Ballot Question Told Voters One Thing But Town Council Proposes To Do Another
When: Tuesday, October 14, at 7 p.m.
Where: Charlestown Town Hall
What: Bonding of already-paid-for land purchases and of another unknown expenditure is back on the Town Council agenda
As CCA reported on August 25, a majority of the Charlestown Town Council is considering using money designated by voters in 2015 for one thing—preservation of open space—for something else.
The voters’ intent in 2015 was clear. The ballot language presented to the voters reads as follows:
“Shall the Town of Charlestown finance the acquisition, preservation or protection of open space or any interest therein alone or in conjunction with federal agencies, state agencies, land conservancies, land trusts or preservation organizations for preservation and approve the issuance of bonds and notes therefor in an amount not to exceed $2,000,000?” [Emphasis added.]
As a result of the vote in 2015, four important (and popular) properties were preserved. The Patricia Sprague Forest Preserve, which abuts the Pawcatuck River, was acquired in 2016. In 2018, the Pasquisset Pond Preserve, located across from the South Farm Preserve on Old Coach Road, was expanded, and the expansion, which includes Black Pond, was protected. Also in 2018, the town acquired a strip of forested land next to the Town Hall. And, in 2021, Tucker Woods Preserve on Alton Carolina Road was acquired.
The remaining $1 million has not been spent because one member of the current Town Council actively blocked the purchase of the Saw Mill Pond watershed on Carolina Back Road, even though a matching $400,000 Natural Heritage Grant from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management had been awarded in 2021 specifically for the purchase.
Each of the expenditures listed above, except that for the land next to the Town Hall, was made in conjunction with a state agency, a land trust, or a land conservancy and paid for using grant funds from these groups and funds the town already had in hand.
If the expenditures had been financed with borrowed money, taxpayers would have had to pay the costs of issuing multiple bonds. In addition to the cost of issuing the bonds, taxpayers, including current and future taxpayers, would have to pay interest on the money borrowed and pay the money back.
Nonetheless, on August 12, Councilor Deb Carney proposed that the Town Council issue a new bond(s). She proposed using $1 million of the new borrowing to “reimburse” the account from which the funds were taken even though she provided no evidence that this is required, nor did she identify which account the money would go to.
Because the $1 million has already been spent to preserve the properties listed above, it does not seem OK for the Town Council to issue a new bond and then spend the money again—effectively spending the money authorized twice.
Also on August 12, Councilor Carney proposed using the remaining $1 million that had been authorized by the voters for “acquisition, preservation or protection of open space” for some other unspecified purpose.
Councilor Steve Stokes was the only member of the Town Council to object to Councilor Carney’s proposal. He noted that the town’s Bond Counsel had advised the previous Town Council that, even when bonding authority is granted, there is no obligation to issue bonds and that there is no requirement to “reimburse” the accounts used.
The majority of the members of the Town Council have stated that they do not support using the remaining $1 million of bonding authority for land preservation. If the majority of the members of the Town Council do not support additional land preservation, they do not need to spend the money.
Certainly, the Town Council should not float a bond without taxpayers being able to vote on whether they approve of $1 million to $2 million in new spending in a general election.
Bonnie Van Slyke, the author of this post, is a candidate for Town Council in the December 2, 2025 election. She was a member of the Charlestown Town Council from 2014 to 2022. She was the Town Council Liaison to the Planning Commission, Parks and Recreation Commission, and Senior Citizens Commission. She is a former officer and member of the Board of Directors of the Frosty Drew Observatory & Science Center, a former Chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals in Harvard, MA and a former member of the Board of Trustees of the Harvard Conservation Trust. Bonnie is a freelance copy editor, technical writer, and publications specialist. You can learn more about Bonnie on her profile page.
The banner image is a photograph of a juvenile Bald Eagle by John Zoldak. One of the many species that benefits from Charlestown’s preserved open space.