PROVIDENCE – The Board of Licenses postponed a decision on whether to renew Rhode Island Recycled Metals LLC’s license after the company failed to appear at a scheduled hearing on Thursday.
The board continued the matter to March 26.
The Allens Avenue scrapyard has faced scrutiny and legal issues for years due to fires, toxic smoke and other safety concerns raised by residents in South Providence. The business has also drawn repeated regulatory violations, including missing permits, stormwater runoff, and oil leaks into the nearby Providence River.
In July 2024, Providence County Superior Court Judge Brian Stern temporarily closed the business the day after R.I. Attorney General Peter F. Nerhona filed a a motion to shut down the scrapyard.
However, on Aug. 7 Stern allowed the scrapyard to reopen after he accepted a plan to prevent future fires that includes keeping a tanker truck on-site at all times and installing thermal cameras to help detect heat sources.
On Thursday, Mayor Brett P. Smiley criticized the company’s absence at the hearing in a social media post following, calling it “the latest chapter in my over two-year effort to shut down this bad actor” and saying South Providence residents “deserve better.”
“This facility’s continued ability to operate is unacceptable, and I remain committed to holding them accountable and giving our neighbors the answers they deserve,” Smiley wrote.
Community advocates also weighed in.
The People’s Port Authority, a grassroots group that advocates for community oversight in South Providence and Washington Park, said the company’s absence may reflect growing public pressure.
“Today showed that when we organize together, we win,” the group wrote on Facebook. “Maybe the strong community turnout and the growing public attention made them think twice.”
The group also noted that the Board of Licenses will continue accepting public comments on the matter over the next two weeks.
“Let’s keep the pressure on and make sure the Board hears loud and clear that our neighborhoods should not be treated as an industrial sacrifice zone,” the statement read.
Rhode Island Recycled Metals did not immediately respond to requests for comment about why the company did not attend Thursday’s hearing.
Matthew McNulty is a PBN staff writer. He can be reached at McNulty@PBN.com or on X at @MattMcNultyNYC.
