Providence will sign a friendship agreement with the Scottish town of Ayr at City Hall on Nov. 30, Mayor Brett Smiley's office announced Nov. 10, and will host a St. Andrew's Weekend from Nov. 27 to 30. The agreement is a list of goals. It names six purposes, from youth exchanges to business contacts, and does not mention money, staff or deadlines.
The link comes from this summer's World Cup. The city says its 39 days of FanZone celebrations at Station Park welcomed more than 150,000 visitors, and that it worked with Tartan Army organizers to host thousands of Scottish soccer fans, who later urged South Ayrshire Council to formalize the friendship.
What the agreement says
The agreement says it is meant to "promote collaboration, goodwill, and meaningful connections." Its six purposes are ties between residents and community groups, cultural, educational and youth exchanges, economic and professional collaboration, links among sports, arts and culture, sharing of practices among civic groups and municipal leaders, and tourism. It takes effect when the mayor and the provost of South Ayrshire Council sign it. The version attached to the council's file is labeled "signed by IC"; the resolution names the South Ayrshire provost as Iain Campbell. The council docketed a resolution Nov. 5 authorizing the mayor to enter the partnership. We could not confirm what the council did with it on Nov. 5.
What is concrete
The dated items are the weekend promotions from Nov. 27 to 30. G Pub will give a 25 percent food discount to anyone wearing a Scotland jersey, and Track 15 will set up a curling sheet and serve whisky specials. Hot Club is running a contest, listed among the Nov. 27 to 30 promotions, for a Narragansett beer a day in December for anyone who posts a photo of themselves with the Scottish flag in the bar.
The donation figures do not add up on their face. The city says GoProvidence and the Rhode Island Sports Commission made a $5,000 donation to Glasgow Children's Hospital Charity, local bars and restaurants matched it, and nearly $15,000 was presented in total. A $5,000 donation matched once is $10,000, and the release does not say what accounts for the difference. The council resolution says the Tartan Army, the Scottish fan organizers the city worked with, donated $10,000 to Hasbro Children's Hospital.
The resolution also says the Tartan Army "reports" that Scottish tourism this summer produced an estimated $35 million in economic benefit for the Rhode Island economy. The resolution does not say how the figure was calculated, and the city's release does not repeat it.
