Arts District, Downtown, Polls, Rahway, UCPAC

Concerts and comedy

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For the second straight time, our poll ended in a tie, with two options garnering a strong majority of the votes.

“What would you like to see at the Union County Performing Arts Center?”

Concerts, 36 percent (9/25)
Standup comedy, 36 percent (9/25)
Plays/musicals, 16 percent (4/25)
Movies, 8 percent (2/25)
Other, 4 percent (1/25)

The last poll also finished in a tie, and there was no word on what that “Other” vote might have been. Feel free to use the comments section to fill us in.

It was interesting that “standup comedy” finished first considering the plans to create a black box theater and performing arts space down the street, that’s always been talked about for a comedy club. The question also remains, what kind of concernts might people want to attend? There’s been no shortage of Paul Anka or Dar Williams at the arts center over the years; is that filling a need, or are people looking for something else? Interesting that plays/musicals only garnered four votes, as the center’s expansion included making more space for larger productions (as well as adding air conditioning for year-round use). Personally, I love when old-school movies that you’d never see on the big screen anywhere else, like Easy Rider or Citizen Kane, are screened at the UCAC.

The arts center likely will reopen next month following a year-long, $6-million expansion by the county. The 1928 facility will have an “updated” name, adding “performing” to its moniker. Check out the new poll question to the right, as well as the new option to subscribe to the blog via email.

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Bars, Downtown, Rahway, restaurants

Cubanu: A review

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I’ve been meaning to check out the latest addition to the downtown, Cubanu, a new restaurant/lounge at the corner of Main and Lewis streets. Some might remember the previous tenants of the corner bar: Eighty Eights and Fat Tuesday’s.

I’m not all that picky when it comes to food (I’m one of those people who was raised to clean this plate), so it would take a real effort to serve up something I didn’t like. Given that my girlfriend Kathleen and I were excited to finally try Cubanu since it opened late last year, I expected that we wouldn’t be disappointed when we paid a visit Friday night. We were far from disappointed.

Two things jumped out at me when we got there. Though the physical layout isn’t much different from the previous bars, the decor was nice; it just fit really well. Loved the entrance way between the dining room and the bar, and later we both admired the colorful wall tile behind the bar. Maybe it was just the tableclothes and silverware, but as soon as I sat down I already had the impression that this was going to be one my best dining experiences in Rahway. Spanish versions of “I Will Survive” and “Hotel California” also just cracked me up; they embodied the whole evening, something different in Rahway.

To start, we went with the Cha-Cha Sampler so we could select three of the tapas chioces. We chose the Maria Rosa, Empanadas and Cubanitos. Kathleen’s favorite was the Maria Rosa, basically two balls of mashed potatos stuffed with meat and deep fried. I loved the Empanadas, perhaps the best I’ve ever had, though admitedly, I haven’t had all that many in my time. All in all, the apps were terrific.

For her entree, Kathleen selected the Paella el Malecon and I had the Pollo Tropicano. When I first viewed Cubanu’s menu on the Web, it was little pricier than I expected. But the portions are pretty healthy and you also get to choose two of about six sides. Though my chicken at first was a touch dry it got better and we both ended up with plenty of leftovers to enjoy for lunch the next day. I thought a very unique touch was being presented with the check in a cigar box. It’s definitely different from cookie-cutter casual dining places.

If there was anything I didn’t like about our visit, it was extremely minor, like keeping water glasses full, but the number of staff and their friendliness more than made up for that very minor critique. There weren’t many selections of wine by glass, and we probably would’ve been better off getting a bottle.

The very next night, I happened to meet friends (from Rahway and out of town) for impromptu drinks in Cubanu’s lounge. Our party of about six all had good things to say and were pretty excited about a new choice in downtown nightlife. The lounge was a bit warm and it was actually easier to have a conversation while the live Latin jazz trio played than when they were on break and the music was blaring. All in all, we had very good things to say about our experience in the lounge.

If people want to talk about Rahway being “the next Hoboken” or “the next (fill in the blank),” it needs more destinations, places that give people a reason to come. No one’s coming from out of town to go to The Waiting Room, Flynn’s or The Back Porch; all great neighborhood joints where everybody knows your name, but Cubanu seems like the first place in awhile that could be a destination. At the very least, it’s something different, and that’s what any downtown needs: diverse options.

Have you been to Cubanu? What’d you think? Good, bad, indifferent? If you plan to go, feel free to send comments this way. In the meantime, keep an eye out for a new poll question this week and maybe an update on the traffic projects downtown.

