Good morning and welcome to the Providence City Council meeting on this Thursday, January twenty second.

Welcome.

Thank you for the uh little intermission here to send our champs from Mount Hope off well.

Madam Clerk, please call the roll.

Council President Miller.

Present.

Deputy Majority Whip Anderbois is absent.

Councillor Davidson, present.

Majority Leader Espinal.

Present.

Present.

Councilwoman Graves.

Present.

Deputy Majority Leader Harris.

Present.

Councilwoman Peterson.

Present.

Council President Pro Tempore Picardo.

Present.

Council Aroyus.

Present.

Councilwoman Ryan.

Present.

Majority Whip Sanchez.

Present.

Councilman Taylor.

Present.

Councilwoman Ana Vargas.

Present.

Councilman Oscar Vargas is absent.

You have thirteen present and two absent.

You have a quorum.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

This evening, the invocation will be given by Chairwoman Ryan.

Will everyone please rise as you're able?

Chairwoman Ryan.

Second, Madam President.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion.

Councilwoman Bargas.

The vote is now closed.

You have 13 ayes, two absent.

The motion carries the minutes are approved.

Madam President.

Majority Leader.

Motion to take item nine through 17 out of order.

Second, Madam President.

We have a motion and a second, any discussion on that motion.

Hearing none, all in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstentions?

The motion passes.

Uh, Madam Clerk, item nine, please.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Motion to weigh the reader of item nine and pass on a voice vote.

Second, madam president.

So motion and a second, any discussion on item nine.

Hearing none, all uh, I'm sorry, madam clerk, open the vote.

The vote is now open.

The vote is now closed.

That is 13 ayes, two absent.

The motion carries the matters approved on a voice vote.

Thank you.

Item 10.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

What should the way the reader about it 10 and 11?

Second, madam president.

A motion and a second.

Any discussion on items 10 and 11?

Hearing none, all in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstention?

The motion passes.

Madam Clerk, please refer item 10 to the committee on finance and item 11 to the uh committee on ordinance.

So noted.

Item 12.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

What should it away the reader?

Item 12 and 13 and pass pass on a voice vote.

Second, madam president.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on items 12 and 13.

All right, hearing none, Madam Clerk, open the vote.

The vote is now open.

The vote is now closed.

That is 13 ayes, two absent.

The matters pass on a voice vote.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

Item 14.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Motion to weigh the reader of item 14 and pass on a voice vote.

Second, madam president.

Madam President.

Uh council Councilman Gonzalez.

I'd like to make a motion to withdraw that motion.

Accept it.

Accept a second.

Would you like to make a different motion, Councillor?

Motion to send item number 14 and refer to the committee on state legislative affairs.

Second, Madam President.

Thank you very much.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion?

Madam Clerk, open the vote.

Oh no, I'm sorry.

Uh no discussion.

All in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstentions?

The motion passes.

Please send item 14 to the committee on state legislative affairs.

So noted.

Item 15.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Item 15 and passing a voice vote.

Second, madam president.

We have a motion and a second.

Um discussion on item 15.

Councilman Gonzals.

Thank you, Madam President.

So tonight we gather not just as policymakers, but as people.

But that day, our city and Brown University were helped by enormous courage in that act of violence that took two young lives and injured many others.

I just want to acknowledge them.

Muhammad Aziz Morzikov and Ella Cook was a day that we will never forget and may their memories live on forever.

Our community experienced an unspeakable tragedy.

That left many families grieving.

Neighbors fearful in our entire city searching for answers.

But even in that dark night, there are so many people to thank, be it the Reddit John, the unhoused man who helped identify the suspect, the neighbors that stepped up to provide footage, and in a moment of chaos when fear was everywhere, our officers ran toward the danger.

And I want to be very clear about something.

That night, our police were not only securing the scene, they were coordinating the investigation, they were managing the crowd, and they were also providing medical care to the people who were injured.

They were offering comfort, they were doing everything possible to save lives.

And tonight, I want to take a moment to specifically recognize the uniform division who were first on the scene and immediately took control of an unimaginably complex situation.

I also want to thank the investigative division whose tireless work led to identifying the suspect in coordination with the FBI and confirming the person's whereabouts during a painful chapter of our history.

And lastly, the administrative division who ensured seamless coordination behind the scenes so everything can run effectively and smoothly.

And we also have tonight the Brown University Department of Public Safety, uh John Rankin, who's here tonight on behalf of their investigative division, whose partnership with our police department allowed us to have closure.

And I just want to acknowledge the leadership here that's here with us tonight, folks like Captain Dennis O'Brien, Lieutenant Potter, Detective Sergeant Premiano, I see uh Deputy Chief O'Hara, uh, all of the members of our police department, if you can join us behind the chamber, we would greatly appreciate taking a moment to acknowledge your calm under pressure, your decisive leadership, your commitment to the officers and to our city and making a difference.

You set the tone, you set the standard, and you showed what real public service looks like.

So, Providence, everyone who's here tonight, please join me in a standing obation.

We're gonna ask the clerk to read the resolution that was submitted tonight on the docket.

Uh, and again, we just want to thank you for your courage for wearing the badge with honor, and we're so grateful to each and every one of you.

Madam Clerk.

Whereas the city of Providence and Brown University experienced a horrific act of violence on December 13th, 2025, which killed two students, injured nine more, and became a matter of deep sadness and concern for our city.

And whereas Muhammad Aziz Merzikov and Ella Cook, two bright first years, never made it home for winter break, may their memories be a blessing.

And whereas members of the Brown community were left to pick up the pieces, frantically contacting loved ones to ensure their safety and reeling from the shock and heartbreak of losing friends and classmates whose time at Brown had only just begun.

