New Shoreham Town Council may strip Ballard Beach Resort of liquor and entertainment licenses after fight over Block Island ferry

The announcement was met with applause from the audience.

Nearly two dozen people participated in public comments, which were supposed to be limited to two minutes each, but were frequently interrupted by board members to offer clarifications.

Connecticut resident Brian Baker, who has owned a home on Block Island for 30 years, said his friend asked him to comment at the meeting.

“I represent our love for Block Island,” Baker said. “I want to ask where is Ballard’s boss? Is he here? He’s cowardly not here.”

Ballard’s boss, Steven Filippi, was not present.

“Everyone has the right to make money for their business,” Baker said. “But business should be dignified.”

“I’ve been here since 1954. Our big night at Ballard,” he continued. “Steve’s dad would entertain us, bring us in… We’ve been coming since we were kids — family night, lobster night. It’s a sarcasm.”

Part-time resident John Cotter, who spends the summers on the island, said he welcomes “day trips” to visit and support local businesses. But drinking and crowds can be a problem “It’s not good when we’re not paying attention to what’s going on in front of us: people are visibly intoxicated,” he said. “I ask the council to think this is not a new issue. … How many people come out in a day?”

Resident John Willis, 40, criticized the council for not hiring a permanent police chief after Matthew Moynihan left for South Kingstown in May.

“We had a police chief for 17 years,” Willis said. “He quit because he couldn’t get along with any of you, including our town manager. He stepped into a bee’s nest. You gave him a house that no wife would want to live in.”

Earlier this year, one of the lead candidates withdrew from consideration. Captain Peter Chabot has been the interim chief since June and Chip Anderson will take over as interim chief from 15 August.

“I don’t think we need a town council or a mayor,” Willis said. “We need a police department.”

Monica Hull-Shea, 78, called the bad behaviour on the island “appalling” and yelled at members of parliament after July 4 for not addressing Ballard’s. Town attorney Nick Solitero chimed in that it would be unwise for the report to remain unactionable and for the council to comment.

Several speakers said they had witnessed underage drinking in the city and admitted to jumping over the fence to enter the Ballard bar. Some said the area was overcrowded on Monday night during the festival.

“It looked like the perfect setting for something bad to happen,” Monica Railes said. “We left quickly because it wasn’t a pleasant experience for us.”

Resident Christopher Blane said if Ballard’s was hosting a big event, it should be responsible for renting its own boats to accommodate large numbers of guests, rather than crowding the Block Island ferry service with passengers.

Steven Brunelle, who has been vacationing on Block Island since around 1993, was one of the only people to speak out in support of Ballard and was booed for his comments.

He said the problem of overcrowding pervades the island and is a common problem for all businesses in the town.

“It’s everywhere and we have a lot of problems,” Brunel said. “Ballard is not the devil you think. Ballard’s event drew a huge crowd. He (Steven Filippi) asked the chief of police if he could hire additional officers. … He wanted to pay for safety. He was stripped security.”

Commenters suggested Ballard put up barriers to separate public beaches from private ones and prevent people from breaking the law by bringing open containers of alcohol onto public beaches. Others suggested New Shoreham or the company that operates Block Island Ferry, Interstate Navigation, limit the number of visitors to the island.

On Tuesday, Pawtucket’s Bruce Darrelius told the Globe that Ballard was “totally chaotic” on Monday. He recorded a fight on his phone but said “three or four times before that”. WPRI-TV reports that a fight in Ballard on Monday led to the cancellation of an upcoming event Roots and Rhythm Festival August 21st holiday.

The unrest spread to the lines of the Block Island ferry, where hundreds waited to return to mainland Rhode Island. Also, unscheduled ferries are used to handle large crowds.

Fighting on the ferry began in the Port of Galilee around 9:35 p.m., according to state police.

Emergency services and law enforcement officers boarded the ferry, secured the vessel and made arrests.

Rhode Island State Police said Tuesday that seven people have been arraigned in connection with the fight. Michael Carvalho, 26, of Providence; Abdou Njie, 37, of Pawtucket; Trent Manning, 32, of Providence; Deavon Silva, 20, of Pawtucket; 36 of Providence Miguel G. Silva, 22, and Miguel G. Silva, 20, were both charged with disorderly conduct. Laurie R. Cassandra, 30, of Providence, charged with obstructing an officer in the performance of his duties. Chevron R. Towns, 20, of Providence, was charged with possession of a prohibited weapon other than a firearm. Jacob Dorbor, 30, was arrested in Ballard early Monday and charged with disorderly conduct.

The suspects were transported to Camp Wickford, where they were arraigned before sheriffs, and released pending a Fourth District court date, state police said in a statement.

On Thursday, the city council asked those who “want to be part of the solution” to email the video, photos and statement to Deputy Mayor Millie McGinnis. Submissions can be used to select witnesses that town attorneys can present to the Liquor Licensing Board.

Carlos Muñoz can be contacted at carlos.munoz@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @ReadCarlos on Instagram @Carlosbrknews. Alexa Gagosz can be contacted at alexa.gagosz@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @alexagagosz on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.