MANVILLE NEWS EDITORIAL — OCT. 12
By:The Manville News
It seems that a lot of people have ideas these days on how to market Manville.
The most recent of these came from Rocky Romeo of Edutek Business Development, who urged local businesses to promote whatever makes them unique. Mr. Romeo’s idea, aimed as it was at Manville’s business community, holds the key to a reniassance in Manville at large.
As Manville moves forward through the 21st century, we believe its prosperity will lie with one of its greatest strengths: its Eastern European ethnic character and heritage. In years past, Manville boasted a Polish Hall that served as a social hub in the borough, hosting weddings, dances, and other events and serving as a continual celebration of the rich culture Manville residents shared.
The hall is gone, and with the strong presence of Thomas J. Kavanaugh Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2290, there is little need to rebuild it. But Manville would do well to promote the ethnic heritage of its residents, and establish the borough as a cultural and artistic center in the region. The triumphs of the immigrants who laid the foundation to what Manville grew to be, what they gave up to come here, and what they and their children did here over the years – all these things are worth celebrating.
The borough’s location is ideal to make it into such a center, placed as it is at the confluence of Route 22, Interstate 78 and Route 206. Main Street itself, in its capacity as Route 533, is a less-traveled but still significant parallel to Route 206, reaching north to Route 22 in Green Brook and winding its way south through Millstone and Montgomery along the Millstone River.
Manville has demonstrated repeatedly that it has no problem attracting people for special events. The success of this year’s Fun in the Sun Street Fair and the Sacred Heart Summer Festival prove this. Getting people to make Manville a regular stop is what’s needed.
So give people a reason to come back, not just once or twice a year but on a regular basis, by hosting special lectures, by setting aside places to commemorate Manville’s history and heritage, and by establishing regular cultural events and activities at the library, at the Elks, at the VFW and throughout the borough.