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Pizza, Polls

Pizza Pizza

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It was a photo finish in this week’s Rahway Rising poll! “Who has the best pizza in Rahway?” yielded yet another new record for most votes cast with 30, up from 26 in the last poll.

Since it’s not a scientific poll of any kind, this is again assuming no one sat up at night (or got up early for that matter) manipulating it.

While there was no clear majority for any one establishment, some final-day votes pushed two places over the 50-percent mark combined.

Michelino’s, 27 percent (8/30)
Nancy’s Townhouse, 27 percent (8/30)
Other, 23 percent (7/30)
Adam’s, 7 percent (2/30)
Gino’s, 7 percent (2/30)
Ted’s, 7 percent (2/30)
Tony’s, 3 percent (1/30)

It was clear at least two pizzerias were ahead of the pack. Unfortunately, it’s anyone’s guess whether those seven Other votes were for one pizzeria or multiple pizzerias, as I haven’t figured out how to allow write-in votes in the poll, and no one took me up on my suggestion to post their Others in the comments section of blog entries. Regardless, it was another exciting poll for us here at RR, leaving us to wonder whether we should have included even more pizzerias in the poll, i.e., Rahway Pizza, Papa Vito. Perhaps we’ll have a runoff election later in the year, a virtual grudge match to decide once and for all.

Check out the new poll about the Union County Performing Arts Center, which will be reopening next month after a $6-million expansion. As always, RR is open to suggestions for any future poll questions.

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Arts District, Downtown, Rahway

Going down? As soon as the state says OK

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Among the expected developments Mayor James Kennedy mentioned Monday night in his State of the City address was demolition of the Hamilton Laundry site in 2008.

There have been plans for the site for years — including a Joe Piscopo-backed comedy club — but after last spring’s flooding, it was decided to focus a park and amphitheater on the Hamilton property. Plans still call for a 7,000-square-foot black box theater and 9,000-square-foot performing arts space, but they will be targeted for the nearby Bell building, Elizabethtown Gas property and the Shami Apartments, where flooding is not an issue.

The City Council in November authorized a $825,000 bond ordinance for demolition of the Hamilton Laundry building and an application for demolition is awaiting approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection. City Administrator/Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier said last week that demolition could occur three to four months once the state gives its OK (he’s hoping for February or March). The state, however, might require a historical soil analysis (basically searching for historical artifacts and such) since an ampitheater will be built. A similar soil analysis was required for The Savoy project on Main and Monroe.

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Apartments, Arts District, Downtown, Rahway, Wheatena

On tap for 2008: Park Square, Sky View

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Nothing Earth-shattering in the mayor’s State of the City address last night. The new year should bring with it the completion of Park Square and Sky View at Carriage City Plaza, which includes a Hotel Indigo. Mayor James Kennedy pledged that downtown redevelopment efforts would continue to see progress this year, despite a downturn in the national economy as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis.
The largest portion of the mayor’s nine-minute remarks focused on a new billing method for sewage. He expects the city’s assessment from the Rahway Valley Sewerage Authority (RVSA) to increase from $3.6 million in Fiscal Year 2007 to $6.1 million in FY 2010, or almost 70 percent in the next three years.
Speaking of the subprime mortgage mess, what effect has it had on Rahway’s plans? I happened to pose that question to City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier just last month, after reading about Asbury Park’s problems, and one Hoboken developer switching condo projects to rentals because of the housing market.
Pelissier said the city hasn’t been adversely affected by the real estate market — in terms of redevelopment — and rattled off an update on a number of projects:
* Park Square (rentals) has made plans to take out permits for the second building, which will face Main Street.
* Dornoch I (Main and Monroe streets) has taken out permits for The Savoy (36 units for purchase with 7,000 square feet of retail).
* Station Place (Five stories, with 80 units and 132 parking spaces, on Campbell Street between Elm and Cherry, for purchase) is still in the process of acquiring properties and relocating the main tenant, A&M Tool Co.
* Wheatena (Elizabeth and West Grand avenues) has requested assistance on the acquisition of properties for its 200-unit project (for purchase).
* Renaissance at Rahway, 72 units with underground parking, also requested assistance of the Redevelopment Agency to acquire the remaining three properties necessary to control the site (Triangle Inn area on Monroe Street). Five of the eight properties necessary are under contract.
* The Town Center project in the City Hall area is still being discussed, and the potential developer is negotiating with retailers as well as the property owners on the site. “As you can imagine this project is complex and will take some time to coordinate all the components of a project this size,” Pelissier said.
If a developer wanted to convert a condo project to rentals, as in some towns, the developer would have to come before the Redevelopment Agency again for approval, he said.
“Each week developers contact the mayor or myself inquiring as to the possibilities of developing in Rahway,” Pelissier said. “Also take a look around the downtown area, properties are being improved in the Arts District as well as throughout the downtown. This points out the small investor continues to believe in the future of Rahway as well as the larger developers.”
The mayor also mentioned that City Council has authorized demolition of the Hamilton Laundry site. I’ll have an update and potential timeline on that later this week.

