The number of visitors to Salter Grove has increased greatly after replacing the playground, repairing the causeway, and improving the nature trails. It is wonderful to see so many appreciating our unique park.
A few visitors mistakenly believe that they are entitled to do whatever they want in a public space. But use of public spaces, like parks, is indeed regulated for everyone’s safety and enjoyment.
Regulations applying to all Warwick parks are listed here.
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Early on a brisk Saturday morning Billy McGovern led a small group of students through the winding trails of Salter Grove. Their mission was to identify and describe the major parts of a plant.
During their walk Billy would stop periodically to play “Simon Says” with the students, challenging them to touch a specific part of a nearby plant. By the end, the students were able to identify many parts of the plant and describe their role in the plant’s life.
Photos by Jason Major
One sign of spring at Salter Grove is the flocking of volunteers to clean up the park and help make it more enjoyable for visitors and safer for wildlife.
For many consecutive years, Save the Bay in Providence has organized groups for two-hour shoreline cleanups on evenings and weekends.
On April 2, 28 enthusiastic volunteers braved a sunny but cold and windy day for the first cleanup of 2022. They gave the season a great start by hauling out 376 pounds of refuse. Items ranged from small plastics, such as water bottle tops and cigar tips, to large foam pieces of boating equipment that weighed more than 20 pounds.
The first cleanup of the year is typically a large haul because so many items accumulate during the winter months. Anything that wind and waves can move end up trapped in vegetation of the park or mired in the mud of the shoreline.
A second group came out on May 23, an event that was part of the Earth Day and Earth Week initiatives planned by Save the Bay at many locations around the state. On a chilly morning, 25 volunteers removed about 110 pounds of trash. The teams did painstaking work in the northwest corner of the park between Narragansett Parkway and the waterline. This area of the park was recently cleared of brush by a separate group of FoSG volunteers. This project revealed years’ worth of accumulation of small plastics — not heavy, but great in number.
This year, a number of new cleanup leaders are training at Salter Grove, a good sign that the efforts will be sustainable for years to come. Salter Grove is an important site for cleanups, both because of its rich ecological diversity and the number of anglers it attracts each year.
The next spring cleanup will take place on Sunday, May 22, at 9 a.m. Interested volunteers should register at volunteer.savebay.org before attending.
Photos by Save the Bay
A thick layer of Rec Mix (thrice-ground wood fiber) purchased from Thompson Native Lumber was applied to the playground on Saturday, April 30th to restore safe play conditions.
A hard-working group of FoSG members and volunteers spread 40 cubic yards of fiber in three hours.
Not pictured in the group photo, but still contributing mightily were FoSG member Rep. Joe McNamara, and a visiting family that volunteered on the spot: Sean, Ben, and Maggie Rogan. (Sean P. Rogan is a member of the local Salter’s Groove band.)
When the playground was first constructed in 2019, too little wood fiber, especially in the swing area, and exuberant use led to exposure of the underlying geotextile and gravel.
This was both unsafe and unsustainable.
Two City administrations failed to address these hazardous play conditions despite FoSG’s repeated requests, so we acted to fill the breach.
Rubber swing mats have also been ordered to prevent excessive wear under the swings and slide for a total cost of $4,061.
We thank the Vivian J. Palmieri Charitable Trust for a generous grant that enabled this project.
The playground and its plantings have cost more than $134,000, which took three years and considerable effort to raise. We need to make this last!
As guardians, let’s be sure that equipment is used responsibly and children are kept safe. Dogs must be leashed and under their owner’s control. Children should be coached on how to behave in a shared space.
Thanks to a generous grant from the Vivian J. Palmieri Charitable Trust, we have beautiful signage to greet park visitors and direct them to the nature trails, funded by the same Trust.
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The circular play area at Salter Grove will be closed on Saturday, April 30, 2022, from 9 a.m.–12 p.m. so that wood fiber can be spread to provide a safe play surface. FoSG members and volunteers will do the deed.
The two swing areas have already been renewed and will remain open. For the safety of your children, please keep them out of the work and travel areas.
Friends of Salter Grove 