the rix mix

Unfortunately, had no reason to patronize this old sheet music store in the lively, predominantly Hispanic Morris Ave. retail district, I'm sure he had a great selection of classical miniscores. The owner had no walk-in business, & must have specialized in supplying church music. He was there every day wearing a jacket & tie. A few months ago he began taking days off & taping "closed today due to illness in family" signs on the door. It appears that the store has been sold, a sign mentions a new owner, but a lot of the shelves have been cleared. Online catalogue sales have driven famous sheet music stores out of business, like the one behind Carnegie Hall. Surprised this local one hung on.

Morris Ave. is now anchored by popular Colombian-flavored cafes, with beauty parlors & other service businesses, it's been getting through the recession without many storefront vacancies. In fact, there's been a good deal of renovating over the past year. If Elizabeth ever had a candidate for a commuter retail & residential district, the stretch of Morris Ave. between the train station & Kean University was probably it. But the city was uninterested in master planning around the underutilized train station plaza.

Labels: Elizabeth NJ, music