OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Providence City Council Committee on Ordinances Meeting – April 29, 2026

City Council — Wednesday, April 29, 2026
BodyProvidence, Rhode Island
SessionCity Council
DateWednesday, April 29, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 57:13

Transcript — Verbatim
0:38

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to committee and ordinance.

0:42

Um councilman and Chairman Pedro Espino.

0:45

Uh like to welcome you all here.

0:47

Today it is Wednesday, April 29th, and the time is 5 44.

0:54

Uh to my left we have our city solicitor, and also with us is Mr.

0:59

Bob Aza from Department of Planning and Development, along with my colleagues here, Councilman Royas, Councilwoman Harris, Councilman Peterson.

1:06

Uh thank you all again for being here.

1:09

Madam Clerk, uh, please call the role.

1:11

Chairman Espinal.

1:13

Present.

1:14

Vice Chairwoman Shelley Peterson.

1:16

Present.

1:16

Councilwoman Mary Kay Harris.

1:18

Present.

1:19

Councilman Oscar Vargas is absent.

1:21

Council Justin Royas.

1:23

Present.

1:23

You have four pressing one absent.

1:25

You have a quorum.

1:27

Thank you.

1:27

And I'll just make a quick uh notation for those that I didn't get an opportunity to speak to, uh, which is regarding item number two, which will not be heard tonight.

1:38

It will be continuum.

1:39

Uh but I'll explain more when we get to that nine uh item.

1:43

So um Madam Clerk, if you would please uh item number one.

1:48

Item number one, an ordinance in amendment of chapter 27 of the Court of Ordinances of the City of Providence entitled the City of Providence Sonning Ordinances approved November 24, 2014 has amended to add seroton parcels to the historic overlay district.

2:08

Thank you.

2:14

Mr.

2:14

Azar, please, if you will uh please present on this item.

2:28

Good afternoon, Mr.

2:29

Chair, members of the committee.

2:30

Robert Azar, Deputy Planning Director.

2:33

Uh this is a um this is an ordinance uh that was proposed by your very own councilman Justin Royus.

2:45

Um and this would create a new historic district in the Wanscock neighborhood in the fourth ward.

2:52

Um this is an area that is associated with uh the Wanscock Mill.

2:58

Um and there has been a an effort led by residents in the area and um uh the Providence Preservation Society and supported by the councilman to create this historic district.

3:16

Um they underwent a uh long process of evaluating the properties uh for their historic merit of community engagement to property owners to educate um them as to uh what it means to to uh have a property in a historic district, and they came forward with this.

3:39

Uh they they also worked with uh staff of the planning department to come forward with this um petition.

3:46

Um and um the um city plan commission reviewed this and they felt uh that this was appropriate.

3:59

You can see in the package that that there are a number of people um property owners uh who signed on to this.

4:08

Uh they felt that there was very strong support for this, and therefore um they are recommending in favor of this ordinance.

4:17

Thank you, Mr.

4:18

Azer.

4:18

Uh committee members, uh Councilman Royus.

4:22

Uh thank you, Chair.

4:23

I just um I don't have a question for uh Mr.

4:28

Azar, but I just want to echo uh sentiment he shared, which is that this was uh really started off as sort of like a really grassroots um neighbor to neighboring sort of engagement effort to to make uh this local historic district happen.

4:45

And then I eventually took over and uh and put that into an ordinance.

4:51

Uh but the neighbors uh on these streets, as Mr.

5:00

Azar was saying, um, had initially been made aware of something like this through the efforts, and I want to give credit to him, uh Kevin England, who really led uh the effort on on this, and so I I fully support this.

5:11

Um I think it's uh overdue for a local historic district in Wonscock.

5:16

Um, and um I'm just uh proud of how this all came along.

5:22

Um it took some time, but we're here, and so I hope that my uh fellow colleagues on this committee would support this.

5:28

Thank you.

5:30

Thank you.

5:31

Uh question for Mr.

5:32

Aza, Councillor Peterson.

5:35

Not a question, more of a comment.

5:37

I um I was there at the beginning of the engagement of all of this, and um when I attended one of Councilman Rayus' meetings, and um he spoke about what the uh what the community was asking for, and I wanted to just echo my support in sentiment, um, my sentiment of support, excuse me, um, and say that I think this is a wonderful opportunity for this um really wonderful part of the north end, and um let's hope that we whenever there's an opportunity for more support in other parts that are designated over by um by the Wanscock Mills, we can include them as well.

6:19

Thank you.

6:20

Good job.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Property Management████████████████████████████████████36%
Historic Preservation███████████████████████23%
Procedural█████████████████████21%
Engineering And Infrastructure████████████12%
Transportation Safety████4%
Economic Development████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Providence City Council Committee on Ordinances Meeting – April 29, 2026

The Committee on Ordinances of the Providence City Council met on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, at 5:44 PM. Chairman Pedro Espinal presided, joined by Vice Chairwoman Shelley Peterson, Councilwoman Mary Kay Harris, and Councilman Justin Royas (Councilman Oscar Vargas was absent). Deputy Planning Director Robert Azar presented on all items. The committee considered four agenda items: a historic district overlay, a continued entertainment zoning amendment, a temporary parking lot ordinance for Brown University Health, and a zoning change for a medical redevelopment.

