Charlestown voters to decide Aug. 4 school lease, field-use referendum

Charlestown voters will decide Tuesday, August 4, whether the town may enter into a long-term ground lease and related field-use agreement for a proposed Chariho regional elementary school.

The all-day special financial referendum is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Charlestown Town Hall, Council Chambers, 4540 South County Trail. The town says all Charlestown voters will vote at that location.

What is on the ballot

The referendum question would authorize the Charlestown Town Council to enter into a long-term ground lease with the Chariho Regional School District for a proposed elementary campus on the former Charlestown Elementary School site.

The official ballot language covers demolition of the existing Charlestown Elementary School building and construction and operation of a new elementary school serving Charlestown, Richmond and Hopkinton. The proposal calls for one or more buildings on a single campus, but the project remains subject to later approvals and financing decisions.

The question also covers a license allowing the school district to use town-owned Wicklund Field for school programs. Charlestown would retain ownership of the field, which is subject to requirements connected to federal Land and Water Conservation Fund funding and related state and federal oversight.

What a yes vote would not decide

A yes vote would authorize the town’s legal framework for the ground lease and Wicklund Field license. It would not, by itself, approve the full school project, issue construction bonds, guarantee state reimbursement or set a final project cost.

The town’s proposal identifies additional steps involving the Chariho Regional School District, the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. The proposal also calls for approval by the Chariho school committee and separate voter approval of district construction bonds.

The related bond text would authorize not more than $110.2 million in bonds or notes for the unified elementary school and related work, subject to state housing-aid conditions. It states that the reimbursement rate or state share ratio must be at least 61% when bonds are issued and may increase to 65% at project completion. Those provisions belong to the separate regional financing question, not the August 4 Charlestown land-authorization vote.

Why residents are watching

At a July public hearing, residents raised questions about traffic, drinking-water impacts, construction phasing, project cost and the possibility that state reimbursement could change. Those are planning and resident concerns, not settled effects of an approved project.

South County Star reported that the current concept would use phased construction, with one proposed building for pre-kindergarten through first grade followed by a second building for grades 2 through 5. The report said students from all three Chariho communities would begin attending the unified school after both buildings were complete. Construction, demolition and an opening date are not yet final.

What comes next

If the town referendum passes, the school district would still need to pursue its separate bond authorization and obtain the required school, state and local approvals. The regional bond question is expected to go before voters in Charlestown, Richmond and Hopkinton later in 2026, according to the local reporting and related bond materials.

Voting information

Charlestown voters can cast ballots Tuesday, August 4, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Charlestown Town Hall, Council Chambers, 4540 South County Trail, Charlestown, Rhode Island. The decision concerns town-owned land and Wicklund Field-use rights; it is separate from the later regional vote on school construction financing.

Sources

• Town of Charlestown referendum notice
• South County Star school proposal report
• Chariho unified elementary-school bond text