Bayonne Magazine by Hudson Reporter Assoc., LP

Fall / Winter 2014/15

The future of healthcare has come to Hudson County CarePoint Health is bringing quality, patient-focused healthcare to Hudson County. Combining the resources of three area hospitals — Bayonne Medical Center, Christ Hospital in Jersey City, and Hoboken University Medical Center — CarePoint Health is a new approach to delivering healthcare that puts the patient front and center. With a focus on preventive medicine, disease management and healthcare education, CarePoint Health provides patients with 360 degrees of coordinated care, delivered by the area’s best and most dedicated doctors, nurses, hospitals and medical staff.

Bayonne Medical Center 29th Street at Avenue E, Bayonne, NJ 07002 Christ Hospital 176 Palisade Avenue, Jersey City, NJ 07306 Hoboken University Medical Center 308 Willow Avenue, Hoboken, NJ 07030 carepointhealth.org 1.877.791.7000 twitter.com/CarePointHealth facebook.com/CarePointHealth CarePoint Health System

2 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 â&#x20AC;˘

FEATURES COVER

CONTENTS BLP

PEOPLE POWER HOMEGROWN STAR Tammy Blanchard Cover photo File photo

DATES What’s goin’ on Ed Martin cuts up in the kitchen.

GCT BAYONNE

BAYONNE’S ABLAZE WITH HOMEMADE HOT SAUCE BY TARA RYAZANSKY

High-Tech shipping

PHOTOS BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

uter Limits was born in a Bayonne kitchen when Ed Martin decided to try his hand at making hot sauce. He was frustrated because the sauces on the market were weak and vinegary. Martin used homegrown peppers from his garden to make the sauce. He and his father had grown habaneros together since his childhood, and Martin wanted to capture the fiery taste they loved. A lifelong fan of spicy food, Martin got in trouble as a kid for bringing chilis to school with his lunch. “On more than one occasion someone would try to prove they were tougher than me and eat one whole and end up in horrible pain,” Martin laughs. “Then I would get called to the office and told not to bring them in again, but I inevitably would anyway.” Like a chemist or wizard, he mixed up various versions, homing in on the pure flavor he wanted. The result was a sauce that was loaded with the intense heat of Hot Paper Lantern Habanero, blowing away everything on store shelves. “The first thing you smell and taste is the habaneros,” Martin says of the original recipe. “It has a bold, peppery taste, with just a hint of garlic.”

DEPARTMENTS

CONTRIBUTORS

EDITOR’S LETTER

WORKING OUT WITH

EMERGING BAYONNE

In 2011, making hot sauce was a hobby that Martin shared with his father, Edward Martin III. They perfected the Habanero Hot Sauce and created the Jalapeno Lime flavor, with a citrusy punch and lower heat level. Through trial and error, the Martins worked until they got the consistency and taste up to their standards.

GOING PRO Friends frequently asked when they would start selling their famous concoction, but limited space and supplies, as well as work responsibilities, kept Martin from focusing fully on his spicy creations. He spent years working in the music industry, managing the PR campaigns of bands like Slipknot, Lamb of God, and Opeth. He made a career change when he got the opportunity to work as head of U.S. sales for an international concert ticketing startup. Less than a year after he took the position, the company closed down, leaving Martin jobless. Then Hurricane Irene tore through New Jersey, causing damage to Ed Martin III’s Long Branch property. A large shade tree in his backyard fell down, tearing up the garden where his peppers grew. What could have seemed like double disasters led to an exciting venture. Martin’s father’s yard gained light and space to grow a bigger garden. Martin was able to devote more time to his hot sauce, holding tasting parties for friends, tweaking the recipes, and testing them on the road. Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Dorothy Paterson

Harbor Station North

EDUCATION

SENIOR MOMENTS

SPORTS CORNER

ON THE WATERFRONT

HOW WE WORK

HELPING HANDS

HEAV Y Lifting

Bringing History to Life

56th Street Seniors

BY TARA RYAZANSKY PHOTOS BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

hristina McDonnell looks fit and muscular, but she doesn’t project the herculean image that I was expecting. Standing before me in a striped summer dress, she looks more like a teacher enjoying her summer break—which she is—than an elite-level powerlifter. It’s hard to imagine her dead-lifting more than twice her body weight. But that’s exactly what she does, and she makes it look easy. She holds the state and national records in the World National Powerlifting Federation for the dead lift, squat, and bench press in her weight class of 165 pounds. Her current best lifts are 335 pounds for the dead lift, 150 pounds for the bench press, and 290 pounds for the squat. Did I mention that she’s been practicing her sport for only a year? McDonnell discovered her natural gift for weightlifting when she moved to town last year and joined a local CrossFit gym. CrossFit is a strength and conditioning program that includes weightlifting. McDonnell had always been athletic, playing basketball through high school and college, but she rarely ventured to

the weights section when she hit the gym. She’d heard a lot of buzz about the CrossFit craze and wanted to try it.

FIT IN BAYONNE

When McDonnell moved to Bayonne in the summer of 2013, CrossFit Bayonne had recently opened at 432 Broadway, in a large building that used to be home to a pool hall. It was affordable and near her new apartment. She was among the first to sign up. “I wasn’t born in Bayonne, but my lifting journey definitely started here,” McDonnell says. A few months into her training at CrossFit Bayonne, owner and coach Justin Frimmel had his students do a CrossFit Total, a drill in which everyone finds out his or her maximum one-rep lift for the dead lift, squat, and overhead press. McDonnell knew that she was naturally strong, but she had never been challenged to lift at her maximum weight under the supervision of a trainer. “It came to be that I started out with a 205 squat, a 105 overhead press, and a 265 dead lift, having never really lifted before,” McDonnell says. A slight smile hints that she’s proud of this early accomplishment.

In the fall McDonnell capitalized on her natural talents and made lifting her main focus. She changed gyms and coaches so that she could concentrate only on lifting. Pat Mingoes of Forum Gym and Kevin DiGiorgio, a Bayonne High School physical education teacher who specializes

McDonnell hopes that she can use her success in powerlifting to inspire girls and women. in strength training, were instrumental in McDonnell’s early success and commitment to the sport. “The sky is the limit for her. She has a great group of people helping her and she has all the tools necessary to become a stud in this game,” says DiGiorgio, who has been weight training for 22 years and hitting the gym for fun with Christina for just a short time. “I can see her rising in the ranks, in the next few years, and taking her game to a whole new level. If she continues to do what she’s doing now she will be turning a lot of heads on the elite level in this game.”

Pole-dance fitness

The U.S. Coast Guard

She carries her weight— and then some Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Small businesses

Bayonne Community Mental Health Center

ENTERTAINMENT BLP

HOW WE LIVE

HANGING OUT WITH

SCENE &

HEARD

House proud

the only band member who doesn’t live in Bayonne. His stepfather is Secaucus mayor Michael Gonnelli.

NOTES FROM AN UNDERGROUND MUSIC WORLD

WATERING HOLE

EATERY

R&B’z

Bella Sorellas

DINING OUT Listings

BY TARA RYAZANSKY PHOTOS BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

ayonne’s music scene is thriving in basements, garages, and loft spaces as the town’s increasingly colorful landscape of hip spots blends with our quirky old-school family businesses. The upshot? More and more artistic types are calling Bayonne home. Take Rye Coalition, a band that pioneered the emo sound in the early ’90s. It was recently featured in an award-winning documentary, “Rye Coalition: The Story of the Hard Luck Five.” Four of the five original members are Bayonne residents who are active musicians here in town. The movie, which won best documentary at The New Jersey International Film Festival and best music documentary at the Kingston Film Festival, is filmmaker Jenni Matz’s directorial debut. It tells the story of a rock band that was on the brink of making it big. They went from recording their own music on cassette tapes in the early ’90s to signing with DreamWorks in 2003, with Hudson County as their home base all the while. The film opens with a shot of the group driving down Broadway in Bayonne on the way to the home of bassist Justin Morey. The full-length movie goes on to feature interviews with rock royalty, including Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters, who took the band under his wing by producing their album and taking them on tour as an opening act. Plenty of scenes will thrill locals with recognizable backdrops, including the Bayonne Bridge, the Broadway Diner, and Country Village. A screening was held on Oct. 12 at The New Jersey International Film Festival’s “Best of Festival.” The “Hard Luck” part of the story is that Rye Coalition never achieved rock-star status or accumulated piles of cash. Despite legions of loyal fans and touring with famous acts like Queens of the Stone Age, Rye is not widely known. But this

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JUSTIN AND ASHLEY MOREY

DAVID (LEFT) AND GREGG LETO

The Bridgemen lack of recognition never stopped them from playing, because they do it for the love of music. The movie shows the band members’ dedication and deep friendship, unspooling an underdog story that resonates even with folks who are not hard-rock music fans. “I think it appeals to anyone who’s been in a band or aspires to be in a band, because it gives an inside look at the realities and hardships of that life,” Matz says. “It also speaks to any artist, or anyone who appreciates what dedication and love for a creative outlet can entail in terms of sacrifice, with or without a monetary payoff.”

RYE NOT Rye Coalition still plays together occasionally, but the members have many other projects. Morey went on to start a band called The Black Hollies, who have had their songs featured in TV commercials and on shows like Ugly Betty and Vampire Diaries. He is currently half of rock duo Sunshine & the Rain, which he started with his wife Ashley Morey, who played bass in The Black Hollies. They are booked to play music festival SXSW in 2015. Ashley Morey describes their sound as a combination of “the rawness of garage punk with psychedelia.” Justin Morey plays guitar, synthesizer, electronic organ, and tape loops for the duo and contributes vocals. He also has a solo project called Lanoka Harbor, and makes chocolates at town favorite Al Richard’s. It’s a job that he’s held between tours since the late ’90s. Originally from Jersey City, Morey met drummer Dave Leto (see story p. 52) in the seventh grade at Our Lady of Mercy elementary school; they started playing music together soon after. Rye Coalition vocalist Ralph Cuseglio and guitarist Herbert Wiley grew up in Bayonne. The Leto family moved to Bayonne as well. Guitarist Jon Gonnelli from nearby Secaucus is

AT HOME IN BAYONNE Justin Morey says that living in Bayonne is great because it is close to Jersey City and New York City, where a lot of the band’s gigs are. “It’s nice to be part of a community that’s not already oversaturated with hip spots, but has just one or two where likeminded people can come together and have a great time,” adds Ashley. Justin thinks that supporting independent shops over corporate stores will make Bayonne even stronger. He’s a fan of the bar Lot 13, which features local bands. “Lot 13, combined with old-school establishments like Al Richard’s, Churchill’s, Hendrickson’s, and San Vito, to name a few, restore my faith that the future of Bayonne may progress in the right direction,” he says. Beyond the laidback vibe and urban amenities, it doesn’t hurt that you get more for your money in Bayonne. “There are some great homes with a lot of character,” says Dave Leto. “We wanted a yard, a driveway, and a basement. That is not going to happen in New York.” Gregg Leto, Dave’s brother, who played drums for Rye Coalition after Morey left the band to concentrate on The Black Hollies, agrees. “We lived here as renters for quite a while, allowing us to save money to finally buy an old row house that dates back to 1885,” he says. “Condos in Jersey City that we were looking at cost as much as a whole house in Bayonne, so the decision was simple.” In a condo, he would never have been able to set up a makeshift recording studio in the basement.

SALON SESSIONS If you’ve ever passed the hair salon A Cut Above on Broadway late at night you might have been lucky enough to hear a practice session of Cold Fur or Life Eaters. The Leto brothers play drums for both bands, which rehearse amid the hooded hair dryers and containers of blue Barbicide.

