"Rhode Island high court won’t block planned visitors center at The Breakers," Portland Press Journal

BY MICHELLE R. SMITH ASSOCIATED PRESS

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The group that owns The Breakers mansion in Newport is declaring victory in its long-running battle to build a visitors center on the grounds of the national historic landmark, following a decision by the Rhode Island Supreme Court.

Visitors center opponents said Tuesday they’re disappointed they have lost in the court, but said they’re launching a campaign to pressure the Preservation Society of Newport County to abandon the plan and “to preserve the historic integrity of The Breakers.”

​The Breakers, completed in 1895, was built by railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt II and is sometimes likened to Downton Abbey, the fictional estate in the TV series by the same name. The 70-room mansion, with over-the-top features such as platinum wall panels, sits on a 13-acre estate that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean.

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