Author: James

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“OPERATION HELPING HAND 4”

Heroin-006

March 24,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

 

Hackensack NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced today the results of “Operation Helping Hand 4” – the fourth phase of an innovative law enforcement and public health initiative targeting the heroin and opioid crisis in Bergen County. The initiative was led by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office (“BCPO”), under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Calo and Chief of Detectives Robert Anzilotti, in coordination with Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III and Bergen County Sheriff Michael Saudino. Held from March 12 through 16, 2018, the initiative brought together Bergen County law enforcement from 30 agencies, Recovery Specialists from Children’s Aid and Family Services, clinicians and specialists from the Bergen County Department of Health Services, Division of Addiction Services, and professionals from New Bridge Medical Center to offer help to those suffering from the disease of addiction in Bergen County.

During the initiative, 37 individuals were arrested and brought to the BCPO to be processed. After they were issued summonses, largely for heroin possession, they were offered an opportunity to speak to a Recovery Specialist – a recovering addict, who has been clean and is trained to help them find treatment. This offer of help was in addition to, not in lieu of, criminal charges.

If the individual requested help, a trained clinician from the Bergen County Division of Addiction Services assessed him/her to determine the appropriate level of care and treatment needed. The clinicians, working closely with the Recovery Specialists and representatives from New Bridge Medical Center, then made arrangements for treatment, and law enforcement transported the individual to treatment.

Of the 37 individuals arrested during Operation Helping Hand 4, 19 have so far availed themselves of the treatment option, including 12 who are currently in 5-day detox programs, mostly at New Bridge Medical Center. As those individuals complete detox, longer-term treatment options are being arranged for them and their progress is being tracked by the Recovery Specialists. For those who did not avail themselves of treatment, the Recovery Specialists remain in touch with many of them and are prepared to offer help whenever they are ready to seek it.

A multi-jurisdictional task force comprised of law enforcement officers from the following agencies, under the direction of BCPO Chief Anzilotti, participated in the initiative: Bergen County Sheriff’s Office; Bergenfield Police Department; Cliffside Park Police Department; Clifton Police Department; Dumont Police Department; East Rutherford Police Department; Englewood Police Department; Elmwood Park Police Department; Fair Lawn Police Department; Garfield Police Department; Glen Rock Police Department; Hackensack Police Department; Lyndhurst Police Department; Mahwah Police Department; Morris County Prosecutor’s Office; New Milford Police Department; Norwood Police Department; Paramus Police Department; Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office; Paterson Police Department; Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; Ridgefield Park Police Department; Saddle River Police Department; Tenafly Police Department; Union County Prosecutor’s Office; Upper Saddle River Police Department and the Westwood Police Department.

Statistics compiled by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office indicate an increase in opioid use and drug overdoses in Bergen County from 2016 to the present. A preliminary analysis of overdose data by the BCPO Intel Unit and Narcotics Task Force revealed the following with respect to 2017:
507 total reported overdoses, 416 of which are currently identified as heroin/opioid-related.
Of the 308 reported overdoses, 131 were fatal overdoses; 111 of those were identified as heroin/opioid-related.
325 deployments of Narcan, the overdose reversal drug, by law enforcement officers, resulting in 245 lives saved. (Note: there were many other deployments – by parents, friends, family members, EMTs and in the ER that are not accounted for in this )

Acting Prosecutor Dennis Calo stated that “Operation Helping Hand 4 is part of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and Bergen County law enforcement’s continuing effort to combat the opioid epidemic and help those who are affected by it. The Operation demonstrates the close cooperation of law enforcement, County government and Bergen County social service organizations in the fight against this epidemic and the results that are possible through that cooperation. We will continue the fight.”

Acting Prosecutor Calo would like to thank the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, the Bergen County Executive, New Bridge Medical Center, Children’s Aid and Family Services, the Bergen County Department of Health Services, Division of Addiction Services, as well as all the participating law enforcement agencies for their assistance with this initiative.