Gregg Leto’s band, Life Eaters, has a debut LP set to release on Killing Horse Records this fall. The band has been compared to The Stooges and Thin Lizzy. They play high-energy rock and roll with a dose of punk. Cold Fur, which includes former Rye Coalition singer Cuseglio on vocals, combines elements of metal, punk, and rock and roll. Among Dave Leto’s favorite Bayonne bands are punk pioneers such as Blondie, because Blondie band member Clem Burke is from Bayonne. Leto says that plenty of modern-day music moments are being made in Bayonne: “My favorite recent memory was being at Lot 13 watching Murphy’s Law play Black Flag songs with Dez Cadena on vocals, in front of like 40 people 10 blocks from my house.” “I am psyched that there are young kids who are into music in Bayonne,” he says. “Seeing these kids walking around in Misfits shirts and classic rock tees, it’s cool that they are into learning to play an actual instrument.” Bayonne’s music future looks bright. “My four-year-old son, Jude, writes his own songs and is an avid beat boxer,” says Gregg Leto. “He loves Life Eaters and sings to every song on the album. He’s obsessed with music.”—BLP

RESOURCES THE DOCUMENTARY: upcoming screenings at ryecoalitionthemovie.com/screenings facebook.com/RyeCoalition twitter.com/RyeCoalition

SUNSHINE AND THE RAIN facebook.com/pages/Sunshine-the-Rain instagram.com/sunshineandtherainband twitter.com/svnshineandrain

LIFE EATERS facebook.com/LifeEaters lifeeaters.bandcamp.com

COLD FUR facebook.com/coldfur coldfur.bandcamp.com

Life on the Peninsula ~ FALL | WINTER 2014/15 •

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PUBLISHERS Lucha Malato, David Unger EDITOR IN CHIEF Kate Rounds GRAPHICS STAFF Lisa M. Cuthbert, Terri Saulino Bish Alyssa Bredin Mike Mitolo Pasquale Spina COPYEDITING Christopher Zinsli ADVERTISING MANAGER Tish Kraszyk ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Melissa Bridda Toni Anne Calderone Ron Kraszyk CIRCULATION MANAGER Roberto Lopez CIRCULATION Luis Vasquez ACCOUNTING Christine Caraballo FA L L | W I N T E R 2 0 1 4 / 1 5 Vo l u m e 1 • N u m b e r 2 A Publication of The Hudson Reporter

Bayonne Life on the Peninsula is published by the Hudson Reporter Associates, L.P., 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, (201) 798-7800, Fax (201) 798-0018. Email bayonnemag@hudsonreporter.com. Subscriptions are $10 per year, $25 for overseas, single copies are $7.50 each, multiple copy discounts are available. VISA/MC/AMEX accepted. Subscription information should be sent to BLP Magazine Subscriptions, 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, NJ 07030. Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or other unsolicited materials. Copyright ©2014, Hudson Reporter Associates L.P. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.

Bayonne – Life on the Peninsula is a publication of The Hudson Reporter Associates, L.P. 1400 Washington Street, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030 phone 201.798.7800 • fax 201.798.0018

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A MESSAGE FROM THE MAYOR Dear Friends:

behalf of the City of Bayonne, I am happy to welcome you to the second issue of Bayonne: Life on the Peninsula . This magazine is produced by the Hudson Reporter, which publishes the Bayonne Community News. Bayonne is a growing community with a bright future. In recent years, we have attracted new residents who have come to appreciate what our great city has to offer. I hope that newcomers and long-time residents alike will enjoy learning about the personalities and businesses featured in this publication. With new commercial and residential construction underway, Bayonne is moving in the right direction. We have a great location that is making us the right place for new economic development. By reading this issue and upcoming editions of Bayonne: Life on the Peninsula , you will learn about the people and organizations that make Bayonne a wonderful place to be. Mayor James M. Davis

CONTRIBUTORS BLP

JOSEPH PASSANTINO grew up in Bayonne and has had careers in both print journalism and public relations, winning awards for writing, editing, and photography. He is the staff writer for the Bayonne Community News.

TERRI SAULINO BISH

GILBERT AGUON

VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ ALYSSA BREDIN

MARIO M. MARTINEZ

BETH DICARA

JOSEPH PASSANTINO

has studied publication design, photography, and graphic design. “I’ve been fascinated by photography for 18 years,” he says. One of his jobs as a construction project manager is to photograph job sites.

MAXIM RYAZANSKY is a photographer whose work has been exhibited in galleries and published worldwide. A recent transplant to Bayonne, he spends his spare time trying to figure out the best pizza place in town.

TARA RYANZANSKY AL SULLIVAN

VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ

MAXIM RYAZANSKY

TARA RYAZANSKY

GILBERT AGUON

ALYSSA BREDIN

is a graphic designer living in North Bergen. He can be reached at gilbert.aguon@gmail.com.

a graduate of Saint Peter’s College, Jersey City, with a degree in graphic arts. She is pursuing a career in photography. Her work can be seen at tbishphoto.com.

TERRI SAULINO BI SH began her career as a graphic designer and digital artist. Expanding into the area of photography, she not only creates images but captures them with her camera. Her work has appeared in many publications, including Best of Photography. Her art currently includes digital paintings and photos that can be viewed at tbishphoto.com.

BETH DICARA is a Jersey City artist who works in clay. Visit eveningstarstudio.net.

MARIO A. MARTINEZ is a freelanced journalist who was born and raised in Hoboken. Aside from writing, Mario enjoys staying active and living a healthy lifestyle.

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is a writer who recently moved from Brooklyn to Bayonne. She works as a blogger for Nameberry.com and spends her spare time fixing up her new (to her) 100-year-old home.

AL SULLIVAN has been a staff writer for the Hudson Reporter newspaper chain since 1992. He was named journalist of the year in 2001 by the New Jersey Press Association, and photographer of the year in 2005 by the Garden State Journalists Association. In 2001, Rutgers University Press published a collection of his work, Everyday People: Profiles from the Garden State.

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EDITOR'S LETTER BLP

Welcome Back We’re really excited to be reconnecting with our “Life on the Peninsula” readers and grateful to all of you who kept in touch with us on Facebook in the interim. In fact, you gave us a bunch of story ideas, some of which you will see in this issue. You couldn’t ask for a person more emblematic of Bayonne than Tammy Blanchard, who chatted with our writer Al Sullivan for this cover story. She is a true Hollywood star, who chose to continue living in her hometown of Bayonne. We have a number of powerful women in this issue—quite literally, in the case of power lifter Christina Marie McDonnell. Reverend Dorothy Patterson shot baskets with writer Mario A. Martinez, and Melissa Goliczewski is starting her own pole-dance fitness studio. She messaged us on Facebook with her story, and the rest is herstory. We spent some time on the waterfront during the warmer months—a wonderful summer morning at the Coast Guard station and another in the big open field that will become Harbor Station North. You’ll also want to catch the gorgeous shots of GCT Bayonne. On the first day of school, it was senior citizens, not school kids, who caught my attention. But you’d hardly know the difference as I joined folks at the 56th Street Senior Center for a delicious lunch and watched them take part in a Zumba class, and a lively book-club discussion. In the last six months, I’ve had a chance to experience firsthand the Bayonne narrative—a story that embraces generations and geography, economics and ethnicity, class and culture. There is much more in this issue, and in the months to come. I look forward to meeting more of you, hearing your stories, and sharing them in the pages of Bayonne: Life on the Peninsula.—BLP

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Tammy Blanchard She’s wowed Broadway and Hollywood, but her heart is in Bayonne BY AL SULLIVAN

ctress Tammy Blanchard hasn’t forgotten where she came from; that’s because she still lives here. Last summer, while on the set for

the upcoming musical film, Into the Woods in London, Tammy found herself seated at a tableful of movie stars she will share the screen with: Hollywood greats like Meryl Streep and Cate Blanchett. At one point, Streep turned to

Tammy at the American Film Institute Awards. PHOTO FROM SHUTTERSTOCK

Tammy and asked, “Where are you from?” When Tammy responded, “I’m from Bayonne,” Streep smiled and said, “Now I know why I love you.” Streep, who was born in Summit and grew up in Bernardsville, bonded with the girl from Bayonne. But unlike Streep, Tammy never left, despite her success as a rising star on stage and screen. “I should have moved to Hollywood and become rich and famous,” Tammy jokes. “But I couldn’t leave Bayonne. This is where I grew up. There is where my family lives.”

Hudson County Kid Tammy was born in Jersey City in 1976 and moved to Bayonne when she was in second grade. She attended Mary J Donohoe and briefly Roosevelt elementary schools in Bayonne. “When I was eight or 10, I sang solo ‘Over the Rainbow’ and people liked me,” she says, “and I knew I was going to perform the rest of my life.” This was a shock even to her because she saw herself as shy, quiet, and insecure. “I couldn’t even raise my hand in class,” she recalls. Tammy has two brothers, which was more than a little intimidating. Yet somehow, while performing, she found she could project. She got a lot of encouragement from teachers and administrators such as Schools Superintendent Patricia McGeehan. Luck also played a part, as it often does in Hollywood success stories. After seeing her in a Miss New Jersey Teen pageant when she was 13, one of the judges connected her with a talent agency that specialized in models. She did print ads, the cover of romance novels, and commercials.

Over the Rainbow Tammy’s breakthrough role came with her portrayal of a teenage Judy Garland in the made-for-TV movie, Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows. This film was a dream come true, partly because she reprised her performance of “Over the Rainbow” from her Bayonne school days, a song made famous by

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PEOPLE POWER BLP Garland in the classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. Judy Garland was her idol. “She always inspired me, so full of passion and love,” Tammy says. “I learned through my experience with ‘Judy’ and what I saw in her life what not to do in this business—the pills and her vulnerability, her dependence on love and putting her life in other people’s hands.” Considered remarkably versatile, Tammy learned a lot when working on the soap opera The Guiding Light, where she debuted in 1997, playing a spoiled rich girl. “It was hard, but it was great instruction,” she says. “I would get six pages to learn the night before and had one shot to get it right.” Each scene often required her to do something different, an emotional roller coaster that had her crying in one

scene and another.

laughing

Glaxy of Stars Since 1997, Tammy has worked with a number of stars: with Matt Damon in The Good Shepherd ; with a multi-star cast in a docudrama, Living Proof ; with Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart in the 2010 film Rabbit Hole; and with Cate Blanchett in the 2013 Woody Allen film Blue Jasmine. In Union Square she was cast against type in a sexually provocative role that she loved, though her mother did not; and she played the lead in Bella , which won top prize at the Toronto Film Festival in 2006. In addition to The Guiding Light, her TV credits include Law & Order, The Big C, and the movie

When Angels Come to Town” with Peter Falk, and she co-starred with Jessica Lange in the TV remake of Sybil . Tammy says she learned a

Tammy says actors learn craft on stage; she grew up doing stage work and has left her mark on the Broadway stage in the revival of Gypsy: A Musical

Tammy is grateful to her Bayonne schools and teachers. lot working with Nicole Kidman, Jessica Lange, and Brad Pitt, whom she admires for his ability to adapt to character. She doesn’t sing a lot in the upcoming Into the Woods, but she says it was a great experience watching composer Stephen Sondheim come onto the set for rehearsals, even writing a new song for Streep and altering other songs to fit the singers. “Sondheim makes the hardest songs to sing, up and down, high and low,” she says.

Fable with Bernadette Peters, for which she received a Tony Award nomination and a Theatre World Award. She was also nominated for a 2011 Tony Award for her role in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. She expects to return to the stage.

Future Roles Tammy came back from California in late summer to film a dramatic thriller that has the flavor of

Lucy Punch, Christine Baranski and Tammy Blanchard bring Cinderella's evil stepsisters and stepmother to life in INTO THE WOODS, the big-screen adaptation of the Tony® Award-winning musical. In theaters Dec. 25, 2014. Photo by: Peter Mountain. © 2014 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Rosemary’s Baby. She says, “It’s an independent film, but I think it will do well.” Of all the roles she’s played over the years, Bella sticks with her because it taught her the impact that film can have in the real world. She plays a waitress working in a Mexican restaurant in New York City. The character is pregnant and is tempted to get an abortion, but partly based on the tragedy of a coworker and the death of a young girl, she changes her mind and decides to give the baby up for adoption. “It was the only lead I ever had in a movie,” Tammy says. “I heard from more than 300 women who said they kept their babies because of that film. It’s the most amazing thing to me.” She is striving to get another lead role—in a major motion picture. “I have another dream to play Ava Gardner,” Tammy says. She finds Gardner and her history fascinating—a real movie star with an element of intrigue, involving another local hero, Frank Sinatra. But as an actress from Bayonne,

Tammy Blanchard’s Storied Career Her TV credits include A Gifted Man, The Good Wife, and made-for-TV movies We Were the Mulvaneys, When Angels Come to Town, Empire State, and Amish Grace. Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows won a primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actress in a Mini-Series. She has also been nominated for a Golden Globe, a Satellite Award, and an American Film Institute Award, and she won a 2003 Theatre World Award. Her film credits include Stealing Harvard, Cadillac Records, The Ramen Girl, Deadline, and Moneyball. PHOTO BY SHAWN REINOEHL

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PEOPLE POWER BLP Tammy can’t escape the ghost of Sandra Dee, who was perceived by earlier generations as “the actress from Bayonne.”

And after all, Bayonne is only two miles from Manhattan.” Tammy is grateful to her Bayonne schools and teachers.

This is where I grew up. There is where my family lives.” - Tammy Blanchard When Tammy goes on auditions and mentions she is from Bayonne, casting directors often recall Sandra Dee.

Back in Bayonne Tammy’s mother, stepfather, brothers, their families, and her friends all live in Bayonne. “I’ve always had a choice to go to California,” she says. “But it’s harder to stay who you are there than here where your friends and family are, generation after generation. When you stick with your family, you can’t lose your life to fame.

“If I didn’t have that special support, I would never have made it,” she says. “I hope our new mayor will pay attention to our teachers.” Indeed, in 2012, Bayonne High School pledged to award a scholarship each year to a graduating student in Tammy’s name. “This is a lovely way to give back to the community and why I can’t leave Bayonne,” Tammy says. “I love Bayonne and living here, and I love this community for being so supportive. This is a dream come true.”— BLP

Tammy at the Golden Globe Awards PHOTO FROM SHUTTERSTOCK

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Bayonnesmilecenter.com B ayonnesmilecenter.com Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Ed Martin cuts up in the kitchen.

