Red Bank Broadwalk coming back for good; here's what will be new with outdoor dining

RED BANK - Broadwalk — the borough’s pedestrian mall — is coming back starting May 13, and it will return with a Thursday night vendor’s market and a possible ban on certain single-use takeout food items unless customers specifically request them.

What started during the COVID-19 pandemic to help restaurants stay in business by offering outdoor dining will become an annual warm-weather attraction. The borough council voted on Thursday to make the closure of Broad Street between Front Street and White Street an annual event. Previously, each incarnation was approved separately b the council.

Broadwalk would begin on the Monday following the second Sunday in May and run through Sept. 30.

“We are thrilled that (the council) is making Broadwalk permanent," said Bob Zuckerman, executive director of Red Bank RiverCenter, a nonprofit that promotes the downtown business community. "It really helps our businesses who participate in a significant way because they can now plan for it.”

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Zuckerman said by not having to go before the council every year as in the previous years, businesses could hire more staff and buy the necessary outdoor furniture ahead of time.

He said this year, a pop-up vendor’s market is coming to the Broadwalk on Thursday nights. The RiverCenter is working with Fresh Markets, which has brought pop-up markets to Asbury Park and Holmdel’s Bell Works.

The communal tent and delivery services from restaurants outside the Broadwalk area are also coming back. Zuckerman said the RiverCenter hopes to add more live music and other activities to the Broadwalk. He also said the RiverCenter is hiring a part-time maintenance staff to keep the area clean due to a few resident complaints.

He said people can follow the RiverCenter’s Instagram account and newsletter for updates on events.

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The Borough Council is also looking to ban certain single-use items commonly provided when ordering takeout.

Councilwoman Nancy Facey-Blackwood said the council is tabling a vote on the matter to refine the wording of the ordinance.

The proposed ban on single-use utensils, condiment packets, napkins and extra takeout containers would be an expansion of the borough’s existing ban on plastic bags, which was passed over two years before the state’s plastic bag ban.

Modeled after the environmental advocacy campaign “Skip the Stuff,” it would require restaurant and grocery stores to default to not placing utensils, condiments, napkins and extra takeout containers in a takeout box. Instead, customers would have to ask for the extra items when placing a takeout order.

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Changes to the proposed ordinance would work out whether employees are allowed to ask customers if they want any of the items or if signs explaining the policy are allowed.

It is proposed to come in effect April 22 for Earth Day, with a period of a few months afterward to acclimate people to the new policy before the borough would actively enforce it.

While council voted unanimously in favor of the Broadwalk becoming a permanent annual feature for the borough, a few residents and business owners have spoken against the permanent shutdown of Broad Street for such an extended period of time.

Linda Cohen, owner of EyeDesign right outside the Broadwalk area, said on Thursday that closing Broad Street for an extended period of time exacerbates traffic and parking issues in the borough.

“Not being able to get in and out of these businesses around Red Bank for that specified timeframe becomes a major problem,” Cohen said.

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Mayor Billy Portman spoke in support of Broadwalk, saying it makes the inland borough a destination town during the summer months, when many people are flocking to the Shore.

“In the months that we’ve had the Broadwalk,” Portman said, “our parking revenues have broken records each year. So, people are clearly coming.”

Councilman Ben Forest said during his time as a trustee on the Red Bank RiverCenter Board, about 70% of businesses supported the Broadwalk.

Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation, Red Bank and western Monmouth County. She can be reached at oliu@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Red Bank Broadwalk outdoor dining made permanent; here are the changes