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Opinion
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Thu, Oct 25
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
Block Island residents are in the unique position of being able to have fairly regular contact with its locally-elected officials. Any of the incumbents or candidates for Town Council can be seen, and approached, almost anywhere in town. The same goes for the folks running for School Committee or...
Education needed before more bans
Thu, Oct 18
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
The Block Island Tourism Council and the Town Council are quite right to slow down on taking any more action on ordinances designed to ban more plastics from being used or distributed on the island. We come to this with the absolute belief that plastics are a direct threat to marine wildlife and...
Letters
Thu, Oct 18
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
To the Editor:
I agree with letters appearing in the last few weeks that call for the removal of deer, ticks and tick-borne diseases. In particular, I share the disagreement of P.S. Wood with
The Block Island Times
editorial of Sept. 15, 2018. If there truly is a law stating that...
Important jobs
Thu, Oct 11
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
It is probably statistically accurate to say that the largest expense in any municipal budget goes to its school system. On Block Island, about $5 million is allocated to its one school, more than a third of the roughly $12 million it takes to run the town each year. Arguably, our schools also...
Letters
Thu, Oct 11
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
‘Not very professional’
To the Editor: Extra! Extra! It’s less than a month until our local election takes place, and
The Block Island Times
still has not provided bios or info about the candidates. Not very professional. For the record, I am in favor of eliminating the deer in the...
Letters
Thu, Oct 4
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Banning Glyphosate
(The following letter was also submitted to the New Shoreham Town Council
:) To the Editor: In our continued effort to ban the use of the herbicide Roundup (Glyphosate) on Block Island, the Conservation Commission met for a special meeting on Tuesday, September 18...
Learning from adversity
Thu, Oct 4
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
Monday night’s meeting of the Town Council spotlighted the variety of challenges associated with constructing rental housing on Block Island. Town Manager Ed Roberge informed the council that the lone proposal for the Thomas Property project was over budget, and would go three months over schedule...
Letters
Thu, Sep 27
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Safe if used properly
To the Editor: It is my hope that this letter will explain and defend some of the allegations regarding the safe use of glyphosate, the main ingredient in the herbicide known as Roundup that came up at the Conservation Commission meeting to consider banning the use of...
The quiet zone
Thu, Sep 27
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
At the Tourism Council’s Annual Meeting that was held at The Spring House on Wednesday, Sept. 26, an expert in the travel habits of American vacationers, who specializes in New England trends, brought up the subject of the internet on Block Island — or the lack thereof. It was one of the first...
Letters
Thu, Sep 20
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Incorrect attribution
To the Editor: In last week’s cover story titled “Vehicle congestion a topic of discussion”
(Block Island Times
, Sept. 15), I was quoted as saying “There are more problems down there than just the taxi stands. There are new businesses down there, lots of new...
The conversation continues
Thu, Sep 20
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
There will be another opportunity to discuss how business has been performing on Block Island, both for this past summer and in previous years, at the annual meeting of the Tourism Council that will be held at The Spring House on Tuesday, Sept. 25 at 5 p.m. The public is invited and encouraged to...
Letters
Thu, Sep 13
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Clambake a success
To the Editor: The Block Island Lions Club would like to thank each and every person, business, and organization that supported our annual Labor Day Clambake (pictured above). This is our 25th year of service on the island, and through your generosity and participation,...
Reducing the herd
Thu, Sep 13
Category:
Editorials
There has been a letter writing campaign by some Block Island homeowners and residents asking the Deer Task Force to look into additional ways to once again reduce the deer population in some significant manner. There should be, first, a deer count done sometime during the winter. Rather than...
Letters
Thu, Aug 30
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Nom de plume
To the Editor: The Endangered Species letter (featured on page 15 in last week’s edition of
The Block Island Times
) was written by my sister, Eileen Littlefield Lee. She had a wicked wit. I believe it was done in the early 1970s when island folk observed changes to old-...
Set the terms
Thu, Aug 30
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
There is a letter from National Grid written to Town Manager Ed Roberge and Facilities Manager Sam Bird dated Aug. 21, 2018 that is on next week’s Town Council agenda. The letter addresses issues regarding the exposed portion of the sea2shore cable that has been a topic of discussion in recent...
