Winners Blossomed
Newport in Bloom’s Joan Jacobs delivered the annual awards for Newport’s best gardens in a car festooned with giant blossoms. More than a dozen volunteers gathered on Tuesday, August 18, to decorate two such flower-mobiles for a mini parade to the homes of the winners of the 38th annual event. Residential award finalists are chosen for both in-ground gardens and […]
The Power of Pollinators
Plants, pollinators and people are closely intertwined. Pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, flies, hummingbirds, and other animals, move from flower to flower looking for food. As they do, they transfer grains of pollen from one plant to another, facilitating the process of fertilization that produces seeds and fruits. The majority of flowering plants are pollinated by animals, and hundreds of […]
Banks, Businesses Wait for Change to Come
The pile of loose change jingling in your pocket or sitting in a jar at home has taken on a whole new value lately. As the economy plays catch-up and local businesses strive to recoup lost revenue as a result of state mandated closures, commercial operators have been dealing with one residual effect that many hadn’t foreseen in their reopening […]
Council Turning Cold on State of Emergency
A vote to extend the state of emergency in Middletown for an additional five weeks passed by the slimmest possible margin at the Aug. 17 meeting of the Town Council, with three dissenting members venting frustration on continuing the declaration while others in the public and private sector have moved or are moving to reopen their doors. At the onset […]
Tomatoes the Jewel of Summer Harvest
The surreal, almost sci-fi quality of 2020 has had a funny effect on the passage of time. For months, it seemed to stand still, and then, like whiplash, it was the beginning of summer’s end. All the while, the gardens grew, unaffected by our unfamiliar new normal. Emerald hued asparagus, spinach and bunches of bright magenta radishes popped up in […]
School Reopening Plans Move Forward
With Gov. Gina Raimondo delaying the start of the school year until Sept. 14, and yet to announce if districts will open with full or limited in-person learning, Newport administrators continue working to meet her five metrics necessary to have the city’s children attend school at least twice weekly. On Aug. 13, Newport Supt. Colleen Burns Jermain hosted a video […]
Bus Signups Needed
One of the most important elements of the plan to bring students back to school concerns transportation. Without a transportation plan, districts will not be allowed to reopen, said Gov. Gina Raimondo. But before bus routes and schedules can be developed, school officials must know how many children will be traveling to school by bus. “The most important thing is […]
Last Vestige of Former Benny’s Coming Down
The indentation outlining the large red letters reading “Benny’s,” which for decades spelled a retail outlet for Aquidneck Island residents, can still be made out in the correct light. But not for long. In another procedural step toward the next iteration of the lot that formerly housed Benny’s department store, the Middletown Planning Board unanimously approved a request from CGRI […]
COVID Updates on Wednesdays
At the Newport City Council’s biweekly COVID-19 update workshop, the first order of business was to change the off-week meeting days to Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. because of other important state COVID meetings being held the same day. City Manager Joseph J. Nicholson, Jr., citing Gov. Gina Raimondo’s pandemic press conferences and The League of Cities and Town meetings and […]
