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April 2009 Archives
5:27 PM Thu, Apr 30, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Maria Armental  Email
By Bruce Landis Journal Staff Writer PROVIDENCE, R.I -- The state Turnpike and Bridge Authority needs to make $50-million worth of repairs to the Pell and Mount Hope bridges, and needs a toll increase to pay for them, Chairman David......
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2:18 PM Thu, Apr 30, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Newport Harbor Corp. is buying Hemenway's Seafood Grill & Oyster Bar, the popular restaurant overlooking the Providence River. The restaurant, on the ground floor of 121 South Main St., an 11-story office tower on river's east bank, opened in 1985.......
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1:05 PM Thu, Apr 30, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
By Paul Edward Parker Journal Staff Writer Two surveys of the Rhode Island housing show a dismal performance in the first three months of 2009. According to the Rhode Island Association of Realtors, the median sales price of single-family houses......
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12:12 PM Thu, Apr 30, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Walt Disney Co. (DIS: NYSE) on Thursday reached a deal to become a partner in the popular Hulu Web site founded by NBC Universal and News Corp., the companies said Thursday. Among the other partners in the video Web site......
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7:49 AM Thu, Apr 30, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Pawtucket-based Hasbro Inc. and Discovery Communications Inc. announced Thursday an agreement to form a 50/50 joint venture, including a television network and Web site, dedicated to high-quality children's and family entertainment and educational programming. The project is scheduled to appear......
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4:42 PM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
By Katherine Gregg PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- A bill calling for automatic annual increases in the minimum wage to keep it in line with "the rate of inflation'' is slated for a vote by the Senate Labor Committee on Wednesday. The......
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4:30 PM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Former Providence Journal reporter Dan Barry was in Fall River recently, where he found a city "all too familiar with hard times" that is being battered anew by the recession. "Once a textile manufacturing capital, the city has spent most......
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2:53 PM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Paul Edward Parker Journal staff writer WARWICK, R.I. -- The national housing market has returned to its normal balance after a buying frenzy in the first part of this decade led to a collapse last year, an economist with......
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2:06 PM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
By Benjamin N. Gedan Journal staff writer Hasbro chairman Alfred J. Verrecchia, who led a review panel that was highly critical of the state Economic Development Corporation, is defending the board that leads the agency. The review panel that studied......
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9:58 AM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Textron Inc. says it will eliminate 8,200 jobs, or 20 percent, of its global work force as the recession continues to weaken demand for corporate planes. The Providence-based company says it will now deliver 290 to 300......
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9:13 AM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Providence-based Textron Inc. said on Wednesday t expects to deliver no more than 300 Cessna corporate jets this year, about 20 percent less than its previous forecast, and to stop work on the new Columbus aircraft as a global recession......
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9:09 AM Wed, Apr 29, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
BOSTON (AP) -- The median selling price of single-family homes in Massachusetts fell by more than 18 percent in the first quarter when compared to the year-ago quarter, while sales fell by about 10 percent. The Massachusetts Association of Realtors......
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4:32 PM Tue, Apr 28, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
Providence Journal photo / Frieda Squires Brown University's Clyde L. Briant, right, and Brendan C. McNally at the newly opened Rhode Island Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. By Benjamin N. Gedan Journal staff writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Brown University......
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3:56 PM Tue, Apr 28, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
If you collect unemployment benefits through the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, heads up: You may have to take an extra step to keep the benefits flowing. If you are receiving a certain type of unemployment benefit --......
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3:44 PM Tue, Apr 28, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
Look out for sneaky e-mails that appear to come from the Internal Revenue Service or the U.S. Treasury. Sometimes, the messages promise a refund or rebate. But no matter the content, the messages are mainly looking to trick you into......
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9:17 AM Tue, Apr 28, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
New England's unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage point in March to 7.8 percent - the highest it had been since December 1992; nationally, the unemployment rate rose from 8.1 to 8.5 percent in March. Over the year, New England's unemployment......
