News

Through storms, shipwrecks, foggy weather, eroding bluffs and massive renovations including moving the whole structure, the Southeast Lighthouse has remained a popular destination on Block Island, drawing thousands of visitors annually to tour the tower and the grounds. But there is more to the lighthouse than the tower with its rare Fresnel lens beaming light […]

Don Lawson was the last keeper of the North Light, located on the northern tip of Block Island, serving from 1955 until 1956. It was no accident that he ended up there.“I was serving in the Coast Guard, on an ice breaker called the East Wind. My wife was going to have a baby, so

Dr. Tom Warcup made one of his all too frequent appearances at the Town Council meeting Monday night. As director of the Block Island Medical Center, Warcup informed the council that Rhode Island, as a state, is headed the wrong way with its Covid-19 numbers.Warcup said that since last week the Rhode Island Department of

The word, “Reflections” can be defined as the return of light from a surface or the consideration of subject matter. In Betsey MacDonald’s current oil paintings, which will be on view at The Spring Street Gallery from August 7 to 19, “Reflections” means both. Betsey loves and paints animals. In this current body of work, Betsey

A private plane ran off the runway at the Block Island Airport on Monday night, July 26, crashing through the fence, across Center Road, and into the guardrail.New Shoreham Police Chief Matt Moynihan confirmed it was an aborted takeoff, with the pilot running out of runway and ending up across the street. “Thankfully, no one

Maximum house sizes on Block Island are going to shrink, at least for a while. The Town Council voted to amend zoning regulations related to the size and massing of residential structures, reducing size limits in the Zoning Ordinance found in Section 514 and Section 111.Section 406 of the zoning ordinance establishes thresholds on size

It costs $32.00 to experience different fish species up close at the Boston Aquarium, alongside $40.00 for parking. It’s even more at Mystic Aquarium ($37.00) for general admission and a slog from the parking lot. At the Block Island Maritime Institute (BIMI), nestled in New Harbor directly on the Great Salt Pond, you park right

The Zoning Board finally heard the application for a special use permit and a variance to build a staircase to provide maintenance access to the proposed shoreline stabilization project at the Marino property, Plat 8, Lot 42. The application had been floating around for nearly two years as studies were done and surveys performed, including

“How a real estate contract can create something so convoluted, I don’t understand,” Member Judith Cyronak said to her colleagues on the Zoning Board on July 28. The board was discussing the Overlook property, which borders the Great Salt Pond between Champlin’s Marina and the Salt Pond Settlement condominiums. Overlook Realty, LLC, managed by Steven

One of the island’s favorite events, Blues on the Block – a family-friendly public concert featuring local blues bands — will next take place on Wednesday, Aug. 11 at the Fred Benson Beach Pavilion at 5:30 p.m. The band Johnnie and the East Coast Rockers will entertain attendees until 7:00 p.m.The concert is sponsored by