At a Special Meeting of the Town Council of the Town of Middletown, RI held at the Middletown Town Hall, 350 East Main Road, Middletown, RI on Saturday, November 13, 2021, at 8:00 A.M.
Council President Paul M. Rodrigues, Presiding
Vice President Thomas P. Welch, III
Councillor Terri Flynn
Councillor Christopher M. Logan
Councillor Dennis B. Turano
Councillor Barbara A. VonVillas, Members Present
Councillor M. Theresa Santos, Absent
POSTED – November 2, 2021
SPECIAL MEETING – November 13, 2021
Wendy J.W. Marshall, Town Clerk
Town of Middletown
Town Hall – 350 East Main Road
Middletown, Rhode Island 02842
Dear Ms. Marshall:
Pursuant to the provisions of Article II, Section 203 of the Town Charter and in accordance with Sections 42-46-2, 42-46-3 and 42-46-6, RIGL, I hereby call a Special Meeting of the Town Council to formally consider, discuss and vote upon the following items of business:
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
Tour of the following Middletown Schools to review conditions and matters related thereto:
Said meeting will be begin at 8:00 AM at the Middletown Town Hall, 350 East Main Road, Middletown, Rhode Island 02842 on Saturday, November 13, 2021.
____________________________________
Paul M. Rodrigues, President
Middletown Town Council
cc : Town Council Public Library Finance Director
Town Administrator Town Solicitor School Committee
This meeting location is accessible to the handicapped. Individuals requiring interpreter services for the hearing-impaired should notify the Town Clerk’s Office at 847-0009 not less than 48 hours before this meeting.
Posted on November 2, 2021, at Middletown Town Hall, Middletown Public Library, Middletown Web Site and Secretary of State Web Site.
Tour of the following Middletown Schools to review conditions and matters related thereto:
1. Oliphant School – 26 Oliphant Lane
2. Berkeley-Peckham School – 678 Green End Avenue
3. Joseph H. Gaudet School – 1113 Aquidneck Avenue
4. Aquidneck School – 70 Reservoir Road
5. Middletown High School – 130 Valley Road
6. Forest Avenue School – 315 Forest Avenue
On motion of Vice President Welch, duly seconded, it was voted unanimously to begin said Tour of the Middletown Schools to review conditions and matters related thereto.
Vice President Welch, presented the following acronyms, which may be used during the building tours:
Tour began at 8:15 a.m.
Present also were Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger, School Committee member Liana Ferreira-Fenton, School Committee member William O’Connell, Building Custodian Rick Ford, Building Committee Chair Charles Roberts, Building Committee member William Nash, Architect/ Senior Principal of DBVW Douglas L. Brown, Town Administrator Shawn Brown, Finance Director Marc Tanguay, Public Affairs Officer Matthew Sheley, Senior Housing Consultant Frank Spinella, Affordable Housing Committee member Kim Blass, and Affordable Housing Committee member Elizabeth Morancy.
Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger welcomed all who attended.
Architect Douglas L. Brown, Senior Principal of DBVW, reviewed a site plan of Oliphant School. Mr. Brown noted the Oliphant School site would work well for housing.
All meeting participants walked through the school, including some former classrooms, which are currently offices.
Discussion centered around an additional building being placed on the site which could house 34 units, Oliphant could house 15-17 units, neighbors not wanting a three-story building in the area, the building has not been fully vetted with the Affordable Housing Committee and the age of the school.
The tour ended at 8:36 a.m.
Tour began at 8:50 a.m.
Present also were Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger, School Committee member Liana Ferreira-Fenton, School Committee member William O’Connell, Senior Citizen Director Arleen Kaull, Custodian Chris Johnson, Building Committee Chair Charles Roberts, Building Committee member William Nash, Architect/ Senior Principal of DBVW Douglas L. Brown, Town Administrator Shawn Brown, Finance Director Marc Tanguay, Public Affairs Officer Matthew Sheley, Senior Housing Consultant Frank Spinella, Affordable Housing Committee member Kim Blass, and Affordable Housing Committee member Elizabeth Morancy.
Senior Housing Consultant Frank Spinella addressed the Council noting the building has schematic design, the senior center would be left alone, the building could house approximately 20 units, part of the front of the facility could be saved and the building contains mold.
All meeting participants walked through the school.
Discussion centered around the neighbors not wanting housing at this site, the building having a lot of sentimental value to the community, there could be 20 units at this site and 40 units at the Oliphant School site, the process for amending the Town’s Comprehensive Community Plan and the Senior Center boiler is in the school portion of the building.
The tour ended at 9:17 a.m.
Tour began at 9:28 a.m.
DBVW Architects provided a handout, which has proposals for Joseph H. Gaudet School, Aquidneck School, Middletown High School and Forest Avenue School, which are on file in the Office of the Town Clerk.
