BASEMENT WATERPROOFING IN Bradley Beach

Accessibility for rail passengers who have mobility issues will get easier at five NJ Transit rail stations after the agency was awarded a $34 million grant under a new federal program.

U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Robert Menendez, both D-NJ, made the announcement Tuesday of the grants from the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) All Stations Accessibility Program, created by the bipartisan Infrastructure law that was signed in Nov. 2021.

The $1.7 billion federal program, created in July, is designed to make hundreds of old subway and commuter rail stations accessible to people with mobility issues — from those in wheelchairs to parents with kids in strollers.

For NJ Transit, that means building high level platforms at some stations that will allow passengers in wheelchairs to roll onto trains. With them, people won’t have to climb stairs to get on and off rail cars.

Grants included $18.18 million for two Pascack Valley Line stations at Anderson Street, Hackensack and New Bridge Landing in River Edge. The Bradley Beach Rail Station – on the North Jersey Coast Line - received a $14.51 million grant. And the Chatham and Orange Rail Stations on the Morris & Essex Line were awarded $1.4 million.

Grants for the Anderson Street and New Bridge Landing stations will be the first phase of modernizing the Pascack Valley Line (PVL) with fully accessible stations, said Jim Smith, an NJ Transit spokesman.

The first phase is design and preliminary engineering activities at both stations. Modernization includes design and preliminary engineering for high-level platforms, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant ramps, and staircases at Anderson Street and New Bridge Landing Station, he said.

NJ Transit is among those transit systems considered “legacy” by the grant program because the railroads that made up the commuter rail system were built before ADA became law.

“Retrofitting these legacy stations will create a fully accessible 3-station corridor along the line, following the existing accessible Essex Street Station,” Smith said.

A similar plan is envisioned at Bradley Beach station.

That project also focuses on design and preliminary engineering to make all the passenger-use, public areas at the station fully accessible under the ADA, he said. Design and preliminary engineering for high-level platforms, ADA-compliant ramps, staircases, and a relocated and improved bus shelter will be done, he said.

The grant for the Chatham and Orange stations will be used to explore the engineering and technology needed to construct high-level platforms at stations along curved sections of track, Smith said.

“It will require developing new systems, which can then be applied at similar stations throughout the system,” Smith said.

That study will examine two of NJ Transit’s historic rail stations located on rail lines with varying degrees of track curvature and recommend design solutions for high level boarding of trains, he said.

“Public transportation is vital to residents across New Jersey and our transit stations must be accessible to everyone,” Menendez said in a statement. “Whether people are trying to get to work, go to the doctor, or buy groceries, New Jerseyans with disabilities deserve safe and reliable access to our public transportation system.

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Great Barrington — For the past 28 years, South Egremont resident Richard Stanley has owned the Mahaiwe Triplex Theater on 70 Railroad Street.

Now, however, Stanley is intending to sell the building to Montclair, New Jersey-based theater company Cinema Lab. The potential sale has been confirmed to The Berkshire Edge by Cinema Lab Chief Executive Officer Luke Parker Bowles.

According to town property records, the building was built in 1995 and has been valuated at $1,538,800, with its land of 0.4 acres valued at $234,300, with a total valuation of $1,773,100. The property is owned through Stanley’s Mahaiwe Triplex Theater Inc. Previously, Stanley also owned the Beacon Cinema in Pittsfield from 2009 to 2018, but he sold it to Michigan-based Phoenix Theatres.

“I’ve had somebody approach me and they seem to be the right kind of people,” Stanley said in an interview with The Berkshire Edge in early December. When asked why he is selling the property, Stanley said, “I guess the short answer is that it needs new and younger blood to bring it into the future.”

Stanley said that the theater currently has two full-time employees and “about four or five part-time employees.” After answering the question about how many employees the theater has, however, Stanley refused to answer any more questions.

It took The Berkshire Edge several weeks of phone calls and emails to reach Cinema Lab CEO Parker Bowles. but after contact was made on Wednesday, December 21, he was more than willing to answer questions about the potential sale.

