Ridgewood NJ, the Ridgewood police report that on February 21, a Hampshire Road resident responded to Ridgewood Police headquarters to report terroristic threats in the past. The victim reported he was contacted by a person who left a threatening message of violence on his phone. The victim provided the phone number and patrol investigated the incident. The accused was contacted and the incident was reported to be a misunderstanding. The reporting party did not wish to pursue criminal charges at this time.
This just in…..”Retail Dying”. The Wall St. Journal reports that even trendy SoHo is seeing a store closings as retail shopping continues to dip.
https://www.wsj.com/…/even-soho-cant-escape-the-retail-property-storm-1519160376
In 10 years people will wonder what possessed a Village to build a hulking garage to support a retail shopping district that went the way of the dinosaur. If we are looking to the future it should be how the CBD will be repurposed once retail shopping has evaporated. Not building a garage decades after it would have made a difference.
I think this result qualifies as at least a little evidence that residents want a garage. After all, a 2:1 vote of residents expressed explicit approval for a parking garage on exactly the site that is being planned. A much smaller group of people used a technicality on the funding of the garage to veto a particular design, but that certainly doesn’t eliminate this overwhelmingly positive result as the foundation for moving forward.
EVERY parking study done over the past 50+ years by objective professional consultants has indicated the need for a parking garage in Ridgewood. It appears the current Village Council is doing something to remedy the longstanding parking deficit. The garage will primarily serve commuters during the day and local businesses afterwards. It will be a boost to all of Ridgewood and despite the naysayers it will not destroy or diminish the character and desirability of the Village. Other higher end towns (particularly Summit and Princeton) have garages and residential property values in these towns have continued to rise. There is not one shred of evidence that the garage will negatively impact residential property values in Ridgewood. To the contrary, it will likely enhance values because prospective homeowners who commute to NY will benefit from the availability of convenient parking. This is a big benefit when you are rushing to catch your regular morning train to the city.
the ridgewood art institute’s first annual plein art show
Sun, February 11, 2018 – Fri, March 02, 2018
Time: 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Location: The Ridgewood Art Institute, 12 East Glen Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
The Ridgewood Art Institute’s First Annual Plein Art show
On View: February 11th-March 2nd, 2018 from 10am to 3pm daily
The Ridgewood Art Institute is located at:
12 East Glen Ave
Ridgewood, NJ 07450
Please contact 201-652-9615 with questions or visit their website at www.ridgewoodartinstitute.com
Ridgewood NJ, Plein Air painting is about leaving the four walls of your studio behind and experiencing painting and drawing in the landscape. The practice goes back for centuries but was truly made into an art form by the French Impressionists.
Please join us for our first art show to exclusively feature Plein Air sketches by our members. All pieces in this show will have been done while on location, with no further reworking done in studio. The results reflect a freshness and immediacy that can only be achieved by working in this manner.
Classes are offered on an open enrollment basis, and can be joined at anytime.
Hillsdale NJ, On February 21, 2018, the Hillsdale Police Department was made aware of a suspicious incident that took place on Bedford Road, near the Ann Blanche Smith School. The incident involved a nine-year-old student of the school that was walking home after school was dismissed. As the student approached Bedford Road a vehicle that was being driven by a middle-aged, white man with a crew cut said: “hey, come here”. The student described the vehicle as a smaller, black, four-door vehicle.
Despite our efforts, our follow-up investigation did not reveal any further details other than those provided by the student.
Please take this incident as an opportunity to discuss stranger safety with your children and remind them of the following:
• An adult does not need help from a child — not to find a puppy, not for anything. If an adult is asking you for help, that’s a warning sign;
• Don’t walk away with anyone other than a parent, or the person who was already arranged to take care of you that day;
• Always stay at least an arms distance away from any strangers or strange vehicles;
• Avoid walking places alone, use the buddy system;
• Point out places children can go for help when walking places like school and the park;
“I finally googled “handicapped requirements for historic properties”. It clearly states that historic properties are NOT excused from the ADA requirements. It agrees it might take a lot of work and evaluation to modify an historic property to make it accessible to all. It also states that “no building is grandfathered from the handicap regulations no matter how old and historic it actually is.” The council either has not taken this into consideration in the cost of “saving” the Schedler house, or believes that Isabella, being an architect, knew what she was talking about. So why is Ridgewood planning to restore (rebuild) a property that they will be unable to let the public use if everyone cannot enter—and go up and down at each new addition as none of the floors are actually level from room to room.”
