CFO Eugenia Poulos at a council meeting in 2017. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Borough hall may have been closed for New Year’s Eve, but the Red Bank council had one, last-minute bit of business to take care of Monday.
After a brief closed-door meeting, the governing body voted, 4-1, to fire the chief financial officer, just hours before she would have attained tenure.
An Atlantic Highlands motorist was injured after she fled an attempted stop by Little Silver police and crashed into a tree in Red Bank early Christmas morning, police said.
Family and friends have raised more than $12,000 to help two former Red Bank volunteers injured by a fire in their Middletown home earlier this month.
George Bowden, 91, and his wife, Gladys Bowden, 88, were both injured when their condo in the Shadow Lake Village complex in the River Plaza section of the township was heavily damaged by an electrical fire on December 15.
Monday gets off to a damp start on the Greater Red Bank Green, followed by cloudy skies. But sunshine is expected to return Tuesday, Christmas Day, according to the National Weather Service.
Check out the extended forecast below. (Photo by NOAA. Click to enlarge.)
Vacant more than four years, 1 Broad Street has a new owner. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
This edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn has news of a jewelry shop opening and a long-vacant, high-profile store space changing hands.
Architect Brian Tracy shows the Historic Preservation Commission a revised proposal for a medical office building Wednesday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A modernist office building topped by what looked like an overturned laundry basket won’t be built in Red Bank’s Washington Street Historic District as proposed, an architect said Wednesday night.
But neither, it appears, will his replacement design, which Historic Preservation Commission members still found unacceptable.
The final day of autumn, 2018 will include a bit of frost, some sunshine and the start of a heavy rainfall on the Greater Red Bank Green, according to the National Weather Service.
After a day of partly sunny skies and temperatures peaking near 50 degrees, rain is likely to begin later in the day and continue through Friday. Up to three inches may fall, says the NWS, which has issued flooding and wind advisories.
Check out the extended forecast below. (NWS image. Click to enlarge.) Read More
Curtis McDaniel discussing the concept plan he co-created, showing an eastward view along Monmouth Street. Below, developer Todd Herman comments on a student pitch. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Assignment: come up with new design concepts to enliven the stretch of Monmouth Street between the train station and borough hall in Red Bank.
The response: lots of new apartments, rooftop bars, hidden parking decks, pockets of greenery and even an amphitheater across the street from the Count Basie Center for the Performing Arts.
Crime and arrest reports, unedited, as provided by the Shrewsbury Police Department for the period of December 1 to December 14, 2018. For additional information, please scroll to the bottom of this post
CRIMES
Report of Theft in the area of Borden Street on 12/3/18. Victim reports unknown subject(s) removed property. Damages totaling $250.00. Ptl. Kyle Ludwig investigating.
Report of Theft by Deception in the area of Broad Street on 12/6/18. Victim reports unknown subject(s) made fraudulent ATM withdrawals. Damages totaling $18,000.00. Ptl. Joseph Barnicle investigating.
At his last meeting as a councilman, Mark Taylor posed with his infant son, Cole, as his wife, Ashley, took their photo. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
The Red Bank council wrapped up 2018 last week with swan songs for two one-term members of the governing body, one of whom was the youngest ever elected in the borough’s history.
Red Bank resident Joe Ruffini’s history-rich yacht, the Naval War College, brought some Christmas sparkle to the Navesink River Saturday night, one night before it was scheduled to participate in a parade of boats on the Shrewsbury River.
The boat parade is slated to run again on Sunday, December 23. Meantime, for the fascinating backstory about Ruffini’s vessel, which has hosted two American presidents, check out this redbankgreen article from 2016. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Vicky Li’s new Mini Shop opened Saturday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
A bank branch closes and two new businesses open in downtown Red Bank.
Read all about it in this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn.
Adding a splash of color to a gray December day, a 12-foot-tall Santa’s elf surveyed Broad Street in Red Bank from the parapet of the Vault Thursday afternoon.
#TheSaxumElf will be on the move in coming days, popping up at Saxum Real Estate’s other property holdings in New Jersey, including two more in Red Bank, a spokesman tells redbankgreen.
Whatever edgy cheer Santa’s helper might bring will be appreciated, as the coming weekend will be gray and damp, according to the National Weather Service. Check out the extended forecast below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
The portable heater and duct, visible at center, were removed from the porch before firefighters arrived, officials said. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
The fire that destroyed a Red Bank house Wednesday was blamed on a portable heater, according to the borough’s top fire inspector.
The heater had been rigged to keep contractors warm while the house was undergoing illegal renovation work, redbankgreen has learned.
The medical office building proposed for the corner of Spring Street (left) and East Front Street (right). (Rendering by BKT Architects. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A dowdy corner on the eastern edge of downtown Red Bank — and within the Washington Street Historic District — could be getting some bold architecture.
Volunteer firefighters on Ladder 91 returning after cutting into the roof shortly before an evacuation alarm was sounded. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Fire destroyed a vacant Red Bank house under renovation Wednesday morning.
The rush-hour blaze at 28 Rector Place sent a blanket of white smoke over the downtown and points east for about two hours.
Referendum supporters cheer the results at the RBR board of ed office Tuesday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Voters in three towns gave overwhelming support Tuesday to a referendum on $17.3 million worth of capital improvements to Red Bank Regional High School.
The council will hold its final session of 2018 Wednesday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s political plates begin shifting once again Wednesday night, the last council meeting for the governing body’s only two Republicans.
The referendum includes $2.3 million for the installation of artificial turf and other improvements at the RBR football field. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Voters in Little Silver, Red Bank and Shrewsbury will decide a referendum on $17.3 million worth of capital improvements to Red Bank Regional High School Tuesday.
Red Bank RiverCenter brought bit of seasonal sparkle downtown Sunday with its first-ever Winter on Broad Street event, which included a portable ice rink and giant snowglobe for family-sized selfies. Check out redbankgreen‘s photos. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
No one was injured, police said, when a Mercedes SUV and a sedan wound up in the same parking space, one atop the other, at Sickles Market in Little Silver shortly after noon Friday.
Volunteer firefighters from Little Silver and Red Bank were on the scene, working to separate the vehicles, which had a light pole pinned between them. Police were investigating the cause of the accident. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
A rendering of the apartment house proposed for 316 Shrewsbury Avenue. Below, the existing house during the fire in July. (Drawing by Michael Monroe; photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A plan to replace a fire-damaged single-family home in Red Bank with a three-family apartment house was withdrawn amid neighborhood opposition Thursday night.
Red Bank’s police chief hasn’t seen a single case of unwarranted force during an arrest in five years, he tells redbankgreen. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s police chief says he reviews every report of force used by members of his department during arrests, and hasn’t found any in the past five years that appear improper.
Chief Darren McConnell’s observation followed the release by NJ Advance Media last week of data on every arrest in which police used force in New Jersey over four years.
A synthetic-ice rink will be installed on Broad Street between Wallace and White streets, above. Below, an example of one of the vendor’s giant snow globes. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A stretch of downtown Red Bank will be turned into a one-day winter wonderland complete with skating on Sunday.
Dubbed ‘Winter on Broad Street,’ the plan also calls for a walk-in snowglobe families can use for selfies and a shopping bazaar featuring locally made items.
Volunteers at the Salvation Army Corps in Red Bank hosted about a dozen borough senior citizens for a spaghetti-and-meatballs Christmas supper with Santa Claus Tuesday evening.
Assistant Commander Mhairi Sweaton said the post hopes to make the event an annual one and grow the number of attendees, with particular emphasis on hosting seniors who may be shut-ins. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)