RISD to more than double yearly payments to city of Providence - ABC6 - Providence, RI and New Bedford, MA News, Weather

RISD to more than double yearly payments to city of Providence

By News Staff

news@abc6.com

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - The Rhode Island School of Design has agreed to more than double its annual voluntary payments to the city of Providence.
    
Mayor Angel Taveras and RISD President John Maeda announced Thursday the arts school will give an additional $250,000 a year, bringing its annual payment to more than $425,000.
    
RISD had already been contributing under an agreement forged in 2003.
    
The mayor has been negotiating more in payments in lieu of property taxes with the city's tax-exempt institutions, including colleges and universities and hospitals. The additional payments have been a key part of Taveras' efforts to close a large budget shortfall.
    
Taveras' office says RISD will get "semi-exclusive" access to park on certain streets near the school's campus under the agreement.