Newport City Council Meeting May 14, 2025: Budget Tabled, CDBG Approved, Short-Term Rental Ban Passes
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Newport City Council Meeting - May 14, 2025
The Newport City Council convened on May 14, 2025, at 6:30 PM in Council Chambers. The meeting began with a swearing-in ceremony for Bo, the department's new therapy canine, followed by a citizens' forum. The council then acted as the Board of License Commissioners, approving several liquor licenses and holding hearings on license transfers and expansions. Key actions from the regular council session included tabling the FY2026-2027 biennial budget, approving a $1.9 million Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application, and passing a resolution directing the administration to draft ordinances prohibiting non-owner-occupied short-term rentals in all zones. Numerous licenses, permits, contracts, and resolutions were also adopted.
Consent Calendar
- Board of License Commissioners: Approved three Class F-1 daily liquor licenses for International Tennis Hall of Fame events (Hall of Fame Open, Tennis Wave, Induction Weekend).
- City Council: Approved the consent calendar (excluding item 11) including: minutes of April 9, 2025; special event permits for Bike to Work Day, Memorial Day Ceremony, Summer Concert Series, Newport Skatepark Grand Opening, Longest Day of the Year Ride, Newport Art Museum opening, Boys & Girls Club Yacht Rendezvous, Preservation Society lecture, Newport Global Summit (day event), Tennis Wave, Courting Fashion, Holiday Dinner Dance, and newportFILM Outdoors series (nine dates); renewals of holiday selling license (Leslie Normann), fortuneteller's license (Pauline's Palm & Tarot), tattoo license (Fortune Tattoos), and waste hauler licenses (four companies); communications from Cliff Walk Commission, Tree and Open Space Commission, block party requests (Point Neighborhood, Historic Hill), CRMC notice on Ann Street Pier, and request to light City Hall teal for Alzheimer's awareness.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Lola Herrera (59 Bedloe Ave.) requested traffic safety measures on Bedloe Avenue, citing speeding and noise, and asked for updates on traffic calming for Admiral Calbuz Road.
- TJ Provost raised concerns about abandoned vehicles on West Bowdle Avenue near the Met School, stating police cannot tow them because towers refuse junk cars.
- Melanie Saunders and Leo Ayles (Newport Prevention Coalition) spoke in favor of marijuana ordinance amendments, emphasizing public health and secondhand smoke concerns.
Discussion Items
- FY2026-2027 Biennial Budget (Public Hearing): The council held a public hearing. A motion to table the budget was made and seconded. After debate, the motion passed (4-3), tabling the budget indefinitely.
- Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Application: A public hearing was held. A motion to table failed (4-3). The council then discussed the $1.9 million grant. City staff explained the competitive process and that applications are due May 20. Councilors expressed frustration over late timing but recognized the urgency. The application was approved.
- Sidewalk Café License for Chomp Kitchen and Drinks: A hearing was held. A resident objected to the 46-seat layout, citing pedestrian congestion near a tree. The applicant argued the number represents maximum capacity. The original motion (to close hearing and approve) failed after a show of hands. A subsequent motion to continue also failed. The final motion to approve the sidewalk café license failed.
- Special Event License – Newport Global Summit at Belcourt Castle: Item 11 was removed from the consent calendar for debate. Concerns were raised about Belcourt's status as a non-conforming museum and a potential deed restriction limiting events. After testimony from the applicant and the zoning officer, a motion to continue the item failed (4-3). The special event license was then approved (4-3).
- Resolution Prohibiting Non-Owner-Occupied Short-Term Rentals (Item 47): Councilor Carlin introduced a resolution directing the administration to draft ordinance changes to ban new non-owner-occupied short-term rentals in all zones. Supporters argued it would preserve housing stock; opponents cited property rights and market impacts. The resolution passed (no tally given).
- Two-Hour Parking on Spring Street (Item 48): An amended resolution to implement two-hour parking from Memorial Boulevard to Prospect Hill was approved after debate about following established processes. The amendment passed, and the resolution was adopted.
