Slinging mud over splash pads

During an Ocean State heat wave, all splash pad politics are local.

Cranston’s mayoral candidates tussled over a dry city splash pad, which had not yet opened when the mercury started climbing toward the first official day of summer.

On Tuesday morning, June 25, at 11 a.m., it was sunny and 83 degrees. The splash pad was finally sprinkling and open, but empty. Cranston actually opened its new splash pad to the public on Monday, a week ahead of schedule, but the water features were still awaiting visitors.

“I made a request of Cranston's Mayor to open the city's splash pads ASAP in advance of scorching temperatures in the 90s and knowing many of our city's children are out of school and without a hospitable place to go outside during the day,” declared Robert Ferri, the Democratic challenger running for mayor. “I was astonished by the rapid response I received from Mayor Hopkins, essentially telling me to mind my own business. Two days later, the splash pads are still closed, and the children of Cranston have nowhere to cool off.”

Hopkins wrote back, four minutes later: “That is my call. Let me do my job. I am already working on it.”

Ferri posted photos of his exchange with Cranston Mayor Kenneth Hopkins online last week, criticizing his possible fall opponent. In the screenshots Ferri shared, the current city councilman asked the Republican mayor on Monday, June 17, to “do everything in (his) power to get the splash pad opened within the next two days.”

It took a week.

“The temperatures will exceed 90 (and) the children in Cranston have no where to cool off,” Ferri wrote to the mayor via email. “Please make this a priority. July 1st is too far away. I hope that this will not be a Republican or Democratic issue.”

On Friday, Zack DeLuca, communications coordinator for the Cranston Mayor’s Office, provided a statement from Hopkins, which was embargoed until Monday.

“The city’s first splash pad was constructed last year under the leadership of my administration,” Hopkins said. “This spring, the Parks and Rec department has been diligently preparing all recreation facilities in a coordinated effort. Traditionally, Parks and Rec summer programming has begun July 1 — the start of the fiscal year when the budget and funding approved by the city council takes effect. Given funding to start July 1, splash pad preparation was scheduled for that start date.”

Hopkins urged patience. The city budget sets the splash pad opening date — since the first day of summer doesn’t typically, automatically bring record high heat.

Ferri accused Hopkins of endangering children. He posted pictures of an overflowing garbage barrel and sad-looking, dry cement — the pad with no splash.

“I am shocked the mayor would not take my genuine request seriously,” Ferrri posted online. “This is not about politics. This is about the well-being and safety of our children. I can guarantee when I am mayor that when someone comes with a good idea, even if it is my political opponent, I will act on good ideas. The people of this city deserve a mayor who is always working in their best interest. I am calling on the Mayor to open all splash pads in the city as soon as possible. This must be a top priority for our parks and recreation department.”

The mayor’s office argued that opening the splash pads required necessary preparation.

“In order to open the splash pad, several days are required to properly sanitize the water recirculation system and prepare a safe facility for the public,” Hopkins explained. “Parks and Rec has been making its best effort to open the splash pad as early and safely as possible. With their accelerated efforts, the splash pad is open for use … Monday, June 24. Seasonal hours for the splash-pad will be Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.”

Hopkins’ expected Republican Primary opponent, State Rep. Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung (District 15, Cranston), took the opportunity to splash back at the mayor.

“The Hopkins administration's inability to get into gear on a splash pad mirrors their mismanagement of the Budlong Pool,” Fenton-Fung said Monday. “They wait til it's too late, they make excuses, and the families of Cranston are the ones who suffer.  We need to be a city on our toes, and this administration has us way back on our heels.  From a management standpoint, we need the splash pad ready to go in early June — especially when we can foresee dangerous heat waves being a more common thing of the future.”

Ferri said he wasn’t surprised the splash pad was empty Tuesday; the word had yet to leak out.

“My feelings are that the splash pad should have opened sooner,” Ferri said Tuesday afternoon, after the splash pad opened. “I know it is more than a matter of turning on a switch. It’s not news that summer was coming and the goal should have been to open it as soon as school ended. The mayor should not have been blaming the budget because he has the power to transfer funds by use of 4th quarter transfers. Somewhere in the budget the money could have been found. That answer was just an excuse. I tried not to make it a political issue but when I emailed Anthony Moretti and the mayor, the mayor basically told me to mind my own business. Well it is my business, especially when we do not even have a pool for people to use. and we are experiencing a record heatwave.”