RED BANK: SKATE SHOP ROLLS OUT OF TOWN
After less than three years in downtown Red Bank, Feet First Skate Shop has closed its doors.
RED BANK: FOOD, AND MORE, IN CHURN
Ivan Lopez and friend outside the newly opened Toro Rojo Parrilla Mexicana on Shrewsbury Avenue. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Two food-based businesses departed Red Bank last month – one after 21 years, the other after just a few days.
But the shopping and dining scene also saw the quick revival of a vacant restaurant space, the opening of a new Pilates studio and more activity.
Read all about it in this edition of Retail Churn.
RED BANK: ROOF’S OFF. WHAT’S UP?
The roof is gone and the rest of a one-story building on a triangular slice of land at 301 Maple Avenue in Red Bank has been gutted. And recently, a bright orange sticker was slapped on one of the remaining windows.
What’s Going On Here? Click ‘read more’ for the answer.
RED BANK: COUNCIL SALARIES UNCHANGED
The council meets twice monthly at borough hall, 90 Monmouth Street. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Salaries for Red Bank’s mayor and council, which haven’t risen in at least 15 years, will remain unchanged at least through the remainder of 2023, under an resolution up for a vote Thursday night.
But whomever the governing body selects to fill the new borough manager post will have the latitude to give them specified raises under a related ordinance that’s also up for a vote.
Here’s a quick look at the agenda:
RED BANK: SALARY BUMPS & MORE ON AGENDA
The council meets twice monthly at borough hall, 90 Monmouth Street. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s council would clear the way to give itself its first pay bump in at least 15 years under an ordinance up for introduction Thursday night.
It would also reset the maximum salaries for the top three unelected positions at borough hall, one of which is open.
Here’s a quick look at the agenda:
RED BANK: RESTAURANTS IN CHURN
Catch 19 will close and a new restaurant will replace it, its owner says. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
In this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn: piping-hot news of changes at two restaurants in downtown Red Bank.
Though one is closing and the other is newly opened, for the owners of both, the appeal of the Broadwalk seasonal dining and shopping plaza remains strong four years in.
RED BANK: SIDEWALK SALE TURNS 69
Helping sustain downtown businesses since 1954, the ageless Red Bank Sidewalk Sale returns for its annual three-day run starting Friday.
RED BANK: BROADWALK PAIR GOES FOR $6.1M
The former home to Coco Pari, and the building next door, with Catch 19, were sold in a joint deal. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A prime bit of downtown Red Bank retail space was part of a two-building sale last month, redbankgreen has learned.
What goes into the vacant storefont of one is among the changes Retail Churn is keeping an eye on.
RED BANK: NOW GOING UP ON SHREWSBURY…
Black construction fencing surrounds a narrow lot Shrewsbury Avenue in Red Bank.
What’s Going On Here? redbankgreen sneaks a peak through a hole in the fence…
RED BANK: RESTAURANTS CHURN IN… AND OUT
Agra Indian Masala is under construction at the onetime home of Monmouth Music. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Two long-vacant spaces in downtown Red Bank are showing signs of returning as new restaurants.
Also in this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn: two restaurants that proved short-lived.
RED BANK: TENANTS TO FILL KEY VACANCIES
Two new retail tenants will be coming to the building at the corner of Broad and Monmouth streets, says the landlord. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
One of downtown Red Bank’s landmark buildings appears on the verge of filling two retail vacancies, redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn has learned.
Also in this edition of Churn: a restaurant is now dual-branded; an Italian ice shop opens; and a smoke shop plans to replace a “sip-and-paint” studio.
RED BANK: BAGEL OVEN ENDS 45-YEAR RUN
The Bagel Oven in Red Bank ended a 45-year run under its founding owners Sunday.
RED BANK: BROADWALK IS BACK
Red Bank’s Broadwalk returned Monday night for at least a four-month run. And the weather for the next week looks good for outdoor dining.
RED BANK: POT, BUDGET & MORE ON AGENDA
Responding to public pressure, the council plans to create a four-way stop at the intersection of Leighton Avenue and Drs. James Parker Boulevard. (Google Maps image. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
On the Red Bank mayor and council’s agenda for Wednesday night: new hurdles for licensing of cannabis businesses; the 2023 budget; a new four-way traffic intersection and more.
