Visions for Vacancies: What Business Should Fill Bloomfield Ave. Space?

Home Sweet Home, owned by Ralph and Janice Cocchi, has been selling affordably priced home décor and accessories in Verona for the past 14 years but recently decided it was time for a change.

The antique shop recently moved a few doors down and doubled its space, leaving 298 Bloomfield Ave. as a vacant space.

The location is right at the corners of Bloomfield Avenue and Malvern Place, with plenty of parking just across the street near 7-Eleven and Anthony Robert Salon and just a short drive from the intersection of Bloomfield and Pompton avenues.

Ralph Cocchi said he does not yet know what he would like to do with the vacant space.

So this is where you come in, Verona and Cedar Grove community. The concept behind this column is we’ll present a vacant building and ask you to tell us what you think would be the best use of the vacant space.

Here's the fun part: Forget what zone it’s in. Ignore setback regulations, as well as dump lot coverage rules and all the other zoning jargon that puts most people to sleep.

Our bottom line: If you had your way, what would you like to see there? What would be the best use of the space for the community?

To make this work, this can’t be a one-sided conversation. We want to hear from you in our comments section. And, please, let us know if there’s a vacant space/building you know of as well we can feature in a future column. 

Send emails about vacant buildings or stores to Verona-Cedar Grove Associate Editor Eric Goodman at eric.goodman@patch.com