Newport Waterfront Commission & Tree & Open Space Commission Joint Info Session – Parati Park Project – July 24, 2026
Newport Waterfront Commission & Tree & Open Space Commission Joint Information Session – Parati Park Project – July 24, 2026
On July 24, 2026, the Waterfront Commission and Tree & Open Space Commission co-hosted an information session about the comprehensive redevelopment of Parati Park in Newport, Rhode Island. The session featured presentations by Harbormaster Steve Land, architect Lee Davison (BIA Studio), and landscape architect Jonas Gaspin (VIA Studio), followed by public comment. The project addresses the urgent replacement of a failing bulkhead (installed ~29 years ago) and three aged concrete docks, while also planning for a relocated Harbormaster building and a redesigned park. The bulkhead work is set to begin in November 2026, with an interim park surface (asphalt, loam, benches, lighting, temporary bathrooms) to be in place by summer 2027. The Tree & Open Space Commission will hold its first public input session on green infrastructure on July 29, 2026.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Mark Anderson (Save Parate Park) – Speaking for over 200 members, he expressed concern that the project has shifted from infrastructure repair to an "$8 million multi-tenant cruise port" and requested written answers before proceeding, including how much of the $20 million bond has been borrowed. He reserved legal avenues.
- Bart Dunbar (former state committee member) – Supported the project, noting that a Harbormaster facility at Parati Park was part of the original plan from the 1990s and is essential for harbor services. He argued the building expansion is legitimate.
- President of Brick Marketplace Condo Association – Requested technical analysis (programming study, design alternatives, view impact analysis) before irreversible decisions, and questioned why a smaller building footprint preserving more green space was not feasible.
- Neil Gray (native Newport, harbor worker) – Praised the view corridor analysis but asked about creating limited parking for Harbormaster access and emphasized the importance of a visually appealing, iconic building over a roof deck.
- Henry Springle (long-time resident) – Proposed relocating the Harbormaster building to the adjacent shed area on pilings, offering better views, parking, and room for storage/workshop, with less neighborhood impact.
- David McCurdy (26-year captain) – Highlighted the critical security role of the Harbormaster being on-site during emergencies (e.g., Block Island ferry fire response) and stressed that public bathrooms cannot be removed due to high demand.
- Resident (Carroll Avenue, marine business) – Urged focus on facts: the bulkhead must be replaced, the existing building cannot be rebuilt on its current footprint due to storm drain and deadman constraints, and the new building's square footage is equivalent to the existing. Called for moving forward.
- Several speakers – Supported the harbor walk connection (from Parati Park past the former Treadway Hotel to Bowen's Wharf), applauded transparency, and stressed the importance of public bathrooms and a working Harbormaster facility. Concerns were raised about traffic from cruise ship buses, parking, and potential loss of green space. Some questioned the need for a third floor or rooftop deck.
- Chief of Police Ryan Duffy – Emphasized that the Harbormaster office is vital for port security and first responder access, especially during water emergencies.
- Linda Stevenson (Friends of the Waterfront) – Reassured that public access will increase, citing a drafted easement for the new harbor walk and noting that the Treadway hotel property has approved the public walkway.
Discussion Items
- Bulkhead Replacement (Harbormaster Steve Land) – The existing steel sheet pile bulkhead has rusted through and failed tie rods; if not replaced, the park will be lost. The new bulkhead will use tie rods anchored to a deadman located 8 feet farther back, requiring excavation under the existing building. This necessitates relocating the building.
- Dock Replacement – Three concrete docks (29 years old) and the wooden "gazebos" (gangway structures) will be replaced. The entire marina will shift outward 18–20 inches due to the new bulkhead.
- Building Relocation (Lee Davison, BIA Studio) – The existing building cannot be rebuilt on the same footprint due to: (1) property line setback conformance, (2) a 20-foot-wide stormwater easement with a 42-inch pipe under the building, (3) the deadman/Tie rods under the building, and (4) FEMA VE flood zone (velocity zone) requiring first-floor elevation to 13 feet. The proposed new footprint remains in the AE zone (less restrictive) at grade, using dry floodproofing on the ground floor. This minimizes elevational changes and avoids long ramps.
- Design Approaches (Jonas Gaspin, VIA Studio) – Three conceptual designs were presented, all with a ground-floor plan containing men's, women's, and family restrooms plus a small ticket office. Approach 1: two-story building with covered terrace on the water side. Approach 2: adds a third-floor roof deck (accessible by elevator/stairs) for public viewing and environmental education. Approach 3: rotates the volume to create a third-floor public community meeting room facing the water. All maintain the same overall building footprint. No final design has been selected; architectural treatment is still to be developed.