Mayor Susan Knudsen responds ….
HI , Historic Architect Margaret Hickey included handicap accessibility in the Schedler house restoration plans. In fact, at a recent meeting there was a great deal of discussion about accessibility features and required modifications. Hope all is well.
Washington DC, according to Attorney General Jeff Sessions , “Each year, an estimated $3 billion are stolen or defrauded from millions of American seniors. Through “grandparent scams,” fake prizes or even threats, criminals prey on some of the most vulnerable Americans to steal their hard-earned savings and their peace of mind.”
Upscale towns like Ridgewood, Glen Rock etc are often the prime targets of these scams . The Ridgewood blog has reported over and over again senior scams , phone scams , internet scams and identity theft .
And this threat is only growing. The Senate Aging Committee’s Fraud Hotline received twice as many reports in 2016 as it received in 2015. The rise of new technologies has made it easier for criminals to coordinate their efforts and perpetrate their crimes.
The Trump Administration is taking action. We will not let this crime continue to rise.
Last month, the Department ordered all 94 of our U.S. Attorneys’ offices to each designate an elder justice coordinator, who will customize our strategy to protect seniors in their district. This will ensure even greater cooperation between the Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners.
The Trump administration is forming unprecedented law enforcement partnerships around the country and, indeed, around the world. These partnerships are already bearing fruit.
Today, the Department of Justice is announcing the largest elder fraud enforcement action in American history.
With the help of our partners at all levels of government and in the private sector, we have charged more than 200 defendants for committing elder fraud schemes and brought civil actions against dozens more.
These defendants allegedly robbed more than one million Americans of more than half a billion dollars.
In the past month alone, the Department’s Consumer Protection Branch and our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices have filed cases against more than 40 defendants. These 40 defendants are responsible for a majority of those 1 million victims I mentioned, and they include charges against the transnational criminal organization highlighted on the map we have displayed.
Just yesterday the Postal Inspection Service executed 14 search warrants across America. The Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch and our U.S. Attorneys are working closely with the postal inspectors on these investigations.
And as we speak, our partners with the Vancouver, Canada Police Department are executing dozens of search warrants as part of this enforcement action. These warrants are being carried out against members of transnational criminal organizations that have allegedly defrauded tens of thousands of Americans and people all over the world.
And so I want to thank the Postal Inspection Service, the FTC and its Consumer Sentinel database, the FBI and its Los Angeles field office, the Vancouver Police Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Eastern District of New York and the Southern District of Iowa, our elder justice coordinators, and all of our state, local, and international partners who helped make this historic achievement possible.
Thank you to Derek Schmidt, Kansas Attorney General and President of the National Association of Attorneys General for participating in this action and representing our state Attorneys General, who play a vital role in this effort.
And thank you to the Senate Special Committee on Aging, especially to my good friends Senators Grassley and Collins. They have a real passion for this issue and they have helped raise awareness about it.
I also want to thank Deborah Cox-Rausch, director of Senior Corps, a federal agency that coordinates the work of hundreds of thousands of senior citizen volunteers across the country. Senior Corps has helped get the word out about the threat of fraud schemes to our seniors, and I believe that helps prevent crime.
That’s why I hope that no victim of fraud feels ashamed. This can happen to anyone. Several members of my staff have told me about their grandparents being targeted by fraudsters. In fact, just this past week, one of my senior staffers was in a meeting with me when she got a call from her grandmother, who had just received a phone call from a fraudster.
We need to spread the word about this. So, please, if you or someone you know was victimized by an elder fraud scheme, please report it to the FTC. It might just give us the tip we need to put criminals in jail—and to protect other seniors.
We are joined here today by several Americans who have had the courage to step forward and share their stories of being victimized by fraudsters. They’ve come a long way to be here—and I want to thank them for that and for sharing their experiences and insights.
Ridgewood NJ, Super Science Saturday is celebrating its 30th year of challenging students and adult alike to think widely about how science is involved in all parts of our lives.
Join the fun and complete the challenge by submitting how you imagine any aspect of American home life in 2048! From an update to a common appliance, to imagining what robots might do at home, to rethinking how we all travel to and from home – submit to Super Science Saturday any aspect of how you imagine home life of the future!
Eligibility: The contest is open to anyone of all ages.
Judging Age Categories:
Elementary School
Middle School
High School + Adults
Announcing the Winners: One winner will be chosen from each age category and will be revealed at Super Science Saturday! If you can’t make the day, we will announce and share your winning entry and contact you based on the information you submit.
The Challenge Details:
We’re looking for science inspired submissions which shows how you imagine some aspect of the Home of 2048
Please be creative! All entries require a short, written description of what you imagine the future home to be like. Please submit at least a few sentences describing your idea and how it might change the home of the future.
Use the form below to submit any additional materials that show what the future will be like. While there are no requirements for additional materials beyond your written description – we encourage everyone to both upload and present at Super Science Saturday photos, drawings, diagrams, dioramas or other creative ways to bring your future vision to life!
Two Ways to Participate:
Present Your Home of the Future at Super Science Saturday 30!
Click on this option below to enter your submission for judging and reserve your presenting space. Deadline: Thursday, March 1st @ 5pm
Have Your Home of 2048 Displayed at Super Science Saturday 30!
Click on this option below to enter your submission for judging and have your idea displayed at Super Science Saturday without presenting. Deadline: Friday, February 23rd at 5pm https://supersciencesaturday.org/town-challenge.php
Washington DC, The Supreme Court is scheduled to return to Washington next week after nearly a month off. The justices will hear a number of important oral arguments, including a case involving free speech, and public employee unions.
Next Monday February 26th , the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in one of the most anticipated cases of the year, the case of Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 31.
This case could have an enormous impact on big union states like New Jersey and may impact many unions political influence like the NJEA.
The case focuses on Mark Janus who is not a public sector union member but has to pay fees ie inion dues anyway. Janus argues these fees “violate his free speech and free association rights.”
This case involves forcing public employees who opt out of union membership to pay a fee for the “fair share” of costs associated with collective bargaining. Mark Janus, an Illinois state employee, argues that forcing him to subsidize the union he has declined to join violates his free speech and free association rights.
The court will look at whether to overturn its 1977 decision in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, which held that public employees could be forced to pay an agency fee.
This very issue was before the court in 2016 when Justice Antonin Scalia died. The court deadlocked 4-4 in Friedrichs v. California Teachers’ Association, thereby upholding the lower court ruling in favor of the California Teachers Association.
Woodcliff Lake NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced the arrest of JEFFREY PALISH (DOB: 2/23/1953; married; and unemployed) of 22 Oakwood Drive, Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey on a charge of Theft by Deception. The arrest is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Robert Anzilotti.
In November of 2017, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office received information that Jeffrey PALISH, a Bergen County based financial advisor, had failed to make payments on a $100,000 loan that he had received from two elderly clients; a loan which he had failed to disclose to the financial institution at which he was employed. An investigation revealed that, during a four-year period, Mr. PALISH had received in excess of $600,000 from the clients. The funds were obtained through the conversion of the clients’ stock holdings. The stocks were sold and the monies were transferred to a second bank where the monies were remitted to Mr. PALISH through checks written by one of the clients. Further investigation revealed that, during the same time period, Mr. PALISH initiated approximately forty unauthorized wire transfers from the clients’ bank account to make payments to his personal credit card account. The unauthorized credit card payments totaled in excess of $300,000. As a result of the investigation, it was determined that Mr. PALISH utilized all of the monies for his own personal benefit and has not repaid or returned any monies to the victims.
As a result of the investigation, JEFFREY PALISH was arrested on February 21, 2018 in Paramus, NJ and charged with one count of Theft by Deception, with the amount involved being greater than $75,000 in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-4a, a crime of the 2nd degree. Mr. PALISH is scheduled for a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack, NJ on Wednesday, March 7, 2018 at 9:00 a.m.
Acting Prosecutor Calo states that the charges are merely accusations and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
During public comments at the end of the meeting, 2 residents reminded VC members that there are already 76 spaces on the ground there. Thus, the construction cost per space is much higher than what was presented by the developers last night. That is, you must subtract the current number of spaces from the total being built to obtain the net increase in spaces, which should then be used to calculate the cost per space.
Also, last night was the first time the public was made aware of the perpetual maintenance costs associated with the operation of precast parking structures. Several of the presenters indicated that unless the structure is properly maintained, its life expectancy decreases dramatically.
