Yes, today was a day of skating and a little ice hockey on Fair Haven’s McCarter Pond.
Rumson-Fair Haven Retrospect caught up with the kid we like to refer to as the junior Fair Haven mayor — sorry, Lucarelli — Carson Kirman.
Carson loves a photo opp. He’s always skating around town in one way or another.
Take a look at what the kids were up to today on the pond.
It’s no secret that the Navesink River is a spot of solace for people who grew up in the Rumson-Fair Haven area or just have a sentimental spot for it.
No one knows that unsurpassed value better than this editor.
It was a nippy day along the river today, yet, somehow, a couple of spots still provided that usual dose of serenity.
Take a look at the photo gallery above for a glimpse into life on the Navesink. Just click on one photo and scroll. Enjoy!
Call it a case of cutting to somewhat of a chase.
Over the Navesink River in Middletown, police are asking for the public’s assistance in locating a woman who they say stole close to $2,000 in razors, over-the-counter medications and hygiene products from the ShopRite on Route 35.
Police posted video still photos of the woman allegedly stealing the merchandise from the store on Jan. 17 and 19, a post on the Middletown Township Police Facebook page said.
On Jan. 17, she allegedly stole roughly $725 in medication and hygiene products; and on Jan. 19 she allegedly lifted $1,000 worth of razors.
Anyone who may be able to identify the woman or offer information is asked to contact Detective Laurence Schachtel at 732-615-2062.
Photo/screenshot from Middletown Township Police Department Facebook page.
It was a year ago, almost to the day, that Balderose Fine Foods had its final opening.
We say final, because the eatery had a short-lived initial opening in 2013. Now, a year later, it’s our Retro Pic of the Day.
The story? After a partnership re-routing and some fiscal house cleaning, the gourmet specialty shop at the corner of Fair Haven and River roads took root with a second grand opening on Jan. 17, 2014.
It has since flourished as a local mainstay stop for breakfast goods, soups, sandwiches, salads, desserts, some organic packaged goodies and unique prepared take-home fine food dishes ever since.
The eatery’s namesake is Anthony Balderose, who operates the business and cooks. Once Balderose Fine Foods, LLC, the business was sold to Quirk, LLC on Jan. 7, 2014.
Balderose, a former executive chef at Balducci’s in Manhattan and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), had a vision to bring a New York-style gourmet shop to the area. His dream came true.
What’s your favorite Balderose food?
Our Retro Pic of the Day is in honor of George Day, 1978 Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) photography editor.
George did some excellent work, not only at RFH, but all over the area in the 1970s, and before and after that.
He got in touch with Rumson-Fair Haven Retrospect; and, we are thrilled to say, he will be collaborating with us on some fabulous Retro Pic of the Day posts. We just may call them Retro Pic of the George Day posts.
Thanks, George! Great to know that you’re out there and will be contributing to this site! Your talent is and always has been appreciated.
On the heels of what was a major, albeit bandaid, fix to a portion of the corroding Oceanic Bridge, Monmouth County officials have gotten a boost via state funding to undertake the appropriate studies to rehabilitate or replace the entire structure.
The 2016 $600,000 “concept development study” of the county-owned 2,712 foot Oceanic span between Rumson and Middletown over the Navesink River was one of five approved last week by the New Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA).
The drawbridge, built in 1939, has been targeted as one in need of replacement and/or major revamp for several years now. In 2012, major repairs to the 98-foot bascule span, or moveable drawbridge part, of the bridge was refurbished.
But, even then, officials said that that was only a temporary fix. A permanent solution, they had said, was the only answer.
Options for rehab and/or replacement have been bandied about. But, for years now, there has been a large contingent of people adamantly opposed to replacement with a fixed, higher structure. The opposition to that slightly cheaper plan have felt it would be an injustice to bridge’s historic integrity and make it more difficult to be used by pedestrians and bicyclists.
The bridge’s capacity to carry its maximum load of vehicles, too, has consistently diminished with its age and consequential deterioration from wear and tear and salt water submersion.
So, the need for a permanent plan has become more imminent and potentially costly, county officials have said.
As a result of the fiscal year 2016 NJTPA program grant, the door will be open for construction costs to be covered by federal funds.
