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Aerial view shows the location of the planned solar array off West Main Road, between Lehigh Terrace to the north (top) and Freeborn Street (not shown) to the south. Note the cleared area, where the rows of ground-mounted solar panels would be built, surrounded by trees and vegetation.

Zoning board OKs large solar array off West Main, Portsmouth

PORTSMOUTH — Saying the applicant checked all the boxes needed for a special-use permit under the town’s solar ordinance, the Zoning Board of Review Thursday, May … more

By Jim McGaw | 5/24/21

Couple and realtor signing papers for new house

The buying frenzy — and frustration — continue

Your company just announced that your division is being relocated from the Midwest headquarters to the East Coast. In fact, your new office is situated in Rhode Island — home to beautiful … more

By Josh Bickford | 5/20/21

Do you take cash?

Here’s a new phenomenon in the local real estate market. An increasing number of buyers are offering to pay cash for properties. Does that mean they actually bring a suitcase of Benjamins to … more

By Scott Pickering | 5/20/21

Chris Iseleib and his wife, Ann Marie, moved from the Washington, D.C. area to Barrington, buying a million-dollar house that they saw only on Zoom. Located off Nayatt Road and close to the water, it is more than 100 years old and comes with a unique stone gazebo.

Urban buyers have been moving out to the 'country'

It’s been just over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, shaking up lives around the globe. One phenomenon now becoming a trend is the mass exodus from cities to more rural … more

By Joan D. Warren | 4/30/21

Examples of signs that were erected in front of 184 Bristol Ferry Road by local resident Michael DiPaola, and which were the target of a notice of violation from the Town of Portsmouth. The signs were taken down while the case was being litigated.

Judge OKs settlement in Portsmouth sign lawsuit

PORTSMOUTH — A federal judge has approved the settlement of a lawsuit filed in January by The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Rhode Island that challenged the constitutionality of … more

4/20/21

For buyers, the competition is tougher than ever

Across the country, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the residential real estate market, and Rhode Island’s real estate market shifted with it. According to State-Wide … more

By Sam Tavares | 4/7/21

Architect’s conceptual drawing shows what Ragged Island Brewing Co.’s brewing facility and taproom would look like after renovations on an existing barn are completed.

Portsmouth farm brewery aims to fully open by September

PORTSMOUTH — The farm brewery Ragged Island Brewing Co. is building on the former Island Garden Shop property on Bristol Ferry Road should be fully open by September, owner Matt Gray told the Zoning … more

By Jim McGaw | 3/19/21

Example of a New England cottontail rabbit, a candidate species for Federal Endangered Species protection.

Rabbit on Patience Island tests positive for contagious disease

PORTSMOUTH — A New England cottontail rabbit from Patience Island recently tested positive for tularemia, a contagious bacterial disease. The R.I. Department of Environmental Management … more

3/15/21

Kat Barker skates with the puck, into the Narragansett zone in Game 2.

Eagles outscore South County in Game 3 thriller

The East Bay Co-op girls ice hockey team skated its way into the state championship finals after defeating South County 7-6 in overtime in a Game 3 showdown on Monday afternoon, March 1. The … more

By Josh Bickford | 3/2/21

Speaker of the House Joseph Shekarchi (yellow box) talks to a group of fellow legislators and Bristol County business leaders in a Zoom meeting held Friday morning. The speaker strongly urged all Rhode Islanders — including the business community — to speak up and lobby for their opinions to be heard.

Speaker Shekarchi: Rhode Islanders need to speak up

Rhode Island Speaker of the House Joseph Shekarchi has a message for Rhode Islanders: If you have something to say, say it. Mr. Shekarchi met with a group from the East Bay Chamber of Commerce … more

By Scott Pickering | 2/26/21

Buyers know that if they want the house of their dreams they have to move quickly and bid aggressively.

Why the 2021 real estate market looks a lot like 2020

Did the real estate market undergo a seismic shift in 2020? Or did it ride a rogue wave that is still cresting here in 2021? The answer to both questions might be … … more

By Scott Pickering | 2/19/21

Pilot Matt Celeste has been flying drones commercially for several years and uses them not just in the wedding and event industry, but in real estate property listings across the state.

For drone pilots and the real estate market, the sky’s the limit

The property is spectacular, even from the ground. A quick turn onto a private drive along Warrens Point Road in Little Compton leads soon to a large shingle-style home, with a charming and … more

By Ted Hayes | 2/18/21

Portsmouth woman allegedly threw snowballs at police officers

PORTSMOUTH — Police officers investigating an alleged assault got more than they bargained for when they showed up at an East Main Road home last week. more

2/16/21

Lisa Lasky was recently chosen to be the new director of finance for the Town of Portsmouth.