According to Cinema Lab’s website, the company owns three theaters: The Cañon in Cañon City, Colo.; The Bradley at Bradley Beach, N.J.; and The Village at SOPAC in South Orange, N.J. In November, the company announced that it is buying The Playhouse in New Canaan, Conn.

While Parker Bowles confirmed that the company intends to buy The Triplex, he said that Cinema Lab still needs to raise $750,000 by December 31 to purchase the property. “We already have a certain amount, which is basically half of that or a little less than half,” Parker Bowles explained. “But I will be in town on Wednesday, December 28 and I will have several meetings with potential investors.”

Parker Bowles said that he needs verbal commitments from investors, with a minimum investment of $100,000 each. “We want to keep our [investment] group small, and I think that always makes sense from a business standpoint,” he said. “Also, it gets a bit fiddly when you’ve got 50 people who’ve all put in $25,000. I have about 10 meetings [with potential investors] set up right now, but I want to say that the rule of thumb is that [the meetings] will be 50 percent successful.”

When asked whether or not he would reach the goal, he said, “I’m not concerned if we’re not going to make it. I think that people need to know about the opportunity because it’s a community thing. That’s why we’ve always done it this way. We have skin in the game, but it’s really about local investors being able to benefit.”

Parker Bowles said that the company already has plans for the Triplex building. “To the left of the Triplex building, the storefront will become an independent bar,” Parker Bowles said. “We will knock through the wall [of the building] and it will be renovated. We will renovate the entire building.”

Parker Bowles would not give an estimate of how much the renovation project would cost the company, but that the theater would be closed for a time during the project. “We will try to work around the slow season,” he said. “The goal is that we will be open for the summer, whether in a fully formed phase or not, because we obviously don’t want people to miss out on summer movies. At the very worst, we would be open during the third quarter, but we will not open until the building is up to the quality that we demand for ourselves.”

Parker Bowles said that once reopened, the building will be renamed “The Great.” “We want to call it ‘The Great’ because not only is it in Great Barrington but there is The Barrington B & B across the street,” he said. “Also, in our mind, we’ve always had these experiences akin to the atmosphere that you have at a pub in England. ‘The Great’ seemed to be something that would be the name of a pub and it seems very sophisticated in that respect.”

When asked why the company is investing money into movie theaters while increasingly movie-goers are watching movies at home via Internet-based streaming services, Parker Bowles said that streaming is not the same as the experience of watching a movie in a theater. “The movie experience is something that people have been craving,” Parker Bowles said. “Streaming has this endless supply of not always great content which has developed this disconnect between what I call the ‘water cooler experience.’ That experience is when people discuss with each other the same show or movie. People have become tired of this disconnect and so they crave the opportunity to go and talk about the same thing. That’s why the cinema still exists. People can’t wait to get back into the dark and share an experience with other people, be it a big blockbuster or a Broadway show. There’s nothing that can replace the human experience, and I think people are just dying to get off their sofas.”

For more information about Cinema Lab, visit the company’s website.

It can feel disappointing, frustrating, confusing, etc., at times when you're single looking for that special love connection after it didn't work out with someone else or you're just looking for the right match.

Fear not, there are some steps you can take and things to mull over as you search for that special someone in your life.

New Jersey's Matchmaker and Professional Love/Dating Coach Julianne Cantarella has just the right advice for you in your search for love during cuffing season or year-round as well.

She joined us on 'Shore Time with Vin and Dave' on Sunday morning to share some advice and tips for all of you.

"This is a very romantic time of year for many people, and I think it's great if you can take advantage of it to build a connection between you and your partner," Cantarella said. "They've done studies that actually show that activity dates really do help connect one another. I think if you can brave the cold and be outside from ice skating to hiking to really just doing things together -- if you're close to New York City and you can just go see the windows and how beautifully decorated they are and maybe grab a nice dinner together or see a show or just look at the tree -- it's a joyous time of year and it's a great time to really connect with your partner."

