Daily Briefing: The Washington Bridge is coming down

ALSO: Who has Rhode Island's best fish and chips. ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ Advertisement [eNewspaper]( | [Crosswords]( | [Horoscopes]( [Read in browser]( The Daily Briefing YOUR MORNING NEWS ROUNDUP Fri Mar 15 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. The day we all knew was coming, but hoped wouldn't finally happened Thursday. The westbound side of the Washington Bridge has to be replaced. What started out as three months of commuting pain is moving closer to three years. So what happens now? The Journal's Patrick Anderson and Katherine Gregg were at Thursday's press conference with Gov. Dan McKee, Transportation Director Peter Alviti and others to hear all the details. While some optimism was expressed, it was also made clear the finer details are still to come as bids are awarded and a full plan for the demolition and replacement becomes clearer. [01_Bridge_03142024.JPG] RI Governor Dan McKee makes an announcement about the demolition of the old and rebuilding of a new Washington bridge during a Thursday afternoon press conference at the Department of Administration building on March 14, 2024. Kris Craig/The Providence Journal In addition the comments around the bridge, McKee also made it known he isn't happy with the way things have played out since the bridge's closure, saying there will be a "day of reckoning" coming. Though when pressed for details he declined to offer specifics. "I'm not happy about the fact of where we are right now," McKee said. "I don't know if you got that impression. I usually don't raise my voice, but I am not happy where we are right now. When I just told you that half of a $78-million project is, as it was just termed, going into the river... the good news there is that we've saved $40 million to actually get into the next step." [Get caught up on all the news here]( and find [our quick takeaways here.]( • Who has Rhode Island's best fish and chips? As we're now deep into the Lenten season I'm sure many of you have journeyed out on a Friday to pick up this delicacy and now we want your help to determine the tops in the state. In honor of March Madness, we've started a bracket-style competition with 16 of the state's top fish and chip joints all to find who is number one. [First round voting is now open](. • In recent years Narragansett has served as a high-profile example of communities trying to limit the number of non-family members living under one roof but that's not the only municipality setting similar limits. [The Journal's Wheeler Cowperthwaite reports that a bill in the House would raise the cap from three unrelated people to five]( or for bigger houses, set the cap at the number of bedrooms. Rep. Jacquelyn Baginski, who proposed the legislation, said a similar bill offered last year made it the one-yard line. Is this the year it passes? • The Rhode Island Interscholastic League hockey championship games will be held on Sunday and before you go The Journal's Jake Rousseau has everything you need to know about what's happening on the ice in both the boys and [girls finals](. • [Looking for corned beef, Guinness and everything else that makes for a tasty St. Paddy's Day?]( The Journal's Gail Ciampa has it covered. WORTH A READ 🌊 [Cities on both coasts struggled to remain above water]( this winter as sea levels rise 🏖️ Is your favorite No. 1? [Here are the top 10 beaches worldwide]( according to Tripadvisor ⛷️ [A milestone moment for Wachusett Mountain]( as ski area reportedly close to adding six-pack chair lift 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. To mark World Water Day on March 22, [Lawn Love]( ranked 2024’s Most Expensive Cities for Watering the Lawn. We compared nearly 500 of the biggest U.S. cities based on 3 categories. We looked at the affordability of local water bills and average yard sizes. We also considered factors that would increase the cost of irrigation, such as drought susceptibility and watering requirements for common grass types, among 9 total metrics. In Rhode Island, the most expensive to water your lawn is Warwick, which places 417th nationally. [TODAY'S WEATHER]( 🌧️ Mainly cloudy and cooler with a couple of showers into the early afternoon. Highs in the upper 50s. TOP STORIES [Providence defeats Creighton, 78-73, to advance in Big East Tournament]( [Mar 14, 2024; New York City, NY, USA; Providence Friars guard Jayden Pierre (1) celebrates the win over the Creighton Bluejays during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports]( In a must-win game for the Friars, Providence defeats the tourney's No. 2 seed to help its case for an NCAA Tournament berth. [READ MORE]( Advertisement [Donna Velino watches from the lawn outside her University Heights Apartments unit as Twentieth Century Studios films "Ella McCay" Tuesday afternoon.]( ['Ella McCay' filming moves to Providence's University Heights]( Residents of the apartment complex off North Main Street got to sit on their lawns and see a Hollywood movie being made. [READ MORE]( [A 2021 file photo of the entrance to The Preserve Sporting Club and Residences in Richmond (The Providence Journal/Bob Breidenbach]]( [Actress, owner of The Preserve trade blows in court. Here's what's happening.]( The actress, who is suing the owner of The Preserve for sexual harassment, has just won permission to add retaliation to her suit. [READ MORE]( [Published Caption: A third-grader punches in her student identification to pay for a meal at Gonzales Community School in Santa Fe, N.M. [ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO] Original Caption: FILE - In this Thursday, May 4, 2017 file photo, a third-grader punches in her student identification to pay for a meal at Gonzales Community School in Santa Fe, N.M. All students are offered the same lunch at Gonzales and other Santa Fe public schools to avoid any chance of embarrassing students whose parents may have fallen behind on meal payments. In April 2017, New Mexico became the first state to outlaw the shaming of children for any unpaid meals. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee)]( [Advocates again try to pass free school meals for all RI students]( The program failed to pass last year. A high price tag has put off some politicians. [READ MORE]( [Officials marked the completion Thursday of the South Fork Wind Farm, a 12-turbine project off Rhode Island that is sending power to New York.]( [South Fork offshore wind farm off RI starts producing power]( Officials marked the completion of the South Fork Wind Farm, a 12-turbine project off Rhode Island that is supplying power to New York. It's the nation's first utility-scale offshore wind farm. [READ MORE]( Advertisement Vote with Confidence This 7-day newsletter course will help you be an informed voter before Nov. 5. [SIGN UP NOW]( SUBSCRIBE TODAY Our Reporting. Your Stories. Full access to subscriber-only content on all devices. Share bonus subscription with a family member or friend. The universal eNewspaper, the digital version of our print paper, plus bonus monthly magazines and hundreds of local papers. Original reporting of our hometown teams, from high school sports to the pros. 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