I was asked to post the following legal notice on the web site so that interested parties may contact the RIDOT. NOTICE OF EXCAVATION WITHIN A HISTORICAL CEMETERY The Rhode Island Department of Transportation is providing this notice of proposed exploratory excavation within a historical cemetery for the following project: Reburial of Human Remains from State Farm Cemetery, Cranston to State Institution Cemetery No. 2, also known as Cranston Historical Cemetery No. 61, Cranston and Warwick State Institution Cemetery No. 2/Cranston Historical Cemetery No. 61 has been selected by RIDOT as the site to relocate human remains removed in the summer and fall 2006 from the State Farm Cemetery for poor and indigent persons. The remains of 67 individuals were removed from the State Farm Cemetery (at Route 37 right-of-way and rear of 100 Sockanosset Cross Road) by RIDOT under a Cranston City Council permit in order to allow the construction of a drainage outfall to correct severe drainage erosion problems. State Institution Cemetery No. 2 is located at Pontiac Avenue and Knight Street in Cranston and Warwick. This cemetery presently contains the marked graves of 638 individuals and an additional 577 individuals are not marked nor is there any definitive information on where the concrete vaults were placed. In order to ensure that the 67 sets of human remains to be reburied in State Institution Cemetery No. 2 are not interred in an area already occupied by human remains, a cemetery delineation (or exploratory excavation) will be conducted. The cemetery delineation is one of the conditions for securing a permit from the Cranston City Council for reburial of the human remains. The cemetery delineation will consist of careful machine scraping of area soils at the southern perimeter of the existing concrete grave markers to determine if unmarked graves exist there and to determine an appropriate space to accommodate the re-interment of the 67 sets of human remains. The machine scraping will be monitored by RIDOT archaeological consultants. The cemetery delineation will be conducted under a permit to be issued by the Rhode Island Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission. It is anticipated that the cemetery delineation will be conducted in August 2007. The results will be incorporated into the reburial plan that RIDOT will submit to the Cranston City Council for approval. This notice is published in accordance with Cranston City Ordinance No. 2000-42 and RI General Laws, Title 23, Chapter 18, et seq., concerning the proposed alteration of ground surface within 25 feet of the exterior boundaries of a historic cemetery and notification to interested parties. Interested parties may contact the RIDOT person listed below for further information on the reburial project: Mr. Edward S. Szymanski, P.E. Office of Environmental Programs Rhode Island Department of Transportation Two Capitol Hill, Room 362 Providence, RI 02903 –1124 401-222-2023, ext. 4253 --------------------------------- Sick sense of humor? Visit Yahoo! TV's Comedy with an Edge to see what's on, when.