*Photos by Beverly Samuelson, Joe Bayona, Carolyn Maxwell, Katherine Massopust • See story below.

Four-Alarm Fire Tore Through Building on April 13th

By: Joseph L. Kuchie

SOUTH AMBOY – Members of the South Amboy city council discussed the recent fire that destroyed the C-Town supermarket on Bordentown Avenue.

Originally known as Frank’s Meat Market in 1928, the property had been owned by the Paczkowski family for 86 years. The building was leased to a North Haledon group owned by Nasser Nasser in 2013 and was re-branded as C-Town in 2014.

“The business was at the heart of the community…a family business for over 80 years,” said Business Administrator Camille Tooker.  “You can be assured that the city will be reaching out to Mr. Paczkowski to see if there’s anything at all we can do to help him as he plans for the future of that sight.”

“It’s heartbreaking to have this kind of loss,” added Councilwoman Zusette Dato. “It was such a big part of the community.”

Mayor Fred Henry and the entire council praised the work of the first responders who worked tirelessly to control the fire and minimize the damage. Henry also thanked the surrounding towns that sent their crews to the scene to assist South Amboy.

“It was just incredible how many trucks showed up and how many firefighters and first responders were there to help us in our time of need,” Henry said. “We lost a building, but we didn’t lose any lives.”

“We have the best of the best,” Council President Mickey Gross added about the city’s emergency response teams. “It did not go unnoticed.”

This was not the first hardship the Paczkowski family has faced at this property. Damage caused by Superstorm Sandy forced Edmund Paczkowski to shut down the building in 2012, and an electrical fire in January damaged part of the building after it was re-opened by Mr. Nasser months before.

“It’s just a shame all around… a big loss for South Amboy,” Henry said. He also sent his best regards to both Paczkowski and Nasser.

All council members were in attendance for Wednesday’s meeting. The next city council meeting will be held on May 20th at 7 p.m.