By Elaine Van Develde
It’s all about the green right now at Rumson’s Piping Rock Park — money, grass and a green light for improvements.
The borough was recently one of 15 municipalities in the county awarded $250,000 in 2014 Monmouth County Open Space Trust Fund grant money to fund mostly playing fields improvements at the park.
The $250,000 is a maximum grant amount allocated to go toward eligible projects that are slated to come to fruition in 2015.
All 53 municipalities in the county are eligible to apply for the now annual county grant which requires that projects suit an open space need, such as improvements to or acquisition of passive or active open space and/or recreation swaths of land.
Rumson officials’ choice was based on an impending need to upgrade the highly used, now war-torn natural grass fields.
They get so much use, Mayor John Ekdhal said, that there’s been “no time to ‘rest’ or repair the grass surface,” so turf is the way to go in order to accommodate the “amount of children using the fields for all the various sports.”
The mayor estimates that the cost for an artificial grass field (alone) “is upwards of $600,000, and hence the plan is to apply and hopefully receive a second $250,000 grant in 2015 to move forward (into Phase II of the plan).”
In addition to the turf installation, there will be a few more associated improvements as part of Phase I of the project as it was outlined by Rumson Engineer David Marks, of the Middletown-based T&M Associates, in September of 2014.
The plan for Phase I, according to borough minutes, is as follows:
Our Retro Pic of the Day is a warm look back on one of those seemingly perfect days down by the Navesink River.
It was just one of those days — a day that the picture there was worth about 5,000 words on why the Rumson-Fair Haven area is such a great place to live.
The sun was shining, the scene was serene and, a couple of best buds waded in the water, made friends with hermit crabs and shared the wealth of their elating experience.
There’s nothing quite like the happy faces of kids enjoying life down by the river.
— Elaine Van Develde
The sunset scene on the icy Navesink River from Rumson’s Victory Park was a warm one Thursday night.
Light reflected in the frozen still waters set a peaceful tone — a view of life in this riverfront suburb.
Click on any photo to enlarge and scroll. Enjoy!
Our Retro Pic of the Day takes us back a couple of years to post-Hurricane Sandy days when Republican Gov. Chris Christie was endorsed by Democratic Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long and it was news.
A press conference was held at Woody’s in Sea Bright. Once it was over, the governor posed for photos with many people, including these two Rumson ladies.
We won’t tell you who they are. Do you know?
Clean Ocean Action fall Beach Sweeps/Photos by Elaine Van Develde
Our Retro Pic of the Day is meant to warm you up in more ways than one.
It’s a reminder of cozy waterfront warmth at Sea Bright beach in the midst of this wicked winter chill. And it’s a warm-up and precursor of sorts to our coming feature on Clean Ocean Action’s recent 30-year anniversary, as the featured photo is from the organization’s fall Beach Sweeps.
With the non-profit spearheaded by lifetime Rumsonite, Cindy Zipf, The sweeps have become a twice-annual environmental mainstay in the area for decades now.
Clean Ocean Action loves to let people know some of the oddest things found on the Jersey Shore beaches during sweeps. What’s the strangest you’ve ever heard of?
Stay tuned for our story. Congrats to Clean Ocean Action and Cindy Zipf!
In circulating a composite sketch, investigators are seeking the public’s help in identifying a man whose body washed ashore at the Gateway Marina in Highlands on Dec. 30, 2013, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced in a press release.
A joint investigation by the Prosecutor’s Office and the New Jersey State Police has, as of yet, found no matches to the DNA profile of the man in the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), the release said. There have been no missing persons reports filed with police for anyone matching the description of the deceased man, either, it added.
The man, according to a forensic examination report, is a young white man in his 20s and not of American Indian, Japanese, Chinese or Guatemalan descent, the release said.
The composite sketch, rendered by the New Jersey State Police Forensic Artist Unit, depicts an image of what the young man may have looked like at the time of his death, the release said, noting that facial features, hair length and coloring may vary.
If any features of the man in the composite look familiar, or you believe you may have additional information concerning this case, call Detective Andrea Tozzi of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, at 1-800-533-7443, or New Jersey State Police Detective Steve Urbanski, at 609-882-2000 ext. 2554.
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