Saturday, October 10, 2020 |

CONN. GOVERNOR ANNOUNCES ADVISERS FOR POTENTIAL VACCINE DISTRIBUTION / A3

Westerly officials: Playgrounds to remain closedCleaning expense too great amid COVID to reopen parksBy Dale P. FaulknerSun staff writer

WESTERLY — The cost associated with following state and federal guidelines for cleaning playgrounds to protect chil-dren and their families from contracting COVID-19 is forcing the continued closure of playgrounds, town officials said.

In recent weeks, members of the Town Council have asked Town Manager J. Mark Rooney and Chief of Police Shawn Lacey whether playgrounds could be reopened. On Monday, Rooney and Julia Beardsley, the town’s interim Recreation Department director, discussed the decision to keep the playgrounds closed.

The two officials said the playgrounds will remain closed for the time being, but acknowledged residents’ frustration and said one of the facilities might open in the future.

“We have had a request to open smaller playgrounds. I think we’re getting close,” Beardsley said.

Beardsley, who oversaw operations at Westerly Town Beach and Wuskenau Beach this summer, said she supported the decision to keep the playgrounds closed.

“It’s a tough puzzle to solve,” she said.

The cleaning protocol at the beaches included a detailed cleaning of the re-strooms three times per day throughout the summer. “It was hard to keep up with,” Beardsely said.

Cleaning the playgrounds is especially important because in many cases, Beard-sley said, children go to playgrounds with their grandparents. The virus is particular-ly dangerous for senior citizens and those with other medical conditions.

According to Rooney, the town cannot open the playgrounds without first submit-ting a cleaning plan to the state.

“You have to open with a cleaning pro-gram and disinfect throughout the day even though the sun is the greatest disinfectant. I know it sounds like it defies common sense ... that’s the governor’s direction,” Rooney said.

Town departments are not staffed at levels that would allow for opening playgrounds, Rooney said. When reliance on volunteer organizations was suggested, Rooney said the town would be expected to complete the cleaning regimen if a volunteer was unavailable.

Beardsley said she believes daily power washing would be required “if you want to do it correctly. Plenty of towns are not doing it correctly. ... I’m not sure how they are making it.”

‘A GREAT EXPERIENCE’

OUTDOOR CLASSROOMChariho students trade computers for the environmentBy Jason ValleeSun staff writer

RICHMOND — Students in Dan Potts’ eighth grade science class left classrooms and computer screens behind Wednesday and took to the great outdoors. Social studies teacher Jay Sutton also accompanied the group.

Traveling on foot from the Char-iho campus, the students ended

up at Meadow Brook Pond.

“This is the same group of kids that I had out last year at this time,” Potts said. “It’s a great sce-nario. They’ve increased their kayaking skills; they get to see the pond in a whole different light compared to last year. The severe drought has just wreaked havoc on this body of water.”

Tucker Malenfant and Cameron McDermott, both 13, kayaked the pond and saw how the current drought has affected the water level.

“The water level used to be like, 5 to 10 feet higher than it would be now,” Malenfant said. “It’s super low. We saw a bunch of mussels, and they were all lined up on the beach, and [Potts] taught us about how they move and he told us that it was lowered so much that they couldn’t get back, so they were all just stranded up there. Same with the fish that couldn’t make it back.”

McDermott said he was struck by the depleted state of the pond.

“This is the lowest it’s ever been, and hopefully, we don’t see it like this ever again,” he said. “ I saw dead mussels, dead fish and that was pretty much it. Every-thing’s all dried up. It’s like, all marshy.”

Potts takes each of his five sci-ence classes on a field trip that lasts the entire school day.

“I have five classes,” he said. “This is the fifth class I have to take out. We spread that over a series of three weeks. ... The kids show up to school like a regular

Diversity, inclusion common themesBy Brendan CrowleySpecial to The Sun

STONINGTON — The Board of Selectmen on Wednesday inter-viewed eight candidates for the open seat on the Board of Police Commissioners.

Of the 13 applications the board received, five were withdrawn. The remaining candidates sat

before the three selectwomen at the Stonington Police Depart-ment, each answering the same four questions.

The questions focused on each candidate’s experience, skill sets and the positive impacts they hoped to leave on the town during their five-year term.

Diversity and inclusion was a common theme throughout the night. Many candidates spoke on the need for increased police accountability amid the

nationwide Black Lives Matter movement. Most candidates mentioned diversity and inclu-sion training as part of their skill sets.

Former Superior Court Judge John Nazzaro talked about the importance of bringing new equipment to Stonington’s po-lice force, including body cams and dashboard cams.

“We want a police department that’s properly equipped, properly trained, that does the

job right for the public trust,” he said.

Nazzaro said his experience in criminal justice brought him familiarity in every aspect of the criminal justice system, and he thinks he could help the mem-bers of the board.

“We have to improve. There’s not a choice here. We have to improve with not only percep-tion, but our relationship with the minority community,” he

Selectmen interview 8 for Police Commission seat

White House increases virus aid offer. A6

NATION & WORLD

Previewing Westerly, Chari-ho boys soccer. B1

SPORTS

‘Forty-Year-Old Version’ an impressive debut. B5

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Raimondo: No plans to ease virus restrictions anytime soonGov. Gina Rai-mondo urged Rhode Islanders to “try to be a little more care-ful” as corona-virus cases and virus-related hospitalizations in the state have been on the rise.

AP File Photo

R.I. likely to continue in Phase 3 of recovery for several more months

PROVIDENCE (AP) — Gov. Gina Raimondo does not anticipate relaxing any of the Rhode Island’s coronavirus restrictions until a vaccine becomes available.

The state has been in Phase 3 of its economic recovery plane since June and will likely stay there for

several more months, the Demo-cratic governor told WPRI-TV on Thursday.

“As much as I would love to relax these regulations, I am confident that’s not the right thing to do,” she said. “We have to stay where we are in Phase 3 and just hold on for a few more months until we have a vaccine.”

She also expressed concern about a rising number of confirmed coro-navirus cases and a rising number

of virus-related hospitalizations, even though the state’s positivity rate remains lower than 2%.

She said most of the new cases appear to be connected to small gatherings, not large public events, and urged Rhode Islanders to “try to be a little more careful.”

In other news, Raimondo said the alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was “terri-ble,” but said she herself feels safe.

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Harold Hanka, The Westerly Sun

Eighth grade students in Dan Potts’ science class took a field trip Wednesday on foot and by kayak to Meadow Brook Pond in Richmond to study land use, human impact and the effects of the drought on the area.