Rhode Island
Why a Taylor Swift wedding might shut down Westerly streets
Forget limos, Taylor Swift will need buses for her wedding guests
Airline Express Limousine Owner Chuck O’Koomian tells us why.
As Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce eye possibly getting married at her Watch Hill, Rhode Island, mansion, The Providence Journal is surveying various wedding vendors about what it would take for the Ocean State to host a wedding befitting the most popular woman in the world.
Imagine a crowd of A-list celebrities descending on the village of Watch Hill in Westerly this summer to attend the wedding of mega celebrity Taylor Swift and football star Travis Kelce.
To Chuck O’Koomian, who owns Airline Express Limousine and Car Service with his wife Ginny Cauley, it’s like a scene out of a horror movie.
“It’s gonna be a logistical nightmare,” O’Koomian told The Providence Journal.
How will guests arrive at Taylor Swift’s wedding in Westerly?
While Swift has not announced when or where her wedding will be, O’Koomian talked about what would be involved in getting a large celebrity crowd to the wedding, if it were held at her Bluff Avenue mansion, the nearby Ocean House resort or the Watch Hill Chapel, where Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo tied the know with football player Christian McCaffrey in 2024.
O’Koomian, who has provided transportation for comedian Jay Leno, who has a home in Newport, said there would be three distinct phases of ground transportation:
- Getting people from airports to their hotels
- Getting people from their hotels to the wedding activities
- Getting them back to the airports
The middle phase, delivering people to wedding activities, very well may not be just a one-day affair. Many say Swift won’t have a wedding day; they’re expecting a wedding week.
While some guests, especially those in New York or Connecticut, would probably just have their drivers bring them to Westerly, others would fly in by private jets, probably landing at Westerly State Airport or Quonset State Airport, whose military runway is long enough to handle larger jets. From there, guests would need a ride to where they are staying.
What Westerly residents have to say
Folks in Westerly have surmised that, even if it’s not the site of the ceremony or reception, the Ocean House, along with its sister property the Weekapaug Inn, plus several rented, private mansions would be needed to accommodate guests.
O’Koomian expects that a large limousine company – such as Boston Corporate Coach or Carey Limousine, in Massachusetts, or Hy’s Limousine, in Connecticut – with more than 120 cars each, would get the contract to serve Taylor Swift’s wedding. “There’s not even 120 cars in Rhode Island, all the companies combined,” he said, adding that, as a subcontractor, he would hope to get a piece of the business.
Could a fleet of private cars filled with stars snarl traffic in Westerly?
This first phase of local transportation would involve many trips of smaller parties. “They may come in two, three, four at a time,” he said.
While that is suitable for limousine service, getting from hotels to the ceremony, reception and other events, would require a different strategy for that second phase. “It’s like they’re transporting a football team,” he said.
That would mean “coaches,” the upscale version of buses. They would ease the traffic burden that would be created by limousines ferrying some 300 wedding guests around the tiny village of Watch Hill.
“It’s gonna take a lot of coordination if it’s Westerly,” O’Koomian said. “They’re going to have to shut down half the city. Police would have to shut down streets.”
Rhode Island
Rhode Island’s Favorite Late Night Restaurant Picked In Poll
A recent poll of “thousands of night-owls” determined Rhode Island’s favorite after-midnight place to eat.
“There’s a special kind of hunger that only hits after midnight — the moment when the fridge is empty, the delivery apps have tapped out, and every sensible person is asleep,” the release said. “Yet across the country, there’s a parallel universe still wide awake: the 1 a.m. burger joints keeping the lights on, the taco trucks that never blink, the 24-hour diners quietly fueling the country’s night-shift economy, gamers, students, bartenders packing down after service, and everyone else who simply doesn’t keep daylight hours.”
See also: What Popular Restaurant Do Rhode Islanders Want More Than Any Other Brand?
Rhode Island
Romeiros to hold annual religious pilgrimages in MA and R.I. What to know
Hundreds of Romeiros are expected to make their annual pilgrimage of faith in the upcoming weeks, walking across cities and towns in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island and filling the streets with their Portuguese prayers and religious songs.
