Meet Charlestown’s new federal overseer

Charlie Vandemoer, now one of the most powerful people in Charlestown

By Will Collette

One of the odd and unintended consequences of the recent months of debate over the dark sky ordinance is a new spotlight cast on Charles Vandemoer, the 55-year-old manager of the federal National Wildlife Refuges in southern Rhode Island.

Charlie has been a presence in our area since 2002 and has been involved in many local disputes over local land use and wildlife conservation, ranging from a long battle with fishermen over boating on the Narrow River to Charlestown’s debates over land acquisition. For example, Charlie weighed in to support the town buying Larry LeBlanc’s 81-acre parcel on the moraine (“LarryLand”) and the acquisition of the trashed-out YMCA camp.

Frank Glista with the Ninigret Bomb on the left

He vetoed the display of the “Ninigret Bomb,” a beautifully restored artifact from the days when the Ninigret Naval Air Station (now the wildlife refuge and Ninigret Park) trained naval aviators (including President George Bush I).

The “bomb” is an inert dummy training bomb that never contained explosives. Frank Glista (right) used his own funds to restore the bomb and build a display case, hoping to see the bomb displayed near the place where it was used.

But despite the intervention of Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Vandemoer refused to allow the “bomb” to be displayed, even through dozens of US Interior Department sites, ranging from Fort Ticonderoga to Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor, display disarmed ordnance that sheds light on the history of the site.

Charlie has proposed expanded deer hunting in the Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge to curb their population, as well as the oiling of goose eggs. By contrast, he has also asked the town to cut down trees in Ninigret Park to open up land for the growth of underbrush as habitat for endangered Rhode Island bunnies.

Ninigret, the way it was in 1945

But based on pointed remarks made by Town Council Vice-President Deputy Dan Slattery (CCA) at the March 12 Town Council meeting, Charlie has a lot of power to control what happens in Charlestown. Deputy Dan wants the town to fully acknowledge – and respect – that authority.

According to Deputy Dan, the Interior Department’s Fish and Wildlife Service has ultimate power over what happens in Ninigret Park based on documents that Deputy Dan is holding back from public disclosure—and Charlie heads up FWS for Rhode Island.

Town Council Boss Tom Gentz (CCA) also thinks the Interior Department has tremendous power over Charlestown. He notes that the Fish and Wildlife Service has already vetoed the town’s planned municipal wind turbine project and has most recently vetoed the concept of a commercial, lighted football stadium at the Park (not that anyone has actually proposed to build one – but I guess the idea is NOT TO EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!).

Boss Gentz is fine with allowing the Interior Department, represented in town by Charlie Vandemoer, to rule over Ninigret Park – even when they rule based on false information. Prime example: that the town wanted to build a lighted commercial football stadium at Ninigret when the proposal was for a few hours of lights per week so little kids can play sports. 

Deputy Dan believes Charlestown has a “legal, ethical and moral obligation” to accept and obey the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and its personification, Charlie Vandemoer.

Since both Boss Gentz and Deputy Dan Slattery have ceded town decisions to him, exactly who is Charlie Vandemoer? By most accounts, he’s a nice guy and he has certainly done a great job at running the federal nature preserves (Ninigret, Trustom and Block Island) in our area.

He is 55 years old and moved his family to South Kingstown ten years ago when he took up his post here in town. He is ranked at the GS-13 level and in 2010, he was paid $107,338. All of this information is in the public record.

He seems like a pretty shy guy to me. Very low profile on the web. Although he doesn’t shy away from fighting for the integrity of the lands and critters under his jurisdiction, he is rarely photographed and from what I saw on March 12 is not all that comfortable speaking before a crowd.

He hardly seems like a jack-booted federal storm-trooper, even though I think that's what Boss Gentz and Deputy Dan want him to be. But he is now a central figure in Charlestown, whether he wants that role or not.

I called to ask him to tell us more about himself and to comment on his sudden emergence as a Charlestown power figure. But, unsurprisingly, he did not return my call.