5 Things You Need To Know Today

Five Things: Summer, And An Anniversary

Your guide for life in East Greenwich today, June 20.

Planning Board meeting: No presentations or hearings at tonight’s meeting. Rather, they will be electing a new chair and vice chair for the committee. Chairman Brad Bishop is stepping down from the board in January (and perhaps sooner, if he is elected to the Town Council in November). The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers at Town Hall. Affordable Housing Task Force meeting: On the agenda is an update on the long-awaited Comprehensive Plan update and a draft report to the Town Council. The group meets in Conference Room B at Town Hall at 3 p.m. Open Studio Day at Shady Lea Mill: Today is the first open studio day of the summer season. Visitors are welcome between noon and four. All studios will not be open but you will meet …

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Patti DePriest

8:39 am on Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Congratulations, Elizabeth and Neal!   more ›

Planning Board OKs 40-Unit Greenwich Boulevard Development [VIDEO]

Before shoves hit the ground, however, many more approvals are needed.

After hours of testimony over three separate Planning Board meetings, members finally voted Wednesday night, granting master plan approval to Joe Zenga’s 40-unit Greenwich Boulevard development by a vote of 6-0. “I didn’t think you guys would be so thorough,” said Zenga after the vote. The longtime East Greenwich resident had remained largely silent over the course of the meetings, letting his team - led by lawyer David Igliozzi – do the talking. The original plan, unveiled in April 2011, called for 62 housing units. By the time it came before the Planning Board in March, the number had been reduced to 40, with one commercial building where the Sunnybrook Farms now stands. The development would extend from Main Street (Sunnybrook Farms) …

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5 Things You Need To Know Today

HDC, Book Signing & More

Five things you need to know about East Greenwich today, May 9.

Affordable Housing presentation: If you want to know more about affordable housing, head over to Atria Harborhill this morning for a presentation by members of the EG Affordable Housing Task Force. From 8:15 to 9 a.m. EG alum book signing: Author Jackie Hennessey, an EGHS grad, is at The Savory Grape tonight from 6:30 to 8:30  for a wine tasting and talk about her new book, How to Spread Sanity on a Cracker, a short, laugh-out-loud book with recipes and stories culled from mothers across the country. Jackie is a graduate Texas A&M University, where she earned the "Best Aggielife Writer" award. She has more than 17 years experience in journalism and public relations and currently works as a PR consultant and blogger in R.I. You can …

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Crompton Ave. Apartments Approved

The property, at 60 Crompton Ave., overlooks the EG Transfer Station and Greenwich Cove.

It's been a long haul for the partially-completed building at 60 Crompton Avenue above Greenwich Cove. After starting out as an office building, the structure stalled in development and sat vacant and half-finished for some years. With Wednesday night's approval by the Planning Board, it is now poised to become a 17-unit apartment house. Three of the units will be classified as "affordable." On a purchased property, an affordable unit is "deed restricted." Because these are slated to be rental properties, the Planning Board struggled with how to record that. The Zoning Board's decision to grant the building certain parking concessions would note that three of the units are to remain "affordable" for at least 30 years. Members of the …

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5 Things You Need To Know Today

Sex, Jazz, The Internet & More

Five things you need to know about East Greenwich today, March 7.

Affordable Housing Task Force meeting: The panel will discuss its ongoing publicity campaign, with an upcoming presentation to the EG Rotary Club. They will also get an update on the town’s Comprehensive Plan overhaul. The meeting starts at 3 p.m. in Conference Room B at Town Hall. Planning Board meeting: The major agenda item is a master plan conference on a proposal by property owner Joe Zenga to build a development on Greenwich Boulevard that would include 40 residences as well as a commercial/retail building at 1002 Main St., on the site of Sunnybrook Farms. Architect Don Powers, who designed the smaller Greene Street Cottages, has designed the project. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers at Town Hall. Everything You Need…

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5 Things You Need To Know Today

Three Town Hall Meetings, Sports & More

Five things you need to know about East Greenwich today, Feb. 1.

