RED BANK: AUTUMN TO END IN HEAVY RAIN

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 »

December 20, 2018 - 6:23 am | Comments ()

RED BANK: BROTHERS REOPENING DELAYED

A notice on the door at Brothers Thursday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

The work required to reopen Brothers, damaged earlier this month by a water leak, will keep the Red Bank bar and pizzeria closed for at least another month, an owner tells redbankgreen.

“The good news is we were approved by our insurance company” on a damage claim, Ralph Ventre said Friday. “The bad news is it’s going to take four-to-five weeks to make the repairs.”

January 23, 2015 - 12:06 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: BROTHERS STILL CLOSED

A frozen pipe that burst was the culprit. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

The Brothers, a Red Bank bar and pizzeria darkened for the past week by a water leak, is likely to remain closed for another week or more, an owner tells redbankgreen.

Ralph Ventre was awaiting word from his insurance adjuster for the go-ahead to embark on extensive repairs to the building he and his partners own at West Front Street and Morford Place, he said Wednesday.

January 15, 2015 - 2:32 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: OPEN TAP FLOODS VACANT HOUSE

The crime and arrest reports below were provided by the Red Bank Police Department for the period of March 6 to March 13, 2014. This information is unedited.

CRIMES:
Theft occurring on 3-7-14 at E. Newman Springs Rd. Victim reported that unknown person(s) stole license plate off of parked vehicle. Georgia Plate PQN7299. Sgt. Robert Clayton

Attempted Theft occurring at Newman Springs Rd. on 3-8-14. Victim reported seeing a black male subject enter parked vehicle. Upon approaching suspect he left. Glove compartment ransacked. Nothing reported missing at this time. Sgt. Robert Clayton.

March 13, 2014 - 1:12 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: COLD AND WET AT THE BOAT CLUB

Our beautiful Navesink River floods the Monmouth Boat Club in Red Bank Friday morning – a not uncommon occurrence. (Reader photo. Click to enlarge)

January 3, 2014 - 10:57 am | Comments ()

SEA BRIGHT: TALKING WATER AT ITS EDGE

New Jersey Institute of Technology students gather with Dutch designer Paul van Wijk, far right, on the beach in Sea Bright Tuesday morning prior to the second day of H209, a two-day, multilocation forum on how to mitigate flood damage in lower Manhattan, Jamaica Bay and the Jersey Shore.

Representatives of the Dutch government, the United States Army Corps of Engineers, insurance companies and engineering firms are also present at the daylong event, held at borough hall. (Photo by Sarah Klepner. Click to enlarge)

September 10, 2013 - 1:08 pm | Comments ()

RUMSON: AU REVOIR, V-ZONE

A home on Warren Street in Rumson undergoing elevation in February. (Click to enlarge)

By COLBY WILSON

All homes in storm-battered Rumson have been moved out of the most vulnerable flood zone under new flood-elevation maps released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency Monday.

Mayor John Ekdahl says the revised maps are significantly different than the advisory maps released back in December.

One of the things that becomes apparent as it effects Rumson is that we virtually lost all V zones, Ekdahl said. Even Barley Point [Island}, where we lost four homes, was removed.”

June 17, 2013 - 4:31 pm | Comments ()

SEA BRIGHT: NEW FEMA MAPS OFFER ANSWERS

A pair of homes undergoing elevation on Center Street in Sea Bright earlier this month. (Click to enlarge)

By COLBY WILSON

Changes to the federal governments flood risk maps are out, and the revisions are providing relief to anxious homeowners in Sea Bright and elsewhere along New Jerseys coastline.

The new maps, officially unveiled Monday, show that the Federal Emergency Management Agency greatly reduced the scope of areas in the dreaded zone V, in which homes are said to be imperiled not only by flooding but wave action.

On Monday, Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long told redbankgreen the latest maps showed a V zone shift, and that it was good news for residents in her town.

Nearly all of the homes west of Ocean Avenue were moved back to AE zones, she said.

June 17, 2013 - 3:51 pm | Comments ()

LITTLE SILVER BOOSTS ELEVATION LAW

A home on Town Creek, as seen from Paag Circle Monday. (Click to enlarge)

By WIL FULTON

Like Rumson and Sea Bright before it, Little Silver adopted new federal elevation standards for homes in flood zones Monday night, only this time with a recommendation that homeowners go higher.

By a unanimous vote, the borough council adopted an ordinance amendment that would require all new homes, and existing homes that suffered substantial water damage during Hurricane Sandy, to follow the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s new ABFE advisory base flood elevation guidelines, plus a foot for extra protection.

