PORTSMOUTH — Ten citizens running for Town Council sounded off on a number of contentious topics impacting Portsmouth during a respectful but lively forum at Portsmouth Middle School last week.

Two Democrats, Tasha M. MacGibbon and Timothy E. Grissett, could not make the forum, which was held Thursday, Sept. 26, before about 50 people in the school’s Little Theater. The forum was sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Newport County and moderated by Scott Pickering, general manager of East Bay Media Group. 

Three candidates were selected to answer one of the 10 questions, but others could also chime in by using one of their set number of “wild cards” if they so wished. A different group of three candidates were then asked the next question.

Here’s a summary of what the candidates had to say on some of the various topics, whether during the direct questioning or during opening and closing statements.

Wind energy

The first question concerned SouthCoast Wind’s proposal to run transmission lines from an offshore wind turbine development down the Sakonnet River and over parts of Portsmouth. Candidates were also asked whether they agreed with the Town Council approving a host community agreement in January that allowed SouthCoast the use of town land in exchange for $23.2 million in fees and taxes to the town over the next 33 years.

David Reise, a Republican, said he believed the project should be re-routed. “Wind power is marginal at best and susceptible to storm damage. I don’t think Portsmouth gets much out of it,” he said.

Another Republican, incumbent Keith Hamilton, was one of the council members who voted for the agreement. The R.I. Energy Facility Siting Board (EFSB), he said, is the body that has jurisdiction over the project, which he said will most likely be approved. 

“If we say no, we get nothing. If we say yes, we get something,” Hamilton said. “I am not in favor of wind power in the ocean, but that fight ended 20 years ago.”

David Gleason, another incumbent Republican, was the sole member of the council to vote against the host community agreement. He did so, he said, because of the pristine quality of the waters where the cables are proposed. “The Sakonnet River has the only SA waters in Portsmouth,” he said, adding the electric cables have no business in anyone’s backyard.

Mary McDowell, running as an independent, said she would have voted against the agreement because there wasn’t enough sufficient information presented beforehand. Now that “that ship has sailed,” she said, it’s time to think about how the town will spend the money.

Democrat incumbent Charles Levesque said he could not vote on the agreement due to a conflict, but said it’s “naive and dangerous” not to look at alternative energy sources. “We are in an existential crisis because of energy,” he said.

Likewise, incumbent Democrat J. Mark Ryan, who voted for the agreement, also supports wind energy. Global warming and sea level rise are real, and wind is one way to battle it, he said. Ryan said he was concerned, however, that the EFSB will do “what’s in Rhode Island’s best interests,” and not necessarily Portsmouth’s.

David Fiorillo, a Democrat, said he was in favor of offshore wind and that the council was wise to OK the host agreement. Wind farms are all over the world, he said. “They’re already doing it and they’re ahead of the curve,” said Reise, adding the millions the town will receive in return can be used to improvement local infrastructure.

Republican candidate Sharlene Patton said she didn’t support SouthCoast’s plans, saying the cable project “will lead to devastation to marine life.” 

Democrat Sondra Blank, currently a member of the School Committee, said while she didn’t believe the cable project was supporting the local economy, she wanted to hear more “from the people of Portsmouth” before forming an opinion. 

East Main improvements

Candidates were queried about another contentious issue: Should the town support the R.I. Department of Transportation’s (RIDOT) proposal to build a roundabout at the intersection of East Main Road and Turnpike Avenue, in front of Clements’ Marketplace?

A month after the council voted 4-2 to approve the plan in December 2023, Clements’ filed suit against the town and the state, alleging the decision violated the Business Protection Act and left the public in the dark. Shortly afterward, RIDOT said it would put off any major improvements to East Main Road in Portsmouth until next year.

Although he’s not a fan of roundabouts and wasn’t sure that intersection was the best place for one, Ryan said it was important to get East Main Road paved. “DOT said in order to get our road paved, this was part of the plan,” he said, adding the state promised to return the intersection to its current state if the roundabout didn’t work as planned.

Patton said she didn’t support a roundabout in that particular location, saying it would be too tight a fit. She added the work would have negatively impacted Clements’ and other nearby businesses.

Payero said while roundabouts “have scientifically been seen to decrease congestion and traffic accidents,” the intersection wasn’t the right location for one. “It’s a tight spot,” he said.

Levesque said the state’s engineering experts all said the roundabout was the best idea for the location in terms of safety. “That is the most dangerous intersection in the town of Portsmouth,” he said, adding it was wrong of Clements’ to sue.

