Pounding the pavement

Started my day attending a Newark Regional Business Partnership breakfast at the Robert Treat Hotel. Newark's Police Director Garry McCarthy was the keynote speaker. He was complimented by the various business leaders at the meeting, including one man who stood up and personally thanked McCarthy for making the city safer, since he took his job three years ago. McCarthy said his police force deserves the credit for doing the job. "The police work on the ground, where the rubber meets the road, with cops doing this job, is going on at an exceptional level. And the change that's happening in this city, is really a tribute to them," he said.
McCarthy appealed to those at the breakfast, to help him in changing the negative perceptions of Newark. He said it was just as challenging when he worked for the New York Police Department, during an era of similar crime reduction. "It took a while before people felt the change in New York City," he said. McCarthy said people need to actually visit Newark to feel the difference. "I don't know how to change the perception, except to keep staying at it," he said.
When discussing other challenges, McCarthy noted the city's 911 system is overloaded with non-emergency calls. He said 51 percent were low-level calls, that tied up cops from more serious matters. He urged the business leaders to help spread the word on the city's information line, (973) 733-4311, which can take the burden off 911.
From the breakfast, I went walking in downtown. I first headed over to the Newark Art Supply on Halsey Street, where I enjoyed a nice Italian espresso. From there, I stopped at the old Bamberger's which is mostly occupied by companies that use the building for their computer servers. The lobby, however, still has pictures of the old department store. I didn't realize there also was an Ohrbach's at the corner of Halsey and Market Streets.
From there, I went over to a sneaker store, which operates from the lobby of an old theater across from Bamberger's. Now, I'm not talking about the Paramount, which is on the other side of Broad Street. This was one of those "lost" theaters, which no one seems to know the name of. The owner of the store said the city owns the place. I emailed a city official to ask, but haven't heard back from him yet. I continued on down to Beaver Street, which was closed off for a public cafe set up by the Newark Downtown District. It looked very nice on the red bricks of the street, and in front of an vacant, Roman temple-styled building. Scully's, the restaurant around the corner, actually will serve customers at the cafe this year, said the district's executive director, Anthony McMillan. The cafe's open for lunch on Wednesdays and Fridays, and may include entertainment later this summer.
I dashed off to get a shoe shine, and then over to Mi Gente on Central Avenue to get some lunch to take back to the office. Nothing beats their $5 "stimulus special." I recommend the boneless chicken, lightly browned in garlic and served with onions. On the way back to my car, I ran into Clement Price, the Rutgers professor and Newark historian. We chatted about the theater. He too couldn't remember the name. We were approached by Michael Lamont, who just opened a neck wear store on Halsey Street, next to 27Mix. Lamont wore a bow tie he personally made. "I'll be back to learn how to tie a tie like that," Price told him, pointing to an elegant black bow tie, with grayish-blue pokadots Lamont wore. He said it was double-sided too, which means you really get two ties, for the price of one at his place.
One other stop I made was at the Village Hotel. This is what we used to call a hot-sheet hotel, when I worked at New York's Daily News. Most of these places specialize in providing rooms for romantic rendezvous. They charge as little as $35 for a "short stay." I had to check it out, because this place is right in the middle of the so-called "West Village of Newark, at the corner New and Halsey Streets. I wonder if that's where the place gets its name. The clerk was rather nice, and even showed me a couple of rooms. They smelled pretty heavy on the disinfectant. I hate to say, I've stayed in a few commercial places that smell the same. The clerk said the hotel does have overnight guests, and actually sells out sometimes. She was more than happy to take reservations too.