Great American Main Street Award Filming – Metuchen, New Jersey
One of the perks of shutting down Main Street for filming is that my son got to rollerblade under the bridge seemingly endlessly. With traffic this would be a death wish but with a closed street it was an extreme sport ramp.
The crowd gathered on Main Street with the NJ Transit bridge in the background. I was joined by two business owners, Amar with Metuchen News and Angie with Angie’s Cafe. Both of their businesses were ones I worked with extensively on storefront updates. Each received a public art mural that the Metuchen Downtown Alliance helped to fund. Setting aside everything else, it was owners like them that helped Metuchen to win the Great American Main Street Award. I felt proud to stand beside them for the filming.
From here we walked northward up Main Street. It was an impressive sized group of people. In the upper left corner a portion of the Love Letter by Stephen Powers is visible. The full mural reads “Stay in Touch.”
Looking back toward the bridge again, it was impressive to see everyone spread out. Over my sright shoulder was Michael Schutz, owner of What’s the Scoop. This is another business that the me and the Metuchen Downtown Alliance helped a lot.
Walking up Main Street, seeing Papillon & Company and Terrace side-by-side was nice. Both opened during the pandemic and were recipients of extensive support in the form of grants to help with their opening. While they each closed a few years after this photo was taken, that detracts nothing from their accomplishments as businesses.
Edna Epelu was owner of Papillion. Here I am with her holding a print of Brass Lantern. This is a store that previously was located where here business opened. I brought this with me for the video shoot to provide continuity between past and present business owners.
Our brief was to wear bright and colorful clothing that stands out. Here I am with my child who lived through the six years it took to make Metuchen a Great American Main Street Award winner. Behind us is Imagination Alley where a mural and other activations helped to bring this space to life. Metuchen News in the right corner experienced probably one of the most dramatic changes downtown with new awning, painting, outdoor seating, and, of course, the mural.
After all the excitement I was reminded of the phrase “children and art.” According to Stephen Sondheim and a lyric he wrote, these are the two most important things in life. I count myself fortunate to have both.
The video that was filmed was later streamed on social media when the announcement was made a month later that we won the Great American Main Street Award.