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Planning Board Working Session - Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, September 2nd, 2025, 6:00 p.m.
Westerly Town Hall | Town Council Chambers
45 Broad Street, Westerly, RI 02891
A. CALL TO ORDER - Mr. O’Neil called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
B. ROLL CALL AND ATTENDANCE – Mr. O’Neil recognized all board members and staff present
Present: Chairman: Matthew O’Neil, Vice Chairman: Christopher Lawlor, Secretary: Andrew Delisio, Members: Jean Gagnier, Perry Kellogg, and James Nicholas
Absent: Member: Maurice Devine, and Alternate: Derek Lombard
Town Staff: Principal Planner: Aidan Adams, Planning Fellow: Diego Martin
Minute Taker: Chloe Chenot, Information Technology: Lanny Fuller, and Solicitors for Planning and Zoning: Scott Levesque and James Murphy
C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
1. July 29th, 2025 - The board reviewed the minutes from the July 29th meeting. Mr. Gagnier motioned to approve the minutes as submitted, and Mr. Delisio seconded the proposed motion. Mr. O’Neil, Mr. Delisio, Mr. Gagnier, Ms. Kellogg, and Mr. Nicholas were in favor. Mr. Lawlor abstained. The minutes passed
2. August 12th, 2025 - The board reviewed the minutes from the August 12th meeting. Mr. Gagnier motioned to approve the minutes as submitted, and Mr. Delisio seconded the proposed motion. Mr. O’Neil, Mr. Lawlor, Mr. Delisio, Mr. Gagnier, and Ms. Kellogg were in favor. Mr. Nicholas abstained. The minutes passed
D. CHANGES TO THE AGENDA - No changes to the agenda
E. OLD BUSINESS –
1. 2025-UDR-01 – Preliminary Plan & Special Use Permit – Royale Dispensary (140 Franklin Street | Assessor’s Map 98, Lot 96)
Before continuing discussion, Mr. Levesque added to the record documents received on September 2nd, 2025, from neighboring property owner Lynn Gibbons, of 137 Franklin Street, Westerly, RI 02891, collectively marked as Remonstrance-1. Board members O’Neil, Gagnier, Lawlor, and Delisio stated that they heard informational concerns outside of the hearing from members of the public, therefore not made as part of the record. Mr. O’Neil added that board members could not vote on topics brought forward outside of the hearing, and only testimony provided at the public hearing can be considered.
Attorney William Nardone was present to represent this application and informed the board that all outstanding items have been addressed. Sergio Cherenzia, of Cherenzia and Associates, 99 Mechanic Street, Pawcatuck, CT 06379, provided comment on concerns of traffic, zoning, and dimensional discrepancies, in response to the abutting material submitted by Ms. Gibbons. Mr. Nardone shared that both confirmation from the Fire Chief and Department of Transportation response to traffic improvements have been received. Paul Bannen, Traffic Engineer, presented the traffic and accident analysis. Mr. Bannen distributed a document titled: “Crash Analysis” for the board’s review, marked as Applicant’s-2 by Mr. Levesque. Martin Petrella, Director of Security at Greenleaf Care Center, Portsmouth, RI, was present to provide further insight into the project’s security regulations and plans. Shannon Culley, 37 Willow Street, Mystic CT, 06355, discussed the concerns of neighboring property parking and monitoring. The board asked questions, and the applicants provided feedback.
Mr. Levesque was excused from the meeting at 6:56 p.m. Attorney James Murphy acting as Solicitor for the remainder of the meeting
Members of the public provided comments. Lynn Gibbons, 137 Franklin Street, Angel Libacare, 1 Charles Avenue, Seth Chardner, 4 Charles Avenue, and Lawrence Staplesquam, 28 Charles Avenue, expressed concerns of increased traffic in the surrounding area and impacts on public safety. Kirk Levowich, 130 Franklin Street, Westerly, RI 02891, spoke on the traffic study, zoning regulations, vehicle classifications, and speeding. Mr. Levowich distributed a document of google maps images entered into the record by Mr. Murphy as R-2. Robert Chiaradio, Westerly RI, shared data provided by the Rhode Island Department of Health on RI Cannabis use and discussed potential impacts to the community. The statistics provided by Mr. Chiaradio were added to the record by Mr. Murphy, as R-3. Dylan LaPietra, 51 Clark Street, spoke on neighboring property parking. Rose VanDover, 20 Top Street, Westerly, RI 02891, addressed supply and customer capacity, tax implications, traffic, and resident impacts, in addition to other topics. Attorney Todd Romano, representing Pleasant Acres Nursery, expressed that he believes the applicant has not provided enough data to complete all application requirements, and that the permit be denied. Dan Ardente, co-counsel for the applicant, was introduced. Mr. Nardone and Mr. Ardente addressed the public inquiries. Upon no further comment from the public, the board was polled for discussion, deciding that they were overall satisfied with the information as presented.
A recess was called at 8:39 p.m. The meeting reconvened at 8:45 p.m.
Mr. Gagnier motioned to close the public hearing of this item at 8:45 p.m., and Mr. Delisio seconded the motion. The board was all in favor, and the public hearing was closed. The board then discussed the approvals of the Special Use Permit and Minor Land Development applications.
Mr. Nicholas, Mr. Gagnier, Mr. Delisio, Ms. Kellogg, and Mr. O’Neil were in support of granting the Special Use Permit, and believed the applicant satisfied all requirements necessary. Mr. Lawlor was against approval, and emphasized the potential impacts to the surrounding area, and public safety. Mr. Gagnier moved a motion to approve the Special Use permit, with conditions, referencing the draft motion in the Administrative Officer’s Memorandum, dated August 28th, 2025, for the September 2nd, 2025, meeting, with an additional condition of installing a fence between the neighboring Pleasant Acres Nursery, and the property’s rear. Mr. Nicholas seconded the proposed motion. The board discussed. Mr. O’Neil suggested the motion be amended to correct Section 260-89.9 to 260-87-9. Mr. Gagnier amended his motion to include the correction, and Mr. Nicholas seconded the motion as revised. Mr. Gagnier, Mr. Nicholas, Mr. Delisio, Ms. Kellogg, and Mr. O’Neil were in favor. Mr. Lawlor opposed. The motion passed 5-1
The board then discussed the Minor Land Development project application. Members believed all requirements were met and were all in favor. Mr. Nicholas then motioned to approve the Minor Land Development application, referencing the motion included in the Administrative Officer’s Memorandum, dated August 28th, 2025, for the September 2nd, 2025, meeting, with the conditions as outlined. Mr. Delisio seconded the proposed motion. The board discussed. Mr. Gagnier suggested adding an additional condition of providing the Physical Alteration Permit from the Department of Transportation. Mr. Nicholas amended his motion, and Mr. Delisio seconded the motion as amended. The board was all in favor, and the motion passed
2. Route One Corridor Working Session – Comprehensive Plan Amendments
Municipal Fellow Diego Martin continued the presentation of the “Route 1 Corridor Plan Design Standards”, which further detailed the opportunities of improvements, visualization, and analyses of Sub-Corridors 3, 4, and 5 of the Route One Corridor project. The board reviewed the presentation and made recommendations of potential design standards that could be applied to businesses along the Route One Corridor. Questions posed and topics of discussion included: businesses within the transects, sidewalk ordinances, the signage ordinance and amendments, scale and design, billboards, and applicable businesses
3. Planning Board Annual Report for FY 2024-25
The board discussed the revised document, and suggested verbiage changes. Once members were satisfied with the report, Mr. Nicholas motioned to approve the document as amended, and Mr. Lawlor seconded. The board was all in favor, and the motion carried unanimously
4. Letter to Town Council Regarding Relocation of Bus Storage Facility
The board reviewed the letter provided by Mr. Gagnier. Upon no further revisions, Mr. Gagnier moved a motion to complete the report and submit the letter to the Town Council. Mr. Nicholas seconded the motion. The board was all in favor, and the motion carried unanimously
F. NEW BUSINESS – No discussion
G. ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER’S REPORT – No discussion
H. ASSISTANT SOLICITOR FOR PLANNING AND ZONING’S REPORT – No discussion
I. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS & BOARD QUESTIONS –
Mr. Nicholas inquired about the planning application checklist, and suggested the board review the current requirements. Mr. Adams added to discussion that as of September 2nd, applications are being uploaded into an online portal. Members discussed further. It was suggested that this be added as an agenda item for the next meeting, for discussion and possible action
J. CONFIRMATION OF QUORUM FOR NEXT MEETINGS
1. September 16th, 2025, Regular Meeting at 6:00 p.m. - Mr. Gagnier cannot attend, all remaining members can be present
K. ADJOURNMENT – Mr. Nicholas motioned to adjourn the meeting at 11:02 p.m. and Mr. Lawlor seconded the motion. The board was all in favor, and the meeting adjourned at 11:02 p.m.
Next Regularly Scheduled Meeting- September 16th, 2025, at 6:00 p.m.
Submitted by Chloe Chenot on 9/22/2025
APPROVED BY VOTE OF THE BOARD ON 11/18/2025