Bristol woman is Portsmouth’s new finance director

PORTSMOUTH — Lisa Lasky of Bristol was recently appointed as the Town of Portsmouth’s new finance director. more

By Jim McGaw | 2/14/21

A car enters East Main Road from Union Street in Portsmouth.

Lawmaker puts the brakes on automated speed enforcement

PORTSMOUTH — A bill authorizing automated speed camera-enforcement systems in not only school zones but on all state and local roads in Rhode Island seems to have hit the skids, at … more

By Jim McGaw | 2/14/21

Portsmouth High School students and Every Student Initiative members Anna Conheeny, Marcus Evans, and Shea Rearick (from left) plan on testifying when hearings are held once again on the Nathan Bruno and Jason Flatt Act.

Portsmouth students haven’t forgotten bill bearing Nate’s name

PORTSMOUTH — Wearing “Be Great for Nate” T-shirts and filling the House and Senate viewing galleries, friends of the late Nathan Bruno came out in droves to the State House on … more

By Jim McGaw | 2/13/21

The number of FBI background checks for potential gun owners more than doubled in Rhode Island, year over year.

Gun ownership and use are on the rise in Rhode Island

Add gun acquisition and violence to the list of troubling societal issues that just got worse in 2020.According to the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAV), 2020 saw a 111 percent … more

By Christy Nadalin | 2/5/21

Kayleb Ruszczyk inside the GaGa ball pit he built for his yard last year. He brought his idea for a GaGa ball program to the Portsmouth Recreation Department.

Portsmouth boy hopes you’ll go ‘GaGa’ over this sport

PORTSMOUTH — No, it has nothing to do with Lady Gaga. It involves a sided “pit,” several players and a ball they bat around with their hands. It’s called GaGa (or GaGa … more

By Jim McGaw | 2/5/21

Examples of signs that were erected in front of a Bristol Ferry home by local resident Michael DiPaola, and which were the target of a notice of violation from the Town of Portsmouth. The ACLU has now filed a lawsuit against the town, challenging the zoning ordinance.

Portsmouth: Notice of violation doesn't target signs’ content

PORTSMOUTH — The Town of Portsmouth did not use its local sign ordinance to ban the posting of “political” signs by a local man on residential property, the town stated in a … more

1/24/21

Three homes destroyed in devastating fire on Prudence Island

PRUDENCE ISLAND — Three homes were completely destroyed by a late-night fire on Prudence Island Thursday. One woman managed to escape safely from the home at which the fire apparently … more

By Jim McGaw | 1/22/21

ACLU sues Town of Portsmouth over violation notice on signs

PORTSMOUTH — No doubt you’ve seen the signs while driving up and down Bristol Ferry Road, although perhaps the wording was difficult to make out from a moving vehicle. more

By Jim McGaw | 1/22/21

Amiyah Johnson, a student at Portsmouth Middle School, recited a nonviolence pledge during the tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Monday.

Choose to love and forgive, says MLK Jr. event speaker

NEWPORT COUNTY — On Jan. 6, hundreds of insurgents — many displaying telltale symbols typically worn by white supremacists, white nationalists and other extremist groups — … more

By Jim McGaw | 1/18/21

On Monday, workers were busy installing solar panels onto support structures at the site of a large solar array being built by the Navy on West Main Road, south of Melville School. Although this project did not require town oversight, Portsmouth Residents for Responsible Solar has raised concerns that the current solar ordinance could lead to many similar developments around town.

Citizens group seeks legal appeal of Portsmouth solar ordinance

PORTSMOUTH — A citizens group that protested the recent passage of a new solar ordinance with no success is now turning to the legal system in an attempt to find relief. Portsmouth … more

By Jim McGaw | 1/16/21

Dr. Philip Chan, the consultant medical director at the Department of Health's Division of Preparedness, Response, Infectious Disease and Emergency Medical Services, speaks to reporters via ZOOM Friday morning.

Health officials: More than 51,000 Rhode Islanders at least partially inoculated

More than 51,000 Rhode Islanders had been at least partially vaccinated against the coronavirus by Friday morning, according to state Department of Health officials, with 9,243 of them fully … more

By Ted Hayes | 1/15/21

Portsmouth man, 21, killed in wrong-way crash in Somerset

A 21-year-old Portsmouth man died early Wednesday morning after his car was struck head on by another vehicle that was traveling the wrong way on Route 195 in Somerset early, according to … more

1/13/21