Bristol gets state money to preserve Silver Creek land

Town given $168,000 to help buy two acres on Creek Lane

By Scott Pickering
Posted 2/14/18

The Town of Bristol is getting $168,000 to help purchase two acres of land that abuts Silver Creek. The money comes from Rhode Island taxpayers, via a Green Economy Bond approved on the 2016 …

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Bristol gets state money to preserve Silver Creek land

Town given $168,000 to help buy two acres on Creek Lane

Posted

The Town of Bristol is getting $168,000 to help purchase two acres of land that abuts Silver Creek. The money comes from Rhode Island taxpayers, via a Green Economy Bond approved on the 2016 ballot.

The money will be matched 50/50 by the Town of Bristol, whose voters also approved open space spending in 2016. Included in the $17 million local bond vote in 2016, was an anticipated $2 million for open space preservation.

The property is located at the end of Creek Lane, a short road that runs between the VFW Hall and the Silver Creek Nursing Home. The wooded two acres at the end of the street are owned by the DeLeo family (heirs of the late Raymond DeLeo), who have agreed to sell the property and work with the town to secure the grant. The two acres are considered suitable for building.

According to Community Development Director Diane Williamson, the town has had interest in this property for many years. It borders Silver Creek, which flows south from Chestnut Street into the mouth of Bristol Harbor, in what is considered an environmentally sensitive area. In the past decade or so, the town has secured tracts of land along Silver Creek, creating Thomas Park, home to short trails, benches and Mrs. Perry’s Garden. This DeLeo parcel was always on the town’s wish list.

“It’s really a key property for us,” Ms. Williamson said. “This property has always been a missing link in the Silver Creek Greenway … We’re really so excited about this.”

Though the two sides worked together on the grant, they have not yet negotiated or signed a purchase agreement. The town based its grant application on the assessed value of the property. Zoning Enforcement Officer Ed Tanner wrote the grant application.

The Silver Creek project is one of 17 included in grants announced Friday by Gov. Gina Raimondo and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. DEM approved 17 grants, totaling $3.75 million in matching funds, that will go toward preserving 889 acres of open space throughout Rhode Island.

Locally, the money will be used toward a small farm along the Wampanoag Trail in Barrington, 14 acres in the Touisset area of Warren, and more than 100 acres in the Pocasset area of Tiverton.

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