BAYONNE’S ABLAZE WITH HOMEMADE HOT SAUCE BY TARA RYAZANSKY PHOTOS BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

venture. Martin’s father’s yard gained light and space to grow a bigger garden. Martin was able to devote more time to his hot sauce, holding tasting parties for friends, tweaking the recipes, and testing them on the road. He handed out samples in the parking lots outside of concerts of jam bands like Phish. Concert goers congregate around venues before and after shows, buying merchandise ranging from T-shirts to burritos in a makeshift, fan-run market known as Shakedown Street. Martin was thrilled to find that strangers loved his tasty concoctions as much as his friends did. Inspired by the successful road test, Martin invested in industrial-size pots and an immersion blender “the size of a boat propeller.”

DUTY CALLS Happy as he was with this endeavor, Martin was still looking for a job. Growing up with a family business had turned him into a self-proclaimed workaholic. Since age 12, he’d worked at his father’s ski shop, Outer Limits. Meanwhile, Martin used his PR background to build a following for the hot sauce brand that would carry the name of his father’s old business. Then his longtime girlfriend was diagnosed with

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

stage-three colon cancer. Putting everything else on hold, he supported her through treatment. “Ed came with me to every appointment, doctor visit, chemo treatment, everything,” says Chelsea Kolakowski, “He slept in a chair next to my hospital bed after my surgery, every night.” Martin’s most important role in Kolakowski’s recovery was to stay positive. “I have immense trust in Ed, so when he told me that everything was going to be OK, I had to believe it would be,” Kolakowski says. Martin was right; Kolakowski has been healthy for over a year. The couple plans to marry in 2015.

BOSS OF THE HOT SAUCE Kolakowski persuaded Martin to forget the job hunt and make hot sauce his priority. She knew he was happiest being his own boss. “I spent countless hours online figuring out what it would take to make the company a reality, and the more I learned the more doable it seemed,” Martin says. “Even if it doesn’t succeed you will know you did all you can and won’t have to worry about those what-ifs in the future. Better to try and fail and have a good time in the process than regret and wonder.” In 2013, at his fiancée’s urging, Martin decided to crowd-source funds via Kickstarter. Using his social media savvy, he got friends and former clients like Slipknot to help raise money by mentioning his campaign on social media sites. Martin III, unfamiliar with crowd-funding, was skeptical. Outer Limits set a goal of $10,000; Martin wasn’t sure that hot sauce fans would donate to a fledgling company. But donations rolled in, and the Martins quickly surpassed their goal, bagging $11,000 and pre-selling more than 300 bottles. The money helped the Martins take Outer Limits to the next

20 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

level, filing for trademark protection and investing in design work for the labels. “Long before we were ready to sell the sauce we knew we’d need to have a logo that was eye-catching to help differentiate us from all the other hot sauce companies out there.” Martin says. Music industry experience put edgy visual artists like David Cook on Martin’s radar. “I gave him a super crude sketch of what I had in mind,” Martin says. “He took it and ran with it and the logo came out better than I could have imagined.” Martin has also worked with artist and concert promoter, Rich Hall, and a Boston area artist who goes by the name of Tofu Squirrel.

IF YOU CAN STAND THE HEAT… Outer Limits Hot Sauce is available online and in many retail spots. Visit outerlimitshotsauce.com. You can also get it at the Bayonne Farmers’ Market. Lauren Halecky Dellabella, who runs the market, says that Martin is driven and entrepreneurial; Outer Limits has been one of the hottest (pun intended) sellers of the season. “Sampling products is always helpful, and Outer Limits has samples at every market,” she says. The Martins whip up test batches right here in town. Committed to making an all-natural product, their test-batch peppers are grown in Bayonne and Long Branch. The newest flavor is Serrano Cilantro, herbaceous cilantro and sweet onion that pair well with the kick of serrano peppers. But the real stuff is now made in a certified processing facility in Reading, Pa. “Making 10 gallons of Habanero Hot Sauce in a two-bedroom apartment with no ventilation is absolutely brutal,” Martin says. “I would say it’s comparable to setting pepper spray off in your kitchen.” —BLP

DATES Want your event listed? Please email us at bayonnemag@ hudsonreporter. com and put “Bayonne Magazine calendar listings” in the subject line.

ONGOING The Hudson Toastmasters Club meets on the first and third Tuesdays of every month in a classroom in the basement of the Bayonne Public Library, at the corner of 31st Street and Avenue C. Enter through the 31st Street side. Guests are welcome. Toastmasters International encourages the art of public speaking and develops leadership skills.

Our Lady of the Assumption Parish, 23 Street between the Blvd. and Ave. C, holds a flea market the first Saturday of every month from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the parking lot. Vendors are welcome. For more info, call the rectory at (201) 4368160 or Zoila (201) 823-4237.

Our Lady of Assumption Troop/Pack No. 27, Boy Scouts/Cub Scouts, Wednesdays, September-June, 6:30 p.m., 23rd Street between the Boulevard and Avenue C. Boys, ages 6-16. Call Frank at (201) 926-6558.

National Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE), Chapter 1490, meet on the second Wednesday continued on page 25

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

HEAV Y Lifting

She carries her weightâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; and then some

PHOTOS BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

the weights section when she hit the gym.

When McDonnell moved to Bayonne in the summer of 2013, CrossFit Bayonne had recently opened. She was among the first to sign up. “I wasn’t born in Bayonne, but my lifting journey definitely started here,” McDonnell says. A few months into her training coach Justin Frimmel had his students do a drill in which everyone finds out his or her maximum one-rep lift for the dead lift, squat, and overhead press. McDonnell knew that she was naturally strong, but she had never been challenged to lift at her maximum weight under the supervision of a trainer. “It came to be that I started out with a 205 squat, a 105 overhead press, and a 265 dead lift, having never really lifted before,” McDonnell says. A slight smile hints that she’s proud of this early accomplishment. In the fall McDonnell capitalized on her natural talents and made lifting her main focus. She changed gyms and coaches so that she could concentrate only on lifting. Pat Mingoes of Forum Gym and Kevin

BY TARA RYAZANSKY

FIT IN BAYONNE

DiGiorgio, a Bayonne High School physical education teacher who specializes in strength training, were instrumental in McDonnell’s early success and commitment to the sport. “The sky is the limit for her. She has a great group of people helping her and

McDonnell hopes that she can use her success in powerlifting to inspire girls and women. she has all the tools necessary to become a stud in this game,” says DiGiorgio, who has been weight training for 22 years and hitting the gym for fun with Christina for just a short time. “I can see her rising in the ranks, in the next few years, and taking her game to a whole new level. If she continues to do what she’s doing now she will be turning a lot of heads on the elite level in this game.”

THE HEAVY WEIGHTS

Soon she began competing at the regional level. Her first World National

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Powerlifting Federation meet in November 2013 didn’t go off without a hitch. “My first competition was a bit crazy because I didn’t really know what I was doing, and I didn’t have a coach with me,” McDonnell says. “They changed the start time also, so any supporters from the gym, who wanted to come, couldn’t.” Another coach at the event noticed McDonnell struggling and took her under his wing. It was Henri Skiba of the famed Carteret gym, which has been active in the lifting community since the 1970s. McDonnell left the competition as a titled lifter and with an open invite to train at Skiba’s Gym. She gladly accepted. She has since added 85 pounds to her squat, 15 to her bench and 70 to her dead lift. She’s won titles at two more meets. With Skiba, McDonnell receives the intense training that she needs to make her natural gift grow. McDonnell trains at Skiba’s at least three nights a week. AC/DC blares on repeat until McDonnell changes the music to White Zombie. She warms up with 135 pounds. Her trainer, Joe Reiman, later adds more weight with resistance bands and thick chains. He marks chalk

lines on the acid yellow concrete wall as McDonnell executes lift after lift with perfect form.

WOMEN’S WORK

The lifting belt suits McDonnell more than the sundress. It’s clear that this is her world. She exudes inner strength and confidence as well as physical strength. McDonnell stands out among the mostly male lifters. Most women, she says, work out with the intention of losing weight, not gaining strength and muscle. “So many women are focused on being skinny, and I know that my body type isn’t built for that,” McDonnell says. “It’s a shame society is all about airbrushing models and making girls think they have to be as thin as possible. I thought I needed to be that thin at one point, too, but I get lots and lots of compliments looking the way I do.” CrossFit has made strides in changing those ideals with mottos like “strong is the new skinny” that challenge women to upgrade their fitness goals. McDonnell hopes that she can use her success in powerlifting to inspire girls and women. Currently a special educa-

Christina with coach/trainer Joe Reiman

24 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

tion teacher in New York, she hopes to teach physical education so that she can encourage kids to compete in sports. Looking ahead, McDonnell dreams of competing on the WNPF USA team. She also plans to break 300 pounds on the squat and bump up all her numbers. She has a new interest in Strongman, which features displays of strength like walking with concrete atlas stones or pulling trucks that weigh around 11,000 pounds. McDonnell has incorporated aspects of this sport into her training regimen and participated in her first meet over the summer. She placed second in the middleweight class and was invited to compete nationally in Reno, NV. She describes the experience as more physically taxing than lifting, but plans to take first place nonetheless. What does it take mentally to make it as a powerlifter? “I’ve been challenged many times throughout life, whether it’s athletically or personally, and I’ve always risen to the occasion,” McDonnell says. “I guess it just comes down to determination and persistence. You have to have a certain drive. You can’t accept failure, and if you do fail at something, you have to figure out what went wrong, and just go at it again.”—BLP

A different look at 16th Street Park

from page 21 of every month at 1 p.m. at the Senior Center, 56th Street and Ave. B, unless otherwise notified. For further information, call Jean at (201) 339-3032.

Bayonne Women’s Club Meetings, Robbins Reef, off 11th Street and Avenue A. (201) 437-7263. First Thursday of every month at 7 p.m. Light refreshments will be served.

Cub Scout Pack 19. Visit pack19.pbworks.com.org call (201) 424-4548.

St. Henry Flea Market, (201) 339-0319. St. Henry hosts a flea market on the third Saturday of every month from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Pine Room (basement) of the school. Enter via the parking lot. Tables are $20 for one, $25 for two. Call Barbara Silvay at (201) 339-0319.

Free workshops by Pastor Victor Llerena, Polish American Home, 29 West 22nd St. (201) 339-3902. Every Tuesday. Discussions will include conflict resolution, effective parenting, mental health, building stronger relationships, and more.

First Baptist Church Flea Market, (201) 339-6055. First Saturday of the month, weather permitting, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Vendors are needed. Call the church for table availability and pricing.

The Young at Heart Seniors Meetings, Senior Center at West Fourth Street. Second and fourth Friday of the month at 12:30 p.m. New members 55 years old and up are welcome.

F.A. Mackenzie Unit 165 American Legion Auxiliary Dinner and Meetings,Catholic War Veterans Hall, 23rd Street

and Del Monte Drive. Dinner at 6:30 p.m. and meetings at 8 p.m. the third Wednesday of every month. Women interested in joining are invited to attend.

floor of the Story Court Senior Center (Fourth Street and Story Court) on Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Anyone wishing to donate cotton fabric to the club can drop it off at the meeting room.

Hudson County Animal League Adoptions,

Joyce-Herbert V.F.W. Post 226 Museum

PetValu, 307 Bayonne Crossing Way, every Saturday, noon-4 p.m. For information call Charlene at (201) 598-0952 or Kathleen at (201) 8953874. Fussy Friends, 148 Newark Ave., Jersey City, every Sunday, noon-4:30 p.m., (1/2 block from Grove St. PATH). Petsmart, 400 Mill Creek Mall, Secaucus, every Sunday 1-3:30 p.m.

seeks military history, military memorabilia and paraphernalia, and donations to support the museum. All items are either donated or loaned to our museum. Contact Commander Glen J. Flora and Director and Senior Vice Commander Joseph Kennedy. The museum is at 16 West Ninth Street; open Saturdays from 12 to 4 p.m.

Companion Animal Rescue and Education (CARE) Pet Adoptions, PetValu, 307 Bayonne Crossing Way. (201) 436-6595. Sundays noon-4 p.m.

Bayonne Quilt Club meets on the second

CALENDAR DECEMBER

9 National Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE), Chapter 1490 will hold its annual holiday

luncheon on December 9 at K.P. Sarelli’s. The chapter will be in winter recess in January and February. Meetings will resume on March 11 at 1 p.m. at the Senior Center, 56th Street and Avenue B. Meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month, March to June and September to December unless notified. For further information, call Jean at (201) 339-3032.

11 Young at Heart Seniors will host a trip to Christmas City, including the Hotel Bethlehem & Sands Casino. The $79 package includes a buffet luncheon at the 1922 historic Hotel Bethlehem; leisure time in Christmas City, visit to the historic Moravian Book Store; and the Sands Casino with a $20 slot play and $5 food voucher. The cost includes transportation, tips, and taxes. Bus continued on page 41

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

That Stuff You Bought? It probably passed through Bayonneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s high-tech container operation

GCT Bayonne servicing the OOCL Hong Kong through the night shift.