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9:16 AM Tue, Apr 28, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
BOSTON (AP) -- House lawmakers overwhelmingly backed a plan to raise the state sales tax from 5 percent to 6.25 percent late Monday, despite a last-minute veto threat from Governor Patrick. By a 108-to-51 vote, lawmakers approved the plan pushed......
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7:28 AM Tue, Apr 28, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Lottomatica SpA, owner of Providence-based GTECH Corp., said Tuesday that Chairman Lorenzo Pellicioli will step down as chief executive officer and that he proposed Marco Sala as the new CEO. Pellicioli will continue to serve as chairman, the company......
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4:30 PM Mon, Apr 27, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
WARREN -- Federal stimulus aid was felt on Main Street on Monday as Jamiel's Shoe World -- a local business for 72 years -- celebrated that it will stay in business thanks to a $400,000 loan backed by the Small......
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1:06 PM Mon, Apr 27, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The steady increase in gasoline prices continues. The Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources' said Monday its weekly survey of 16 stations found that the price of unleaded self-serve gasoline jumped another two cents, to $2.12. The......
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9:02 AM Mon, Apr 27, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
First-quarter net earnings fell sharply at Washington Trust Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: WASH), partly because the Westerly-based company tripled the amount it sets aside to cover losses on loans, a result of the recession. Washington Trust Bancorp, parent company of The......
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8:27 AM Mon, Apr 27, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
CVS Caremark Corp. and Walgreen Co., the two largest U.S. drug-store chains, are preparing stores for a possible rush on hygiene products and pharmaceuticals as swine flu spreads through North America. Walgreen purchasing managers met over the weekend with suppliers......
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7:32 AM Mon, Apr 27, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Royal Bank of Scotland Group, owner of Providence-based Citizens Financial Group, is moving its New York employees from an office near Grand Central Terminal and relocating them to Stamford, Connecticut, where the Edinburgh-based bank is centralizing U.S. operations. The new......
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4:27 PM Fri, Apr 24, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Drugmaker Amgen reported an 8-percent drop in sales in the first quarter of the year, blaming the performance on penny-pinching at pharmacy counters and decreased doctors visits. Amgen operates one of the world's largest biomanufacturing plants in West Greenwich, where......
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3:15 PM Fri, Apr 24, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The board of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation is meeting Monday for the first time since a review panel criticized the agency and called on all eight board members to resign. The meeting will be held at 4 p.m.......
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12:03 PM Fri, Apr 24, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Climate Counts, a nonprofit advocacy group in Manchester, N.H., has ranked Hasbro as the most environmentally responsible large toy maker in the country. The rankings, announced on Earth Day, named Pawtucket-based Hasbro "the clear sector leader," with more than......
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10:35 AM Fri, Apr 24, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Laurent Vernerey, the chief executive of American Power Conversion, will speak at this year's World Trade Day at Bryant University, the university announced Friday. More than 500 people are expected to attend the conference, titled "The Power of Trade:......
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7:58 AM Fri, Apr 24, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Raytheon Co. Chief Executive and Chairman William H. Swanson received total compensation in 2008 of $24.4 million, up from $19.3 million in 2007, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Swanson's salary rose to $1.33 million......
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6:59 PM Thu, Apr 23, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Lisa Vernon-Sparks Email
WARWICK, R.I. -- Building green is a topic a lot of people are talking about. But qualifying as a professional in the field has already drawn some 300 applicants who have registered at local test centers to take the national......
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6:38 PM Thu, Apr 23, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Lisa Vernon-Sparks Journal staff writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- As construction pushes forward on the relocation of I-195, motorists can expect to see new access ramps opening up from the roadway's western approach sometime this summer, with more to come......
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6:30 PM Thu, Apr 23, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
The cost of doing business in Rhode Island is about to go up. Approximately 32,000 employers will have to pay more in taxes starting Jan. 1 to help replenish a state fund that pays out benefits to the unemployed, said......
