NARRAGANSETT – Town Solicitor James M. Callaghan recently told Rhode Island officials that they should not be able to skirt the local permitting process, flout zoning guidelines, or disregard comprehensive planning documents as the state decides how to move forward with the redevelopment of a 5-acre site occupied by the former Lighthouse Inn in the Port of Galilee.
This comes following the R.I. Department of Environmental Management’s announcement that it was halting its initial plans to demolish the former Lighthouse Inn, a hotel building once known as the Dutch Inn that’s been closed since 2015, across the street from the Block Island Ferry. The department announced on July 15 that it was putting a pause on the project to better assess the costs of demolition, given the unknown amount of asbestos in the building at 307 Great Island Road.
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Callaghan wrote a letter on July 18 to the Department of Environmental Management, R.I. Attorney General Peter F. Neronha, State Properties Committee Chairperson Marco Schiappa and other state officials, calling for local oversight. Callaghan wrote that the town government appreciates the state for announcing that it is halting initial plans for the site. But Callaghan said the town wants the Narragansett Comprehensive Plan to be respected by the state, including the town’s special zoning district for the Port of Galilee that prioritizes the area hub for commercial fishing.
This all follows an announcement earlier this year by the Department of Environmental Management that it was throwing out the results of a public bidding process launched last October to select a developer to revamp the state-owned property. Finding plans submitted by the three bidders unviable, the department instead opted to demolish the 100-room hotel and divide the rest of the property into three separate parcels, hoping that would make the land more attractive to prospective investors.
Those bids included a company called iCell Aqua Inc. that wanted to establish a $30 million facility to process fish; a joint venture called PRI X involving Providence real estate developer Joseph R. Paolino Jr. and Procaccianti Cos., which proposed a retail center and boutique hotel; and the town of Narragansett itself, which proposed a mixed-use development involving offices, housing, a hotel and restaurant.
PRI X has long been using the property as a parking lot, charging people using it while they’re away on the Block Island Ferry. When it threw out the bidding process, DEM said it would terminate a lease it had with PRI X and then negotiate a new lease at “current appraised value” for two sections of the Lighthouse Inn property, so it could continue to provide parking for ferry users, along with commercial fishing boat workers and employees of other shoreside businesses.
In his letter to state officials, Callaghan said the town “anticipates that RIDEM is in a development phase with PRI X” for the property,” but said “any future proposal, in any form, raises a number of state and local issues” that should be addressed during the planning and development phase. Callaghan warned the State Properties Committee that revised parking lot operations and any other future project at the site needs to be fully vetted at the town level.
“The town brings these requirements to your attention, in part, because the town has not been apprised of any plans or negotiations in any form,” Callaghan wrote. “It would seem premature that either any lease agreements or development would gain approval from the State Properties Committee absent consideration from both the State Planning Council and the appropriate town board of review.”
Callaghan cited an R.I. Supreme Court case in late 2017 that ruled in favor of Exeter, after the town filed a lawsuit against the state regarding the DEM’s construction plans for the Arcadia Natural Resources and Visitors. Before moving forward with such a project, the court found that the department and the State Properties Committee must first gain approval from the State Planning Council on the issue of whether the project complies with a community’s comprehensive plan.
Callaghan warned of potential legal action against the state if it flouts local ordinances, zoning guidelines and planning documents.
“In the event that RIDEM proposes any new development and/or lease agreement in the Port of Galilee, State Properties Committee and any prospective tenant/lessee needs to acknowledge and abide by both the state and town review procedures,” Callaghan wrote. “Any future development at 307 Great Island Road and the Port of Galilee will undergo a full review pursuant to both the Town of Narragansett Comprehensive Plan and the ordinances of the town of Narragansett. If those requirements have not been met, then the town will be required to pursue relief provided by law.”
Marc Larocque is a PBN contributing writer.
