Archive - Mar 2012

Union up in arms over firings

March 2, 2012

SOUTH KINGSTOWN – At 10 Sunday morning three untenured special education teachers found out their jobs had been terminated. Two days later on Tuesday night, National Education Association – South Kingstown filled the West Kingston Elementary School auditorium to defend them.
Wearing their trademark bulls-eye t-shirts and holding bright pink signs denouncing bullying, the union showing took the thunder away from what was originally planned as a school committee workshop session on the state’s common core standards.

A leap into the world

March 2, 2012

SOUTH KINGSTOWN—Pope Paul III, famous Montreal Canadien Henri ‘The Pocket Rocket’ Richard, and rapper Ja Rule have all come into the world on leap days, and now little Grace Mitchell of East Greenwich joins them. Mitchell is the first-born leap baby at South County Hospital in 2012, and her parents are overjoyed that their daughter has come on such a unique day.

“It is exciting and doesn’t come very often,” said Jennifer Mitchell, Grace’s mother. “She came on actual due date and I wasn’t sure she’s be on time, but she was ready.”

Preview today's Narragansett Times

March 2, 2012

In this week's paper, we have a story on how NEA-SK filled the West Kingstown Elementary School cafeteria during Tuesday's school committee to defend three teachers who were fired.

We also have the story of this year's Leap Year baby at South County Hospital and the report on how Executive Director of the Institute of International Sport purchased property in North Carolina while he received grant money from the state.

All and more inside, today's Narragansett Times.

Audit results show NK is in good financial position

March 2, 2012

By LINDSAY OLIVIER
lolivier@ricentral.com

NORTH KINGSTOWN – The town of North Kingstown is financially healthy ... at least according to the latest reports.
A 156-page audit for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011 was conducted by The Braver Group, a firm of licensed certified public accountants from Providence, and the results were presented to the NK Town Council Monday night.

Rep. Watson pleads 'no contest' for marijuana possession

March 1, 2012

WAKEFIELD — State Rep. Robert A. Watson of East Greenwich pleaded no contest this afternoon to a charge of possession of marijuana in connection with his Jan. 21 arrest by South Kingstown police.

Fourth District Court Associate Justice Mary E. McCaffrey ordered the case filed for one year, and Watson to pay $200 to the state's crime victims assistance fund in addition to court costs.

Wakefield all lit up over LED signs

March 1, 2012

SOUTH KINGSTOWN – In an effort to reach public consensus on the hotly debated issue of LED signs, the town council approved extending the expiration date of the sign ordinance to Aug. 27 to allow for the Planning Board to conduct a series of community meetings to reach a decision that fits within the town’s comprehensive plan.

The decision Monday night is the third time in two years the planning board’s deadline to provide a recommendation on whether LED signs should be permitted in the commercial highway district on Old Tower Hill Road was extended.

Obama budget could nix Carcieri decision

March 1, 2012

President Barack Obama’s proposed budget for the fiscal year of 2013 includes language that could have an immediate and direct impact on Charlestown, and would essentially overturn a court decision that originated right here in Rhode Island.

Preview this week's Standard-Times today!

March 1, 2012

Quonset has long been considered one of the economic bright spots of Rhode Island and, this week, Governor Lincoln Chafee was on hand to share news that the Port of Davisville has now been ranked the seventh-largest importer of automobiles in the country.
In this week's Standard-Times, we bring you all the information on that milestone achievement for Davisville and update you on a wide variety of school and town issues, including the recently-released audit of the town's 2011 Fiscal Year.