Tuesday, February 8, 2011
The Town Council heard from two real estate appraisers Monday evening, who assessed damages for abandoning the Heidi Drive paper road between $1 million and around $5,000.
How much damage was done to Rhode Island Nurseries if the town abandoned Heidi Drive? According to the Town Council: none. After four hours of testimony that includes estimates from two appraisers, the council voted 3-2 to set the damages to zero. The decision came after the council heard vastly different estimates from the appraisers, ranging from $5,000 to $1 million. "These figures are all over the board," said Town Councilor Paul Kesson. The vote to set damages as zero was 3-2 with Councilors Keith Hamilton and Michael Buddemeyer against. Councilor Judi Staven left the meeting early due to illness, while James Seveney recused himself from the hearings. A motion by Hamilton to hire an outside consultant to assess the damages was voted …
41.58976
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Portsmouth Town Hall
2200 E Main Rd, Portsmouth, RI
/articles/video-town-council-rules-in-favor-of-glen-ridge-alpaca-farm-abandons-heidi-drive
226776
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Monday, February 7, 2011
The Town Council's hearing on Heidi Drive continued for a third day on Monday, Feb. 7, at Town Hall.
Updated at 11:53 p.m. on Monday. After a two-year dispute, hours of testimony and days of hearings, the Town Council ruled in favor of the Glen Ridge Alpaca Farm and voted Monday to abandon the paper road known as Heidi Drive. The vote was 3 to 2 with Councilors Michael Buddemeyer and Keith Hamilton opposed. "We are just delighted it's finally over," said Glen Ridge Farm owner Ann Fiore following the vote. "It's been a long time. "We're very grateful to all the people who attended the meetings and to all the people who supported us. The community really stepped up." Rhode Island Nurseries owner Bruce Vanicek did not wish to comment. The vote to abandon included stipulations. The owners of Glen Ridge Farm must have the paper road's value …
41.58976
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Portsmouth Town Hall
2200 E Main Rd, Portsmouth, RI
/articles/town-council-sets-damages-for-rhode-island-nurseries-at-zero-in-heidi-drive-case
226776
/locations/3320840
Monday, January 31, 2011
A hearing on the proposed abandonment of Heidi Drive continued Monday, Jan. 31, at Town Hall.
The Town Council found that Heidi Drive was no longer useful to the public following more than four hours of testimony Monday evening at Town Hall. The vote was 4 to 2 with Keith Hamilton and Michael Buddemeyer in opposition. The council voted on the motion that "Heidi Drive has ceased to be useful to the public." This hearing was recessed on Thursday following testimony from attorneys representing the two main parties involved—the Glen Ridge Alpaca Farm and Rhode Island Nurseries. On one side of the issue there is Rhode Island Nurseries' owner Bruce Vanicek, who is subdividing and selling part of his land. However, the subdivision is currently only accessible by one road. Vanicek needs to build an emergency access road to comply with town…
41.58976
-71.25351
Portsmouth Town Hall
2200 E Main Rd, Portsmouth, RI
/articles/town-council-finds-heidi-drive-no-longer-useful-to-the-public
226776
/locations/3234030
Thursday, October 28, 2010
The Town Council votes 5-1 to postpone public hearing on Heidi Drive until Dec. 13.
A longstanding dispute between two neighbors—the Glen Ridge Alpaca Farm and Rhode Island Nurseries—has been placed into the hands of the next Town Council. The current town council voted to postpone Wednesday's public hearing on Heidi Drive until after the election, when the majority of the council's members will be replaced. The postponment was recommended after questions of nepotism arose. The issue of nepotism involved Councilor Karen Gleason's brother-in-law, who is representing one of the parties involved. Gleason refused to recuse herself, stating she is "estranged" from her brother-in-law. "After being in town politics for eight years, I've never been so pressured to not be involved," Gleason said. "This is embarrassing to me, but I…
41.58976
-71.25351
Portsmouth Town Hall
2200 E Main Rd, Portsmouth, RI
/articles/council-postpones-heidi-drive-hearing-after-nepotism-questions-are-raised
226776
/locations/2303244
Monday, September 6, 2010
Owners of the historic Glen Ridge Alpaca Farm ask town to abandon road proposal.
Editor's note: The following is the second installment of a two-part series looking at the abandonment of Heidi Drive. This is a controversial issue with two sides. Please view our story on Rhode Island Nurseries to hear both sides of this debate. The request to abandon the Heidi Drive extension will be discussed at a public hearing this October in the newest phase of a controversy between Rhode Island Nurseries and the owners of Glen Ridge Farm Alpaca Farm. In a classic case of the battle between development and historic and environmental preservation, the council voted in June to allow the building of an access road which would potentially cut 20 acres off of the historic 76-acre farm. The controversy began when Bruce Vanicek, owner of …
41.563835
-71.241105
290 Frank Coelho Dr, Portsmouth, RI
/articles/fighting-for-the-farm
/locations/1828221
Sunday, August 1, 2010
A look at the historic Glen Ridge Farm, whose existence and the future of its alpaca herd could be at risk with road construction.
Aquidneck Island is not short in its supply of natural beauty, especially in the summer months when gentle breezes murmur lazily across oceanside pastures of wildflowers and grass, mingling salt into the sultry air. This tranquil scene is exactly what one might encounter on a summer afternoon while visiting Glen Ridge Farm just off Glen Ridge Road in Portsmouth. The farm, originally part of the historic Glen Manor Estate, is perched atop a gently sloping hillside boasting panoramic views of the Sakonnet. The main building, which houses the farms' resident alpacas, was built in 1925; however, additional buildings used by the farm date all the way back to the late 1700s. Needless to say, the farm is steeped both in history and natural beauty…
41.563835
-71.241105
290 Frank Coelho Dr, Portsmouth, RI
/articles/the-last-of-the-alpacas
/locations/1579017
Al Souza
10:01 am on Thursday, February 10, 2011
Perhaps if the Planning Board had been a little more diligent and requested that the provided report of possible Native American Artifacts, be proven or disproven before giving their approval this might have gone a different way. If there are any artifacts of value either historically or sensitive to their ancestors, the whole case might not have gotten this involved. So far not many seem … more ›