Senate committee to hold hearing on N.J. Motor Vehicle Commission customer service problems
New Jerseyans who want to complain about the state Motor Vehicle Commission can vent before the state Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee which will hold a public hearing on the operation of the agency on Thursday morning in Lodi.
The hearing is set for 10 a.m. in the Lodi Municipal Complex, 1 Memorial Dr.
The panel wants to hear about what Democratic legislators describe as MVC service reductions, and intends to raise questions about the causes of several system-wide computer failures that left motorists waiting. (Hester, New Jersey Newsroom)
Ridgewood NJ, New Jersey Transit (NJT) is wrapping up the last of its major renovations at the Ridgewood train station and putting the finishing touches on the project in anticipation of its expected fall completion date.
The extensive $41 million construction project, which began in early 2009, was undertaken with the intent of making the station accessible to disabled passengers and more convenient for all commuters. Since then, the station has seen a raised platform replace the previously existing one on the station’s west side, the installation of 350-foot canopies over the tracks, new stairs, parking improvements and renovations to the station’s restrooms and ticket booth.
>Children to Have a Ball with Little Ivy Learning Center at Ridgewood Sidewalk Sale Days
Children will have a ball when they come to Little Ivy Learning Center’s table at Ridgewood Sidewalk Sale Days this Thursday, Friday and Saturday (Aug. 4, 5 & 6).
We will be on hand from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Thursday and Friday (noon-2 p.m. on Saturday) with free beach balls for children up to age 5. . . and to provide each child and their family an opportunity to learn more about Little Ivy’s thoughtfully crafted pre-school, kindergarten and child-care programs. You’ll find us just next to the “Ice Cream Boy” statue in front of Van Neste Park on East Ridgewood Avenue.
“Our students having been having such a ball at Little Ivy this summer that we thought beach balls would be a fun way to introduce young families to our hometown and to Little Ivy,” said Little Ivy Director Stephanie Bassler. “We look forward to meeting you and your child during Ridgewood Sidewalk Sale Days.”
When they’re not having a ball at Sidewalk Sale Days, Little Ivy’s experienced teachers provide thoughtfully crafted child-care, pre-school and kindergarten programs for children ages 12-months through 6 with an emphasis on personalized learning and small classes in bright, cozy classrooms. Little Ivy provides its students and their parents with a range of flexible, full-day, AM or PM programs, including PreschoolPlus and KindergartenPlus (12-month childcare, plus academic preschool, kindergarten and summer camp); Preschool (toddler/junior/senior nursery school and academic pre-K); AM & PM Kindergarten Enrichment (with transportation from select local public schools); Transitional Kindergarten; Kindergarten and Summer Camp.
Little Ivy Learning Center, a private preschool, kindergarten and child-care center, is located in the Education Building on the historic campus of the Old Paramus Reformed Church, 660 East Glen Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ. For more information, visit our table during Sidewalk Sale Days, contact us at info@mylittleivy.com, or visit us at www.mylittleivy.com.
In the event of rain, beach balls will be available during scheduled tours of Little Ivy during the month of August, while supplies last.
>Ridgewood’s Sidewalk Sale Days are coming up soon!
Sidewalk Sale Days are August 4, 5, and 6, or next Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Come enjoy huge deals from expansive selections of merchandise, including clothing, shoes and more! Participants include:
Allergy Free and More, Anais, Antik Butik, Art of Motion, Arthur Groom, Biltmore Tuxedo, B. Witching Bath & Company, Bookends, Children’s Aid and Family Services, CupCakes by Carousel, DoubleTake Consignment Boutique, Duxiana, Eat Your Spinach, Family Chiropractor, Fox’s, Framed, From The Top Music Studio, Gardner & Co., Hot Jewelry Box, Huntington School of Learning, Interior Design, Jekyll & Hide, Joaillier Inc., Just Our Shoes/Mephisto, Leapin’ Lizards, Learning Express, Little Ivy Learning Center, Namaste Organic Spa, New York Sports Club, Northeast Laser Vein Institute, Panico Salon, Pink Bungalow, Pizza Fusion, Pompanoosuc Mills, Precision Orthodontics, Red Velvet Luxe, Ridgewood Bootery, Ridgewood Coffee Co., Savvy Chic Consignment Boutique, Sherwin Williams, Shoe Inn, Secret Studio, Suburban Momma, Town & Country, Upper Ridgewood Tennis Club, Village Eyewear, Village Tannery, Venture Photography, Virgo, Warehouse Cheap & Chic, Wostbrock Floor/Furniture/Rug Co., Yansi Fugel, and YWCA of Bergen County
*Art of Motion will not have a table displayed, but they are offering the following discounts: a free class with the purchase of a ten class card (a 10% discount), two free classes with the purchase of a frequent class card, as well as 20% discounts on AOM t-shirts, children’s leotards, jazz pants, and dance bags. The studio will also waive the $25.00 registration fee for all new students registering for the Fall Semester.
This is some shopping that you won’t want to miss!
P.S. Be sure to bring your rewards card. If you don’t have one come scoop one up at the Chamber!
> New system helps doctors detect lung cancer at early stage
Physicians in two New Jersey hospitals are using a new tool that helps detect the deadliest form of cancer in its early stages without having to perform invasive procedures. Doctors at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood and at Hackensack University Medical Center are using the superDimension lung navigation system, which allows them to reach and biopsy lesions buried deep in the lungs.
