluation systems as well as contract negotiations. He will be responsible for addressing the Administration’s goals to update the city’s policies and procedures, IT infrastructure in HR and create a robust employee training program to train employees on supervisory and other skills.

“Dr. Perry’s more than 15 years in a leadership role as an administrator, principal and IT expert with vast experience in dealing with policies, procedures and education will be invaluable to the position of Human Resources director,” Mayor Bob DaSilva said. “Dr. Perry’s unique set of skills, education, and background will be a great fit for our team and the City of East Providence,” added DaSilva.

Perry was principal at Riverside Middle School, where “he has increased parent engagement, took a leading role in hiring teachers and staff, led a number district-wide curriculum efforts, and founded the RMS Chapter of the National Junior Honor Society.” Perry was to remain in his role as principal at Riverside Middle School until January 30, 2023. The school department has advertised for the Riverside principalship.

Before becoming principal at Riverside, Perry served as acting and assistant principal at Edward R. Middle School. He was also Latin teacher at East Providence, Barrington and Attleboro High Schools and adjunct lecturer at the University of Rhode Island.

“Having worked with families in East Providence over three decades, I understand the priorities of the people of our city and their expectations of government,” Robert Perry said. “I am really looking forward to helping to build on the same enthusiasm that Mayor DaSilva has brought to East Providence over the past four years. It is an exciting time to work in East Providence,” Perry added.

Perry’s background also cites his interest in performing as a musician or on the slopes, snowboarding, or volunteering as a Little League, Youth Soccer and Youth Wrestling coach. He is serving on the Rhode Island Principal’s Committee on Athletics’ Board of Directors.

Perry earned his Doctorate of Education at Northeastern University, Master of Education at Providence College and Bachelor of Arts in classics at the University of New Hampshire.

City Council and School Committee Reorganize
Once inaugurated after the January swearing-in, both the City Council and School Committee have organized and elected leadership and committee appointments. The City Council named at-large councilor Bob Rodericks to serve as Council President. The Council has three new members after the elections of members Frank Rego in Ward One, Frank Fogarty in Ward three and Rick Lawson in Ward four. Rodericks (At-large) and Anna Sousa (Ward two) were returned to the council. Former Council President Robert Britto was elected to the RI Senate and former members Nathan Cahoon and Ricardo Mourato lost their reelection bids. “I thank my council colleagues for supporting me as council President,” Rodericks said in his address during the inauguration in January. I pledge to take us into the next four years with a positive outlook for this great city. Our tent will be big enough for everyone, with fairness & respect toward all. I pledge to work closely with Mayor DaSilva & city administration and will keep each of my council colleagues informed on all issues. This doesn’t mean blind support, rather, it connotes good communication & good government. There will be disagreements on some issues, but they will be constructive, not personal, and we will move on,” added Rodericks. Rodericks went on to add that some of his council goals going forward included, controlling water usage fees vs. sewer use fees; solving street drainage issues in certain neighborhoods; aligning our fiscal year with the rest of RI at some point; addressing the affordable housing needs of so many and proposing property tax relief for eligible elderly trying to stay in their homes.

School Committee Begins Tenure
On the School Committee side, returning Ward three member Jenni Azanero was named board Chairperson by her colleagues. “I look forward to serving East Providence another 2 years and I appreciate the committee’s support in naming me as the board Chairperson,” said Azanero. “I want to work closely with our City Council also as we need to keep a sharp eye on city finances.” Azanero, Max Brandle and Jessica Beauchaine were returned to the board. Former member Anthony Ferreira returned in the vacant at-large seat and newcomer Ryan Queenan ousted veteran Ward one member Charles Tsonos.

At the board’s first full meeting with new members, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Sandra Forand gave the committee updates on several matters of interest. “There was an incident with a high school gymnasium sprinkler on December 21, 2022. A volleyball during class ricocheted off a (basketball) backboard and struck a sprinkler head cage. The sprinkler head bulb broke and some 500 gallons of water was discharged,” explained Forand. “Our maintenance staff vacuumed up 300 gallons of water and the rest was cleaned up by Clean Care. The Trust (insurance carrier) was on site within 20 minutes. Moisture pads were placed on the gym floor and 80 drying fans were brought in. I’m happy to report very minimal damage and no sanding or other work is needed. Incident was handled well and there is no serious floor damage,” added Forand.

Forand updated the board that all new LED lighting was replacing fluorescents at Riverside Middle School and the school administration building. RMS, Orlo Ave. and Silver Spring will get new windows to replace the old ones. Forand also explained that all custodians and maintenance would be using chrome books to allow quicker access to the system’s advanced request repair process.

