City of East Providence
Mayor Roberto L. DaSilva
PRESS RELEASE
July 17, 2023
CONTACT:
Patricia Resende
Office of the Mayor
Tel: 401-529-3207
E-mail:presende@eastprovidenceri.gov
City selects Peregrine Group to manage development of community center
EAST PROVIDENCE, RI – The City of East Providence has selected East Providence- based Peregrine Group LLC to provide the Owner’s Project Manager Services for the development of a new community center in East Providence, slated to be located behind the Robert Rock Senior Center.
“Having worked with Peregrine on the East Providence High School and Martin Middle School, we are confident that Peregrine is best suited to move this project forward and we are confident in their ability to guide the city through the construction and opening of the new community center,” Mayor Bob DaSilva said.
Peregrine responded to a request for qualifications in April and was selected in July after a bidding process with four other firms to provide the PM services, which will include the construction of a steel and masonry building consisting of an open lobby area, gymnasium, pool, programming and office space on two floors.
“We look forward to a continued partnership with the City of East Providence,” Peregrine Partner Samuel Bradner said.
Once it is complete, the center will operate as a community and public safety wellness center for use by youth, families, the city’s senior population and civic organizations. It will be a place where East Providence residents and members of the East Providence Police and Fire Departments are able to join together and collaborate on programs and events.
The center will also be a host to out-of-school time learning activities and programs to improve educational outcomes citywide for our K-12 students under Gov. Dan McKee’s Learn365 initiative.
The new center would allow East Providence to offer recreation programming, job training, health monitoring services, public safety training, community meetings, and more. The center would also be utilized by the East Providence Police Department to conduct training and community police outreach programming.
City residents have expressed their support for additional recreational space via the approval of two voter referendums (2002 and 2004) to issue bonds for construction of a new recreation center. The City lacks community space, and the addition of this Center would be a tremendous resource where residents could easily access key programming and services.
This center will be a place where the City’s Recreation Department can host a number of youth programs and it will also serve as a location for intergenerational activities. In addition, the center can host swim meets.
The community center will be partly funding with American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. Using ARPA funds for this center ensures that we have a facility that can address community needs in an emergency situation such as future pandemics or other manmade, hybrid or natural disaster emergencies.
