Westerly Sun — Beach access issue once again a hot topic at council meeting

By Dale P. Faulkner Sun staff writer — WESTERLY — On a night when they were not even scheduled to discuss the topic, members of the Town Council heard from citizens imploring them to protect the public's right to gain access to the shoreline and to seek new paths to get to the coast.

Five people addressed the council on the subject of rights of way or paths to the shoreline Monday during the citizens' comments portion of the council's meeting. Some of the speakers asked the council to revisit a right of way in Weekapaug that the council recently agreed to have removed from a list of public access points. They also asked the council to ensure proposed revisions to the Comprehensive Plan align with provisions of the municipal Harbor Management Plan.

A lawyer from North Stonington, Anthony M. Palazzolo Jr., noted an inconsistency between the Harbor Management Plan and a draft version of the revised Comprehensive Plan saying the Comprehensive Plan omitted a right of way off Spray Rock Road in Weekapaug. The right of way Palazzolo was referring to is the sand trail that runs from Spray Rock Road to the Quonochontaug Breachway. Town Manager J. Mark Rooney said the sand trail might have been removed from a Comprehensive Plan map in error after officials determined that a nearby path to the shoreline was not a public right of way, despite its proximity to several public parking spaces.

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