PHOTOS BY NICK SOUZA

hen you’re buying those tank tops from T.J. Maxx, you rarely think about how they got from Malaysia to the mall. Yeah, there was that guy in the truck out back, but before that? They may have been offloaded from containers down the road a bit at GCT Bayonne. That’s the new name for what once was Global Terminal & Container Services. In June 2014, the terminal completed a $325 million expansion that was begun in 2010 with funds from a federal grant. The 170-acre site is larger, safer, and more eco-friendly than the previous one. GCT’s U.S. president, John Atkins, is high on the safety aspect. “We removed the people and put them in a remote location, out of harm’s way,” he says. “The best part is how we process trucks into and out of the facility. In the old operation, they lined up, came into the terminal, and stopped for inspections and paperwork.” Now, he says, “technology keeps the truck in motion at all times through the facility.” That cuts down on idling, which cuts

down on exhaust, which cuts down on pollution. The new high-tech improvements are hard to describe in words. Fortunately, GCT has a fantastic website with three animated videos that explain the elegant and awesome technological upgrades. Visit globalterminals.com.

Expanding Industry Folks in Bayonne are well aware of changes taking place in the shipping industry. The Bayonne Bridge roadway is being raised and the Panama Canal is being widened to accommodate modern, bigger container ships. “The shipping industry is moving to larger, faster, more fuel-efficient ships,” Atkins says. “The larger ships are going to bring in more containers per vessel.” GCT, a private company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, partnered with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. “We were able, with the Port Authority, to acquire the terminal next to us to redevelop,” says Atkins. “We paused and said wait a minute, instead of rede-

veloping the same old operation with the same old technology—while we have a blank canvas—why not build something really special.… We can handle more containers on a smaller footprint than under the old operation.” Atkins says steamship lines can now gather into a consortium, using fewer large ships as opposed to six or seven lines with smaller ships. “The import market has grown in New York and our terminal in the last few years,” Atkins says. “We serve a 30-million-person market from our area. If a line is not able to bring large vessels into New York, they would be forced to go to the nearest port, like Norfolk. Goods would be trucked or railed to New York. All that extra handling increases the cost. The largest vessels keep costs down for everyone.”

Bayonne Friendly Most folks know that we have a large shipping presence here in Bayonne. If nothing else, you can see the terminal’s huge cranes for miles around. But most of

GCT Bayonne servicing the G6 Alliance’s OOCL Hong Kong 5,300 TEU vessel during the day shift.

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

GCT Bayonne servicing a 8,600 TEU vessel from the G6 Alliance’s AX1 service. Ships in the AX1 are among the largest currently calling at the port of New York and New Jersey.

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us are pretty vague about the details. For one thing, the average Joe can’t just walk onto the premises. It’s a bonded industrial facility protected by Customs and the Coast Guard (See story on Page 42), so there are security issues. “For now, we are governed by regulations,” Atkins says, “but down the road it is not out of the realm of possibility that we would have a Community Day.” But GCT already does interact with the community. “We employ many Hudson County residents,” Atkins says, “particularly from Bayonne. We use local vendors and local purchasing as much as possible. We have several initiatives that give back to the community.” The Company supports the local Meals on Wheels and worked with the city to buy a fire truck when it did not receive funding. In late October, it made a donation to the Bayonne Economic Opportunity Foundation. “We’re mindful of the area around us,” Atkins says, referencing the construction at Exit 14 of the New Jersey Turnpike, which should ease traffic in the vicinity. The company was also looking to fund an environmental protection effort that would benefit our local wetlands. Various Department of Environmental Protection strictures precluded such a project on the acres contiguous to the facility, so GCT created tidal wetlands

GCT Bayonne’s newly redesigned truck gate complex launched in July 2013 is the most advanced in North America. The automated RMGs communicate with the gates, working in concert to move cargo through the terminal more quickly and efficiently. and preserved uplands on a 16.1-acre site adjacent to the Hackensack River to benefit local marsh species. Native vegetation was also planted to preserve the environment for local fish and wildlife.

Getting the Goods While GCT itself has ties to the community, Atkins refers to shipping as a “stealth industry,” meaning that folks aren’t aware of how merchandise arrives in our country. The huge West Coast ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach offload goods which are then railed to the Midwest and sometimes all the way to the East Coast, according to Atkins. Singapore, Shanghai, and Hong Kong are the big Asian ports. Goods are loaded from there onto large vessels headed for Europe and the U.S. In a small way, Atkins is doing his part on the education front. He has three young kids, and when they get a toy, a book, or a game, their dad always asks them to find out where the item was manufactured. “So much of what we consume every day has to come from overseas,” Atkins says. “It’s a quiet industry. People aren’t aware of what’s done and how.”—Kate Rounds Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Working Out With— REVEREND DOROTHY A. PATTERSON BY MARIO A. MARTINEZ IMAGES BY TBISHPHOTO

the first female pastor in the 120-year history of the Wallace Temple A.M.E. Zion Church, Reverend Dorothy A. Patterson continues to pursue her dreams of improving herself and her community with the same fervor she showed as a schoolgirl playing basketball in Lamar, S.C. Born in Patterson, N.J., Paterson was raised in the small town of Lamar (population: 1,015) with her grandparents, who instilled a strong faith in her at an early age. Patterson spent most of those days going to school, helping her grandmother at church, and playing basketball with other girls in town. Although she played for fun, Patterson admits that she was a fierce competitor. It’s this same unrelenting drive that has led her on a journey back to New Jersey to find success and happiness. “I think I’m just blessed in my case,” says Patterson. “I pastor a congregation about which I’m passionate. I’m in education, which I’m passionate about; and whenever I get on the court, I’m passionate about that too. So I think I’m blessed to be doing things I really love, and the things I used to do I still love doing.” After earning a bachelor’s degree in child development and early childhood education from South Carolina State University, Patterson moved back to Patterson with her grandparents, and began teaching pre-K and kindergarten in 1989, while her grandmother preached at church. Currently Patterson works with the Head Start program and also with a teen parenting program in Paterson. Following in the inspiring footsteps of her grandmother, she began preaching as well. After becoming the first female pastor in her parish in Bergen County, her journey led her to Bayonne, where she plans to spread her neighborliness to the community as she once did in Lamar.

30 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

REVEREND DOROTHY A. PATTERSON AND MARIO A. MARTINEZ

Patterson believes that you don’t have to be visible in order to be valuable. She has dedicated countless hours to volunteer work, but if you ask her, she is just completing the missions she was born to do. “I’m living out my Godgiven purpose to be able to help mankind the best I can,” she says. “The more I understand that that’s what I’ve been created to do, the more I am moving into the place of understanding who I am.”

SE RVI NG TH E COM M U N ITY Though the church itself was built 120 years ago, its pastoral origins date back to the 1880s in New York City, where it

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

played an active part in the civil rights movement in the United States with members like Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. Since its inception, it has functioned with the sole purpose of meeting the needs of its congregation and those facing discrimination. Patterson prays that the church will do its best on the corner of Avenue C and West 17th Street to serve the community around it. The Wallace Temple A.M.E. Zion Church runs food pantries and clothing drives, and provides services for the elderly and sick, free blood pressure screenings, and outreach programs for those in need. Its doors are open for anyone and everyone.

“Wallace Temple is always bigger than this particular corner,” Patterson says. “The building is here, but when you’re doing ministry the right way, there are no walls.” Patterson aspires to one day establish a homeless shelter for women in Bayonne that will also act as a transitional center for women looking for work, education, and parenting help. As passionate as Patterson is about her ministry, she is also passionate about her sport, taking on anyone brave enough to go one-on-one with her on the basketball court. Trust me.—BLP

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EMERGING BAYONNE

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JOE DEMARCO AND ROB WONDOLOWSKI. PHOTO BY KATE ROUNDS.

Rising from the Weeds A RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT IS ON THE HORIZON

t was the dog days of summer, and I was standing with Joe DeMarco and Rob Wondolowski in—well—a huge field of weeds on the former military base known as the Military Ocean Terminal at Bayonne. I’m no botanist, but it looked like maybe thistles, brambles, goldenrod, sumac, ragweed, and let’s hope no poison ivy. There were probably critters in there, too, but we didn’t see anything furry or slithery. DeMarco is the Bayonne business administrator, and Wondolowski is director of the Department of Municipal Services. On one hand, you could say that you need to be a gifted visionary to imagine the residential complex that will become Harbor Station North on this patch of earth. But not really. It’s actually the perfect locale to develop rentals for urban living. Standing here, you can get your bearings: You’re between 40th and Center streets, just east of 440 and two light rail stations, and just north of the new fire station. Beyond that are South Cove Commons and the Bayonne Golf Course—and of course Bayonne Harbor and the waterfront. In late 2016 you could be living at Chosin Few Way. OK, so it’s not Broadway or the Boulevard, but you just might feel like the chosen few if you get in on the ground floor. There will be two 200-unit structures on 19 acres. Though only four stories tall, there will be views of the water and some retail. It will be developed by the Fidelco Group, which has developed other areas of the Jersey waterfront, including those in Edgewater, Weehawken, and Jersey City. “It will attract young professionals who work in Manhattan, who have disposable incomes,” DeMarco says. “The new

residents in 400 units will support Broadway and local businesses in town, eating out, ordering out, going to the bar on a Tuesday, to the gas station, to buy coffee at Judicke’s, Venice for pizza, Rincon for Spanish. There is no need to go to Hoboken or Jersey City.” This young, hip crowd will also encourage new businesses such as art galleries and antique shops in the vein of the Classic Skate Shop, according to Wondolowski.

Buzz About the Base “The average person is excited that action is taking place on the base, though some may disagree with the style or size of the development,” DeMarco says. “No taxes were being generated on this land, and they are happy to see movement.” With so much open space, green areas are expected to be part of the development plan. One of the most important factors in new waterfront development is easy access for the many Manhattan commuters. Wondolowski says that plans are being discussed for a high-speed ferry system that would go to South Street, Chelsea, and various stops in Hudson County’s waterfront towns. There will also be easy access to the 45th and 34th Street light rail stops, and possibly a jitney such as the one that currently runs from the Alexan City View apartments. He also points to the Exit 14A improvements from the N.J. Turnpike, which will “better manage traffic off the streets of Bayonne, have wider tolls, and provide direct access to the Peninsula.” The project is expected to break ground in the spring of 2015 and open 18 to 20 months later. Says DeMarco, “It will be a nice property and an asset to the community.”—Kate Rounds Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Is That FDR in Room 335? A Bayonne teacher brings history to life

ene Woods teaches history at Bayonne High School. But that’s not him standing in front of the whiteboard. That’s him over there in a wheelchair, reassuring the nation that we have nothing to fear but fear itself. That’s right, the topic is World War II, and Mr. Woods is FDR for a day. His specialty as an educator is classroom reenactments that work better than just the facts, baby. Though the reenactments are accompanied by seminars, Woods sees them as a “way of getting kids involved as opposed to reading or looking at pictures.” “We dress up as historical characters,” he says. “When we study World War I, we turn the classroom into a trench, purchase fake barbed wire, fake rats, wear uniforms, helmets, and have a stretcher and a stuffed mannequin as one of the people killed during the war.”

The class also reads poetry written about or during World War I. If the class is studying World War II, Woods will bring in Eisenhower to reenact the D-Day invasion; if it’s the Cuban Missile Crisis, JFK will make an appearance. Woods’s uncle lent him real military uniforms, and he kept building on each reenactment every year. “I became very engaged,” he says. As did the students. Woods doesn’t do a lot of traditional testing. The reenactments “provide another way for the students to express themselves and are more hands-on.” Woods is in his ninth year teaching at BHS. He’s a Bayonne native who attended Lincoln Community School, Bayonne High School, and New Jersey City University. But when he was doing an internship at the high school in the history department, he asked to accompany the students on a class trip to Colonial Williamsburg, a trip that sowed the seeds for his interest in teaching through reenactments. HISTORY R US “It’s not just my reenactments that draw students into a deeper study of history,” Woods says. “The greatest focus in all the classes I teach is inclusiveness and social justice. I show all my students that they are and can be a part of history. I stress the fact that the smallest act can make a difference. I truly believe that when students can see themselves and people like them in the history of the world, then they become invested in learning. Engaging my students through a variety of sources in which women, African Americans, Muslims, LGBT people, Latin Americans, and teenagers make contributions in changing the world is a major part of my class-

WOODS AS GENERAL MACARTHUR PHOTO BY BARRY GLOVER

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MAUD DAHME, AUSCHWITZ SURVIVOR PHOTO BY STEFANIE WOODS

EDUCATION BLP room. This, I believe, is the reason that my students learn to love history.” It’s especially important, he says, to get girls involved because women have largely been left out of the historic record. “I’ve always been interested in history, but in time, I went on to become more interested in social justice, looking into the Holocaust and the Civil Rights movement,” he says. “I became more intrigued with the study of human nature.”