And whereas residents of the east side sheltered in place for hours, many of them in the dark, under tables, and in back rooms and basements, and fearful that the shooter could be lurking just outside.

And whereas, as that Sunday's violence gave way to Monday's strained routine, employees returned to work, students returned to school, and our community members sought to feel safe in their homes and neighborhoods, despite widespread fear of the shooter still on the loose.

And whereas throughout that week, the Providence Police Department and Brown University Department of Public Safety met the moment by establishing a visible presence at schools, civic buildings, and near Brown's campus, delivering timely and accurate information to the public and working overtime to pursue the suspect.

And whereas officers' diligent work led to the identification of a suspect, confirmation of his whereabouts, and ultimately the end of a painful saga that gripped our city.

And whereas the city additionally recognizes the outpouring of support for our community with too many good Samaritans to name, including the Brown University staff members who took students into their homes that first night, volunteers with the Brown University undergraduate council of students who established a mutual aid network to help students travel home and ripped a bus drivers who worked into the late night as they transported students to their dorms from wherever they were sheltering in place.

Now therefore, be it resolved that the Providence City Council expresses its deep gratitude to the Providence Police Department, the Brown University Department of Public Safety, and the many members of our community who helped to bring feelings of safety and care to our city in the wake of one of its darkest days.

And be it further resolved that upon passage, copies of this resolution shall be transmitted to Providence Chief of Police, Oscar L.

Perez Jr., the Office of Mayor Brett P.

Smiley, the Brown University, Department of Public Safety, and Brown University President Christina H.

Paxon.

Thank you.

And Madam President, I just want to take a moment to also recognize Major David LePatin.

Thank you, sir.

One more big round of applause for the Province Police Department.

The council.

Yeah, Madam President.

I'd like to speak as well.

Go ahead, Councilman Taylor.

You're done.

So I just want to quickly say from a former Providence firefighter who did 28 years on the job.

I worked with many of you guys.

And um I've always supported you.

I continue to support you guys.

And uh they say that the fire department is a tough job where we're running into fires and everybody's running out.

But in the last 10 years or so, your job has been hotter than anybody can ever imagine.

And I'm gonna speak the truth here, and some people might not get bad mad.

But I supported you guys back in 2020-20 when there was a vote in this in this about defunding the police.

And it's a shame that some people uh are flip-flopping if you want to call it.

But uh you uh you have been with me for uh protecting the city.

I I support you 100%.

I'll continue to support you.

I will never vote to defund the police, and I couldn't believe in 2020 that some of people were still here that have voted to defund the police.

I will never vote for that, even though I'm only one vote.

So I just want to say from the bottom of my heart, I really thank you as a former firefighter, as a citizen, as a councilman, that you guys go over and beyond more than what you do and put your lives, especially nowadays.

It's crazy world out there.

And I don't know why some of you are still here just retire.

No, but I'm just saying, no, seriously, that you guys do a great job.

And um, I just wanted to put that out there that I really I will always support the Providence Police Department.

I will never vote.

I didn't then, and I won't then now vote to defund the police.

So thank you very much.

Counselor.

Any further discussion on item 15.

Hearing none, let's vote on this item and then stand at ease and uh thank you guys in person and let you get back to work in some cases.

So uh hearing none, madam clerk, please open the vote.

The vote is open.

The vote is now closed.

That is 13 eyes, two absent.

The matter passes on a voice vote.

Thank you, madam clerk.

And I will just say for my part, I have incredibly grateful for the work you do every day, but also uh what was accomplished during that truly awful week.

So thank you very much, and we'll stand at ease and congratulate you in person.

I got the confirmation of mine.

I did get one yesterday.

You did get one.

Yeah.

Thank you very much, Counselors.

All right.

Madam Clerk.

Item sixteen.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Why should the way the reader of item sixteen and passing a voice vote?

Second, Madam President.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on item sixteen.

Thank you, Council President.

Happy to stand and speak on this.

This is a matter near and dear to my heart.

I spoke with the council president some weeks ago on and asked to establish a special commission on the history of the Providence City Council.

Many of you know Councilwoman Harris and I are the senior counselors in this body on and we stand on giants.

So it's important to me and my other colleagues I've spoken with to uh preserve, protect and promote the history of the council.

So that history is never lost.

Can't think of the year that that was, but I should know that.

We all should know that.

We lost a lot of institutional knowledge.

So before Councilwoman Harris and I leave, we want to make sure that we document the years of history on and put it in a format and substance that's easily digestible and can be referred to um for years to come.

And it basically is an opportunity for us to show the hard work that we've done and the giants that we have shoulders we've stood on.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilwoman.

Any further discussion on item 16.

Councilwoman Harris.

One of the things that I really love is Providence history and the greatness of what happens in Providence.

When Councilwoman Ryan asked me to be a part of this, I was like, oh yes, let's do it.

Simply because a lot of times I came in from outside as an organizer and I had no idea what politicians do or what people have done in the past or what decisions we have to make and how we have to make them at times.

So I this is going to be an honor.

I'm looking forward to it.

Um I'm I'm privileged to do this job.

I was a mother.

Um single mom, raising her children, and now I help make decisions.

So I think it's really important that we continue to tell this history.

And Councilwoman Ryan, this is wonderful, and I thank you for it.

And I thank all my colleagues for all that you do, and I'm excited to be a part of this.

Thank you.

Thank you, Counselor.

Any further discussion on item 16?

Councilwoman Davidson.

Okay.

So, Madam President, I just want to briefly, as the newest member of this body, I want to state my support for this work, and I pledge to help keep it going.

Um, I think it's wonderful.

I think that our city's history is incredibly important, and I would love to be a part of making sure that the history of this body and all aspects of our city are preserved and celebrated.

