POSTED – MAY 13, 2026
REGULAR MEETING MAY 18, 2026
TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN, RHODE ISLAND
The following items of business, having been filed with the Town Clerk under the Rules of the Council, will come before the Council at a regular meeting to be held on May 18, 2026 at 5:00 Executive Session and Presentation Immediately Following Executive Session and 6:30 P.M. Regular Meeting at the Middletown Town Hall, 350 East Main Road, Middletown, Rhode Island. Said meeting will be conducted in person. Virtual access will also be provided by telephone conference call/ webinar and members of the public may access and listen to the meeting in real-time by calling 1-877-853-5257 (Toll Free) or 1-888-475-4499 (Toll Free) and entering Meeting ID: 856 7411 7564 or on the web at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85674117564; however, virtual access is being provided only as a convenience and is not an official "location" where access to the meeting is guaranteed. Being physically present at the meeting is the only way to guarantee complete access to the meeting, as the meeting will not be paused or rescheduled if the virtual access fails.
If you choose to join the meeting by zoom or telephone, Council Rules allow for the Public to speak only during the Public Forum and Public Hearings. If calling in by telephone, pressing *9 raises your hand and pressing *6 will unmute.
The items listed on the Consent portion of the agenda are to be considered routine by the Town Council and will ordinarily be enacted by one motion. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a member of the Council, or a member of the public so requests and the Town Council President permits, in which event the item will be removed from Consent Agenda consideration and considered in its normal sequence on the agenda. All items on this agenda, with the exception of the Public Forum Session, may be considered, discussed, and voted upon in executive session and/or open session.
Pursuant to RIGL §42-46-6(b). Notice – “Nothing contained herein shall prevent a public body, other than a school committee, from adding additional items to the agenda by majority vote of the members. Such additional items shall be for informational purposes only and may not be voted on except where necessary to address an unexpected occurrence that requires immediate action to protect the public or to refer the matter to an appropriate committee or to another body or official.”
Any person not a member of the Council, desiring to address the Council concerning a matter on the docket of the Council, not the subject of a Public Hearing, shall submit a written request to the Town Clerk stating the matter upon which he desires to speak. Persons are permitted to address the Council for a period not to exceed five (5) minutes.
The Middletown Town Council follows the codification of present-day general parliamentary law as articulated in Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised 10th edition (2000), together with whatever rules of order the Council has adopted for its own governance. The motion to reconsider is one of the motions that can bring a question again before an assembly, and is designed to bring back for further consideration a motion which has already been voted on:
If, in the same session that a motion has been voted on, but no later than the same day or the next day on which a business meeting is held, new information or a changed situation makes it appear that a different result might reflect the true will of the assembly, a member who voted with the prevailing side can, by moving to Reconsider [RONR (10th ed.), p. 304-321] the vote,
propose that the question shall come before the assembly again as if it had not previously been considered. (From Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, Robert, Evans et al., De Capo Press, 2004)
1. Executive Session - Pursuant to provisions of RIGL, Sections 42-46-2, 42-46-4 and 42-46-5 (a), (2) Collective Bargaining (IAFF), (2) Collective Bargaining (FOP),and (2) Potential Litigation.
IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING EXECUTIVE SESSION
2. Citation of the Council, re: Recognizing the Department of Public Works for their outstanding efforts during the Blizzard of 2026.
3. Pursuant to Rule 25 of the Rules of the Council, Citizens may address the town on one (1) subject only, said subject of substantive Town business, neither discussed during the regular meeting nor related to personnel or job performance. Citizens may speak for no longer than five (5) minutes and must submit a public participation form to the Council Clerk prior to the start of the meeting. All items discussed during this session will not be voted upon.
4. Application of Tito’s Cantina, Inc. dba Tito’s Cantina, 651 West Main Road for a TRANSFER of a Class BV Liquor License to Plaza Alta Group, LLC dba Tito’s Cantina for the 2025-2026 Licensing year, for use at the same premise. (Requires advertising for public hearing.)
5. Communication of Tax Assessor and Tax Collector, re: Cancellation of Taxes for certain Middletown residents.
6. Resolution of the Council, re: Cancellation of Taxes for certain Middletown residents.
7. Application of Fire and Water Concessions, Inc. dba Salty’s, 315 Sachuest Point Road for RENEWAL of a Victualling House License for the 2025-2026 licensing year.
