Graffiti has been a pastime for teenagers at Fort Wetherill State Park for decades, and the town council has sent a letter to the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management that seeks a partnership to remove the spray paint. The council also would like to work with the state to improve access to the trails at Beavertail State Park.
The town council has sent a letter to Providence that stresses the need for a partnership in order to preserve Beavertail and Fort Wetherill state parks.
The correspondence, authored by Vice President Mary Meagher, was sent to Frank Floor, parks administrator for the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. The letter was discussed by the council at its April 19 meeting and unanimously endorsed a week later.
“We recognize the difficult challenges you and the agency face,” it says. “Your workforce has been significantly reduced over these past 10 years. We have witnessed that in Jamestown, where one employee is responsible for our two state parks. He does a fabulous job, but we know that even with the seasonal assistance that he receives in late spring and summer, both parks need more help. We believe there are specific areas of concern where our community can step in to help.”
According to Meagher, the number of staff members at state parks has dwindled from 123 to 53, a decrease of 57 percent. Although the letter from the council does not reference financial assistance, it says Jamestown could be beneficial through “its thriving volunteer community,” including prospective
Eagle Scouts and the conservation commissioners. Proposed work from volunteers would include building boardwalks, laying gravel and installing drain pipes to improve the trails at Beavertail. At Fort Wetherill, the focus would be on removing overgrowth, invasive plants and graffiti.
“We understand beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” the letter says, “but there is no beauty to be found in the sight of spray paint on rocks and trees. We would like to help begin to clean up that mess.”
In return of the local volunteer workforce, the letter asks the agency to “provide some resources for this effort.” At Beavertail, that includes “a clear pathway for permitting,” access to the stockpile of gravel and permission to bring equipment onto the trails. The letter also asks the agency to pause its plans to improve the roads and entrance at Fort Wetherill because clearing overgrowth that impinges on views of the fort and bay should take precedence.
“We can organize support for that effort,” the letter says. “And we ask that you begin the laborious process of cleaning up graffiti.”
As an example of the plan to supplement paid staff with volunteer labor, the Narragansett Council of the Boy Scouts began their season of community service Saturday at Fort Wetherill by clearing trails, removing graffiti and collecting litter.
“We understand that these two great parks, with their wondrous views of Narragansett Bay, are resources for all Rhode Islanders,” Meagher said. “We welcome our friends’ visits. But these parks are particularly dear to those of us who live in Jamestown.”
The letter was sent following an April 7 walkthrough of Fort Wetherill with councilors and Town Administrator Jamie Hainsworth.
“For years we’d say that those are state parks and we can’t do anything,” Meagher said. “I think it’s time to say, ‘Hey, how can we help you?’”