RED BANK: SMOKED MEATS, PLUS CLAY, IN CHURN
Gleaming displays at Salt & Smoke, on Prospect Avenue. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank may have lost one of its oldest neighborhood butcher shops last summer, but new owners are giving the space a new, spicier lease on life.
Also in this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn, a pottery instruction business takes over a tiny, hard-to-see spot in the heart of downtown.
RED BANK: POT LAW DRAWS FIRE BUT ADVANCES
A long-vacant gas station at the foot of Cooper’s Bridge was left out of the new law by mistake, proponents said. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
The Red Bank council advanced a rewrite of the borough pot law Wednesday night, undeterred by cannabis business owners warning of lawsuits.
The proposed changes, which include a ban on marijuana retailing within 1,000 feet of schools, “please no one,” but must be adopted, their lead sponsor told a sharply divided audience at a special legislative session.
RED BANK: SESSION ON CANNABIS LAW SLATED
A proposed change to Red Bank’s cannabis law would ban sales within 1,000 feet of schools, playgrounds and public housing, except in one zone, under a draft that’s up for discussion at a special session this week.
RED BANK: PAIR PRODS ACTION ON BROADWALK
Robinson Ale House owner Tim McLoone at Wednesday’s council session. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s Broadwalk dining plaza will return for at least a four-month run May 15, following informal agreement by the borough council Wednesday night.
The consensus arose after Mayor Billy Portman and Councilwoman Kate Triggiano goaded the reluctant majority bloc into an immediate decision.
RED BANK: ART GALLERY TAKING A DETOUR
Detour Gallery on opening night in 2016. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
See CLARIFICATION below
By JOHN T. WARD
Seven years after it opened in Red Bank with a splash, Detour Gallery is heading for the Highline.
The art gallery plans to relocate to open a new space in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood, though much of its collection will remain in the converted warehouse owner Kenny Schwartz calls home, he told redbankgreen Tuesday.
RED BANK: PARKING, EV CHARGING ON AGENDA
The council is eyeing requirements for electric vehicle charging in new multifamily projects and parking lots. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
See UPDATE below
By JOHN T. WARD
On the Red Bank mayor and council’s agenda for Wednesday night: rules requiring electric vehicle chargers at new developments, and a change in the parking law for a stretch of Spring Street.
Not on the agenda: the burning issue of how to rewrite the town’s cannabis law.
RED BANK: 139-YEAR-OLD MARINA SOLD
Riverview Medical Center looms over one of two Irwin Marine properties flanking Marine Park. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Irwin Marine, a boating business with pilings sunk deep into the red clay waterfront that gave Red Bank its name, has been sold by the family that’s owned it throughout its 139-year existence.
RED BANK: CHEESE SHOP OPENS
A new specialty cheese shop has opened in Red Bank, adding momentum to an ongoing transformation of the downtown business district’s southern end. More →
RED BANK: FIRE DAMAGES APARTMENT
Volunteer firefighters battling the blaze, as seen from the north side of the building. (Video by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
See UPDATE below
By JOHN T. WARD
Fire in a third-floor unit briefly emptied a seven-story apartment building overlooking the Navesink River in Red Bank Thursday afternoon.
RED BANK: SMOKE, BUT NO FIRE ‘COMPANY’
The cannabis shop is slated to replace the China Moon restaurant on North Bridge Avenue. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A proposed cannabis store with the “terrible” name of “Red Bank Fire Company” will change its moniker before it opens in coming months, a representative said Monday night.
The business won planning board approval to open a marijuana dispensary in a North Bridge Avenue strip mall after promising to quickly end any confusion with the borough’s volunteer fire department.
RED BANK: ITALIAN ICE, LOBSTER ROLLS COMING
The future location of Rita’s Italian Ice & Frozen Custard on West Front Street. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s booming food scene is in for some new additions soon: a Rita’s Italian Ice shop and a Mystic Lobster Roll.
Also: a hair stylist has found a single answer to the questions of where to operate his salon and where to live.
Read all about them in this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn.