CRMC issues 2018-2019 ROW report

September 3, 2020, WAKEFIELD – The Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) has released its 2018-2019 annual report on rights-of-way in the state, “Designation of Public Rights-of-Way to The Tidal Areas of The State.”

From July 2018 through June 2019, the CRMC continued its ongoing efforts to discover and designate public rights-of-way to the tidal areas of Rhode Island, under its legislative mandate (RIGL 46-23-17). Beginning in 1978, this mandate tasked the Council with identifying and designating all public rights-of-way to the shore. To meet this charge, the CRMC created a Rights-of-Way Subcommittee. The report details actions of the subcommittee, as well as legal proceedings stemming from these activities and subsequent actions of the Council.

The CRMC, through its rights-of-way regulatory process, created three new public access sites at the following locations: Gotham Greens, Providence; Public Dinghy Dock, New Shoreham; and Block Island Landfill, New Shoreham. The Rights-of-Way Subcommittee also held a meeting, during which the subcommittee heard testimony from citizens in favor of designating Buttonwoods Avenue and Andrew Comstock Road in the Buttonwoods (Warwick) Fire district as candidates for designation as CRMC rights-of-way.

The ROW Subcommittee continued its review of five potential ROWs in the Buttonwoods Fire District in Warwick: Promenade Avenue, Claflin Road, and Lorna Avenue, in addition to the two mentioned above. Research has been submitted by resident Richard Langseth.

Following up on last year’s report regarding ROW T-3 in Tiverton, the CRMC is now working with the RI Department of Transportation, the Town of Tiverton, and the RI Department of Environmental Management to enhance public access at the site with the creation (or preservation) of public parking among the top priorities.

The CRMC continues to work with Rhode Island Sea Grant to update their app that replaced the print version of the guide book, “Public Access to the Rhode Island Coast.” The original version of the app, as well as the printed guide book, was funded by the CRMC, and staff is working with RISG staff to add new ROWs and other public access created recently. Work also continues in partnership with Save The Bay on the CRMC’s ArcGIS Online ROW Map.

The goal of the CRMC is to designate at least one public right-of-way for each mile of shoreline. With 226 sites designated along 420 miles of Rhode Island shoreline, the Council is more than halfway to its goal. For more information on the CRMC ROW designation process, go to the web site at http://www.crmc.ri.gov/publicaccess.html. For more detailed information on all right-of-way efforts, read the full report here.