Final Cliff Walk Section Opens Saturday

The last leg of the Newport Cliff Walk will reopen Saturday, making the end of a major construction project to make substantial repairs after Superstorm Sandy smashed Rhode Island’s coast in 2012.

The state Department of Transportation announced that the final section that runs from Ledge Road to the Miramar mansion will be open to walkers tomorrow. There’s still some cleanup and landscaping work to be done, so people might encounter workers and equipment on the new path.

“Thanks to all of our community partners for their help in bringing these critical repairs to fruition,” the DOT said on its Facebook page. “The Cliff Walk project is the last piece of our Sandy restoration efforts, which included 17 projects worth nearly $20 million.”

Officials held a ribbon cutting in June and unveiled a plaque that happened to have a major mistake — Governor Lincoln Chafee’s name was spelled with two “F’s” instead of one and now, the company that made the plaque, John Roccio Corp., has promised to make a new one.

The new plaque won’t cost the city any money and although much attention was paid to the typo last month, the sign should not take away from the significance of the reopening.

The $5 million repair project was paid for with federal funds and the work included the installation of new restrooms added near the entrance. That project includes improvements to sidewalks, new concrete sidewalks extending to Ochre Point Ave, an accessible curb ramp, bike racks, new restroom with drinking fountain and bottle filler and portions of pavement replaced with greenscape.