Barrington Council Backs Sidewalk Funding, Delays Vote on Second School Officer

The Barrington Town Council, meeting Monday, July 27, approved local funding for a long-sought Massasoit Avenue sidewalk project, put off a decision on adding a second school resource officer, and endorsed a set of proposed charter changes that would make it easier for residents to force a vote on town budget items.

Sidewalk project moves forward The council voted 3-0 to authorize the town manager and town solicitor to sign a sub-recipient agreement with the Rhode Island Department of Transportation for sidewalk and drainage work on Massasoit Avenue and the upper section of New Meadow Road, according to a memo from the town's planning director. The roughly $2.3 million to $2.4 million project is largely funded through a federal earmark and a state match, with the town committing up to $200,000 in local funds drawn from money already set aside for bicycle and pedestrian projects. Council members credited years of advocacy from the town's bicycle and pedestrian advisory committee and from current and former council members for keeping the project alive. The planning director said final design and permitting could take roughly a year, with construction possible in the following building season, and said residents along the route will be notified before work affecting trees or private property begins.

Second school resource officer tabled The council declined to vote on a police department memorandum of understanding that would add a second, 10-month school resource officer and a separate community engagement officer to the police department's work in Barrington schools. Police Chief Correia and Police Captain Igoe argued the added officer would build trust with younger students and help prevent violence, citing past incidents in which relationships with a school resource officer helped de-escalate a crisis. Two council members said they wanted more time to review detailed provisions in the agreement, including changes that would give the school superintendent final say over the officer's assignment, before voting. One council member said she opposes adding a second school resource officer altogether, saying she would rather see the money spent on mental health professionals. With no motion made, the item was tabled for a future special meeting or the council's September 14 meeting.

Ballot changes proposed for the town budget vote The council voted 3-0 to send a package of proposed charter amendments to voters this fall, aimed at revising the town's financial town referendum — the townwide ballot vote, adopted in place of the old in-person financial town meeting, that lets residents weigh in directly on the budget. If approved by voters, the changes would lower the number of signatures needed to place a budget amendment on the ballot from as many as roughly 2,856 down to 300, limit each registered voter to submitting one ballot question, require that ballot questions address a budget's bottom line rather than individual line items, and specify that if no alternative budget draws more votes than the Committee on Appropriations' recommended budget, that budget takes effect. Several residents spoke during public comment; some argued 300 signatures remains too high a bar for individual residents, while others said the current threshold made the process impossible for ordinary petitioners. A Committee on Appropriations member said the panel had already cut more than $834,000 from this year's budget in response to public feedback, before amendments were even applied.

Budget amendments finalize prior referendum cuts The council also voted 3-0 to approve the town manager's recommended adjustments implementing $253,049 in cuts that voters approved at the recent financial town referendum. Because state law and the town charter still give the council authority to shift money between budget lines, some approved cuts were applied to different accounts than voters specified, including scaling back funding tied to an energy and resilience consulting position rather than other line items. A resident objected during public comment that some line-item notes overstated the impact of the cuts.

Other business Earlier Monday, the town's Spencer Trust board — made up of the same three council members sitting as trustees — approved revised guidelines for Barrington's first-time homebuyer down payment assistance program, raising income eligibility limits, increasing maximum home purchase prices to reflect current market conditions, and creating a pre-approval process. The trust's housing board chair said the prior limits were so low that almost no homes in town qualified. One resident objected to a requirement that recipients place a long-term deed restriction on the property to preserve its affordability.

The council also directed the town manager to research adding security cameras at several town parks and portable restrooms at Police Cove Park, referred a proposal for a styrofoam recycling program to the town manager and a town committee, and said it plans to introduce a local ordinance this fall restricting electric scooters on public property. During general public comment, some residents spoke against a proposed program to paint crosswalks and benches to mark community causes, and one resident presented data questioning savings from the town's community electricity aggregation program; no votes were taken on either topic.

The council's next regular meeting is scheduled for September 14.