KUDOS FROM KIDS Woods’s innovative teaching methods are a hit with students. Bassant Atia, a 17-year-old senior, recalls a class in which Woods sang “Brother Can You Spare a Dime?” and dressed up as an impoverished person selling apples. The historic period was the Great Depression. Mr. Woods, she says, “brought everything to life. I wasn’t experiencing it, but I was experiencing it.” During a D-Day reenactment, she says, one of the students dressed as a medic. Atia plans on majoring in English but will again take Woods’s class as an elective. “It absolutely is helpful,” she says. “It taught me ways to look further into what we were reading, to do my own research and argue my opinions. It widened the way I perceive things, definitely.” Alaa [Her full name] agrees that Woods “brings history to life, while other teachers use boring PowerPoints. The room is filled with flags, and you feel like you’re a part of it. Reenactments help us to get involved instead of just sitting and watching.” Alaa acknowledges that “History is not my best subject, but in his class he made me feel comfortable. He’s really inspiring.” Alaa, a senior, plans to study clinical lab science in college but will take Woods’s “Facing History and Ourselves” course, studying the Holocaust and genocide. Another student who claims she was not good at history is Emily Cubilete, who took history from Mr. Woods her junior year. “I was never good at it. I always got Cs. He took the time and had the patience to make sure students got it. I fell in love with the class and history itself.” Her senior year she took “Facing History and Ourselves.” She says,

WOODS DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION PHOTO BY GENE WOODS, SR.

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

EDUCATION BLP

WOODS, WIFE STEFANI, AND SURVIVOR MARGOT FRIEDLANDER PHOTO BY WANDA SWANSON

“I didn’t have to take it but chose to because of him. I stayed after class and asked more questions.” Cubilete benefited from Woods’s philosophy of inclusiveness. “I learned that I had something to do with history, not just people in the past,” she says. Now at Kean University in Union, she switched from Psychology to Women’s Studies, largely because of what she’d learned in her BHS history classes. She says she learned to stand up to evils such as racism, sexism, and domestic violence, and to stand for social movements like feminism and civil rights. Woods calls it being an “upstander.” HANDS-ON HISTORY

OLD JEWISH CEMETERY, PRAGUE PHOTO BY WANDA SWANSON

WOODS PHOTO BY GENE WOODS, SR.

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An important topic of Woods’s class is the grim legacy of the Holocaust. Woods has taken students to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and the Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. Woods himself visited many of the infamous death camps during a seminar in the summer of 2013. The Majdanek concentration and extermination camp in Lublin, Poland, made an indelible impression on Woods. In a thankyou letter for a grant from the New Jersey Education Association he received for the trip, he wrote, “We were allowed to walk around the memorial. Within this gigantic structure lay a large crevice that contained the ashes and bone fragments of those who were murdered at the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators within the confines of Majdanek. Walking around the tomb and seeing the bones within the ashes while passing by the plethora of flowers and candles left in honor of all the victims was the most powerful part of this journey for me.” It is this kind of experience that Woods seeks to recreate for his students.—Kate Rounds

56th Street Senior Center

SENIOR MOMENTS BLP

MORE LIKE JUNIORS IF YOU ASK ME!

EXERCISE, INSPIRATION, FELLOWSHIP, AND FOOD KEEP THEM COMING BACK. STORY AND PHOTOS BY KATE ROUNDS

hen I ventured uptown to 56th Street, I certainly wasn’t expecting the beautiful building, which looks like a 19th century library. And I certainly wasn’t expecting the big crowd of engaged and funloving “seniors.” It was a gorgeous, late-summer day. The door to the center was open, and you could hear the song “YMCA” wafting onto the walkway. This was the ever-popular Zumba Gold (over age 55) class, led by Zumba maven Cookie Redondo. Cookie calls them her “elite” group. “It’s fun, good exercise, and good for the mind,” Connie says. Cleo adds, “It’s the company, the exercise, and Cookie.” Zumba and line dancing, the most popular activities, attract up to 30 participants. The age of members ranges from 62 to 92, and on the day I visited, Francisco was the only man on hand for Zumba. For lunch, the members bring their own delicious homemade food: salads, pasta, coffee, chilled green tea, and a bunch of delectable desserts.

Less strenuous classes include knitting, walking in place, and the book club, which was also meeting that afternoon. About 10 members join leader Marion Cooney in a robust back and forth. This month they were reading Anna Quindlen’s Still Life with Bread Crumbs. One member, Anna, remarked that there wasn’t much action in the book. There was a discussion about whether the main character was ignorant, arrogant or both. The question arose of why in most narratives the man is older than the woman, which was not the case in this book. On that score, Cooney commented that she was a real cougar because she is 10 years older than her husband! Members say that the book club is very social, and they don’t always just discuss the book. They often stray into current events, which happened on this day. Sadly, the talk turned to the tragic death of comedian Joan Rivers. One member says it’s the fellowship that keeps her coming to the center. “I came from Colorado, and it’s been very welcoming,” she says. The man who orchestrates this rich mosaic of activities is Senior Center Coordinator Ralph Savo. “I love the job,” he says. “It’s like hanging out with friends and family. If one is hurt, we’re all hurt, and we look out for that person.”—BLP . Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Pole-Dance Fitness on the

Bayonne Peninsula

How a dodgy exotic dance form morphed into a trendy fitness craze

38 â&#x20AC;˘ Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

SPORTS BLP

elissa Goliczewski is a Bayonne native who works as a copywriter at an ad agency in New York. But her passion is pole dance fitness. If you’re thinking Bada Bing! think again. Starting in 2010, she taught this demanding exercise regimen with a partner at Life Fitness here in town. They suspended classes there in late August but expect to reopen at a new Bayonne location in late fall. Email mgoliczewski@gmail.com for updates. Pole dance fitness became popular in the 1990s. “I first discovered it eight years ago when my girlfriend took classes in New York City,” says Goliczewski. “I checked it out and I had a blast. I’ve been attending classes at a studio in New York ever since.” Pole dance fitness is a worldwide phe-

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

nomenon. “Around the world, some women started out as exotic dancers or gymnasts who wanted to create something new to challenge themselves,” she says. The trend started in “studios inin London and other major cities and then trickled to the suburbs and smaller towns like Bayonne.”

Perception is Everything OK, let’s get real. Any activity that involves pole dancing is going to raise some eyebrows. The Bada Bing! club of The Sopranos fame may have put pole dancing front and center. But since then, it seems as if lots of popular shows have pole-dancing scenes with exotic dancers in sleazy strip clubs. “If you just call it exotic dancing or pole dancing, there’s a stigma,” Goliczewski says, “but that’s not what it is at all.” For starters, they don’t take their clothes off; they wear shorts and tank tops. “It’s a very welcoming environment for women of all ages and all sizes. No stripping is involved.” Men are not allowed in the classes, and Goliczewski doubts that men would sign up anyway. All-women classes,

Goliczewski says, make for an accepting environment that encourages students to try things without being self-conscious. The age range is from the twenties to the sixties.

Working the Pole The classes are divided in half. The first half is the warm-up, which consists of strength-building—pushups, sit-ups, and squats—and stretching for flexibility. The warm-up is set to relaxing, moody music. This portion of the workout is done off the pole. The second half of the class takes place on three poles and involves learning the actual “tricks.” Beginners do spinning tricks. With the feet on the floor, they walk around the pole and move the body so that it spirals around the pole. Intermediate and advanced students do tricks at a higher level involving strength, leaving the floor, climbing the pole, inverting the body, and hanging on only with the legs and feet. Goliczewski creates a new playlist every week. Music that accompanies pole work is more upbeat than that

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which accompanies the warm-up. “It’s basically a full-body workout that focuses on the core, arms, and legs,” Goliczewski says. “Depending on what we work on, you can feel it the next day and the day after.” The classes are limited to nine women, three per pole. It’s exhausting, so students like the fact that they can take a breather while another student works out. Goliczewski grew up in Bayonne, and her parents, grandmother, and uncles still live here. She attended Holy Family Academy and then went to the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. She’s watched Bayonne change over the years. “I see more younger people out and about, at Lot 13, socializing,” she says, “but Bayonne has a lot further to go. I hope it becomes the new Jersey City or Hoboken.” As for pole dance fitness? “I never thought that this would become such a part of my life,” she says. “I hope to get women who like to try something new, and why not?”— Kate Rounds PHOTOS OF MELISSA GOLICZEWSKI BY © DIVAVOOM PHOTOGRAPHY

from page 25 leaves from Broadway and 4th Street at 9 a.m. Contact Helen, (201) 243-6887.

17 The Bayonne Senior Orchestra Concert, 56th Street Senior Center (56th Street and Avenue B), noon.

31 Bayonne Feral Cat Foundation New Year’s Eve bus ride to the Sands Casino in Pennsylvania. Cost $35, with $20 back in slot play and $5 food coupon Bus leaves E.35th St. at 6 p.m. Call Phyllis, (201) 339-4517.

The Hudson County Animal League hosts the bus to the Sands Casino in Bethlehem, PA. Bus departs at 10 a.m. sharp from CWV Post at 23rd

St. off Broadway. Call (201) 437-7263 Lorma Wepner or Barbara and Ed Prokop at (201) 4375721 or email Lormalady@aol.com. Tickets $35, $20 cash back, and $5 food coupon.

Young at Heart Seniors,New Year’s

Eve, noon. Bus leaves at 10:30 a.m. from Broadway and 4th Street to Staten Island. One hour free bar with wine, soda, lunch, band, dancing, and a comedian. Cost is $78. Call Dottie at (201) 436-1923.

JANUARY

18 Phyllis and Adelaide are running a bus ride to Mt. Airy Casino. Cost is $35 per person with a $25 slot play return and $10 food coupon. Bus leaves at 10:30 a.m. sharp from East 35th.

Street. Refreshments will be served on the bus, and raffles will be held. For more information or to purchase tickets call Phyllis at (201) 3394517. Please purchase tickets in advance. All proceeds will benefit various Bayonne charities.

28 Young at Heart will host a trip to Atlantic City Resorts Casino. The cost is $30. You will receive the package of the day. The bus leaves 4th Street and Broadway at 9:30 a.m. For reservations, call Nona at (201) 339-0104.

FEBRUARY

15 Phyllis and Adelaide are running a bus ride to Mt. Airy Casino. Cost is

$35 per person with a $25 slot play return and $10 food coupon. Bus leaves at 10:30 a.m. sharp from East 35th Street. Refreshments will be served on the bus, and raffles will be held. For more information or to purchase tickets call Phyllis at (201) 339-451. Please purchase tickets in advance. All proceeds will benefit various Bayonne charities.

HOB

OK E

MARCH

11 National Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE), Chapter 1490. Meetings resume the second Wednesday of the month at 1 p.m. at the Senior Center, 56th Street and Ave. B. Meetings are March through June, unless notified. For further information, call jean at

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Ship to Shore While you go about your business, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got your back

42 â&#x20AC;˘ Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

BY KATE ROUNDS PHOTOS BY VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ

or a town that calls itself the Peninsula, some of us are amazingly clueless about one of our waterfront’s most important assets. In a remarkably unscientific survey of a few Bayonne friends, none knew that we have a Coast Guard station right here on our shore. You can think of the Coast

Guard as one of our friendliest services. Make no mistake, it will be there to defend the United States against enemies near and far, but it will also be there if you capsize your kayak. The station is a little hard to find. It’s on the same spit of land as the Military Ocean Terminal, but there are not a lot of signs. Across the channel is Global terminal with its giant cranes glinting in the sun; you get a strong sense of a hefty

maritime presence—governmental and commercial. Photographer Victor Rodriguez and I spent a beautiful August morning touring the base with Lieutenant Kenneth Sauerbrunn. Men and women dressed in various Coast Guard uniforms are busy with their appointed tasks. There’s quite a bit of saluting going on. One reason is that “coasties,” as they are called, are required to salute the U.S. flag when they board

Lieutenant Kenneth Sauerbrunn gave us permission to come aboard.

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

ON THE WATERFRONT BLP and depart the vessels, which are tied up just behind the station. I wondered about the lieutenant’s use of the word “boat.” My uncle, a career naval officer, cautioned my siblings and me always to use the word “ship.” It depends on the size of the vessel, according to Sauerbrunn. Those over 65 feet, such as the orange-striped vessels you see out in the harbor are called cutters. But the Coast Guard has lots of smaller “boats,” including the rigid-hull inflatables, with automatic weapons mounted fore and aft that tear up the river at high speeds. The station’s jurisdiction spans an area as far north as Albany, including the upper and lower bay of New York Harbor, the Hudson River, the East River, Long Island Sound, the Staten Island Kills, and out to sea. There is a station at the Battery in Manhattan, but there are no vessels attached to that facility. Staten Island also has a Coast Guard sector. The Coast Guard’s missions include ports, waterways, and coastal security; living marine resources; marine safety; defense readiness; and marine environmental protection. It also conducts inspections of waterfront facilities, containers, and commercial vessels throughout the harbor.

