October 4, 2023
We hope that all of our Downtown friends and families are safe and recovering from last week’s rain. Once again, we thank all of our first responders from the City, DPW, NRPD, NRFD and elsewhere for once again going above and beyond to help those in need.
Downtown Merchants Earn an A+
For Another Successful Back-to-School Season
It was a very busy September in Downtown as students, families, and our local merchants busied themselves with traditional back-to-school activities. We hope that everyone has settled in nicely to the routine of the new academic year.
Here in Downtown, there are three academic institutions in our community – Monroe College, which has buildings on Main Street and Huguenot Street; New Rochelle High School’s Huguenot Academy at 140 Huguenot St and the Hallen School at 97 Centre St.
Speaking of Monroe College, congratulations to them as they celebrate their 40th year in New Rochelle this year. The College was founded 90 years ago in the Bronx, where it continues to operate a thriving campus. You’ve probably seen their blue and gold shuttle bus taking students back and forth between the two campuses.
Some of our Downtown merchants have been helping students from the City’s colleges, high schools, middle schools and elementary schools get ready for the new school year for decades.
On Main Street alone we have @liebmans school uniforms since 1926 (98 years), @talnerjewelers since 1927 (97 years), @New Rochelle Prescription Center (90 years) and @Al Rovins Locksmith Inc. since 1946 (74 years), @the.curtain.shop (47 years), @trjewelers_ (40 years), @nicksnewhairdesign (40 years), @littlemexicancafe (31 years), @raymondopticians (25 years), @habibs.ny (25 years), and @jaysboutique-ny (15 years) to name a few. In two years, @ifix4u_newroc (8 years) will celebrate their first decade of helping students in town. If you look on Division St, Huguenot St and more you will get many more long-term businesses. Of course they are joined by our many new businesses such as @spacebeautyspa which just celebrated its first anniversary on Main St. and are looking forward to many more back to school seasons here.
If you missed our Instagram post of our Main St merchants doing some back-to-school greetings, be sure to check it out here. It amassed 3,000 views in just a few days, a true testament to the strong sense of community and connection our Downtown merchants have with the people who live, work, visit, and study in New Rochelle.
“A” is Also for Autumn and Arts (A Perfect Combination!)
Autumn is here and, with it, a new season filled with terrific events and activities Downtown.
We hope that you enjoyed all the amazing programs held during the summer, including the Summer Sizzle and Summer Sounds concerts and the Downtown dining take-out promotions. We also welcomed back the popular New Rochelle Farmers Market in Downtown, which has relocated to Anderson Plaza and on Sundays from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.
There are a great group of Vendors, including long-time participants R & R Family Farm who are there every week to greet you with great farm fresh produce, homemade baked goods, hand-crafted gift items. This Sunday Oct 8 you can get some free fresh Jazz from 11:30am-1pm when you come to get your fall fruits, vegetables and treats.
The Market will continue in Downtown through the end of the month with the final one for the season held on Sunday, October 29. It will be a special “Halloween Farmers Market” for families and children with prizes and freebies.
Anderson Plaza was also the site of the City’s new Splash pad, which was super- popular with young families during the hot and hazy days. It is also the location of one of our newest restaurants – Di Kitchen which has taken over for Smoke and Spice at 15 Anderson St.
If you are an art-lover, this is the season for you. We have a number of related art events planned.
The first exhibition to visit is “Tri,” an exhibit of works by three members of the New Rochelle High School art faculty – Alexandra Rutsch Brock, Moira McCaul and Scott Seaboldt. Tri is showing at Town House Restaurant at 559 Main St through this Saturday, Oct. 7.
There is also the New Rochelle Art Association’s 108th Juried Art Show at the Library’s Lumen Winter Gallery during library hours going on now through Oct 28. The show features work of members and non-members in nine categories of creative artwork.
The annual Halloween holiday windows painted by the PAVE students from New Rochelle High School will be created during the week of October 17. Lots of our merchant windows will be transformed by this fun visual project sponsored by the Chamber, New Rochelle Schools, New Rochelle Downtown BID and the City.