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1:11 PM Thu, Apr 23, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Providence Journal photo / Kathy Borges Rep. Patrick Kennedy visits Alexion's Smithfield plant earlier in April. Rising sales of its blood disorder drug Soliris boosted profits at Alexion Pharmaceuticals in the first three months of the year, the company......
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2:01 PM Wed, Apr 22, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Textron Inc. Chief Executive Officer Lewis Campbell said it is "highly unlikely'' the company would have to sell any more businesses to generate cash and preserve liquidity. "Given the success we have had with the Textron Financial liquidation so far,......
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9:02 AM Wed, Apr 22, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
MYSTIC, Conn. (AP) -- Mystic Seaport, one of Connecticut's top tourist attractions, has laid off 18 more employees before the summer travel season. That is about 11 percent of the work force at the maritime museum, which includes several historic......
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8:20 AM Wed, Apr 22, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
On Wednesday morning in Rhode Island, the Green Hospitality and Tourism Leadership Council will recognize businesses that have completed the process to be certified as an environmentally-sound company. The breakfast starts at 8:30 a.m. at the Sheraton Providence Airport Hotel.......
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8:10 AM Wed, Apr 22, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
BOSTON (AP) -- Boston area discount retailer Filene's Basement has been sold to a California-based liquidator. Retail Ventures Inc., the 25-store chain's owner, sold the chain on Tuesday to Buxbaum Group of Agoura Hills, Calif. Columbus, Ohio-based Retail Ventures said......
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6:01 PM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Rhode Island Senate on Tuesday approved a tax break, amounting to 30 cents per gallon, for local producers of biodiesel, the fuel made from used vegetable oil that can power vehicles with diesel engines. "This will......
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2:32 PM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
EAST GREENWICH, R.I. - With a state budget deficit projected into 2014, Governor Carcieri's director of administration told the Town Council Monday night that cities and towns that begin their fiscal years on July 1 might want to move that......
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2:18 PM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Paul Edward Parker Journal staff writer Following two months of double-digit declines in the number of travelers using T.F. Green Airport, passenger traffic started leveling off in March, according to counts made public Tuesday by the state's airport agency.......
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12:56 PM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Alex Kuffner Email
AP Photo / NOAA In this photograph by NOAA, NOAA's new vessel, Okeanos Explorer, scheduled to go to sea next year as the first U.S. government vessel dedicated to exploring unknown parts of the ocean. NORTH KINGSTOWN -- The......
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10:15 AM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
By Benjamin N. Gedan Journal Staff Writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The panel appointed by Governor Carcieri to review the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation wants the corporation's entire board to resign immediately so new appointments can be made, according to......
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8:22 AM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
National Grid, the region's biggest energy supplier, and the United Steelworkers union have settled a three year contract for about 725 gas workers in the Greater Boston area. The contract includes a 2.5 percent annual raise, an improvement in the......
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7:58 AM Tue, Apr 21, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
By Katherine Gregg Journal State House Bureau CRANSTON - Given the state of the state's economy, state Lottery officials are breathing a sigh of relief. State revenues from Lottery sponsored gambling are still lagging the $356.4 million projection for this......
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3:44 PM Mon, Apr 20, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
By Benjamin N. Gedan Journal staff writer The state Economic Development Corporation is holding a closed-door meeting Monday at the State House, where board members are expected to discuss the future of the agency. A panel appointed by Governor Carcieri......
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10:10 AM Mon, Apr 20, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - After holding steady the previous week, the price of regular unleaded gasoline rose another two cents last week, according to the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources' weekly survey of 16 stations. The typical price at the......
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7:58 AM Mon, Apr 20, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Pawtucket-based Hasbro, the nation's second-largest toy maker, said Monday first-quarter profit fell 47 percent, hurt by the stronger dollar and retailers cutting back on their inventory levels, but results met analyst expectations. Profit for the three months ended March 29......
