For 18 years, he has stayed open seven days a week, kept his merchandise inexpensive and put up with a parade of men asking which strip bar was best. Now most of those bars are gone, and Mr. Deaton is anticipating riches, or at least enough windfall to cover his mortgages. He's purchased seven homes in and around Mansion Hill, and when not at Richard's, he's checking on renovations. Newport's time has come, Mr. Deaton says. If development keeps marching south, he'll gladly sell his store at 720 Monmouth.
People really have to understand, some things have to go for the betterment of Newport.
Next to a display of porcelain dolls is a room full of X-rated gag gifts, and for the pale shopper, there's a tanning bed upstairs. As Newport's Main Street coordinator, he's an engagingly open fellow, given to optimistic pronouncements tempered with realism. Monmouth is overloaded with greasy-spoon restaurants, for instance, so Mr. Avner was glad to see a Thai place open near Fourth Street. But it was too early for such a venture to succeed, and the restaurant closed in less than a year. Mr. Avner acknowledges Monmouth's current status as a useful street for nearby residents.