James E. Doyle (August 23, 1938 – August 26, 2016) was an American educator, businessman, and politician. Doyle served as the mayor of

Pawtucket, Rhode Island Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Falls ...

, from 1997 until 2011, becoming the longest consecutive serving mayor in the city's history. Doyle also served in the Pawtucket

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

from 1970 to 1997 by winning re-election to the council in thirteen elections. Doyle has been credited with shepherding the revitalization of Pawtucket, as well as the expansion of the city's arts scene, during his thirteen years as the mayor.

Biography

Doyle received a bachelor's degree in teaching from

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, local diocese, it offers 47 undergradua ...

, a Catholic college in

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

, in 1960. He then taught social studies at Pawtucket West High School (now called Shea High School) from 1960 to 1962. By 1997, the year he was elected mayor, Doyle was working as a salesman for an

envelope An envelope is a common packaging item, usually made of thin, flat material. It is designed to contain a flat object, such as a letter or card. Traditional envelopes are made from sheets of paper cut to one of three shapes: a rhombus, a shor ...

company in nearby

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. During his tenure as the city's mayor, Doyle oversaw the creation of the Arts & Entertainment District, which comprises 307-acres, in 1999. Doyle hired Herb Weiss to oversee implementation of the new Arts and Culture initiative and participated in hiring Ann Galligan to create a strategic plan for the city's Arts and Cultural project. He also helped to create the annual Pawtucket Arts Festival, which also began in 1999. Additionally, Doyle was a strong proponent for the renovation and development of the city's numerous blighted, abandoned mill buildings, many of which had fallen into disuse by the 1990s, into new residences, beginning with the Riverfront Lofts on the waterfront. Other mills became the Bayley Lofts, Slater Cotton Mill, and The Lofts 125, which brought new residents and businesses to Pawtucket. In 2005, Doyle lobbied a California-based developer to convert a vacant, 650,000-square-foot mill building into the Hope Artiste Village, which is now home to more than 100

small business Small businesses are types of corporations, partnerships, or sole proprietorships which have fewer employees and/or less annual revenue than a regular-sized business or corporation. Businesses are defined as "small" in terms of being able to ap ...

es which employ more than 500 people, as of 2016. Doyle worked to revitalize Pawtucket in numerous other ways. He reduced the number of blighted and abandoned houses. The Pawtucket Water Supply Board began a system wide improvement project and the Doyle administration initiated plans for a commuter rail station. In 2004, the Arts & Business Council of Rhode Island awarded Mayor Doyle and the city with the Arts Advocacy Award. The Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce also presented Doyle with its Barbara C. Burlingame Award in 2004. Two years later, Doyle won the John H. Chafee Public Service Award from the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission for his work to preserve and redevelop Pawtucket's mills in 2006. James Doyle died on August 26, 2016, at the age of 78.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doyle, James 1938 births 2016 deaths Mayors of Pawtucket, Rhode Island Rhode Island city council members Providence College alumni