Newport County sees strong turnout on day 1 of early voting • WUN speaks with The Lone Bellow, Newport City Manager
Daily Digest for Thursday, October 17. Plus: Records broken at the 2024 Amica Newport Marathon and Half Marathon; Citizens Bank Pell Bridge Run returns on Oct. 20; and more.
Good Morning. It’s Thursday, October 17, and we’re covering day 1 of early voting in the 2024 General Election, The Lone Bellow’s return to Newport, utility bills, floating palaces of art deco, and more.
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What’s Up Today
🚢 Cruise Ship: The 745-foot Viking Mars (930 passenger capacity) and 820-foot Crystal Serenity (1,040 passenger capacity) are scheduled to visit today.
⛅ Weather: Mostly sunny, with a high near 58. North wind 9 to 13 mph.
⚓ Marine: NNE wind 8 to 11 kt. Mostly sunny. Seas 1 ft or less.
🌘 Sun, Moon, & Tide: The sunrise will be at 7 am, and the sunset will be at 6 p.m. High tides are at 8:02 am and 8:26 pm, and the low tides are at 1:09 am and 2:02 pm. The moon phase is Waxing Gibbous.
📚 To Do: Bike Newport’s Full Moon Bike Ride, An Evening For Education, and more are on tap today. Here’s the full rundown of events, listings, and meetings.
The Starting Line
Strong Day 1 Of Early Voting
Newport County residents are turning out in significant numbers for early voting in the 2024 General Election, with more than a thousand ballots already cast.
On Wednesday, October 16, 11,159 voters across the state participated in early voting, representing a 1.4% voter turnout. Newport County has seen 1,471 early voters, with 310 voting by mail ballot and 1,161 voting early in person. [WUN]
Welcome back to Newport, The Lone Bellow
The Lone Bellow certainly knows something about playing music in Newport.
The Nashville, TN, by way of Brooklyn, NYC, trio has played the Newport Folk Festival several times in the modern era, going back to their first appearance at Fort Adams State Park in 2013. This weekend, they return to Newport for a special “By Request Only” show at The JPT.
What’sUpNewp’s Ken Abrams spoke with guitarist and songwriter Zach Williams, who looks forward to returning to Newport. [WUN]
Video: The Lone Bellow performs in the Paste Ruins at the 2013 Newport Folk Festival.
“You guys (Newport) have fostered a storytelling community for decades, we have the honor of being affiliated with you, and the work the (Newport Folk) festival and your town has done all these years. Not to mention Deer Tick, love ‘em, fun guys!”
Zach Williams, guitarist and songwriter of The Lone Bellow, told WUN’s Ken Abrams during a recent interview ahead of The Lone Bellow’s show at The JPT this weekend.
What’s Up in Newp
🚰 Newport Water Division customers began receiving September bills this week. While those bills do not reflect changes made to the Base Sewer Use charge, October bills are expected to follow shortly and will include credits. [WUN]
📺 Newport City Manager Colin Kennedy discussed several pressing issues with What’sUpNewp on Wednesday, including the utility billing mentioned above, early voting procedures, and the upcoming bond referendum. [WUN]
⏪ ICYMI: The Newport City Council held a regular meeting on October 9. At this meeting, the council addressed several key issues, including the $98.5 million bond question and regulations for seasonal rentals. [WUN]
🏫 In her latest Superintendent Message, Newport School Superintendent Colleen Burns Jermain discusses parent/family-teacher conferences, Pell’s participation in Fire Prevention Week, Rogers celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, and more. [Smore]
🏆 Speaking of education, the Newport Public Education Foundation will honor individuals and organizations significantly impacting local students at An Evening For Education this evening. [WUN]
🚓 Newport Police reported two arrests during Oct. 15 - 16. [WUN]
🔥 A camera caught the moment a Portsmouth house under construction caught on fire. [WJAR]
🏃 Several records were broken at the Amica Newport Marathon and Half Marathon last weekend. [WUN]
🚢 Christie’s Chairman Emeritus Stephen S. Lash will give a talk on “Floating Palaces of Art Deco: A History of Transatlantic Ocean Liners” at the Redwood Library on Thursday, Oct. 24. [WUN]
