14 Displaced After House Fire + $25K Grant For Pop-Up Art Plaza

Hello, neighbors! It's me again, Miranda Fraraccio, your host of the Providence Daily.

First, today's weather:

Sun mixing with clouds. High: 71 Low: 55.

Here are the top stories today in Providence:

1. Fourteen people were forced from their homes yesterday morning after a fire broke out at a multi-family home in Providence. Crews responding to Commodore Street around 9:15 a.m. said they received reports of smoke coming from a bathroom on the second floor. Firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the flames, and no one was injured. Investigators say it appears the fire started in the ceiling of the bathroom and may have been caused by an electrical issue. The Red Cross has been called in to assist the displaced residents. (WPRI.com)
2. Providence has received a $25,000 grant to create the Broad Street Cultural Corridor Plaza at the convergence of Daboll and Public Streets. The plaza will be a partially shaded, separated seating area where people can gather to experience pop-up performances and activities. The announcement was made by Mayor Jorge O. Elorza, the City of Providence's Arts, Culture + Tourism (ACT) Department, the Partnership for Providence Parks, and the Rhode Island Latino Arts and Providence Streets Coalition. The grant comes courtesy of the Bloomberg Philanthropies' Asphalt Art Initiative and will include a centralized ground mural to mark the plaza. (Press Release Desk)
3. The mayor and city council of Providence sued the state Department of Education over a disagreement about the amount of money the city should put toward Providence Public Schools this year. (Nashua Telegraph)
4. The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) has partnered with the Roger Williams Park Zoo, the University of Rhode Island, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and other conservation organizations to study and restore populations of the state-endangered Eastern Spadefoot Toad. (GoLocalProv)
5. Providence police are currently investigating shots fired into two separate homes on Thursday evening. (WLNE-TV (ABC6)

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Today in Providence:

• MACRO vs micro - AS220 Main Stage and Gallery (4:00 PM)

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You're all caught up for today! I'll see you back in your inbox Monday morning with another update. If you're loving these newsletters, consider bringing some more friends and neighbors into the fold. You can send them this link to subscribe.

— Miranda Fraraccio

About me: Miranda Fraraccio is a born and raised Rhode Islander. She works as a freelance copywriter for content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and as an assistant producer for a live-lit storytelling show in Chicago. She holds a degree in Writing & Rhetoric and Communication Studies from The University of Rhode Island. In her free time, you can find her traveling, hiking, or photographing her neighborhood as a street photographer.