Free Folk Sets and Craft Markets Fill Lippitt Park Sunday
Providence, RI · September 19, 2026
Muralists and brass bands are taking over downtown corners by noon, giving you an easy excuse to skip yard work today. Just grab an extra layer before heading out into the afternoon overcast.
The Lead
The first billing notices under Rhode Island’s new non-owner-occupied property tax landed in local mailboxes this week, assessing 356 residences across the city. Aimed at secondary and vacant homes valued above $1 million, the tax expects to generate roughly $1.85 million each year, with proceeds directed exclusively into municipal low-income housing trust funds.
State and municipal assessors identified eligible properties through primary residential tax exemptions and tax rolls, pinpointing high-value parcels left vacant for the majority of the year. While housing advocates view the revenue as critical funding for deeply affordable neighborhood development, impacted homeowners now enter a formal appeal period to verify residency or challenge municipal appraisals. Property owners must submit their exemption appeals to the city assessor before November rolls close.
Local Pulse
Shoreline Protection Underway Along Crescent Beach Parks East Providence seeks coastal contractors to stabilize erosion-prone park bluffs and shore up waterfront walking paths.
School Modernization Proposals Enter Public Review Schools The School Building Committee convenes Tuesday to weigh campus upgrade timelines and major architectural bid awards.
Advisory Council Evaluates Complete Streets Framework Transit Planners meet Monday afternoon to review pedestrian corridors, traffic calming installations, and upcoming neighborhood bike routes.
Today's Outlook
- High 68°F · Low 51°F — Overcast
- A light jacket will keep you comfortable under gray skies all afternoon.
What's On Around Town
Today
Providence Farmers Market Farm Fresh Rhode Island (10 Sims Ave), 9:00 AM–1:00 PM · Free Fresh produce, artisan breads, and warm pantry provisions under one roof.
PVDFest Main Stage Finale Kennedy Plaza and Burnside Park, Noon–10:00 PM · Free Live brass ensembles, street performers, and headline concerts across downtown.
African Film and Arts Festival Providence Public Library (150 Empire St), Noon–9:00 PM · Free Independent African cinema screenings followed by an evening filmmaker question session.
The Getaway Driver Trinity Repertory Company (201 Washington St), 7:30 PM · Paid World-premiere crime drama tracing a 1970 heist and two entwined lives.
Tomorrow
- Swell Folk Festival Lippitt Memorial Park, 10:00 AM–8:00 PM · Free
- African Film and Arts Festival Finale Southside Cultural Center (393 Broad St), 3:00–10:00 PM · Free
- Prov Block Fest 71 Union St, 3:00 PM · Free
Monday
- Green and Complete Streets Advisory Council Department of Planning and Development (444 Westminster St), 4:30 PM · Free
- Mai Tai Serenaders: Hawaiian Music Mount Pleasant Library (315 Academy Ave), 6:30 PM · Free
- The John Allmark Jazz Orchestra Alchemy (171 Chestnut St), 8:00 PM · Paid
Spotlight & Story
- Good Night Lights
- Hospital cartoonist Steve Brosnihan sparked this nightly 8:30 PM ritual in 2010 by flickering his bicycle headlight from India Point Park across the harbor. Today, Brown’s Sciences Library beacons, tugboat crews, and the Hot Club blink flashlights back at patients watching from fifth-floor windows.
Providence Daily Digest — compiled from local sources as of 6 AM. For breaking updates, follow your local newsrooms.
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