Permission to Come Aboard We’re headed toward the Sturgeon Bay, the ship that Sauerbrunn commands. Sturgeon Bay is in Wisconsin. A sister ship docked in Bayonne is named for Penobscot Bay (Maine). Both are 140 feet. All the “bay” ships are icebreakers. The Hawser and the Line are 65-foot ice-

breakers. When the river freezes, Sauerbrunn says, barges can’t deliver home heating oil to folks who need it in Albany and other locales. He reminds us, as if we needed reminding, of last winter’s polar vortexes that made the ice-breaking gig more important than ever. The Coast Guard’s icebreaking operations facilitate the delivery of more than 20 million barrels of petroleum and more than 100 tons of dry goods a year to consumers throughout the Northeast. We climb the ship’s ladder to the bridge. Its height makes for good visibility. You get a good view of the dock, the station, the other ships, the channel, and the surrounding land and water. When the vessel is underway, 17 people are on board. Three are trained to take the helm; there are also a navigator and a commander. The icebreaker’s nerve center has an interesting mix of old and new technology. There are electronic navigation maps of the harbor, but there’s also a “soundpower” phone from the ’70s, and most intriguing of all, wooden toy boats deployed to train personnel in docking maneuvers. A major upgrade of the Sturgeon Bay is in the works to preserve the hull and extend its life expectancy.

The Fleet Other vessels at the Bayonne station include the Sail Fish and the Sitkinak, both 87-foot patrol boats. The Katharine Walker is the large buoy tender that you first see when you approach the docks. She is named for the former lighthouse keeper at Robbin’s Reef in New York Harbor. She is part of the Aids

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to Navigation mission; the Coast Guard maintains more than 1,800 aids to navigation throughout the New York City region, including buoys, lights, and other aids that guide mariners through the area’s waterways. Some are huge; the Katharine Walker has a big buoy deck to accommodate them. Personnel pull them up, repair them, and put them back. New York Harbor, Sauerbrunn says, is “like a highway without lane markers or signs.” Ben Phillips, executive petty officer, says the Aids to Navigation division maintains lighthouses and buoys at “service intervals” that cannot be made public. They cover an area that includes Bear Mountain to the north, Rye, West Long Island, Navasink, Shrewsbury, the Rockaways, and out to the Ambrose sea buoy. Though you might suspect that recreational boaters are more of a burden than a benefit to the Coast Guard, that’s not necessarily so. “Recreational mariners know the harbor and the buoys and will call, radio, or use the website” to alert the Coast Guard when an aid to navigation needs to be replaced or repaired, Phillips says. One of the most beautiful parts of the Coast Guard complex is the yard to the left of the station where huge old buoys, rusted chains, and all manner of colorful aids to navigation are being stored or awaiting repair. The overall effect is of an outdoor maritime museum, abstract painting, or sculpture garden.

Civilian Safety Sauerbrunn says that swimmers and kayakers are the toughest to see in the

Guard’s most high-profile mission. It closed the harbor during the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, it was on hand for the crash of TWA 800 in Queens, the successful landing of Flight 1549 in the Hudson River, and hurricanes Irene and Sandy, to name just a few. “We’re still recovering from Sandy,” Sauerbrunn says, pointing to the shore, where he says the storm surge flooded the driveway and containers lined up along the wall. The Coast Guard monitors events such as 4th of July and New Year’s Eve celebrations, Fleet Week, the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, and when dignitaries such as the President visit.

ON THE WATERFRONT BLP It also enforces federal fisheries regulations on offshore fishing boats. Though the Coast Guard is pretty busy, it interacts with the community through the American Legion, Sea Cadets, and volunteer outreach. It conducts tours of the Katharine Walker and other vessels, and through PIE (Partners in Education), helps teachers in the classroom. Whether it’s hurricanes, terrorists, plane crashes, or stalled outboards, the coasties are good folks to have around.—BLP

waterways. The Coast Guard ensures that participants in triathlons and marathons are safe and that mariners obey laws. Recreational boats “have to be seaworthy and have life jackets, flares, fire extinguishers, their documents in order, and not be too close to critical infrastructure, such as bridges, the statue, or security zones,” Sauerbrunn says. He stresses that the Coast Guard is a federal entity; it works closely with state and local authorities, including the NYPD Harbor Patrol, the FDNY, the Port Authority, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and managers of facilities such as Liberty Island, Ellis Island, oil facilities, container facilities, or any entity that handles waterfront commerce. The Coast Guard, he says, deals with criminal acts if it encounters them. Drug and migrant interdiction are among its law-enforcement missions. Sauerbrunn refers to the Coast Guard as a “smaller, intimate service.” Indeed, the entire U.S. Coast Guard has only 35,000 active duty personnel (less than the NYPD); 8,000 reservists; and 32,000 volunteer auxiliarists. The Coast Guard has had a presence since 1790, and Sauerbrunn says there are currently six or seven vessels in Bahrain in a support effort.

Home Port Still, there’s much to do right here in our own backyard. The port of New York and New Jersey is the third largest port in the U.S., behind the ports of South Louisiana and Houston. Annually, 86 million tons of cargo, valued at $210 billion, move through the port; 7,000 deep-draft commercial vessels arrive every year; and the Coast Guard monitors and manages 415,000 vessel movements in and around New York Harbor per year. Search and rescue may be the Coast Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

BUSINESSES MAKE BAYONNE WORK

How We

WORK BY KATE ROUNDS PHOTOS BY ALYSSA BREDIN

ADVANCED PHOTO PORTRAIT STUDIO 502 Broadway (201) 823-0300 advancedportrait.com

heers without the beer. That’s how Ellen Colasurdo describes her Broadway photography studio. It may seem like an odd choice for a business that does portraits, custom framing, memorial plaques, film transfer, and restoration. But that’s the feel you get when you walk through the door. Colasurdo owns the shop with her two daughters, Alana and Anita. Her son Patrick, a union pipefitter, has also worked there, so there’s a family feel from the get-go. Manager Paul Rocheny is a jack of all trades, doing a lot of the photography and helping seniors with their new digital cameras. The studio’s newest service is a party room, spelled “par-tea room.” “It came about because we had so much fun playing with the kids in the studio after holidays and communions,” Colasurdo says. So why not have a play day in the studio? “It was five years in the making,” she says. “We finally pulled it together this year.” They decorate the room for a full tea party with a theme, such as fairies, dress your best, or Frozen. The kids have iced tea, juice, or water and cupcakes, and each goes home with a frame that she’s decorated herself. For boys, there are superhero birthday parties. Colasurdo worked in finance before buying the store. “I was always interested in photography,” she says. She and Patrick beefed up their credentials by becoming certified framers. It turns out that framing is one of the most interesting aspects of the business. “We’ve framed some fabulous things,” Colasurdo says. These include negative film from the Civil War era, which she

ELLEN AND PAUL

made into a print and framed. She framed a picture from World War II which was on a canvas tent, with the grommets still visible. “You never know what’s going to come through the door,” Colasurdo says. She gets pictures of kids eight days old and people 80 years old. She gets family reunions, sweet sixteens, and communions. She’ll ask who is in the picture and what they’re doing. One image sticks in her mind. It was a tiny picture portraying a cave. It turned out to be a bunker in a backyard in Poland where a family lived for two years during World War II. “You have to keep a box of tissues,” she says. “If it’s a relative who passed away or the only picture of an uncle who died in war, the tears are flowing. “Framing has quadrupled in eight years,” she says. She credits part of the success to customer service. “Customers are not a number,” she says. “We know

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everybody’s name and they get a greeting. We have a following. People stop in to say hello.” Customers bring their pictures and their families, and Colasurdo sends them home with framing corners, so they can see how the framed picture will look on their wall. She also makes house calls to actually hang the picture. Colasurdo, who was born and raised in Bayonne, has seen a lot of changes. “The face of Bayonne has become more urban and more ethnic,” she says. “We do international passport photos from all different countries.” She laughs that a few foreign customs took getting used to—like negotiating price. But she enjoys it. “I learn a lot about every country,” she says. A portrait studio is a far cry from finance. “It’s a nice, clean, happy business,” Colasurdo says. “It’s making memories for everyone.”

DR. JORDAN M. ALTER 803 JFK Blvd. (201) 339-6604 altersmiles.com

og on to Dr. Alter’s website, and you’ll see the Bayonne Bridge with new eyes. Yes, it’s the same Bayonne Bridge, but at altersmiles.com, that beautiful arch all of a sudden looks like a dazzling smile. Dr. Jordan Alter has been practicing all types of dentistry in Bayonne since 1990. Services include oral surgery, endodontic (root canal), implants, periodontal therapy, bonding, whitening, porcelain veneers, crowns, bridges, partials, dentures, non-mercury fillings, and Invisalign (orthodontia). He also treats people with sleep apnea. “Sleep disorders are a new area of dentistry for people who cannot tolerate traditional treatments,” Alter says. Alter practices with Dr. Alissa Selevan. Their office has the latest digital equipment, including that for early cancer detection, and impressions. If you had impressions made for braces when you were a kid, the digital advancement eliminates that old messy procedure. “We’re always advancing, which makes what I do interesting and exciting,” Alter says. “I’m not doing the same things over and over. The best care for patients is interesting for us.” Alter became a dentist in 1987, and the technological advances have come fast and furious in recent years. But it’s not the razzle-dazzle that attracts Alter to dentistry. “I had a desire to work with people on a personal level and have a quality family life, where I was not on call 24/7,” Alter says. Alter has four sons and two grandchildren. “I wanted to help people and interact with patients in a positive

DR. JORDAN M. ALTER

way,” he says. “It’s rewarding to alleviate pain and make people feel comfortable and taken care of, and have an impact on their lives.” Most rewarding, he says, is working with dental phobics. “We turn them around so they feel reasonably comfortable in the dental environment. “There is a whole generation of people who were really fearful,” he says, pointing out that just a few decades ago, dentists did not routinely use anesthesia. There’s a reason that Alter’s website is called altersmiles.com. His practice is not just about relieving pain. “We want patients to feel happy about their appearance and their smiles,” he says.

Another new service that Alter offers is Botox therapy, a cosmetic treatment that affects not only the smile but the entire face. Alter acknowledges that dentists are often the butt of comedians’ jokes. “Root canal jokes are a comedic fallback line,” he says. “Comedians usually have one or two of those in their bag of tricks, but it doesn’t bother me. It comes with the territory.” What does concern Alter is his patients’ comfort. “The office is a kind, friendly place,” he says. “We’re not shuffling people in and out. We become friends with our patients. It’s a nice relationship.”

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

HOW WE WORK 07030

CARLOS, MABEL, GINO, AND ROMAN COGLIATI

CARLO’S HAIRSPOT 1021 Broadway (201) 437-0067

arlos Cogliati and his son Roman used to work at Showcase Hair Salon, a unisex shop, before opening their own shop in May 2014. Carlos had worked there for 14 years and Roman for a year. Now they serve men of all ages from Bayonne, Jersey City, and other local towns, providing barbering, shaving, and all professional services for men, everything from classic haircuts to “newer style beards,” says Roman. “We moved because we wanted to open our own business,” he says. “Now we’re our own bosses, and it’s going good.” The Cogliatis moved from Argentina to Bayonne in 2000, and it’s a real family operation, with Roman’s brother Gino, 19, helping out at the shop. They were in the same line of work in Argentina, and Roman further cemented his place in the business by attending cosmetology school at Robert Fiance Beauty Schools in West New York. Gino is also headed to cosmetology school.

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Hair salons and barber shops are often great venues for chatting and philosophizing. “We socialize,” Roman says. “Some clients become really close friends, but it’s not a hangout place. We keep it professional.” They have to because “it’s very creative work,” Roman says. Roman attended Ferris High School in Jersey City and New Jersey City University, then went into the music business before going to work with his father. He plays the guitar, often performing at the Cityline Church on the Bayonne/Jersey City border. Roman is putting down roots in Bayonne. Recently married, he says, “We’re not going anywhere. You can bring up kids, and they can go to school here.” And it’s a good place for the salon because it’s “convenient for a lot of people,” he says. Hairspot provides a much-needed service for men. “We give advice to men on whatever we think is best for them,” Roman says. “People go out really happy. It makes them feel good to see the before and after. They look like a different person and become a different person.”—BLP

HELPING Bayonne Community Mental Health Center Improving Lives

PHOTO BY JOE PASSANTINO

BCMHC STAFF AND INTERNS

or 42 years this organization has been providing mental health services to anyone who needs them, regardless of their ability to pay. It was the brainchild of the local chapter of a national Jewish women’s organization. Back then, it wasn’t easy to get treatment for mental-health issues, according to Joe Kadian, president and chief executive officer. Kadian was clinical director in the 1980s and has held his current position since 1998. President John F. Kennedy’s Community Mental Health Act of 1963, which provided funding for services under a nationwide system, shone a spotlight on mental health concerns. It was widely known that the President’s sister, Rosemary, suffered from mental illness, and the Kennedy family later became instrumental in establishing the Special Olympics. “The manner in which people with serious mental health issues were treated then is very different from today,” Kadian says. “They

were generally treated in state hospitals, where they stayed for many years, away from the families they grew up in. The 1963 act changed a lot of that. It provided facilities in communities that would allow for treatment for such things as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.”