Ad Hoc Budget Panel: Under review at this morning’s meeting are the parks and recreation budget and IT. They meet at 8 a.m. at Town Hall. Affordable Housing Task Force: The group will get an update of the town’s Comprehensive Plan and discuss public speaking events. It meets at 3 p.m. in conference room B at Town Hall. Planning Board: Members will discuss recommendations to the Zoning Board of variance applications for two different parcels on South County Trail. (Reconsideration of an earlier ruling on a proposed McDonald’s on New London Turnpike is being continued to Feb. 8.) The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers at Town Hall. The agenda is attached, right. EG Sports: The Cole Boys Basketball team won their game yesterday …

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5 Things You Need To Know Today

Xmas Trees NEXT Week, Early Budget Meeting & More

Five things you need to know about East Greenwich today, Jan. 4.

Trash pickup & Xmas trees: Because the New Year’s Day holiday was Monday for town offices, trash pickup is delayed this week by a day. So, if your trash is usually picked up on Wednesday, this week it will be picked up on Thursday. If you have a Christmas tree you’re looking to get rid of, that’s next week. Tree pickups begin Jan. 9 (thanks, Erinn, for the info!). Just remember: they will not take your tree if it’s in a plastic bag. If you want to use a bag to get the tree outside, just cut it off curbside. Town Budget Committee meeting: This ad hoc panel meets at the Public Works Department, 111 Peirce St., at 8 a.m. On the agenda is discussion with PW director Joe Duarte and Bob Wilmarth from the School Department on consolidation …

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Affordable Housing Commission Looks To Fight Misinformation

With a new brochure and the first of a series of planned public presentations, the group hopes to quell residents' fears and encourage development.

The town’s small Affordable Housing Commission took its act on the road Monday, with a presentation before seniors at Swift Community Center. It was, more than anything, an opportunity to fine-tune their message before facing possibly more challenging audiences. “Please, stand up, talk to your neighbors, attend a meeting if you can. Be part of the solution to help us get more affordable housing,” AHC member Bill Daly urged audience members. Affordable housing units are in short supply in East Greenwich, which is required by state law to have at least 10 percent of its housing stock be “affordable” by 2015. East Greenwich has 4 percent. An affordable housing unit is that for which the price is set so that it would be affordable for someone…

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Walk To School, Affordable Housing & More

Five things you need to know about East Greenwich today, Oct. 5

Walk to School Day: That’s right - leave the bus at the stop and hoof it to school today. Check out the International Walk to School Day website and get inspired. Good news: no rain in the forecast today! Old Spokes bike ride: The Old Spokes Cycling Group is heading over to Warwick City Park this morning for a ride. The group for seniors will meet at Swift Community Center at 9:30 a.m. Planning ahead, Old Spokes is planning to ride in Newport on Oct. 20. If you want to be added to the email list, call Erin at the Senior Center, 886-8669, ext. 1 Planning Board meeting: The meeting is largely devoted to a workshop on affordable housing. 7 p.m. at Town Hall. The agenda is attached, right. Affordable Housing Task Force meeting: Brenda Clement …

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Council Passes Zone Change For 17-Unit Crompton Ave. Complex

Final reading will take place on Sept. 12

With Councilor Henry Boezi the only no vote, the Town Council  approved the second reading of an ordinance to change the zoning at 60 Crompton Avenue from light industrial office to residential. Boezi said he wanted more information.  The building on the site, which overlooks the town boat ramp, transfer station and sewage treatment plant, was built as office space. The interior of the building is unfinished and East Greenwich Acquisitions, the third owner, says there is no market for offices but they can get financing for apartments. They are proposing 17 units, three of which would meet the requirement for affordable housing. Several area residents questioned whether the site is big enough for what is proposed and Bob Laforge, a Cove …

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