Letters
Thu, Aug 23
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
In full use To the Editor: On behalf of the Block Island Harbors Committee, I would like to extend a gracious thank you to the Wronowski family for their initiative in helping facilitate the new public dinghy dock located between Payne’s Dock and Dead Eye Dick’s restaurant. The Wronowski family...
Weeds, for lack of a better word, can be good
Thu, Aug 23
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
The news out of California was shocking: a jury awards a groundskeeper almost $290 million based on its determination that the herbicide glyphosate, found in the popular weedkiller Roundup, was responsible for his cancer. That verdict will undoubtedly be appealed, but the message the jury sent is...
Letters
Thu, Aug 16
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
A beloved island, with a price
To the Editor: On July 19, my son passed away on Block Island, and while we are still awaiting an official cause of death, it seems clear that substance abuse played a role. I’m writing this letter to all the residents of New Shoreham, all those who live there...
Power Outage Information
By
Lars Trodson
Thu, Aug 16
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
The following was sent in by BIPCo’s President Jeffery Wright:
The power to the National Grid substation in Wakefiled was interrupted on Wednesday, Aug. 15, at 4:54 p.m., causing an island-wide outage. The Block Island Power Company restored power within approximately 50 minutes by using...
Letters
Thu, Aug 9
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
A great swim
To the Editor: A record 110 swimmers, ranging in age from 10 to 72, turned out for the fourth annual Great Salt Pond Swim, held on Saturday, July 28. The famous Block Island fog also decided to make an appearance, rolling in from the east, across Block Island Sound to the Great...
A season of giving
Thu, Aug 9
Category:
News
,
Opinion
,
Editorials
Block Island has experienced a remarkable season of events designed to raise funds not only for our local institutions, but for individuals, as well. The season began with an island-wide party for the Murphy family, and continued through with successful events and fundraisers for the Block Island...
Letters
Thu, Aug 2
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Holy cow!
To the Editor: In the past, I was a big pain in the neck to our friendly Harbormaster. All I can say now is “Holy cow! What a dinghy dock!” We’ve all had to manage with a docking facility that was tremendously inadequate. Now we will have access to what I can easily say is the...
Thinking in bold strokes
Thu, Aug 2
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
Town Manager Ed Roberge has helped to facilitate an enormous — and enormously intriguing — idea to create a new kind of community zone to be located on parcels located near the Block Island School; a zone may eventually include a combination of homes to purchase and rental units. It can’t be...
Letters
Thu, Jul 26
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
A note of thanks
Dear friends: We thank you for the generous outpouring of love and support being displayed by the Block Island community and beyond. We feel that you are putting your arms around us in an unending hug that blankets us with your caring, concern, and deep affection. Your...
One small step
Thu, Jul 26
Category:
News
,
Opinion
,
Editorials
There is ecological bad news everywhere. Mudslides, sink holes, melting ice caps, heat waves, volcanoes, earthquakes, flooding, and drought. It sometimes feels so overwhelming that it’s reasonable to think that there is nothing one person can do to prevent these disasters from happening. The most...
Big doings at the Harbor Church
Thu, Jul 19
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
,
Featured Letters
The following was submitted by the Board of Trustees of the Harbor Church:
To the Editor: Many of you have noticed the changes going on at the Harbor Church. We are converting the third floor into four year-round, affordable apartments and already have numerous people eager to move in!...
Letters
Thu, Jul 19
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Broadband progress
To the Editor: Slow internet? We know! The Block Island Broadband Committee has been working very hard to make island-wide high-speed internet a reality. For those of you who have not been following our progress, a quick recap is in order. At our May 2018 Financial Town...
Time to move on
Thu, Jul 19
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
It’s unclear as to why town leadership is maintaining its steadfast opposition to the Quonset-based fast ferry service. We understand why Interstate Navigation is against it — that makes sense. Interstate doesn’t want some gadfly business coming in here just during the summer, potentially taking...
Letters
Thu, Jul 12
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
In praise of Pastor Steve
To the Editor: Allow me to raise my pen and voice in recognition of the Rev. Steve Hollaway and what a gift he has been to the Community on Block Island! A solid man comfortable in his own skin and a solid Minister of Christ committed to the word of God, Rev. Steve...
