Mayor Unveils New High-Tech Tool Designed to Combat Graffiti Vandalism in Providence Neighborhoods  

New FlashCam system acts as a deterrent by stopping graffiti vandals in their tracks, before they act

Perched high above the ground in an area prone to graffiti vandalism in Iola French Park, Providence’s latest high-tech weapon is already hard at work.  Mayor David N. Cicilline today launched a new pilot program called FlashCam, a solar powered, digital camera system designed to make graffiti vandals think twice before they act in the City’s ongoing efforts to combat graffiti.
 
“Graffiti is a quality of life crime that is a direct assault on the neighborhoods of our city,” said Mayor Cicilline.  “I am commitment to doing whatever we can to stop graffiti vandals in their tracks including using new smart technology.”
 

In the City’s latest effort to crackdown on graffiti, the pilot program will place six digital cameras in strategic locations throughout Providence.  The portable cameras, which are activated by motion, will be mounted on poles or walls and used at night when vandals are most likely to strike.  The idea is designed to deter people from engaging in illegal activity before they act.

How FlashCam works
When motion is detected for an extended period of time in a targeted area, the six-mega pixel digital camera illuminates a bright flash and sends out a loud voice warning to would-be vandals.  Each camera has a time-delay feature to ensure that the system is only triggered by those lingering in the area for an extended period of time, not by random passersby. 
 

FlashCam can store up to six hundred photos that are downloaded wirelessly to a laptop computer.  The system will be monitored by Parks Department staff and its portability makes it easy to move the cameras to different locations as needed.

 

Ongoing efforts to combat graffiti
Mayor Cicilline created the Graffiti Task Force in 2006 to combat graffiti through a combination of aggressive enforcement, graffiti abatement, enhanced public awareness and rewards of up to $500 for information leading to the arrest of vandals. 

 

Early in his first term, Mayor Cicilline worked hard to amend the Graffiti Ordinance to increase the penalty for graffiti offenses from $200 to up to $1000.  The provision also calls for restitution for damages and 200 hours of community service.  In addition,

anyone who sells aerosol paint containers, broad tipped markers, etching equipment,

paint sticks or graffiti sticks to a minor without written permission from a parent or guardian may be held criminally responsible.

 

Residents are urged to call 800-TAGGERS to report graffiti or to have graffiti removed from their property.  They may also file a report online at www.providenceri.com/graffiti.

 

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New Coalition to Focus on Closing Addiction Treatment Gap in Rhode Island 
Approximately 100,000 residents suffer from addiction; only 12% receive the care they need

This Tuesday, June 16th, a new statewide coalition announced a privately funded campaign to close the addiction treatment gap in Rhode Island.

The addiction treatment gap is defined as the difference between the number of people suffering from addiction and the number who actually receive the treatment they need. Approximately 100,000 residents in Rhode Island suffer from addiction yet only 12 percent receive the care they need.

The Rhode Island Closing the Addiction Treatment Gap (CATG) Coalition will work to identify the causes of the treatment gap in Rhode Island and develop strategies for coordinating efforts across the delivery system in order to improve efficiency and ensure treatment is accessible to those who need it.

The CATG Coalition is being funded through a three-year, $600,000 grant awarded to The Miriam Hospital by the Open Society Institute (OSI) of the Soros Foundation,  a program that seeks to raise awareness around alcohol and drug addiction and its effects on families and communities. 

 

“As a physician, I have seen first-hand the devastating impacts of drug and alcohol addiction on my patients,” said Josiah D. Rich, MD, The Miriam Hospital and Principal Investigator for the Rhode Island OSI Closing the Addiction Treatment Gap grant. “But I also know that addiction can be treated successfully over time, with patient dedication and community support.  I believe we can close the treatment gap through appropriate clinical care and sound public policy.”

  

A new study released this week by OSI shows that three quarters of Americans (76%), from all walks of life, are personally touched by addiction and nearly the same percentage (75%) are concerned that people addicted to alcohol or drugs may not be able to get treatment because of cost or lack of insurance coverage – a concern likely heightened by the current economic recession. 

