Ninigret Park Master Plan Meeting (With Adoption?)

UPDATE:Meeting cancelled late on July 29 just before meeting was scheduled to begin. We don’t know yet when it was rescheduled to.
When: Monday, July 29 at 7 pm
Where: Charlestown Town Hall
What: Town Council special meeting to discuss and possibly adopt the new 2024 Master Plan for Ninigret Park

The Town Council will discuss the 2024 Ninigret Park Master Plan that its consultant, VHB, developed in accordance with the directions given to the company by the Town Council.

The 2024 Ninigret Park Master Plan has been addressed in two previous Town Council meetings: a meeting on April 15, where the plan was presented to the Town Council by VHB, and a special meeting called for June 5, concerning “editorial updates” to the plan.

At the June 5 meeting, Councilor Deb Carney suggested changing the name to the “2024 Ten-Year Utilization Plan.” A decision regarding the name change is pending more research on the difference between a master plan and a utilization plan.

Councilor Carney submitted a draft of a resolution approving the plan (see below). The content of the resolution was unchallenged by the current Council majority. Councilor Susan Cooper suggested an addition, but her request was tabled.

A significant assumption in the resolution is that the plan is a “long-term strategy or blueprint” and that the plan “will serve as a guide for decision-making and future development.”

Councilor Cooper requested changes in wording regarding lighting and said that a statement recognizing the tension concerning lighting is needed. Councilor Cooper shared an example statement that could be used: “According to scientific studies cited by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, any lighting on the Federal Land to Parks acreage is not compatible with the mission of the Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge.” The Council did not consent. Councilor Cooper requested that outdated information from 2008 Ninigret Park Master Plan that has been reproduced in the new plan be updated.

The Council consented to include in the appendix a letter dated November 28, 2023, from Diane Keith of the US Department of Interior, National Park Service, expressing concern about lighting impacts to Ninigret Wildlife Refuge.

The Council voted to remove all other public comment from the 2024 Master Plan draft; to strike language regarding abutters to the Park; to remove a statement regarding the function of the larger parcel as a buffer for the Refuge, and to remove the reference to an Environmental Land Restriction (ELUR) for Site 8.

The Town Council consented to restore cost estimates, which had been removed from the version of the plan that is currently available online. To date the final draft of the plan with the updated cost estimates has not been released.

VHB has estimated the total cost of the 2024 Master Plan would be $39,536,900.00, or approximately $39.5 million. ( See cost estimates below.)

Phase 1—The total cost for tasks in this phase is estimated at $12,521,000.00 or $12.5 million. There has been support for some of the tasks scheduled for this phase, such as re-vegetating areas of the park, creating storm water basins, removing concrete and reseeding around the Criterion bike course, new pickle ball courts, and constructing a trail around the perimeter of the park.

Phase 2—This phase would construct the new “public open space area” for events. The total cost is estimated at $17,384,900.00, or a little over $17 million. Phase 2 is the banner image for this post.

Phase 3—The cost for a “Park & Rec Center” was estimated at $5,192,000.00, or approximately $5 million.

Phase 4—A new Criterion bike course, a skate park, and a splash pad/ice park were estimated at $4,439,000.00, or approximately $4.4 million.

Below are the cost estimates that were handed out at the April 15 Town Council meeting with VHB.

The resolution submitted, which uses the new name for the plan proposed by Councilor Carney, begins in the backup for the June 5 meeting. It begins on packet page 141 and reads as follows:

WHEREAS the Town is required to update the Utilization Plan every ten years.

WHEREAS Ninigret Park is comprised of 227 acres of land in two parcels fronting upon Old Post Road. Of the total acreage, a 55-acre parcel is owned and managed directly by the Town of Charlestown while the remaining 172-acre parcel is owned by the Town but is subject to covenants put in place by the Secretary of the Interior to be used “exclusively for public park or public recreation purposes in perpetuity by the Town of Charlestown.”

WHEREAS the Plan is a wholistic long-term strategy or blueprint that outlines potential opportunities for development, growth, or revitalization and will serve as a guide for decision-making and future development.

WHEREAS all decisions will have to go through standard permitting and approval processes, as determined by local, state, and/ or federal governments, where applicable.

WHEREAS the 2024 Ninigret Park Ten Year Utilization Plan is a culmination of Master Plan alternatives including the 2008 approved Master Plan, the 2014 Draft Master Plan, as well as research and community input.

WHEREAS the plan is a thoughtful process incorporating “Placemaking Principles” which refers to a collaborative process by which we shape our public realm in order to maximize shared values.”

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Town Council of the Town of Charlestown hereby approves the 2024 Ninigret Park Ten Year Utilization Plan,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of the plan be sent to Diane Keith, Program Manager, Federal Lands to Parks Program, Northeast Region.

Click here to read the latest version of the Ninigret Park Master Plan