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North Smithfield accepts $19,350 senior-support grant, awards transportation contract to new vendor
Summary
Council authorized acceptance of a $19,350 Office of Healthy Aging Senior Support Grant and approved using roughly $5,000 of it for weekly senior transportation; the contract was awarded to Sincere Transportation after a competitive bid process.
The North Smithfield Town Council approved acceptance of a Senior Support Grant from the Office of Healthy Aging and authorized contracting with Sincere Transportation to provide weekly rides for senior residents.
Staff reported the town received $19,350 under the OHA program, and roughly $5,000 of that award will cover transportation services for seniors at three town facilities: Deerfield Commons, Colonial Village and The Meadows. The town issued a competitive solicitation because the last contract had been three years; two bids were received and the council selected Sincere Transportation because its bid was substantially lower than the other bidder. Staff said Sincere is a new company and has been in contact with facility managers to arrange weekly pickups (once a week from each location) that will begin as early as next week and run through the June close of the grant cycle. Destinations cited included Walmart and Stop & Shop; staff said Sincere will determine whether accessible vehicles are required based on rider needs.
Councillor Monaghan asked whether this was a net-new program; staff confirmed it is not — the town has provided senior transportation in prior years and this action approves a new vendor for an ongoing program. Staff also said the grant pays for other activities (health services and social programming) approved by OHA and that additional senior needs can be proposed to Linda Thibault for approval.
Why it matters: the action secures state-administered grant funding that supports senior mobility and programming in North Smithfield and ensures transportation service continuity through a newly contracted vendor. The transcript records the award and service plan but does not include a detailed contract, bid amounts, or the full procurement record in the public remarks.
What happens next: staff will coordinate pickup schedules with facility managers and the vendor; the grant runs through June and the town will finalize invoices for OHA prior to grant closeout.