April 2, 2013 - 10:55 am | Comments ()

SEA BRIGHT: OCEAN AVENUE REOPENED

State Department of Transportation dumptrucks leaving Sea Bright at midday Monday after several days of sand removal work. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

The northern stretch of Ocean Avenue in Sea Bright, closed to all but local traffic over the weekend because of seawall breaches, reopened Monday afternoon.

But damage to the wall caused by unusually high tides following last Wednesday’s snowstorm means that the borough may be holding its breath during similar weather events until the wall is repaired, Councilman Read Murphy tells redbankgreen.

March 11, 2013 - 4:49 pm | Comments ()

SEA BRIGHT ON THE RISE, HEIGHTWISE

Ed Wheeler’s house on Ocean Avenue is the first to have been raised since the hurricane. Many more are expected to be lifted under pending changes. (Click to enlarge)

By WIL FULTON

Sea Bright homeowners will have some wiggle room under new building codes hashed out at back-to-back council and planning board meetings Tuesday night.

The pending changes, expected to be adopted by the council February 5, are aimed at eliminating red tape for property owners whose houses might exceed overall height restrictions after they’ve been lifted to comply with the Federal Emergency Management Administration’s advisory base flood elevation levels, town officials said.

January 23, 2013 - 11:25 am | Comments ()

BOAT CLUB RECOVERING FROM SANDY

Monmouth Boat Club was inundated by the Navesink River hours before Hurricane Sandy made landfall in New Jersey, and the river rose several feet after this photo was taken. (Photo by Peter Lindner. Click to enlarge)

By WIL FULTON

The home of the Monmouth Boat Club, a Red Bank building that has stood for more than 100 years, is tackling rebuilding post-Hurricane Sandy with a little help from the men who built the place.

This pine flooring here is the original flooring, Commodore Leigh ‘Skip’ Bugbee told redbankgreen during a tour of storied Navesink River clubhouse, which was built in 1895 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Whats amazing is that, because theres no subflooring to it, it can basically withstand any amount of water and let it freely flow back out to the river.”

Even the buckling that was caused will be set back to normal once the heat is turned back on, he said.

“The guys who put it in here really knew what they were doing,” Bugbee said. “We owe them a big thank you.”

January 16, 2013 - 1:45 pm | Comments ()

RUMSON UPS FLOOR LEVELS IN FLOOD ZONES

Blue markers on an aerial view of Rumson indicate homes that were damaged by floods during Hurricane Sandy. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Rumson became the first town on the Green to change its building standards in the wake of Hurricane Sandy when it boosted minimum first-floor levels in flood zones Tuesday night.

After storm-driven tides sent surges as high as 12 feet into homes along the Navesink and Shrewsbury rivers, the borough council approved a zoning change that sets a new minimum level of 13 feet above base flood elevations in waterfront zones, replacing minimums of eight, nine and 10 feet.

The changes, and a pledge to revisit the ordinance after the Federal Emergency Management Administration issues new elevation guidelines, expected within the next two weeks, mostly drew praise from residents who said their efforts to resolve insurance claims and rebuild their homes would have been stalled by inaction.

“People need to tell their insurance companies” what the Rumson standard is “so they can decide whether to stay and rebuild, raise their homes or move,” said borough Administrator Tom Rogers. “We’re trying to help them.”

December 5, 2012 - 1:33 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: SCHOOL REOPENS, WITH GOODIES

Greg Martin of Michigan-based Disaster Relief at Work delivered pencil cases for kindergartners, above and below, as well as all other Red Bank Primary School students Monday morning. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

One month to the day after it was inundated by the Swimming River in Hurricane Sandy, the Red Bank Primary School reopened Monday morning.

The event was accompanied by the arrival of a truckload of school supplies donated by residents of Clarkston, Michigan.

November 26, 2012 - 12:06 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: HOTEL AIMS FOR JANUARY RETURN

The surging Navesink River poured six feet of water into the hotel’s basement, knocking out electricity and other systems. (Photo by Wil Fulton. Click to enlarge)

By WIL FULTON

Almost a month after Hurricane Sandy slammed into the Jersey Shore, Red Bank’s Oyster Point Hotel remains locked and dark, a handwritten note taped to its front door telling visitors it will reopen “when it is safe to do so.”

The riverside hotels basement, the operational heart of the facility, was inundated with more than six feet of water in the storm. Even though flood gates were in place, the water levels exceeded them and entered the basement, destroying the electrical and communication equipment, said Kevin Barry, the hotel’s operating manager.

We have flood gates that were set by the standards of the ’92 storm, but obviously the damage by Sandy was exponentially worse,” he said.

