The following announcement was provided by Bike Newport.
On Thursday, April 11th, Parlor Bar and Kitchen will play host to the annual Bike Newport Night. Who’s not ready to leap into spring and think bikes? With music by Los Duderinos, The Golden Bantam String Band, and Dragonfly Marie, Parlor’s tasty foods, and a room full of auction items donated by a host of supportive local businesses, and the annual GRAND PRIZE bike, it’s a party not to be missed. Parlor Bar & Kitchen brings the party to the ground floor where even more people can celebrate bike progress.
Each year, one program benefits from the event’s fundraising. This year it is the upcoming Pump Track. The Bike Barn already has work underway for program areas and shelter from the sun, for solar panels and community gardens with connecting trails into Miantonomi Park. Now a Pump Track can be added to the site plan thanks to the generosity of the property owner, the Newport Housing Authority. They know that our young people need a place to ride and play away from cars – and what better place than a PUMP TRACK? The program will be located next to the Big Blue Bike Barn on the Sunset Blvd lot, immediately adjacent to Miantonomi Park.
The City of Newport is assisting with removing fences, clearing space, and cutting paths into Miantonomi Park to connect the Bike Barn and Pump Track areas directly with the hiking and biking trails in the park, Thanks to multiple partners, the new facility will be a beautiful hub of kids on bikes, community, and park activity. Work on preparing the site has already begun; and is on track to be in place by the late spring/summer.
“It’s this deep collaboration on active healthy education that caught our attention and sealed our partnership,” shared Bike Barn funder and philanthropist Carol Bazarsky. “An educational and play space in one of the city’s most beautiful locations. We are so grateful for the investment in the north end and Miantonomi Park.”
“We’re pumped to host the event,” enthused Kristen Mashaw, owner of Parlor. “We’re really looking forward to giving everyone a great time while we come through together for our kids.”
A community meeting will take place on Tuesday April 23rd at 6pm, at the Florence Gray Center for anyone who has ideas, would like to be involved, or simply wants to know more about the Pump Track.
All funds raised at Bike Newport Night will support the Pump Track. Funding for the Bike Barn campus to date has been generously provided by the Bazarsky Foundation, RI Foundation, Powered by Prince,van Beuren Charitable Foundation, the RITBA Foundation, The New England Mountain Bike Association and the Merritt Family Fund. Local companies and agencies including the City of Newport RI, Aquidneck Land Trust, Gambrell’s Landscape llc., Reynolds DeWalt, Sunbelt Rentals, Newport Solar, Place Studio, UG Nasons, Newport Health Equity Zone, Newport County YMCA, Preservation Society of Newport County, and others are generously providing resources and expertise.
For more information, please visit bikenewportri.org; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube @bikenewportri; call Bike Newport at (401) 619-4900; or email info@bikenewportri.org.