RHODE ISLAND
If you are looking for a way to light up your life then look no further than Providence, Rhode Island. This summer Providence’s WaterFire will once again set the city’s rivers aglow with massive bonfires.
Event organizers say this year there will be 11 full bonfire lightings (with the possibility that two more will be added) and four partial lightings for the free arts event. That’s the good news. The bad news is that due to sponsorship cutbacks the live jazz concerts that are a huge part of WaterFire will only be offered three nights during the popular event, which runs from May through October.
According to event organizers, the nonprofit group that runs WaterFire has been hit by the economic downturn and since WaterFire’s $1.7 million annual budget is supported solely by donations and sponsorships they simply had to cut back this year.
If you are in the Providence area this summer WaterFire is a must-see event. It’s been annual tradition in the city for more than a decade and is considered to be one of the most popular public arts events in New England.
The event centers on a series of 100 bonfires, which blaze just above the surface of the three rivers that pass through the middle of downtown Providence. This year full lightings are scheduled for May 24, May 30, June 21, June 28, Aug. 2, Aug. 16, Aug. 30, Sept. 13, Sept. 20, Sept. 27 and Oct. 11, while partial lightings are scheduled for June 3, June 18, Sept. 17 and Sept. 19.
NEW YORK
Fans of the ultra pricey sushi restaurant chain, Nobu have another reason to cheer today. The mega-popular Japanese eatery is branching out into the hotel business.
According to new reports, a developer just revealed that he plans to build a 62-story glass tower near the New York Stock Exchange that will house a 128-room, five-star hotel; 77 luxury condominiums and the city’s fourth Nobu restaurant. The project will be called Nobu Hotel and Residences and will be the first Nobu hotel in the country (another is being developed in Herzliya Marina along Israel’s Mediterranean coast.)
Appropriately enough the new hotel is expected to be one of the Big Apple’s most unique and modern looking structures. Developers say visitors can expect to see a transparent glass facade at the 650-foot tower’s base that rises six stories. Inside Nobu, the restaurant, will be situated on the third floor. Meanwhile, the tower will feature film screening rooms, private wine and sake cellars and a 13,000-square-foot health club.
Construction of the tower will reportedly begin later this year and the hotel should open two years later.
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