Mayor Samson Steinman delivered the annual State of the City address Friday night, announcing a few new events for 2015 while providing updates on items announced last year amid a smattering of redevelopment-related topics.
Tag Archives: Union County Performing Arts Center
Rahway Bands & Brews moved to Sunday
Due to a foreca
st of a 70-percent chance of rain this afternoon, with a chance of thunder and rain by 4 p.m., Rahway Bands and Brews, presented by The Rail House, will be Sunday (Sept. 14) — same time, same place: 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Train Station Plaza.
Sunday’s forecast looks much better: low 70s, sunny to partly cloudy but no rain.
A benefit for the Union County Performing Arts Center, Rahway Bands & Brews will feature 10 independent rock bands and craft beers, sponsored by Lagunitas, Smuttynose, Abita and Founders, from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Train Station Plaza.
Rahway Bands & Brews rain date Sunday
UPDATED: Due to Saturday’s weather forecast, Rahway Bands and Brew will be Sunday (Sept. 14) — same time, same place.
An afternoon of music and craft beers will come to downtown Rahway Sept. 13, Sept 14 hosted by The Rail House and Union County Performing Arts Center.
Sculptures, mural lab jumpstart public art plan
There’s one behind the Union County Performing Arts Center. Another pokes out of the shrubbery at Train Station Plaza and another is on loan in front of Hamilton Stage for Performing Arts.
The sculptures are considered “seeds” for a series of public art projects that Rahway Arts District is creating throughout downtown. The sculptures are by Woodbridge artist Glenn Murgacz, who also has pieces in Woodbridge, near the Avenel Train Station and the Avenue Fire House on Route 1.
There’s also the Rahway Mural Lab, a mural arts program for Rahway teens, that will be unveiled tonight at 6 p.m. at 1530 Irving St. The single-story former Public Service building was approved for a restaurant more than four years ago but later ran into a dispute with the city over sewer fees. It’s unclear what the status of the planned restaurant is today. The Arts District was granted permission to put the mural on the building facade until the owner is ready to start construction, Executive Director Rachael Faillace said.
Former Mayor James Kennedy hopes to get the public art initiative jump-started and eventually have 20 to 30 pieces in all. “With Glenn’s and J.D’s works kicking things off, we’re hoping to find more Rahway area sculptors who might be interested in contributing to the project,” he said.
Kennedy has talked about attracting more public art for years, including the idea of a sculpture walk downtown. The public art, he said, would be an ongoing process and might depend on what funding could be obtained. The Redevelopment Agency last month authorized $3,000 as partial payment for a piece inside Hamilton Stage featuring a ballerina, which is appropriate, he said since there are three ballerina troupes at the facility.
Agency amends lease, authorizes payment
The Redevelopment Agency amended an agreement to lease the Hamilton Stage for Performing Arts to the Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC) from 10 years to 30 years while authorizing the final $100,000 payment to the Rahway Arts District.
Poll: How would you grade redevelopment?
Time for another fun, completely unscientific blog poll. What do you think?
Lease agreement approved for Hamilton Stage
A 10-year lease agreement between the Redevelopment Agency and Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC) for the Hamilton Stage began Oct. 1.
Redevelopment Agency commissioners adopted a resolution at their September meeting authorizing the lease, which will last through September 2011 2021.
The Redevelopment Agency, which has “no intention of operating [the site], other than the use of parking to support other downtown activities when no performances are being held,” will receive $100 per year, according to the resolution. The 14,000-square-foot Hamilton Stage will have a “200-seat proscenium theater with rehearsal hall, flexible 50-seat public space, dressing room and other support facilities.”The Redevelopment Agency owns the former Bell Building (Tax Block 167 – Lots 38, 39) that’s being renovated as well as the former Hamilton Laundry site (Block 167 – Lots 44, 45) where a parking lot is planned. Both projects are expected to be completed in the spring.
***
Interesting story from the Upper East Side/East Harlem (“Carnegie Hill” now, apparently), about artist space and housing, which Rahway has been planning to do.
A vacant, former school on the Upper East Side/East Harlem will be rehabbed into affordable artist housing, according to this report from DNAinfo.com. Vacant for 15 years, the 113-year old Gothic Revival style building will be transformed into 90 affordable homes for artists and include 10,000 square feet of space for arts groups. The former P.S. 109 will be called El Barrio’s Artspace and is being developed by a Minnesota-based nonprofit, Artspace, with El Barrio’s Operation Fightback.
The project has been in development for five years, amid a number of changes, including the size increasing from 70 to 90 units. Construction would begin in December and take two years, according to the report.
What makes the ‘next hip neighborhood’?
How about some light weekend reading about planning and development, a slideshow of “How to Spot the Next Hot ‘Hood,” from MSN Real Estate. In addition to antiquing and building sports stadiums, the 12 points in the list include attracting artists and creative types, something Rahway has been trying to do. Some of the items more relevant to Rahway:
— “Hang with the Gen Y hipsters”: Portland, Ore.’s Pearl District was redeveloped from a rundown warehouse district in the ’90s to “just the sort of place that could be attractive to Gen Y,” featuring hip lofts, brew pubs, bookstores and art galleries, as well as office space for employers. They make the point that Gen Y seeks urban-type neighborhoods that are walkable, with amenities like shopping, recreation and entertainment within walking distance.
— “Follow the artists”: Few artists are rich, which means most of them set up shop in parts of town with cheap rent. But once artists move in…galleries and studios often attract restaurants and shops, turning the “downtrodden zones into culturally rich neighborhoods that often become unaffordable to artists themselves.”
The story cites SoHo in New York and SoMa in San Francisco as two big-city neighborhoods that the underpaid creative set transformed. “Now the streets of SoHo in Lower Manhattan are strewn with upscale galleries and restaurants, and the artists have long decamped for less stylish venues. With its spacious lofts, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, became an attractive location for artists in the past decade. But Williamsburg also has priced itself out of reach. Greenpoint, just to its north, now has embraced many of the artistic émigrés.”
— “Fly Creative: The buzz at the height of the housing bubble was that Seattle-area artists were on the cusp of turning the suburb of Burien, Wash., into the next SoHo. The community of 45,332 sits just south of Seattle and has long been home to legions of workers at Boeing, the aerospace giant. A vibrant arts scene — the city hosts a symphony plus numerous theaters and art galleries — was pulling in the creative set, as well.”
***
An 1,800-seat theater falls into disrepair during ’70s, makes come back with the help of local supporters and government funding. It’s not the Union County Performing Arts Center but the St. George Theatre in Staten Island. In this case, along with $4 million in borough funds to revitalize the theater, a longtime Staten Island resident established a nonprofit to save the edifice and donated her life savings — nearly $1 million — to launch the effort.
From Crain’s New York Business: A star is reborn near waterfront in Staten Island: St. George Theatre helps to revitalize down-at-the-heels area.