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Land Trust May Buy 68 Acres From Barrington, R.I., Country Club

Posted on: Tuesday, 20 September 2005, 21:00 CDT

Sep. 20--BARRINGTON -- The electric golf cart quietly zipped across the manicured fairways of the Rhode Island Country Club before pausing on a narrow wooden bridge.

U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee peered out of the cart and into the murky waters of the Big Mussachuck Creek below. At his side, club president Stephen Carlotti talked about the phragmites' infestation of the tidal creek that cuts through his golf course and connects Narragansett Bay to Brickyard Pond and Echo Lake.

With Chafee's help, the creek's weed problem may be solved, and 68 acres set between the prestigious golf course and Narragansett Bay may be preserved forever.

The senator has secured $1 million in the Senate's fiscal 2006 Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations bill, which would allow the Barrington Land Conservation Trust to purchase the 68-acre Sowams property and hold the easement for another 12 acres of country club lands.

"Any kind of land preservation issue I've always got an interest in," Chafee said during yesterday's brief tour of the property with local conservation enthusiasts and golf club officials.

The group scooted around the golf course, inspecting the creek -- which would be significantly opened and even dredged under the proposal -- and the outskirts of the property up for conservation.

Chafee said there was unique historical value to the area, citing the presence of Native-American artifacts on the site, including crescent-shaped stone hearths estimated to be 5,500 years old, and some burial sites. Michael Weeden, chief of the Pokanoket Tribe, was on hand yesterday to endorse the plan.

"This is a wonderful opportunity we never thought would take place," land conservation trust president Helen Tjader said. "There's a nice combination of wooded land and open space with a pond. And this area is really a fabulous historical site."

And while there was little talk yesterday of the plan failing, significant hurdles must be cleared before Tjader's organization would see any money or the creek restoration project could begin.

The Senate version of the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriation bill hasn't been approved by both chambers, or signed into law by the president. House and Senate leaders are conferencing two versions of the bill, and although Chafee is hopeful, there's no guarantee the Barrington funds will remain untouched.

In addition, much of the targeted property is owned by the private golf club. Club president Carlotti said yesterday that members have not yet voted to sell the land. If they did, there's no guarantee it would be sold to the land trust, as opposed to a for-profit developer who would pay a higher price.

Despite the variables, Carlotti said the plan should go forward.

"There's no firm agreement with the land trust," he said. "The vast majority of our members agree; we have to do this project. It's critical."

The outcome of the Congressional conference should be known before Thanksgiving, Chafee said, adding that yesterday's tour revitalized his support for the project.

"I'll rev up my persuasive skills," he said.

"We can hope you can be as persuasive as you were with your transportation bill," said a smiling state Rep. Sue Story, who was also on hand.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Providence Journal, R.I.

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Source: Providence Journal

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