So thank you for kicking this off, Councilman What Councilwoman Ryan, and I'm eager to participate in whatever way I can.

Any further discussion?

Hearing none, Madam Clerk, please uh open the vote.

The vote is open.

The vote is now closed.

We have 13 ayes, two absent.

The motion carries the matters passed on a voice vote.

Thank you.

Item 17.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

I should the way the reader of item 17.

Second, madam president.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on that motion.

Hearing none, all in favor.

Aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstentions?

The motion passes.

Madam Clerk, please refer item 17 to the committee on finance.

So noted.

And now we are back to item four.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Motion to weigh their reader.

Item four through six.

Second, madam president.

Any discussion?

Hearing none, all in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstentions?

The motion passes.

Madam Clerk, please note item four is received.

Um and refer item five and six to the committee on finance.

So noted.

Item seven.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

What's it to weigh the reader of item seven and pass for the second time in a roll call vote?

Second, madam president.

You have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on item seven.

Hearing none, um, Madam Clerk, open the vote and call the rule.

The vote is open.

Council President Miller.

Aye.

Deputy Majority Whip Anderborough is absent.

Councilor Davidson.

Aye.

Majority Leader Espinall.

Aye.

Senior Deputy Majority Leader Gonçalves.

Aye.

Councilwoman Graves.

Deputy Majority Leader Harris.

Aye.

Councilwoman Peterson.

Aye.

Council President Pro Tempore Pichardo.

Aye.

Council Arroyas.

Aye.

Councilwoman Ryan.

Aye.

Majority Whip Sanchez.

Aye.

Councilman Taylor.

Aye.

Councilwoman Anna Vargas.

Aye.

Councilman Oscar Vargas is absent.

You have 13 ayes, two absent.

The motion carries the matters passed for the second time on a roll call vote.

Councilwoman Graves, can you input your vote, please?

Thank you.

And that is closed.

All right, thank you.

Item eight, please.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Before I make the motion to uh weigh the riddle of item eight, I just want to rise at the point of clarification.

This item eight, it's pertaining to rent stabilization.

It has drawn a large crowd tonight.

But I just want to clarify that no action will be taken on this item.

There will not be a vote, but this action will be your will be referred to committee.

During the committee hearing, there will be public hearing.

There will be plenty of opportunity for anyone and everyone out there to have an opportunity to be heard.

You can write to the council, you can come and testify.

So these will get better.

Just don't think that this will be voted on tonight.

Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you, Majority Leader.

With that said, motion to weigh the reader of item eight.

Second, Madam President.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on that motion.

Madam President.

Councilman Taylor.

I have a question on why this is being referred to the special committee on hope.

I personally think since it's we haven't seen the fiscal price on this budget, but I think personally it should be uh going to the finance committee, if not at least the ordinance committee, which is a standing two committees.

The hope committee was just made up this year.

It's not really it's a committee, but it's not like as important as it's important, but not as important on this issue as the finance commission.

Uh so because we've never seen a fiscal budget on this.

I believe it should be vetted to the finance committee, if not at least an ordinance committee.

So I want to put that on the record.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Further discussion on item eight.

Uh, pro tempitard.

Madam President.

Good evening, Madam President.

Uh I rise as a co-sponsor of this ordinance, the Providence Rent Stabilization Act.

Because uh, we all know that Providence families cannot wait for someday.

They need stability this year and beyond.

We are building for the future, but we must protect the present.

This ordinance isn't just a policy, it's a shield.

It brings predictability and fairness to a market that has been chaotic for far too long.

Let's be clear about who this helps and who it protects.

It protects our neighborhoods, it protects our neighbors, it protects the growth of our city.

This ordinance does not touch our local landlords, the neighbors living in their own two duplex or triple deckers, and who keep our community running.

It protects the growth of our city because new development remains exempt for 15 years to ensure that we keep building.

This is clear.

It targets what the problem is.

We are drawing a line against out-of-state speculators, landlords who treat our homes like lion items.

An ROI, a return on investment spreadsheet.

We are putting an end to predatory rent hikes and creating an enforceable guardrails that value people over profit.

We all know Providence is in a rent crisis.

We all know that our families in our neighborhoods are going through crisis, and people can't wait years for long-term solutions alone.

Building housing we need will take time, and we are doing that, but families need stability.

We all deserve stability with clear rules and a balanced board.

This ordinance addresses that rent stabilization ensures fairness and predictability with the level of certainty provided by rent stabilization.

Renters can better anticipate their housing costs from year to year.

This ordinance is thoughtful.

It does not impact small local landlords who own up to two duplicates or triple deckers and live in one of the units and rent out the others.

It also does not impact again new development for 15 years from the initial occupancy.

With the ordinance, it will impact, and it will impact the out-of-state landlords who buy up real estate and turn them into investment properties, who don't actually invest in Rhode Islanders in Providence and in our communities.

They squeeze renters.

This bill is not perfect, but we need to hear from you also.

It's diversity, it's economic well-being, and where we all can thrive together, but in a fair and just way.

Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you.

Councilman Reyes.

Madam President, thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

I want to begin by naming the moment we are in because I think it's historic.

For the first time, rent stabilization is appearing on this docket.

That did not happen by accident.

It happened because the reality on the ground has finally become too loud to ignore.

Almost 10 years ago, I was organizing with Dare and the tenant and homeowner association.

I remember knocking on doors across province, clipboard in hand, collecting the signatures required by the city charter just to force this conversation to put rent stabilization directly on the province ballot.

But back then, this council body treated us like radicals for even suggesting intervention.

But Madam President, what's radical isn't the idea, it's what happened while we were ignored.

While this body debated theory, renters were priced out.

