Council Praises Proposed Budget

By Cynthia Drummond for BRVCA
April 17th 2024

RICHMOND – At the April 16 Town Council meeting, members were unanimous in their praise for the proposed 2024-25 town budget.

They also agreed not to pursue a tax abatement for owners of properties with historic cemeteries.

The Budget

During a public hearing at the council meeting, outgoing Finance Director Laura Kenyon presented the proposed municipal budget.

“In preparing this budget, we did understand that the people of Richmond were looking for as much tax relief as fiscally possible,” she said.

Kenyon explained that the budget has two components:  municipal, and education – the Chariho schools budget which voters passed in the April 9 referendum. Richmond’s share of the Chariho budget is $21.9 million, an increase of $270,000.

The municipal budget is $7.9 million.

The good news is the property tax rate will decrease from $14.76 to $14.66.

“The reason for the decrease is the town’s anticipating an increase in assessment value of about $15 million, but a decrease in the tangibles of about 8 [$8 million] the state is reimbursing us for that,” Kenyon explained.

Council President Mark Trimmer said Kenyon was the best of the three Finance Directors he had worked with during his years on the council.

“Head and shoulders above the rest, so thank you,” he said.

Councilor Michael Colasante added,

“A big numbers - cruncher myself, and sometimes we kind of look at numbers and sometimes we can’t see past the numbers to compassion for people, and I have to say, the amount of people at that podium this past year and told of their strife about their taxes, how tough it is paying their taxes, you folks listened to it. Thank you very much.”

Resident Robert Cardozo also praised the budget.

“This is probably the best budget I’ve seen in 20-some odd years here, and I wanted to thank you for it,” he said.

The second public hearing on the budget will be on May 8 and the budget referendum is June 3.

The complete proposed budget can be found on the town’s website.

Municipal Court

The council agreed, at a previous meeting, to introduce a Richmond municipal court for a six-month trial period.

During Tuesday’s discussion of the procedure for hiring a municipal court judge, councilor Samantha Wilcox proposed using the same procedure as the one the council followed for hiring the new Town Solicitor.

Later during the council meeting, addressing another agenda item pertaining to the establishment of a municipal court, there were questions about the cost to the town. The court is expected to be revenue-neutral for traffic cases, but would generate more revenue in fines for building and zoning ordinance violations.

Colasante proposed exploring the possibility of Richmond sharing the municipal court already established in Hopkinton, and Town Solicitor Christopher Zangari said he would look into it.

Drinking Water

The Council voted to award the contract for the new chlorination system to LaFramboise Water Service. LaFramboise, of Thompson, Connecticut, was the only company to bid on the contract, coming in at $245,000.

The cost of the upgrade will be paid by the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank’s water enterprise fund.

There is also the matter of amending the town’s zoning ordinance and comprehensive plan to allow the installation of the new chlorination system on a 29-acre parcel on KG Ranch Road.

The Planning Board voted in March to recommend that the proposed changes be presented at a public hearing. However, some board members, including Chairman Philip Damicis and Vice Chair Dan Madnick, expressed reservations about changing the zone from “conservation and open space” to “public and governmental.”

Town Planner Talia Jalette urged the council to come to a decision as soon as possible, but Trimmer made a motion to explore the feasibility of re-zoning just two acres of the 29-acre parcel.

“I don’t want some sort of giant facility there ever,” he said.

The public hearing on the amendments will take place on May 21 at 6 p.m.

Colasante suggested asking representatives of the town’s water supplier, Northeast Water Solutions, and LaFramboise, the company supplying the chlorination system, to be present at the hearing to answer questions about the chlorination system and how much land it might be expected to require.

Cemetery Abatement Tabled

Council members appeared to have had a collective change of heart regarding a proposed $100 annual property tax abatement for homeowners with historic cemeteries on their properties.

Wilcox said there were several concerns related to the maintenance of the cemeteries.

“Who’s going to be checking up on the property?” she said. “What will happen if the cemetery’s not maintained?”

Whether the public has access to historic cemeteries is another concern.

Councilor Helen Sheehan, who stated at an earlier meeting that she believed the cemeteries were open to the public, noted that she had read a letter submitted to the council by historic preservationist and Richmond property owner John Peixinho, stating that the cemeteries were private.

“The last time I spoke, I had a historic cemetery on our property when I lived in Scituate, but I learned from Mr. Peixinho, he sent a letter, he said that not all property, people have access to it. I said you have access on your property, they have a right to it. He said they don’t,“ she said.

Sheehan said the $100 abatement wouldn’t cover the cost of maintaining a cemetery.

“To me, it’s a waste of money for $100,” she said.

Colasante said approving the abatement could be “opening a can of worms” for the town, which would administer the program.

“I just don’t want to expose the town to that kind of cost,” he said.

The council approved a motion, made by Wilcox, to file the item.

Disaster Aid

Emergency Management Director Randy Gemme said homeowners impacted by the severe weather in December and January only have until May 20 to apply for FEMA aid.

“FEMA will come to your house and help you register,” he said. “… about 20 households, they’ve already administered some funding. Some of this funding is non-returnable, so the quicker you get your registration done and recognized by FEMA, they will determine what you need, along with SBA. [Small Business Administration]. I need to remind you that the deadline to register is May 20. I know there are some residents that have reached out to me that have not even signed up as of yet.”

The FEMA hotline number is: 1-800-621-3362. The website is: disasterassistance.gov.  

Other business

RICAN

The council approved a request from the Rhode Island Center Assisting Those in Need, or RICAN, to reallocate the remaining $9,812 of the $34,000 in American Rescue Plan Act or ARPA funds allocated by the town to the agency. The funds would offset the cost of refinishing the floors in the building, an unexpected expense of $25,000.

After hearing from Rep. Megan Cotter, D- District 39, who supported the RICAN request, Colasante made a motion to grant the reallocation, which the council approved.

Federal grants

In her report, Town Administrator Karen Pinch announced that the town had applied for a R.I. Energy energy efficiency grant to replace the air conditioning in the Department of Public Works building, and that it had been awarded $18,464.

Pinch also noted that the town had been awarded $165,000 from the office of Sen. Jack Reed for the communications tower on Shannock Hill Road that was damaged by fire in 2022.