Twenty people gathered at the Pilgrim Senior Center on Thursday, October 26 to review the progress made at Salter Grove since the last neighborhood meeting on April 13, 2017. The survey conducted after the April meeting revealed that 80% of participants felt safe access to the breakwater and replacing the playground equipment should be the top priorities in the drive to restore and enhance Salter Grove. Highlights of the Oct. 26 meeting are listed below:

• Coordinator Peter Becker summarized the steps taken and resulting advances.
• A second grant has been awarded by New England Grassroots Environmental Fund to support FOSG activities.
• Meetings with officials from City of Warwick and Department of Environmental Management have prompted the allocation of $200,000 to repair the causeway.
• Numerous cleanup visits on the Breakwater during September provided the opportunity to talk with over 100 fishermen about carrying trash away.
• Matt Dickinson presented images of playground equipment, benches and trash containers designed to transform the playground into an attractive and safe environment for toddlers.
• Louise Jacobson reported on the progress of fundraising to replace the aged playground equipment.
• Sgt. Dan Magiaccomo of the Warwick Police Department explained how he and fellow officers have addressed safety concerns at Salter Grove (See our Aug. 12 blog post for details). Most importantly, he felt that the greatest deterrent to undesirable activities in the park will be heavy usage by local residents. Along these lines during the Q&A  session, a participant suggested hosting events specifically for children to attract more families as users.

Thanks to several Pawtuxet Village businesses who generously donated gift certificates for our raffle, and Rick and Rebecca Moller who donated a gift basket from United National Food.

Winners of the raffle prizes were as follows:
Cork & Brew: Robert Kok
Fellini Pizzeria: Veronica Dash
Moller Gift basket: Janey McDonald
O’Rourke’s: Bill Ruggieri
Revolution:  Mary Lawless
Schastea: Brian Tate
The Edge Fitness for Women: Katie Duncanson

To date, raffle tickets and donations have generated over $3,000, more than halfway toward our goal of $6,000 by the end of 2017!

And—a donor pledged matching funds for the current fundraising campaign!

Thanks to everyone who attended the meeting. You can find a full report of the minutes from the Oct. 26 meeting here, and some photos from the event are below.