While we were told to wait for the market, province became the least affordable metro area for renters in the country.

That didn't happen overnight.

It happened because silence and delay were allowed to govern.

And that inaction has names and faces.

It was during that organizing work, knocking on those same doors that I met the Tradier family, whom I'll never forget.

Madonna and Butch Trottier were both in their 70s.

And Madam President, you would be proud that they were Fed Hill lifers.

They had lived in Federal Hill for decades, nearly their entire married life.

They were seniors living on fixed incomes, paying 800 a month for a modest first floor apartment.

Their adult son, Steven, who is disabled, lived upstairs.

They depended on one another for care.

Madonna made sure that Stephen took his medication.

Stephen helped his parents manage daily life.

As Madonna told one reporter plainly, I couldn't make it without him.

Many of you may recognize their names because of Province Journal told their story in 2018.

And I'm speaking their names today because this crisis is not hypothetical.

It already has victims.

Because the market did what it always does.

An investor bought that building that a Tradier family was living in.

That investor operated in the name Providence Living, now known as Providence Living, a company owned by Dustin Dezube, a millionaire landlord with frequent complaints against his business practices.

After that purchase, the Trottyers faced rent pressure and eviction, not because they had done anything wrong, but because their home could be renovated, rebranded, and rented for double or triple the price.

The apartment the Trotters lived in had broken heat, drafty windows tied shut with string and garbage bags, mice coming through the holes in the baseboards, yet it was still their home.

And even with all of that, Madam President, rent still came first.

Rent always gets to eat first.

The Trotiers were selling their furniture to raise money, collecting bottles for spare change, facing the real possibility that family who relied on one another for survival would be separated.

Not by choice, but by rent.

Province living ultimately evicted the Triers in 2018.

Reporting at the time and later in the later work by Uprise Rhode Island, which documented the conditions of their apartment before eviction made clear that this was not just a housing dispute, it was a cascade of harm.

After their eviction, the Troitiers faced homelessness, hospitalization, and eventually Madonna and Butch both passed away.

They died because they were displaced, because losing their home triggered the crisis that killed them.

This is the human cost of an action.

It is not confined to one family.

It's happening across this city right now.

During the 2023-2024 school year, province public schools identified over 400 students experiencing homelessness out of a total enrollment of nearly 20,000 20,000 students.

That is one in every 49 children.

Province alone accounts for over 20% of all homeless students of Rhode Island, and our rate is 50% higher than the statewide average.

Those numbers, madam president, represent children living in cars, doubled up with relatives, bouncing from couch to couch because rents keep rising faster than their parents' wages.

They represent families like the uh Troyers, except now there are hundreds more.

As a licensed clinical social worker, I want to be honest about what this does to people.

Housing insecurities trauma.

When someone doesn't know if they'll be able to stay in their home, their nervous systems is constantly activated.

Anxiety becomes chronic, depression deepens, PTSD symptoms worsen, recovery from substance abuse becomes harder.

Parents live in a state of fear, and children absorb that fear into their developing brains.

Every week, I sit with families facing impossible choices, because just like what the Trottyers, rent always gets to eat first before food, before medicine, before child care, before people.

Stable housing is not a luxury, it is a mental health intervention.

Now I want to speak directly to those who oppose rent stabilization and assist that the only solution is to increase supply.

Province has limited land left to build on.

And we've been one of the few cities in the state actively pushing development while many others lag behind.

But Province cannot be the only edge in pulling a train the rest of the state refuses to board.

Unless other cities build housing and reform zoning, prices will not come down in a meaningful way.

Rhode Island is simply too small for province to solve the housing crisis alone.

So what do we do in the meantime?

Do we wait while families are displaced in real time?

While seniors like Madonna and Butcher are pushed into crisis, while children lose stability, schools, and support systems.

If rents keep rising during that wait, what is the plan to protect people right now?

That is the question we all need to grapple with honestly.

Because for families living on the edge, just wait is not a policy.

It's just a sentence.

Rent stabilization is not a silver bullet, but it is urgent.

It's a necessary tool to stop the bleeding.

It slows displacement, it provides predictability, it buys time, time for children to stay in this in the same school, time for families to stabilize, time for broader housing solutions to be pursued without sacrificing the people who make this city home.

Ten years ago we fought just to be heard.

Today the issue is finally on the docket because the cost.

Today this issue is finally on the docket because the cost of inaction has become impossible to ignore.

The question, colleagues, before us is not whether rent stabilization is perfect.

The question is not whether this is hard.

The question is whether you will act or whether or whether you will let this crisis deepen on our watch.

Province cannot wait another decade.

Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you, Counselor.

Further discussion on Davidson.

Councilman Davidson.

Councilwoman Davidson.

Thank you, Madam President.

I rise to speak in support of this ordinance, which I'm proud to co-sponsor.

Can we please uh council we need to conduct business, please?

So I'll share that it wasn't at all the only con the only concern for voters who I spoke.

While it wasn't at all the only concern for voters, housing access and affordability were major issues in the recent contest for this city council seat.

During my campaign at neighbors' doors, in the supermarket, through my campaign literature and in public forums, I shared support for rent stabilization with thousands of people as a component of housing access and affordability.

In these conversations, I learned so much from people's stories and perspectives.

Was there universal support?

Absolutely not.

But I am here today because many neighbors felt that rent stabilization was a fair way to protect renters from severe financial duress, eviction, homelessness, and more, and I agree with them.

Among the folks I talked with were medical interns and residents.

For these neighbors doing essential jobs, many of them newcomers to Providence, rent was a huge burden, sometimes eating up more than 50% of their incomes.

Many were upset and anxious about potential and possibly unaffordable rent increases.