Key Outcomes
- Budget: Tabled (motion passed).
- CDBG Application: Approved.
- Pyramid Club Show Cause: Continued to the first meeting in June 2025.
- Newport Playhouse License Transfer: Approved (hearing closed, voted aye).
- Chomp Kitchen Alcohol License: Previously failed (see Board of License Commissioners).
- Chomp Kitchen Sidewalk Café License: Failed (motion to approve failed).
- Belcourt Special Event: Approved after motion to continue failed.
- Annual Entertainment License Renewals: Approved (with separate vote for Gardner House/Bloody Bull LLC).
- Marijuana Ordinance Amendments (First Reading): Approved.
- Communications from City Manager (Items 18-32): All approved, including: amendment to Easton's Beach food concession lease (water/electricity), Mill Street parking restriction, Aquidneck Grower's Market license agreement, Emmanuel Church parking lot agreement, land evidence map service extension, basketball goal replacement (MPA), solid waste/recycling agreement with RIRRC, Cliff Walk $3M grant acceptance, police cruiser replacement, police UTV purchase, police performance software subscription, water/wastewater rate study change order, CSO disconnection grant, water distribution design amendment, and Easton Pond Dam resiliency resolution.
- Resolutions: RIPTA support (approved); Easton's Beach revenues (continued to first meeting in June); House Bill 5784 short-term rental tax (approved); RIDOT sidewalk maintenance (approved); Zoning board appeals (Items 45-46 tabled); Non-owner-occupied short-term rental ban (approved); Spring Street two-hour parking (approved); Items 49-50 (guest parking passes and variances) indefinitely postponed.
Meeting Transcript
Fantastic. And not oh wait a minute, are you here for the puppy? Is that what's going on? Oh right, uh Madam Clerk, you want to take the roll call, please. Uh yes, David Carlin. Lynn Underwick Segley. Here. Proli Holder. Here. Psycham Saborvon. Here. Green Marina Politano. Here. Alan Pinock. Stephanie Smythe. Here. There is a quorum present, Mr. Chair. Thank you. Please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. Pledge of the United States. I think the top play. And the recoup late for me, which is one thing. I give uh individual Jeff State. And Madam Clerk, we have uh Council Carlin present. We'll make sure he's marked. Yes, Council Carlin is present. All right. We're gonna start uh tonight's presentation off with uh Chief Duffy. Good evening, Ryan Duffy, Chief of Police. Uh thank you uh for allowing me to take a little bit of uh time here with the council. Hello everybody. Um I'm uh excited to be here. I mean I'm excited to be at every council meeting, but I'm really excited to be here tonight. Uh to introduce uh the newest member of the Newport Police Department. Um we've we've been uh uh in the process of getting a canine program together over the past number of years, but for a slew of reasons it it uh hasn't come to be until now, and so we're very happy that we are uh we are starting this program. Uh in a minute, I'm gonna uh call up um our our assigned canine handler, uh community police officer Nick St. Lawrence. Uh he's been assigned as the as a handler um and he's gonna give a a quick uh once over what uh our newest member what what his mission is uh but I just want to thank um Nick and his family uh because it's not just a job that is seven to three. Uh he's the canine handler. It's a responsibility not only for him but for his whole family, and they're taking on this responsibility um and caring for Bo for the time that he's that he's in service. So um thank you, Nick, and I'll call him up here and give a little uh little introduction to Bo, and then we will do a quick swearing in. Oh, he's so cute. All right. First, I want to say uh thank you very much for having us. Uh Bo here is 10 weeks old and he is uh the newest member of the community policing division with the Newport Police Department. Um and his main goal um really is uh you know uh make people feel better. But uh most importantly, he'll be in schools. Uh he will be at all our events, our summer camps, uh, our mentorship programs, um, as well as for detectives that are working with juveniles and uh people in need. Uh and then most importantly, I think uh I can't forget about the men and women of our police department.
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