The winding, 12-year saga of Touisett Farms might finally be coming to a close, as the developers for the project received final approval Monday night at a meeting of the Warren Planning Board.

In an administrative maneuver, the Warren Planning Board received and filed the final proposal, as members claimed their hands were tied by zoning board and Superior Court decisions. No vote was required.

Bill Landry, an attorney representing the developers, confirmed that the matter was before the board simply for administrative approval. S. Paul Ryan, a solicitor for the town, said he had met with Mr. Landry before the meeting, and there was not a problem with the application. He said the board did not have to vote, it simply had to have Chairman Andy Asselin sign off on final approval.

"This application had two trips to Superior Court," Mr. Ryan said. "The judge, to use an adjective, emphatically granted the appeal."

The proposal by GRF Associates to build 22 homes on 24.6 acres in the Touisset Highlands first appeared before the town in 1996. The planning board rejected it in October 2001, but the zoning board, on the advice of its solicitor, overturned this decision in September 2002. More than 70 Warren residents joined in an appeal of that decision to the Rhode Island Superior Court, but the court upheld the zoning board ruling in April 2005. At the time, judge Alice Gibney wrote that the zoning board's decision was "supported by reliable, probative and substantial record evidence."

Mr. Ryan said the only issue was an outstanding bill, and for the applicant to agree on a cash bond with the town. Mr. Ryan said neither was a sufficient reason not to sign the agreement, and Mr. Landry said the bill, about $6,400, would be paid once the final proposal was signed. The bond amount will be set at a meeting between engineering experts for the town and the applicant.

"It's much better if you let the experts agree on the amount," Mr. Ryan said, when asked if the planning board had the authority to set a bond amount.

Mr. Asselin said that although he would sign the approval, he did not approve of the project.

"I am not at all comfortable with it because I have major concerns with it in that area," he said. "But we've been turned away twice now."

Planning board member Frederick Massie asked what recourse the town had if the developers did violate the boundary lines and buffer zones. Mr. Landry and Mr. Ryan said if the issue arose, it should be handled by Warren Building Inspector William Nash.

The length of the litigation and multiple appeals was a brief source of humor for the board and Mr. Landry.

"I had brown hair when this started," Mr. Landry said.

"I had all my hair!" Mr. Asselin replied.

Regional board discussed

Mrs. MacDougall also asked Warren Town Planner Michelle Maher to setup a regional planning board with Barrington and Bristol, similar to one on Aquidneck Island.

"It really makes sense in the smallest county of Rhode Island that we coordinate," Mrs. MacDougall said.

Mrs. Maher said that while she met regularly with the town planners of both Bristol and Barrington, the town councils and communities of the other towns were the sticking point.

"These three communities can't agree on anything," she said. "[The town planners] come up with things, but we can't get our towns to go along with it."

Mr. Ryan suggested that instead of projects that affected just one or two towns, such as traffic on Main Street in Warren or turnarounds on Metacom Avenue in Bristol, a regional planning board could look at issues facing all three towns.

"There is one common thorn in the side of all three towns — the Bristol County Water Authority," Mr. Ryan said. "That could be a rallying point."

Mrs. Maher said she would speak with the Bristol and Barrington planners.

Charter changes panned

Members of the planning board and Mr. Ryan criticized changes suggested by the Warren Charter Review Commission, calling them unnecessary and illegal. Mr. Asselin said the commission's proposal would reduce the number of planning board members to seven, but also add two alternate positions.

"I don't see any advantage to that," Mr. Asselin said, noting that with seven members, alternates still would not be needed. Mr. Asselin and Mrs. MacDougall both spoke against reducing the size of the planning board at a Jan. 30 commission meeting, but the commission recommend the downsizing by a 4-3 vote at its Feb. 12 meeting. The proposed change would require approval from both the Warren Town Council and voters to take effect.

Mr. Ryan said a suggestion by the charter commission to sever the technical review committee from the planning board would be illegal. He said the East Greenwich Town Council has tried to do so several times, but has been rebuffed in court each time.

"The East Greenwich Town Council wanted to be both the town council and the planning board," he said.

By law, Mr. Ryan said, the planning board appoints a technical review committee, which serves solely in an advisory function.

Resident says to protect Touisset

The meeting ended with a request by Andrew Shapiro of 125 Touisset Road to carefully monitor the development situation in town. Citing his past experience in South Carolina, Mr. Shapiro said he was "deeply concerned" by the development issues facing Touisset.

"I think we've got to take a couple steps back and look at the situation," he said. "Where do we want Touisset to be? Because it's changing very, very quickly."

By Stephen Greenwell

sgreenwell@eastbaynewspapers.com