Ridgewood NJ, A tracking K9 was deployed in the search for an adult male dementia patient who wandered away from a Ridgewood nursing home on Thursday afternoon, 09/14. The patient was missing for over two (2) hours before being located by a Ridgewood Police patrol officer at a strip mall on Route 17 southbound in Paramus. Prior to being found at the strip mall, the patient had also been spotted on the front porch of a single family home near the intersection of Route 17 and Linwood Avenue. Two (2) Ridgewood Police patrol officers returned the unharmed man to the nursing home just prior to 3:00 p.m.
“As a public official,” Schwager told the court, “what the defendant did might be labeled stupid, wrong or inconsiderate, but we cannot prove it was criminal beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Nicholas Katzban, Staff Writer, @NicholasKatzban
HACKENSACK — Three separate harassment complaints against Ridgewood Councilman Jeffrey Voigt were dismissed Thursday after the the prosecuting attorney determined there was insufficient evidence to prove a criminal act had taken place.
The harassment complaints against Voigt were filed by residents Lorraine Reynolds and Boyd and Anne Loving, who alleged that the councilman had made their cellphone numbers, emails and home addresses known to the public when he posted copies of their requests for public records — known as OPRA requests — on Facebook in May.
The plaintiffs testified that while their cellphone numbers, email and home addresses were visible in the councilman’s posts, he had obscured the same personal information for other persons listed on the records requests.
“Mr. Voigt took the time to block out personal information about others, but not mine,” said Anne Loving during a July hearing before Judge Roy McGeady. “I felt personally targeted.”
Ridgewood NJ, One hundred thirty-four students at RHS have been named AP Scholars by the College Board in recognition of their exceptional achievement on the college level Advanced Placement Examinations. About 18 percent of the more than 1.9 million high school students worldwide who took AP Examinations in May 2016 performed at a sufficiently high level to merit such recognition.
The College Board recognizes several levels of achievement based on the students’ performance on AP exams. At RHS: 3 students qualified for the National AP Scholar Award by earning an average grade of 4.0 or higher on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 4 or higher on eight or more of these exams; 47 students qualified for the AP Scholar with Distinction Award by earning an average of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams; 33 students qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams; and 54 students qualified for the AP Scholar Award by completing three or more AP Exams with grades of 3 or higher.
Ridgewood NJ, The New Jersey Choral Society will present its spectacular annual fundraising gala Bel Canto on Sunday, October 8, 2017 at 4:00 pm at the Preakness Hills Country Club, 1050 Ratzer Road, Wayne, NJ. This year’s red carpet event – I Love a Piano – celebrates Artist-in-Residence Linda Sweetman-Waters’ 30th Anniversary Season with NJCS.
Highlighting the festive event will be a cameo appearance by Ridgewood soprano, Kristen Plumley, performing songs from the Great White Way. The evening will include a cocktail hour followed by dinner and wine, musical entertainment, as well as a 50/50 raffle and silent auction. Tickets for this special event are $125 and can be purchased by visiting www.njcs.org or via email at [email protected].
Celebrating 38 years of passion, excellence and imagination, the New Jersey Choral Society is one of the state’s most prestigious choral groups, well-known for presenting memorable, uplifting and unique performances that involve youth and enable affordable access to the arts. NJCS performs three major concerts annually in Bergen and Essex counties and has also performed in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, China, Australia, England, France and Italy.
Preakness Hills Country Club is wheelchair accessible. Funding for NJCS has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.
Ridgewood NJ, Marking a decade of sustainability leadership, Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for North America for the 10th consecutive year.
The Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) recognize forward-thinking companies based on an appraisal of the company’s strategy, management and performance in dealing with opportunities and risks deriving from environmental, social and governance factors. The DJSI tracks the performance of the 600 largest U.S. and Canadian companies in the S&P Global Broad Market Index and recognizes the top 20 percent that lead the field in terms of sustainability. PSEG was one of seven American utility companies selected for the list.