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5:36 PM Fri, Apr 17, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
By Neil Downing Providence Journal MoneyLine Columnist A sharp-eyed pensioner from Providence noticed that the amount of federal income tax withheld from her pension-related annuity has declined. What's going on? Something that some pensioners - and some workers - will......
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5:36 PM Fri, Apr 17, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
Steven Greenhouse, a New York Times reporter and author of the best-selling book, The Big Squeeze, Tough Times for the American Worker, will give a free public lecture about the book Tuesday night at the University of Rhode Island. Greenhouse's......
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4:34 PM Fri, Apr 17, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The state Department of Transportation Thursday night formally awarded low bidder Cardi Corporation the contract to build a replacement for the 53-year-old Sakonnet River Bridge. Groundbreaking has been set for next Friday at 3 p.m. on the......
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3:52 PM Fri, Apr 17, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
Rhode Island's food-service and hotel industries took in less money in February than they did the same month a year ago, based on reports from tax officials. Meals and beverage tax collections dropped 7.6 percent from February of last year......
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1:28 PM Fri, Apr 17, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Rhode Island was only one of three states that recorded no change in the unemployment rate in March, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. In all, 46 states saw their jobless rate jump in March. The unemployment rate......
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12:56 PM Fri, Apr 17, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
CUMBERLAND, R.I. -- A Cumberland-based child care company has launched a new program that would offer parents a free month of child care should they lose their job. The Children's Workshop, founded in 1990, has centers in Rhode Island and......
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5:44 PM Thu, Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Natural gas wholesale prices may have plummeted in recent weeks, but homeowners in Rhode Island who rely on the fuel for heating and cooking should not expect their gas bills to fall nearly as far or as......
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3:25 PM Thu, Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
Providence Journal photo / Kathy Borchers Tim Cureton, a photovoltaic installer for Alteris Renewables Inc., works on the rails of one of the rows of solar panels on the roof being placed on the roof of a building at......
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2:45 PM Thu, Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
BOSTON (AP) -- The Massachusetts unemployment rate rose slightly from 7.7 percent in February to 7.8 percent in March as an additional 20,300 jobs were lost statewide. Meanwhile, the Connecticut Department of Labor says the state's unemployment rate has edged......
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1:27 PM Thu, Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Fans of Nordstrom, Apple, The Cheesecake Factory and other popular spots in Providence Place mall should not be worried by today's bankruptcy filing by shopping center owner General Growth Properties Inc. "We will be open for business......
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8:45 AM Thu, Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- General Growth Properties Inc., owner of Providence Place mall, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection early Thursday after it failed to persuade a majority of its debt holders to give it more time to refinance billions......
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2:13 PM Wed, Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Christine Dunn Journal staff writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation has suspended the real-estate license of a man who pleaded no contest in February, and was sentenced March 30, in an assault case involving......
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1:47 PM Wed, Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Foxwoods Resort Casino on Wednesday reported its net slot win rose 1.3 percent in March, to $61.6 million, when compared with March 2008. It's the second month in a row that the casino, owned by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation,......
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1:25 PM Wed, Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- A group of developers shrugged off the poor economy, inviting political leaders and business officials on Wednesday morning to get a look at their new hotel in downtown Providence. "It's a tough time in the economy," noted......
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12:42 PM Wed, Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
BJ's Wholesale Club said Tuesday that it is accepting electronic food stamps as a payment option at its 180 wholesale clubs. BJ's, based in Natick, Mass., said it decided to expand the option to more of its clubs as some......
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10:30 AM Wed, Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
BOSTON (AP) -- Massachusetts Senate President Therese Murray says she, Gov. Deval Patrick and House Speaker Robert DeLeo agree the state should pass some sort of gambling bill this fall. Murray said "cha-ching" and mimicked pulling a slot-machine lever on......
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10:12 AM Wed, Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
By Kate Bramson Journal staff writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- If you're scrambling to finish your taxes Wednesday, you may want to check out some of projo.com's online tax resources. Don't forget that the main Providence post office in Corliss Park......