Coming up later this month is New Rochelle’s ever-popular annual ArtsFest weekend that will be held on October 19-22.
It will showcase works in all forms of creativity and from numerous artists via exhibitions and performances throughout the City, including at the Downtown’s in newest exhibition space, the Vanda Gallery in The Huguenot Building at 379 Huguenot St.
On Thursday, October 19, ArtsFest will kick off at 6:30pm with a special StorySLAM with the acclaimed storytelling producers The MOTH at Downtown’s historic Trinity St. Paul’a Church at 311 Huguenot St. It will be a wonderful event! Expect to be amazed by the creative and moving stories that emerge. You will also have an opportunity to enter the contest by sharing your own (memorized) tale.
The New Rochelle Council on the Arts is working hard to make sure this year’s ArtsFest is better than ever, adding more events to this popular City-wide festival.
Highlights of this year’s event-filled schedule include free guided history trolley tours with City Historian Barbara Davis; a music festival in Anderson Plaza on Saturday, Oct. 21; a weekend dance showcase that will include Downtown’s New Beginnings and Rooftop Rhythms dance schools; a car show, artisan market and a 1920s-themed Gala benefit that celebrates a new City statue to be dedicated this month honoring New Rochelle-based author and Walk of Fame member E.L. Doctorow.
Downtown Merchants and Restaurant owners are certainly joining the ArtsFest fun, too. Look for a book signing at Hair House and more exhibits and workshops at Jolo’s Restaurant at 49 Lawton St., Alvin & Friends at 14 Memorial Highway and Townhouse at 559 Main St. and more.
The New Rochelle Public Library in Downtown will be hosting many workshops, exhibits and performances for ArtsFest. Among them:
- Art Workshop for adults on Friday, Oct. 20, from 10:00 am to Noon
- The IMPetus Concert, which will embrace the storytelling theme with musical songs that tell a story, on Friday, Oct. 20, from 6:00 to 7:30 pm
- Rock painting with artists from the New Rochelle Art Association on Saturday, Oct. 21, from Noon to 1:30 pm
- Key to the Castle writer’s workshop with Angela Deracas Taylor and Kathy Curto on Saturday, Oct. 21, from 3:15 to 4:45 pm
- Art Workshop for children on Sunday, Oct. 22, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm
- Bilingual performance about artist Frida Kahlo on Sunday, Oct. 22, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm
Click here for the full ArtsFest 2023 schedule.
Give Our Regards to Broadway As Ossie Davis’s Star-Filled Revival Opens to Good Reviews
With our beloved Ruby Dee Park, Ossie Davis Theater, and tribute plaque on the New Rochelle Walk of Fame, it’s quite apparent how proud we are to count artists Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, and their three children among those who have historically called New Rochelle home.
Their impressive careers, which included film and television acting, as well as writing credits and advocacy work, led to numerous awards and accolades across the years, including induction into the American Theater Hall of Fame, the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame, a National Medal of Arts, and Kennedy Center Honors.
There is one more to add to the list. This past week, the first ever Broadway revival of Ossie Davis’s ground- breaking 1961 play Purlie Victorious opened to very good reviews in the New York Times. The original production starred both Davis and Dee.
There had also been Purlie, the landmark 1970 musical adaptation of the play, and Gone Are the Days, a film version. This new production is under the direction of Kenny Leon and features lead star Leslie Odom Jr. Get your tickets now. It sounds like a must-see!
Watch this Space:
New Roc Moves Forward
New Roc, Downtown’s 450,000-square foot complex that is home to the ever-popular Regal Cinemas location, Applebee’s, Audi New Rochelle, Bananas Axe Cabana, Buffalo Wild Wings, GameStop, the Monroe (College) Athletic Complex, PinkBerry, Planet Fitness, Residence Inn by Marriott and SkyZone, – as well as the seasonal Spirit Halloween store for all your costume and decoration needs – recently added Cushman & Wakefield as the site’s new management and leasing agent.