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State Senator Corrado Accuses Acting Treasurer Muoio of Mishandling & Missing Money, During Her Time as Freeholder

elizabeth muoio treasurer

photo acting Treasurer Elizabeth Maher Muoio’

Independent Auditor Was Unable to Determine What Happened to $33 Million in State & Federal Grants, Said $475,000 in County Funds “Unlocated”

March 23, 2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,Senator Kristin M. Corrado (R-40) said a new document provided by the non-partisan Office of Legislative Services (OLS) raises questions about financial irregularities that occurred during Acting Treasurer Elizabeth Maher Muoio’s time in local government that will need to be answered at her confirmation hearing on Monday.

Sen. Kristin Corrado said that Acting Treasurer Muoio must answer questions at her confirmation hearing about missing and mishandled money during her time as a Mercer County Freeholder. (SenateNJ.com)
“The Senate Judiciary Committee has a responsibility to carefully vet gubernatorial nominees to confirm that they’re qualified and fit for the office to which they’ve been appointed,” said Corrado, a member of the committee. “During our routine research into Acting Treasurer Muoio’s time as a Mercer County Freeholder, we were disturbed to learn that the county could not account for the receipt or appropriate use of $33 million of state and federal grants. Further, we were shocked to learn that hundreds of thousands of dollars went missing, which an independent auditor was unable to locate. Given Acting Treasurer Muoio’s indication to the Judiciary Committee that she worked ‘closely’ on budgets during her time in local office, we’d like to know if she can explain these financial discrepancies that occurred on her watch.”

The OLS memo includes a 2003 audit in which an independent auditor noted “an inability of management” at Mercer County at that time to reconcile accounts receivable, including nearly $22 million of grants authorized by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) and more than $11.4 million from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The auditor noted that it was “unable to confirm these accounts receivable” or the assignment of grants to “specific projects approved” by the FAA, or, apparently, the NJDOT.
Corrado said these financial irregularities were concerning since the county’s property taxes increased by 86 percent during Muoio’s time working on the Mercer County budget.

“I’m concerned that during Acting Treasurer Muoio’s time managing Mercer County’s money, tens of millions in grants couldn’t be accounted for, nearly half-a-million dollars went missing, and county property tax bills skyrocketed,” added Corrado. “We need to know if she assumes responsibility for these irregularities, or if she overstated her involvement in managing the county’s fiscal affairs. These are questions that Acting Treasurer Muoio must be prepared to answer.”

Given the massive budget and tax increase proposal recently unveiled by the Murphy Administration, Corrado said it’s important for the Acting Treasurer to explain how her prior experience has prepared her for the responsibility of managing tens of billions of dollars of New Jersey taxpayers’ money.

“We must presume that Acting Treasurer Muoio helped to craft the Governor’s budget proposal, which includes the most spending in New Jersey history and a $1.7 billion tax increase,” Corrado concluded. “New Jersey taxpayers need assurances that the fiscal mismanagement that occurred during her watch in Mercer County won’t be repeated at the New Jersey Treasury.”

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Ridgewood Schools Preliminary 110 Million Dollar Budget Presentation

ridgewood schools

March 24,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Public school: The 2018-19 preliminary budget has been approved, with final vote by the Board of Education on May 7. Public presentations are set for April 3, 16 and May 7.
Click below to view the 2018-2019 Preliminary Budget presentation, given at the March 20 Board of Education meeting.
https://tinyurl.com/1819Budget

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Former Village Manager should be the last person writing a letter in the Ridgewood News about nepotism

Village_Manager_Roberta_Sonenfeld_theridgewoodblog

March 24,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Wow Roberta shouldn’t be writing a letter in the Ridgewood News about nepotism. After all when Roberta was Village Manager she was one of the reasons tax payers are stuck with a below market value rent lease at the gatehouse. Roberta’s BFF Stacey Antine from which she knows from a Bergen school they graduated from got a fabulous lease on the gatehouse and a sweet contract for her business. Talk about helping a non tax payer succeed in Ridgewood and personally making sure her business is a success. Not only did Roberta help Stacey, Tim also provided services Healthbarn needed during his time with Parks and Rec.

Since Tim’s departure Nancy Bigos has continued in his place assuring Healthbarn weeps benefits other businesses don’t have access too. Such as classes that run thru Parks and Rec that are run at Healthbarn. Village claims it’s a partnership but Village doesn’t share in her profits. After all Healthbarn is still having its own classes during the Parks and Rec classes so who is helping who succeed?