Wrapped in cloaks and wearing colorful scarves on their heads or shoulders, with a rosary and walking staff in hand, they will walk and pray in most cases from dawn till dusk.
The Romeiros continue to keep alive an Azorean tradition that originated in the 16th century on the island of São Miguel, where islanders would march for a week during Lent to appeal to God to stop volcanic activity.
The tradition was brought by Azorean immigrants to Fall River in the 1980s, but here the pilgrimage was shortened to one day. It subsequently expanded to New Bedford, Taunton, Bristol and Pawtucket.
A weeklong New England Romaria, covering more than a dozen cities and towns in Southeastern Massachusetts, was introduced in 2012.
When are the one-day Romarias taking place?
- Taunton, Mass., Saturday, March 21
Romeiros will depart from Saint Anthony’s Parish Hall to the church at 6:30 a.m. After attending Mass, they will embark on a 15-mile journey of faith, making stops at Holy Family Church (East Taunton), Saint Andrew Church, Saint Jude the Apostle Church and Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church, before returning to St. Anthony’s Church.
- New Bedford, Mass., Saturday, March 28
The Romeiros will gather at the Immaculate Conception Church on Earle Street at 7 a.m. and attend Mass before taking to the streets. They will crisscross the city to pray at several churches. They will visit St. Mary’s Church, Holy Name of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Saint Lawrence Church, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. James Church, Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Our Lady’s Chapel Church, Saint Anthony’s of Padua Church, before concluding the pilgrimage by returning to Immaculate Conception Church for a celebration of Holy Mass at 7 p.m.
- Bristol, R.I., Sunday, March 29
The Romeiros will gather at 6 a.m. at Saint Elizabeth’s Church to make their half-day pilgrimage. Along the way, they are expected to stop at Saint Mary’s Church, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, and the Columban Fathers. They will return to Saint Elizabeth’s Church and attend 12 p.m. Mass.
- Pawtucket, R.I., Sunday, March 29
The Romeiros will gather at Saint Anthony’s Church and depart at 6 a.m. They will stop at Saint John’s Church, Saint Mary’s Church and Saint Mary’s Cemetery before returning to Saint Anthony’s Church to attend Mass at noon.
- Fall River, Mass., Friday, April 3
The Romaria season will culminate on Good Friday, when Romeiros from all over the region are expected to march in Fall River from church to church.
The group will gather at Espírito Santo Church around 6 a.m. for a blessing before traversing the city. They will stop at St. Anthony of Padua, Holy Name, St. Michael’s, St. Joseph’s, Santo Christo, St. Mary’s Cathedral, St. Anne’s, Good Shepherd and Holy Trinity before returning to Espírito Santo to attend Holy Mass and a special Good Friday service starting at 7 p.m.
Weeklong Romaria
A smaller group of Romeiros will embark Saturday, March 21 on a weeklong journey of faith throughout Southeastern Massachusetts, covering about 130 miles on foot to visit around 50 churches in more than a dozen cities and towns.
Rhode Island
TF Green Airport to undergo rehabilitation work on primary runway
WARWICK, R.I. (WJAR) — The Rhode Island Airport Corp. said Thursday that it will begin rehabilitation work on its 8,700-foot runway at Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport in April.
According to officials, the months-long project on Runway 5-23 will include milling and resurfacing the pavement, as well as upgrades to runway lighting, electrical systems, signage, and pavement markings.
Airport officials said aircraft will mainly use Runway 16-34, which is 6,100 feet, during construction.
“While fully capable of supporting safe operations, the shorter runway may require airlines to adjust aircraft operations under certain conditions,” RIAC said in a release.
The work is expected to last through October.
RIAC said passenger volumes at T.F. Green may temporarily decline by up to double digits during certain months of the construction.
“PVD continues to experience strong underlying demand for air travel and RIAC remains focused on completing the runway rehabilitation project efficiently,” Dawn Mineker, executive vice president of infrastructure and operations, said. “We continue to invest in our infrastructure to keep pace with increased growth and passenger demand both on the airfield and within the terminal.”
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Airport officials said the project is funded with federal airport improvement grants and will cost around $30 million.
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