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Commercial, Downtown, Polls, restaurants, Retail

Downtown Options, Part Two

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With my coffee shop rant out of the way, welcome to Part II on the most recent poll results, which had grocery/specialty food store garnering 44 percent of the vote, ahead of brewpub/bar/restaurant, 32 percent, and coffeehouse/bagel shop, 20 percent.

Continue reading Downtown Options, Part Two →

Downtown, Polls

To 26…and beyond!

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Happy New Year! 2008 is off like a rocket as it’s been another record-breaking week for Rahway Rising. Everyone here (read: me) is thrilled and just trying to keep up. The blog poll has reached new heights yet again, a marked 25-percent increase in the number of votes cast from the last poll, jumping from 20 to 25 (Assuming everyone voted once and did not stuff the virtual ballot box, which wouldn’t be hard to do, but would impugn one’s voting integrity). On to the results…

“What would you like to see downtown?”
Grocery/specialty food store 44% (11/25)
Brewpub-style bar/restaurant 32% (8/25)
Coffeehouse/bagel shop 20% (5/25)
Other 4% (1/25)
Clothing 0% (0/25)

While none of the options garnered a majority, surprisingly (at least to me), there appeared a clear winner in grocery/specialty food store, a decisive 12 percent more than brewpub-style bar/restaurant. Poll results also might indicate that I was running low on options after that. The showing from “Clothing” was embarrassing, and might very well be banned from any future polls indefinitely, and “Other” was there in hopes that readers might get a little crazy with the comments section and go outside the box. To be fair, I think everyone’s got their fill of the Gap or comparable options at nearby malls or neighboring downtowns.

As for grocery/specialty food store, I know there’ s no room for a giant supermarket downtown, but there’s been talk of a Trader Joe’s-type store for the proposed Town Center project at City Hall. There are a few bodegas or glorified convenience stores, but apparently poll readers want another option when it comes to groceries.

Coffeehouse/bagel shop had a more than respectable 20-percent contingent, but judging from my conversations with people who live or are familiar with downtown, I expected it to challenge brewpub for the top spot. If there’s one takeaway in those discussions, it’s that a coffeehouse/bagel shop/coffee shop/cafe should be a gold mine downtown, or Rahway at least should be able to support more options. Never mind that you can’t find a decent bagel anywhere near downtown.

A coffeehouse might also address another complaint/concern common about downtown: there are just not many options when you’re out getting your Sunday paper. Is it that there isn’t enough foot traffic to support such an enterprise, or is it that the option isn’t there, and thus, foot traffic doesn’t follow (a.k.a., The old chicken or the egg)? If recent experience is any indication, perhaps it’s that the foot traffic isn’t here yet.

Moca Motion Cafe, in the train station, is a prime location but has been vacant for months (or is it already a year?). NJ Transit holds the lease on the space, which is perhaps too big if it’s only going to be a commuter coffee joint as opposed to a lounge/cafe. Reggie’s Roast (Main Street, at the end of East Cherry), was new, clean and pretty, but no one was ever in there (and it was more of a wholesale operation anyway, with the city pushing for the retail aspect). American Jubilee (89 E. Cherry, now an art gallery) was an absolute delight. More of a bakery/dessert place, it had the cozy vibe that many coffeehouses aim for (and brownies to die for), but one reason might have been that it could barely seat a dozen people. Both have been gone a few years already. Personally, I think the best coffee place was the old Eat To the Beat Cafe when it was on the corner of East Cherry and Irving (where The Lofts are), before it moved further in on East Cherry and changed its name to Beat Cafe (where A Taste of Portugal bakery and cafe is now). Taste is a good start, but with hundreds of new residences — and more coming — one would think downtown could support more options. What do you think?

Now that I’ve got my coffeehouse rant, there’s not much room for my brewpub/restaurant rant. I’ll save it for another time; stay tuned later in the week for Part II on the poll results.

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A blog about all things redevelopment