- Public Restrooms – The existing building has the only year-round public restrooms in the area (4 toilets in women's, 1 in men's). The new building will increase fixture count but still not meet peak demand (e.g., July 4th). A family restroom will be added.
- Phasing – Phase 1 (November 2026 – summer 2027): Bulkhead, docks, and an interim park with asphalt, loam, benches, lighting, and temporary bathroom trailers. Phase 2 (summer 2027 – summer 2028): Permanent building and park completion, including the harbor walk connection.
Key Outcomes
- No votes or formal decisions were taken at this information session.
- The Waterfront Commission will discuss the project at its August meeting.
- The Tree & Open Space Commission will hold its first input session on green infrastructure and park design on July 29, 2026.
- Several members of the public requested written responses to specific technical questions (programming study, design alternatives, view impact analysis, budget breakdown) before the project advances further.
- The project proceeds with urgency on the bulkhead replacement due to structural safety concerns. The design of the building and permanent park will continue to incorporate public input through commission meetings and future sessions.
Meeting Transcript
So we'll give folks a few more minutes and then get stopped. Okay, from here it looks like it's gone sick. So I'm Mark Barzitz. I'm the chair of the Waterfront Commission. We're very pleased to co-host this information session with the chair of the tree and open space commission, Maureen Cronen. I'm very pleased to see everybody here tonight. I think this turnout really signifies just how important the waterfront is to everyone in this community. And I'd also like to take the opportunity to thank the um almost every member of the waterfront commission that I see here tonight for their attendance and to listen firsthand to what's taking place. This is a great opportunity to really explore this investment. Investment that's been planned for quite some time and to do it through a very straightforward agenda. There'll be a few comments from each commission, as each commission has a different stake and interest in this project, and then we will proceed with a very significant presentation from the design team, the hard manager, the architect, the engineer, on what's been accomplished to date. It's a very complicated project. So I think this team has done their best they can to simplify it. So please listen carefully. It takes a little while to listen and see the scope and magnitude of what they're working with. So I hope to pay attention to that, and then we will have time for public comment at the end, as we do at City Council meetings and commission meetings. We ask each speaker to limit your comments to three minutes. And we also ask that during the presentation you hold your questions so that we can get through all the material in a thoughtful way and in a way that connects the dots. Many of the things we'll see here are connected. So we've got plenty of time to be here for all of you and want to hear from all of you. So a few comments from the Waterfront Commission. Um we have been had this project in various forms on our agenda since uh 2024. So we've heard aspects of the project, but more with regard to the public investment piece and when that was taken. Well, I'm here to have the speed building. All right. Thank you. From the how's that? There we go. All right. Yay, fantastic. So from the perspective of the waterfront commission, um, we've been aware of this project for for some time. There have been a number of presentations to the commission in the early days with regard to the the funding and the bond issue and so forth, but this is the first time we are seeing at the same time what you were seeing at the same time, the details on the project, and we're going to be seeing it in a stepwise manner. There is no gigantic project that needs to be presented in bits and pieces. We are seeing the pieces as they are moved along by the design team, literally at the same pace that you are. From the perspective of our commission, as you would understand, this is a vital and critical project. The fact that what can what's encompassed by Parati Park, our dockage, which is a center for our first responders, which is a center for intermodal transportation, which is a center for recreational voters, the adjacent park, which serves many of our residents as well as many of our visitors, the facility, which also serves visitors, it serves residents, it serves harbor operations. When it comes to that, from the waterfront commission perspective, as many of you know, in fact, I see five or six people that contribute to authoring the harbor management plan on this go-round. These attributes of our waterfront, a place for public enjoyment, more and more public access, a place to operate a harbor, not just for today, but a harbor for the future. Those of you know that building's been there for almost 30 years. The harbor of today is not the harbor of 30 years ago in terms of how the harbor operates. So there are a lot of components of what we've used the shorthand of Parati Park Project for that directly tie to making sure that we fulfill for the residents of Newport a waterfront resource that addresses many, many needs and interests and balances those many interests. So while the commission has not voted to offer an opinion on any one direction, we haven't seen enough of that. The commission does celebrate and recognize the vital importance of doing this project right. It's a once in a generation opportunity. It's rare that we get a chance to look at a project in terms of not just the needs of today but the needs of the future and make sure that it adapts to that. So we'll be listening along with you. We appreciate seeing all of you here tonight, and I would now like to uh introduce Maureen Crone and Chair of the Treaty Open Space Commission. Thank you, Mark. Hi everybody, it's nice to see you see a lot of your faces that have come before the trade open space commission over the years. Um I'd like to reiterate what Mark said because it's really important, and um, it helps uh get rid of some of the confusion.
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