RED BANK: ENGLISH PLAZA, LIGHTLY ACCENTED

Sep 23, 2022

Most of the shops along the strip are owned by immigrants. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

The street is named English Plaza, after a former Red Bank mayor. But for the majority of businesses along the short block, English is a second language.

Of the eight shops in the strip of one-story business, at least six are owned by immigrants. That far outpaces the borough’s foreign-born population, which comprises 20 percent of residents, according to the Census.

Here are the stories of five, owners of two restaurants, a home decor shop, a beauty salon and a liquor store.

September 23, 2022 - 3:00 pm |

RED BANK: WHITE STREET GETS TWO MURALS

Nov 12, 2019

A runner passes one of two new murals on opposite sides of White Street in Red Bank last week.

Created by muralist Bob Mataranglo, at right, they depict Navesink River scenes with bas relief elements, including the Monmouth Boat Club, the Riverside Gardens Park archway and a sailboat.

November 12, 2019 - 5:50 am |

RED BANK: ENGLISH PLAZA MAKEOVER WRAPS

Sep 23, 2019

Except for a few punchlist items, a four-month, $1.53 million streetscape project in downtown Red Bank is now completed, according to business promotion agency Red Bank RiverCenter.

What’s Going On Here? Read on.

September 23, 2019 - 7:30 am |

RED BANK: WIRE SNIP SNAPS UTILITY POLE

Sep 12, 2019

No injuries were reported, and power was not immediately affected, after a utility pole snapped and fell against a building on English Plaza in Red Bank Thursday afternoon.

September 12, 2019 - 2:09 pm |

RED BANK: STREETSCAPE PROJECT NEARS END

Sep 4, 2019

A summer-long streetscape project in downtown Red Bank neared completion this week. But it will take one last, extended disruption to get there, says Red Bank RiverCenter.

What’s Going On Here? Read on.

September 4, 2019 - 3:45 pm |

RED BANK: WHAT’S ON THE COUNCIL AGENDA?

Jun 18, 2019

The track at Count Basie Fields would be replaced under a plan up for adoption by the council. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

A proposed alternate-side parking ordinance is up for consideration at the Red Bank council’s only regular session this month.

Also on the agenda as the council moves into its summer meeting schedule: taxes, a new track for Count Basie Fields, the settlement of a disputed records request and more. More →

June 18, 2019 - 12:30 pm |

RED BANK: STREETSCAPE PROJECT BEGINS

May 21, 2019

Heavy construction equipment began tearing up one end of White Street in Red Bank Monday morning. What’s Going On Here? Read on.

May 21, 2019 - 9:00 am |

RED BANK: REDEVELOPMENT ON AGENDA

Feb 26, 2019

Emanuel Court would be closed to vehicular traffic under a change up for introduction Wednesday night. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

The creation of a redevelopment agency for Red Bank is among the items on the borough council’s agenda Wednesday night.

Also up for consideration at the semimonthly meeting: a smoking ban, and the closing of a driveway onto a busy street.

February 26, 2019 - 12:00 pm |

RED BANK: WHITE STREET FIXES OUTLINED

Sep 27, 2018

The makeover plan would affect English Plaza and the stretch of White Street from English Plaza to Broad Street, above. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Red Bank’s chaotic English Plaza and White Street area may become a part-time oasis under a concept plan unveiled Wednesday night.

Working with a $500,000 zero-interest loan from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Red Bank RiverCenter also aims to make the space safer for pedestrians an motorists, officials told the borough council.

September 27, 2018 - 8:09 am |

RED BANK: PILLAR WORK PROMPTS CLOSURE

Sep 2, 2016

Work to replace the two crumbling, 1930s-era peanut-stone pillars flanking the West Front Street entrance to the English Plaza parking lot in Red Bank will result in daytime closures of that driveway beginning Tuesday, the borough announced.

September 2, 2016 - 3:00 pm |

RED BANK: COUNCIL OKS STEP ON PARKING

Jan 29, 2016

The planning board was directed to evaluate the borough-owned White Street lot for its “suitability” for a parking garage. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

After months of silence on the issue, a possible parking garage in downtown Red Bank finally got its wheels on what could be a long up-ramp to reality Wednesday night.

Despite misgivings voiced by Councilwoman Cindy Burnham that doing so might attract “an overload of engineers,” the borough council unanimously agreed to have the the planning board determine whether the municipal lot on White Street “satisfies the criteria for designation as a noncondemnation redevelopment area.”

January 29, 2016 - 6:00 am |

RED BANK: RIVERCENTER GOES IN ON PARKING

Sep 14, 2015

Officials say they need to find out what’s underneath the asphalt of the White Street lot before deciding on how to use the property. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

In the first step toward a possible construction of a new parking facility on White Street, Red Bank RiverCenter has agreed to share in the costs of soil testing, redbankgreen has learned.

The borough government and the autonomous downtown promotion agency are close to a formal agreement under which the two would split the estimated $80,000 cost of the work, RiverCenter executive director Jim Scavone said Friday.