November 23, 2012 - 12:13 pm | Comments ()

RUMSON: MARINA RESURFACING AFTER STORM

Life was returning to normal at the Rumson marina on Tuesday, though a new $3 million Viking that was swept from the lot remained half-sunk on the Middletown side of the Navesink, below. (Photo above by Wil Fulton. Click to enlarge)

By WIL FULTON

More than two weeks after Hurricane Sandy, Oceanic Marina owner Pete Pawlikowski is still trying to restore his ravaged Rumson business. redbankgreen was on the scene day the morning after the storm hit, and returned on Tuesday to check in on the rebuilding process.

Its mind-boggling, really, said Pawlikowski, sitting in his once-again operational office and store, which was submerged in over four and half feet of water just two weeks ago. Ive never seen so much devastation.

November 14, 2012 - 2:39 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: PRIMARY SCHOOL STILL UP IN AIR

A dumpster loaded with discarded carpeting and other material sits outside the Red Bank Primary School, which remained closed Monday. (Photo by Wil Fulton. Click to enlarge)

By WIL FULTON

After two weeks, Red Bank Primary School students were able to finally make their return to school Monday just not their own school.

Displaced students attended a morning session at the middle school, before the middle school students arrived for an afternoon session.

The primary school, adjoining the Swimming River, was built on marshland, and suffered major flood damage as a result of Superstorm Sandy two weeks ago. According to Superintendent Laura Morana, over two-thirds of the schools flooring and carpeting were rendered unusable in Sandys wake.

The school has been in existence for over 40 years, Morana told redbankgreen, and this by far the worst damage weve faced as a result of weather.”

November 12, 2012 - 3:54 pm | Comments ()

STORM WIPES OUT RUMSON MARINA

The Oceanic Marina yard as it appeared early Tuesday, above, and on Saturday from the same spot. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

On Saturday, even as he braced for record flooding, Oceanic Marina owner Pete Pawlikowski thought he had the storm beat.

The Navesink River was sure to flood the store and office of his Rumson business, Pawlikowki told redbankgreen, and the level might even break the records.

But as for the fleet of 75 recreational vessels entrusted to him by customers at worst, he said, he might lose one or two to Hurricane Sandy. But all were safely up on blocks, he said, crowded so tightly into his yard that a person could barely squeeze past them.

By Tuesday morning, they were gone. And even after 30 years of watching storms come and go, a stunned Pawlikowski could hardly begin to comprehend it, he said.

“It’s total destruction,” he said. “We don’t even know where to begin.”

October 30, 2012 - 6:31 pm | Comments ()

SEA BRIGHT MAYOR DIVES INTO WORK

Mayor Dina Long up to her ankles after a rainstorm flooded the street outside her home earlier this month. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

Right off the bat, the above photo hints at what new Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long is up against.

Long is far from the first of the town’s top elected officials to confront flooding issues. Pinched between the Atlantic Ocean and the Shrewsbury River, the three-mile-long spit of sand can always count on seeing water slosh onto residential streets abutting the downtown business district during storms.

But a fix is finally in the works, says Long, who hopes to check off flood control, beachfront redevelopment, cellular service quality and one or two other longstanding projects from her to-do list in her term.

“I refuse to see things as problems,” Long told redbankgreen in a recent interview over coffee at Steve’s Breakfast & Lunch on Ocean Avenue. “Otherwise, you’re just stuck all the time.”

January 27, 2012 - 2:15 pm | Comments ()

TROUBLED CULVERT FLOODED

A Middletown culvert that was undermined by flooding 17 months ago was overrun by water rushing downriver from Poricy Pond late Sunday morning.

August 28, 2011 - 1:14 pm | Comments ()

JULY 29, 1961: RED BANK’S WETTEST DAY

Pedestrians fording floodwaters in downtown Red Bank during the storm of July 29, 1961. The view is north along Broad Street from the corner of Canal Street. Below, a teen dives off car into the water. (Photo courtesy of Dorn’s Classic Images)

By EVAN SOLTAS

Fifty years ago today, Red Bank was hit with the worst flood in borough history.

Over the course of several hours that Saturday morning and afternoon in 1961, 5.48 inches of rain fell, triggering the sort of flash flood that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says occurs, on average, once every 100 to to 200 years in the area.

July 29, 2011 - 7:58 am | Comments ()

COULDA USED AN EIGHTH BRIDGE

Motorists encountered flooding on Seven Bridges Road in Little Silver last night. (Click to enlarge)

The wetness continues Tuesday morning, though not with the steadiness of Monday’s rain, according to the National Weather Service.

Here’s the forecast:

Today: Periods of rain, mainly before noon. High near 61. North wind 7 to 10 mph becoming southwest. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

October 5, 2010 - 6:02 am | Comments ()