Nearly three-quarters (73%) also support including alcohol and drug addiction treatment as part of national health care reform to make it more accessible and affordable.  This support is consistent across all demographic groups.  In addition, two-thirds of Americans (68%) support increasing federal and state funding for alcohol and drug prevention, treatment and recovery services.

“Untreated addiction impacts all aspects of our state and can lead to lost productivity, broken families, crime, costly incarceration, and even death,” said Neil Corkery, Executive Director, Drug and Alcohol Treatment Association (DATA) of Rhode Island. “This coalition is a way for everyone dedicated to addiction prevention and treatment to come together to find ways to make the system work more efficiently for the tens of thousands of people across the state who need help but aren’t getting it.”

A study released earlier this month by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), found that Rhode Island has the largest percentage of people, ages 12 to 25, who need drug abuse treatment but are not receiving it. 

The Coalition’s work was bolstered earlier this week by a national resolution, introduced and ratified at the United States Conference of Mayors held in Providence, which recognizes addiction as a preventable and treatable disease, and calls for Congress to pass legislation expanding funding for alcohol and drug prevention, treatment, and recovery services for all who need it.

“Supporting effective treatment programs is essential because the disease of addiction impacts every aspect of a community,” said Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline.  “As Mayor, I recognize that addiction, in some way, touches every sidewalk, doorstep, and desk in our great city of Providence, affecting our children and families, personal and corporate finances, community and personal health, and public safety.”

The coalition’s mission includes:

· Increasing the public’s understanding that addiction is a disease;
· Expanding access to evidence-based, high quality addiction treatment for all who need it;
· Expanding public and private funding and insurance coverage for those who need addiction treatment, but who cannot afford it; and
· Achieving greater efficiencies in how health systems respond to individuals with addiction.

“In today’s difficult economic times, it is increasingly important to provide support to all members of our community, especially those who suffer from substance use addiction,” said Reverend Jacqui Strothoff, Director of Teen Challenge for Women, Providence and New Haven. “Providing appropriate addiction treatment improves our entire community, reduces demand for public services, lowers healthcare costs, and most importantly, saves lives.”

Members of the Rhode Island Closing the Addiction Treatment Gap include: Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline and his Substance Abuse Prevention Council; Adcare Hospital; Addiction Technology Transfer Center of New England (ATTC-NE); AIDS Care Ocean State; Amos House; CODAC Behavioral Healthcare; DATA of Rhode Island; Family Service of Rhode Island; Gateway Healthcare, Inc.; The Kent Center; Lifespan Corporation; Mental Health Association of Rhode Island; The Miriam Hospital; Newport County Community Mental Health Center; NRI Community Services, Inc.; Physicians and Lawyers for National Drug Policy; The Providence Center; Providence Housing Authority; Providence Reentry Initiative; RICARES; Rhode Island Center for Law and Public Policy; Rhode Island College Institute for Addiction Recovery; Rhode Island Council of Community Mental Health Organizations; Rhode Island Hospital Emergency Department; Rhode Island State Nurses Association; Riverwood Mental Health Services; SSTAR; Un ited Nurses and Allied Professionals; and University Emergency Medicine Foundation.

Rhode Island received one of nine demonstration grants awarded across the country. The grant is part of a $10 million national initiative supported by OSI.

For more information, go to: www.closethegapri.org or contact Kevin Gould at 401-487-2152.

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Green Grocer Opens in Downcity Providence

 

Mayor Cicilline today joined grocery store owner Chung Cho, developer Buff Chace, shoppers, and other business partners for the grand opening of downcity’s newest grocery, Gourmet Heaven, located at 173 Weybosset Street at the ground floor of the Rhode Island School of Design’s Fletcher Building. 

 

“We have worked really hard to achieve critical mass in the downcity neighborhood, yet the one thing that was lacking was a great place to shop for food,” said Mayor Cicilline.  “Thanks to Mr. Cho and a host of public and private partners, Gourmet Heaven fills a need that was sorely lacking in this neighborhood.”

 

In collaboration with RISD, Cornish Associates was able to master-lease the space from the college, make the necessary improvements and then sub-lease it to the grocer.  Partners in the project include the Downcity Partnership, the Providence Revolving Fund, the RI Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission, local design-build team Site Specific, and architect firm Durkee, Brown, Vivieros & Werenfels. 