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5:22 PM Tue, Apr 14, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
EAST GREENWICH, R.I. -- They may not have crammed Town Hall to make their purchases, but East Greenwich quickly sold millions of bonds and bond anticipation notes Tuesday afternoon. By 5 p.m., three hours after opening up the Town Council......
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4:19 PM Tue, Apr 14, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
Bankruptcies filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Rhode Island shot up 37 percent in the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year, according to court figures. Rhode Island had 1,244 bankruptcy filings the first......
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1:45 PM Tue, Apr 14, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Alan Rosenberg Email
As the national foreclosure crisis continues to grab headlines, leaders of the National Low Income Housing Coalition on Tuesday drew attention to a persistent problem in the housing market: the lack of affordable rental housing for those unable to buy......
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1:24 PM Tue, Apr 14, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
A partnership of four companies, including BioprocessH2O in Portsmouth, has been given a $2.1-million grant to mass produce algae fuel using waste products from an Iowa ethanol plant. The project involves taking waste heat, water and carbon dioxide from the......
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1:14 PM Tue, Apr 14, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
Journal photo/ Frieda Squires Lori Armenti, an IRS customer service representative, helps Francis Dutra, of Bristol, right, fill out his tax return. Tax returns are due by midnight Wednesday. For tax tips, forms and information about electronic filing, check......
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3:30 PM Mon, Apr 13, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Economic activity in February indicates the Rhode Island economy has skirted bottom and should start to improve as the year proceeds, according to the work of a URI economics professor. The Current Conditionas Index, compiled by URI Prof. Leonard Lardaro,......
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1:56 PM Mon, Apr 13, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Bruce Landis Email
Spirit Airlines, a low-cost carrier, will begin offering daily service to Atlantic City, a new destination for Logan Airport, starting May 1, the Massachusetts Port Authority said. The agency said that means Logan now offers nonstop service to 71 domestic......
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11:26 AM Mon, Apr 13, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
Rhode Island gas prices are little changed from a week ago, according to a survey issued today by the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources. The average price of regular, unleaded, self-serve gas stood at about $2.08 a gallon today,......
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5:41 PM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
By Neil Downing Providence Journal MoneyLine Columnist If you owe Rhode Island income tax, and electronically file your return, there's a new method for paying what you owe. It's called direct debit, and it's available for the first time this......
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4:19 PM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Paul Edward Parker Journal staff writer T.F. Green Airport on Friday unveiled a marketing campaign that calls the Warwick facility the convenient alternative to Boston's Logan International Airport. One of the slogans in the campaign: "Choosing simplicity over chaos.......
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3:56 PM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Retailer Toys R Us is trying to take a bite out of the nation's food budget, stocking beverages, cereal and household items at its stores. The move follows the company's announcement last week that it will stock low-priced toys and......
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3:47 PM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
By Paul Edward Parker Journal Staff Writer The state's housing and mortgage assistance agency is offering help to people buy vacant or foreclosed houses. Rhode Island Housing on Friday announced a loan package that would allow qualified applicants to borrow......
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3:12 PM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Citizens Financial Group this week launched two new savings programs for people saving up to buy a house or put a student through college. The HomeBuyer Savings and CollegeSaver accounts each will earn a $1,000 bonus payment from the bank,......
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12:16 PM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Starbucks fans in Warwick will have to drive a little farther to get their favorite lattes as the Seattle, Wash., chain said today it will close its Post Road outlet as part of a previously announced store-reduction plan. The gourmet......
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7:55 AM Fri, Apr 10, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Amgen Inc., the California-based biotechnology company that makes Enbrel in West Greenwich, is cutting 100 jobs at its clinical drug manufacturing site in the Seattle suburb of Bothell, Wash. Carol Pawlak, a spokeswoman, told the Associated Press the cutbacks are......
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6:29 PM Thu, Apr 09, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Andy Smith Journal staff writer The new owner of the former Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island building at 15 La Salle Square, across Sabin Street from the Dunkin' Donuts Center in downtown Providence, is making sure......