It is the middle of 'cuffing season' and that usually means a lot of people are looking for a connection.

"Cuffing season is the time of year that I think because it is around the holidays it usually starts just before early October and it goes into January, February just before Valentine's Day," Cantarella said. "I think what happens is it triggers people to want to have someone in their life because the holidays are coming, and they don't want to face it alone."

If you're looking for that love connection heading into the new year and heading onto the dating apps, there are some keyways to ensure you have the best approach out there.

"It's putting the best version of yourself out there," Cantarella said. "It's really important to set yourself up for success, if you think you can post any photo or write a few lines and someone's going to be like 'ooh, sign me up' -- they're going to look and they're going to say, 'low effort, is this person really serious about finding someone'."

When you're writing out your dating profile on the apps, think simple, nothing too short or especially too long.

Cantarella explains that your mindset in trying to meet someone should be, "I don't want to find out everything about you through your profile, I want to meet you, where I can uncover who you are and get a better sense of is there compatibility."

You can just touch on some of the highlights, Cantarella explains, such as including likes you enjoy doing in terms of activities or how you feel about certain things, "without oversharing."

When it comes to conversations on the dating apps, don't make them too long, ask for a number and head out on a date.

"Sometimes you have to get to six or eight or ten exchanges where it's comfortable enough to exchange numbers and then go to the phone call and then go to the face to face," Cantarella said. "I think it's too much when someone -- it's a first email and they're like 'I find you attractive, here's my number, call me' -- that's not really great. I am okay with if someone's online and they've been messaging and someone asks them out over the app and says 'I'd love to meet you for coffee', what have you, and I'm okay about not always having to have that first phone call because first phone calls could be really awkward -- you're literally communicating with a stranger and trying to impress them and you're trying to get to know them, then you're adding in all these other things."

It is winter and that likely means more indoor dating activities than outdoor activities depending on what it is, but, nonetheless, plenty to do.

"There are definitely coffee dates first, right, you want to take it slowly, simple -- coffee dates should be no more than an hour," Cantarella said. "The goal of the first date is to get to the second date, so, keep it at an hour, tops."

Other ideas depend on the couple and where you're at in your dating or relationship such as indoor rock climbing, seeing a movie, or heading to a museum.

You can listen to the full conversation with New Jersey's Matchmaker and Professional Love Coach Julianne Cantarella on 'Shore Time with Vin and Dave', right here.

Conversation Part One:

Conversation Part Two:

There may soon be a more cost-efficient option for our military men and women who have served our country to call home here at the Jersey Shore.

The governing body in Middletown Township has passed an ordinance which will allow the Middletown Redevelopment Corporation to move forward on the Affordable Veterans Housing Project.

It's a project idea that's been in the works for about two years now, explains Middletown Mayor Tony Perry, and along with the township committee were looking for a piece of land to turn this vision into a reality.

"The township committee and I decided that it was the right move to try and purchase this property on Leonardville Road and designate it for a Veterans Housing Project," Perry said. "Our plan was to create 12 affordable Veterans apartments, both one- and two-bedroom apartments all fully handicap accessible to benefit the men and women who have honorably served our nation and what better use of this property than to try and pay back just a little bit of what the price that our Veterans have paid, why not try and give them a great place to live in a downtown area in Middletown."

Mayor Perry explains that they were able to purchase the property and also were able to take care of the necessary and required environmental work under the NJ-DEP permit process.

"We are now ready to hand over to our Middletown Housing Authority Board a clean piece of property that they're going to be able to construct 12 affordable units completely designated for the men and women who have served our country," Perry said.

It's well noted that coming home from deployment or retiring from the service all together can sometimes be a challenging transition for Military Veterans, and this Affordable Veterans Housing Project could go a long way in helping those in need of housing have a place to live.

"This housing project is more than the 12 units, in my opinion, it's more about setting a model and creating a model for other municipalities to create housing that every person can be proud of," Perry said. "When you talk about creating housing for people who have seen battle, who have seen bloodshed, and who have fought to preserve the freedom that you and I are enjoying right this minute -- you think that and you're just full of pride and filled with patriotism -- 12 units is a small piece of the pie, but if Middletown can inspire the next town and the next town and the next town, so on and so forth, then we'll really have created something that is larger than the 12 units themselves."

