What's Up Today: Wednesday, June 21

This is a What’sUpNewp newsletter. Receive this in your inbox every morning by signing up for our free daily newsletter!

Wednesday, June 21.

☀️ Summer begins at 10:57 am today when the Summer solstice occurs! With 15 hours and 11 minutes of daylight, today is the year’s longest day.

🚗 According to the division’s director, Bud Craddock, the Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles expects to roll out a mobile DMV office to replace two permanent part-time branch offices that have been closed for three years.

👉 Barbara A. VonVillas is back on the Middletown Town Council, saying she was looking forward to getting down to business and doing the work of the town.

🌺 This weekend’s 2023 Newport Flower Show has completely sold out, according to the Preservation Society of Newport County.

📺 We have two great conversations today on WUN-ON-ONE: At 1 pm, Cathleen Carr, Executive Director of newportFILM, will join us to discuss the upcoming newportFILM Outdoors series. At 2 pm, Salve grad Fletcher Michael will join us to chat about his new book, Glass Bottle Season.

🍻 Taproot Brewing Co. is saying “cheers to five years” with a celebration alongside their Wednesday Music Series kickoff today from 5 – 8 pm.

⚓ The JPT Film & Event Center is hosting a unique event tonight around a special screening of Master Commander: The Far Side of The World. Author Will Sofrin will be in-house screening a video presentation about his new book All Hands On Deck– a thrilling account of the 18th-century replica ship that was sailed from Newport to serve as the floating set in Master and Commander. Tickets & Event Details. If you missed our conversation with Will Sofrin, you can watch it here.

What’s Up Today

Weather

Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 67. East wind 8 to 11 mph.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low of around 54. East wind 5 to 8 mph.
7-Day Weather Forecast | 3-day Surf Forecast

Marine Forecast

Today: ENE wind 8 to 10 kt, becoming ESE in the afternoon. Partly sunny. Seas 1 ft or less.
Tonight: ESE wind 5 to 7 kt becoming variable and less than 5 kt after midnight. Mostly cloudy. Seas 1 ft or less.
Coastal Water Temperature: 64°F.

Sun, Moon, & Tide

Sunrise: 5:11 am | Sunset: 8:22 pm | 15 hours & 11 minutes of sun.
High tide at 10:55 am & 11:07 pm | Low tide at 4:17 am & 3:59 pm
Moon: Waxing Crescent. 2.6 days, 8% lighting.

Things To Do

9 am: Free Tree Walk: Storer Park & Point Neighborhood
12 pm: Child & Family’s 9th Annual Townsend Luncheon at OceanCliff
2 pm to 6 pm: Aquidneck Growers Market on Memorial Blvd
3 pm to 8 pm: Wednesday Flight Night at Newport Vineyards
5 pm to 6 pm: After5 Cleanup at Surfer’s End Second Beach
5 pm to 8 pm: Wednesday Music Series at Newport Vineyards
5 pm to 8 pm: Taproot’s 5th Anniversary at Newport Vineyards
6 pm to 9 pm: Stepping Out for Ukraine at Fort Getty Pavilion
6 pm: Raise Up the Arts at Wyndham Newport Hotel
6:15 pm: MASTER & COMMANDER W/ WILL SOFRIN, AUTHOR OF ALL HANDS ON DECK at The JPT Film & Event Center
6:30 pm: Fermentation Class at Forty 1 North
6:30 pm: Newport Gulls vs. Martha’s Vineyard Sharks at Cardines Field
Read More: What’s Up This Week in Newport County: June 19 – 25
For more events and things to do, visit our events calendar.

Live Music & Entertainment

Buskers: Open Mic with Mike Warner at 9 pm
Fastnet Pub: Trivia at 9 pm
JPT Film & Event Center: Blackberry at 3 pm, Master & Commander with Will Sofrin, author of All Hands on Deck at 6:15 pm
Landing: Mark Flynn at 1 pm, Jay Parker at 4:30 pm, Jim Devlin at 8 pm
Newport Playhouse: Spreading It Around at 11 am
Newport Vineyards: Blue Light Bands from 5 pm to 8 pm
O’Brien’s Pub: Eoin EganBlue Light Band from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Perro Salado: The Z-Boys at 10 pm
Ragged Island Brewing: Andrew Arsenault from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Sardella’s: Live music at 7 pm
The Reef: Music Bingo at 7 pm

Local Government

Jamestown: School Committee at 6:30 am, Bike Path Committee at 9 am, Affordable Housing at 5:15 pm, Planning Commission at 7 pm
Little Compton: Zoning Board of Review at 7 pm
Middletown: Board of Canvassers at 9 am, School Building Committee at 5 pm, Open Space and Fields Committee at 5:30 pm
Newport: Cemetery Advisory Commission at 4 pm
Portsmouth: School Committee – District Building Committee at 4 pm, Economic Development Committee at 5:30 pm
Tiverton: Historic Preservation Advisory Board at 9 am
See the agendas and a complete list of public meetings across Rhode Island here.

On WhatsUpNewp.com

The Latest

RI DMV plans to open a mobile DMV office to replace closed offices in Warren and Westerly

The Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles expects to roll out a mobile DMV office to replace two permanent part-time branch offices that have been closed for three years, according to the division’s director, Bud Craddock.

VonVillas appointed to Middletown Town Council

Barbara A. VonVillas is back on the #MiddletownRI Town Council, saying she was looking forward to getting down to business and doing the work of the town.

Letter – Barbara VonVillas: The perspective that I will continue to bring in my return to the Middletown Town Council

By Barbara A. VonVillas

Underwater noises heard in frantic search for submersible missing with 5 aboard near Titanic

A Canadian military surveillance aircraft detected underwater noises as a massive search continued early Wednesday in a remote part of the North Atlantic for a submersible that vanished while taking five people down to the wreck of the Titanic.

7-Day Weather forecast for Newport County

Here’s what’s on tap for weather this week and weekend.

3-day Surf Forecast for Rhode Island

Forecast includes rip current risk, surf height, weather, winds, and more.

Jamestown Arts Center’s 11th Annual Summer Soirée set for June 30

The Soirée will include DJ and dancing, raw bar, cocktails, and summer savories and treats. Unique live auction items include cocktails at Clingstone, a private polo lesson, a sail aboard 46’ Sloop Flood Tide, a Luke Randall print, and a bevy of experiential offerings.

Vacant land in Little Compton sells for $1.8 million

According to data from the Multiple Listing Service, this is the highest land sale in Little Compton since March 2021.

WUN-ON-ONE: Salve grad to discuss his latest novel, where you’ll find some of your favorite Newport haunts

Conversation with Fletcher Michael coming up on Wednesday, June 21 at 2 pm

Recent Local Obituaries

Judi Ann Beck

What’s Up Today: Wednesday, June 21