Bonnie Van Slyke: Let’s Pause To Reflect On The Past Year
The following were Bonnie Van Slyke’s comments at the December 9, 2019 Town Council meeting. Bonnie Van Slyke is a member of the Charlestown Town Council.
I want to wish everyone a happy holidays, but before I do, let’s pause to reflect on the past year.
There is much sadness about people we have lost. One was Eleanor Dove, matriarch of the Narragansett Indian Tribe, at 100 years old. Another is Jack Briggs who worked for the town for over 35 years. They and others will be sorely missed.
On a happier note, it has been a busy and productive year for the Town Council with the town now well positioned for 2020.
The Council has dealt with plans conceived for our town by state agencies with good success.
- Instead of placing a communication tower in Cross’ Mills, the RI Emergency Management Agency is planning to place the tower at the Charlestown Police Department, which will benefit emergency communications statewide and in Charlestown.
- Plans for North Camp on Watchaug Pond were placed on hold. In a letter to Town Council president, Virginia Lee, Janet Coit, head of the RIDEM, promised that RIDEM will consult with the town should there be any future plans.
- On another note, RIDEM has improved facilities at Watchaug Pond and the launch and parking area at Quonochontaug Pond and added to open space around Watchaug Pond.
A $400,000 research project, funded by the Southern New England Program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will assess the environmental impact of groundwater, a significant source of fresh water entering salt ponds, measuring nutrients and pollutants entering the ponds in groundwater.
The council is in the process of hiring a professional company to design, carry out, and report on a town-wide survey of residents’ and taxpayers’ priorities for our town.
The town has supported the Chariho administration and our regional school system throughout the year, and the education provided our children is excellent.
We cut the ribbon on an affordable housing project, Shannock Village Cottages, that will provide 11 new rental units that will remain permanently affordable.
Our finances are in great shape and our taxes are low. The voters did not support a long-discussed Community Center in Ninigret Park, so the Town Council reduced the tax rate to raise $1M less in the levy. Democracy is alive and well in Charlestown, as well.
Our town staff is excellent and morale is high.
- Our Town Administrator, Mark Stankiewicz, has been with us for over six years, closing in on his seventh. The experience and professionalism he brings provides continuity and sustainability to town government.
- This year we welcomed Julie Goucher, our new Town Treasurer, and our new Information Systems Technology Manager, Chris Pancaro. The transition has been seamless.
Our staff have provided needed services.
- Our accredited Police Department, in addition to working to keep us safe, completed its first annual report. With the appointment of a female police officer, Shanon Kane, the Department is fully staffed.
- Staff are protecting our water supply and salt ponds, managing our beaches and our town parks, saving us money on flood insurance, etc., and much, much more.
- We have planned well for confronting natural hazards.
Our facilities are in good shape.
- A new generator can power the Town Hall during power failures and other emergencies, and energy-efficient lighting has been installed.
- A major capital project, Burdickville Road, is complete and another, Old Mill Road, underway.
- The parking lot at Charlestown Beach will be resurfaced in the spring.
- Our two breachways were dredged this year and a salt marsh project was undertaken in Quonochontaug Pond.
- The dredging and salt marsh project were important for tourism and for resiliency in storms. Of note, citizens surrounding the pond donated generously so that the project could be expanded in scope.
- Ninigret Park has a new entrance sign and the RFP has gone out so that next summer there will be a welcome area and kiosk and wayfaring signs. Our parks are alive with recreational activities.
Volunteerism is also alive and well.
- Volunteers have picked up trash on our neighborhood roads.
- Volunteers have maintained trails on open space properties, conducted business forums, and done other important work for the town.
- Of note, historic murals of George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette were recovered from the Card House owned by Pat and Tom Ready, were restored by the Historical Society, and have been installed in the Town Council chambers.
- Boy Scouts have installed a Police Memorial at the Charlestown Police Department and a gaga pit in Ninigret Park as Eagle projects.
Various organizations provide vital emergency services to the town. For example, this year, the ambulance service has placed AEDs at Ninigret Park and the Town Hall and plans to place them in other locations. The value of an AED was demonstrated when lifeguards used one to save a life at the Town Beach.
As I have watched our Comprehensive Plan for the next 20 years take shape, I am reminded of the great community we are and the wonderful array of nonprofit and other organizations that add to our high quality of life.
We will cap off the year with a fabulous bonfire in Ninigret Park, courtesy for the past 12 years of Frank Glista. The bonfire will be amazing, I am sure.
Holiday wishes and a Happy New Year to all!
December 16, 2019 @ 12:07 pm
Bonnie
Thanks for the excellent year end report. The current Town Council is to be commended. The stability and longevity of our leadership among staff and the improvements made are something which we all can be proud.
What was not addressed is the increasing problem of potable water for a number of areas in Charlestown. Salt water intrusion, pollution caused by increasing nitrates has made potable water a real problem for many residents. I know this is a political quagmire but it needs town leadership and direction. I would start by identifying through a confidential process those residents who cannot use their wells to get a handle on how widespread it is.
Also, after attending some Planning Commission meetings, I am concerned about our zoning/planning enforcement and how meetings are led in the Planning Commission. It is apparent the current leadership is overwhelmed.
Roy E. Jacobsen
December 21, 2019 @ 7:23 am
Thank you for the good words and for your comments. I encourage everyone to have their wells tested yearly and to share the data with the town’s Wastewater Management Department. There are many potential contaminants to groundwater, and data are needed in order to determine the status of water quality in locations throughout town.
The good work that has been done and is currently being done by the Town’s Wastewater Management Department and others would fill pages and pages. One example, though, is work currently being done under a four-year, $890,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency. Some initial information was presented to the Town Council in April. Reported was that advanced septic systems which have been installed could be inexpensively tested in the field and adjusted, if necessary, to perform to specifications. Also, under the grant, 14 substandard septic systems were replaced with advanced systems and rain gardens placed to help with surface runoff.
There is good evidence that sea levels are rising faster than predicted. You may be interested in a presentation to the Town Council at the December meeting by Grover Fugate, Executive Director of the Coastal Resources Management Commission. He discussed the effects not only of sea level rise, but also of storm surge and wave action on top of the rising sea levels. The effects for the Town’s tax base should a major storm occur would be dramatic. He also noted that storms are now more intense and have been stalling over land, releasing huge amounts of rain. We need only look to the floods of 2010 to see that Charlestown could be affected by this type of storm activity. The presentation should be available through the town’s website soon.
Finally, the Planning Commission’s review of large-scale developments is a critical one for our town. Their review involves, at a minimum, three stages and associated meetings. At each stage of the review, when more information is submitted, applicants and others need to be afforded their due process rights and be allowed to comment on the new information. This often means additional meetings. This may seem exceptionally tedious, but is necessary in order to ensure a fair and equitable process for all.
December 16, 2019 @ 11:34 am
Any news about bike paths for Matunuck Schoolhouse Road, etc. ?
December 21, 2019 @ 7:28 am
The public hearing on the concept feasibility study for a coastal route bikeway was held in August. The hearing, part of the feasibility study, was to get feedback from citizens. The consultant will finalize its report. The final report, along with the State’s map showing the vision laid out by its Long-range Transportation Plan and its Bicycle Mobility Plan, will be posted on the Town’s website in the near future. Additional comments are of course welcome. At the close of the hearing, Council President Virginia Lee stated that the Town is now armed with information, estimates of costs, a sense of what’s feasible and what’s not, and an awareness of some pitfalls in the application of the State bike plan.