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Leading Environmentalist Sheila Dormody picked as Providence’s first Sustainability Director

EcoRI reports that Providence Mayor Angel Taveras has hired the longtime director of Clean Water Action, Sheila Dormody, to be the city’s first Sustainability Director.  This hire is another impressive progressive hire by Taveras since taking office in January including: former blog godfather and SEIU/JwJ organizer Matt Jerzyk, trial attorney and Obama finance co-chair Jeff Padwa and AS220ist David Ortiz.

“I am thrilled that Sheila is joining our team and bringing with her a wealth of experience. I look forward to working with Sheila to make Providence one of the greenest cities in the nation,” said Mayor Taveras.

“Providence is well-positioned to be a great, green city,” said Dormody. “Providence has an abundance of committed leaders willing to help make the city the best it can be. I am looking forward to bringing people together to lower energy costs, reduce the city’s carbon footprint and identify environmentally conscious, cost-saving opportunities. I can’t wait to get started.”

Dormody has been involved in advocacy, grassroots organizing, and training activists for the environmental community since 1989. She is the outgoing New England co-director of Clean Water Action, an organization in which she has worked for since 2000.

She has served as the chair of the Providence Environmental Sustainability Task Force and co-chaired Mayor Taveras’ Environmental Transition Committee. Dormody won a U.S. EPA Merit Award in 2008 for her work to prevent mercury pollution.

Dormody has also led key collaborations to promote policies to that strengthen the economy, protect the environment and promote public health including the Coalition for Transportation Choices and the Coalition for Water Security.

She lives in Providence with her husband.

The Sustainability Director position is funded by a federal Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant (EEGBC).
As the city’s Sustainability Director, Dormody will oversee efforts to the reduce the city’s energy expenditures, manage Providence’s “Greenprint” initiative to align the city’s workforce with the green economy, develop a comprehensive sustainability action plan, implement a citywide composting program and increase recycling in the city.

The position was championed by City Council Majority Leader Seth Yurdin and established by the City Council in 2008, but has never been filled.

“I am pleased to see the Sustainability position finally being filled – especially by someone with a resume and background like Sheila Dormody,” said Councilman Yurdin. “This position will save the city money by implementing common sense, cost-saving measures that other cities have done. In addition, this position will move the city’s economy forward by creating green jobs and identifying renewable energy initiatives.”

Dormody’s colleagues at Clean Water Action are enthusiastic for the city’s leadership on environmental issues.

“We look forward to collaborating with the City of Providence on this exciting next chapter of revitalization, innovation and sustainability,” said Cindy Luppi, New England co-director of Clean Water Action. “We have every confidence that Providence will lead the nation in tapping into 21st century green potential.”

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Polluting Waterfront Limits Future Knowledge District Expansion

By now many will have noticed the growing pile of scrap metal (and who knows what else) in the hospital adjacent waterfront on Allens Avenue. The sale of Promet to the burgeoning junkyard leaves the city and the city’s taxpayers with even fewer options for development.“I think the energy [for rezoning] has left the room – people are much more concerned about what may or not happen” with land freed up by the rerouting of Interstate 195 through the city, said Providence City Councilor Luis Aponte, who represents Ward 10 and has supported waterfront rezoning. “I still think it should be part of the plan, although I don’t know how attractive it will be with scrap there.”And the potential for growth is there. Excitement over the land freed by the relocation of 195 is growing, but the available space is limited.That environment attracted Anne De Groot and her medical-research company, EpiVax, to the neighborhood eight years ago. Now with a growing company, EpiVax needs more space.

“I’m all totally about being in the Jewelry District,” De Groot said. “Somebody build me a building, I’ll move in.”

Economic-development officials want more of her kind.

When was the last time you heard that from a Rhode Island business owner? But EDC director Stokes notes that when that space is gone, Providence is out of the picture, saying “the state will encourage businesses to set up in nearby places such as Pawtucket.” Lovely.

With Mayor Taveras claiming the need for cuts to workers’ pensions to deal with the city’s “category 5” fiscal crisis, one has to wonder why these industrial concerns should be allowed to continue to limit higher density uses and their potential for much needed property tax revenue. Let’s not forget the spurned proposal for a  $400 million dollar investment in the city and the 2,000 desperately needed, permanent jobs that development promised. The proposal included plans for a hotel “[serving] families of patients at the 250-bed acute-care facility as well as passengers preparing to board cruise ships” at a new terminal, along with“a small amount of retail, a floating restaurant and public walkways.”

Just this week, PBN noted the “near-record numbers” for the cruise ship industry in Southern New England, a development seized on by other cities in the region and still a possibility for the deepwater slips on Allens (something New Bedford lacks).

In New Bedford, which has been trying to add the cruise industry to its traditional maritime portfolio of seafood and freight, the number of cruise visits jumped from 17 last year to 27 this year, said Kristin Decas, executive director of the New Bedford Harbor Development Commission.

“We had a stellar year,” said Decas, who attributed some of the new popularity of the port to the Whaling City Expeditions harbor tours many cruise visitors enjoy. “They jump on our small excursion vessel and do a harbor tour. We entertain them with a narrative of the fishing industry and how it is No. 1 in the country in terms of value of catch”…
In the last two years, American Cruise Lines has used Providence Piers on Allens Avenue as either a starting or ending point for 26 of its New England cruises.

The line has a deal with Providence Piers running through 2017 that pier owner Patrick Conley said this year was evidence that Providence, with its deep water and cultural attractions, could attract thousands more cruise-ship visitors each year if it were positioned right.

“To use an inappropriate metaphor, this cruise line could be just the tip of the iceberg for the Port of Providence as a tourist destination,” Conley said.

Instead we get the glistening “Mt. Taveras” (pictured) as our welcoming waterfront gateway to the Capital City.

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New Mattress Policy Coming to Prov.

From the City of Providence:

Beginning August 1, Providence residents and property owners can dispose of their old mattresses and box springs directly at the Department of Public Works’ Convenience Center at 700 Allens Avenue on Thursdays from 3-7PM and Saturdays from 7AM – 1PM.

Residents dropping off mattresses/box springs will be asked to provide proof of Providence residency, and drop-offs are limited to two mattresses/box springs per resident.

Those who choose not to drop off their mattresses and box springs directly at DPW will be required to pay a $20 disposal fee for each mattress or box spring they throw away. Property owners will be fined $50 to $500 for mattresses and box springs that are placed on the curb in front of their property without a scheduled pick-up.

Throwing away old mattresses and box springs is easy: Just call Waste Management at 1-800-972-4545 before 3PM, at least 24 hours prior to your regular trash collection day, from Monday to Friday, 8AM – 5PM to schedule curbside pickup. English and Spanish-speaking customer service representatives are available from to process mattress/box spring disposal requests. Payments can be made by either check or credit/debit card.

Each year thousands of people dump mattresses and box springs on the sidewalk in Providence when they move or buy new ones, and their disposal comes with a surprisingly high price tag that the city simply can no longer afford. Last year alone, 19,000 mattresses were collected throughout the city, costing Providence’s taxpayers $513,000.

Bulky trash items and white goods will still be picked-up free of charge by calling 1-800-972-4545.

 


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