Skip to content

A town square for an unsquare town

redbankgreen

Standing for the vitality of Red Bank, its community, and the fun we have together.

RED BANK: FORMER STAIR FACTORY REFRAMED

131-drs-parker-030217-500x375-1959867The former B&C Stair factory is in the midst of a top-to-bottom renovation.  (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

hot-topic_03-220x138-2130637Having worked his magic in creating a dazzling new gallery downtown last year, art collector Kenny Schwartz has now turned his attention to a factory on Red Bank’s West Side.

There, in the former home of B&C Custom Wood Stairs and Rail, at the corner of Drs. James Parker Boulevard and South Bridge Avenue, the auto dealer is creating a custom-frame shop to serve walk-in customers, major museums and galleries, including his own Detour Gallery, on Clay Street.

schwartz-crinigan-030217-500x375-8459804Kenny Schwartz and framer Erin Crinigan. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

Schwartz — who recently sold his World Subaru and World Jeep dealerships in Shrewsbury but still owns a Volkswagen business, a motorcycle dealership as well as a pub and restaurant in Keyport — has paired up with framer Erin Crinigan to create what he calls “the best-outfitted freaking frame shop in the country,” capable of making specialized displays required by museums.

They even acquired stairmaking equipment from the building’s prior owner that will be useful in making “spandrel frames, frames with pillars, crazy stuff,” said Crinigan.

With the 4,900-square-foot building now in the midst of a total makeover, they hope to open the shop this spring. The second floor will house Schwartz’s office as well as some artwork for sale.

“I used to drive by every day and go, ‘what a great building,'” said Schwartz, a Red Bank resident. Having injected major cool into a what was a warehouse downtown in creating Detour, he said of the frame shop location, “it’s Red Bank — it deserves a really cool corner.”

The business will join Lunch Break, Black Dragons Dojo and the Boys and Girls Club of Monmouth County at the busy intersection, with Coffee Corral just a short walk away to the west. To the east, developer Roger Mumford is transforming the onetime home of African-American civil rights journalist T. Thomas Fortune into a community center and apartments.

“I think this will be the start of a change to this end of town,” said Crinigan, who’s been a framer for 22 years, first in New York and then for eight years at Chetkin Gallery on Wharf Avenue.

According to Monmouth County property records, Schwartz paid $425,000 last May for the building through a company called RB Art Storage LLC.

The sellers were Joyce and Chris Kalkucki, the immigrant Jamaican and Polish couple who owned B&C Stair. They could not be reached for comment. Check out redbankgreen’s profile of the Kalkuckis from June, 2006.

Remember: Nothing makes a Red Bank friend happier than to hear "I saw you on Red Bank Green!"
Partyline
RED BANK’S FINEST – AND NEWEST
Red Bank Police Officer Eliot Ramos was sworn in as the force’s newest patrolman Thursday, and if you’re doing a double take thinkin ...
EASTER EGG MAYHEM AT THE PARK
An errant whistle spurred an unexpectedly early start to the Spring Egg Hunt on Sunday, which had been scheduled to begin at eggsactly 11am ...
PRESEASON DOCKWORK
RED BANK: With winter winding down, marina gets ready for boating season with some dockwork on our beautiful Navesink River.
CORNED BEEF AND DISCO FRIES?
It’s Friday, and smart Lent-observing Leprechauns know the pot of gold at the end of Red Bank’s rainbow is actually the deliciou ...
SURFBOARD DITCHED
It’s a violation of etiquette in surfing to ditch your board.  (it could hit another surfer and hurt them). But someone appears to ha ...
ELSIE, TAKE ME WITH YOU!
Soaked by pouring rain with the temperature hovering in the low 40’s, this sign in the window of Elsie’s Subs on Monmouth Street ...
WALK THIS WAY
PARTYLINE: Before-and-afters of a sidewalk cleanup on West Street.
SOGGY NOTION
RED BANK: Breezeway sculpture captured the mood downtown as heavy rains fell Saturday morning.
HOME DELIVERY
RED BANK: After a subdivision, an instant house rises on a new Catherine Street lot.
COMMUNITY PROFILES
For Black History Month, Red Bank's Community Engagement and Equity Advisory Committee has been running a series of local profiles on Facebo ...
HEARTY FAREWELL FOR HARDY
RED BANK: Council to honor DPU supervisor Rich Hardy, who retired recently after almost 39 years of keeping things running.
HOMEBOUND? READ ON…
RED BANK: Can't get to the public library? It's now offering free delivery and pickups for homebound borough residents.
TAMING A BEAST OF A WEEK
RED BANK: After the second snowfall of the week, a borough family finds the perfect use for it – a Godzilla snow sculpture.
RED BANK: LIBRARY CLOSED, BUT THE HILL’S OPEN
RED BANK: Though the library was closed by a snowstorm, kids got to enjoy the riverfront property's steep slope Tuesday.
LIGHT(HOUSE) MAKEOVER
This year, getting ready for spring means a midwinter makeover for Strollo's Lighthouse in Red Bank.
TODAY: LOCAL PUPPY COMPETES ON ANIMAL PLANET’S “PUPPY BOWL”
Red Bank’s very own rescue puppy, Biscuit, is set to compete in Animal Planet’s Puppy Bowl this Sunday, February 11, at 2 PM. Th ...
WHAT? NO redbankgreen NEWSLETTER?
Apologies to redbankgreen newsletter subscribers: the daily email hasn’t gone out for two days because of technical issues.
RED BANK: TIRED OF SKEETERS?
RED BANK: Tired of mosquito bites every summer? Monmouth County has a free program to help eliminate skeeter breeding grounds.
SEA BRIGHT: POLAR PLUNGE FOR ST. JAMES, OTHERS
Hundreds braved the wind and sea on Sunday at 1PM in support of St. James Elementary School, and other Catholic schools in the area. The eve ...
RED BANK: RBR CLAIMS TITLE
RED BANK: Watch pure joy as the RBR boys basketball team celebrates its first B North championship in 17 years.