Bellevue/Ochre Point Neighborhood Association

Bellevue/Ochre Point Neighborhood Association

Annual Meeting Minutes

August 19, 2013

Page 6

MINUTES

ANNUAL MEETING

August 19, 2013

Call to Order

James Moore, Co-Chairman, called the Annual Meeting of the Bellevue-Ochre Point Neighborhood Association to order at 5:10 pm, and extended appreciation to Salve Regina University for use of the Pell Center as the venue for the meeting.

Welcome and Introductions

Mr. Moore welcomed those in attendance along with Newport Mayor Harry Winthrop, city council members Justin McLaughlin, Kate Leonard, Michael Farley, and Marco Camacho. He also welcomed Sister Jane Gerety, President and Chief Executive Officer of Salve Regina University, Jane Howington, Newport City Manager, and Trudy Coxe, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of The Preservation Society of Newport County.

Approval of Minutes

Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the minutes of the August 12, 2012 Annual Meeting were accepted as distributed.

Treasurer’s Report

Thomas Goddard, Treasurer, reported the following:

Beginning Balance as of October 1, 2012 / $32,100.27
Income / 59,520.76
Less: Expenses / 48,169.92
Balance of August 19, 2013 / $43,451.11
Donations
Annual / $ 8,150.00
Restricted Fund / 51,367.16
Interest / 3.60
Balance as of August 19, 2013 / $59,520.76

Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the Treasurer’s Report was approved as presented.

BOPNA Accomplishments and Neighborhood Issues – 2012-2013

Mr. Moore apologized for the very short meeting notice many received through the mail, noting the U.S. post office lost the mailing for approximately two weeks. The result was that many members received the notice late last week, and some members never received the notice.

Therefore, Mr. Moore noted the meeting notice was provided at the sign-in table along with a letter from Donald Ross, chairman of the board of trustees of The Preservation Society, and Mr.Moore’s response to that letter.

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Mr. Moore then indicated he would briefly address a few issues as he and Rob Beaver, Co-Chairman, intended to leave as much time as possible for discussion.

He stated there are two kinds of issues in our neighborhood, the “nuts and bolts” type and the strategic and fundamental. “Nuts and bolts” problems need to be resolved but do not rise to a fundamental change in the character of the neighborhood. We have had both types of issues this year.

He reported on the “nuts and bolts” first,

-  Trolleys: After 1-1/2 years of discussion with RIPTA, the Preservation Society, Salve Regina University, our Association, the Chamber of Commerce and the City, it has been decided to replace Newport’s old and rapidly failing trolleys with American made “trolley buses”. The buses are 30 feet long, painted green, and configured to resemble somewhat trolleys--not RIPTA city buses. They will most likely begin to go into service next year.

-  Toilets at Forty Steps: Last year we announced a $174,000 state grant to replace the port a potties with permanent toilets. After much discussion in city management and City Council, agreement was reached in late June and new toilets with running water will be installed soon.

-  Miley Hall: We were approached by the members of the Bienvenue condo association on Narragansett Avenue and several adjoining home owners on Webster Street to work with them as mediators in a discussion about the construction of an addition to Miley Hall to allow for the expansion and modernization of Salve’s cafeteria. After several meetings an agreement was reached between the parties whereby the design was somewhat modified. Two major trees were saved and acceptable operating rules and restrictions were put in place. It was a perfect example of how the Vision Statement process that we put in place in 2006 is supposed to work, with all parties coming out winners.

-  Bellevue Avenue: The City, after two years of denial, agreed that the first and second attempts to repair Bellevue Avenue had been failures and that a completely different approach was needed if the repairs were to be successful. That process began but ran out of time and money at the intersection of Memorial Boulevard. We are watching carefully to see that improvements proceed south toward the most heavily damaged sections of our beloved avenue.

Strategic Issues

-  The Breakers Welcome Center: This issue has been publically argued for many months now. Everyone in Newport has been bombarded by letters and designs, and many have attended meetings held by The Preservation Society.

We did an informal telephone survey of members, and no one wanted yet another full dress presentation of the two points of view. However, opposing the center as proposed is obviously the most important action your Association has taken in the past decade. At the sign-in desk are copies of letters written only last week by Donald Ross, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Preservation Society, and answered by Mr. Moore, that lay out several issues succinctly.

Briefly we have two fundamental problems:

-  The radical modification of The Breakers property in a manner that the Vanderbilts, Richard Morris Hunt and the Bowditch brothers specifically were fundamentally opposed to, that is the addition of major outbuildings to the Vanderbilt gardens. A terrific report by Heritage Landscapes was sent out to members and provided to the Historic District Commission. This report convinced your Board members that they had in good conscience to take a stand.

-  The addition of a 76-seat luncheonette to the center would establish a legal precedent that could easily be used by at least five other major museum houses, for competitive reasons if no other. This “Disneyfication” of Bellevue would be the most important change to our neighborhood since the historic district was created.

We have opposed this project in Providence and now in Newport at the Historic District Commission. The Commission’s third and presumably final meeting will be held August 27th, at which Mr. Moore intends to make a statement on behalf of the Association. After that, if necessary, there will be a Zoning Board meeting. Mr. Moore extended an invitation to those present to attend these very important meetings and support your Association.

Rob Beaver, Co-Chair, then presented the following report

Newport has changed enormously in the last 30 years. Tourism has really cranked up, and Newport has been a major destination for awhile now.

We all know what the attractions are: the natural beauty of our coastline, our historical city--both colonial and gilded, and the shopping, dining and nightlife that tourists desire.

Tourism matters to our Bellevue-Ochre Point Neighborhood because so many significant historical sites and natural beauty areas are part of it. So we have become accustomed and, for the most-part, accepting of tourism as a business that benefits from our neighborhood.

But today I am posing a question: Is Newport tourism becoming over-heated? Or, to put it another way: Is the authenticity of the Newport experience, which we are willing to share with tourists, becoming a victim of the relentless push of commercialism?

My attention was caught recently by a headline the Newport Daily News put over one of the letters cautioning against the Welcome Center: "Breakers plan is another step towards Disneyfication of Newport" “Disneyfication”--It wasn't the first time I've thought about this word, but it was the first time I had seen it in print. So the idea is definitely out there--maybe things are getting out of control.

Here are some signs that I observe:

-  The Cliff Walk is becoming a self-guided amusement park. We have a Cliff Walk because fishermen in the 18th and 19th centuries wanted to get to the coastline -- where the fish are. The beauty of the coastline is still very much there, but that is not how the Cliff Walk is being promoted. Consider the image put in the public's mind by this quote from the website cliffwalk.com advertising their booklet A Guide to Newport's Cliff Walk: "Tales of 23 of Cliff Walk's "Cottages", their Families and Foibles"--"Six 2-Page Photo spreads illustrating and describing the Surreal Life of the Grande Dames and their Wealthy Husbands"

With this lurid language reminiscent of the National Enquirer, doesn't it sound like an invitation to satiate one's curiosity? No mention, of course, that most Cliff Walk houses are still private homes. One homeowner who has not put up a fence for the sake of their ocean view has a constant problem with tourists climbing a rocky slope to pry, or just to take over their lawn.

At the end of the Cliff Walk is a public beach, known by the silly name "Rejects Beach". This had always been a beach for area residents. City policy has reinforced this through strict parking controls in the surrounding area. But, thanks to satisfying tourist curiosity about everything in Newport, Rejects Beach has its own web page on the "Newport Scoop" website, promoting it as the best public beach in Newport. It's even viewable, by the name "rejects beach", on Google maps. And, if tourists don't want to walk there, they can take the RIPTA #67 bus. What was once a beach for Newport locals has been turned into another tourist attraction.

-  Moving on to our Neighborhood Streets - and how they're being used. As I was preparing these remarks today, I was reminded of the “Disneyfication” of our streets by the constant beep-beep-beep of the Scoot Coupes, those 3-wheel scooter-cars with the flags. Do these not look like a colorful update of those old bumper cars? And, more importantly, are they not often driven with the attitude of an adolescent turned loose for a joy ride in an amusement park?

Equally “Disneylandish” in my view are the Segway vehicles. They are promoted as a quick way to get around Newport. Since their top speed is only about 10 mph, the quick-way-around apparently comes from their use without any respect for traffic laws. And this, I've observed, is encouraged by their guides. In Ochre Point, I have often watched 6, 8, or 10 of these vehicles ignore a STOP sign, one-after-another like a line of geese, with none of the riders even observing cars waiting to cross the intersection! Truly, the Segway tourist must feel that Newport was created and exists just for their amusement.

-  Now I come, sadly, to the uses of some of our great houses.

On Ruggles Avenue, there is a very large house that was once featured in a vampire soap-opera on television. Among the events held at this residence is bi-annual conventions of soap opera fans, and it has been featured on recent cable TV shows about ghost hunting and digging for buried treasure - how's that for “Disneyesque” themes?

Another mansion, this one on Bellevue Avenue, has recently changed owners -- and owner attitudes. It had been operated for many years as a museum. What does the new owner want to bring to our neighborhood? I quote from the web site: “The property is presently undergoing an exciting renovation and will ultimately serve as a destination for weddings, events and corporate activities.” I must sadly conclude that the new owner has very little interest in authenticity and much more interest in creating an "exciting" "destination" that Walt Disney would have been proud to have created.

So there are many battles to be fought -- large and small -- to preserve the authenticity of Newport's heritage, as well as the residential quality of our Bellevue-Ochre Point neighborhood. Public awareness of the problems, especially by our city government, is the first step.

Mr. Beaver then welcomed views on the topic and Mr. Jay Schochet stated: “The one thing that made this area attractive is the history of what is here and to commercialize this area beyond a certain limit will ruin it. Salve Regina University is a good example of historic preservation with what it has done and continues to do. If the area becomes too commercialized and goes beyond what it is today, it will ruin the perception of what it is. We need to be strong and vigilant to be sure precedents are not carried out and our historic preservation is preserved and the values preserved.” Mr. Ambrogi noted “tourism is starting to impact on the quality of life on those who chose to live here and pay taxes. How much is too much?” Additional input included: “Cliff Walk is a public place to view mansions.” “Newport is becoming more of a walking community -- that is a positive trend.” “I would like to see the City look to other cities that are good examples…”

Mayor Winthrop stated we try to balance the issues regarding too many people along Cliff Walk and Bellevue Avenue. Regulatory issues are addressed and the Council members work hard and recognize that residential life needs to balance with tourism. Decisions are made as to what will be the best for the City.

Mr. Moore reiterated and referred to the Vision Statement among Salve Regina University, The Preservation Society, and the Bellevue-Ochre Court Neighborhood Association, which took three years to accomplish. The Preservation Society and Salve Regina University were recognized by the Neighborhood Association that we were all interested in preserving our historic district and residential neighborhood.

Report of the Nominating Committee and Election of Directors

Mr. Moore presented the Nominating Committee’s slate of Directors for the upcoming term: