Providence Finance Committee Public Hearing and Regular Meeting - January 27, 2026
Providence Finance Committee Public Hearing and Regular Meeting - January 27, 2026
The Providence City Council Committee on Finance held a public hearing and regular meeting on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, beginning at 5:44 PM. The committee considered four tax stabilization agreements (TSAs), a school board appointment, and a resolution for a property tax abatement. The public hearing portion concluded at approximately 6:18 PM, after which the committee convened for votes. All TSAs (items 1–4) and the school board appointment (item 6) were approved. The tax abatement resolution (item 5) was continued to a future meeting for further clarification.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public comment was made during the hearing; the chair closed the public hearing after no audience members stepped forward to speak on any of the matters.
Discussion Items
- Tax Stabilization Agreements (Items 1–4): Chief Financial Officer Lawrence Mancini presented each TSA with fiscal notes. Item 1 (20 America Street) – 23-unit residential building, 10-year TSA, total project cost $3,537,200, generating a parks and recreation fee of $25,327 and monitoring fee of $3,537. Item 2 (386 Atwells Avenue) – mixed-use 21-unit residential and 1 commercial unit, 10-year TSA, total project cost $5 million, parks fee $36,873, monitoring fee $5,000 (calculated as 0.001 of $5M). Item 3 (157 Gano Street) – 35-unit residential building (third of four-building project), 10-year TSA, total project cost $4,250,000, parks fee $25,988, monitoring fee $4,250. Item 4 (70–72 Royal Little Drive) – conversion of existing warehouse to auto body repair and training facility, 5-year category one TSA, total renovation cost $2,570,000, parks fee $10,654, monitoring fee $2,570. Project proponents (attorneys and developers) spoke in support, highlighting job creation, community benefits, and alignment with city housing and economic development policies. The committee also made two housekeeping amendments: (a) added a missing tax schedule (Exhibit A) to item 4; (b) amended the notice-and-cure language in items 1–3 to mirror language in item 4 (changing “city solicitor or designee of the city council” to align with the Royal Little version).
- School Board Appointment (Item 6): Andrew Bramson was introduced as the mayor’s nominee for Region 1 of the Providence School Board, replacing Ms. Hughes. Mr. Bramson testified about his extensive background in education (CEO of Onward We Learn, nine years as chair of the Central Falls School Board, and 17 years as a PPSD parent). Committee members expressed strong support, noting his experience in district oversight, school construction, and collective bargaining. He answered a question about charter schools by stating he wants to make Providence Public Schools so attractive that families choose them, and that charter schools should be held to the same performance standards.
- Tax Abatement Resolution (Item 5): Aaron Easter Gardner, Deputy Chief of Staff, presented a resolution to abate $10,976.28 in property taxes for tax year 2025 for the Rhode Island Business Development Institute (RIDBI) at 220 Smith Street. He explained that state legislation (Senate Bill 1132) intended to exempt the organization retroactively but was only prospective, so the council resolution is needed. Discussion revealed confusion about the relationship between RIDBI and the Rhode Island Black Business Association (RIBBA), their 501(c)(3) vs. 501(c)(6) status, and whether the correct entity is listed. Chief Mancini noted that the assessor’s office had only recently identified discrepancies in the filings. Councilwoman Graves argued the matter had been vetted in previous meetings and that the organization was not present due to short notice (a snowstorm). Chairwoman Ryan stressed the need for due diligence and transparency. The committee ultimately voted to continue the item to allow the administration and council staff to clarify the entity and documentation.
Key Outcomes
- Items 1–4 (TSAs): Approved unanimously. The committee voted to waive reading of all four items and then approved them after amendments to insert Exhibit A in item 4 and to align the notice-and-cure language in items 1–3 with item 4.
- Item 6 (School Board Appointment): Approved unanimously. Andrew Bramson’s appointment will be forwarded to the full city council for final confirmation.
- Item 5 (Tax Abatement): Continued to the next finance committee meeting (expected the following Tuesday, February 3, 2026) for further information on the correct entity and tax status. The committee directed staff to work with the assessor and the organization to present a complete and accurate record.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everyone. Providence councilwoman, Joanne Ryan. This is a public hearing, the committee on finance Tuesday, January 27. It is 544 p.m. Madame Clerk. We're not gonna do a roll call, but I am gonna recognize my colleagues on vice chair of the finance Jim Taylor. We are staffed by our favorite city solicitor, Kenny Cheverini, and of course, our wonderful clerks. May I have the sheets? Thank you. Item one, an ordinance establishing a tax stabilization agreement for 20 America Street. Thank you, Chief Mancini. Could you step up, please? Introduce the matter, and then we'll have the applicants join us. I think we're gonna do one at a time. Thank you. Uh Lawrence Mancini, Chief Financial Officer for the City of Providence, Madam Chair, do you wish to have me sworn in? Oh, I see what you're saying. You want to just swear everybody in. Um we ask everybody that is going to testify to stand up, come behind the rail. We're gonna swear everyone in, and then we're gonna take these matters one at a time. So anybody who's testifying, please come behind the rail. What a cheerful group. We're ready. Please raise your right hands. Do you swear under penalty of perjury that the testimony you're about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? I do. And please state your names for the record. Lawrence Mancini, Chief Financial Officer of the City of Providence. Peter Petraco, item number five. Eric Solena, item number two. Miles Dale with 20 America Street. Chris Pilati, uh, item number one. Anthony Mercedes, item number two. Okay, great. We're gonna take this this one at a time. So 20 America Street is first. Take it away. So, madam chair, members of the committee, good evening once again. Uh, Madam Chair, as you recall, uh earlier um, actually at the in the meetings that were held in December, the finance committee entertained these items for the purposes of having them referred to the public hearing. Testimony was given during that time, and summarizing the um the applicant's project as well as the benefits associated with the project, both to the applicant and to the city. In the case of 20 America Street, this is a plat 28 lot 1046. It's a category two project 10-year term with a two-year base. The estimated cost of the project is 3,537,200, based on hard costs of 2,418,329 and soft cost of 193,466. It is the new construction of a 23 unit residential building. And the details where that currently it's a vacant lot used for parking. And if I may, madam chair and members of the committee, while I'm giving the testimony of the present time, I'd like to give you the fiscal note that was prepared by the tax assessor's office. And I will do that each of the items as they're presented to you. So the fiscal note in this item, it's a 10-year stabilization agreement, and it'll be the first two years will be held at the base taxes that are currently at uh uh sorry, currently at uh three thousand five hundred and eighty-five dollars in base tax based on a value of 122,800. The project will grow to a tax in 2035 of 3,882,000 dollars of value or a tax of 105,000 for the record and for the public's benefit, a tax stabilization is an agreement whereby the taxes are stabilized for a period of the first two years, and then they gradually increase over the remainder of the life of the stabilization. In this case, there will be a savings to the applicant of 361,820 over the 10-year period of the stabilization, but when fully taxed, the taxes will go from again currently $3,586 to a phase in of 11,662 dollars.
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