Hometown Help The Bayonne Community Mental Health Center is a “full-service facility that provides services for a wide range of problems,” Kadian says, “from mild reactions to family abuse, school-related problems, anxiety disorder, and depression, to serious and persistent mental health problems, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and severe depression.” The center, which serves all of Hudson County, addresses issues shared by the community. A perfect example are people suffering from the effects of Hurricane Sandy. If you go into the BCMHC office, you will see signs and brochures from New Jersey

MentalHealthCares that read “We Can Help You Deal with Sandy Stress.” “I see the impact that these services have on people’s lives,” Kadian says. “Mental health problems can impact one’s life. You don’t have to go far beyond the death of Robin Williams to see that, if undetected and untreated, they can lead to catastrophic conclusions. He was a wealthy celebrity suffering from depression. Mental health problems are indeed treatable and should not be left unattended.” People who work at the center, Kadian says, “help people change their lives in a way that makes them feel better about themselves and more productive.”—Kate Rounds Bayonne Community Mental Health Center 601 Broadway (201) 339-9200 bayonnementalhealth.org

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

ENTERTAINMENT BLP

SCENE &

HEARD NOTES FROM AN UNDERGROUND MUSIC WORLD BY TARA RYAZANSKY PHOTOS BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

ayonne’s music scene is thriving in basements, garages, and loft spaces as the town’s increasingly colorful landscape of hip spots blends with our old-school family businesses. The upshot? More and more artistic types are calling Bayonne home. Take Rye Coalition, a band that pioneered the emo sound in the early ’90s. It was recently featured in an award-winning documentary, “Rye Coalition: The Story of the Hard Luck Five.” Four of the five original members are Bayonne residents who are active musicians here in town. The movie, which won best documentary at The New Jersey International Film Festival and best music documentary at the Kingston Film Festival, is filmmaker Jenni Matz’s directorial debut. It tells the story of a rock band that was on the brink of making it big. They went from recording their own music on cassette tapes in the early ’90s to signing with DreamWorks in 2003, with Hudson County as their home base all the while. The film opens with a shot of the group driving down Broadway in Bayonne on the way to the home of bassist Justin Morey. The full-length movie goes on to feature interviews with rock royalty, including Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters, who took the band under his wing by producing their album and taking them on tour as an opening act. Plenty of scenes will thrill locals with recognizable backdrops, including the Bayonne Bridge, the Broadway Diner, and Country Village. A screening was held on Oct. 12 at The New Jersey International Film Festival’s “Best of Festival.” The “Hard Luck” part of the story is that Rye Coalition never achieved rock-star status or accumulated piles of cash. Despite legions of loyal fans and touring with famous acts like Queens of the Stone Age, Rye is not widely known. But this lack

50 •Life on the Peninsula ~ FALL | WINTER 2014/15

of recognition never stopped them from playing, because they do it for the love of music. The movie shows the band members’ dedication and deep friendship, unspooling an underdog story that resonates even with folks who are not hard-rock music fans. “I think it appeals to anyone who’s been in a band or aspires to be in a band, because it gives an inside look at the realities and hardships of that life,” Matz says. “It also speaks to any artist, or anyone who appreciates what dedication and love for a creative outlet can entail in terms of sacrifice, with or without a monetary payoff.”

JUSTIN AND ASHLEY MOREY

DAVID (LEFT) AND GREGG LETO

is the only band member who doesn’t live in Bayonne. His stepfather is Secaucus mayor Michael Gonnelli.

RESOURCES

The DocumenTary:

upcoming screenings at ryecoalitionthemovie.com/screenings facebook.com/ryecoalition twitter.com/ryecoalition

SunShine anD The rain

facebook.com/pages/Sunshine-the-rain instagram.com/sunshineandtherainband twitter.com/svnshineandrain

Life eaTerS

facebook.com/Lifeeaters lifeeaters.bandcamp.com

coLD fur

facebook.com/coldfur coldfur.bandcamp.com

Life on the Peninsula ~ FALL | WINTER 2014/15 •

BY KATE ROUNDS PHOTOS BY VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ

Barbra Streisand famously sang, “ A house is not a home when there’s no one there.” In this issue, we look at two homes that get their character and charm from the wonderful young families living in them. Enjoy your brief stay with these folks, who represent the new Bayonne.

How We

UPTOWN

It’s not unusual when putting together a city magazine to have folks pop up in more than one story. That’s what happened when we talked to David and Pamela Leto, who are bringing up their two boys in a neat uptown house. David and his brother Gregg, both drummers, make an appearance on page 50 in our story about Bayonne’s music scene. He

Pamela and Nash,

David and Casey

52 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

HOW WE LIVE BLP

works as an event producer in New York City. Pamela, who works as a music publicist in New York City, says, “Our style tends toward mid-century modern furnishings. We have two little boys and didn’t want to spend on the interior until they were older.” She describes the style as “vintage and IKEA.” When the time comes, Pamela has some favorite designers. Among them, Jean Prouvé, who used manufacturing technology in his designs, and Eero Saarinen, famous for his tulip chair. “I love him, and bought the IKEA version at a fraction of the cost,” Pamela says. They also have a shag rug. The house was built in1920. Pamela describes it as “very cozy, and I mean cozy.” It has three bedrooms, wood floors, and a vintage kitchen that they did not change, meaning they maintained the avocado-green color scheme. They also kept the blue-andwhite tiles in the back room. Families with kids love backyards, and this house has a nice one. The Letos have lived in the house for about three years. David is a Jersey City native, and Pamela is from Tenafly. Bayonne turned out to be the perfect place to buy a house. They are very Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

lucky to have David’s parents living close by in Country Village, so they can watch the kids and pick them up from school. Gregg Leto also lives nearby with his wife and kids. “It’s close to New York, it’s affordable and safe,” Pamela says. One of the boys, Casey, is in third grade, and the other, Nash, is in kindergarten. “It’s a multicultural city,” she says. “Every culture is represented in school classes. I love that about Bayonne.”

The Letos also visit bars and restaurants in town, including Lot13 and Otaiko Hibachi and Sushi Lounge. Not all houses have a focal point, but this one does, and it’s really cool: a 1969 Rowe Music Master jukebox. “My husband and I are both avid music collectors and fans,” Pamela says. “We were looking on Craigslist, and it came fully stocked with 45s. It has everything from David Bowie to ‘96 Tears,’ Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’s ‘I Put a

Spell on You,’ and Elvis. Elvis has to be there. The kids love it. They’re learning about good music. We play it all the time. It’s smack dab in our living room—the centerpiece.” Pamela played the drums when she lived in San Francisco but now describes herself as a “behind-thescenes music gal.” The Letos plan to stay put for the time being. Says Pamela, “It’s perfect, a great starter house.”

Casey on the drums.

Nash on the drums.

1969 Rowe Music Master jukebox.

Lisa with Luca

Gwenn with Julian

How We

AVENUE C Photographer Victor M. Rodriguez and I visited the Galano/Lotter household on a Saturday morning, and we felt really privileged to be allowed into their home as they were getting 10-month-old twin boys up and ready to roll. The moms call it the “messy baby hour,” but Julian and Luca are adorable and seemed to really enjoy their time in the spotlight: no tears, all smiles. Gwenn Lotter and Lisa Galano also have a Boston terrier named Nietzsche, and each mom holds down two jobs. How do they do it all? “We’re women!” Gwenn says. “That’s our job.” Their house is one of four historic rowhouses on the block, built in 1908. Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

They’ve lived there about two and half years. They certainly didn’t have time for remodeling, so it was pretty much ready for prime time when they moved in. The front door opens onto the living room. One of its most distinguishing features is an antique mahogany mantel, which they refurbished to fit their decor. The kitchen is an open plan, from which you can access a deck and the backyard. There is also a half bath on the first floor. While we were there, a young woman popped her head in the door. The nanny! The perfect feature for a house with two small kids is a downstairs apartment for the nanny. It’s a charming space with an eat-in kitchen, living room, bath, and separate bedroom. A beautiful blond wood staircase leads to the second floor, where there are three bedrooms and a full bath. The boys’ room has two cribs. Over each one is a framed initial, J for Julian and L for Luca. Lisa and Gwenn are both teachers and realtors. Lisa teaches middleschool science at Public School 38, James F. Murray, in Jersey City, and Gwenn teaches high-school math at Bergen County Technical Schools in Teterboro. They both work for Coldwell Banker as part of The Grisselle Martinez Group, with Grisselle Martinez out of the Hoboken office,

56 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

HOW WE LIVE BLP

which keeps them in touch with real-estate trends. They’re seeing more young people and babies in Bayonne. The say they often get clients who like Hoboken or downtown Jersey City but can’t afford to live there. Given a gentle nudge toward Bayonne, these clients are often pleasantly surprised by what they find here. Lisa points to Silk Lofts and the Montrachet, a funeral home that has been converted to a condo building. “Bayonne is well-located for our jobs,” Lisa says. Gwenn and Lisa met when they were working in New York. Gwenn, an Indiana native, used to commute all the way to the South Bronx, where she taught at the Bronx Studio School for Writers and Artists. Lisa, a graduate of Holy Family Academy in Bayonne, has a brother, Damon, who is a Bayonne detective. Lisa and Gwenn frequent many of Bayonne’s eateries, including The DaVinci Room and CJ’s Gourmet Italian Ices, a new find that the kids really enjoyed during the summer. “It’s affordable here,” says Lisa. “It fills our needs, we like our neighbors, it’s a good community, and no place fits better.”—BLP

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

LEFT TO RIGHT: TARA RYAZANSKY, LORI LAW, BARBARA RUBINO, GEORGE LAVELLE AND ROBERT HUNTER

HANGING OUT WITH

The Bridgemen BY TARA RYAZANSKY PHOTO BY MAXIM RYAZANSKY

he Bayonne Bridgemen are just as entertaining over coffee at Amici’s as they are on the field during a performance. A lot of loud laughter and singing could be heard coming from our table at the Bergen Point restaurant. The Bayonne Bridgemen are a drum and bugle corps that you may have seen in one of our town’s many parades. Standing out in their yellow-and-black uniforms, they play hits from a bygone era and for decades have delighted audiences with their fun, campy style. The corps debuted in 1964 as the St. Andrew’s Parish Bridgemen. The group was the brainchild of Roman Catholic priest Father Joseph Donovan and local businessman Ed Holmes, who wanted to create a youth activity that could represent the church at events. By the mid ’70s, the Bridgemen—independent from the parish—had earned a reputation as great entertainers. “We changed the drum corps and made it theatrical,” says director George Lavelle. The group’s self-described “Head Kahuna,” Lavelle traveled with his Bridgemen uncles to shows in the ’70s and later played the soprano trumpet. The group’s 105 members include teenagers and seniors. Lavelle brought along Robert Hunter, a member since 1972 who plays the soprano trumpet; Lori Law, guard captain; and Barbara Rubino, at 17, one of the youngest members. All are Bayonne natives. Hunter describes his best Bridgemen memory: “1973, we played the William Tell Overture and we came across the field with a big white horse and the crowd went nuts.” Lavelle’s favorite performance was “In 2006 we came down 26th Street into the stadium and it was packed. We recreated what happened in 1976, the first time they played in the yellow coats. We had police escorts just like back in the day. In the ’70s the crowd was in a state of shock because it was so

58 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

different from the uniforms at that time, which were more like the military.” Lavelle brought the Bridgemen back after a decadeslong hiatus. “They did a drum corps feasibility study to see if the alumni corps would be possible,” Lavelle says. “The board approved it but they said, good luck making it happen and getting together the money. But you know you should never tell someone from Bayonne that they can’t do something. We started with five practices, and on Memorial Day went on to the field show, and it’s been 10 years.” They have members from Canada, Florida, and Massachusetts. The group lives by what Lavelle calls the “Bridgemen Way.” Hunter elaborates, “It’s when you make a mistake and you can joke about it and turn it into a gag.” The group pulls stunts like pretending to faint on the field or dropping a bit of political satire into their shows, a practice that has changed the face of traditional drum corps. Their values also set the corps apart. “You’re not allowed to drink on Bridgemen time,” Lavelle says. “We’re about performing and having a positive experience.” They’re a family, with the youngest learning from the oldest, and the elders getting inspiration from the newcomers. Rubino weighs in: “I’ve definitely grown as a performer. If you have a bad day, you have 150 people to make it better. Just to perform as a family makes it so you can’t be nervous.” Law’s biggest takeway? “Commitment, you join a team and you have to stick it out.” Says Rubino, “I will be going to college soon, and this taught me that to get anywhere in life you have to work hard.” For more information, visit bridgemen.com.—BLP

R&B

’ z

PHOTOS BY VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ

n the day we visited this Bayonne institution, they were ripping up the street out front. It was dusty and noisy outside, but once inside, all was cool and right with the world. Ralph Pasqua has owned this ever-popular watering hole since 1981. It’s noted for the three Bs: booze, burgers, and the Blues. Pasqua, who graduated from Bayonne High School and lives in town, encourages local bands to come for Friday-night gigs. Though major athletic events can be seen on the televisions over the bar, Pasqua says, “We’re not trying to be a sports bar. I’d rather do music.” A huge guitar that takes up almost one wall says it all. When bands come to play, Pasqua makes sure that there is lots of music memorabilia on the walls.

