Council Passes Resolution Opposing Chariho Proposal

By Cynthia Drummond for BRVCA
February 7th 2024

RICHMOND – With Vice President Richard Nassaney and councilor Samantha Wilcox dissenting, a majority of the Town Council voted at Tuesdays meeting to approve a resolution opposing the proposal by the Chariho Regional School District to build three new elementary schools. It was a symbolic gesture, since it is the voters in the three towns, not the Town Councils, who will decide which of three options they want the district to pursue, but it is a possible indication of the depth of voter opposition to the plan. The resolution was introduced by council President, Mark Trimmer.

Three options have been presented for Chariho schools. The first would require the town to pass a bond of up to $150 million to build three new elementary schools. The second option, would involve the approval of a $30 million bond to repair and renovate the existing schools in what has been called the “warm, dry, safe” option, and the third option, costing approximately $7 million, would pay for improvements and repairs to the existing schools.

The text of the resolution had not been posted on the town’s website at the time of this writing, but Trimmer described its purpose at the meeting.

“We have a legacy to leave our children, and part of that legacy is to the public education that they receive,” he said. “But the other part of that legacy is not to get our society so deeply in debt that these children of ours are locked in. They’re yoked to work their entire lives paying taxes that grow and grow and grow.”

Trimmer cited several important facilities, including the police station and the public works building, that, in addition to the town’s roads, are in dire need of repair. He also warned that the town could find itself in a financial bind if it loses one or both current lawsuits, brought by The Preserve.

Trimmer advocated the two, safer, less costly options.

“I think there are other alternatives,” he said. “I do not support the building of a new school,” he said. “I support Option B or C, something in the middle, perhaps, where we pay as we go, and we address things and we renovate things.”

Wilcox said the final decision would be up to the voters.

“As councilors, or council President, we have no further or better or different say than any other registered voter,” she said. “So, I think that bringing a resolution like this to the table is unnecessary, unproductive. There’s no reason to lock your vote in right now.”

Councilor Michael Colasante, citing numerous conversations with officials in other towns (Cranston, Johnston, Newport) and construction companies (Gilbane), warned that with school districts throughout Rhode Island simultaneously undertaking large school construction projects in order to take advantage of state reimbursements, there would be shortages of labor and materials, which would in turn, lead to higher prices. 

“It’s my job, first and foremost, to protect the taxpayer, the ones that can least afford it,” he said.

Council member Helen Sheehan said she favored renovations and repairs over new construction. She also brought up the discrepancy in property taxes between Richmond and Hopkinton and Charlestown, where they are lower.

“The three new schools which have been proposed are almost identical,” she said. “… Charlestown taxpayers would only have to pay 25% of the cost while taxpayers in Richmond and Hopkinton pay 75% of the cost. This is not a fair distribution of expense. The tax burden should be equally shared.”

It should be noted that there is also a large discrepancy in the amount of state aid each town receives. The proposed Fiscal Year 2024-25 Chariho budget shows that Richmond and Hopkinton will receive considerably more than Charlestown in state aid to education. Richmond will receive $6.1 million, Hopkinton will get $6.6 million, and Charlestown will get $1.5 million.

The Public Weighs In

During the public comment period, School Committee member Jessica Purcell reminded the council that good schools were important drivers of the local economy.

“Our successful and well-managed school system brings new people to this area, brings back Chariho alumni to raise their families,” she said. “This opportunity to receive one of the highest reimbursement rates in the state is a once in a lifetime chance to thoughtfully plan for the short and long - term future of Chariho.”

Purcell then turned her attention to Trimmer.

“You are welcome to your own personal opinion, even if that means we disagree, but making a resolution like this, you are overstepping your purview,” she said.

But other residents applauded Trimmer for standing up for taxpayers.

“These people will be building an empire on the backs of the taxpayers,” one resident said. “…I want to thank you for your stance on this whole thing.”

Another resident raised the Charlestown tax issue.

“…We want [an] equalizing taxing district,” he said. “Before we go any further, get the tax situation straightened out. We can’t keep living the way it is now, with two towns hurting and the other one’s floating pretty.”

Jeff Noble, who supports the bond, attempted to explain why three new schools would make more financial sense than four old schools, because of the lower operating costs for new buildings.

“Yes, it’s going to take a lot to get there, but if we’re looking at our tax picture five or ten years out, it looks a lot better with these kinds of savings, and the only way we’re going to get it is by investing in our school system and not just doing ‘warm safe and dry.’”

Louise Dinsmore, founder of the “Chariho Forgotten Taxpayers” political action committee, thanked Trimmer for putting the resolution on the agenda.

“It takes a lot of political courage to put that on the agenda and I appreciate your considering this proposal,” she said.

Trimmer said Wednesday,

”The resolution will be that we reject Option A to build three new schools for $150 million as presented, period.”

Asked if he was leaving the door open to a possible compromise, he said,

“Yes, because I’m not a closed-minded person, if somebody can, at the 11th hour at the 11th day, show me something different.”

Trimmer also clarified a statement he made at the meeting about the project’s potential to financially “paralyze the town.”

“What I mean by that is, when a school budget and a school approach 90% of the portion of the property taxes that we pay, it leaves only 10% to run a municipal budget for a town, and that really severely limits what the Town Administrator can do and what the Town Council can do within the town,” he said.

The resolution passed. While a similar resolution has not been proposed in Hopkinton, several members of that Town Council have stated that they oppose the proposed bond for new school construction.

The bond referendum does not take place until May 7, so there is still plenty of time for voters in the three towns to consider the options.

The Canvassing Authority

At the request of the Richmond Democratic Town Committee, the council reconsidered the Jan. 16 appointment of Raymond Pouliot to the Canvassing Authority and ended up appointing him anyway. Pouliot replaces departing member, Tim Michaud, who is also a Republican.

Colasante made the original motion appointing Pouliot, later found to be a deviation from procedure, which requires the appointment to be made by the council President.

Two candidates, Pouliot, and Pamela Rohland, a Democrat who currently serves on the Authority as an alternate, were given a chance to tell the council why they wanted Michaud’s position.

As long as both Republicans and Democrats are represented on the committee, it is not necessary to replace a departing member with someone of the same party affiliation, but Trimmer said Wednesday that he had felt more comfortable nominating Pouliot, a Republican. Pouliot won the council vote, with Nassaney and Wilcox opposed.

Other Business

Town Solicitor Christopher Zangari was sworn in before the council meeting. The council also approved the hiring of Gary Robar to replace Scott Barber as Public Works Director and Electrical Inspector Michael Rosso, who replaces Jeffrey Vaillancourt, who was dismissed on Jan. 30 at a special Town Council meeting.

Town Planner Talia Jalette presented an update on the “Wood Pawcatuck Rivers Watershed Flood Protection Project” which the town co-sponsors with the National Resources Conservation Service. Jalette also discussed another NRCS initiative, the Emergency Watershed protection Program, which involves the purchases, by the NRCS, of permanent easements to help restore floodplains. Those purchases would include buying private homes at “fair market” prices, and demolishing them. Participation in the program is voluntary, but there are several additional issues that need further investigation.

The council approved the replacement of a culvert on Hillsdale Road to mitigate flooding from the Beaver River. Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association Executive Director Christopher Fox told the council that if approved, the town-owned culvert would be replaced by a structure with an open bottom that will allow aquatic organisms to pass through and will also have the capacity handle more water. The project will be completed in a single phase of construction, at no cost to the town.

The council voted to approve the project.