It’s always baffled me how she got such a sweet deal but then I realized who backed her, the past council excluding Michael & Susan who voted against it. Roberta and Tim helped her along the way giving her perhaps inside information when she presented at VC meeting, because what she presented and what actually goes on isn’t the same. Replacing Tim with Nancy doesn’t change anything since she was one of the pack who brought this business to a neighborhood. It’s time to reflect on how much this business costs the tax payers and think about who has the tax payers back?

With Healthbarn violating her lease on several occasions and from what the neighbors can tell not getting fined only shows that they support the business not the residents.
Enough stop supporting Healthbarn and start supporting the taxpayers needs and concerns!!!!

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Current School Funding Formula Inherently Unfair

RHS

March 24,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

River Vale NJ, assemblywomen Holly Schepisi comments on the unfair nature of the school funding formula, “If anyone ever wants to know why I fight so hard to revamp how we fund our schools in New Jersey and why I do not believe that the current formulas are fair, here is a glimpse into the school funding numbers for River Vale and Hoboken, New Jersey. River Vale is neither a “rich” nor a “poor” community but is representative of many of the communities comprising New Jersey. The average home assessment in River Vale is approximately $550,000 and pays $13,894 in property taxes with almost 70 percent ($9,725.80) of that amount going straight to school funding. In comparison the average assessed home in Hoboken is approximately $519,000 and pays $8,035 in property taxes with only 24 percent ($1,928) of that amount going to school funding. River Vale has 1202 students and receives $550,193 or $457.73 per student per year in State Aid for its schools. Hoboken has 1,872 students and receives $10,468,870 or $5,592.35 per student per year in State Aid for its schools. Hoboken has the highest median household income in Hudson County of $114,381 and the highest concentration of millionaires in that County. If we want to talk about parity and fairness, our State’s policies need a lot of work.”

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Reader says Every Village administrator thinks money grows on trees

stock-photo-12048329-money-grows-on-trees

Ridgewood will soon rank #1 in the state for taxes. Every Village administrator thinks money grows on trees and continues to use it wildly without contemplating the effect on the residents. I have actually been told “What’s YOUR problem? THIS is RIDGEWOOD and we can afford ANYTHING.” In many cases we can conveniently forget about losses incurred (Health Barn, Valet program, parking meters, proposed garage etc.) as Ridgewood has plenty of money so we can afford to experiment. The worse thing about the above is that NONE of these esteemed people can open their eyes, ears and noses (some of these actions have raised a huge stink (Health Barn and others) and see the problems, listen to the tax payers, and accomplish anything but throwing good money after bad. And this DOES include everyone running for election as well as others (the School Board etc.)

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Bergen County “Quick Response” SWAT Team Called to Ho Ho Kus on “Suicide by Cop” Call

SWAT Team Ho Ho Kus

Photos courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page

March 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ho Ho Kus NJ, Ho-Ho-Kus Police requested the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office “Quick Response” SWAT Team on Friday afternoon, 03/23, to search for an individual who reportedly made a threat to commit “suicide by cop,” Heavily armed SWAT Team personnel searched a unmarked white van with out of state plates that was parked in the rear of 215 Brookside Avenue, Ho-Ho-Kus with negative results. Ridgewood Police assisted with crowd and traffic control. No explanation was provided as to how the van became a search target.

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The Ridgewood Art Institute Sponsor Show

Ridgewood Art Institute

Become a Sponsor and Take Home a Beautiful Original Framed Painting. Every Sponsor goes home with a painting.
Reception: Sunday, April 8th, 2018 2-4pm
Exhibition Dates: Monday, April 1st – Friday, May 4th, 2018
Gala Drawing: Friday, May 4th, 2018 8pm
The Ridgewood Art Institute
12 East Glen Avenue, Ridgewood NJ 07450
201-652-9615 www.ridgewoodartinstitute.org

March 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The Sponsor Show is our most popular annual event at the Ridgewood Art Institute, providing sponsors an opportunity to acquire a beautifully framed original painting, from the collection donated by our outstanding artists and instructors. In addition to wonderful landscapes and still lifes, several of our professional artists offer the chance to commission a portrait or pet painting. On the night of the Gala Drawing, the name of each sponsor is randomly called to choose their favorite painting. For only $275, become a sponsor and begin creating your painting “wish list” at our Opening Reception, or anytime during the exhibition dates. Proceeds from the show go directly toward the Institute’s efforts to promote fine arts in our community.