Fiorillo, however, said he had “no confidence in the DOT,” noting that he owns two businesses in East Providence that have been negatively impacted by the problems with the Washington Bridge. Rather than entirely reconfigure the intersection, he said changing the pattern of traffic lights could make it safer. “I didn’t like the fact that the DOT wanted to bundle it all to hamstring us,” Fiorillo said.

Gleason, who voted against the roundabout along with Hamilton, said he also supported changing the traffic lights instead. “This roundabout does not fit (RIDOT’s) design parameters,” he said.

McDowell wasn’t sure how she would have voted, saying there wasn’t enough information presented. However, the costly litigation could have been avoided, she said. She also disapproved of what she called an ultimatum by RIDOT: “Either you approve that rotary, or else.”

There is no one solution to the problem, said Blank. “There can be other solutions. I don’t support a rotary there,” she said.

Trash and curbside pickup

The future of the town’s transfer station was also a big topic of debate. 

Despite what some residents still believe, the council hasn’t made any decision to close the transfer station. In May, the council awarded a contract to a single hauler —  MTG Disposal, LLC, also known as MEGA — to provide curbside collection of residential waste, recycling, yard waste, and bulky waste for all households not using the town transfer station on Hedly Street. The contract was awarded after a request for proposals was approved in October 2023.

In December 2023, the council agreed to also issue an RFP to maintain the transfer station operation as it exists now. That RFP isn’t expected to be released to bidders until later this year and will be discussed in public once a recommendation is made by administration on the returned bids.

Still, questions have been raised that despite the transfer station’s popularity with a minority of residents (about 2,200 households, compared to about 4,000 that use a private curbside hauler), its operation may not be sustainable in the future.

“The transfer station is kind of back to the buggies,” said Levesque. “It was a stopgap measure a long time ago. Right now, I consider curbside pickup mass transit for trash.” 

Reise, however, said residents enjoy the convenience of the transfer station and that it’s particularly more suitable and affordable for elderly residents. Improvements are needed for the transfer station, said Reise, adding that curbside collection should only be voluntary.

“I believe people should have a choice,” said Gleason of the transfer station, which he wants to keep open. He also acknowledged the property needs expensive maintenance work, however.

McDowell said she also believed in giving residents a choice, and not forcing them to change curbside vendors if they already have one they like.

Blank said she uses the transfer station and supports keeping it open. “My husband is a fishermen. I can’t wait one week for our trash pickup,” she joked, referring to the usual wait for curbside.

Payero said he doesn’t have a strong preference on the transfer station vs. curbside; it will depend on the sustainability of the former and what option is ultimately cheaper. “If you’re telling me I’ll save money, then that’s what I’m married to,” he said.

Fiorillo said he uses a curbside vendor, for which he pays about $600 annually. That fee would be cheaper, however, with the town getting a deal by going with a single vendor, he said.

Like the transfer station, the curbside program will operate under a self-sustaining enterprise fund; user fees generated by sticker sales will keep it running, rather than tax dollars. Trash disposal should be rolled back into the tax rolls, but that would take “10 to 15 years,” said Hamilton.

Other topics?

Candidates were also asked whether there was anything else they wanted to talk about that wasn’t touched upon during the regular Q&A session.

“The fact that we have not addressed the schools and the work we’ve done to get us out of COVID is testament to the … awesome work and the awesome schools that we have,” said Payero, who served on the school board before being appointed to the council to serve out an unexpired term earlier this year.

“Pickleball — who likes pickleball?” said Fiorillo, a member of the town’s Parks & Recreation Committee. Several times during the meeting he mentioned the group’s efforts to provide some dedicated courts in town for the fast-growing sport. “We’ve secured a grant for $5,000, which the town has to match. It’s on our agenda at the next meeting.”

Hamilton said one of the “biggest elephants in the room” is the municipal budget, and the state’s continual cutting of aid to Portsmouth and other towns. In the past three months, the state has forced the town to incur a $250,000 loss — after the current budget was approved. He urged some legislators sitting in the back of the room to pressure state leaders to restore needed funding.

Gleason also brought up the budget, saying more cuts should be made annually so it’s brought within a 2- or 2.5-percent increase, rather than closer to 4. 

In addition, the town should do something with the “3-S” properties on Sandy Point Avenue. Voters approved a bond years ago to turn the land into athletic fields, but nothing has been done. The town also approved a bike path from Tiverton to the Melville Campgrounds, he said. “We should finish these projects,” said Gleason.

There’s an unfortunate political party divide in Portsmouth, McDowell said. Forty-seven percent of Portsmouth voters are not affiliated, while Newport, Middletown and Tiverton already have non-partisan elections, she said. It would make sense to change the Town Charter to allow non-partisan elections in Portsmouth as well, she said.