East Providence is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 47,139 at the 2020 census, making it the fifth-largest city in the state.
Geography
East Providence is located between the Providence and Seekonk Rivers on the west and the Seekonk area of Massachusetts on the east. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 16.6 square miles (43 km2), of which, 13.4 square miles (35 km2) of it is land and 3.2 square miles (8.3 km2) of it (19.33%) is water.
The following villages are located in East Providence:[5]
The city of East Providence is governed by an elected mayor and a five-member city council, with the mayor and counselors elected every four years. City council members are elected one each from four wards and one elected at-large.
Executive branch
The mayor is both the ceremonial leader of the city and the chief executive officer. The mayor runs the daily operations of the city, enforces the charter and ordinances of the city and appoints all department heads except the city clerk. The current mayor of East Providence is Roberto DaSilva, who took office on January 9, 2019.
Until January 9, 2019, the day-to-day operations were managed by a professional city manager appointed by the city council, and the mayor was the president of the city council, acting ceremonially.
Legislative branch
The city council sets all city ordinances, sets the budget of the city (with recommendation from the mayor) and provides legislative oversight for city operations.
The city council elects a council president and council vice-president to preside over meetings. The city council also appoints the city clerk.
Up until 2019, The city council served two-year terms, and the city council oversaw the entire city government under a council-manager system.
As of 2019[update], the members of the East Providence City Council are:
Robert Rodericks—At-Large (council vice-president)
Robert Britto—Ward 1 (council president)
Anna Sousa—Ward 2
Nathan Cahoon—Ward 3
Ricardo Mourato—Ward 4
Judicial branch
The city of East Providence has a municipal court, which hears cases regarding violations of municipal ordinances, housing code violations and minor traffic violations. The city also has a probate court, which handles estates, name changes, guardianships and related matters. Judges for both courts are appointed by the mayor with confirmation by the city council for a term of two years.
Education governance
The city also has an elected school committee, elected for two-year terms by the same ward system as the city council. The school committee has broad authority to manage the school system, including setting all school system policies, setting the school system budget (within the general appropriation by the city, state and federal government) as well as selecting and overseeing the Superintendent of Schools.
Other boards and commissions
The city has an appointed library board of trustees which governs the city's library system and various other appointed governing and advisory boards and commissions.
Of the 21,050 households, 23.0% had children under the age of 18; 39.0% were married couples living together; 33.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 35.5% of households consisted of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[7] The average household size was 2.3 and the average family size was 3.1.[11] The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 25.3% of the population.[12]
16.7% of the population was under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 27.6% from 45 to 64, and 22.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44.9 years. For every 100 females, the population had 112.5 males.[7] For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 116.4 males.[7]
The 2016-2020 5-year American Community Survey estimates show that the median household income was $63,158 (with a margin of error of +/- $3,857) and the median family income was $88,973 (+/- $7,921). Males had a median income of $47,414 (+/- $3,540) versus $37,833 (+/- $2,442) for females.[13] The median income for those above 16 years old was $42,543 (+/- $2,745).[14] Approximately, 5.9% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.3% of those under the age of 18 and 11.4% of those ages 65 or over.[15][16]
2000 census
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 48,688 people, 20,530 households, and 12,851 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,632.1 inhabitants per square mile (1,402.4/km2). There were 21,309 housing units at an average density of 1,589.6 per square mile (613.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 86.49% White, 5.02% African American, 0.46% Native American, 1.15% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 2.80% from other races, and 4.03% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.89% of the population.
Portuguese Bodo de Leite parade on Orchard Street
There were 20,530 households, out of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.3% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.7% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $39,108, and the median income for a family was $48,463. Males had a median income of $34,342 versus $26,423 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,527. About 6.3% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those aged 65 or over.
Ancestry
The population has large immigrant communities from Portugal, the Azores, Madeira and Cape Verde. Approximately 24% of East Providence residents report Portuguese ancestry, followed by Irish at 18%, and Italian with 11%.[17]
Education
A.B. Hennessey School on Fort Street
East Providence has 13 public and 5 non-public schools:
United States
Rhode Island