For anyone looking to apply and look into living in one of these apartments, there will be an extensive check to ensure you are who you say you are and there's no-one pretending to be a Veteran.

"All those documents are required, the DD214 forms are always required for Veterans preference when it comes to housing and our Housing Authority does an excellent job in terms of its requirement process in ensuring that the people who are applying are who they say they are and really being truthful in their applications which is obviously so critically important," Perry said. "It would really be a shame if anyone tried to scam this given who it's benefitting."

On Monday night, the town was able to sell the property, "for a nominal fee of the cleanup effort that we put into this site, just to reimburse the taxpayers, and they will then be able to move ahead immediately and begin bidding out the work to build this great facility."

It is not only possible that shovels hit the dirt to start building this complex in 2023 but also that the whole thing will be ready to go.

"I"m going to be pushing hard enough to say that the building is going to be built in 2023, that's my goal," Perry said.

A robot making your pizza?

Owners of New Jersey pizza restaurant Pizza Love are banking on it.

They’ve opened a tech-powered pizza concept that could change the pizza industry. It’s Robot-made Pizza, and it’s here.

Located at 223 New St., Woodland Park, PizzaHQ is revolutionizing the pizza industry by introducing automation. That allows them to deliver a consistent product at a fast speed and affordable price.

To that end, the HQ website's most prominent boast is a more affordable pizza (“almost a 50% lower price point”) while using the same recipe and high-quality ingredients of the pies made at their already successful dine-in restaurant.

The PizzaHQ team has many years of experience in the NJ traditional pizza market. After owning and operating several stores loved by the community, its partners had a choice: either expand the current operations or reinvent the pizza restaurant through technology and automation.

They chose the latter, and so far it has been a screaming success.

While its pizza is good enough for you to order a slice, its speed and consistency makes it especially appropriate for schools, birthday party venues, community events, corporate cafeterias, camps and stadiums.

Here’s how it works: A press flattens discs of dough to exactly the right size. (Alas, an actual human being is needed to take the dough off the press and put it in a tin.) But then, it is sent along a conveyor belt that applies the sauce, the cheese and the toppings.

And, since this is all done by machine, you are ensured the same exact amount every time.

Another belt runs the pizza through a long, flat oven, which cooks it perfectly. Pizza into perfectly cut slices. And there you have it.

The plan is to bring this technology to cities all over the country. is pizza HQ onto something?

The company calls it the future of pizza.

The future, indeed.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Judi Franco only.

You can now listen to Dennis & Judi — On Demand! Hear New Jersey’s favorite best friends anytime, anywhere and any day of the week. Download the Dennis & Judi show wherever you get podcasts, on our free app, or listen right now.

The best wood-fired pizza in NJ can come from your own kitchen

I finally made the decision to invest in a wood-fired pizza oven.

Gallery Credit: Dennis Malloy

Find a table just around the right height, 30 to 36 inches or so.

You can get a wooden paddle, but the metal seems to slide the pie off much more easily.

Turn it one more time for a total cooking time of less than one and a half minutes.

New Jersey picks their favorite pizza places

Pizza is one of, if not the hottest topics in all of the Garden State. Everyone has a place they're loyal to and they always think it's better than your favorite place. Bill Spadea spent a couple of hours taking calls from listeners telling him where the definitive best pizzeria's in New Jersey are. Here's some of what they came up with.

Gallery Credit: Bill Spadea

CHECK IT OUT: It's time for a national 'Jersey' style pizza

Pizza Hut announced that they're coming out with a Detroit-style pizza. Yes, Detroit-style. Isn't it about time that everyone knows about the "Jersey-style' pizza? Doesn't that sound much better? Well, what would even be on a Jersey-style pizza? That's the question Steve Trevelise posed to his Facebook following, here's some of what they came up with.