🆕 Lifespan, the Rhode Island-based healthcare system, announced on Wednesday that it is rebranding as Brown University Health. [WUN]
🏠 A Little Compton waterfront estate has sold for $6.5 million, marking the highest sale in the town since November 2020. [WUN]
🎭 Looking for a little warmth and nostalgia amidst the election season? Head to the Casino Theatre to catch a performance of the beloved musical “Meet Me in St. Louis” next weekend. [WUN]
🎞️ The JPT celebrates the Halloween season with a series of films and special events in October. [WUN]
😱 Speaking of spooky, Thrillist recently named the White Horse Tavern as the mosted haunted place in Rhode Island. [Thrillist]
⛳ The Providence College Athletic Department hosted its annual Men's Basketball Vision Cup on October 2 at Newport Country Club. The sold-out event successfully raised over $200,000 in support of Providence College Men's Basketball. [Friars]
🏦 BankNewport has named Daniel Tougas as Vice President, Newport branch manager. [PBN]
🚣 James Taylor provides a little tour of Narragansett Bay on Instagram. [IG]
🗒️ John Hirschboeck from Newport In Bloom writes a Letter To The Editor about the 30,000 free daffodils being given away this weekend. [WUN]
✍️ Stephen B. Johns of Newport weighs in with an endorsement for Lynn Underwood Ceglie for Newport City Council 2nd Ward. [WUN]
"Just because we have the ability to borrow money does not mean that the city council does not have the responsibility and the authority to look at each individual bond sale for whatever amount we need to decide yay or nay on those items. So it is not as though the taxpayers are going to be immediately on the hook for $98.5 million."
Newport City Manager Colin Kennedy clarifying the process of using the bond funds from the $98.5 million bond during a conversation with WUN on Wednesday, emphasizing that the full amount won't be borrowed immediately and that the city council will oversee the use of funds.
Extra! Extra!
🏒 David Pastrnak and Hampus Lindholm scored 13 seconds apart in the second period to help the Boston Bruins beat Colorado 5-3 on Wednesday night, sending the Avalanche to their fourth straight loss. [WUN]
❄️ The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center says there is a 60% chance that a weak La Nina event will develop this autumn and could last until March. [WUN]
💰 The effort to replace the westbound Washington Bridge received a $95,589,533 INFRA grant, announced by U.S. Sens. Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Representatives Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo, totaling $220.98 million in federal funding. [WUN]
🏈 Six-time Super Bowl-winning owner Robert Kraft and three of the key figures around the rise of “Monday Night Football” were picked among the 25 candidates in the contributor category for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. [WUN]
“It’s unusual although it’s not unprecedented,” said Ben Cook, climate scientist at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies affiliated with Columbia University, about the forecast for a possible La Nina this year.
ICYMI + Planning Ahead
🐶 What’s Up This Weekend: Bowen’s Wharf Seafood Festival, Pell Bridge Run, Heart & Sole Walk For Animals, Newport Contemporary Ballet presents Mosaic, and more.[WUN]
🩰 Newport Contemporary Ballet will bring its dynamic repertory program to the Elks Lodge in Newport this weekend. The program will feature a world premiere work, “Mosaic,” by acclaimed choreographer Takehiro “Take” Ueyama. [WUN]
🏃 The Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Foundation will host the Citizens Pell Bridge Run on Sunday. Motorists should expect delays due to brief road closures. [WUN]
🆓 Newport in Bloom is giving away 30,000 free Dutch Master daffodils on Oct. 20. [WUN]
🎨 Celebrate Fall with the Jamestown Arts Center during the annual Autumn Arts Open House on Oct. 20. [WUN]
🎻 The Puddingstone music series continues on Oct. 20 by welcoming Sheffield Chamber Players to Provence sur Mer for a late afternoon concert. [WUN]
🚰 Water main flushing is planned across Aquidneck Island Oct. 20 - Nov. 7. [WUN]
👉 RITBA customer service will be unavailable from Oct. 25 to Oct. 28. [WUN]
voters in Newport will not let Trump win this state