This level of expense and instability combined with other factors is driving many of them to plan their next career steps outside of Rhode Island.

Why are we facing a primary care provider crisis?

Unaffordable housing is a significant factor.

I also talked with many people who felt strongly that we need to act now to stabilize skyrocketing housing costs to benefit so many in our city who are being pushed out of this market.

And I heard the words compassion and fairness quite often.

I heard loud and clear that we don't want Providence to be at the mercy of market forces.

I heard that we have to act to make sure this is city for everyone, and I agree.

Thank you.

Councilman Sanchez.

Thank you, Madam President.

Um big thank you to everyone that came here.

Um, like some of our colleagues have said, this fight is one that has been happening for a very long time.

And the fact that it's even being discussed here in a public setting is a huge just win for uh in uh our our local government here in Providence.

Um but something that we're gonna keep hearing and and you know feeling uh the next couple weeks, months while this goes through its processes is pressure.

Um there's a reason that that it took so long for this to get brought up uh through a polling process.

Obviously, one representation.

I don't think a legislative body uh here in Providence has had as many renters as it does now.

So that in itself is a huge uh victory for uh representation here in the city of Providence.

Uh, but two, and and obviously the most visible one is big uh lobbyists and corporate interests and and hobby and uh real estate lobbyists' money.

Uh while there's some folks here, you know, that might actually own uh a property or two.

Uh a lot of people that are in opposition um have made uh a living, have made hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not millions of dollars, off of the backs of working class low-income uh Providence residents uh for decades with no regulations.

And that's something that we need to be clear about we're not cutting off all business, we're just adding an extra layer of security for the people that need it the most.

Um, as has been mentioned, there's a lot of bad actors, and one of my first experiences uh with one of these bad actors as uh city counselor here in Providence was you know, I I try to do my due diligence, I try to hear all sides of issues.

So one of these uh local developers brought me to his office uh here downtown uh a couple months in as a city counselor.

I I go Miguel, a 23-year-old, you know, a little a little naive, you know.

Let's hear the other side.

Let's let's let's let's hear concerns.

But the first experience, the first thing that I saw when I walked in there was their property manager had a name tag on their desk uh with eviction queen.

And that was in a time where I was working as a case manager for our own house population here in Providence, and that's something that just completely you know opened up the the reality of the situation, the reality of capitalism, the reality of unregulated markets, uh the reality of greed.

At the end of the day, it's it's greed.

You know, there is a lot of good partners that own property, and I think all of us uh here will admit that.

That's why we took so much into consideration when drafting this ordinance by adding certain exemptions, and uh something we want to be clear on this is where we're at now.

We we want to engage with anyone that is willing uh to provide uh opinions and good faith is something the council president has said for a while.

Um, this is something that has to happen, something that needed to happen, uh, something that we should all be supporting.

Um, and I just want to close my remarks by by saying um there's a lot of you know opposition and and concerns, but just dig deeper.

Uh I'll give a shout out to our media this week and some of our mainstream media, which I don't normally do.

A lot of them, you know, stated who funds some of these foundations, who funds some of these uh commissions, who are the supporters?

Because if you tear the the the page one one page deeper, you you realize it's the same businesses that make profits by keeping unregulated rents by keeping the no caps.

Um so that's all I want to say right now, Council President.

I just want to thank you all, my colleagues, uh, you know, for for serving the city of Providence.

Uh, most importantly, everyone here that came uh to voice their position, uh, to keep inviting folks throughout this process.

Uh, but this has been uh a long time coming, and we need to end the suffrage now and continue to do the other things that we're doing uh in terms of housing uh production.

Thank you, Madam President.

All right.

Any further commerce, any further discussion on item eight further discussion on item eight?

Councilwoman Graves.

Councilwoman Graves.

Good evening, everyone.

Good evening, everyone.

Good evening, Councilwoman Graves.

I would like to say, yes, I would like to say that this is something that is a long time coming.

Um Providence used to be a city where everybody had a chance to thrive.

It used to be a city where you could afford to go and find some type of housing.

Now we can all we gotta do is walk down any street, and we can see that it's no longer that people are fearful of losing their apartments, they are fearful of losing their homes, they cannot afford anything anymore.

I was proud to say less than 12 years ago, 10 years ago, that knew about 89% of the people in my community, and we're working class community.

Yeah, we have some rich pockets, and we have some very poor pockets, but on the whole, we're a working class community.

We can't afford those rents that are out there now.

I watched so many families that have been in the community for decades leave because they could no longer afford to stay in their homes.

However, when it comes to a vote on someone having the right to have a place to lay their head, to be able to have some peace of mind, not to be wary constantly about where am I gonna find this money to pay my rent.

Am I gonna be homeless?

What you know, these things, if you can't feel it, you don't have a heart.

You need to look around and see the pain.

You need to look around and say, I don't want you to lose your business, but I think you need to look at what you're doing.

You could rent houses without this exorbitant rent.

You can.

And the reason why we can't anymore is because everybody's trying to get more and more and more and more and more.

And they and and I'm watching these houses come up.

I hate to tell you this.

These houses come up, they come up so quickly, they are not worth going up.

Council woman.

Um, they are not worth even putting up.

So I'm not going to say that you're wrong.

I'm not gonna say you're right.

I am saying that everybody deserves a chance to live in the city of Providence, and everybody deserves to be heard.

We will have more hearings, but I am voting for this.

I am voting for this because I do not want to lose another neighbor.

I want to lose.

Look at me.

They're coming into the library talking about, oh well, we used to live there, but we can't leave there anymore.

We're living with our aunts, so well, we don't know where we're gonna live.

That's a hurtful feeling.

It hurts my heart to hear those stories.

And you should have that same type of empathy.

Not sympathy, you know, just some compassion.