8. Amended application for Special Event Permit from Golden Hour Space, LLC formally Love Defeats Fear Yoga, Third Beach Yoga, all levels public yoga class held on Third Beach on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays beginning June 1st, 2026, to September 30th, 2026, from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm. (Original application granted March 16, 2026, this is a name change only)
9. Amended application for Special Event Permit from Justin Speegle/Amp Surf New England a 501(c) non-profit organization for a VA Summer Sports Camp, Surfing Clinic for Veterans with disabilities to be held at Sachuest Beach, Path 8 on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, and Wednesday, July 22, 2026 from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. (Applicant requests fees to be waived; Original application granted on April 20, 2026; Amendment is to add an additional day – Friday, August 14, 2026 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm)
10. Application of Olga Klimenko Sharp for a Tattoo License to be used at Troubled Soul and Company, 999 West Main Road, for the 2026-2027 licensing year. (NEW)
11. Application of WS Middletown, LLC dba Wingstop, 7 East Main Road, for a Victualling House License for the 2025-2026 licensing year. (NEW)
12. Application for Special Event Permit from Middletown 250 Commission for Middletown Celebrates American 250, Games, Music, Food Trucks and Fireworks to be held on Wednesday, July 1, 2026 from 4:00 pm to 6:30 pm – Paradise Valley Park and from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm at Second Beach. (Applicant requests that all fees be waived)
13. Application for Special Event Permit from St. George’s School – Camp Ramleh Yard Sale open to the public to be held at St. George’s School Hockey Rink on Saturday, June 6, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
14. Application for Special Event Permit from Aquidneck Pediatrics, Aquidneck Pediatrics for Summer Carnival at 1272 West Main Road, to be held on Saturday, June 13, 2026, from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. (Applicant requests permit fees to be waived)
15. Communication of The Class of 2027 and Class of 2028, re: Request for support for the Second Annual Nine-Hole Golf Tourney at Jamestown Golf Course on Saturday, May 30, 2026.
16. Petition of Anne R. Ficke and Middletown Residents, re: Traffic Calming Measures – 3rd Beach Road. (Council action to forward to the Middletown Police Department and Department of Public Works for review and recommendation.)
17. An Ordinance of the Town of Middletown (Second Reading)
An Ordinance in amendment to the ordinances of the Town of Middletown, Town Code Title III, Chapter 34, Taxes, Section 34.70 entitled “Tax Classification System”, is amended by deleting Subsection 34.70(A)(1)(f).
18. Memorandum of Finance Director, thru Town Administrator, re: Library Renovation Project Donations.
19. Resolution of the Council, re: Town Council hereby accepts the donation of $107,500 from the Friends of the Middletown Public Library, consisting of funds received through private donations in support of the Library Renovation Project and be designated and applied in accordance with donor intent $75,200 for the Children’s Learning and Play Area, $25,000 for the Community Gathering and Program Spaces, $7,300 for general project purposes and the Finance Director is authorized hereby to allocate and expend said funds in accordance with all town purchasing policies and procedures.
20. Memorandum of Town Administrator, re: Change Order Approval for Library Renovation Project.
21. Resolution of the Council, re: Authorizing the Town Administrator to approve change orders on behalf of the Town related to the Library Renovation Project above the current protocol of $25,000 to between $25,001 and $100,000 for the duration of the project. The Town Administrator shall notify the Town Council within 48 hours to ensure transparency and oversight when change orders of $25,001 and $100,000 are authorized.
22. Memorandum of Finance Director, thru Town Administrator, re: Beach Erosion Study Phase Two.
23. Resolution of the Council, re: Award of Contract to Crossman Engineering of Warwick, RI for phase two of the Beach Erosion Study to be funded the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank Community Project Assistance Grant for the amount of fifty-thousand dollars and zero cents ($50,000.00) and the remaining balance of nine-thousand dollars and zero cents ($9,000.00) be funded from the Parks and Recreation – Beach Capital Replenishment Fund and authorizing the Finance Director to execute the agreement on behalf of the Town.
24. Memorandum of Finance Director, thru Town Administrator, re: FY2026 School Budget Adjustments as of April 10, 2026.
25. Resolution of the Council, re: Approval of FY2026 School Budget Adjustments as of April 10, 2026.
Wendy J.W. Marshall, MMC
Town Clerk
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 May 13, 2026 at Middletown Town Hall, Middletown Public Library and Secretary of State Web Site.
Item #17
ORDINANCE OF THE
TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN, RHODE ISLAND
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE TOWN CODE OF THE
TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN
TITLE III: ADMINISTRATION
Chapter 34, Taxes
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED AS FOLLOWS:
FIRST: That Town Code Title III, Chapter 34, Taxes, Section 34.70 entitled “Tax Classification System”, is amended by deleting Subsection 34.70(A)(1)(f) therefrom as follows (language to be deleted is stricken out within brackets; language to be added is underlined):
[Section 34.70(A)(1)(f): Any property containing a dwelling unit used or registered as a short-term rental, as that term is defined in Chapter 152, Appendix A, § 400 of the Town Code, for any period of time during the tax year for which the owner-occupied rate is claimed, shall not qualify for said rate; provided however, that the rental of one or more bedrooms to no more than six persons in an owner-occupied dwelling unit while the owner is present, with said dwelling unit being also the principal residence of the owner of said dwelling unit, shall be exempt from the provisions of this division (f).]
SECOND: This ordinance shall take effect upon passage and shall supersede any inconsistent or contrary provision in any other ordinance.