Newportians open their doors for Christmas

The disheveled rental units and vacant houses from Newport's "Sin City" past are a distant memory in the city's East Row neighborhood.

Century-old Victorian Homes refurbished to their original splendor have taken their place.

Next weekend on Dec. 5-6, 10 buildings will open their doors for the East Row neighborhood's 22nd annual Christmas home tour.

The home tour has helped the neighborhood's renaissance over the past two decades, said Ian Budd, who first moved to Newport's East Row in 1979.

"Some moved in as a result of the home tour and started fixing up the homes," Budd said. "Bit by bit we've seen wonderful improvement. The Neighborhood is now a delightful place to walk."

The tour will feature churches and homes dating as far back as the 1870s. One of Newport's most iconic buildings, the Vendome, will be put back on the tour for the first time in years. It now is a bed and breakfast.

The massive red brick building at 841 Washington Ave. was built in 1874. It served as a theatrical boardinghouse in the first half of the 20th Century, housing such stars as Frank Sinatra and Al Jolson.

Two church buildings will be on the tour, St. John's United Church of Christ and the now closed St. Mark Lutheran Church, the latter of which is being rehabbed.

The tour often draws more than 800 visitors.

"People get to walk through the homes and get to see the wonderful architecture in Newport," Budd said. "They see how people decorate their homes and get very much into the Christmas spirit."

The East Row Victorian Christmas Tour will run from 12 p.m.-6 p.m. on Dec. 5 and Dec. 6. Tickets in advance will cost $16 and can be purchased on www.east-row.org. On the day of the tour, tickets will cost $18 and can be purchased at the Carnegie Event Center, 401 Monmouth St., where the tour begins. The tours are self-guided.