And that's and that's all we ask of you.

And you don't ask all we ask of you.

Have a little bit more compassion.

This these laws, we have to try to cover everything.

We're not gonna be able to cover everything.

We're not gonna make everybody happy.

But all I can say is, you know, we are living in troubled waters.

And as the song goes, God's gonna trouble the waters because he's gonna make us open us our eyes and see.

And you need to look over that river and see the other side.

And that's all I ask you to do.

I respect you all, respect the rest of us.

We're gonna do our job to the best of our abilities.

You may not like this, but this is happening.

All right, thank you, councilwoman.

Further discussion on item eight.

No further discussion on item eight.

I want to remind mostly for the uh public that this is a motion to wave the reading and refer the item to committee.

Uh Councilman Majority Leader, please.

Thank you, Madam President.

I so deeply appreciate the energy, uh, the effort, all the people that have shown up because this is important.

This is critical.

Uh, and it's at a very critical time because we do have a uh housing crisis.

Uh but let me just quickly highlight that this council uh understood this uh a number of years ago, and we'll be doing great work.

I mean, just last year we passed the comprehensive plan, which losing zoning uh ordinance uh uh laws so that we can actually build more or less.

This council was the one under Councilman Sanchez that we banned storage facility, we advanced gas station.

So we take in all kinds of measures to make sure that in the next 10 years we have a clear roadmap of increasing housing.

Uh I sit on the PRA, Providence Redevelopment Agency, and I was witness to the uh close to 55 million dollars that we invested in the last three years, and it's over 1600 units that we either remodel or we built so we understood early that there was a housing crisis, and we've been doing something about it, we've been working, we do TSA, uh, we work with developers.

So the crisis has been here, but the council has been working.

I respectfully, though, disagree with the way we're trying to continue and the way this ordinance is guiding us, and I have points to make.

Because again, we want to do what is best for the city of Providence.

Not one might be popular at a time, but what is responsible, what is responsible, and what is expected from each and every one of us because when I go back to my community, I have to respond to them, and I have to explain my vote, and it has to be one that makes sense, not one that is emotional, but that one that is objective and that is delivered.

We the steps that we have taken in this year's has been towards incentivizing housing production.

The step that is being produced tonight, it incentivizes that because it tells it punishes people for creating houses.

It has no why would an investor come to Providence with this ordinance if they can go to Cranston, they can go to Pawtucket, they can go to Central Falls, they can go anywhere.

They could go, they could go anywhere where there is no roadblock.

They could go anywhere where there is no red tape.

They'll go anywhere where they'll roll out their red carpet.

I state welcome their investment and they value their dollars.

Now one other point, one other point here, but I want to clarify, Madam President, because I don't want people to be confused.

If you're paying $2,000 for a two-bedroom, you're paying too much.

That is not fair.

We want to reduce that.

But I don't think that we can reduce that by simply freezing that number.

We need to lower that number.

You're not going to lower the number by guaranteeing that your rent is gonna go up 4% every single year.

What this is telling me is that every single year my rent is gonna go up 4%.

That is compound.

So if you're paying $2,000, you're gonna pay $80 next year.

And the following year, you're gonna pay 4% on $2,080.

So it compounds, it grows.

It does offer relief for the people that are cost burdened.

We need to bring those prices down.

And the only way to bring it down is to build more housing.

When did it stop?

No.

The last thing that we want to do, Madam President, with all due respect, it's macro managed our taxpayers' private business.

We cannot do that.

We cannot, we can't and can't, you know.

So based on those points and other things that I see, and I say that I'll be brief, so I'll I'll be stopping.

Uh there'll be an opportunity for all of us to express uh different ways that we can achieve our goals, but we do it in a way that is respectful, that it's objective, that is responsible to everyone.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, counselor.

All right, any further discussion?

Councilman Taylor.

Okay, before I start, I don't want any applause, I don't want any booze, I'm not here.

It's not a uh, I feel like I'm at the Academy Awards.

Like who's getting the best uh thing here?

Um, first of all, as you know, I opposed it going to the Hope Committee.

I think it should go to the Finance Committee or the Ordnance Committee and be heard correctly.

Second is research.

We have to do correct research.

History has shown that rent stabilization has not worked in places like St.

Please don't, please, please, please, please, no, no.

You've got the flare, keep going.

Stop.

I'm not here for that.

Please do not clap, boo, nothing.

Talk to me afterwards if you want.

But what I'm saying is that history has shown itself in St.

Paul, Minnesota.

It's shown itself in Montgomery, Maryland.

Matter of fact, even in Massachusetts, Governor Mora Healy says she doesn't want rent stabilization because it's gonna stop building.

So do some history, please.

Do some research, correct research.

Don't come out as a counsel and say, oh, the highest in the country.

Just today I looked up.

Three-bedroom apartment in New Haven, Connecticut, rent, $2,700.

Providence, Rhode Island, three-bedroom apartment, $2,900.

Boston Mass, three-bedroom apartment, $3,800.

Cambridge Mass, three-bedroom apartment, $5,300.

Well, not the highest in the country.

I didn't even go out west to can't to California in that.

So please, two, I tell, I say this all the time.

We're 15 council people.

That's all we are.

We could be here today, we could be gone tomorrow.

These decisions that we make will affect the city from days go on, kind of like the pension system being a billion in the hole because we offered 6% compounded.

Not me, but the council who sat here.

So that's the problems that we're in.

We need to fix the pension system.

We need to fix Rhode Island Energy.

I'm paying 600 bucks a month for friggin' gas and electric.

And we're worried about the little rent.

When I came on the fire department in 1980s, in the 80s, people, some people are too young, they don't remember that.

