Giving Thanks

With Thanksgiving fast approaching, we have much to give thanks for here in Charlestown!

Here are just a few of the things we are thankful for.

The Town Council had two members retire and we thank them for their service and selfless work to protect our beautiful town. You can read Bonnie Van Slyke’s and Cody Clarkin’s sincere and eloquent thoughts on leaving the Town Council.

We are thankful for the pristine beauty of Charlestown’s environment and grateful that it still supports important wildlife habitats and corridors.

• The Tucker Woods Preserve parking lot and trails were finished in June and the preserve is now open to the public. Charlestown purchased this beautiful property as protected public open space on September 30, 2021.
• Town Planner Jane Weidman wrote a winning grant that brought $400,000.00 to the town to purchase the 100-acre Saw Mill Pond Watershed. We are grateful to the Charlestown Land Trust for taking on the challenge to secure the remaining funds to purchase this important property.
• The innovative work of Charlestown’s Onsite Wastewater Management Program will create lower cost, passive and effective nitrogen (N) reducing septic system technology to protect the quality of our groundwater and to protect the coastal ponds.
• The Town Council and Planning Commission passed Conservation Development that is described as the single most effective tool that can be used to protect groundwater now and into the future.
• Once again many participated in this year’s two litter pick-up days, and many of you pick up roadside litter nearly everyday as you take walks around our town.
• Photo journalist and editor Ross Lippman’s film for RI PBS featured Frosty Drew Observatory & Science Center, Charlestown’s exquisite night sky, the issue of light pollution, and what we lose when we lose our view of the stars.
• Frosty Drew Observatory & Science Center’s new PlaneWave CDK600 telescope has already provided images of galaxies more than 55 million and 80 million light years away from Earth. “It’s the best telescope in Rhode Island that’s accessible to the public.”
• Charlestown and USFWS renewed a Memorandum of Understanding that establishes the framework of cooperation between the Town and the Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge.
• Under the guidance of Town Councilor Susan Cooper, the town created a Climate Resiliency Commission to reduce or eliminate future detrimental climate change effects on the community.

We are thankful for our diverse coastal and inland resources that provide some of the best recreational opportunities on the East Coast.

• Our outgoing State Representative Blake Filippi co-wrote and secured passage in the House of a bill to preserve our Constitutional shoreline access rights for future generations. The bill stalled in the Senate and it will now be up to our new Representative, Tina Spears, and new Senator, Victoria Gu, to move this legislation forward.
• Charlestown’s Parks and Recreation Department made summer fun with food trucks and entertainment, Trunk or Treat and many other activities.
• The Charlestown Historical Society presented a Revolutionary War encampment at the historic Amos Greene Farm.
• After a two-year break because of safety precautions for Covid-19, the Narragansett Indian Tribe once again invited the public to share in the oldest recorded pow wow in North America.

We are thankful for our local farms that provide delicious and healthful food.

• Sweet Pea Farm provided food to local families that subscribed to their CSA.
• Earth Care Farm filled orders for their produce.
• The Charlestown Land Trust Farmers Market was open every Friday throughout the summer with local produce, fruits, honey, shellfish and more.
• Farm stands offered fresh vegetables, pasture-raised meat, and cut flowers.

We are grateful for low taxes.

• In a time of high inflation, Charlestown passed a budget with a tax rate lower than 2021 and the third lowest tax rate in the state.
• The Town Council adopted a written Fund Balance Policy.

These are just some of the more recent things to be thankful for in Charlestown. There’s so much more. Let us know what you are thankful for about Charlestown.

We are thankful for Charlestown!

The banner image in this post is a view of the old farm field at Tucker Woods Preserve