As one of the original 13 colonies that ultimately declared independence from Britain and became a U.S. state, Rhode Island is the home to thousands of historic buildings, many from the 19th and 18th centuries. Historic communal buildings, such as schools, municipal complexes, and churches, are often the last remaining historic buildings from a bygone era. As historic buildings age and deteriorate, the state and local governments are forced to balance the interests of historical preservation with those of safety, aesthetics, and a city’s comprehensive development plan. A division of the Rhode Island Superior Court recently addressed townspeople’s objection to an approved development project in the Wickford Village Center District of the town of North Kingstown.
The Town of North Kingstown is the home of the former Wickford Elementary School, built in the 1800s. The building, which currently leaves an 11,000-square-foot footprint, has been the source of problems for the town for years. The town has attempted to facilitate renovation and development of the abandoned building several times since it went vacant over 15 years ago. The appellee in the recently decided case is a development company that submitted a plan to the town to convert the old schoolhouse into a 39-unit condominium complex. The appellee sought and was granted several dimensional and use variances from the town’s zoning board to allow the project to continue. To gain approval for the project, the appellee called several expert witnesses to testify about the feasibility and effects of their development project.
Neighboring property owners objected to the project at the planning and zoning stage. They ultimately appealed the zoning board’s approval to the superior court, arguing that the size of the project, as well as the amount of parking that would be needed, disrupted the townspeople’s use and enjoyment of their property. The appellee responded that each of the townspeople’s objections to the project had been addressed by the expert witnesses who testified before the zoning board, and the townspeople did not object to or challenge the experts at the time.