Their term began with fun family music events in the New Roc courtyard this summer. Coming up will be a brand new community space that the City’s Parks and Recreation Department is planning for next year. Given the Department’s wonderful track record when it comes to events, it will no doubt be an amazing addition to the community.
With such easy access to highways and the big parking deck right there, New Roc surely will continue to grow as more and more people discover Downtown New Rochelle and our capacity for fun.
Hello to Hotel NoMa!
You may have noticed that one of our Downtown hotels has a swanky new name. Hotel NoMa just debuted last month taking a cue from its very popular NoMa Social Restaurant at 1 Radisson Plaza, a regional spot that has drawn people from all over Westchester and the surrounding areas. Indeed, singer Alicia Keys was among the celebs spotted there earlier this year.
The hotel is now affiliated with Wyndham’s boutique Trademark Collection. The Hotel NoMa branding is already proudly displayed on the building and elsewhere. The name may have changed from The Radisson but one thing has not. The hotel remains a terrific Downtown option for your wedding, meeting, and your very next stay-cation!
Arts Certification and Affordable Housing Applications Extended through Mid-October
If you are an artist seeking recognition, be sure to check out a special program just for you available through the City. The City’s Artist Certification process begins here. Work/life residential space may also be available to you in our burgeoning Downtown Arts & Cultural District. You can learn more about it by looking some of our newest locations that include the The Atelier at Westchester Place and The Arc.
The application deadline for some of New Rochelle’s affordable housing options was extended through mid-October.
It’s always great to visit Downtown New Rochelle. It is even better to live here.
Right on Time for Train Station Upgrade Survey
Given that Downtown is conveniently located just 30 minutes by train from Manhattan’s Grand Central Station, it’s no wonder that so many New Rochellians rely on Metro North for their travels into New York City and back.
The City’s Train Station which dates back to the early 1900s is ready for a state of the art upgrade. As the City looks to improve the New Rochelle Transit Center, they have been appreciating local residents sharing of ideas and development priorities for the site through the Department of Development’s recent questionnaire.
Since it is the busiest station along the Metro-North New Haven Line in New York State outside of New York City, improvement of the Transit Center will make access to the region’s jobs even better.
It is also the only Amtrak stop in southern Westchester County that services the Northeast Regional Line. In the future, the Transit Center is scheduled to be the first Metro North stop in Westchester County to provide direct access to Penn Station which in a few years will increase riders and transfer traffic here.
This summer, the Train Station was again a destination itself when local vendors, artisans and artists joined in on the fun at the City’s Commute a Ti pop-ups. Let’s give a shout-out to our Downtown baristas including those from Cafetero and Casaroma who have been helping everyone stay awake on their train journeys.
Watch for the exciting new season at the Train Station that is going to bring 40+ more Vendors plus the ice skating rink when the annual Holiday Market returns. You’ll be able to get a look-see at all of the Holiday Market’s expanded vendor offerings and activities when it opens up for a public Preview on Black Friday just after Thanksgiving.
New Rochelle Forward Gets Moving
The City’s new workforce development program called New Rochelle Forward kicked off last week with non-profit partner Soulful Synergy at 173 Huguenot. The initiative is providing transformational personnel training and resources.
Interested? Click here for information on upcoming trainings and programs.
A Note
As we look forward to all the good and exciting events and changes taking place in Downtown, it’s important that we also always remember those who have played a vital role in our community along the way. We lost two such people this summer – Don Powell of DP Printing and Graphics at 3 Church St and “Fitz” Blair of Smoke and Spice at 15 Anderson Plaza. Both men contributed so much talent and service to our business community over many, many years here. Please join us in sending our heartfelt sympathies to their families and all who knew and loved them as they mourn their passing.
We look forward to seeing you here during our very creative new season in Downtown.
Photos: New Rochelle Downtown BID, City of New Rochelle, Clipground, Hotel NoMa, One Clinton Park / RXR