At the beginning of each of the following School Tours, DBVW Architects reviewed the proposals for each site.
Present also were Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger, School Committee member Liana Ferreira-Fenton, School Committee member William O’Connell, School Principal Becky Silveira, Building Committee Chair Charles Roberts, Building Committee member William Nash, Architect/Senior Principal of DBVW Douglas L. Brown, Architect/ Associate Principal of DBVW Edward Cifune, Town Administrator Shawn Brown, Finance Director Marc Tanguay and Public Affairs Officer Matthew Sheley.
Holley Demers Sayer and Megan Havrilla, representing Colliers Project Leaders, joined the meeting at 9:37 a.m.
All meeting participants walked through the school.
Discussion centered around the first step is to agree that upgrades are needed to school facilities, education in the 21st century, separating the Learning Academy from the rest of the school, prioritizing infrastructure, building in flexibility to lab spaces, thermostats, moisture issues in buildings, lighting controls, automatic heat, electrical outlets, plumbing, dehumidifiers, solar alternatives, learning center, replacing windows, sprinklers in the buildings, moving the Administration to Gaudet, Library/Media center upgrades, the computer lab is outdated, asbestos tiles in the school, bathrooms, removing the showers from the locker room, the building and classrooms being ADA compliant, cafeteria being large enough and the Planetarium being an asset to the building.
The tour ended at 10:57 a.m.
Tour began at 11:05 a.m.
Present also were Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger, School Committee member Liana Ferreira-Fenton, School Principal Erica Bulk, Building Committee Chair Charles Roberts, Building Committee member William Nash, Architect/Senior Principal of DBVW Douglas L. Brown, Architect/ Associate Principal of DBVW Edward Cifune, representing Colliers Project Leaders Holley Demers Sayer and Megan Havrilla, Town Administrator Shawn Brown, Finance Director Marc Tanguay and Public Affairs Officer Matthew Sheley
All meeting participants walked through the school.
Discussion centered around the gym not being big enough, elevator in the building not in compliance with ADA rules, mechanical issues in the classrooms, window issues, hurricane windows are required when replacing the windows, ceiling tiles, phone system, there is no generator, they have been purchasing flexible furniture, cracks in the floors, standards set by RIDE are national standards, the change in population for the school, some students do not speak English, dehumidifiers in the building, cafeteria is not adequate for the amount of students, leaky pipes, the need for bathrooms in the classrooms, moisture in the floors and incorporating an extra room on site.
The tour ended at 12:01 p.m.
Tour began at 12:11 p.m.
Present also were Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger, School Committee member Liana Ferreira-Fenton, School Committee Vice Chair Douglas Arnold, School Principal Jeffrey Heath, Assistant Principal Dennis Soares, Building Committee Chair Charles Roberts, Architect/ Senior Principal of DBVW Douglas L. Brown, Architect/ Associate Principal of DBVW Edward Cifune, representing Colliers Project Leaders Holley Demers Sayer and Megan Havrilla, Town Administrator Shawn Brown, Finance Director Marc Tanguay and Public Affairs Officer Matthew Sheley.
All meeting participants walked through the school.
Discussion centered around changing the serving area for the cafeteria, the stage not accessible, having a trade shop in the building, if the School Administration should move to this building, the price for a student to participate in Vo-tech courses, bring Vo-tech to Middletown, the terrace is an asset to the building, drainage on the terrace, the benefit of keeping students in Town, Bio-Med program, flexible spaces, utility tunnels, nurse’s office is too small, the need for additional lab space and the need for mobile tables.
The tour ended at 1:19 p.m.
Tour began at 1:27 p.m.
Present also were Superintendent of Schools Rosemarie Kraeger, Custodian Steve Tetzloff, Building Committee Chair Charles Roberts, Architect/ Senior Principal of DBVW Douglas L. Brown, Architect/Associate Principal of DBVW Edward Cifune, representing Colliers Project Leaders Holley Demers Sayer and Megan Havrilla, Town Administrator Shawn Brown, Finance Director Marc Tanguay and Public Affairs Officer Matthew Sheley.
All meeting participants walked through the school.
Discussion centered around the nurse’s office is too small, moisture issues in the building, not enough space in the cafeteria, building a new gym, hand railings are not adequate, need for a proper elevator, no ability for a learning commons on both the upper and lower floors, the media center/library is too small, issues with the bathrooms, kindergarten classrooms do not have toilets, some of the windows need to be replaced, the classrooms do not meet RIDE code and having infrastructure requirements being warm, safe and dry.
On motion of Vice President Welch, duly seconded, it was voted unanimously to adjourn said meeting at 1:50 p.m.
Wendy J.W. Marshall, CMC
Council Clerk
Supporting documentation is available at http://clerkshq.com/default.ashx?clientsite=Middletown-ri