People living near North Street and Avenue A stop to stare. Drivers at the traffic light also have to take a look. Anyone stumbling upon the new building on the corner might think the contractors made a mistake.
The three-story commercial building seems full of contradictions, with a first-floor bank and a handful of other businesses stuffed on top. The upper floors are not always at the same angle or in the same direction as the lower floors.
To call it “one of a kind” is an understatement, although some residents interviewed along North Street said the construction has raised concerns for what they might expect when the same designer builds townhouses nearby. The building is slated to open shortly and will become the new home of Pamrapo Bank, Cutting Edge Construction, Cutting Edge Real Estate, and Barrier Electric.
“Some call it a funny building because from the outside it looks a little lopsided,” said Rosalinda Caves, real estate agent for Cutting Edge Real estate.
Yet for all the external angles and the apparent disjointed look of the floors, a walk through the building’s interior reveals that it is remarkably in line – although there is a stylishness to the place not typical of most offices, especially in the uniquely designed conference room.
Wanted to stand out
DAL Design of Bayonne designed the building for Cutting Edge, and to be something that would stand out in the community.
Rick Cherchio, president of Cutting Edge, was tired of boxy-looking buildings and wanted something different. Born and raised in Bayonne, he has been constructing here for almost 25 years.
“I don’t like building the same thing over and over,” he said. “And I hate building square boxes.”
Of course, he succeeded beyond his expectations, because this could never be mistaken for any other building in Bayonne.
Having different edges poking out here and there is supposed to symbolize the name of their company as the cutting edge of design.
“It is new and innovative,” Caves said.
The company is hardly new to Bayonne. Its staff had designed and built structures throughout the city. Working with Richard Cirminello, vice president and John Barrier, president of Barrier Electric, Cherchio has built two-family houses on 53rd and 54th streets, and commercial buildings on 34th and Broadway.
The design of their own building was done for Cutting Edge by DAL Design of Bayonne, which managed to create something resembling an Escher Bach drawing, one of those amazing optical illusions that deceive the eye but can never be real. In this case, it is real.
It is a three-story structure that uses glass, stone, and brick.
Cherchio said he had originally proposed placing the building on the back of the lot, giving people a better perspective.
“The Planning Board required us to put it up front and the parking in the back,” he said.
“The building has a different look depending from what angle you look at it.”
From the front, the third floor looks a little like a box car dropped into the middle of the second floor. From this angle, the second floor windows seem to dip down like a drunken vision. The first floor is the most acceptable to the eye with the arches for the drive-up window and the steel supports holding up the second floor in front of the walkup area to the front door.
The bank will occupy the whole first floor. A stairwell through a glass door to one side leads to the company offices upstairs. Planters and other landscaping will modify the sharp lines of the building’s varying shapes.
But Cherchio said the night lighting will give the building an even more startling look, perhaps something more out of a Star Trek or Star Wars movie than conventional construction.
“People either love it or hate it,” he said. “It’s not quite off the wall.”
Cutting Edge purchased two pieces of property in Bayonne from the state. One was for their corporate office, and the other is expected be the site of 30 high-end condos if the Bayonne Planning Board gives its go ahead.
The company, prior to their new home, had offices on the second floor of a building near Avenue C and 21 Street for about 15 years.
“We outgrew it,” Cherchio said.
Contact Al Sullivan at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com