In an alternate universe, it might be possible to envision Ward 15 Councilwoman Josephine J. DiRuzzo gracefully making way for Liandra Martinez, an appealing, if inexperienced, first-time candidate. Certainly not in Providence, though, where the primary battle between these two representatives of the city's changing face has become one of most bitter and hard-fought races during this political season.

In one sign of the level of acrimony, DiRuzzo, a board member of the Nickerson Community Center, arranged a meeting at the center during the early part of the race between herself, Martinez (who was employed by Nickerson as a caseworker at the time), and the agency's director, to talk with the upstart about her campaign. Martinez says the gathering was meant to intimidate her, while DiRuzzo says she wanted to confront Martinez about critical things she had said. Asked about using her influence as a board member to arrange the meeting, DiRuzzo says, "I'm not sure it was appropriate, but I felt at the time that I wanted to talk with her, but I didn't want to talk [one on one]. I didn't feel it was inappropriate."

The battle between DiRuzzo, an old-school type (she would put her age only as "over 50") who has held the Ward 15 seat since being first elected in 1981, and Martinez, a 28-year-old Puerto Rican native who is using ample enthusiasm to make up for her neophyte status, could reflect the power of the emerging Latino vote in Providence. Primary elections are also being held in wards five, 11, and 14, but the influence of the Latino vote -- as well as the clash between newcomers and council veterans -- seems most evident in wards 15 and nine, where Councilwoman Patricia Nolan is being challenged by community activist Miguel Luna. Nolan and Luna also squared off during the last primary election for the ward, in 1998.

With the mayoral campaign getting much more attention, it remains to be seen how the backdrop of Buddy Cianci's departure from office will influence the council primaries. Council President John J. Lombardi, set to become acting mayor with the sentencing this Friday, September 6, of Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci Jr., says the council's ability to act as a counterbalance on executive power has been constrained by the city charter. Some observers nonetheless place importance on both the primary election and a charter commission recommendation to replace five ward seats with at-large seats.

"My continued refrain has always been that the council needs to start acting as one unit, rather than 15 different units," says Jennifer Cole Steele, who monitors development issues in Providence as coordinator of advocacy in Rhode Island for the Conservation Law Foundation. "I don't see the council being able to do that with the current makeup. Many of the council people have been council people for a long time, and as someone who works in this whole city, I see these great disconnects between neighborhoods, and it shouldn't be like that." As an example, Cole Steele cites how dubious planning decisions that would be rejected in affluent areas are accepted for poor ones

In Ward 15 -- an unusual gerrymander that includes much of Olneyville, Silver Lake, and parts of the West End, Mount Pleasant, and Smith Hill -- some observers liken Martinez's outing to Luna's 1998 campaign as a way to get known and build an electoral base. But Martinez is running hard, and her opponent seems to be taking nothing for granted, making outreach in the Latino community and having raising almost three times as much as the first-time candidate's $4000 war chest. "I personally believe it's going to be the biggest upset in Providence's history," says Martinez. "People are tired. They only have to look around to decide whether they want to live like this or whether they want change."

Martinez came to Pawtucket from Puerto Rico with her family at 15 and now resides on DeSoto Street. Besides the Nickerson Community Center, she has worked as an Americorps volunteer in Central Falls, and coordinator of a US Justice Department-funded Weed and Seed program in Pawtucket. Martinez, who is supporting David Cicilline for mayor and suggests that DiRuzzo is out of touch, has highlighted a general theme of the need for change, citing such persistent problems as rats, drug dealing, vandalism, and speeding. "These are things that can be taken care of," she says. "It doesn't take 20 years, just a little bit of elbow grease."

DiRuzzo, who was born in Cranston and has lived for many years on Roosevelt Street in Silver Lake, is a longtime state employee, currently as employment and training administrator at the state Department of Labor and Training. DiRuzzo, who is backing David Igliozzi for mayor, cites her lengthy experience as a councilor and claims credit for such accomplishments as reopening the Olneyville branch of the Providence Public Library, sidewalk improvements through city bond funds, and initiating traffic calming studies. "I don't want the area to go backwards," she says, suggesting that Martinez's campaign is thin on substance. "I want it to go forwards. Under my care, I truly believe that will happen."

Interestingly, the past debate over Feldco Development's controversial shopping center proposal for Eagle Square is a common strand that touches the council campaigns in wards nine and 15. DiRuzzo was among the most enthusiastic proponents of the project, describing it as an important and rare opportunity for much-needed economic development in the area. Martinez, who spoke against the proposal and got more politically involved as a result, sided with a coalition of critics who described as misguided plans to demolish the 19th-century mill buildings of Eagle Square to make way for a generic shopping complex.

The Providence Plan Commission, where Luna served as a member, blocked Feldco's initial proposal, but a subsequent plan that preserves a few of the historic buildings in Eagle Square was eventually approved after some changes in the composition of the commission. Luna was among those who opposed the project, while Nolan initially supported DiRuzzo's stance. In early 2001, Mayor Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci Jr. told the Phoenix that Luna wasn't reappointed to the commission because he didn't have Nolan's support, but Nolan says she didn't ask Cianci not to reappoint Luna.

Still, it seems clear that Nolan and Luna, who are running a very competitive, although somewhat more congenial campaign, have more in common than Martinez and DiRuzzo. Nolan, 60, who works as coordinator of Displaced Homemakers Center, a non-profit agency, has been a leader in the effort to bring civilian oversight to the Providence Police Department. Luna, 44, director of transitional housing and special projects for AIDS Care Ocean State, is an energetic backer of the proposal to bring a living wage to Providence. Luna's campaign motto is that he would be "a voice for the whole community," while Nolan attributes her success in winning numerous challenges to effective representation of the different communities within Ward Nine, which is composed of Elmwood and Washington Park.

A longtime community activist, Luna got involved with organizations like Direct Action for Rights and Equality and the Center for Third World Organizing after coming from the Dominican Republic to join his family in Providence. He backs the living wage as a key for strengthening neighborhoods like Elmwood, requiring developers of luxury housing to build a share of affordable housing, and tax stabilization for small businesses in areas outside of downtown Providence. "There has to be some balance in this community," says Luna, who resides on Warrington Street and backs David Cicilline for mayor. "That's what I'm looking for."

Nolan became active with Elmwood Neighbors for Action, as part of an effort to fight drug activity in the neighborhood, after moving to the area from Long Island, New York, in the early '80s. Making her first run for public office, Nolan won a primary for Ward Nine in 1990 and has held the seat since then. "I've just stayed in touch," she says, and is basing her campaign on a message of "We've got a lot of things that we still need to do," including plans for two affordable housing projects and developing the Bomes Theater on Broad Street. In an interesting twist on coalition politics, she has formed a trio with state Senator Charles Walton and Representative Leon Tejada, frequently walking the streets of local neighborhoods in the run-up to the primary.

Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis[a]phx.com.

Issue Date: September 6 - 12, 2002