“It’s a place to play and test to see who likes what,” he says. R&B’z draws customers from a 10-to-15-block radius, Pasqua says. The reason? No one’s tempted to drink and drive. “Bayonne is not a drive-through; it’s a destination,” he says. And for an establishment with such a robust bar scene, the food is definitely something to write home about. The burgers (sometimes stuffed) are legendary, not to mention the mussels and thin-crust pizza. Pasqua likes to emphasize that it is a “no-nonsense” bar, where everyone can feel comfortable. Since the bar is open from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m. he has about 10 bartenders. Open a door in the back, and you’ll find yourself in an entirely different milieu, with a decidedly un-bar-like ambience. This is R&B’z catering hall. It’s a spacious room with tables all set and ready to go, a long table of chafing dishes, and paintings on the wall. Catering menus include American and Italian food, kielbasa and sauerkraut, roast beef, and baked ziti. The hall hosts showers, anniversaries, christenings, birthdays, and small wed-

WATERING HOLE BLP dings. Don’t worry if you have a small group. “It’s not always about catering 50 people,” Pasqua says. “A small repast of 25 is fine. We do community and business meetings. We did a Chamber meeting.” The paintings on the wall mostly depict Bayonne scenes, though there is one picture of the Duke because Pasqua’s father was a fan. Pasqua embodies the character and tone of his establishment: laid back and welcoming. He sits at a table, wearing a T-shirt that reads “French Quarter Voodoo.” He used to own Lucky’s Hardware before buying the bar. “It was a lot of nuts and bolts,” he jokes. Recently married, he plays the guitar to relax, and moonlights for Bayonne Community Bank. “We’re a five-star corner bar,” Pasqua says. “People who come, come back.”—Kate Rounds

R&B’z 234 Broadway (201) 858-9641

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

Bella Sorrellas PHOTOS BY BETH DICARA

was surprised to find the bar nearly full when I visited Bella Sorrellas on Sept. 11. It wasn’t even 5 p.m., and already a friendly group of regulars had gathered to chat and raise a glass. That day is still a somber one for most people in our area, so it was comforting to enter an establishment that gave off such a warm, welcoming vibe, starting with the greeting from Christina, the bartender. Very soon, the dining room filled up, too. I knew, of course, that Bella Sorrellas is a Bayonne favorite and that became clear as the evening progressed. Ramon was our very efficient and accommodating waiter who, along with Juan who bussed the tables, smoothly orchestrated our dining experience. Like any good Italian restaurant, Bella Sorrellas offers Peroni, Italy’s famously refreshing pale lager beer. While enjoying a cold draft, I took in my surroundings—soft yellow walls decorated with framed pictures, and Frank Sinatra crooning in the background. The restaurant also offers “Drinks of the Day.” Lemon drop or chocolate martini, anyone? Salad comes with the meal. A fresh house salad featured red onions and a homemade Italian dressing. A beef vegetable soup was also homemade. I made a note to come back on a cold day and order this hearty stew-like starter. Owner David Rivera came to our table to introduce Chef Leonardo Compi. It’s always good to know who is responsible for the delectable dishes you are about to consume. Rivera also noted that artist Jay Sanchez painted the mural on the side of the building. The restaurant had a nice offering of specials; we decided to stick to that menu, kicking off the meal with a very large

(L - R) Maria, Christina, and David

60 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

EATERIES BLP stuffed artichoke, and stuffed is the operative word. If you like breadcrumb stuffing, this generous appetizer is for you. It’s made with Romano cheese and spices. It comes to the table steaming hot. I always like to go for the high protein. The filet of sole almondine filled that bill. Twice as much as I could eat in one sitting, it was light and flaky with no overpowering seasonings to detract from the fish itself. Since we could not decide among the side dishes, which included roasted potatoes au gratin, ratatouille, and linguini, Ramon very generously brought them all. The spuds with cheese were especially good. My dinner companion ordered the half chicken, with mashed potatoes and an Italian staple, broccoli rabe. The chicken was moist on the inside, and nice and crispy on the outside. The potatoes came with a traditional brown gravy. Broccoli rabe is a great addition to this classic combo because it adds the hint of bitterness that distinguishes this healthy green vegetable. Other specials included fresh tilapia, pork chops, mussels and shrimp, stuffed calamari, mahi mahi, and veal chops. And don’t forget, Bella Sorrellas has a huge regular menu, with all the Italian-American favorites, including chicken parmigiana, veal piccata, and shrimp scampi. No one should leave Bella Sorrellas without ordering its most famous dessert: Italian cheesecake homemade on the premises. No matter how full you are, this is a must. We split one slice, but to be honest, I kind of wish I’d had one to myself. As you know, the real Italian version is made with ricotta cheese, which provides just the right consistency and sweetness. Add two cappuccinos and you’re off and running—with a huge doggie bag for whatever family members may be home eagerly awaiting your arrival.—Kate Rounds

Bella Sorrellas 1020 Broadway (201) 455-8844 bellasorrellas.com

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

DINING OUT A&W Steakhouse 456 Avenue C (201) 436-0800 Awsteakhouse.com Bayonne’s premier steakhouse, opened in 2013, uses only the freshest, local products, and everything is made from scratch. There is something for everyone at A&W, but they pride themselves on perfectlyaged steaks that are more than a cut above the rest. Enjoy Happy Hour specials, nightly dinner specials, and Sunday brunch.

Amici’s Fine Dining and Martini Lounge 184 Broadway (201)437-4299 Amicirestaurant.com Amici’s offers superb Italian food, fine wine, and excellent service. A seemingly endless menu features the authentic, traditional specialties of Old Italy as well as innovative pasta and fresh seafood dishes, choice meats cooked to perfection, and a list of nightly features. Let the troubles of your day disappear among friendly company in the martini lounge. The black granite bar and water-tube lights make it a chic spot to sip on one of 40 different martinis. The restaurant is also available for special events.

Bella Sorrellas 1020 Broadway (201) 455-8844 bellasorrellas.com On Bayonne’s north end, Bella Sorrellas has deep roots in Jersey City. Owner David Rivera’s family has a long history of successful downtown Jersey City eateries and last year, Rivera brought on Leonardo Compi, the renowned chef of the legendary Just Sonny’s restaurant. Compi’s genius is in bringing flair to classic dishes, making extraordinary what would be ordinary in other hands. The rich, complex textures and tastes will delight and surprise unsuspecting diners. All dinners are preceded with its signature salad, served family style and dressed to perfection.

62 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

DINING OUT Big Apple Sports Palace 412-414 Broadway (201) 858-1075 bigapplesportspalace.net The Big Apple has been familyowned and operated for more than 36 years and caters to a loyal clientele looking to watch their favorite teams on 30 televisions while enjoying hefty portions of their favorite food, including award-winning pizza and signature buffalo wings, made in-house in four delicious flavors. During warm weather months, you can also enjoy your dinner or cocktail at The Apple’s popular Tiki Bar. You’ll receive the same great Big Apple service and game action while sitting outside.

Biggie’s 42 Newark St., Hoboken (201) 710-5520 BiggiesClamBar.Com At the former site of the legendary Clam Broth House, just seconds away from the Light Rail Station, Biggie’s brings its own history and tradition to its downtown locale. It has the same menu that has been enjoyed in their Carlstadt location, with 22 beers on tap and 20 televisions. Biggie’s offers a fun, casual, and quality dining experience.

Buon Appetito 906-908 Broadway (201) 436-0043 buonappetitoitalian.com This is one of those quality places that don’t intimidate you. The restaurant and bar provide a comfortable, pleasant atmosphere that makes you feel at home. The flavor, quality, and quantity of the food are exceptional, but prices so reasonable that it is an affordable evening as well. The menu is surprisingly diverse with ample dinner specials, a wide selection of meat, chicken, and veal dishes, and of course, delicious pasta entrees. High-quality, fresh fish is one of the restaurant’s specialties. Buon Appetito is open for lunch and dinner and available for private parties. Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

DINING OUT The DaVinci Room at Mona Lisa 165 Broadway (201) 535-5050 thedavinciroom.com The DaVinci Room by Mona Lisa offers boutique-style catering with their intimate luxury events. The attentive staff offers a wide array of options in a beautifully appointed space. There are packages that fit every style and budget, with availability for daytime and evening events, seven days a week. Call the banquet director today for one-of-a-kind service.

64 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

Hendrickson’s Corner 671 Broadway (201) 437-4955 hendricksonscorner.com For as long as anyone can remember, Hendrickson’s has been serving up juicy steaks and burgers, tender chicken, and fresh seafood to loyal Bayonne diners. You’ll definitely come for the food, but this historic building in the center of town is an attraction in itself. Loaded with rustic charm, Hendrickson’s Corner is reminiscent of a 19th century saloon, complete with stained-glass windows, exposed brick, and original wood paneling that will take you back in time. Open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.

DINING OUT Komegashi 103 Montgomery Street, Jersey City (201) 433-4567 komegashi.com In Jersey City’s financial district, Komegashi offers fresh, well-presented sushi, along with traditional Japanese favorites and an extensive selection of fresh shellfish. Locals and visitors from around the world find this a perfect spot to dine in casual elegance. Open seven days.

LONGBAR

LOT 13

RESTAURANT

Specializing in Craft Beer, Huge Whiskey Selection

HOMEMADE COMFORT FOOD! Fr

18 ! Live Entertainment! ! S P TA 169 Avenue E, Bayonne (corner of 18th & E)

Be s ie d C h t S a n d ic k e n wh i n NJ ich !

(201) 535-5066

Check us out on Yelp & at Facebook.com/Lot13longbar

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

DINING OUT Komegashi too 99 Town Square Place, Jersey City Newport Financial Center (201) 533-8888 komegashi.com Komegashi too offers an authentic Japanese dining experience with a spectacular view of the New York Skyline. The menu includes perfectly prepared sushi and sashimi, kaiseki, teriyaki, and tempura. O n the river at Newport Financial Center, Komegashi too is open seven days.

KP Sarelli’s 241 Broadway (201) 858-0865 kpsarellisrestaurant.com Since its opening in 2007, KP Sarelli’s has been serving delicious Northern Italian cuisine in its cozy and charming downtown restaurant. Priding itself on the finest and freshest ingredients, KP Sarelli’s offers a wide variety of fish, chicken, veal, and pasta dishes. Specialties include Seafood Risotto, Tortelloni Quattro Formaggi and Pollo Scarpariello. It’s a perfect choice for a romantic fireside dinner for two or to share a meal with your family and friends. KP Sarelli’s is open seven days a week and is available for private parties.

La Guardiola Gourmet Pizza and Bistro 819 Broadway (201) 823-3399 laguardiolabistro.com With a full menu of unique and classic dishes, La Guardiola is not your typical pizzeria. Whether you take out or dine in, this cozy eatery will not disappoint. It offers a wide variety of specialty salads, unique gourmet pizzas, homemade soups, focaccia, and pressed Panini sandwiches, along with traditional pizza and Italian specialties. The portions are hearty, but save room for dessert. LaGuardiola offers a full catering menu for your special event or party. Open six days a week for lunch and dinner. Closed Sunday.

66 • Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15

DINING OUT Lot 13 Longbar and Restaurant 169 Avenue E (corner of 18th) (201) 535-5066 Facebook.com/lot13longbar Bayonne’s newest venue offers a huge selection of craft beers on tap and in bottles, along with an impressive selection of scotch and whiskey. Kick back and watch the game on its 55” screen while enjoying classic, homemade comfort food, including the Lot 13 gourmet burger. Live entertainment includes great bands, comedy shows, and standup open mic nights. The back room is available for private parties and events.

Otaiko Hibachi & Sushi Lounge South Cove Commons, Route 440 North 125 Lefante Way (201) 339-3399 Otaikonj.com Nowhere else in Bayonne will you find such an outstanding dining experience. The beautiful waterfront setting redefines Japanese dining. Whether you enjoy the dinner show at your Hibachi table by our exceptional chefs, or dine quietly in our beautiful restaurant or sushi bar, you will be pleased by our superior quality and amazingly fresh dishes. Whether it’s a quiet dinner for two or a family celebration, you owe it to yourself to visit Otaiko.

Life on the Peninsula ~ Fall | Winter 2014/15 •

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