So, but what I'm saying is in the 70s, they tried the rent control, the rent stabilization in the 80s, in the 80s, what happened was there were so many vacant houses.

So many vacant houses.

You could buy a house on Adelaide Avenue, one of those beautiful houses for 30,000, 40,000.

You know why?

Because the developers left the places bought it up.

This, I have landlords in my ward that have called me and said, because I've always asked the people that when the press calls, they say, are you an owner?

No, are you a renter or a landlord?

I'm neither.

I'm an owner.

But the bank owns it with me.

So I still got to pay my payments.

But what I'm trying to say is landlords have called me and said, listen, I've had I have a uh three decker house.

These people that live there, they've been there for 10, 15 years.

They're like family to me.

You're forcing me, like Councilman Espinal said, you're forcing me to go up four percent every year.

I haven't raised rent.

Listen, listen, there is bad people.

There is bad people out there, as is their bad renters.

The renters trash the house.

They have to do all the work.

I have plenty in my ward that the people move out and trash the house.

Now who's gonna fix it?

The landlord has to fix it for the next person.

So where are they gonna get the money?

4%, 4%.

I think what and another thing I do not, I cannot stand is by reading at the end where it says this.

I don't think it's correct me.

It's either four or five, four or five board members, and whoever the president is gets to pick the executive director.

It leaves out, is it a paid executive director?

How much is it?

Is it a paid board?

Why are we bringing politics into it?

Politics are worse enough in this state.

Why are we bringing politics into it?

So sir, we gotta let me not go there.

But we should not be bringing politics into someone's hood because Councilman Espinal's right.

They're gonna they're gonna pack up, they're gonna go to Cranston, they're gonna go somewhere else.

And I'll guarantee you, if we pass this, hopefully, God willing, if I'm alive for another 10 years, I'll be out there.

I won't be a councilman.

Uh, but I'll be pointing out all the vacant houses that we're gonna have.

It happened before.

History repeats itself, 1970s.

Go back and look at it.

I'm not making this up.

You got Google.

Back in the day, I had to go to the world book and look stuff up.

You've got Google, go to stuff, look it up, look at the history.

It's not working.

Thank you, Madam President.

Councilwoman Harris.

I am standing because I I realize that we have a decision to make, and that decision doesn't have to be made tonight.

It's impossible for me to take a vote.

It's impossible for me to make a decision without all the information.

I don't know a lot about the economic crisis that's happening.

I do know that people are being priced out of their homes.

I do know that there is a lot of uh burdens on families.

I do know that.

But I'm looking forward, just like I've looked forward to all the conversations that have been had in this building.

Uh, Councilwoman Ryan, remember one time we sit almost 10, 12 hours in another big uh conversation that really impacted our communities and our neighbors, and they came out and they talked to us, and they they definitely let us know what we were missing.

Now, we got to do something.

This is not perfect, but I'm looking forward to the day and the time when we come together as a community, as neighbors, and think about people who have even less than what you have.

I'm looking forward to the day that we come together and we have a concrete conversation.

We ask the right questions, we give the right information, and that would help me as a as a decision maker, as a politician, as a person, a leader of my community and my neighborhood, who I feel like is getting the brunt of everything all together.

So I'm gonna be listening to everything.

I'm gonna be documenting everything.

So to me, I want to go back to what majority leaders said at first.

Let's bring this conversation to the committees, let's bring it to public hearing, and let's talk about it.

Because uh, we can go back and forth all day long with each other, and that's what happens.

We can do that, we can debate.

Tomorrow I'm gonna vote on your stuff that you may have that's very important to me.

But tonight, this is a big deal for all of us.

This is not a big deal only for the council, but you look around, you look up over here in the audience in this room.

It's a big deal for Providence.

So let's do this right.

Let's have a conversation, let's take it to our communities.

Because a lot of people here in my neighborhood is not here today.

They're not here maybe because they don't have a car, and maybe they're working at McDonald's.

I don't know.

I don't know the situation, but I'm wanting to hear it.

I want to hear it in my community.

I want to hear this being vetted to the best that I can I am comfortable that I can sleep and I can pray because it's been done right.

So let's do it.

Take it to committee.

Tonight we can sit here all go back and forth all night long.

I haven't heard from the people.

So thank you for allowing me to speak, Madam Chair.

Councilwoman.

Uh, I'm gonna take a quick.

That's all right.

All right.

Any further discussion on item eight?

All in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Nay, only because it's going to the wrong committee.

Any abstentions?

All right.

Um the motion passes.

Um, Madam Clerk, please refer item eight to the committee on hope.

So noted.

And now we are gonna go to item 18.

Madam President.

Yes.

Majority leader.

Motion to weigh the Reno Battery 18 and passing a voice vote.

Second, Madam President.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on item 18?

Uh, I'm sorry, may I just take a pause and thank everyone, everyone literally, who came tonight.

There'll be many more opportunities.

Thank you.

Yeah, no, we we uh really appreciate seeing the people of Providence here.

All right, any further discussion on item 18.

Hearing none, Madam Clerk, please open the vote.

The vote is open.

The vote is now closed.

You have 13 eyes, two absent.

The motion passes on a voice vote.

Thank you, madam clerk.

Item 19.

Madam President, majority leader.

Motion to weigh the areno item 18 through 34.

Second, madam president.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on items 19 through 34.

Hearing none, all in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed, any abstentions, the motion passes.

Uh uh, Madam President.

Yes, sorry.

Let me just send these where they're going.

Uh Madam Clerk, please send items 19 to uh notice received, 20 to the committee on claims and pending suits, and 21 through 34 note as received.

So noted.

Councilwoman Peterson, thank you.

Um I'd just like uh to do a point of personal expression right before we end this uh this meeting tonight.

