nyyc race week continues
Vol. 38, No. 29
Newport† BORN FREE
WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 2010
THE HEAT IS ON
What’s Inside
PRIMARIES CERTAIN IN COUNCIL RACE By Tom Shevlin
YOU GOTTA HAVE ART!
Inside the Newport Art Museum on pg. 8
Table of Contents ARTS CALENDAR CLASSIFIEDS COMMUNITY BRIEFS CROSSWORD DINING OUT EDITORIAL LETTERS MAINSHEET REALTY TRANSACTIONS RECENT DEATHS
9 14 22 4 21 12 6 6 11 7 21
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Beaches across Aquidneck Island have been packed the past two weeks, as relentlessly gorgeous weather has settled over the area. Though at times forced to dodge the occasional scattered shower or thunderstorm, the good weather has meant good business for local merchants and beaches alike. (Photo by Tom Shevlin)
NEWPORT, R.I. – This year’s City Council race is shaping up to be one to remember, with primaries now certain in both the At-Large and Second Ward contests. As of Tuesday, the Secretary of State’s office had officially certified a total of 16 Newporters to appear on the ballot this year – including nine for one of the council’s four At-Large seats, and three candidates in the Third Ward. Both races will require primaries to shed one name before the November 2 election. The primary will take place Sept. 14. Candidates qualifying for the ballot in the At-Large race include: Herbert B. Armstrong; Rebecca A. Bringhurst; Stephen R. Coyne; Jeanne Marie Napolitano; Naomi L. Neville; Susan T. Perkins; David A. Quiroa; Stephen C. Waluk; and Henry F. Winthrop. In the Third Ward, incumbent Justin S. McLaughlin will face off in a primary against challengers Michael T. Farley and Kathleen M. Sanderson-Upham. Taking on incumbent Charles Y. Duncan in the First Ward will be Allan F. Sullivan, while Newport native Rudd C. Hall has qualified for the ballot in his bid to replace Councilwoman Kathryn E. Leonard in the Third Ward.
Irish Look to Hit It Out of the Park
Maybe it is Easy Being Green
By Andrea E. McHugh
A Spring Street home gets an environmentally consious makeover By Tom Shevlin NEWPORT – About nine months ago, Ralph Plumb III, the principal behind Atlantic Building and Remodeling, sat down to go over plans for an upcoming project. At the time, all was on paper. Within weeks, construction would begin, and Plumb who already prided himself on his attention to detail, would begin a months-long education on sustainability. The house at 485 Spring St. was slated to become Newport County’s first LEED certified home – a distinction normally associated with high costs and modern designs. But you won’t find any solar panels on the roof at 485 Spring. There are no wind turbines, exotic materials, or outlandish architectural elements. In fact, the is downright conventional – fitting well into the historic neighborhood; understated in a way that few passersby would appreciate. The owners, a couple from Boston, not only wanted a house that would be built to last, but also one that would create the minimal impact on the environment. Getting there would take months of an intensive certification process, as outlined by the U.S. Green Building Council in its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or, LEED for Homes guidelines. The inspections that would follow would be extensive. Nearly every inch of the house was evaluated for form, function, and green building practices. Points were accumulated throughout the build, and a checklist kept Plumb and his crew busy and on their toes. By early fall, the home had been stripped down to a shell, the interior gutted and much of the material repurposed to other applications
Members of Baseball Ireland warm up during a game against East Providence Knights on Monday. (Photo by Tom Shevlin)
Look closely. 485 Spring St. incorporates a wealth of eco-friendly design elements. (Photo courtesy Aaron Phaneuf)
– a strategy which Plumb described as part and parcel to a sustainable build. Owner Derek Boudreau said that the home had “all of the issues you’d expect from a 75-yearold house; sagging floors, choppy layout, drafty windows, little or no insulation and failing foundation to name just a few.” When Plumb originally bid on the project, he did so as a traditional build. But as he looked closer, he found that with some followthrough and a few minor tweaks, the home could potentially qualify as a LEED structure. He pitched the
idea to Boudreau, who had years before independently taken an interest in green building practices. “As owners, we found that factors such as use of local materials, water fixtures with the lowest flow rates, high efficiency mechanicals, high R-value insulation, water containment and many other similar decision points were discussed at greater length and the positive impacts weighed more heavily in our final decisions than otherwise may have been had we not been pursuing LEED certification,” Boudreau
See “Green” on pg. 3
NEWPORT – Hoping to have the luck of the Irish on their side, Baseball Ireland returns to the Cityby-the-Sea this weekend after a decade-long hiatus for a U.S. vs. Emerald Isle face off with both adult and youth league contingents. The Little League game, to be held at Harry G. Hogan Memorial Field at King Park, takes place Saturday, July 24th at 11 a.m. with the Ireland Youth League taking on the 5th Ward Little Leaguers. The youth baseball program in Ireland began in 1993 under the auspices of the Irish Baseball & Softball Federation (IBSF). While still a relatively new sport to Ireland, youth baseball teams are rapidly on the rise, with teams representing every county. For the majority of the youth team, this will be their first trip to the U.S., but the sluggers, ages 10-12, are well-versed in Major League Base-
LOCA L NE WS MATTE RS P L EAS E SU P PORT OUR A D V E RTIS E RS
ball happenings, and name Boston Red Sox all-stars, including David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia and Josh Beckett, among their favorite players. Their affinity for Red Sox Nation can largely be attributed to head coach, Sean Mitchell, who played catcher and third base on the Irish National Team for 12 years, and who established the Garristown Gruffalos Baseball Club, the largest youth baseball club on the Emerald Island, boasting more than 70 youth players. On Mitchell’s 2001 visit with the Irish National Team, he joined his teammates in playing the North Kingstown-based Slocum Baseball Club in a “highlight game” at Fenway Park. Saturday’s matchup will be the last of a 9-game series for the Irish youth, wrapping
See “Irish” on pg. 2