Landmark Bayville Dinosaur Gets A New Lease On Life

BERKELEY TOWNSHIP, NJ — No one's quite sure how many time Bud has lost his head.

"When I was growing up, I helped my dad put his head back on a few times," said Fred Brzozowski of Bayville, who lived in the apartment at 510 Heritage Square on Route 9 after his parentst bought the building in 1954.

On Saturday, Brzozowski admired the work of of those who did the most recent round of work to repair Bud the Bayville Dinosaur, following a ribbon-cutting in front of Heritage Square after three years of work to restore the landmark that has stood on Route 9 since the 1930s.

"It's great to see," Brzozowski said.

"I'm extremely thrilled that this community project that started over three years ago, has finally come to fruition," Berkeley Mayor Carmen Amato said as he presented a proclamation to Anthony and Nino Zangari, the brothers who own Heritage Square and helped bring the restoration to fruition. The proclamation, in addition to thanking those involved, declared the day as "Bud the Bayville Dinosaur Day."

"He belongs to the community," Anthony Zangari said, adding they couldn't be more happy about providing Bud his home for years to come.

The dinosaur has stood on Route 9 since he was purchased by Will Farrow for $5 and moved to the plot of land where it has stood watch. For years, it marked the midpoint on Route 9 between New York City and Atlantic City.

Farrow owned a taxidermy business and also was the justice of the peace at the time, Anthony Zangari said. But in 1954 Farrow sold the building — which at the time only occupied half of the space — to Fred and Lil Brzozowski, Fred's parents. They owned the property until 1979, when they sold it to Joel Mahr, who owned Kim Carpet.

"The head was real close to the road," Brzozowski said, and as a result, passing trucks would clip the dinosaur and take its head off if they passed by too closely.

Over the years, the dinosaur has had a number of different heads and colors. In the mid-2000s a Benjamin Franklin Paints occupied one of the stores in the building and invited children to come and help give the dinosaur a fresh coat of paint and a bright style with painted handprints. The paint store shut down, and the dinosaur fell into disrepair.

In 2015, however, a grassroots effort among longtime residents and the Berkeley Township Historical Society was launched to Save the Dinosaur. The committee raised $15,000 for the renovation efforts. They moved along in fits and starts until the Zangari family bought the building and took on the renovation project in 2018.

"It was full of challenges," Anthony Zangari said, but he was happy to show off the final renovation, which also capped extensive renovations to the building at Heritage Square. It now houses MaidPro offices; M&M Seafood, which sells fresh seafood; Trader Legion Games, which hosts gaming nights and sells tabletop and board games; and a few smaller office tenants.

"There's something going on here all the time now," he said.

Getting the renovation completed was no small task in part because there were some conflicts in the community over what was being done and by whom. Arguments ensued in some Facebook groups. Anthony Zangari said he did not want to comment on those issues.

He and Amato did, however, heap praise on those who helped bring the renovation to completion, starting with Charles "Bud" Magahan of the Berkeley Township Historical Society.

"His patience and wealth of experience was instrumental in bringing this all together," Anthony Zangari said, announcing the dinosaur had been renamed Bud in Magahan's honor.

"I want to thank the Zangari Family," Amato said. "Without their support and understanding this project would have never happened. They not only embraced the project, they were involved in it every step of the way. Anthony and Nino Zangari should also be commended for the outstanding job they did renovating the now Heritage Square building."

"As a community we have a lot to be proud of this project and we all look forward to it watching over us for decades to come," he said.

Amato and Zangari said the following people made important contributions to the renovation project:

• Magahan and his wife, Barbara, as well as the Berkeley Township Historical Society'
• The "Save the Dinosaur" Committee
• The Berkeley Township PBA
• The Central Ocean Business Association
• John Bence of Fine Line Masonry and Michael Roth of Advanced Stucco, for the base restoration
• Jim Fosbre and Bud Magahan for the body cavity restoration
• Ed of L&E Welding, Frank Costanzo and the Magahans for the first relocation of the dinosaur
• Steve Baeli, Shannon MacDonald and Jennifer Carmine for the paint removal process
• Bob Mennona of Jersey Rents and the Magahans for the second dinosaur relocation
• Frank Costanzo and Nino Zangari for the decorative stone and lighting
• Janell Keneske of Janell Designs and Magahan for the metal design and skeleton fabrication
• Mark Stansfield of Empire Masonry for the cement coverings
• Janell Keneske, Kim Calabrese and Debbi Fossi for the final painting and protective coatings.

The text of the township proclamation reads:

WHEREAS, in the mid 1930s, Will Farrow bought what is now known as the “Bayville Dinosaur” for $5.00 and moved it to Route 9 in Bayville; and

WHEREAS, it then became a local landmark, which at one time marked the halfway point between New York and Atlantic City; and

WHEREAS, the dinosaur has been a staple in our community, keeping a watchful eye over our citizens perched on Route 9 for over 70 years; and

WHEREAS, through the decades that followed, it has become an "iconic brontosaurus" beloved by all, even being mentioned in many publications including Weird NJ; and

WHEREAS, as a result of father time and unintended consequences, the dinosaur has made many transformations over the years from new colors and different heads and in 2015, it began to deteriorate further nearly losing its head; and

WHEREAS, a group of concerned citizens, including community groups and public officials came together and formed the "Save the Dinosaur Committee"; and

WHEREAS; The Committee, in conjunction with the Berkeley Township Historical Society, collected donations, sold merchandise and held a fundraiser where donations were received from concerned citizens from all over the Country, and in the end, more than $15,000 was raised to restore the Bayville icon; and

WHEREAS, In 2018, with the full support of the new owners, The Zangari Family, the restoration of the Dinosaur began at the newly renovated Heritage Square building; and

WHEREAS, a group of talented artists, volunteers, tradesman including the Zangaris, used their talent to refurbish the dinosaur where it received a new head, tail, feet and paint; and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that I, Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. in concurrence with the Berkeley Township Council, wish to commend and thank everyone involved for the wonderful job they did in restoring our beloved Dinosaur; and

FURTHER IT BE RESOLVED that I, hereby declare, today, Saturday, December 22, 2018 as “Bud the Dinosaur Day” in Berkeley Township as we officially celebrate its rebirth and dedication.

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Photos by Karen Wall, Patch staff