 

With two stores in New Haven, Cho’s newest location in Providence will offer a full selection of groceries, household items, fresh cut flowers, produce, fruit, dairy, and a deli.  Gourmet Heaven will also have a full kitchen preparing hot and cold dishes daily, including a sandwich station, coffee, and a prepared food buffet.  The grocery also features seating on a mezzanine level with free wi-fi access. 

 

For more information, go to www.gourmetheaven.com or contact Joanna Levitt at Cornish Associates 401-421-0254. 

 

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Feature: My City
Summer Jobs Help Keep Providence Beautiful
  

Early this month, Mayor Cicilline announced another “check mark” for his economic action plan, Operation Opportunity: the creation of 800 summer job opportunities for young people in Providence who need them most.  The summer jobs initiative, which is funded with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) dollars through the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training and Providence/Cranston Workforce Investment Board, will give young people in Providence the opportunity to do everything from producing a video and learning about green technology to planting trees and teaching residents about recycling.

 

One of the 30 local agencies partnering with the city to employ youth this summer is the Downtown Improvement District (DID), led by director of public programs Frank LaTorre.  The DID, most identifiable by their bright yellow uniformed crew, has been hard at work for the last four years improving the quality of life in downtown.  Thanks to them, Providence is an even more beautiful city today.  All team members of the DID – whether they’re in the Clean Up team or the Safety team – are also trained ambassadors for the downtown neighborhood.  They do everything from giving people directions to sweeping cigarette butts off the sidewalk to watering plants all over downtown.  And this summer, their young new employees will get a chance to learn exactly what it takes to keep Providence clean, safe, and vibrant.  

 
What are you going to be employing kids to do this summer?
We’re going to have the kids working with the Clean Team.  We have people that are out on the streets 17 hours a day, 7 days a week.  We have 17 full-time employees in their iconic yellow jackets with the DID logo on them.  From about 7 to 3:30 we have the whole Clean Team out picking up trash, litter, taking down graffiti, taking down handbills.  We’ve been doing a lot of cleaning and maintenance on the streets.  So the kids are going to be helping on the Clean Team.  

 
Why do you think it's important that young people get summer jobs?
I think the number one issue is that when you have that much time away from school and that much energy, you really want to put it in a positive place.  So the idea that we have so many people in a stressed economy, with so much time on their hands, so much potential, and so much to give, to have a channel for young people to be able to do some work – whatever level it is – is not only great for the economy and society because you’re contributing, but it helps their self-esteem tremendously.  So I think this is about as important of a project as you can have. 

 

What do you want them to take away from the experience?
I would say the pride and feeling of accomplishing something.  I’d like them to connect to the community spirit that we have here in the Downtown Improvement District and realize that we’re very, very proud of our city and that we all have to contribute in some way to continue to lift the spirit of this city and to continue to make the city a better place. 

 

To participate in a project that takes discipline, where you have to show up on time and do certain things – coupled with a job that’s very much about building community spirit and collaboration I think will be a really great experience for our young employees this summer.  They come away not only knowing that they can accomplish something in what they did that day but that they also helped to make the city all the more beautiful. 

 

We’ll also be bringing them over to the Convention & Visitors Bureau and let them hear the comments that people make about the city as a direct result of their work.  I hope they can really connect to that and to the team spirit that we have here at DID.  So I would like for them to know what it feels like to be a part of a working team but to also learn that there are responsibilities that come with that.  I want them to learn that if you want to be successful, you have to have some discipline and some focus, and learn basic skills. 

 

When did the Providence Downtown Improvement District form and why?
The DID formed in February 2005.  It’s a classic business improvement model meaning that all the property owners of the buildings downtown in an 81-square block area got together to sign a petition that they wanted to create a business improvement district.  So when we send out our assessment bills, it’s something that they have to pay in to.  Anybody that owns property here, directly coming from the tax roll (whether it be a condo, a parking lot, etc.) gets an assessment from us.  

 

The kitty comes to about $1.3 million, most of which goes to the clean and safety initiatives.  We use that kitty in order to supplement city services and better maintain the downtown in terms of litter, graffiti removal, and handbill removal.  All these things are important to the streetscape.  Then there’s also the security team.  We have a whole safety team that works from 3:30 to 11:30 p.m., 7 nights a week, to supplement what the police are doing. 