The committee was also told of an anticipated overage in two budget line items. The amounts totalling $655K and $104K had to do with special education student placements. “Our special needs census was 944 in 2020 and right now is at $1,070,” said Forand. “This includes out-of-district placements like Bradley Hospital, DCYF residential placements, etc. We’re working on shifting funds from other line items to cover this.”

Former City Manager & Director of Planning Fazioli in New Job
The Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank (RIIB), the state’s central hub for financing infrastructure improvements for municipalities, businesses, and homeowners, announced that Bill Fazioli has been named the Bank’s new Managing Director of Program and Business Development.

“Bill Fazioli brings over 30 years of experience in municipal finance, planning, project development, and infrastructure investment along with deep relationships with state and municipal leaders across Rhode Island,” said Jeffrey R. Diehl, Executive Director and CEO of the Infrastructure Bank in a press release. “We’re thrilled to have Bill join the Infrastructure Bank team as Managing Director of Program and Business Development, where he’ll lead our outreach to municipal, business, and other partners.”

“With the expertise of Bill and others, we’re going to make sure our municipal partners know about and are able to access the nearly $500 million of federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law flowing into Rhode Island for drinking water, wastewater, and other critical infrastructure projects,” stated Diehl.

The press release continued, “Bill Fazioli is a former City Manager for East Providence. He has served as their Director of Planning and is an award-winning public servant specializing in the development and implementation of financial plans, along with formulating economic development strategies. Most recently, Bill was Northeast Regional Director for BondLink, a public finance investor relations portal, and prior to that was Director of Planning & Economic Development for the City of East Providence. His background includes senior roles in public sector banking, financial advisory, and municipal government. He is also the Executive Director of New England States Government Finance Officers Association and Chair of the East Providence Waterfront District Commission. Bill earned an MPA degree in public finance from SUNY-Albany and a BA in public administration and sociology from Rhode Island College.”

Building Energy Efficiency at East Providence High School
The Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank was involved with the funding needs of the new East Providence High School. “We effectively financed a major school construction project (EPHS) to lower costs for community residents. We integrated a $24 million loan from the Efficient Buildings Fund into the new school building project’s overall financing. Energy conservation measures in the new, state-of-the-art high school are projected to save the City over 18.5 million kWh of electricity, and by financing the project through the Infrastructure Bank at below market interest rates, the City will save almost $1 million on debt service payments,” writes a RIIB statement.

“Bill Fazioli was an exceptional City Manager, Planning Director and has been a key figure in developing our long-neglected waterfront,” said Council President Bob Rodericks. “The city is very fortunate to have Bill’s expertise and commitment to EP’s economic development and financial stability.

Bridge Work Update East Providence/Providence
The RI Department of Transportation lists an update to their ambitious bridge projects effecting East Providence and Providence. “The $78 million Washington Bridge project is much more than a bridge project. While it will address the structural deficiencies of the westbound portion of the Washington Bridge, which carries I-195 over the Seekonk River between East Providence and Providence, it also includes a new off-ramp to support economic development opportunities and address chronic congestion issues on the Interstate.

Thanks to the efforts of Rhode Island’s Congressional delegation in support of a $25 million federal BUILD grant, we can expand the project to include a new exit to Waterfront Drive in East Providence – providing access to dozens of acres of developable land. We also will construct an additional through lane on the bridge to better accommodate Interstate traffic and the high volume of traffic entering the highway from the Veterans Memorial Parkway, Warren Avenue and Taunton Avenue ramps.

The bridge carries more than 96,000 vehicles per day and is one of the busiest sections of Interstate highway in Rhode Island. It is the source of chronic congestion with backups often extending as far back as the Massachusetts state line, particularly during the morning rush hour. When the project is done, the average morning commute from the state line to I-95 will be trimmed by 40 percent, from 16 minutes to 9.5 minutes.”

Other Improvements:

Partial widening to provide five continuous lanes of I-195 westbound traffic over the bridge.
A new bridge structure in East Providence to carry traffic from the Taunton Avenue/Warren Avenue/Veterans Memorial Parkway on-ramps over the new off-ramp to Waterfront Drive.
A new bridge structure to carry traffic from Gano Street in Providence onto I-195 westbound.
Restriping of I-195 westbound from the Broadway overpass to the new Waterfront Drive off-ramp to allow four lanes of through traffic on the mainline, eliminating the current lane drop at Broadway.
Adding a through lane on the western end of the Washington Bridge to reduce the weaving movements between the Taunton Avenue/Warren Avenue/Veterans Memorial Parkway on-ramps and the Gano Street off-ramp.

Project Schedule & Cost: