Warwick City Council Meets Feb. 10

Warwick City Council members meet Monday, 5 p.m. at Warwick Town Hall, 3275 Post Road Warwick, RI, in Council Chambers, starting with the body’s subcommittee meetings before starting the regular business meeting.

During that meeting, the council will convene an executive session to discuss two lawsuits:

Pursuant to R.I. General Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2), this public body will convene in Executive Session regarding pending litigation: –

Boulais v. City of Warwick, Case No.: 1:24-cv-00236 –

Shekarchi v. Warwick Tax Assessor, Case No.: KC-2023-1058

The Boulais lawsuit concerns a sexual harassment lawsuit against the city for alleged actions of various City Managers in and related to the Warwick Water Division.

The lawsuit, BREE BOULAIS, Plaintiff, v.CITY OF WARWICK and WARWICK WATER DIVISION, by and through Mayor Frank J. Picozzi,  detailed staff and management sexually harassed a Water Division employee, Water Project Supervisor Bree Boulais.

Boulais resigned in October 2023, after what she described as more than a year of sexual harassment, ignored by, encouraged by and conducted by Warwick Water Division Chief Terry DiPetrillo. for 18 months, as Human Resources and DPW managers ignored her complaints.  The suit details a workplace of rampant violence, sexual harassment at every level of the Water Division as well as from one member of the city’s Finance Department, an absence of accountability for sexual harassment complaints or regard for the gravity of those complaints within the department, similar disregard for multiple reports of violence and intimidating actions, all either under DiPetrillo’s supervision or made by DiPetrillo himself, between March 2022 through October 2023.

Dipetrillo resigned in January.

Warwick City Council public session

During the regular meeting, the Warwick City Council agenda items include resolutions to

• Expand the area of the city in which retail sales of marijuana may occur
• Ask the General Assembly to allow the city to hold a Special Election to revoke authority for further issuances of indebtedness for the $350 Million authorization two new High School
• Ask the General Assembly to authorize municipalities to contract with RIDOT to perform minor routine maintenance work on State roads

The city has posted the full Warwick City Council agenda and meeting documents to its website.