HALLOWEEN GUIDE PG. 12
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012
Vol. 40, No. 41
Assaults Match Pattern
WHAT’S INSIDE
By Tom Shevlin
NATURE PG. 20
Table of Contents CALENDAR FAITH CLASSIFIEDS COMMUNITY BRIEFS CROSSWORD DINING OUT DINING OUT MAP EDITORIAL FIRE/POLICE LOG MAINSHEET NATURE NAVY BRIEFS REALTY TRANSACTIONS REEL REPORT RECENT DEATHS SUDOKU
BORN FREE
14 19 20 4-5 23 18 15 6 5 13 20 10 23 21 19 18
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The Great Pumpkin Patch
Volunteer Chris Pimentel gets ready for another day at the Trinity Church Pumpkin Patch on Wednesday. A popular attraction for families over the last few years, construction in the area has reduced the patch's visibility. However, organizers are quick to say that the pumpkin patch is open daily from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. See page 12 for more Halloween events. (Photo by Tom Shevlin)
New Life for Historic Broadway Buildings By Jonathan Clancy
The intersection where Broadway meets Washington Square is part of a city block that has maintained great historic character, against all odds that all of it might have been razed. The Wanton-Lyman-Hazard house at 17 Broadway dates to 1697, and is arguably the oldest standing residence in Newport. For decades, it has been preserved and operated as a house museum by the Newport Historical Society. The presence of this house and its impeccable maintenance by the Society gives this part of the old "broad street" a firm anchor both in local history and in present use. Visitors to the house are told the story of how this particular building survived for generations. But other buildings on lower Broadway have stories, too - stories that for the most part remain untold. The buildings between 12 and 18 Broadway, across from the Wanton-Lyman-Hazard house, were built circa 1890. Over the years, these storefronts have been home to a taxicab garage owned by William Stanhope in the early 1900s, the Broadway Colonial Tea Shop in 1946, the Broadway Watch & Clock Shop, and Oscar Schultz Florist in 1957. In 1969, John Cinotti and his mother, Agnes, purchased the 12 - 18 Broadway row. He remembers that when they bought it,
the building was in poor condition and a lot of it was vacant. “My plan was just to have a small place,” says Cinotti, now 82. “One of our first ventures there was Mr. Cool ice cream. In ’76 during the America’s Cup, I remember my daughters and I scooping ice cream until midnight.” The family was still operating the Gold Key bar that then stood on what is now the large greensward near the Great Friends Meeting House on the corner of Farewell and Marlborough streets. (The bar was among many buildings that were torn down during the wave of downtown revitalization in the late ’70s.) “Then, when the Gold Key was torn down, we decided to move the bar business to Broadway and call it the Colonial Tavern,” said Cinotti. The tavern was located at number 18, which was the newer section of the building, and tenants occupied the other commercial spaces. “My fondest memory of the Colonial was the people that were there,” Cinotti said. “They were steady people you could relax and have fun with. We’d have parties, and they would bring in food. We had a lot of good friends at that time; a lot of them are gone now.” Cinotti, who sang for his customers on occasion, had attended the New England Conservatory of Music and performed professionally in Boston and New York City.
A 42-year-old Newport woman was the victim of a late-night assault over the weekend. According to police chief Gary Silva, the incident occurred on Friday, Oct. 12, at approximately 9:50 p.m. Police say that the woman (who later posted about the incident on social media) was outside her residence near the corner of Ruggles and Carroll Avenue with her dog when the dog ventured into, or close to, the road. A vehicle then stopped at the intersection, the driver apparently hesitant to continue because of the dog’s proximity to the roadway. The victim said she waved to the driver to continue, but the front passenger door of the vehicle opened, and a female, described as an Hispanic teenager between the ages of 15 and 18 with long black
See CRIME on page 8
Changes to Middletown Pensions By Jonathan Clancy
After 20 years as tavernkeeper, Cinotti sold the business and the building in 2002 to his three children, Edith, Deborah, and Darren. During those two decades, lower Broadway became gradually more derelict. In recent years, however, new restaurants and small businesses have repopulated several blocks along lower Broadway. There are planters of flowers on the sidewalks now, as well as outdoor seating at bakeries and ice cream shops. The street has become trendy. Last May, Jim Blumel of Broadway Partners purchased the 1218 Broadway buildings. The Blumel family - Jim, his wife, Jill, and
See BROADWAY on page 9
John Cinotti and Jim Blumel sit in front of the Broadway building they both have had a hand in saving. The row was home to the Satellite Restaurant in this 1978 photo.
At its regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 15, the Middletown Town Council unanimously passed a resolution to approve a contract with BUCK Consultants, who will provide the services necessary to assist in the implementation of the town’s new defined contribution plan. Employees of the town of Middletown hired after June 30, 2012 will be enrolled in this new pension program. Brown said the cost of the consultant services, which are not to exceed $41,475, is a onetime expense to get the plan set up. “When we hire a new employee, there is a present value savings between $75,000 to $100,000, and then there is a quantifiable savings resulting from not having the pension obligations that accompany a defined benefit pension plan,” he said. Also at the meeting, Middletown resident Manuel Mello voiced concern about the design for the new Middletown fire station on Wyatt Road: “I think we have too many frills. Seven bathrooms, why do we need so many bathrooms? We don’t have that many people in there.” Mello also questioned why the shift captain should have a pri-
See PENSION on page 3
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