Video: Heidi Drive Damages Estimated Between $5K to $1 Million

How much damage was done to Rhode Island Nurseries if the town abandoned Heidi Drive? According to the Town Council: none.

After four hours of testimony that includes estimates from two appraisers, the council voted 3-2 to set the damages to zero. The decision came after the council heard vastly different estimates from the appraisers, ranging from $5,000 to $1 million.

"These figures are all over the board," said Town Councilor Paul Kesson.

The vote to set damages as zero was 3-2 with Councilors Keith Hamilton and Michael Buddemeyer against. Councilor Judi Staven left the meeting early due to illness, while James Seveney recused himself from the hearings.

A motion by Hamilton to hire an outside consultant to assess the damages was voted down.

“You bring more appraisers in here, it will be the same thing,” Pedro said.

The council voted to abandon the paper road as long as the following conditions are met:

• National Grid is provided an easement for equipment along the road.
• The road must be assessed for value by the town's tax assessor by Aug. 1.
• The owners of Glen Ridge Farm must pay the town the fair-market value of the roadway as assessed by the tax assessor. 
• Glen Ridge Farm must combine its five plots into one single land plot.

The paper road will officially become abandoned on Aug. 1 if all these conditions are met. The vote to abandon was 3-2 with Hamilton and Buddemeyer opposed.

"We are just delighted it's finally over," said Glen Ridge Farm owner Ann Fiore following the vote. "It's been a long time. ... We're very grateful to all the people who attended the meetings and to all the people who supported us. The community really stepped up."

Rhode Island Nurseries owner Bruce Vanicek did not wish to comment.

The issue comes from a longstanding dispute between two neighbors—the and .

On one side of the issue there is Rhode Island Nurseries' owner Vanicek, who is subdividing and selling part of his land. However, the subdivision is currently only accessible by one road. Vanicek needed to build an emergency access road to comply with town regulations. 

However, the proposed emergency access road was a paper road (Heidi Drive) that ran through the Glen Ridge Alpaca Farm, located off Glen Road on Frank Coelho Drive.

The owners of Glen Ridge Farm, Kevin Tarsagian and Fiore, argued that the construction of this road would disrupt the day-to-day operations of their farm so profoundly that the farm would no longer be viable.

Town Council Views New Road Plan

The hearing on Monday began with Vernon Gorton Jr., attorney for Rhode Island Nurseries, calling Middletown resident and real estate appraiser George Durgin as an expert witness.

Durgin assessed the value of the subdivision property using two plans—a master plan and a brand-new plan, which was never presented at a public meeting.

He assessed the damages using the new plan at approximately $1 million. The council questioned the plan’s approval with both the Planning Board and the Coastal Management Resources Council (CMRC).

“The previous plan has master plan approval,” Gorton said. “This one has never been submitted to the Planning Board.”

Hamilton questioned why the road was moved “200 feet north” in this new plan. According to Gorton, the road was moved to meet the Subdivision Rules and Regulations.

Attorney Mark Libereti, who is representing the Glen Ridge Alpaca Farm, argued the road move was an attempt to increase property value.

"Rhode Island Nurseries is not presenting you apples for apples," Libereti said. "What they are saying is, if you abandon the road, depending on what estimate you are looking for, it will cost a lot more money. ...Tonight, for the first time, we’re presented with a plan, which is a whole different plan, that has never been presented, which is a big road going all the way to Frank Coelho Drive ... It gives this subdivision frontage on Frank Coelho Drive … They are making a lot of money on this plan. If you are going to propose an alternate access road, it does not have to be this."

The council also questioned whether suspected are located on Rhode Island Nurseries' property.

“If CRMC determines there are Native American artifacts that are beneficial to the town … that there are artifacts on the roadway that we originally saw that end at the Vanicek/Glen Ridge Farm property line, right where Heidi Drive would meet Vanderbuilt Lane, then the Heidi Drive extension is not an option for an emergency access,” said council President Joe Robicheau.

“If anything is there, it is purely speculation,” Gorton said.

 Estimated Damages

Libereti also called George Houle of Portsmouth, a real estate appraiser, as a witness. Houle was previously the tax assessor for the city of Newport.

“A little more than $5,000 for where that access road would go,” was the damage determined by Houle after a long calculation involving the square footage of farmland and the average cost of farmland.

This was the estimated damage for only Rhode Island Nurseries.

However, when cross-examined, Houle stated the value of damages is unknown.

“Is it fair to say, in your professional opinion, there is no way to gauge the damages from the Heidi Drive abandonment,” asked Gorton.

“I agree with that,” Houle said.

Richard Pastore of North Kingstown, chairman of the North Kingstown Planning Board, and John Braga Jr. of Portsmouth, an engineer, were also called as witnesses. 

At the close of the hearing, the following damages were estimated:

• $1 million, George Durgin's estimate
• $5,000 to undetermined amount, George Houle's estimate

, attorney for the Goulart family, also spoke and argued damages for his clients who may or may not be considered abutters under state law.

“There is a very negative impact to my clients,” Galvin said. “Of all the parties involved, they might have the most significant impact in this situations."

Galvin requested the town council consider the following four conditions when determining damages for his clients:

• For Tarsagian to pay fair-market value of the road to the town.
• For Tarsagian to relinquish development rights to the lots on his land.
• For Tarsagian to abandon the right-of-way, which apparently crosses the Goularts' property.
• And, for Tarsagian to be financially responsible for any damages.

The council did not set any damages for the Goulart family at Monday's hearing.