A Jersey City skateboard shop has released a limited-edition skateboard shoe.
Chris Nieratko and Steve Lenardo, owners of NJ Skate Shop on Monmouth Street, are the designers of the new shoe. They created it to celebrate the shop's 20th anniversary in business and honor Jersey City.
The designers say they specifically wanted to pay tribute to the memories of the long-gone Roosevelt Stadium that sat on the shores of Newark Bay from 1937 to 1985.
The idea came to Leonardo as he was driving home from his job as a teacher at Jersey City’s Public School 24 in Jersey. He saw the sign for Route 440 and realized it matched the New Balance 440 model, the shop's bestselling shoe.
After this, he and Nieratko got to work researching city history and coming up with a design. The former site of Roosevelt Stadium happens to sit along today's Route 440.
Lenardo also had personal memories of Roosevelt Stadium, including seeing his first concert with his uncle and spending days playing baseball with his brothers.
Nieratko and Lenardo say NJ Skate shop also has a location in New Brunswick. However, the shoes will only be sold in Jersey City. There are also only 715 pairs to honor the store's July 15 anniversary date.