The controversial new welcome center at the Breakers mansion in Newport opened Thursday, as part of the Newport Preservation Society’s annual meeting. The nonprofit, which runs the Gilded-Age mansion estimated hundreds, including Governor Gina Raimondo, were expected to turn up.
The welcome center, a $5.5 million glass and metal structure, houses bathrooms, ticket stations, and sells water and snacks. It marks the end of a five year fight for the nonprofit, which felt it needed to upgrade its facilities. It also sits in the front lawn of the Breakers, one of the largest of Newport’s historic mansions.
That was the point of contention that led to a years-long series of battles between the Preservation Society, and neighbors, who strenuously objected to a new constriction disrupting the Gilded-Age landscape.
Legal battles, and neighborhood squabbles played out in the local and national news, with descendants of the famous Vanderbilt family, who built the mansion, even getting into the fray.
After a series of lawsuits, the issue eventually reached the state Supreme Court, which decided that construction could move forward. The Breakers was built in 1895 and receives more than 450,000 visitors a year, according to the Newport Preservation Society.
