Experience S.K. Access Path for Everyone (ESKAPE) MEMO

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The South Kingstown Access Path Initiative—informally known as ESKAPE (Experience South Kingstown Access Path for Everyone)—is a long-term proposal to re-establish safe, walkable and bikeable access between the inland villages of South Kingstown and the coastline. The central goal is to create a continuous hybrid route from areas like Pond Street, Wakefield, Peace Dale, and Kingston to South Kingstown Town Beach (719 Matunuck Beach Road), reconnecting our community to the shore as it historically was. For more than 300 years, South Kingstown’s residents had informal and formal ways to reach the ocean—through old roads, carriageways, and the Narragansett Pier Railroad. That connection has been diminished by highway infrastructure and car dependency. Today, there is no safe way to walk or bike to the beach from town without crossing Route 1. This project would restore that access while protecting property values, supporting small businesses, and reinforcing the public’s right to reach the shoreline.