Plovers on East
Beach, non-profits at flea market, tag sale on Saturday, don’t eat those
olives, and you WILL eat that rate hike
By
Will Collette
No vehicles –
especially ATVs – on East Beach
DEM has closed the sand
trail through East Beach to all but pedestrian traffic. That ban will stand
in place indefinitely. DEM is imposing the restrictions to give endangered
piping plovers a chance to nest and raise their chicks.
Hopefully,
someone will make sure that CCA Town Council boss Tom Gentz doesn’t mistake
them for goose eggs and oil them.
"With
the changes in beach habitat and populations, we especially need the help of
beachgoers to protect piping plovers and respect sand trail closures,"
said DEM Director Janet Coit. "We are confident that the ongoing
monitoring will enable us to reopen the sand trail to vehicles as soon as
possible."
Sections
of the East Beach off-road vehicle corridor may be reopened on or about August
1, if not sooner.
Free booth space for non-profits at the
General Stanton Flea Market
General
Stanton Inn owner Janice
Falcone has announced that she is making booth space available at no cost
this summer to non-profit groups. The market is open on
weekends through the summer from 8 AM to 3 PM and draws about 5,000 people.
Speaking of…
Don’t
forget to come to the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee’s tag sale on
Saturday. Click
here for details.
Job Lot olives recall
The RI
Health Department issued a news
release to warn consumers of the possible – but not confirmed – danger posed
by Bel Frantoio brand Mediterranean olive-favor “Calcidica Sweet.” Calcidica Sweet only, not the other varieties
from the same producer. These are the bright green olives that are really hot
among olive lovers.
I had a
couple containers in my cupboard of that particular variety – this brand makes a
variety of pretty good olives – which I returned to our Westerly Job Lot for a
store credit.
Blue Cross gets rate hike, but lower than
requested
On
May 28, I wrote a piece on a major
premium rate hike on people who buy their Blue Cross Blue Shield coverage
directly. Blue Cross’s application to the Health Department would have hiked
the premiums for some individuals by as much as 59%.
Well, Blue Cross got some of what it
wanted, but nearly so much as what it had asked. On his last day in office,
state Insurance Commissioner Chris Koller granted Blue Cross some increases
that he himself admitted “sucked.”
Just three days before the rate hike
announcement, Koller told the RI Healthcare Reform Commission about his
frustration with health care inflation, saying “Frankly, the 5 to 7 percent
increase in medical [expense] trends sucks.”
For more detail on the approved
rates, click
here.