Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot & Who’s Not? - September 2, 2016
Russ Moore, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™
Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot & Who’s Not? - September 2, 2016
Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot & Who’s Not? - September 2, 2016
HOT
Allan Fung
The Mayor of Cranston is running a strong campaign, appears poised to put the Ticketgate scandal behind him and cruise to a strong victory in this year’s mayor’s race. This week, he received the Rhode Island Latino Political Action Committee’s endorsement.
HOT
Giovanni Feroce
For all the complaining about there not being enough going on in our capital city, it’s nice to see people like Feroce, the former Alex and Ani CEO who now owns Benrus, stepping up, taking risks, and making things happen. Last Thursday, Feroce sponsored a fashion show with his company’s new partner BeME, which features a new lingerie line (size and styles for all women), at Waterplace Park in Providence.
HOT
Zach Darrow
The Providence-based attorney has quietly built one of the most dynamic firms in the state, stocked with talented attorneys specializing in everything from business to real estate law. Darrow has recently expanded his reach, opening up law offices in Miami and New York City.
HOT
Sally Lapides
If you want to sell a house on the East Side of Providence, call Lapides. The President of Residential Properties Ltd. is perhaps the state’s most prominent real estate professional, as evidenced by the overwhelming number of listings her company holds and has held of so many of the most expensive houses in the state.
HOT
Top Party School
Students at the University of Rhode Island: your school has been ranked the 13th best party school in the United States by the prestigious Princeton Review. But with this distinction comes a great responsibility to not only hold this ranking in the future to honor of those who came before you (many of which I call friends), but even perhaps improve upon it. So get your beer pong tables and red solo cups ready for another year. To the rest of the college students in the Ocean State, time to step your party game up!
HOT
Used Cars
Providence ranks inside the top 10 cities in the nation to purchase a used car thanks largely to the high levels of inventory, which puts a downward pressure on prices. That’s good for consumers, particularly since the oppressive car tax rates in so many communities aren’t as painful when you’re sporting a used car.
HOT
Citizens Financial Group
Citizens Financial Group held a groundbreaking ceremony for their new corporate campus in Johnston on Wednesday. Citizens plans to open the doors to the new campus in mid-2018 for 3,200 employees. We think the venerable RI company would have looked much better in downtown Providence, but kudos to continuing to stay committed to Rhode Island.
NOT
John DeSimome
House Majority Leader is in a death fight in the Democratic primary. Marcia Ranglin-Vassell is giving DeSimone a battle. He may hold on, but it won’t be because she did not give him a spirited enough campaign.
NOT
Sheldon Whitehouse
The Senator’s passionate effort to curb production of Greenhouse gases is undermined by his “rope a dope” strategy on the proposed Burrillville Gas Plant. See video of the Senator avoid committing to position on the proposed power plant (Whitehouse is in the white shorts).
NOT
Dan Yorke
The talk show host is apparently having some trouble filling the big shoes of the late Vincent “Buddy” Cianci. According to recent ratings data obtained by GoLocal, Yorke’s program scored a .8 ratings, ranking tenth in the Providence market and well below the leading shows. Expect another shakeup from 630 WPRO if things don’t turn around…fast.
NOT
Seth Magaziner
When the young Democrat ran for General Treasurer in 2014, he talked about the need for the pension fund to produce “strong returns”. Yet over the last two year period, I’ve had trouble finding five pension funds that the Rhode Island pension fund has outperformed—forget about every landing in the median. Clearly, the Treasurer needs to do a much better job managing the fund in order to protect taxpayers and provide retirement security to state employees.
NOT
Anthony Weiner
The former Congressman from New York City is back in the news yet again thanks to his proclivity for sharing pictures of his private parts with women he doesn’t know. This latest scandal has led to a separation from his high profile wife who is a longtime Hillary Clinton aide, Huma Abedin. It’s certainly strange and disconcerting that Weiner cannot discard his disgusting habit when it’s cost him so much in the past.
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NOT
Colin Kaepernick
The San Francisco 49ers quarterback has created a firestorm by refusing to stand for the national anthem before his team’s games because he is concerned about the racial inequities plaguing this country. Kaepernick is right to point out that racism still plagues our nation, but by refusing to honor America, he risks doing more harm than good.
NOT
Providence Crime
The Providence Business News, a local newspaper, suffered a burglary earlier this week and released a video of the individual suspected of the crime. The incident was another sad reminder of Providence’s crime problems - especially downtown.
NOT
Summer “Blockbuster” Movies
This year’s supposed summer hit movies have been as disappointing as any year in recent memory. “Warcraft” lacked likeable characters. “Jason Bourne” had a simplistic plot. “Tarzan” was such a snoozer folks will be buying the dvd and turning it on in place of lullabies for years to come. And despite starring talented actors such as Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto, and Rhode Island’s own Viola Davis, the direction of “Suicide Squad” was so flawed that it made the heroes annoying instead of captivating. Hollywood needs to do better.
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