Dover knows how to celebrate! And if the walls of the Richards Building could talk, they’d have plenty of stories to tell. For decades, Blackwell Street has been the place to gather for parades, festivities, and community gatherings. And the Richards Building has been right there through it all, serving as a backdrop for so many of Dover’s celebrations. Last weekend was another reminder that while the times (and the parades!) may change, the community spirit that makes Dover

This new addition to the Mercantile isn't just a place to pay for all of your awesome finds. This is a part of Richards Building history. The wood was part of the original construction of the Richards Building itself, and now it's back in action as the Mercantile's brand-new checkout counter. From the benches in the Loft to the Instagram Wall at The Amp (IYKYK), original wood from the Richards Building has been given a second life in some pretty unexpected places. Now, the M

As America celebrates its milestone 250th birthday and voters prepare for midterm elections, Heidi Schreck's What the Constitution Means to Me offers a timely, funny, and deeply personal invitation to reflect on the document that helped shape our nation—and continues to shape our lives. Heidi Schreck's funny, heartfelt, and surprisingly intimate play begins with her experience as a 15-year-old traveling around the country competing in Constitutional debate competitions to

George Richards now gets to witness all the visitors who come to take in the incredible room he built, which is now an amazing venue space in The Richards Building!

Since we've written last, the awning that we produced such fanfare about have been joined by some more modern companion canopies! They'll shed light on The Richards Building's entrances, as well as provide cover like their nostalgic awning cousins. The awnings aren’t the only echoes of the past we’ve added. This month, we finalized the plans for our reimagined lunch counter, bringing back what was once a staple venue for the town. Tad Dexter, a contractor with HomeGroup who's

It’s been a while since our last post, because we’ve been so busy with construction at the Richards Building in Downtown Dover, NJ! The magic about this historic space is that every corner you turn there are new possibilities, as well as hints of the past. One touch of yesteryear we’ve recently added: Awnings that reflect the building’s J.J. Newberry’s era, featuring the same green and yellow stripes as the long-gone luncheonette’s midcentury canopies (See how original we are

The Richards Room - Dover's newest space for special events - is almost ready to go Sitting on the southeast corner of the 3rd floor of the Richards Building is a large room that used to be the mayoral office of George Richards, Dover's first mayor - and, of course, the man behind the Richards Building. We think the room is looking really sharp. What did it take to get to this point? Alot! We removed the the drop ceiling, plaster and vinyl flooring. (It was really pretty ugly

What started as a dream is finally coming to fruition. If you haven't had the opportunity to stroll by the Richards Building in a minute, we strongly recommend it. The facade is really coming together with fresh coats of paint and new windows and doors. It almost doesn't seem real that the early rendering of what the building could look like, has actually happened! The concept. The reality. A work in progress, but so much progress has been made! Can you imagine? What we

We here at the Richards Building need to give a shoutout to Facebook user, Howard James Vose, for sending in this incredible photo looking West down Blackwell Street around the turn of the century (around 1900, in case that wasn't obvious). It’s truly incredible to see how so much has changed; but even more importantly, how much has stayed the same! Gone are the days of downtown trolley cars, but in their place, local buses travel down Blackwell and a very bustling train tr

On April 11th, the Amp held their first gallery opening and public event to celebrate the official opening of the "Clay Cavern," The Amp's ceramics studio. Over 200 people came out to celebrate local artists who provided 115+ pieces of art. Musicians, ceramicists, painters and more were in attendance and it was truly a community gathering of students, artists, art appreciators, journalists, politicians - you name it! Walter Rodriguez, the Executive Director of the Amp, shar

As we continue the renovation on the Richards Building, some of you may begin to have a feeling of nostalgia. That’s because we are doing our best to reimagine this historic building in a way that hearkens back to its days as J.J. Newberry’s. In the coming months, the brick will be painted to match the Bassett and Sussex Street corner of the building, and an awning in the style of the original Newberry’s awning will be installed by the Fourth of July. On the left is an old

Some very cool things are happening in Downtown Dover: Bri'LaFlor’s new dance studio is lighting up Blackwell Street; the Richards Building façade is looking very chic; aaaand the snow is almost melted! So many great vibes! This corner of Blackwell and Sussex happens to be the future home to the Richards Mercantile, a great place to shop for unique items - handmade, vintage, local and international items (and gifts…and tea towels …and bears, Oh My!). Stay tuned for updates a

If you woke up like I did, it was looking like a pretty crummy day in Dover. Gray, drizzly, sleet-y (is that a word?). BUT, then I looked up and I saw that the Richards Building has finally shown its face! The beautiful new façade facing Blackwell Street is a beacon on this gray day, and it is looking sleek! What you're now seeing at street level is just a suggestion of the marketplace that is soon to come. The facade is not quite complete, but this is certainly a glimpse

Published right here in the historic Richards Building, DOVER NOW magazine stands as the region’s sole bilingual magazine, committed to shining a light on the people, places, and topics that influence life across Dover and beyond. The magazine is not only one of the "OG" Richards Building tenants, it is also under the same ownership as the building, and is carrying on a long legacy of publishing local news in the Richards Building. Back in the late 1800s and well into the

We realize that most of what is happening to the Richards Building right now is out of public view, but you might have noticed a few updates to the facade. It might not be much to look at right now, but this emergency exit door goes to the newly constructed egress stairways that allowed us to remove the (unsightly) fire escape from the exterior of the building . All of this new brick and construction is just a nod to the extra care that we are taking to make sure the Richard

Happy New Year! A bit belated but we’re still in it, aren’t we? And boy are we excited to see all of 2025’s hard work finally coming to life as our first tenants move into their new, custom offices and studios! It seems like it’s all finally coming together in a visually tangible way. Simple things – like doorknobs!! with keys!! – tell us that this is going to be a great year at the Richards Building. And because you’ve been on this ride with us all along (or maybe you’re

You may have noticed that a lot has been happening at the street level of the Richards Building. To say that we have been busy would be an understatement. But one thing that has been out of sight has long been on our minds. & we’re so excited to share it with you. The sub-street level art space that we have been calling the Richards Basement (shoutout Basement Bash ’24 & ’25!), has officially been named: welcome to The Amp ! The Amp is collaborative. The Amp is inclusiv

We’ve been updating all of you for months on the progress being made on the Sussex- and Blackwell-facing sides of the Richards Building, but there’s another major part of this building that has not been discussed much. In August, Rent-A-Center unexpectedly vacated the 4,000-square-foot space on the corner of Warren and Bassett—leaving behind a rare opportunity for a new retail vision to take root in downtown Dover. Now, as we dive deep into renovations and reimagine the R

As we were taking down some walls in our basement, getting ready to start construction of our basement art space, suddenly we discovered...

No, we are not installing a small addition. It also is not some type of modern art. A strange steel structure emerges from the facade of...