All Entries in the "Volume 5, Issue 6" Category

South County Toursim Council

The South County Tourism Council (SCTC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated bringing voice and visuals to inspiring visitors to vacation in the destination South County which includes the townships of Charlestown, Coventry, East Greenwich, Exeter, Hopkinton, Narragansett, North Kingstown, Richmond, South Kingstown, West Greenwich, and Westerly. We are a natural environment versus a built environment, positioned as a leisure travel destination.

Tourism is economic development and the vast majority of the tourism industry is supported by small businesses in the southern portion of Rhode Island. South County has some of the largest forests and agricultural area that spill down to 100 miles of coastline, featuring 20 public beaches, 15 museums, 17 public golf courses and endless hiking and biking trails. Unlike tourism offices representing a large or mid-size city, many of our businesses heavily rely on vacationing visitors – especially in the high summer season – producing an integrated marketing campaign. South County Tourism Council is the official agency dedicated to marketing our hotels, businesses, non-profits, and beaches during this high season, as well as creating the only exclusive South County Bridal Show in January dedicated to South County bridal vendors – in addition to creating programs that are cross generational in the off season.

Much of our programs are based upon solid marketing research. Which in turn produce our award winning publication South County Style a 100-page vacation guide; a year-long media advertising campaign directed to our leisure tourism market; targeted sales efforts; public relations strategy; participation in numerous trade shows; and a comprehensive website/social media campaigns. The SCTC also assists travel professionals including media, tour operators, and travel agents, aid in planning a meeting or corporate event, as well as providing information to the travelling public enjoy our destination. Additionally, the SCTC operates a Visitors Information Center, offering maps, brochures, and information of the humankind.

Overnight visitors spend twice the amount of money as day-trippers; inspirational marketing of the region as a vacation destination is our passion. SCTC is funded by the hotel tax in 1986 with the purpose of bringing visitors from beyond a 50 mile radius into our 449 square mile region, showcasing our range of accommodations, events and restaurants, in a naturally beautiful environment is our passion. Small businesses may be aware the programs run by SCTC to market them do not require that they be dues paying members.

PLACES TO VISIT WHEN IN SOUTH COUNTY

The Ocean House: The Ocean House is a luxury Rhode Island hotel in Watch Hill. The Weekapaug Inn is the sister hotel to the Ocean House.

Tomaquag Museum: A unique collection of over 20,000 cultural objects along with hundreds of thousands of pieces of archival materials focusing on the Native peoples of New England and Rhode Island.

Purple Shell: Traditional Wampum and Native Crafts

Tilted Barn Brewery: Rhode Island’s first farm brewery, brewing small batches of hand-crafted beer made with ingredients grown right on the farm.

Theatre by the Sea: Professional level live theatre presented in a Historic Barn Theatre. Operating during the summer months Memorial Day thru Labor Day.

Matunuk Oyster Farm: Matunuck Oyster Farm supplies the Pond to Plate concept for the restaurant, Matunuck Oyster Bar, with fresh oysters harvested right off the waterfront patio in the pond.

The Fantastic Umbrella Factory: A 19th Century farmyard shopper’s paradise and international bazaar. A Rhode Island landmark and National Treasure in Charlestown, RI since 1968. Open year round.

Visit southcountyri.com for more information.

Unemployment Rate Drops to 5.3 Percent: Rhode Island-Based Jobs Down 1,500 from March

PROVIDENCE, RI – The RI Department of Labor and Training announced today that the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for April 2016 was 5.3 percent, down one-tenth of a percentage point from the March rate of 5.4 percent. Over the year, the unemployment rate is down one percentage point from the April 2015 rate. This is the lowest rate since August 2007.

The U.S. unemployment rate was 5.0 percent in April 2016, unchanged from the previous month and down four-tenths of a percentage point over the year.

The number of unemployed RI residents—those residents classified as available for and actively seeking employment— was 29,600, down 300 from the March figure of 29,900. Over the year, the number of unemployed dropped by 5,200. A total of 11,974 individuals collected Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits in April 2016,* down from 12,898 a year ago. This month, UI claimants accounted for 45.1 percent of the total unemployed.

The number of employed RI residents was 523,300, up 500 from the March figure of 522,800. This is the highest employment level since August 2008. Over the year, the number of employed RI residents was up 2,000 from April 2015. The RI labor force totaled 552,800 in April 2016, unchanged from March 2016 but down 3,200 from April 2015.

