North Kingstown Town Council Meeting - September 23, 2024
North Kingstown Town Council Meeting - September 23, 2024
The North Kingstown Town Council met on Monday, September 23, 2024, at 7:00 PM in the Town Hall Council Chambers. The meeting covered a wide range of business including the appointment of a new Water Supply Director, approval of a school construction application, multiple consent agenda items, a town manager's report, proclamations for Indigenous People's Day and VFW Day, and appointments to several boards and commissions. An executive session was held for personnel, litigation, and real estate matters.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Jennifer Lima (President of Towards an Anti-Racist North Kingstown) commended the town for the 350th anniversary Family Day and thanked the council for the Indigenous People's Day proclamation. She requested adding specific language acknowledging settler colonialism and current tribal presence. She urged further inclusion of indigenous culture.
- Brett Mallory criticized the proposed school bond, alleging 30% ($20-23 million) of it was wasteful spending on air conditioning units. He encouraged voters to reject the bond and called for better economic development on US-1.
- Michelle Girsoli expressed support for a land acknowledgement statement but stressed it should not be performative; she encouraged action on housing, food sovereignty, and shoreline access for the Narragansett people. She also praised the 350th committee and Councilor McCoy.
- Kurt Fisher thanked the town for improved signage at Phillips Street playground but complained about poor road conditions on that street, which is a state highway, and requested action to address noise and safety issues.
Special Business
- Advice and Consent for Director of Water Supply (Item 5): Town Manager Ralph Mollis recommended Alan Austin, previously Deputy Director and Interim Director, to lead the Water Department. Council questioned Austin about resources; he affirmed readiness. The council unanimously granted advice and consent.
- Acknowledgment of National Centenarian Day (Item 6): The council recognized seven residents aged 100 or older: Dora Andorian, Elaine DeRosa, Danute de Cesari, Doris Fowlman, Seth Gifford, Edward Moorehead, and Ruth Verber. Motions passed unanimously.
- Approval of Stage 2 School Construction Application to RIDE (Item 7): Dr. Duva and Inga Knox (Jacobs OPM) presented the scope: new Wickford Middle School (net zero, $77M), renovations at Davisville Middle School (HVAC with AC), elementary school roof replacements, ADA upgrades, security vestibules, and classroom wall additions. The total bond amount is $137.2 million. Council discussed reimbursement rates (35% base, plus up to 5% for health/safety/security) and the need for projects. School Committee Chair Aaron Earl emphasized prioritization. The application was approved unanimously.
Consent Agenda
Items 8-32 were approved except items 13, 15, 19, and 30, which were pulled for separate discussion:
- Item 13: Award of bid for Well No. 3R Construction to Weston & Sampson ($219,288). Council noted only one bidder but the bid was within the engineer's estimate. Approved unanimously.
- Item 15: Ratification of Change Orders #1 and #2 for the Wickford Waterfront Cofferdam redesign ($95,929.69). Staff confirmed a third change order (approx. $40,000) will come before council on October 7. Approved unanimously.
- Item 19: Authorization for an independent contractor agreement with Alex Snow as Youth Intervention Specialist, funded by opioid settlement funds. Town Manager described Snow's role and the program's deliverable-based structure. Approved unanimously.
- Item 30: Bond reduction for Reynolds Farm Phase 2C was modified from the listed $21,478.73 to $42,195.00 per council request. Approved unanimously.
Reports
- Town Manager's Report: Covered updates on Revolution Wind (no noise complaints, request to extend work hours to 2 AM), Wickford parking lot project, $15M federal EV charging grant (NK to get 11% with 22 chargers at 11 sites), hurricane preparedness and EEE/West Nile campaigns, successful Family Day (Sept 14), WWII Heritage City designation (one of seven nationwide awarded in that cycle), summer camps serving 375 children, economic development initiatives on Post Road, ongoing review of tax exemptions, short-term rental registry (75 properties registered, NK not a hotbed), affordable housing percentage (8.57%, eighth highest in RI, likely higher with mobile homes), and new cybersecurity training platform for employees. No votes taken.
New Business
- Discussion on Speed Measuring Devices (Item 34): Councilor McCoy requested police department recommendations on fixed or mobile devices to address speeding concerns. Police will research and report back in about a month. Council agreed.
- Indigenous People's Day Proclamation (Item 35): Councilor McCoy presented the proclamation, drafted by town historian Tim Cranston. After discussion, the proclamation was amended to add the word "since" before "prior" to acknowledge continued tribal presence. Council approved with one abstention (Councilor Anderson).
- Veterans of Foreign Wars Day Proclamation (Item 36): Councilor McCoy read the proclamation declaring September 29, 2024 as VFW Day in NK, marking the VFW's 125th anniversary. Approved unanimously.
- Appointments:
- Arts Council (Item 37): James Hosmer appointed to fill the unexpired term through 2026. Approved.
- Library Board of Trustees (Item 40): Dianne Izzo (full term to 2027), Stacey Weinstein (full term to 2027), Michael Donohue (full term to 2027), and Pamela Rowland (unexpired term to 2026) appointed. Approved.
- Wickford Advisory Committee (Item 42): George Brennan appointed as Wickford Village resident, Amy Jenner as at-large member. A third candidate (William Maloney) was continued due to questions about residency/eligibility. Approved.
- Other appointments (Asset Management Commission, Building Code Board, Veterans Liaison, Zoning Board) had no applicants and were tabled for readvertisement.
Key Outcomes
- Unanimous Approvals: Water Supply Director (Austin), Stage 2 school construction application, consent agenda items 8-32 (with modifications), all pulled consent items (13,15,19,30), Indigenous People's Day Proclamation (3-0-1), VFW Day Proclamation, Arts Council appointment, Library Board appointments, and Wickford Advisory Committee appointments.
- Directives: Police department to report on speed measuring devices by late October/early November. Town Manager to continue work on short-term rental enforcement, cybersecurity training, and tax exemption analysis. Town Manager's report accepted as information.
- Executive Session: Council entered executive session for Town Manager evaluation (personnel), PFAS lawsuit discussion (litigation), and potential sale of Devil's Foot Road property (real estate). Minutes were sealed by unanimous vote.
- Next Meeting: Scheduled for October 7, 2024.
Meeting Transcript
I know I know when I post the meetings I get the same time. Okay, we're good. Thank you. Um good evening and welcome to uh North Kingstown Town Council meeting for Monday, uh September twenty third. And uh welcome to the People's House of North Kingstown. I'd like to call this meeting to order. Uh pursuant to Rhode Island General Laws forty two dash forty six dash six C. Notice of this meeting has been um posted on the Secretary of State's website. Uh before we salute the flag, I would like to note that our community has lost uh two members of our community who have uh been longstanding members and um they'll also be felt uh Charles Bauer and Kathleen Devine. Kathleen in particular has uh raised her family here and uh her family's very active, particularly her daughter in the community, and I know Kathleen was too. Um when we do the solar flag, I'd like us to take a moment of silence on behalf of Kathleen Devine and uh Charles Bauer. So thank you. Um asking the General Assembly to uh put up some sort of sound barriers which were supposed to be put up when four oh three is constructed. So although the General Assembly is not going to be in session until uh January, we will act on that promptly. Well thank you. And for that reason why I have any questions. Oh my god. And we want a wild all of the flag holes. And what comes to the world is all of the yeah, I'm going to take them today. Thank you for all your time. Thank you, Mr. Panoyer. Before we go to the next speaker, I do want to um miss enough pointing out that uh counselor or president of Pro Tem Dr. Kim Page is uh finish up her class uh that she teaches and she is on her way and she'll be here. Oh, she is in route. So anyways, she's from Connecticut. Um next is uh Jennifer Lima. Hi, uh my name is Jennifer Lima. I'm speaking here tonight in my capacity as the president of Towards an Anti-Racist uh North Kingstown Tank. Before I get into my comments, I just want to commend the town and the North Kingstown 350th anniversary committee for the family day that was held earlier this month. It was an excellent day for the community, and I can only imagine the logistics and the planning that went into making sure that it ran smoothly. I also want to say I've never been so simultaneously fascinated and appalled by that foam thing. Like that was absolutely amazing. So last year around this time I stood before you and talked about how the myth of Columbus discovering America is one steeped in violence and racism, that we live on the unceded land of the Narragansett people, and that we can acknowledge the history behind Columbus Day without continuing to celebrate it, and that instead we should be honoring indigenous people and recognizing that they existed before Columbus arrived and that they're still here today. At that time, I had asked that the town reach out to the Tomaqua Museum and get the education necessary so that we could have a meaningful observation of Indigenous People's Day moving forward. So, you know, as part of the town's 350th anniversary celebration, Lorenz Spears, who's the executive director of the Tamaqua Museum, she gave the first lecture in the year-long speaker series that you all had. I know that there's been outreach to the Narragansett tribe to throughout the year to participate in other various events, and tonight there's a proclamation on the agenda recognizing Indigenous People's Day. I want to thank the town for taking these first steps in what needs to be an ongoing process. Um, you know, personally, I wish that the proclamation included some more specific language relating to the dispossession of the land that we're on, and that it acknowledged the settler colonialism and that traumas that befell the Narragansett nation as a result of that displacement. But I recognize this as a start, and I want to thank you for it. I am, however, requesting you consider one change this evening before voting on it. Indigenous People's Day is about commemorating the resistance and the resilience of the indigenous people, not just in the past but in the present. And you know, the Narragansans didn't just inhabit this region prior to the colonization, they're here today, and I don't think that that proclamation really recognizes that to the extent that it should. And I don't think that that proclamation really recognizes that to the extent that it should. So, you know, I'll close by noting that the progress has been made over the past year, and my hope is that the town will strive for further inclusion of indigenous culture and history in our town. There's no Rhode Island history without Narragansett and other indigenous history, and there's no U.S. history without Indigenous history. So thank you. Thank you. Rhett Mallory, please.
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