Paiva Weed to Chafee: Aquidneck Island DMV Needs to Be Reopened Immediately

Rhode Island State Sen. President M. Teresa Paiva Weed has called on Gov.  Lincoln Chafee’s administration to restore Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) services on Aquidneck Island immediately, according to a Senate news release issued Friday.

No property bids for alternate Aquidneck Island DMV location prospects were submitted to the state by Thursday’s 11 a.m. deadline for requests for proposals (RFPs), according to the senator's prepared statement. Since last summer, this was the second RFP round that drew no proposals for a new Aquidneck Island DMV.

The RFP guidelines had sought proposals for a 5,000 square foot space with a minimum of 85 parking spaces.

The DMV branch in Middletown Friday, Feb. 11, the day its lease expired,  after negotiations with the property owner reportedly had failed to continue using that space on a month-to-month rental basis until a new location could be leased and opened.

A number of commercial and retail properties sit vacant throughout Aquidneck Island, including along the easily accessible West Main Road corridor, so the fact that no RFPs have been submitted during two bid rounds is prompting state officials to review the guidelines again, some said.

“The parking spaces might be the problem," State Sen. Lou DiPalma said Friday. "Because of the stipulation that you need a 5,000-square foot space, but with 85 parking spaces, that’s the biggest challenge of this.”

“I am concerned and dismayed to learn that there were no proposals submitted for a new Registry location on Aquidneck Island. This is a critical service for the residents, and a new location must be identified as swiftly as possible,” Paiva Weed said. “I have expressed in the past the Senate delegation’s concern that the requirements identified in the request for proposals were too restrictive, a factor which we believe played a role in there being no proposals submitted. I will do everything in my power to ensure that a Registry branch is re-opened as soon as possible on Aquidneck Island."

On Tuesday, the Aquidneck Island delegation to the Senate – President Paiva Weed, Sen. DiPalma, Sen. Walter S. Felag, Jr. and Sen. Christopher Scott Ottiano – wrote to Gov.Chafee regarding their concern over the temporary closing of the Middletown Registry.

“The residents of Aquidneck Island will experience a substantial burden due to the removal of the registry from its current location,” they wrote. “Additionally, this closing will adversely affect East Bay and South County residents as they process motor vehicle claims, forcing them to experience longer waits and continued frustration.”

President Paiva Weed also maintained that adding an additional day of service at the Warren DMV branch, while welcome, has not been a suitable substitute for finding a new location for an Aquidneck Island branch.