BY VINAYA SAKSENA

CUMBERLAND — In a move that had been the subject of lengthy deliberation that evening, the Cumberland Town Council voted to approve a request for a pawnbroker’s license — though the applicant suggested he did not want to be known in town as a pawnbroker like those seen in Hollywood movies.

The request had been made by local resident Dan Rocco Baldelli, who said his business, Mr. Pawn, Inc., will be doing business as The Gold Advance at its Mendon Road location. Baldelli, a Cumberland resident who runs pawn businesses in Providence and
Woonsocket, appeared to have the support of neighboring businesses and the majority of the council, but faced opposition from Councilman Bruce Lemois and two zoning officials who were present that night. In the end, the council approved the license request with Lemois dissenting and Kelley Morris recusing herself.
Support for Baldelli was expressed by nearby businesses and Charles Lambrou, the owner of the plaza in which Baldelli’s business is located. Mike Calabro, who said he had served as a coach in the Cumberland Little League, also attested to his colleague’s character.
“Mr. Baldelli is a great friend,” Calabro said. “Mr. Baldelli would do nothing to hurt this town.”
Police Chief John Desmarais said his department had looked into Baldelli’s business history, and was satisfied with his reputation. Others, however, questioned the license request not because of who was requesting it, but what it was being requested for, they said.
Though the council chambers were full Wednesday night, few from the audience spoke out on the license request. One who did was Tara Capuano, alternate member of the town’s zoning board, who said she had consulted with law enforcement officials and checked police logs in Providence and Woonsocket for pawn shop-related activity. She said she did not manage to check police logs thoroughly, but received a clear message about them from police.
“What they told me was that having a pawn shop in town attracts a criminal element,” Capuano said. “And I really don’t think a pawn shop is going to help the town of Cumberland in these economic times.”
After the meeting, fellow zoning board member Carol Vaters said she also had reservations about the proposal, and had cast the lone vote against it at a recent zoning board meeting. Vaters said she believed such a business could hurt the town’s reputation somewhat in the long term.
Councilwoman Mia Ackerman said she was in favor of the proposal as long as certain conditions were adhered to, including no check-cashing and no pay-day lending. Some council members also expressed a desire for Baldelli not to include the words “pawn shop” in his business’ name. Baldelli agreed to that condition, saying that he planned to eliminate the term from his other two shops in Providence and Woonsocket as well.
Council President James Higgins said he felt it his duty to approve the license request, as Baldelli had complied with all of the applicable local regulations and appeared to have a clean track record. Lemois, however, was not convinced, saying that the amount of concern he had heard about the business should be cause for the council to think twice about voting “yes” on the license request so readily, despite few of those opposed appearing to be present at the meeting.
“It’s very easy to come support something,” Lemois said. “It’s not easy for someone who’s not familiar with the procedure to come and oppose it. As soon as the ducks are in a row, we just vote ‘yes.’ They (licenses) are not rights, they’re privileges.”