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6:06 PM Thu, Apr 09, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
Rhode Island should offer more details more often about which goods and services escape state tax - especially as the state struggles to resolve big state budget deficits, two anti-poverty groups said in studies issued on Thursday. The groups focused......
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3:01 PM Thu, Apr 09, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Andy Smith Journal staff writer Citadel Broadcasting, owner of WPRV-AM (790) will switch the radio station from a "True Oldies" music format to talk, with an emphasis on business and personal finance, beginning Monday. The station will continue to......
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1:10 PM Thu, Apr 09, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
By Cynthia Needham Journal State House Bureau PROVIDENCE, R.I. --The state has officially closed a loophole that prevented hundreds of Rhode Islanders from accessing the COBRA subsidy offered under the federal stimulus package. The change, approved by legislators this week......
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10:16 AM Thu, Apr 09, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Stock in Providence-based Textron rose the most in at least 28 years after Kuwait's Al-Watan newspaper reported that a United Arab Emirates group is preparing to buy the maker of Cessna aircraft and Bell helicopters for $21 a share. Textron......
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7:00 AM Thu, Apr 09, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
Today is the last day to buy a cheap pack of cigarettes. Starting at 12:01 a.m. Friday, Rhode Island's new cigarette tax takes effect - and state tax officials will be out in force to help enforce it. The $1-a-pack......
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9:13 AM Wed, Apr 08, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
The Rhode Island Department of Elderly Affairs said today that it has been awarded a $201,000 grant from the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to continue providing health insurance counseling to seniors and adults with disabilities through the......
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6:38 PM Tue, Apr 07, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
The Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday voted 8 to 0 to broaden a tax break intended to encourage the use of biodiesel fuel - a fuel that is made, at least in part, from vegetable oils. The bill, S 0525,......
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5:54 PM Tue, Apr 07, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Alan Rosenberg Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Department of Transportation may take up to $4.1 million that the state transit agency was planning to spend on new buses and other items to cover a cost overrun on a railroad station project. State Transportation......
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3:30 PM Tue, Apr 07, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Lisa Vernon-Sparks Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC announced it plans to eliminate as many as 9,000 positions globally, affecting some 1,250 jobs at Citizens Financial Group in the United States. The Providence-based group has retail operations in......
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2:16 PM Tue, Apr 07, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Benjamin N. Gedan Journal staff writer J. Michael Saul, Governor Carcieri's top economic adviser, said Tuesday that Rhode Islanders must have "faith" in an economic recovery to reverse the deepening recession. Speaking at the annual Financial Services Symposium, organized......
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12:23 PM Tue, Apr 07, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
By Gregory Smith Journal staff writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Therapy, an Olneyville nightclub, has been ordered to double the size of its offduty police detail for the sake of security. The action by the city Board of Licenses comes in......
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8:50 AM Tue, Apr 07, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, the owner of Providence-based Citizens Financial Group, plans to eliminate an additional 9,000 jobs worldwide, or five percent of the workforce, as it seeks to repay a bailout from the United Kingdom. The job......
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6:11 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
By Neil Downing Providence Journal MoneyLine Columnist If you're out of work and collecting unemployment benefits, every dollar counts. So as you pinch pennies while trying to find another job, keep an eye on taxes. That's because unemployment benefits are......
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5:16 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By C. Eugene Emery Jr. Email
PROVIDENCE - Unleaded gasoline prices jumped another two cents per gallon in the past week, diesel prices declined by a penny, and home heating oil prices dropped a hefty six cents a gallon, according to the weekly report released Monday......
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4:57 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Andy Smith Journal staff writer APC by Schneider Electric has laid off 30 more Rhode Island employees in its third round of job cuts since late last year. The company, formerly known as American Power Conversion, has about 1,100......
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4:29 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Pamela Reinsel Cotter Email
By Benjamin N. Gedan Journal staff writer Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation has dropped its public relations firm, Cutler & Company, and hired Duffy & Shanley. The move comes as the agency struggles to promote the state's economy to businesses......
