It’s time for us to get a little aggressive with them to change this.”

John Vitkevich

PORTSMOUTH — A local resident has proposed a novel fix for what he characterized as unsightly “dirt strips” along both sides of East Main Road in the north end of town: fill them in with crushed red brick culled from the old police station’s demolition.

The 18-inch strips are located between the curbing and new sidewalks along both sides of East Main Road, north of Village Way, that were installed as part of a redesign by the R.I. Department of Transportation in late 2017, according to John Vitkevich. He’s the property manager for one of the impacted areas: 3255 East Main Road, across from Aquidneck Pools & Spas.

The new dirt strips, which are intended to grow grass, were apparently installed for water quality control measures as they collect surface water between the curb and sidewalk. However, they don’t look good and will soon grow weeds and collect trash, Mr. Vitkevich said.

He asked the Town Council Monday night to approve a resolution asking RIDOT to fill in the strips with crushed red brick. The material could easily be gleaned from the old, red brick-faced police station that was being demolished starting this week. Mr. Vitkevich suggested crushing the brick and storing the material at the Public Works garage until the state was ready to use it.

Town Administrator Richard Rainer, Jr. said his office is well aware of the situation and has been “working on what to do with this no man’s land.”

One nagging question remains, he said: Who is responsible for maintaining the grass/dirt strips? It was RIDOT’s sense that “the town was responsible for the curb in,” but the town never signed a memorandum of understanding to that effect, Mr. Rainer said.

The administrator said RIDOT owns the property, but it’s unclear whether the state will cut the grass or do any weed control.

Council President Kevin Aguiar said to modify the design, RIDOT may try to transfer maintenance of the strips to the town — a concern shared by Public Works Director Brian Woodhead. A few council members also expressed reservations over modifying the work order for the police station demolition.

Mr. Vitkevich, however, said it was important to send a message to the state that the strips need to be redesigned. “It’s time for us to get a little aggressive with them to change this,” he said.

While the council ended up approving the resolution — “It doesn’t hurt to ask,” Mr. Aguiar said — members included a condition that the town would not be responsible for any maintenance or additional costs associated with any possible changes to the strips.

Arnold named deputy chief

In other business Monday night, Mr. Rainer announced he had selected Detective Lt. Michael Arnold to be the Police Department’s next deputy chief.

He will succeed Major Maryanne Perry, who is retiring April 26 after more than 20 years with the department. Lt. Arnold will be acting deputy chief until that date.

Lt. Arnold has been a member of the local police force since 2003.

Mr. Rainer said a number of candidates were considered for the job. “My choice was an extremely difficult one to make,” which was testament to the high level of professionalism and talent within the department, Mr. Rainer said.

Town joins opioid lawsuit

In an executive session before Monday’s meeting, the council voted unanimously to join other Rhode Island municipalities in a federal lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and pharmaceutical wholesale distributors.

The federal public nuisance lawsuit, which claims the companies knowingly intensified the national opioid crisis through their actions, seeks damages to cover the costs of treatment and prevention of the opiate epidemic, as well as for enforcement.

“Portsmouth will now be a part of that lawsuit that you may have already heard about,” Mr. Aguiar announced.

Thanks to toll-busters

In another matter related to legal proceedings, Mr. Rainer’s staff, Town Solicitor Kevin Gavin and council members received kudos for their efforts in pushing back against future tolls on the Sakonnet River Bridge.

In late February, the council voted to file a federal lawsuit against state and federal highway officials to challenge the legality of tolling motorists who cross over the span connecting Portsmouth and Tiverton.

At issue was a 2013 federal highway Record of Decision (ROD) that effectively granted federal authority to the state to impose tolls on the bridge. Because that authorization was never withdrawn after bridge tolls were halted in 2014, many suspected a scheme to eventually restore the tolls.

Last week, RIDOT announced it had asked the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to rescind the ROD, a decision that “removes any doubt that tolls will not be imposed on the bridge,” Mr. Rainer told the council.

The administrator said he spoke to the local FHWA director earlier on Monday and he was assured the ROD would be rescinded within 60 to 90 days.

Larry Fitzmorris, the president of Portsmouth Concerned Citizens who is often at odds with the council, offered words of thanks to town leaders.

“This was a very prudent thing to do,” said Mr. Fitzmorris, adding that “everyone in the East Bay” owes the town a debt of gratitude. “This was an important milestone. Thank you.”

Census resolution

The council voted 6-1 to approve a resolution that encourages all Rhode Islanders to participate in Census 2020, and which supports the Rhode Island Complete Count Committee’s efforts to raise at least $1.2 million to build a community outreach campaign to ensure that “all of Rhode Island is counted in 2020.”

A copy of the resolution will be sent to the co-chairs of Rhode Island Complete Count Committee, the governor, the speaker of the House, and the president of the Senate.

The resolution contains language stating that the Trump administration’s proposal to add “an untested citizenship question puts the ability to achieve an accurate count at serious risk throughout the United States …” The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to take the matter up later this month.

Council member Keith Hamilton cast the dissenting vote. “I think the citizenship question should be in there,” he said.