“Our 13,000 employees work every day to build a sustainable energy future — one that fosters economically viable and environmentally advantaged solutions for people and our planet,” said Ralph Izzo, PSEG’s chairman, president and CEO. “Securing a position on the list of North America’s top sustainable companies for a decade is a strong endorsement of our efforts. We are well aware that our success depends on being responsive to the energy needs of our customers and the larger society around us.”
In 2016, PSEG continued its focus on providing reliable and cleaner energy. PSE&G, the company’s regulated utility, is in the midst of replacing 500 miles of aging natural gas pipe throughout New Jersey and has proposed accelerating the replacement of an additional 1,250 miles of gas lines. This important work not only enhances the safety and reliability of our energy infrastructure, it also reduces the release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and creates hundreds of jobs.
PSEG’s commitment doesn’t stop there:
PSEG also has been recognized for expanding customer access to energy efficiency and clean renewable solar power.
The company has invested more than $1.5 billion to develop or finance solar power.
PSE&G is investing more than $400 million to help hospitals, apartment buildings and government facilities reduce their utility bills.
The company recently won approval to begin offering residential customers smart thermostats and data analytics to help them better manage their energy consumption.
In addition, PSEG is regularly recognized for the way it goes about its business, making the Forbes list of Most Admired Companies and Fortune’s Just 100 List, which celebrates America’s best corporate citizens.
A non-profit think tank wants New Jersey drivers to dig deeper into their pockets to help the state Department of Transportation and NJ Transit catch up on needed projects.
The organization, Fund for New Jersey, calling for putting tolls on interstate highways, leasing state toll roads to private operators and raising motor vehicle fees in a report called “Crossroads NJ” set to be released Wednesday.
The report ties a transportation system that’s in good repair to the state’s economic well being, but said the state doesn’t have enough funding to keep up with a backlog of needs, even with the 23 cent per-gallon state gas tax increase that took effect in November.
The report suggests some revenue raisers that proved to be unpopular suggestions in the past, including charging tolls to use interstate highways and privatizing the states toll roads. Leasing the toll roads to private operators to raise funds for transportation projects was proposed by Gov. Jon Corzine in 2007 and dropped when met with strong opposition.
The report also suggested raising motor vehicle license and registration fees to improve the state Motor Vehicle Commission. The MVC has been on a decades long effort to replace an aging main frame computer system, which has been blamed for long lines and wait times at agencies when it breaks down. In MVC’s fiscal year 2017 budget, it collected $489 million in revenue and sent $139 million to the state budget.
Ridgewood NJ, According to the Ridgewood Police a recently apprehended thief claimed unlocked cars with valuables are an open invitation to steal . The thief described the process where by he walks down a street casing the targeting the area for unlocked cars and cars with keys in them.
The Ridgewood Police Department would like to remind residents to lock your cars, even in your own driveway. Do not leave valuables visible in your vehicle at any time.
Ridgewood NJ, at the Village council meeting Wednesday night Deputy Mayor Michael Sedon spelled out a very aggressive agenda for Village Shade Tree.
This year Village Shade Tree under Parks and Rec inspected 225 sites where trees have been taken down , and found 114 remain suitable for planting trees . All are targeted for a new tree after the fall planting sometime in October to November.
The adopt a tree program has now grown from 11 to 27 trees.
Thanks to the engineering department the Village also now looks at streetscapes when streets are do for repaving, this process added over 100 additional trees planted putting totally trees planted this year to 241 up from zero three years ago.
There will be also be an addition effort to rehabilitate trees wells in the central business district to improve CBD tree survival rates.
All these efforts combined make the target for this year 250 new trees planted in the Village.
Ridgewood NJ, Ptl. Zachary Knudsen responded to a Glenwood Road residence on the morning of September 9, to investigate the report of a motor vehicle which had been stolen overnight. The victim reported the vehicle was left unlocked, with a key in the vehicle, and the homeowner discovered the vehicle was missing in the morning. The Ridgewood Detective Bureau located the stolen vehicle in Paterson, N.J. a short time later and as a result of a joint investigation, the Paterson Police Department arrested two individuals.
