Tent encampment; Matos campaign signatures; McCoy deal: What happened this week?

Here's a look at some of The Providence Journal's most-read stories for the week of July 16, supported by your subscriptions.

• Spongy moths, drought, wildfire and the emerald ash borer have taken a toll on Rhode Island's forests in recent years. Now, a tiny worm is laying waste to beeches, which are among the state's most beautiful and long-lived trees.

• Traffic jams got you down? Now, Rhode Islanders can rise above it all on the same kind of luxury helicopter used by the mega-rich Roy family on "Succession," as well as King Charles (crown and scepter not included).

• The Tidewater Landing stadium has hit some financial snags, but it's full speed ahead for Rhode Island FC, the state's new soccer team. Bill Koch has the latest on the team, its coach and the competition they'll face in the USL Championship league when they get rolling next March at Bryant University. For more sports news, go to providencejournal.com/sports.

• Family fun doesn't have to break the bank. Here are five things to do for under $100 in the Providence area.

• Did you keep up with the week's events? Take our news quiz.

Here are the week's top reads on providencejournal.com:

Billionaire doubles down on buying McCoy Stadium. Could the deal still happen?

Stefan Soloviev talked the talk. Now he wants to show he's willing to walk the walk.

The billionaire, who said he’d be willing to buy McCoy Stadium to bring professional baseball back to Rhode Island, told The Providence Journal that he and son Quintin were meeting with Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien at the stadium this week in his bid to save one of the state’s landmarks.

The mayor's office confirmed the meeting, saying, "Conversations with the Solovievs regarding potential redevelopment in Pawtucket are ongoing. ... We look forward to having more conversations about opportunities in our great city."

Sports: Billionaire doubles down on buying McCoy Stadium. Could the deal still happen?

Providence wants to clear a tent encampment. Advocates say that's the deceptively easy route

PROVIDENCE — Danny Griffiths walks down a dirt path and motions to his squat tent on a strip of state property between Charles Street and Route 146, across from the Walmart on Silver Spring Street.

Griffiths hasn't had a stable place to live for years, due to addiction, lost jobs and family issues. Now he and others living in makeshift shelters face one more stressor: the prospect of eviction from their wooded space in a mostly commercial area.

Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project Director Eric Hirsch said Mayor Brett Smiley's administration is pressuring the state, which owns the land, to evict everyone.

"We're here to make sure it doesn't happen until the city finds us adequate shelter or housing for these people," Hirsch said.

Local news: Providence wants to clear a tent encampment. Advocates say that's the deceptively easy route

Fake signature probe widens as another city sends Matos nominating papers to police

A third Rhode Island community reached out to police to investigate invalid signatures on nominating papers submitted by Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos' campaign for Congress and, more specifically, the blatantly falsified signatures of several members of the East Providence City Council and a school committee member.

So far in the widening scandal, three cities in the 1st Congressional District have asked police to investigate signatures submitted by the Matos campaign: Jamestown, Newport and East Providence. The attorney general's office is also investigating.

Even with hundreds of Matos signatures thrown out, her campaign cleared the 500-signature threshold to get on the special election ballot. Matos on Friday night broke her weeklong silence on the signature scandal and pinned the blame on a campaign operative.

Politics: Fake signature probe widens as another city sends Matos nominating papers to police

State terminates Armory contract, may give building to Providence

PROVIDENCE — Armed with a sharply negative new analysis of the latest proposal to redevelop the Cranston Street Armory, the McKee administration on Monday terminated the state's contract with whistle-blowing developer Scout Ltd.

It appears to be start from scratch time, again, nearly three decades after the R.I. National Guard vacated the cavernous building in late 1996,

"It became clear that the proposal put too much risk on Rhode Island taxpayers and not enough on other sources," Gov. Dan McKee told reporters.

McKee and Providence Mayor Brett Smiley acknowledged they have had "preliminary discussions" about the state handing the Armory over to the city to redevelop.

The announcement sparked an angry backlash from some lawmakers and Armory neighbors who have spent decades passionately advocating for the building's reuse.

Development: State terminates Armory contract, may give building to Providence

Have a collection to sell? 'American Pickers' is coming to RI.

Do you have a collection — or a pile of stuff somewhere — that you believe has some gems? Are you are willing to part with them in exchange for some cash and a chance to be on TV?

Here's your chance. The History Channel's "American Pickers" will be returning to Rhode Island in August, and they're looking for leads.

It's not the show's first rodeo in Rhode Island. In season 3, the pickers bought a 1967 Triumph motorcycle while picking in Johnston. In season 11, they picked Belcourt mansion in Newport. And in season 14, they found themselves picking in Pawtucket.

TV: Have a collection to sell? 'American Pickers' is coming to RI.

To read the full stories, go to providencejournal.com. Find out how to subscribe here.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence Journal top stories: Billionaire wants McCoy; Matos scandal