Town Council Workshop On Our Loss Of Local Control Over Zoning
When: Monday, March 30 at 6:30 pm
Where: Charlestown Town Hall on Route 2 (4540 South County Trail)
What: Public workshop of the Town Council and representatives of other impacted towns
On March 30, the Charlestown Town Council will hold a workshop, proposed by Councilor Bonnie Van Slyke, to begin an in-depth conversation about issues surrounding the housing crisis in Rhode Island, the state mandate for Charlestown to provide 10% of its year-round housing as dedicated affordable housing, and the impact of the ability of developers to use comprehensive permits to overide Charlestown’s power to say where and how this housing will be provided. Discussed also will be annual housing production goals for the next five years recently established for Charlestown by the RI Department of Housing and tools that Charlestown may want to consider in order to meet these goals.
In proposing the workshop, Councilor Van Slyke noted that Charlestown is committed to providing diversified housing, including dedicated affordable housing, in our long-range Comprehensive Plan approved by the state in 2021. She pointed out that legislation enacted in the years since, however, has taken away Charlestown’s authority over land use and housing, mandating instead that the town provide extreme density bonuses for proposals that provide some affordable housing.
Invited to the workshop on March 30 are Charlestown’s representatives in the General Assembly; our Town Planner; a representative from the Portsmouth Town Council, which has been leading the opposition to the erosion of local control over zoning and land use; and former Westerly Town Council member and current member of the Westerly Planning Board, Jean Gagnier.
The banner image shows a hypothetical development using the 2025 legislative changes that allow 10 dwelling units per every three acres in the R3A zone if at least 25% of the units are deemed affordable. This is not a cluster development—there is no associated open space to offset the development and protect the aquifer below the development. Our zoning allows only one house in this same space. The surrounding forest is land that could be converted to the same high density under the law. These are densities that are typical of areas with public water and sewer, but are not compatible with areas that depend on ground water for both drinking water and waste treatment.
March 30, 2026 @ 6:39 pm
could not attend. Please keep me informed. tks
March 28, 2026 @ 6:41 pm
Our way out of this will be through environmental law argumentation.
Well water, septic system, and groundwater protection are central concerns—especially in Charlestown, RI, where we all rely on groundwater for drinking water and septic systems for wastewater, making contamination risks legally and environmentally significant.
Any designs for massive or moderate rental development risks overloading preexisting septic systems, violating 50–100 foot well-septic setbacks, and increasing nitrogen contamination—already a crisis in coastal zones, with 80% of groundwater nitrogen linked to septic systems. Charlestown’s ordinances (Ch. 210) require septic inspections, wastewater management, and environmental analysis for developments that threaten aquifers or salt ponds. Given the town’s lack of public sewer, sole-source aquifer status, and documented nitrate risks, such a project will most likely violate local, state, and environmental health codes without rigorous review.
This is our legal line of attack to defeat the tyranny coming out of Providence on this issue.
March 24, 2026 @ 12:11 pm
I fear that if allowed to continue, a host of rental ordinances will have to be followed and enforced. Septic system issues may arise especially near rivers and ponds and wetlands.