Consent Calendar

  • Item 1 (Historic District Overlay): Ordinance to add parcels in the Wanscock neighborhood to the historic overlay district. Approved unanimously after a public hearing and a motion to enter the City Plan Commission letter into the record.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Kevin England (public speaker on Item 1): Expressed strong support for the local historic district, describing the Wanscock village as a real, continuously occupied historic area (unlike recreated sites such as Old Sturbridge Village). He also noted a 1904 building that was demolished without community input, underscoring the need for the overlay.
  • No other public speakers signed up for any item.

Discussion Items

  • Item 2 (Entertainment Zoning Amendment): An ordinance to amend articles 2 and 12 relating to entertainment. Chairman Espinal announced that the item would not be heard tonight and would be continued. A motion to continue to May 13, 2026, at 5:30 PM passed unanimously. No discussion.
  • Item 3 (Temporary Parking Lot for Brown University Health): Petition to amend the use table to permit temporary principal-use parking lots in certain zones and add temporary use standards. Robert Azar explained that Rhode Island Hospital needs swing parking during construction of a new parking structure; the temporary lot would be on a former industrial site (145 Globe Street). The City Plan Commission recommended approval with constraints. Councilwoman Mary Kay Harris expressed historical community distrust around hospital developments but clarified she was not voting on a garage; she supported the amendment after confirming that a separate Marathon-proposed garage is no longer moving forward. Councilman Justin Royas raised concerns about a provision allowing temporary staging of construction materials, calling it a potential loophole. Petitioner Kelly Morris Salvatore agreed that storage should be incidental and less than 50% of the lot. The committee adopted an amendment: "The area devoted to the storage of construction material and equipment shall be less than 50 percent of the area of the temporary parking lot."
  • Item 4 (Zoning Change at 34 Temple Street and 13 Porter Avenue): Petition from 1145 Maine Associates, LP and Dodi Associates to rezone two parcels from R-3 to MU-75 to allow conversion of a historic mill building into medical offices and construction of a new ambulatory surgical center. Robert Azar explained that the site (former Hurf Jones facility) has legacy nonconforming uses; the rezoning aligns zoning with existing footprint and future development. Petitioner Kelly Morris Salvatore presented renderings showing a limited encroachment into the R-3 zone (demolition of an outdated addition and replacement). Joseph Mardo, developer, confirmed the project is for-profit and no tenants have signed yet. Councilwoman Shelley Peterson asked about potential tax-exempt tenants; Mardo stated the project is for-profit and not Brown University Health. Councilman Royas inquired about demolition dust mitigation; Azar noted building permits require dust control.

Key Outcomes

  • Item 1: Approved unanimously.
  • Item 2: Continued to May 13, 2026, at 5:30 PM.
  • Item 3: Approved as amended (amendment limiting construction storage to less than 50% of lot). Vote: unanimous.
  • Item 4: Approved unanimously.
  • Meeting adjourned after all business.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to committee and ordinance. Um councilman and Chairman Pedro Espino. Uh like to welcome you all here. Today it is Wednesday, April 29th, and the time is 5 44. Uh to my left we have our city solicitor, and also with us is Mr. Bob Aza from Department of Planning and Development, along with my colleagues here, Councilman Royas, Councilwoman Harris, Councilman Peterson. Uh thank you all again for being here. Madam Clerk, uh, please call the role. Chairman Espinal. Present. Vice Chairwoman Shelley Peterson. Present. Councilwoman Mary Kay Harris. Present. Councilman Oscar Vargas is absent. Council Justin Royas. Present. You have four pressing one absent. You have a quorum. Thank you. And I'll just make a quick uh notation for those that I didn't get an opportunity to speak to, uh, which is regarding item number two, which will not be heard tonight. It will be continuum. Uh but I'll explain more when we get to that nine uh item. So um Madam Clerk, if you would please uh item number one. Item number one, an ordinance in amendment of chapter 27 of the Court of Ordinances of the City of Providence entitled the City of Providence Sonning Ordinances approved November 24, 2014 has amended to add seroton parcels to the historic overlay district. Thank you. Mr. Azar, please, if you will uh please present on this item. Good afternoon, Mr. Chair, members of the committee. Robert Azar, Deputy Planning Director. Uh this is a um this is an ordinance uh that was proposed by your very own councilman Justin Royus. Um and this would create a new historic district in the Wanscock neighborhood in the fourth ward. Um this is an area that is associated with uh the Wanscock Mill. Um and there has been a an effort led by residents in the area and um uh the Providence Preservation Society and supported by the councilman to create this historic district. Um they underwent a uh long process of evaluating the properties uh for their historic merit of community engagement to property owners to educate um them as to uh what it means to to uh have a property in a historic district, and they came forward with this. Uh they they also worked with uh staff of the planning department to come forward with this um petition. Um and um the um city plan commission reviewed this and they felt uh that this was appropriate. You can see in the package that that there are a number of people um property owners uh who signed on to this. Uh they felt that there was very strong support for this, and therefore um they are recommending in favor of this ordinance. Thank you, Mr. Azer. Uh committee members, uh Councilman Royus. Uh thank you, Chair. I just um I don't have a question for uh Mr. Azar, but I just want to echo uh sentiment he shared, which is that this was uh really started off as sort of like a really grassroots um neighbor to neighboring sort of engagement effort to to make uh this local historic district happen. And then I eventually took over and uh and put that into an ordinance. Uh but the neighbors uh on these streets, as Mr. Azar was saying, um, had initially been made aware of something like this through the efforts, and I want to give credit to him, uh Kevin England, who really led uh the effort on on this, and so I I fully support this. Um I think it's uh overdue for a local historic district in Wonscock.

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