Town Manager Report for the week ending March 27, 2026
ANNOUCEMENTS:
Coventry Parks and Recreation is having its Two- Day Community Yard Sale on March 28 and 29 from 800am-100pm at the Guy Lefebvre Community Center 1277 Main St. and 68 Ginger Trail-a private home. At the Community Center there will be food trucks-Wicked Cheesy and Lemon Lane, kids’ activities, over 30 sellers, Touch a Truck, and more. Items for sale include household goods, Pokémon cards, baseball cards, Funko Pops, clothing, homemade items, and vintage toys. There is also a raffle to win a pair of John Mellencamp tickets at the Xfinity Center.
The Town is also hosting an ECO-DEPOT hazardous waste drop-off event on Saturday April 4 from 800am-1200pm in the Annex Building Parking Lot at 1675 Flat River Rd which is open to all R.I. residents. An appointment is required and you can reserve your spot by calling 942-1430 extension 3241 or visit the website www.rirrc.org/ecodepot. At the same time the Town is hosting a Shred Event open to Coventry residents ONLY and no appointment is needed. It is limited to 2 boxes maximum.
On Monday we had a call with the Governor and RIEMA to review the response to the 2026 Blizzard along with some information regarding the federal disaster declaration and the need to submit our expenses for that 48-72-hour window. We had approximately $225k in costs for salt, sand, personnel salary and overtime, and outside vendor equipment. The hope is to get the max 75% reimbursement from Washington. This process usually takes around 2 years before the municipality sees any funds if approved.
On Tuesday I attended the RI Trust Board meeting in which we discussed risk assessment, current litigation and liability the Trust faces, along with the upcoming safety trainings and programs that are being offered. They also held their yearly Safety Awards Luncheon at which the Town received a $1k award to implement some safety protocols for DPW mechanics when working on raised dump truck beds.
On Tuesday I presented my Town Budget for FY 27. They were many highlights of all the great things we have accomplished in the last 3 years and an update on our financial status including the rainy-day fund of $19m, timely audits, and a pension fund liability that is reduced by $30m. Our 2 biggest departments, Police and DPW, are seeing the biggest increase this year, but the school as 67% of the budget is the driver with a 2% increase of over $1m and a deficit reduction contribution of $475k.