>Linker Responds to Menendez’s Assault on the TEA Party
(Ridgewood, NJ): “It is ironic that Bob Menendez called Tea Party patriots “pirates” and the debt crisis “manufactured” when it’s the profligate spenders in Washington, such as Menendez himself, who are responsible for hijacking the American people and our future by running up the debt to an unsustainable $14.3 trillion, which is an increase of almost 50% since Obama took office.”
“Menendez pointed to past increases of the debt limit as precedent for why this Congress should have summarily raised the limit again without any spending cuts attached. Menendez’s statements are irresponsible and demonstrate that he does not understand America’s fiscal crisis, or doesn’t want to understand it, and is out of touch with New Jerseyans. Perhaps one reason Menendez’s approval ratings are mired in the 30s is because the people of New Jersey realize that Bob Menendez has no interest in solving our nation’s fiscal problems. As usual, Bob’s answer involves name calling, fear mongering, demagoguery, and class warfare. The American people and the people of New Jersey deserve better.”
“If the 2010 midterms showed us anything, it’s that the American people are fed up with past practice and they want the government to end its reckless spending, balance the budget, and pay down its dangerously high mountain of debt. The Tea Party deserves a token of gratitude from the American people for so passionately emphasizing the need for Washington to end its spending binge once and for all.”
“It’s so obvious why politicians like Bob Menendez are reduced to finger pointing and calling Tea Party patriots names. These unprincipled bullies cling to power as long as they can keep government growing. If the debate focuses on the dangers inherent in unlimited government, as the Tea Party has done, these career politicians could lose their power unless they productively join the debate and offer ideas of their own to solve America’s problems – something they cannot do. Nothing could be scarier to Bob Menendez than losing his power, so one would think he would join the discussion and offer ideas. Instead, he calls patriots names and plays the blame game in classic Menendez style. In the meantime we have a country to save – and save it we will.”
Because he didn’t screw thing up enough in NJ : Corzine the next Treasury Secretary?
The New York Times reported today on an interesting clause tucked into a prospectus for a recent MF Global bond offering that could signal a new role for former Democratic Governor Jon Corzine. (Isherwood, PolitickerNJ)
N.J. must create new sergeant selection process in U.S. Department of Justice settlement
New Jersey must create a new process for selecting sergeants in municipal and county police departments after reaching a settlement to revise a system the U.S. Department of Justice said discriminates against black and Hispanic applicants, federal officials announced Monday.
If the settlement is approved by a federal judge, the state will also be required to pay $1 million in back pay to black and Hispanic officers the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division says were harmed by the promotion process. Those officers may also be given priority for the next openings for sergeants. (Megerian, The Star-Ledger)
After years of steady declines, New Jersey’s notoriously high auto insurance rates are on the rise again.
And, to stem the tide, the Christie administration is proposing new rules that would limit the kinds of medical care injured drivers can receive under their auto policies.
The proposed rules could rekindle debate over auto insurance, an issue that dominated New Jersey for decades, when angry motorists regularly revolted against paying rates that were nearly always the most expensive in the nation. (Rizzo, The Star-Ledger)
Under NJ energy plan, does sewage sludge qualify as renewable fuel?
It probably will not be embraced by environmentalists, but some folks are promoting sewage sludge as a renewable fuel. It fits that definition, according to a Houston-based firm that helps sewerage authorities manage the waste they produce from processing millions of gallons of sewage.
Synagro Technologies recently won contract approval from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs for a ten-year, $28 million contract with the Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority to begin converting the 60,000 tons of sludge it generates annually into a product that can displace coal as a fuel source in an out-of-state generating plant. (Johnson, NJ Spotlight)
It took a little courage and some said a leap of faith, but 31 New Jersey school districts have signed up to be part of the Christie administration’s pilot program for testing a statewide teacher evaluation system.
All of the models being assessed by the pilot must rely on student test scores and other achievement measures for up to half a teacher’s grade, from “ineffective” to “highly effective.” But with a few options to pick from, the state wants to evaluate them first in a mix of locales. (Mooney, NJ Spotlight)
Offshore wind developers propose financing mechanism without revealing costs to consumers
Offshore wind developers yesterday presented a proposal to set up a mechanism for financing up to 1,100 megawatts of wind farms off the Jersey coast, but the proposal raised more questions than it answered among state regulatory officials.
The proposal, a consensus mechanism agreed upon by several offshore wind developers, suggests a framework for how the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) could award ratepayer-subsidized credits to the wind farms for the electricity they generate. That would guarantee the projects a steady stream of funding that should convince banks to invest in the clean energy technology. (Johnson, NJ Spotlight)
New Jersey Department of Education tells school districts to get started on criminal background checks for Board of Education members
School districts have been notified to begin the process of completing criminal background checks on all school board members.
The state Department of Education has not set a deadline to complete the checks to allow time for the almost 5,000 school board members and charter school trustees to be processed. Districts were notified in a July 14 memo to begin having board members enter their information into the online system so they can get an appointment to be fingerprinted. (D’Amico, Press of Atlantic City)
>205 Lotte Road : Village’s record in dealing with these types of issues is not the best
While I agree that the Village’s record in dealing with these types of issues is not the best, the issue is not as straight forward as one might think. The fact is that they can issue all of the notices and summonses they want and it may not solve the problem. If the owner does not have the money they are not going to do anything. If the owner is bankrupted nothing is going to happen.
My sister lives in another town and there is a house not too far from her in the same condition. The town issued summonses and the owner abandon the house and moved out of state. They can’t sue the owner because she has no assets and they no authority to force her to return to NJ to answer to building code violations.
The bank now owns the house and they will not do anything but list the property for sale. The bank is also located out of state and will not even respond to the town.
I hate to say it but we are going to be seeing more and more of these issues