Jobs Based In Rhode Island
Estimated nonfarm payroll in Rhode Island totaled 489,100 in April, reflecting a loss of 1,500 jobs from the revised March estimate of 490,600. Through 2016, a total of 600 jobs have been added to the local economy. The total number of jobs is up 5,100 from a year ago. The Professional & Businesses Services sector lost 1,200 jobs in April, due, in part, to less hiring within the sector which typically occurs during this time of year. Despite this steep loss, the number of jobs in Professional & Business Services is up 900 since the start of the year and is up 2,000 over the year.

Employment in the Construction sector fell by 700 in April, marking two consecutive months of job declines totaling 900 jobs. In all, there are 1,200 more jobs in the Construction sector than in April 2015.

Three employment sectors, Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Educational Services and Financial Activities, each reported a loss of 300 jobs in April. Of these three sectors, employment in both Arts, Entertainment & Recreation and Financial Activities is up 100 over the year, while employment in Educational Services is down 1,000 from April 2015. The Other Services sector was the only remaining sector to experience a job loss in April, shedding 100 jobs.

In April, the Manufacturing employment level was 42,200, reflecting a gain of 400 jobs from March. The number of jobs within this sector is up 1,000 over the year. Employment in both the Accommodation & Food Services and Government sectors was up 300 in April. Employment in Accommodation & Food Services is up 2,000 since April 2015, while Government employment is down 300. A gain of 200 jobs was reported in both the Retail Trade and the Wholesale Trade sectors, while employment remained unchanged in the Information, Health Care & Social Assistance, Mining & Logging and Transportation & Utilities sectors.

Manufacturing
In April 2016, production workers in the Manufacturing sector earned $18.27 per hour, up twelve cents from March 2016 and up fifty-three cents from April 2015. Manufacturing employees worked an average of 38.5 hours per week in April, up three-tenths of an hour from March but down an hour and three-tenths over the year.

Leaders Gather for Topping Off Ceremony at Brown University School of Engineering

PROVIDENCE, RI – Led by school president Christina Paxson, members of the Brown University community joined together with the Shawmut Design and Construction project team and Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza for a “topping off” ceremony held on May 25. A beam signed by members of the Brown community was placed on the new 80,000 square-foot School of Engineering research building, which is located at 345 Brook Street in Providence, Rhode Island.

“We are thrilled to reach another major milestone with a great partner, Brown University,” said Ron Simoneau, Vice President of Shawmut Design and Construction. “We are proud to team up with Brown on a building that will surely transform the university into a research facility of the future.”

“This building will house the brightest engineering minds in the world,” Mayor Elorza said to the crowd gathered at the ceremony. “It will also add high-paying construction jobs to our city. And I want to personally thank those who work long and tirelessly to make this happen.”

Designed by Philadelphia-based architecture firm KieranTimerlake, the $88 million dollar project broke ground in November of 2015, and is scheduled for completion in early 2018. The building will include specialized facilities for nanoscale and biomedical engineering, along with two full floors of new lab space designed to foster collaborative and cross-disciplinary research.

The building features 22 cutting-edge research labs, including specialty labs for key areas of anticipated growth including micro/nano technology, bio-medical engineering, energy and the environment, information technology, and entrepreneurial innovation. The project will also create a new green space that will connect to the existing network of open spaces and tie the various engineering buildings together.

The project utilizes a full Integrated Project Delivery method, the first of its kind at Brown, and the first for a university lab in the nation. “It will create a culture of collaboration and innovation” said Larry Larson, Dean of Engineering. “It’s a model for the nation in the years ahead.”

The project will also adhere to the Brown University facility design and construction standards and will target at minimum LEED® Gold Certification with an energy and performance goal of 25% better than the minimum efficiency and performance criteria established in the Rhode Island-adopted International Energy Conservation Code.

Shawmut has completed over 70 projects on the campus including: John Hay Library; Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center and the Nelson Fitness Center; Stephen Robert Campus Center; Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts, and most recently the new Applied Mathematics building.

About Shawmut Design and Construction
Shawmut Design and Construction is a national construction management firm that builds exciting projects for distinguished clients. As an ESOP (employee-owned) company, Shawmut’s main objective is delivering exceptional, personalized service to clients. Project teams take the time to truly listen to clients’ goals and concerns while implementing comprehensive tools and services. Shawmut’s unique business model allows project teams to better service clients by focusing their specialized expertise within one of the following areas: academic, commercial, corporate interiors, cultural and historic, healthcare and science, hotels, restaurants, retail, and sports venues. Shawmut has offices located in Boston, New York, Providence, New Haven, West Springfield, Las Vegas, Miami, and Los Angeles. For more information, please visit www.shawmut.com.