Permanent Restrooms Coming to Cliff Walk

A $175,000 grant through the Department of Environmental Management has been included in the state budget through the advocacy of President of the Senate M. Teresa Paiva Weed (D – Dist. 13, Newport, Jamestown).

The grant will be used to install permanent restroom facilities at the Narragansett Avenue/Forty Steps location. The Commission will be reviewing alternative plans with the City of Newport but they will be high-strength, vandal-resistant facilities, A.D.A. accessible, easily cleaned, and conform with the character and nearby architecture of the area.

“The Cliff Walk is an historic national treasure which attracts visitors from across the globe,” said Senate President Paiva Weed. “Adding these accommodations will make visitors more comfortable and help them more fully enjoy their experience here. That benefits our tourism economy, while it also improves the quality of life in the area.” 

Presently, visitors to the 3 ½ mile-long Cliff Walk in Newport have only one choice: unsightly porta-johns. These facilities, located on Narragansett Avenue near the “Forty Steps” access point to Cliff Walk, are not just unsightly and out of character for the natural and gilded-age grandeur of the attraction but also emit odors and can exceed capacity by day’s end. They are only available during the peak season, leaving no facilities present for much of the year. The porta-johns have been a target for vandals, who have sprayed them with graffiti, tipped them over, and even thrown them over the edge.

John Hirschboeck, Secretary of the Cliff Walk Commission, observed, “Over 800,000 visitors travel Newport’s Cliff Walk each year – Rhode Island’s most visited attraction. And yet we’ve never been able to secure funding for permanent restrooms along the walk. The Cliff Walk Commission is delighted to receive this grant that will bring ‘relief’ to many.”

Information provided by the Rhode Island Senate.