Daily Briefing: A face of RI's need for housing and a proposal that could help

ALSO: The latest wedding day trend ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ Advertisement [eNewspaper]( | [Crosswords]( | [Horoscopes]( [Read in browser]( The Daily Briefing YOUR MORNING NEWS ROUNDUP Thu Feb 8 2024 Will Richmond | Managing Editor Communities & R.I. [@Will_Richmond]( Good morning, I'm Will Richmond at The Providence Journal and this is the Daily Briefing. Until a couple of weeks ago Shanelle Saraceno was sleeping in a tent near the Apex building in Pawtucket. That was until the tent and the blankets she and her boyfriend used were stolen. Now Saraceno, who is six months pregnant, spends each day unsure where she will sleep that night. Sometimes she's fortunate enough to end up in a hotel room, other nights are spent on the cold concrete. Saraceno's story offers a snapshot of the state's homelessness crises. One that continues to play out despite the efforts to add more beds. [Shanelle Saraceno] A pregnant Shanelle Saraceno and her boyfriend Dylan Ballou walks away from Kennedy plaza with all their possessions stuffed in grocery bags. Kris Craig/The Providence Journal [The Journal's Katie Mulvaney has been following Saraceno's plight]( and the efforts she's made to find shelter almost anywhere in the state and achieve her one goal, “The only thing I could say is I want a roof over my head for my baby.” • When big events come to Gillette Stadium, Rhode Island is usually poised to play a role. Football teams often stay in Providence ahead of Patriots games and when the Army-Navy game came in 2023, Providence served as the host location for the Navy. Though it's still more than two years away, but with the men's World Cup coming to Foxboro in the summer of 2026 could there be an opportunity for Rhode Island to benefit? [The Journal's Patrick Anderson talked with tourism officials about what they are expecting.]( • DJ or band? Sitdown meal or buffet? Open or cash bar? Some questions when it comes to wedding planning have been asked seemingly forever, but now there's a new one in the mix. Should you hire a content creator? With more and more of our lives playing out on social media, this relatively new service allows brides to share the big day almost immediately. [The Journal's Katie Landeck recently caught up with one performing this service here in Rhode Island]( to learn more about this latest wedding trend. • With communities across Rhode Island struggling to provide enough affordable housing, a proposal in Westerly could make a big dent in the problem. Or it could become a golf resort. [The Journal's Wheeler Cowperthwaite has the story on the dual proposals]( for the land that is currently Winnapaug Country Club on Shore Road. • [Voting in this week's Student of the Week poll closes at noon]( today and we have four great nominees to consider. High school principals and school leaders have until 5 p.m. today to submit nominees for next week's poll. And [congratulations to Toll Gate's multisport star Adeline Areson]( who is up for some national recognition. WORTH A READ 📰 Mike Johnson and House [Republicans suffered back-to-back, embarrassing defeats](. What comes next? 🎤 [Taylor Swift explains why she announced new album at Grammys:]( 'I'm just going to do it' 🎰 [You can win $1 million a year]( for life with MassLottery's new $50 scratch ticket RHODY RANKS Every day we receive emails ranking Rhode Island. While the work behind the ranks may be dubious, they can be fun. Each day I'll share where Rhody Ranks from one of the latest emails. We've got [a Rhode Islander on "The Bachelor"]( right now, but that's not enough to make it the state's favorite reality TV show. Vanderpump Rules is revealed to be the most popular reality TV show in Rhode Island, according to new research by [CasinoAlpha]( that analyzed the average monthly Google search volume for all reality TV shows in each state, using terms such as "[tv show] tv series" and "watch [tv show]". The search volumes were then combined to discover the average monthly search volume in each state. [TODAY'S WEATHER]( ☀️ Plenty of sunshine. Highs in the mid-40s. TOP STORIES [Watch this 2018 tribute praising Alviti for the state of RI's roads and bridges]( [Last Friday an engineer working on site noticed and reported the failure of one of the anchor pins that hold beams in place. The last inspection was in July, and was deemed "in good condition", said Peter Alviti.]( Washington Bridge commuters are unlikely to hail Alviti's work on RI's bridges and roads, but in 2018, a tribute video said they were in the best shape ever. [READ MORE]( Advertisement [The Providence Public Schools District offices on Westminster Street. The district has seen an exodus of teachers and other school employees in recent months and is recruiting replacements.]( [Why PPSD is closing 360 High School, merging it with Juanita Sanchez]( The school will merge with Juanita Sanchez High School by year end. [READ MORE]( [Outside of Costco location showing logo on side of building.]( [Costco reps agree to check out Warwick after council president's pitch]( Throwing his hat in the ring has borne fruit for Warwick City Council President Stephen McAllister, who scored a meeting with Costco reps. [READ MORE]( [Topgolf driving range in Cranston. Nachos, beer and golf on a Wednesday afternoon.]( [Feeling competitive? Try one of these for your next night out]( For a date night or evening with friends, check these places out. [READ MORE]( [A six months pregnant Shanelle Saraceno sits with all her and her boyfriend's possessions stuffed in grocery bags on a Providence Kennedy Plaza park bench.]( [What is it like being unhoused and pregnant? One RI woman's struggle]( Their days are spent finding places to keep warm – libraries, or community centers where they can heat up food. At night, it's back to sleeping on concrete. 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