RI's cheapest home; mansion custody battle; restaurant list snub: Top stories this week

Here are some of The Providence Journal's most-read stories for the week of Oct. 1, supported by your subscriptions.

• Thursday, Oct. 5, was National Rhode Island Day. Surprised? So was columnist Mark Patinkin, who explained our quirky appeal to the uninitiated.

• Looking for some fun ways to spend Columbus Day weekend? We have you covered.

• Now that Taylor Swift is a football fan (owing to her rumored romance with the Kansas City Chiefs' Travis Kelce), a Tiverton High School coach has invited her to cheer on a team in her part-time home state of Rhode Island.

• For the latest on the Patriots' Week 5 matchup with the Saints, and news on high school and college sports, go to providencejournal.com/sports.

• Did you keep up with the week's events? Take our news quiz.

Here are the week's top reads on providencejournal.com:

A couple sold their Providence estate. Now they want it back. Here’s why.

Who owns Providence's last genuine estate? It depends on whom you ask.

Rebecca and Newton Howard purchased the estate at 460 Rochambeau Ave. on the spot when they saw it in 2015, exactly a century after its construction. But following a contentious auction that the Howards consider a disaster, the ownership fell into dispute. To the dismay of some locals, the property could be given to the auction winner, local developer Dustin Dezube, who might turn it into condos.

Dezube is the target of numerous complaints from his tenants, who have been angered by maintenance woes, leaks and mold. He has pushed back against their criticisms and now hopes he can be part of the future of something much bigger: the 1915 Clara and William Bridgham estate.

Real estate: A couple sold their Providence estate. Now they want it back. Here’s why.

Forget RI's mansions – take a look at RI's least-expensive home for sale with Mark Patinkin

Many real estate stories focus on mansions and luxurious waterfront properties. Columnist Mark Patinkin was curious about the other end of the spectrum: Rhode Island’s cheapest year-round home for sale that’s in move-in shape.

It’s on the market for $70,000, and not where you might expect. The seller explains how he came to live in his "little slice of heaven," why he needs to move on, and what you can expect to get for $96 per square foot, compared with the $3,500 per square foot you'd pay for the state's priciest addresses.

Mark Patinkin: Forget RI's mansions, take a look at RI's least-expensive home for sale

After years of sleeping outside, he's ready for a room. Will there be one available?

PROVIDENCE − After being arrested multiple times for refusing to leave encampments near the Rhode Island State House, where he was protesting, and after years of living in tents and being the subject of complaints by local radio hosts, Michael Neugent is ready to sleep in his own private room.

The arrest that broke Neugent's will to keep living on the streets happened on Sept. 29, as he stood on the sidewalk on the Orms Street bridge, across from his encampment.

Despite assurances by police that Neugent's property would be stored, state workers threw away all of his possessions, including his backpack, which had a copy of his birth certificate, his identification card, his bus pass, his medical cards and his writings, according to outreach worker Amy Santiago.

After pleading no contest to a trespassing charge, Neugent is back on Providence's streets, waiting for a motel room to open up, Santiago said.

"He is broken," she said. "He is broken."

Homelessness: After years of sleeping outside, he's ready for a room. Will there be one available?

A 5th-generation jeweler is thriving in Warren, but you can't find their products in a store

WARREN − Outside the Haverhill jewelry workshop at the confluence of the Palmer and Barrington rivers, boats bob in the water and a slight breeze rustles the trees.

Inside the former Tourister Mill outbuilding, it's a hive of activity, with jewelers busily preparing for the coming holiday season. While Haverhill's workshop is just down Water Street from boutiques, jewelry stores and beach gift shops, their work can only be bought online. It's one ingredient in their recipe for success: personalization.

Haverhill is one of seven Rhode Island companies that made Inc. magazine's list of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the nation, ranking 242nd, and eighth in retail, with 2,290% growth over the last three years.

Business: A 5th-generation jeweler is thriving in Warren, but you can't find their products in a store

RI was snubbed by the New York Times' best restaurant list. Here's what they missed

There's been a lot of talk in local circles about the recent publication of the New York Times' 2023 list of "America's Best Restaurants."

On the list are 50 restaurants in 28 states. A bunch of states have two, including Illinois and Georgia. Restaurants in Idaho and Alaska are on the list. New England has three – one each in Connecticut, Maine and Massachusetts.

Was Providence snubbed? Nope. All of Rhode Island was snubbed. In response, Journal food editor Gail Ciampa has compiled her personal list of Rhody restaurants that would have merited inclusion. Let the debates begin!

Dining: RI was snubbed by the New York Times best restaurant list. Here's what they missed

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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence Journal top stories: Mansion battle; RI's cheapest home