A dumpster full of bricks from the facade and parapet of 52 Monmouth Street Wednesday. (Photo by Brian Donohue. Click to enlarge.)
By BRIAN DONOHUE
Maybe the kids rocked so hard they finally blew the roof off the place.
We’ll have to wait for an engineer’s final report to know for sure. But School of Rock, the music school that has called 52 Monmouth Street home for 14 years, is closing, according to a notice that appeared Wednesday in the window of the building this week.
Something else also appeared stuck to the building’s windows this week: an orange Borough of Red Bank code enforcement sticker declaring the building an unsafe structure.
And so the only rock in sight Wednesday was a dumpster full of bricks and cement that had been pulled from the parapet and facade in order to prevent any danger to the public.
A worker inspects the structure at 52 Monmouth Street in Red Bank that was home to School of Rock for 14 years. (Photo by Brian Donohue)
The borough on Tuesday issued an unsafe structure notice for the building after the roof membrane pulling on the parapet caused it to separate from the building, according to Borough Manager Jim Gant, who said the issue was caused by recent weather conditions.
“The main hazardous condition was removed,” Gant said, adding that the borough was waiting on a final engineering report to determine whether the rest of the walls are safe and secure.
“Any hazard to the public has been mitigated,” Gant said
It is unclear if the closure of the business is related to the structural problems with the building. The letter to parents posted in the window made no reference to the structural issues and said the school is not closing until August 17.
“While this chapter has come to a close, we remain hopeful it won’t be the end of School of Rock Red Bank,” the notice reads. ” Our hope is to one day return and open a new location to serve this incredible community again.”
The letter to parents posted in the window of School of Rock Red Bank. (Photo by Brian Donohue)
The building is owned by Amboy & Main LLC, whose owner is listed on Monmouth County real estate records as Alex Racco of Staten Island, NY.
redbankgreen editor Brian Donohue may be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling or texting 848-331-8331.