It was said that the use of ice/snow melting agents and HARD WATER are particularly problematic. And the only way to clean the ice/snow melting agents away is by using water on a regular basis. And what type of water do we have in Ridgewood? HARD WATER, of course!
This is going to be the biggest financial boondoggle ever. Way beyond the boondoggle of post Tropical Storm Floyd renovation costs at Village Hall. Way beyond. Way, way beyond.
Ridgewood NJ, There was a Special Public Meeting last night, Wednesday, February 21, from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. The Village Council interviewed the four companies that bid on the construction of the Hudson Street Parking Garage. Each company gave a full presentation. The Village Council and the public had the opportunity to listen to proposals and to see a broad range of design options. Names were drawn from a hat to determine the order of presentations as follows:
Terminal Construction Corporation Prismatic Development Corporation Epic Management Inc The Pike Company
Councilman Ramon M. Hache said that , “Overall, I was very pleased with the presentations. The presenters were very thorough and professional. The information provided by them is a crucial component of the extensive due diligence process necessary for a project like this. Generally, much of the focus has been on the dimensions, capacity and construction costs. But the analysis must also take into consideration the annual maintenance costs and the durability and quality of the materials used in its construction. We also have to consider the various approaches to construction methods as they relate to safety, as well as the logistics and timelines associated with the different phases of construction. Last night what had the opportunity to discuss those factors.”
Hache went on , “The due diligence process can be painstaking but it is the same cautious and prudent approach one would take before allocating capital to any significant investment project. Although this has been a long process, in hindsight, I am happy to not have rushed the project along given the valuable lessons learned. For one, declaring the existing Hudson Street lot to be an area in need of redevelopment has given us a tremendous amount of leverage. I think we are already seeing the benefits over the traditional design/bid/build process. Simply put, we are now in a position to negotiate better terms for the Village. We are now looking at potential construction costs that are 20%-30% lower than any previous estimates, and without having to pay for additional designs. The designs discussed last night were absolutely at no cost to the Village.
It was a long meeting but definitely worth it. I am thankful for the residents who attended and sat through the presentations to the end. We only lost a couple of people which was very impressive.”
Updated Bids:
One of the original bids was reduced by 11%. Epic Management reduced their bid after reviewing the numbers with the company that supplies their pre-cast concrete. Here are the updated bids received, listed from lowest to highest overall:
$9,464,666: Pike Company Inc
$10,100,000: Terminal Construction Corp (Version 3)
$10,900,000: Terminal Construction Corp (Version 2)
$10,983,193: Epic Management Inc (Low Version)
$11,190,627: Epic Management Inc (High Version)
$11,480,000: Terminal Construction Corp (Version 1)
$14,399,000: Prismatic Development Corp
Next Step is that the Village Council will be reviewing the results of the Walker Feasibility Study at the next Public Work Session on Wednesday, February 28. The study will provide a planning-level analysis of net operating income potential for the parking system when the new garage is complete, including rate adjustments that will help maintain a parking utility that is self-supporting. Armed with a thorough financial analysis, we can then move forward with discussing contract negotiations and final selection.
Typical customer to save almost $75 for winter gas usage
February 22,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G), New Jersey’s largest utility, announced today that customers will continue to save money on their gas heating bills through March. The company is extending its January and February bill credits for residential customers an additional month, saving customers an additional $25 on their March bills or nearly $75 this winter.
Bill credits during January and February have saved the typical residential gas heating customer about $50 for both months, a savings of about 17 percent. Extending the credit for March usage will bring total savings to nearly $75 for the three winter months.
A typical residential customer using a total of 495 therms from January 1 through March 31 would normally pay about $440. This customer’s bill for the three winter months will be about $365 with the bill credit.
Since January 2009, annual bills for PSE&G’s typical residential gas heating customers are 49 percent — or $825 — lower due to supply rate reductions.
“We continue to be in a position to pass along gas price savings to our residential customers,” said Jorge Cardenas, PSE&G vice president of asset management and centralized services. “Low natural gas prices, our transportation and storage capabilities, and the way we manage our contracts have enabled us to pay less for natural gas. And our customers benefit.”
PSE&G makes no profit on the sale of natural gas, and passes along what it pays to customers.
