Opinion/Letters: Coggeshall school redevelopment needs to keep neighborhood in mind
Coggeshall school redevelopment needs to keep neighborhood in mind
I live in the North End on Admiral Kalbfus Road a place that has become a nightmare of exhaust, honking, heat and miles of endless traffic 24 hours a day. Once a week, my 10-year-old son gets to leave our neighborhood where cars now reign supreme (thanks to the Pell bridge project turning the North End into I-95) and visit the Coggeshall school playground.
Coggeshall is an oasis of green in our densely populated North End neighborhood. Children roam the school and neighborhood on bikes and foot playing baseball and basketball without fear of being hit by a car. There is limited parking and many two families where even tiny gardens are maintained with fierce intergenerational pride. It is a diverse neighborhood with Portuguese Americans, young professionals, Section 8 voucher holders and middle-class families that were priced out of the Fifth Ward. There are no loud Airbnbs, everyone respects each other and knows each other. It reminds me of what Newport used to be before we sold it to the highest bidder. There is no question in my mind if this super-sized “mega-development” they euphemistically term “redevelopment” of the Coggeshall school is permitted by the mostly asleep-at-the-wheel City Council this neighborhood will be destroyed!
The footprint and original historic building should be preserved and converted to housing appropriate for middle-income people. No one in this neighborhood wants more low-income housing – we have the highest percentage in the state. Nor does anyone want the Coggeshall school developed where most of the green is replaced with asphalt and the profile of the majestic facade obscured by smaller buildings where their lights will shine into the bedrooms of sleeping children.
Contact the City Council and let them know the only “viable” development of the Coggeshall School is one that conforms with the residential family-friendly atmosphere of the neighborhood. This isn’t the eighties and its not Bonniecrest where we have acreage to spare for a hideous housing complex that will add hundreds of cars to our already besieged neighborhood.
Christine Hope Sullivan, Newport
Beware Middletown school plans
Middletown voters will decide on a $190 million bond for new schools. All voters' voices need to be heard. Not voting is a vote in support of the bond which will push the town beyond reasonable limits; possibly into a fiscal catastrophe trying to pay back more than $300 million over time!
The town is chasing RI Legislature and Department of Education bond reimbursements guided by 20 pages of instructions where best value and affordability are not considered. The RI Legislature is driving local governments to costly, irrational decisions bad for citizens.
If voters approve, Middletown’s school department will be handed $190 million and homeowners’ and business’ taxes will go up by at least 14% in addition to a 5% increase for fiscal 24.
Middletown’s school department has not provided information to explain the total cost of new schools so there is no basis for public confidence and trust. There are no construction estimates; there is no consideration for economic uncertainties; there is no contingency planning and analysis of alternatives; there is uncertainty in demographic makeup and need; and the state's expected 55% reimbursement is not fixed. Middletown’s proposed 230,000/ft2 building at $1000/ft2 cost (from town’s data) yields a $40M shortfall. Who will pay? Newport’s school construction project has that problem.
Middletown’s School Department has a history of maladministration, defiance, and objecting to the council’s demands for accountability and integrity. Here are some examples:
August 2023 – Maladministration - $1.3M school budget over-expenditure and violation of state law.
November 2022 – School Committee denied Councilman’s right to speak on a questionable renewal of superintendent’s contract.
March 2022 – Town Council voted no confidence in the school superintendent.
June 2020 – Middletown schools failed to bargain in good faith and retaliated against an employee.
June 2019 – National Education Association voted no confidence in superintendent.
May 2019 – School Committee denied they gave out $250K in bonuses; but they did.
Borrowing $190 million demands accountable leadership with a thoughtful plan addressing costs, alternatives, and risks along with a clear statement of benefits and affordability for the community. Middletown doesn’t have that. Please vote!
Paul Mankofsky, Middletown
Why is Middletown blocking information on school bond?
A group of Middletown neighbors reserved a community room at the Middletown Fire Station over the Columbus Day holiday weekend and was then denied access. Middletown Town Administrator Shawn Brown informed the group that they could not use the space. Brown claimed the meeting would violate the Facilities Use Policy, which states that meetings must be non-partisan. The group had stated concerns and opposition to Question #1 on the upcoming election ballot: the $190 million Middletown School Bond.
The Policy does list very specifically defined “public bodies” that are indeed subject to the criteria Brown refers to, but “a group of neighbors” is not on that list. Middletown citizens should question the motivations of the town blocking an educational meeting. Middletown citizens should also question equal access to public buildings that they have paid for. Middletown citizens should certainly question the town taking such a strong position on a ballot question that is up to the voters to decide. It might seem that under scrutiny the school bond proposal does not stand on its own merits to the extent where the proponents step in and violate citizens’ rights of access and free speech.
There is an additional meeting opportunities to get information that isn’t in the promotional publications and ask your questions on the $190 Million Dollar Middletown School Bond proposal on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 12:30 p.m. at the Middletown Public Library. All are welcome. Please attend to have all the information before you vote.
Terri Flynn, Middletown
Why meeting on Middletown school bond was moved
To the people of Middletown! I apologize for the confession in moving the public meeting of Oct. 8 from the Middletown Fire Station to the YMCA, to discuss the school bond, and to inform you of the tax implication on you and the town.
At approximately 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 6, I received a call from Town Administrator Shawn Brown. He informed me, that a group of Middletown residents do not have the right to have a meeting in a town facility, because we do not fit the description in the town POLICY 13. FACILITY USE POLICY 2.4, February 5, 2018. Listed below. All requests from outside groups (other government agencies, town-affiliated or town-sponsored organizations, not-for-profit and civic organizations) to use meeting space in Town Hall shall be approved by the Town Clerk (847-0009). All requests from outside groups to use the Police Station Community Room shall be approved by the Police Chief (842-6500 ext. 7076.) All requests from outside groups to use the Senior Center shall be approved by the Executive Director of the Senior Center (849-8823). All requests from outside groups to use the Fire Department Community Room shall be approved by the Fire Chief (842-6588). All requests from outside groups to use the Public Works Conference Room shall be approved by the Public Works Director (846-2119). Any decision to deny use of a town meeting space may be appealed to the Town Administrator by requesting an appointment (849-2898). In the event that the Town Administrator denies the appeal, the decision may be appealed to the Town Council.
I went to the Fire Department and checked, the room was opened, and I resisted, and was directed to register online, which I did. So we had to move the meeting to the YMCA. I want to thank the officials at the YMCA, for allowing us to meet there.
Thank you for your understanding,
Antone Viveiros, Middletown
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Letters: Coggeshall school redevelopment needs to keep neighborhood in mind
