Ten Days Until the October 14th Meeting
After listening closely to the developer's Attorney Resnick at our August meeting for 445 Palmer ave...and watching him use those same court threats recently in North Providence...it is easy to feel like the Planning Board’s hands are tied. They aren't.
State law gives the board full authority to deny projects that fail basic standards, and threats of court action only work if a board issues a weak or unsupported decision.
I just emailed the Planning Board, Director Kravitz, and legal counsel a detailed legal motion laying out 9 distinct legal findings for denial under Rhode Island law. Under state statutes like RIGL 45-23-60, the board is required to make positive findings on every single legal requirement—from environmental groundwater rules and wetland yield calculations to scenic gateway goals in our Comprehensive Plan. If a project fails even one of these 9 findings, or if the developer's hardship is self-created by pushing high density, the board has the full legal power to deny it. When the board puts these specific factual reasons in their written decision, the courts cannot legally overturn them.
October 14th is coming fast, so if you can or can't make it and you want to email them in opposition please do so.