Not pretty
Thu, Jul 12
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
This is not art. It’s not pretty. It’s vandalism. We almost hate to bring attention to it, because whoever did this — if they are not long gone — will probably have a good chuckle over our unfashionable chagrin, but even we thought tagging was a thing of the past. That old culvert underneath the...
Letters
Thu, Jul 5
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
A special community
To the Editor: On behalf of the family of Robbie Murphy and the Fundraising Committee of the Block Island Lions Club: Thank you, Block Island! You have once again demonstrated what a special community this is. The list of those who donated items and services for the...
A fine sight
Thu, Jul 5
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
It was a joyous, fun-filled Fourth of July here on Block Island. The fireworks went off without a hitch. The parade was raucous and fun-filled. The Block Island Volunteer Fire Department’s annual steak fry was a big success. Many, many words could be used to describe the sense of fun that pervaded...
Letters
Thu, Jun 28
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
A caring place
To the Editor, I was recently reminded of the special caring quality of life we enjoy on our island. An incapacitated friend needed to get to Point Judith to meet an ambulance. Rita Grimes, who works at the ferry dock, treated both of us like family. She immediately helped us...
Candidates file for offices
By
Lars Trodson
Thu, Jun 28
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
Here are the declared candidates for open seats on various town boards, including the Town Council. The declaration of candidacy period closed at Block Island Town Hall on Wednesday, June 27:
Town Council:
First Warden: Ken Lacoste (R) and Mark Emmanuelle (I).
Second Warden:
André...
Letters
Thu, Jun 14
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
BIMI’s Chowder Cookoff
To the Editor: I would like to thank all those who participated in our Memorial Day weekend chowder event. Eleven restaurants provided chowder for a crowd of about 400. Participating restaurants were Aldo’s, Ballard’s Inn, Beachead, Block Island Oyster Bar & Grill...
Just a reminder...
Thu, Jun 14
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
This is not the way to park a bike when taking a walk at Crescent Beach, or any of the beaches along Corn Neck Road. There are bike racks at every entrance to the beach, across the street, and at the Fred Benson Beach Pavilion. Please be delicate with the island’s fragile dunes.
Letters
Thu, Jun 7
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
With love
To our Friends and Family, It is hard to believe that it has only been a week since we received the phone call that is every parent’s nightmare. I want to thank Mike Ernst for dropping what he was doing to bring our family to the mainland in his fishing boat because it was too...
A plastic shield? Really?
Thu, Jun 7
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
Looks like we’re stuck with a mitigation plan for the exposed part of National Grid’s sea2shore cable that no one really cares for. This summer the island will be blessed with a field comprising a dozen buoys designating the area where the exposed cable lies about 200 feet offshore at Fred Benson...
Letters
Thu, May 31
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Ask the residents first
To the Editor: I’m writing in response to the May 19th article “Harbors facility at Ball O’Brien gets a closer look.” As an owner at the Salt Pond Settlement and longtime past member of that board, I know that the residents there know all too well about the...
Look, no hands!
Thu, May 31
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
One of the reasons why governing bodies keep passing new laws is because human beings, by and large, have a difficult time with self-discipline. It’s no secret that drinking and driving is not only against the law, but stunningly dangerous, and yet there was a DUI arrest by the State Troopers on...
Letters
Thu, May 24
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Continued support
To the Editor: I was greatly saddened, on many levels, at the recent problem the Fire/Rescue organization has had with its finances. It occasioned me to think of a tool I have used with my nonprofit organizations to help them understand and improve their accounting...
Editorial photo
Thu, May 24
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
“Our debt to the heroic men and valiant women in the service of our country can never be repaid. They have earned our undying gratitude. America will never forget their sacrifices.” — President Harry S. Truman “It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God such men...
Letters
Thu, May 17
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
An ill-advised policy
To the Editor: As a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Iran from 1968 to 1970, I see President Trump’s action to withdraw from the Iran nuclear agreement as a great tragedy. It effectively ends our hopes for averting a nuclear arms race in the Middle East...
Our complete support
Thu, May 17
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
On the morning of Thursday, May 17, the Block Island Rescue Squad ambulance went racing down Ocean Avenue, sirens blaring. That ambulance was driven by a volunteer, and whomever was being transported was also being attended to by a volunteer. These folks are among the many who are about to work...
Letters
Thu, May 10
Category:
Letters
A penny saved...
