The city will buy the former Beverage Shop for $80,000 — $50,000 less than what the Rahway Center Partnership (RCP) paid for it nine years ago.
Tag Archives: East Cherry Street
City moves to demolish E. Cherry St. building
The city has notified Dornoch that it will proceed legally to knock down the burned out building at 65 E. Cherry St.
City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier last fall asked the city engineer and city construction official to investigate whether the building was structurally sound or should be razed.
Dornoch presented plans to develop the property in November 2007, adding a third floor with residential units on the second and third floors and ground-floor retail. The building housed a former wig and beauty supply store on the first floor before a fire destroyed it in summer of 2005.
Casa Borinquen grand opening Friday
Specializing in Puerto Rican fare, the restaurant will replace Taste of Portugal, which closed in 2009 after more than two years at the East Cherry Street location. At one time the space housed the popular Eat To The Beat Cafe.
Casa Borinquen is family owned and operated by Rahway residents. I met the co-owners while I was strolling downtown on Sunday and they were putting some finishing touches on the place.
The building is among several East Cherry Street properties owned by Dornoch.
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The grand opening of Chess Mates, originally scheduled for March 1, was postponed. No new grand opening date has been set, but construction has been delayed due in part to the recent inclement weather.
The chess cafe will occupy the second retail space in Park Square on Irving Street, next to Eyes On You.
City moves to buy Beverage Shop building
The City Council last week introduced an ordinance to purchase the vacant Beverage Shop building from the Rahway Center Partnership (RCP) after Dornoch defaulted on its agreement to acquire it. A public hearing and final approval is scheduled at the council’s regular meeting on March 8.
The Partnership bought the one-story structure at 52 E. Cherry St., (Block 318, Lot 18) in April 2001 for $130,000, and had an agreement in July 2006 to sell it to Dornoch. The property was to be part of the developer’s downtown plans and RCP, as I understand it, acquired it at the time as a way to control problem properties/tenants, with the intention of it becoming part of the larger plan. In late 2007, Dornoch presented plans to the Planning Board to knock down several East Cherry Stre
et properties — including The Beverage Shop — and build a new four-story structure as part of what’s sometimes referred to as Dornoch II 1/2.
Dornoch, which also planned two other projects that have since stalled — The Savoy and The Westbury — has defaulted on its agreement and payments of almost $8,000 to RCP. Annual property taxes on the building are more than $6,700, according to property records, which haven’t been paid for the last two quarters, according to City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier.
The City Council also approved a contract with Prime Appraisal to appraise the property and the ordinance opens the door for negotiations. The building has been vacant for a few years and its condition is unclear, Pelissier said. The city plans to assume the agreement with Dornoch, put a lien on the property and likely list it for sale.
In addition to Dornoch defaulting on its agreement, the Partnership lost funding from Merck and NJ Transit and faces some major structural changes in its future which will be detailed in the next post.
Catching up on tenant turnover
There’s been a bit of turnover in some downtown spaces the last few months, particularly along East Cherry Street.
City looks into East Cherry Street building
City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier said he has asked the city engineer and city construction official to investigate whether the burned out building on East Cherry Street is structurally sound or should be razed.
The barricades that went up in front of the building within the last month were placed there by the Department of Public Works as a precaution, according to Construction Official Richard Watkins. He said the front wall, which is wood frame construction, is no longer held in place by a floor system, so if one leans on the wall, a slight gap opens between the sidewalk and face of the wall.
The eyesore at 65 E. Cherry St. was acquired by Dornoch for $65,000 from the Parking Authority. A fire occurred in summer 2005 when it was home to a wig and beauty supply store.
Prior to the collapse of the real estate market, circa November 2007, Dornoch had plans to develop the property, adding a third floor with residential units on the second and third floors and ground-floor retail.
The grassy lot next door, adjacent to the Rahway Grill, at one point was considered for a possible walkway/promenade access to the Lewis Street parking deck.
Iraq memorial to grace train station plaza
What may be the first monument in the state dedicated to those killed in Iraq will be installed at train station plaza later this month.
The Broken Hearts Memorial will be installed by Aug. 29 with an opening ceremony planned Sept. 12.
Local artist Jim McKeon said there are monuments to individual soldiers killed in action in the Middle East but “nothing on this scale dedicated to all of them.”
McKeon is founder of the rahway art hive, an art studio and co-op gallery on East Cherry Street, where he and others have been working on the monument this summer. He’s been mulling the idea for about a year after conversations with friends who have family serving in Iraq.
The monument features 19 interlocking, nine-foot panels that stretch more than 36 feet when fully assembled. Each panel has a silhouette of a soldier covered with 127 hearts, totaling more than 4,000 — one for each U.S. soldier killed in Iraq. The wall is shaped like open hexagons — “vulnerable when standing alone but strong when placed back to back.”
Each heart will bear the word “MOM,” McKeon said, making an “iconic tattoo image into something powerful.” A heart will be added for each soldier killed, making it a kind of living tribute.
The memorial is constructed to be permanent or temporary. McKeon expects it might be in the plaza for about a year and hopes to make it a traveling exhibit to display in other towns. Between volunteer time and some contributions from the city for materials, he estimated the monument cost about $7,500. But the Broken Hearts campaign is also aiming to raise $43,000 for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, for a new hospital in Bethesda, Md.
A ribbon cutting ceremony will be Sept. 12 when the public will be invited to participate by painting one of the thousands of hearts, with the word “MOM” already stenciled in. After the opening date, public participation will be accepted on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and by appointment.
Waiting Room plans patio area
For those of you looking for more outdoor dining options in Rahway, take heart, there’s something on the way. Rahway’s most popular bar, The Waiting Room received Planning Board approval Tuesday night to build a 1,089-square foot concrete patio behind the building at 66 E. Cherry St.
Owner Chris Wenson said the patio would cover the entire area behind his building on East Cherry Street but only part of it would be used for outdoor dining. He expects it could be open by next spring, with as many as 10 to 15 tables.
The Waiting Room will mark its third year at its new location on Saturday. It relocated from the corner of Lewis and Irving streets to make way for the parking garage.