Once again we are offering gift certificates. You can become a sponsor yourself, and you can purchase a gift certificate for a friend or family member to join you as a sponsor. A personally selected painting is a wonderful gift for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthdays, graduations, anniversaries, weddings, or any special occasion.

A limited number of sponsorships are sold each year, so don’t miss out on this exciting event! Sponsorships can be purchased on line at www.ridgewoodartinstitute.org.
For more information , visit our website www.ridgewoodartinstitute.org and click “Art Exhibits”.

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Experienced and Passionate Realtor Joins Special Properties’ Ridgewood, NJ Office as Realtor Associate

Tasko, Henriett

March 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

RIDGEWOOD NJ ,Special Properties Real Estate Services, LLC, an exclusive affiliate of Christie’s International Real Estate, has welcomed Henriett Tasko, an experienced real estate professional as a Realtor Associate in its Ridgewood, NJ office. Her addition is part of the agency’s ongoing expansion throughout the region.

Henriett Tasko brings more than 13 years of experience in the real estate industry to Special Properties. During her career, she has been involved in a wide variety of residential real estate developments and transactions, and she brings specialized experience in luxury homes and new home construction to her clients across Bergen County and the region.

With her experience and affiliation with Special Properties, Henriett is able to leverage the strength of Christie’s and Special Properties’ unparalleled corporate marketing resources and superior customer service to assist her clients at all phases of the real estate process. In addition to pursuits in real estate, Henriett is a licensed esthetician and passionate about fashion and art. She enjoys exercising, travelling, gourmet cuisine, and spending time with her family.

Henriett is a resident of Saddle River, where she lives with her husband, a local luxury builder, and three children.

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March 22nd, 1780…a letter is drafted and sent to the Continental Outpost at Paramus Church being delivered by Lt. Colonel Richard Varick

old parmaus church

March 23,2018

first posted by the Bergen County Historical Society

Ridgewood NJ, form the Bergen County Historical Society on March 22nd, 1780…a letter is drafted and sent to the Continental Outpost at Paramus Church being delivered by Lt. Colonel Richard Varick …

To the Officer as Paramus,

We, the subscribers, magistrates, sheriff and officers of militia…residing in Hackensack and its vicinity…make application to you for a detachment or party from your command to assist in protecting us and our neighbors, the well-affected inhabitants to the American cause against the incursions and depredations of small parties of the enemy and their vile abettors, the Refugees..

We are credibly informed that the enemy have in contemplation to make an attack and incursion on the inhabitants of Hackensack within five days..

The well-affected inhabitants, though willing to risk their persons in defense of their property, are too few in number….for the purpose of repelling the enemies’ parties or keeping up continued guards and scouts for their security…

Hendrick Kuyper and Peter Haring, Justices; Jacob Terhune and Isaac Vanderbeek, freeholders; Adam Boyd sheriff, Cornelius Haring, adjutant; and John Outwater, Samuel Demarest, Elias Romeyn, and David Demarest, militia captains (Photo of the Paramus Church, in modern day Ridgewood, where the Continental army had a string of outposts connecting back to Morristown)

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Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce presents its annual Easter in Ridgewood 2018

easter binny chamber of commerce

photo courtesy of the Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce

March 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce presents its annual Easter in Ridgewood 2018
weather permitting
Saturday, March 31, 2018
11:00am-2:00pm FREE
MEMORIAL PARK at Van Neste Square
***
8:30am-10:30am
Have breakfast with the Easter Bunny at the
Office Tavern & Grill-reservations 201-652-1070
***
11:15amish
Ben & Jerry’s famous Easter Egg Hunt for
children 4-7 years & hoppidy-hip music
weather permitting
***
11:00am-2:00pm
-Children of all ages can have their picture taken with the Easter Bunny.
parents cameras-weather permitting