 

Another key point that we do here is an ambassadorial program.  Our people are trained to have good eye contact and to have a pleasant disposition when they answer thousands and thousands of questions a month.  So they’re trained ambassadors for downtown. 

 

We also take on quality-of-life issues in the DID.  The number one issue was doing more on the beautification side of downtown.  So once you’ve created an atmosphere where it’s safer and cleaner, now you want to make it more welcoming.  That’s when our board decided to invite nonprofit and corporate sponsors to undertake a huge planting program, and is now up to 248 hanging baskets, 50 huge planters, and 7 planting areas.  The beautification aspect is another natural outgrowth from this idea of creating a welcoming community spirit and showing the pride of this city. 

 

Lastly, we tackle a hospitality resource partnership initiative, which started through DID.  Mayor Cicilline embraced that program.  The city council has embraced it.  Other people throughout the community embraced it.  It’s about trying to make the nightlife safer but also more thriving and vibrant and continue to grow it. 

 

How do you think the DID has transformed and improved the quality of life in downtown Providence?

I think people in general feel much more positive about the city because of the consistency of what we’re able to do.  When you’re doing it seven days a week, 365 days a year, that consistency builds a certain pride.  It’s like the broken window theory.  If a window stays broken for a long period of time, people start to not feel good about the area like it’s not safe and the businesses don’t feel pride or ownership of it.  But over the last four years, I’ve seen the momentum build of people once again saying that downtown is just a beautiful place and they feel good about it – that they feel good about working here, playing here, coming to visit – which raises the spirits of downtown.  These positive feelings, to me, are direct offshoots of a good, clean physical environment. 

 

The folks in the yellow shirts and jackets are getting rave reviews.  What are some of the things they do?

They are divided into two teams. The Clean Team that works mostly mornings and afternoons and go out with the rolling barrels do the cleanup on the streets.  Within that team is also a graffiti removal team.  In fact, we’ve become almost like experts in what types of clean up procedures to use when it comes to graffiti because we have some historical buildings downtown that come with all different kinds of surfaces.  We’ve taken down thousands of tags over the last four years.  Again, it’s a consistent effort – when someone calls it in, we put in a work order and it’s taken care of as soon as we possibly can.  So it’s supplementing the municipal services downtown.  The Clean Team also does all the mainten ance of the flowers.  They have a special watering tank and all kinds of equipment.  We’re really fortunate that the Champlin Foundation started us off with a $150,000 worth of equipment. 

 

The other team is the Safety Team.  They are highly trained in dealing with people, how to see when there might issues that are arising, and calling the police.  Obviously we don’t get involved directly if it’s a violent situation but we’re there to give directions to people and being just a friendly, warm presence on the streets.  People love the Segues we ride around in!  That’s how they talk about us.  Whenever those Segues stop, it’s not uncommon to see a group of people standing around to talk to us and that’s how we’re able to get our message out.  We have a bike patrol as well.  We have a very coordinated effort at DID.  We work with the police hand in glove.  It’s a great partnership to increase the overall safety and welcoming atmosphere of downtown. 

 

What do you want neighbors and visitors to Providence to know about keeping downtown clean and safe?

We are really happy to do what we do.  But it is important for people to realize that everybody plays a role in this.  It could be as simple as going over to the trashcan and using it.  It’s all of our responsibility to keep downtown clean and vibrant and to build a real community.  I think we’re building community by coming to so many of the events we have here.  We see neighbors speaking to the businesspeople.  It’s an experience to watch the fabric come together.  Take pride and ownership of your downtown.  This is your downtown as well.  Get to know who your neighbors are.  It’s great to have a beautiful environment but ultimately it’s people who build the community around that. 

 

What's the long-term plan for the DID?

We’ll be entering our fifth year soon and the enthusiasm level and the commitment of our partners has been steadily high and I want to continue to maintain that and the very high level of service that we’ve provided over the years.   We want to build on that and get stronger on the years ahead. 

 

For more on the Providence Downtown Improvement District, go to http://providencedowntown.com/about.php

 

  
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