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2:23 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
Gasoline prices in Rhode Island increased by a penny last week and have risen 39 cents since the beginning of the year, according to AAA Southern New England. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is $2.05......
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2:20 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Jack Perry Email
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) -- Federal regulators have issued a new set of commercial fishing regulations that they say will relieve pressure on fish populations in the Northeast while allowing the fishing industry to survive. In announcing the rules Monday, the......
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12:20 PM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy Tuesday plans to visit the Alexion Pharmaceuticals plant in Smithfield, where the company says he will speak about the historic spike in federal grants for medical research included in the federal stimulus bill. The hour-long visit......
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11:04 AM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Lisa Vernon-Sparks Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council has created an online database to help researchers tap $21.5 billion in federal stimulus funding opportunities. On the STAC Web site is a link for the funding opportunities tool,......
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8:26 AM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Woodward Governor Co. said it completed the acquisition of all the outstanding shares of stock of HR Textron from Providence-based Textron and substantially all the United Kingdom assets and certain liabilities related to the HR Textron business of Textron Limited.......
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1:01 AM Mon, Apr 06, 2009 | Permalink |
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By News staff Email
By Paul Grimaldi Journal staff writer Massachusetts residents remain supportive of authorizing casino gambling in the Bay State, according to a survey released Monday. Responses to the survey conducted by the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth Center for Policy Analysis indicate that......
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6:15 PM Fri, Apr 03, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
By Neil Downing Providence Journal MoneyLine Columnist Q: I understand that all Social Security recipients will be receiving an extra check for $250 under the new stimulus package. When are those checks expected, and how will recipients who only become......
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5:57 PM Fri, Apr 03, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Neil Downing Email
By Neil Downing Providence Journal MoneyLine Columnist Q: You can take an additional standard deduction for real estate taxes on your 1040 form. What about the great many of us who use 1040EZ and already have filed? -- M.M., West......
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9:28 AM Fri, Apr 03, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Actress Anne Archer, nominated for an Academy Award for her role as Michael Douglas's wife in the 1987 movie Fatal Attraction, is offering for sale a condo in Portsmouth for $1.1 million. The property in the Carnegie Abbey Sporting Estate......
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1:14 PM Thu, Apr 02, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Lisa Vernon-Sparks Email
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The next generation of entrepreneurs are "all digital natives," said Jack Templin of RI Nexus, an initiative that supports growth among the state's info-tech and digital media sectors. "That means someone who only knows the world on-line."......
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8:36 AM Thu, Apr 02, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-RI, has circulated a draft bill that would open the door for investors to seek legal damages from credit-rating companies after the firms drew criticism for giving top grades to asset-backed debt. Investors could sue companies......
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4:06 PM Wed, Apr 01, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Elwin Electronics, of Warwick, on Wednesday announced it has merged with Massachusetts-based Tops Electronic Service Inc. to form Pinnacle Service Solutions Group Inc., combining their consumer-electronics service companies. The new company will retain the more than 200 people Elwin and......
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9:36 AM Wed, Apr 01, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Tim Hortons coffee shops will give away chicken wrap snacks Wednesday to patrons who venture into participating locations. Between 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., participating Tim Hortons locations will offer up free BBQ and Ranch Chicken Wrap Snackers. The snack......
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9:20 AM Wed, Apr 01, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Paul Grimaldi Email
Executives at the Denny's restaurant chain are serving up a new discount Wednesday, April 8, when its outlets will offer a buy-one-get-one free deal. Participating franchisees will offer customers a free Grand Slamwhich when they order a Grand Slam breakfast,......
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8:40 AM Wed, Apr 01, 2009 | Permalink |
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By Business staff Email
Eleven local entrepreneurs will be awarded $150,000 in grants Wednesday morning to help them start and expand their businesses. The grants will be awarded by the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and the City of Providence as part of the......
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