-There will be lots of fun activities
to do around the Park.
weather permitting.
-Get your map in the Park and visit all
the *in-store activities around town.
weather permitting
***
for more info call 201-445-2600,
[email protected]
*www.experienceridgewood.com

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PSE&G crews to help Atlantic City Electric restore power to NJ customers

PSEG

file photo by Boyd Loving

March 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,  Public Service Electric and Gas (PSE&G) crews and contractors will depart for Atlantic County today to help Atlantic City Electric restore power to thousands of customers affected by the fourth nor’easter this month. New Jersey’s largest utility will dispatch 132 electric line and support personnel from different locations throughout its service territory this afternoon. PSE&G already released the nearly 200 out-of-state mutual aid workers it had secured in advance of the storm to assist ACE.

The PSE&G contingent will arrive in Mays Landing, N.J. where workers will receive their assignments from ACE. They are expected to work in ACE’s service territory for the next two days.
“Although our service territory was spared the brunt of this storm, southern New Jersey wasn’t so lucky,” said John Latka, PSE&G senior vice president of electric and gas operations. “We restored power to about 7,300 customers and are now in a position to assist our neighboring utility do the same for their customers. Our employees know how important it is to get the lights back on.”

The PSE&G crews are expected to work 16-hour days to repair damaged electric lines and safely restore power to thousands of customers still in the dark from the recent storm.
ACE reached out for mutual aid — assistance that allows for the sharing of resources such as labor and equipment during emergencies. The hosting utility reimburses for associated costs.

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Reader says Thank your stars that Ridgewood at least keeps the semblance of non-partisan elections.

3 amigos in action Ridgewood NJ

file photo by Boyd Loving

Thank your stars that Ridgewood at least keeps the semblance of non-partisan elections.
Arohnson would have been mayor for life had he run in Ridgewood with a D against his name. There is a large, and growing, contingent here who will vote for anyone – felon, crook, thief, retard whatever – with a D against their name.
I personally know quite a few party line Democratic voters who actually voted against Team Hackensack because they are unaware that the Three Amigos are Democrats.

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Reader says Look at the pitiful 53.6% College Readiness Score for Ridgewood Schools

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We looked at Chatham and Princeton and Ridgewood – these were three top tier comparable towns.
All 3 towns had good schools and were very nice places to live and raise a family when we were looking to buy a house and start a family.
I think we made a big mistake.
.
Unfortunately, Ridgewood has veered left and has gone downhill, both as a place to live and a place to get a good education.
.
2017 School Rankings:
.
PRINCETON:
#6 in NJ | 155 in National Rankings | #127 in STEM Schools | College Readiness Score 74.4/100.0
.
CHATHAM:
#7 in NJ | 189 in National Rankings | #134 in STEM Schools | College Readiness Score 71.9/100.0
.
RIDGEWOOD
#26 in NJ | #583 in National Rankings | Not Ranked in STEM Schools | College Readiness Score 53.6/100.0
but #1 in Tradition of excellence
.
Look at those numbers.
Look at the gap between Chatham and Princeton vs Ridgewood.
Look at the pitiful 53.6% College Readiness score
Look at the $101 million dollar budget.

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Reader says “arming teachers” is a liberal talking point attempting to advance a FALSE NARRATIVE

Maryland School Resource Officer Blaine Gaskill

photo Maryland School Resource Officer Blaine Gaskill

“arming teachers” is a liberal talking point attempting to advance a FALSE NARRATIVE that all teachers will be issued guns as standard practice without any training and who will keep wear these weapons as side arms or keep them on their desks similar to other school supplies..
.
“arming teachers” is actually ALLOWING teachers or other on-site school personnel WHO ALREADY are qualified, responsible and trained gun owners who will receive additional training as needed and/or fully training and qualifying personnel (who MAY be classroom teachers or school personnel) to become qualified to handle weapons in an emergency situation.
You know… like the armed security guards and police officers were trained.
.
But you ALREADY KNOW THIS.
You are just selling a disingenuous narrative to divert attention from the fact that armed onsite personnel IS EFFECTIVE in STOPPING SCHOOL GUN VIOLENCE AND SAVING STUDENTS LIVES.
.
Your position is not helping children. It is allowing children to be murdered.
But you also know this.