Bonnie Phillips

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PORTSMOUTH, R.I. — On Roger Greene’s first trip to the naval base on Prudence Island several decades ago, the military’s infrastructure was already falling into disrepair. Few people still worked on the base, aside from a couple of caretakers. One stopped Roger and his wife, Gail, both of whom worked at the Department of Environmental Management at the time, and asked them why they were there. “You really shouldn’t be on federal property,” Greene recalled a caretaker telling them.

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — Two years after it was first erected, state coastal regulators are stepping up enforcement action against a private club’s illegal seawall. On Tuesday, June 10, the Coastal Resources Management Council is hauling in the Quidnessett Country Club over its seawall, and considering an “order to restore” for the structure, essentially removing it entirely and returning the impacted coastline to its natural state.

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PROVIDENCE — Among the various groups of advocates and interest groups that crowded around inside and outside the Statehouse on Tuesday afternoon, a large contingent included supporters making a last-ditch effort to fund the state’s public transit system. In the coming fiscal year, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority faces a $32.6million deficit that the agency has said would lead to the loss of a third of its workforce and deep service cuts.

3 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PROVIDENCE — There are two different catechisms that most Rhode Islanders use in their daily lives: how many minutes away is a particular location and is there parking? On most days it’s a self-deprecating joke from residents that shows off sarcastic provincialism, but in the General Assembly this year, it’s a serious issue under consideration.

3 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

Consider this a cautionary tale about how not to drive an electric vehicle. Or a story about how, with just a little bit of planning and know-how, a road trip with an EV can be successful. It started out so promisingly. Although when I arranged to rent a car from Hertz for two days in May I wasn’t intending to get an EV, when I got to the Providence location I was told all they had for rentals was a Tesla or a Kia Niro EV.