Thanks for all the suggestions. I stopped the creaking by spraying WD-
40 on the front shock absorber.

I pulled the cranks and removed the new bottom bracket cartridge. The
bottom bracket cartridge turned smoothly and the cranks were tight on
the spindle. Upon removing the peddles (Wellgo clipless/quill) and
disassembling them, the right peddle has play in the spindle. I also
checked the welds and bottom bracket for cracks and found none.

My next step is to test the bike with another set of peddles.

Stay tuned for the next episode of "Creaks and Ticks."

Cheers :-),

Rod