To the editor:

Election season is where accuracy, common sense and accountability go to die. That is on display in the letters to the editor section of the Oct. 8 Portsmouth Times.

The majority of letters decry the Portsmouth Town Council’s decision to sue the state over its takeover of residential zoning. The outcome of the lawsuit will determine whether homeowners will continue to have a say on housing in their towns — or whether bureaucrats in Providence will dictate those decisions. Two letters from Portsmouth’s state delegation are full of misinformation that, given the importance of the issue, requires debunking.

During the past several years, the legislature passed more than 60 bills that stripped zoning control from towns and gave it to state government. Portsmouth’s state delegation voted yes on many, if not most, of these power-grab bills. They even co-sponsored some. The major driver of the takeover was then-Speaker of the House Joseph Shekarchi, whose law practice focuses on real estate. A conflict of interest? Some places maybe, but not in Rhode Island. If legislators bucked him, even the slowest of them could see that would not be good for their careers.

In their letters, the state delegation asks why Portsmouth did not try to work through them rather than sue. Portsmouth did try. In response, the legislators put in a tepid bill asking that a few of the zoning bills be reviewed for possible changes. The bill went to committee and hasn’t been heard from since. That gave the legislators cover. They could say they tried to do something but gave no relief to their constituents.

Portsmouth had two choices: accept the loss of home rule or file a lawsuit. Going through the state delegation made no sense. They had failed to accomplish anything when initially asked. They had voted for many, if not most, of the power-grab bills and were unlikely to oppose the speaker.

Why is Portsmouth the only town, with one exception, paying for the filing of the lawsuit? (Hopkinton has agreed to contribute $4,000 so far.) Understandably, before committing money, the 12 towns that signed Portsmouth’s resolution opposing the state’s zoning takeover needed to see the wording of the lawsuit. Their legal counsels needed to review it. Their town councils needed to discuss it. The lawsuit was completed and filed Sept. 24. We’ll soon see which towns will step up financially.

By far the smarter question is what might it cost Portsmouth if we did nothing? The state did not pass all that legislation without intending to push for more housing. Big, rapid increases in population would mean tremendous upward pressure on property taxes for municipal services (fire, police, roads, schools), totaling possibly hundreds of millions of dollars in each town.

Rhode Island has fumbled the ball for years on housing. It needs an honest, transparent, professional study of the state’s housing needs and a smart, fair, affordable plan to meet them.

Larry Fitzmorris

President, Portsmouth Concerned Citizens

Portsmouth