Narragansett Town Residents Association: Expanding Our Scope Beyond the Pier
The Narragansett Town Residents Association (NTRA) is the new name for our former Narragansett Pier Residents Association (NPRA). At last year’s annual meeting, based on requests from many Narragansett residents, who live outside of the Pier area, to join the NPRA, our membership voted to expand membership to all Narragansett residents who subscribe to our membership charter. Accordingly, we have updated our website and mission statement to reflect our newly adopted Town-wide charter, which now welcomes all Narragansett residents.
While we are pleased to report that many residents outside of the Pier area have since joined our association, our previous name implied a Pier-centric membership and focus, misrepresenting the current scope of our organization. After speaking with many members and non-members throughout the town, our Board of Directors has changed the name of our organization to better reflect our current mission –representation of all Narragansett residents. Hence, our new name - Narragansett Town Residents Association (NTRA). We are looking forward to welcoming more new members and building a broader constituency across the town that we all love.
Commensurate with our new name, we are also updating our website and website domain name to reflect our town-wide charter. Nearly a decade ago, our organization was formed by several Pier residents who decided that a collective voice could be stronger than individual voices in advocating for neighborhood quality of life policies. As our membership grew, we recognized that most other neighborhoods in town are also impacted by the same issues that impact the Pier area. Student, seasonal, and short-term, on-line rentals are steadily growing town wide, with many neighborhoods, such as Eastward Look, Bonnet Shores, and, most recently, the North End, far more heavily impacted than the Pier.
Unlike most neighborhood associations, NTRA is not bound by property-based association (HOA) declarations and by-laws. Rather, NTRA is governed by a membership agreement that states our objectives. Therefore, membership in NTRA neither conflicts nor competes with neighborhood HOA’s, notwithstanding the fact that many HOA’s may express similar goals. Thus, NTRA’s goal is uniform representation of all like-minded residents of Narragansett. Adoption of our new name and town-wide membership charter is strengthening our voice and advocacy for town-wide family-friendly policies and neighborhoods.
The NTRA recognizes that Narragansett has long been a tourist destination and a seasonal home to many University of RI (URI) students. The fact that tourists want to come here to enjoy our coastal cuisine and beautiful beaches is a benefit to our town that we encourage, and we support the Narragansett Chamber of Commerce in fostering local tourism. Contrary to frequent comments by landlord interest groups, the NTRA is neither anti-student nor anti-visitor. We simply seek a better balance of interests through advocacy for family-friendly policies that benefit Town residents and address our shrinking year-round residential and school population.
The NTRA believes that URI’s critical housing shortage cannot and should not be solved at the expense of Narragansett residents. The term ‘neighborhood’ implies the existence of neighbors, and we therefore seek to limit the size and number of homes converted to revolving door dormitories. Similarly, while Narragansett Town Beach (NTB) welcomes more daily non-resident visitors than any other RI town beach, it is our town beach, and its future sustainability depends on data driven town policies and management strategies. Therefore, we support the data gathering beach study currently being conducted.
To summarize, NTRA advocates for Town Ordinances and tax policies designed to enhance residential quality of life, along with resident-friendly beach polices and town infrastructure investments. We seek to ensure that Narragansett remains a desirable place to live and raise a family.
Please invite your neighbors, friends and family members who reside in Narragansett to join our association. One of the many benefits of membership is participation in our yearly member survey. This survey informs and insures that our BOD truly represents the goals and aspirations of our members. Membership information can be found on our website.