September 14, 2015 - 7:50 am |

RED BANK: STREETSCAPE PROJECTS PLANNED

Aug 14, 2015

The fence and sign bordering the onetime Steinbach’s department store parking lot on Broad Street, above, will be transformed into a landscaped seating area, shown in an aerial concept drawing below. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Two Red Bank parking lots are in for some dolling-up.

RiverCenter, the downtown promotion agency, plans to spruce up the former Steinbach’s parking lot on Broad Street with landscaping and benches, and to replace two stone pillars at the north entrance to the English Plaza lot, officials said in a presentation to the borough council Wednesday night.

And RiverCenter is working on a streetscape plan for a portion of White Street, including the southern entrance to English Plaza, said executive director Jim Scavone.

August 14, 2015 - 7:51 am |

RED BANK: MENNA TOUTS PARKING “SOLUTION”

Jun 25, 2015

The borough-owned White Street lot, which may offer relief to downtown parking woes. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Taking heat from a restaurateur, Red Bank Mayor Pasquale Menna said Wednesday night that the long-awaited “next step” toward a possible parking garage downtown is coming within the next two weeks.

Menna’s pledge also came as the town council, on a 4-2 vote, agreed to extend by six months a moratorium on fees imposed almost exclusively on new restaurants that need parking variances to open.

June 25, 2015 - 12:45 pm |

RED BANK: LOT FIXES, BUT NO GARAGE… YET

Apr 21, 2015

The White Street lot, home to this weekend’s International Flavor Festival, has long been eyed as a solution to the downtown’s parking woes. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Red Bank officials plan to spend $300,000 in coming months on parking improvements at borough hall and two downtown lots.

But merchants and visitors who’ve been waiting for the movement toward a possible parking garage on White Street will have to wait a bit more.

April 21, 2015 - 12:30 pm |

RETRO FASHION OUT, ASIAN EATERY PENDING

Feb 5, 2014

Backward Glances’ owner cited rising rents and diminishing cool as factors in her decision to leave Red Bank. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

After 28 years in Red Bank, vintage clothing and accessories boutique Backward Glances has departed for Asbury Park.

Also in this edition of redbankgreen Retail Churn: an Asian restaurant hopes to open in English Plaza, just a few doors away from a new hair salon that’s readying for its debut.

February 5, 2014 - 12:30 pm |

RIVERCENTER PLANS DOWNTOWN KIOSKS

May 27, 2011

RiverCenter’s first kiosk is slated for installation in English Plaza to let visitors know its new location. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)

By DUSTIN RACIOPPI

Not that it was so easy to find when it was sequestered in a second-story space above Broad Street, but with Red Bank RiverCenter‘s move three months ago, the agency compromised what little visibility it had, taking up residence in an all-but-hidden office in English Plaza.

And if you’re a tourist looking for the Red Bank Visitors Center, which shares space with RiverCenter, well, good luck trying to find it.

But the move presented a fresh reason for RiverCenter, which promotes the downtown and portions of the West Side businesses, to put into action an idea executive director Nancy Adams has harbored since she stepped into her role more than three years ago, she said.

On Wednesday night, Adams presented the borough council with a plan to install information kiosks in English Plaza to alert visitors to the new RiverCenter and the Visitors Center digs.

It would be the first of a handful of kiosks downtown to offer maps and pertinent borough info to people coming into town, Adams said.

May 27, 2011 - 8:56 am |

SMASH & GRAB BURGLARY AT THE INBETWEEN

Apr 13, 2011

The Inbetwen Café was burglarized over the weekend. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)

By DUSTIN RACIOPPI

Not a nice pairing with the Sunday paper and an omelette: a flower pot and an empty cash register.

That’s what the owners of Red Bank mom-and-pop breakfast spot Inbetween Café found Sunday morning.

April 13, 2011 - 6:30 am |

DOWNTOWN, THE YEAR CHURNS TO AN END

Dec 16, 2010

Vacant since May, the former East Side Cafe is getting set to reopen as the Red Bank Diner. (Click to enlarge)

By DUSTIN RACIOPPI

The last time redbankgreen published a rundown of Red Bank’s downtown economy, it was a rather dour picture sprinkled with a sense of optimism.

While clusters of storefronts worked better as mirrors than as shopping destinations, RiverCenter Executive Director Nancy Adams was bullish on the borough’s economy, saying the large number of vacancies in town could be parlayed into new, exciting ventures for businesses to infuse new blood into the heart of Red Bank.

Seems Adams had a bead on the future.

Nearly a dozen new businesses have either moved in or are set to open their doors in the next couple of months, Adams said.

“There’s stuff going on. It’s kind of nice,” she said.

Here’s what’s churning in Red Bank:

December 16, 2010 - 9:55 am |

Upcoming Events

Sat 03

RED BANK: KüL D’SACK AT TRIUMPH

June 3, 8:00 pm

Mon 05

LITTLE SILVER: MEDITATION IN THE GARDEN

June 5, 6:00 pm to 6:30 pm

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RED BANK: ‘READ WITH A DOG’ AT THE LIBRARY

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RED BANK: PICK-IT-UP

June 7, 8:45 am

Wed 07

RED BANK: LUNCH BREAK ART AUCTION

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