Residents, conservation group press Pawtucket council to halt Morley Field conversion
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Summary
Public commenters and the Conservation Law Foundation urged the council to suspend a conversion application for Morley Field, arguing the administration submitted a package without required council review and that the proposal would remove the neighborhood’s primary green space.
Richard Stang, an attorney with the Conservation Law Foundation, told the council the foundation has repeatedly notified city, state and federal agencies that the Morley Field conversion application fails to meet federal statutory requirements and "that the conversion application was not brought in front of the city council for the city council to actually vote on it as required by a previous vote" (speaker 12). He asked the council to notify the Department of Environmental Management and the National Park Service that council review and approval must precede any conversion submission.
Adam Greenman, a Woodlawn resident, framed the issue as a neighborhood and moral concern: "To take away the only major green space in a neighborhood that needs it most is immoral," he said (speaker 13), arguing that Woodlawn residents would lose walkable recreation while proposed replacement parcels are distant and smaller. Cameron Segala (speaker 14) echoed that point, saying the trade would move 3.6 acres out of Woodlawn and offered "a 1 acre dog park up the road," calling that inequitable.
Representative Sherry Cruz (speaker 15) told the council she is "very concerned about the statutory legal requirements that may have not happened here" and urged the body to ensure the community's voice and required procedural steps are honored before any conversion proceeds.
Councilor Gregor (speaker 11) later summarized his concern as a separation-of-powers and process issue in a submitted communication: he said prior council resolutions required the administration to provide a replacement-site plan, schematic designs, a certified appraisal and an environmental impact review and that those materials — and the council review required by resolution — were not provided before an application was submitted to state or federal agencies. He asked the council to consider rescinding or suspending the application and to require that any conversion be brought back for council review and a vote.
No formal council vote on the conversion application was recorded in the meeting. Several residents and the CLF asked the council to demand documentation from the administration and to suspend any conversion application filed with DEM or the National Park Service until the council has reviewed, debated and voted on the plan.
The council did not take up a formal motion on rescission at the meeting; speakers emphasized next steps for records requests and potential follow-up with the clerk and counsel.