Um at the beginning of this month, uh a very dear neighbor uh to me passed away uh at the age of 88.

Um and uh his daughter and wife who have traveled down to Florida for now to start their healing process.

Um had requested that I just speak very quickly about him.

Um his name is Guido Nofi, and he was my neighbor for the last 20 years, right across the street from me on Erie.

And um Guido, if if I could tell you all the wonderful things about Guido, I could I I would be here for hours.

Um the Nofi family was really important to us as when we first brought home our daughter.

Um, they were the first to congratulate us and give us all the pointers as brand new parents.

Um and I would be remiss if I didn't just talk very briefly about his wonderful history with the city of Providence and also the state of Rhode Island.

Um actually worked as a carpenter for Amtrak for many, many years.

I want to say it was about three different decades.

Um he loved carpentry and he would create these beautiful pieces.

His home is full of all of this wonderful carpentry, and I really do hope that it's it's it's maintained and taken care of forever.

Um if there was anything, I I thank them every time because they would give my children um Halloween treats, Easter stuff.

They're just uh well, Mr.

Mr.

Guido and Miss Helen were wonderful people.

Um, but what I wanted to do was talk very quickly about his love and his passion for his family, and I promised that I would talk very quickly about something that was never actually mentioned in his love for dance, and specifically the cha cha.

And his daughter asked me his daughter asked to very specifically say how much he enjoyed that, and he would actually do that sometimes.

We would watch as he was cleaning his leaves in the fall, um, and he would, you know, just enjoy doing the his the responsibilities of being a homeowner.

So I just wanted to take that quick minute to acknowledge how wonderful the Nofi family was to us, and how wonderful the residents uh wonderful residents they were in Ward 14.

And um my thoughts and condolences go to the family here and in Florida.

Thank you.

Thank you, Counselor.

And I'd like to make uh a very quick one and welcome uh new addition to Chairwoman Ryan's family.

Welcome Owen.

Thank you, Madam President.

Before we close out, um, I just want to send my condolences, um, thoughts and prayers and positive energy to the Pescianelli family.

Um, my former principal um at Hope High School, author Pescianelli, who I'm sure you all know, uh recently lost um his mother, Angelina Pescianelli, and I didn't have the privilege to meet her.

Um, but um I just want to use this uh this last few seconds to just uh let them know that I am thinking about them and that she obviously did an amazing job as a mother because uh Dr.

P, as we called him at Hope High School, um, instilled so much uh values in his students and had a significant impact on me.

And so I I um I want to leave, I want to conclude on that and just uh uh send my send send my uh my condolences to the to the Peshanelli family.

Thank you, Dr.

Um, Madam President.

Thank you.

Uh Councilman Harris one in front.

I just want to rise because um we have been celebrating uh Dr.

King's uh legacy throughout the week with different things that have been happening, and one of the things that I feel very proud about by studying his work and what he believed in was that it's to do the right thing, you have to do the right thing.

I am not gonna start quote me because I don't have it written down and it won't be right, but however, I want to give um I want to acknowledge uh the executive order that was put in by our mayor.

It's not an easy thing to do when we have so many people going in different directions, but everybody under the sun belongs to God, and uh not only that, uh we in Providence should we're so close, we're so small.

I call everybody my brothers, and I call everybody my sisters, I don't care what your race is, I just call you brothers and sisters.

Um, we should be looking out for each other.

So I'm proud of the fact that we did take an initiative, as you guys know, what's happening in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Um it's horrible to look at that, and horrible to look at what people of all communities, black, white, Latino, are experiencing because violence, all type of violence, does call terror, terror cause harm, and sometimes it can cause mental illness.

And so we see a lot of that in communities that have been terrorized over the years by police abuse, and you see that naturally walking around.

So I want to thank you for listening to me, but most of all, I want to thank the mayor for taking that stand.

Madam President.

Thank you, Councilor Pro Temer P.

Chairdo.

On that note, I also rise uh to uh mention a couple of things.

One is that you know, we come into January, uh new year, and right into uh Martin Luther King Jr.

celebration and honoring and those of us who dedicated our time a day on Martin Luther King Day, heard inspirational messages from our former colleague uh Nerva LaFortune and many others, including in the Ibnisa Church.

But I also want to congratulate the Providence Human Relations Commission for bringing the community together at the South Side Cultural Center, and even uh honoring people uh on the Hall of Fame here that the mayor held along with the human resource Providence Human Relations Commission, and it was a beautiful ceremony, and I know that our colleague Mary Kay Harris uh said some beautiful words, but to inspire us to continue to remember that the fight that Martin Luther King and then all those who came and were in that fight, such as Cesar Chavez and others that have inspired generations to remember our neighbors and to fight for those who are less fortunate economically and also since birth.

And so I want to congratulate the Providence Human Relations Commission, Ms.

Wilson, and many others in their board for doing an exceptional job.

Thank you.

Thank you, and I echo that.

Uh Madam Clerk, item 35.

Madam President, motion to weigh the reading of item 35 and passing a voice vote.

Second, madam president.

We have a motion and a second.

Any discussion on that motion.

All in favor.

Aye.

Any opposed, any abstentions?

The motion passes.

Item 36.

Madam President, majority leader.

Motion to weigh the rear of item 36 and passing a unanimous rising vote.

Second, Madam President.

The motion and a second, any discussion.

All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstentions?

The motion passes.

Madam President.

Majority leader.

Being that there's no further business, our motion to adjourn.

And tonight we adjourn in the name of Angelina Petrofinelli, who's recently passed away.

We extend our condolences to the family.

Second, Madam President.

Any discussion?

All in favor.

Aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

Any abstentions?

We are adjourned.

Thank you all.

Thank you.