To the Editor: Thank you to: Pennies people! Grand total: $2,830.36.
The Block Island Times
for the great publicity. Every student (and family) who so generously, and happily, filled his or her individual collection boxes.
Stacy Henshaw’s second...
Take your junk to the dump
Thu, May 10
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
The weather has gotten warmer, seasonal residents are returning to the island to open up their homes. In light of that, Highways Department Supervisor Mike Shea has a plea not to leave unwanted household items on the side of the road by anyone thinking that the Highways Department will eventually...
Personal Essay: Your meeting, your island, your vote
By
Sven Risom
Fri, May 4
Category:
News
,
Featured Letters
Block Island is one of the last remaining towns in Rhode Island to hold a Financial Town Meeting, a time when all registered voters have a say regarding the town’s finances, so please come to the Block Island School at 7 p.m. on Monday, May 7, to exercise your vote. What is the Financial Town...
Featured Letter
Thu, May 3
Category:
Opinion
,
Featured Letters
To the Editor: It has been almost four years since I first brought attention to the Town Council concerning the old Old Town Road culvert. It was a few years before that that Merrill Slate took me to the site on the north side of the culvert saying, “go on down in there, crawl if you have to, and...
Letters
Thu, May 3
Category:
Opinion
,
Letters
Yes to CAI network
To the Editor: Because I sit on the Block Island Broadband Committee, several friends have asked me why the residences and businesses along the CAI (ommunity anchor institutions) route will not be able to hook up to the broadband fiber as it is installed. Under the...
Time to make your voice heard
Thu, May 3
Category:
Opinion
,
Editorials
A year-and-a-half ago, one of the more important questions in recent Block Island history was put to voters: Whether or not to buy two-thirds of Block Island Power Company stock to create a local utility district. The build-up to the vote was intense, with passionate views on each side, and the...
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Island Buzz
Escape to Narragansett!
Posted By
The Break: A Narragansett Hotel
11/13
Spa services, heated pool, heated bathroom floors, onsite restaurant, luxurious linens, ocean views. . .all at a great price...
New Price! Own on the Private Old Mill Road https://liladelman.com/listing/592-old-mill-rd-block-island/
Posted By
Lila Delman Real Estate
11/13
Silent Sounds & Conservancy. Located down one of the Island’s private roads Old Mill Road, this property is an equal...
Author Event
Posted By
Island Free Library
11/13
Please join us Friday, November 15th, at 7pm for an evening with author K Chess Refreshments will be served FAMOUS MEN WHO...
BI Resident Rate at The Break Hotel - 10% OFF
Posted By
The Break: A Narragansett Hotel
11/13
Coming to or from the island, staying for pleasure or business, visiting the local lighthouses or learning to surf, you’ll...
Still Looking for a Summer Rental?
Posted By
Sullivan Sotheby's International Realty
11/13
Sullivan Sotheby’s International Realty has some great options, if your still searching for that perfect Summer Rental. We...
History Happening Here
Posted By
Block Island Historical Society
11/12
All are welcome at the Museum of the Block Island Historical Society. Founded in 1942, we have shared our collections with...
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Real Estate
1,290,000
Shalimar
Sullivan Sotheby's International Realty
This year round private home has a light filled, open floor plan and sits high on the property...
2,495,000
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415,000
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Sullivan Sotheby's International Realty
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A year round getaway is the best way to describe this three bedroom three bath home. One can relax...
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1,600,000
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Sullivan Sotheby's International Realty
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995,000
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UNDER CONTRACT! Private setting on Beacon Hill is heaven on earth, with boat-builder details and a...
Island Religion
PART 6 TONGUES
Posted By
Block Island Christian Fellowship
11/7
PART 6 TONGUES CHAPTER 10 Are Prayer Tongues the Evidence of the Baptism (Indwelling or Filling) of the Holy Spirit? Before...
A Place at the Table Sermon
Posted By
Harbor Church
11/4
Deuteronomy 16:1-8 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) The Passover Reviewed 16 Observe the month [ a ] of Abib by keeping...
PART 5 TONGUES
Posted By
Block Island Christian Fellowship
10/31
PART 5 TONGUES CHAPTER 8 What Is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit? The easy answer is, it depends who you ask. The answer to...
