Louis ‘Del’ DalPra at Red Bank Regional in 2009. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Former Red Bank Regional High athletic director and coach Louis ‘Del’ DalPra was named director of the borough’s parks and recreation department Wednesday night.
Ed Zipprich, left, with husband J.P. Nicolaides holding a Bible, recites the oath of office in January, 2018. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
With nine weeks to go in a rare primary race for Red Bank council, a civil war within the Democratic party intensified this week. Read More
Kathy Horgan with fellow Democrats and council members Ed Zipprich, center, and Michael Ballard in 2017. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Again taking aim at their own party’s chairman, four Red Bank council members and Mayor Pasquale Menna have called for a charter study to review the borough’s form of government – and possibly, change the electoral process.
Mayor Pasquale Menna speaking with activist Ben Forest in 2019. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Nearly three years after they briefly moved to the fore, calls to reform Red Bank’s government and electoral process have yet to yield noticeable results.
Charlie Hoffmann with parks attendant Celestine Woods at Riverside Gardens Park in 2018. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Charlie Hoffmann, who has directed Red Bank’s parks and recreation department for the past five years, is leaving town.
The announcement of his departure at the council’s semimonthly meeting Wednesday sparked a “pile-on” of praise for Hoffmann’s work, which included organizing everything from sports and cultural offerings to this weekend’s Spring Egg Hunt.
RiverCenter Executive Director Laura Kirkpatrick speaks at a council session in March as Business Administrator Ziad Shehady and Councilman Michael Ballard listen. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
See UPDATE below
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank Mayor Pasquale Menna ripped a proposed overhaul of the bylaws of downtown promotion agency RiverCenter Wednesday night.
With two council members joining his critique, Menna said several of the changes would reduce council and public oversight of the agency, which he called “repugnant.”
Red Bank’s official Christmas tree, a blue spruce donated by the Jennings family of Little Silver, was installed in Riverside Gardens Park over the past weekend. But because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the lighting of the tree will be a low-key affair.
Wednesday is Veteran’s Day, and two towns on the Greater Red Bank Green plan to hold commemoration services, though one will be virtual, and the other curtailed, to limit the spread of COVID-19. See below for details.
Red Bank First leader Scott Broschart at home on Hudson Avenue in August. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Scott Broschart is on a one-man quest to reform both Red Bank’s government and how people get elected to it.
Neither will happen this year. A referendum Broschart has been pushing for since July is not on the November 3 ballot. But Broschart says he’s perfectly fine with that.
About two dozen witches swapped their brooms for self-propelled watercraft in the Navesink River off Fair Haven Saturday.
The aim of the “somewhat impromptu” coven convening was to “to bring a bit of whimsy and fun to an otherwise tricky (no pun intended) and difficult year,” said Rachel Griffin, who organized the event with Cassie Conley. Inspired by a Witch Paddle that takes place in Mystic, Connecticut, Griffin said she and Conley hope to make it an annual outing for charity.
Check out more photos below. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
It’ll go down as the pandemic parade, but the 73rd annual Red Bank Halloween Parade held Sunday was a delight for hundreds of kids and kids at heart.
Check out redbankgreen‘s photos from the event below
The annual Red Bank Halloween Parade is on for Sunday, October 25, though COVID-19 will take a bite out of the festivities. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
The Independent Engine Company’s 1994 Seagrave pumper, seen in the 2017 Halloween parade, would be traded in with a second engine. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A recurring split within Red Bank’s all-Democratic council was on display again Wednesday night, when a majority approved the purchase of two new fire engines. Read More
The new apparatus would be stationed at the Independent Engine house, shared with the First Aid Squad on Spring Street at left, and the Westside Hose firehouse on Leighton Avenue. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s volunteer fire department will replace two trucks in the coming year under a plan discussed at last Wednesday’s council workshop session.
“It’s been a long-awaited purchase,” fire Chief Scott Calabrese told the council.
Dozens of residents of the Greater Red Bank Green died in the horrific attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001.
Let’s not forget those who died, and the families and friends left with holes in their hearts. For information about local commemorations, click here.
Red Bank-area residents will have several opportunities Friday to participate in commemorations marking the 19th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on America.
Unlike the 2017 event, above, this year’s Sidewalk Sale will require social distancing and face coverings. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Delayed one month by COVID-19, the 66th edition of the Red Bank Sidewalk Sale is set to kick off its three-day run Friday.
About 30 protesters assembled at the post office on Shrewsbury Avenue in Red Bank at noon Friday to voice alarm over recent changes at the postal service.
The plan calls for a new parking lot on the former site of the Marine Park tennis courts. (Image by CME Associates. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A new parking lot in Red Bank’s Marine Park is among the topics slated for discussion by the council Wednesday night.
So is an issue put on hold five months ago: increasing the hours of paid parking downtown.
Summer arrived on the Greater Red Bank Green (and, possibly, elsewhere) with the solstice Saturday evening, and redbankgreen found no shortage of local folks ready to demonstrate their joy with an ecstatic jump.
Among them, as you’ll see if you scroll all the way to the end, was an infant and her family with something special to celebrate. (Photos by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge. Jump to feel young.)
Superintendent Louis Moore, seen with Sophie Wright, wore his gown for eight hours as he individually walked each senior down a red carpet “Walk in Greatness.” Below, newly graduated Tyquann Crawford.
The sun was certainly shining down on the Red Bank Regional High School Senior Class on Friday, June 12. The staff, administration, senior advisors and parent volunteers planned a “Senior Day” event that was filled with moments of celebration for this resilient class.
Protesters march down Broad Street, above, and observe a moment of silence on Newman Springs Road, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Angry but peaceful, hundreds of protesters marched through Red Bank Tuesday afternoon.
With temperatures nearing 90 degrees, a “Justice for George Floyd” march and rally at Count Basie Fields coincided with the Houston funeral of the man killed by Minneapolis police May 25.
Check out redbankgreen’s photos from the event below.
Hundreds marched through town to protest a racist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
A “Justice for George” march and rally to protest the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis is slated to be held in Red Bank Tuesday afternoon.
According to police Chief Darren McConnell, the event is being organized by Calvary Baptist Church of Red Bank and an organization called Count the Children.
The mini parade rumbles down Spring Street, above.
A late addition to the calendar, Red Bank’s pandemic-era Memorial Day parade Monday could not compare to last year’s version in terms of spectacle. Still, it offered a thrill to small clusters of borough residents.
Comprising a fire truck and a half-dozen throaty motorcycles, the drive-thru-town parade took some onlookers by surprise, while others were ready and waiting. Check out more photos below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