Advisory: ROAD CONSTRUCTION NOTICE: On 9/14 – 9/15 – 9/18 – 9/19 & 9/20 milling and paving will be done at 12 location
September 14,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Glen Rock NJ, announces major road construction project .
Please note that this is a revised list:
The following roads will be milled on Thursday September 14th, Friday September 15th, and Monday September 18th:
• Cornelia Place
• Mortlock Place
• William Place
• Serafin Place
• Glen Boulevard
• Lowell Road
• Amherst Court
• Broad Street
• Sterling Place
• Valley Road
• 1 Glen Ave Senior Lot
• Garvey Place
The following roads will be paved on Monday September 18th, Tuesday September 19th, and Wednesday September 20th:
• Cornelia Place
• Mortlock Place
• William Place
• Serafin Place
• Glen Boulevard
• Lowell Road
• Amherst Court
• Broad Street
• 1 Glen Ave Senior Lot
• Valley Road
• Sterling Place
• Grove Street
• Garvey Place
All work will be done weather permitting.
Please observe the “No Parkin g” signs – they will be enforced. Any vehicle left within the work zone will be TOWED AT THE OWNER’S EXPENSE. Please have all vehicles removed from the street by 7:30am on each day. Per the contractor, all vehicles that are to be used should be removed from the driveway each day by 7:30am and again, there can be no on street parking.
If necessary, the DPW will work with homeowners for access during paving and can be reached at 201-670-3980 until 3:30PM on any weekday.
PVL train tickets will be cross-honored on Main/Bergen County Lines
September 13, 2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Due to grade crossing repairs and signal and track maintenance work, NJ TRANSIT is replacing trains on the Pascack Valley Line with buses on weekends and during midday hours on weekdays beginning on Sunday, September 17 and continuing through Saturday, October 28.
This does not effect Ridgewood Main line and Bergen line passengers , but will impact Montvale , Park Ridge , Woodcliff Lake, Hillsdale, Westwood, Emerson, Oradell , River Edge , River Edge New Bridge Landing , Hackensack Anderson Street, Hackensack Essex Street , Teterboro , and Wood Ridge .
Expect larger crowds on Main line and Bergen line during midday hours and late nights .
During this time, Pascack Valley Line tickets and passes will be cross-honored on the Main/Bergen County Lines trains. At Secaucus Junction, Coach USA buses – which are replacing Pascack Valley Line trains – will arrive and depart from Platforms 9 and 10. Bus times may vary from train times at some station stops. Customers should visit the NJ TRANSIT website for specific schedule times.
While busing is in effect, all Metro-North customers from Spring Valley, Nanuet and Pearl River may use their monthly/weekly commutation passes for travel on Metro-North’s Hudson Line between Tarrytown and Grand Central Terminal.
Monday through Friday, midday hours
On weekdays, during the midday hours, buses will operate in two sections:
Between Spring Valley and Secaucus: There will be several buses operating as express and local between Spring Valley and Secaucus. Customers should be mindful of the signage denoting whether they are express or local buses before boarding. Some buses will operate between New Bridge Landing and Secaucus, making all stops except Teterboro. Teterboro customers may use NJ TRANSIT’s No. 161 Bus, which stops at Industrial Avenue and Route 46.
Note: For Train 1622, buses will operate in three sections: New York State Express between Spring Valley and Secaucus (no local stops in New Jersey); between Montvale and Secaucus, operating express between New Bridge Landing and Secaucus; and between New Bridge Landing and Secaucus, making all stops except Teterboro.
While the busing is in operation during the midday hours, shuttle trains for Pascack Valley Line customers will operate between Secaucus and Hoboken.
Saturdays and Sundays
Local and New York State buses will operate between Spring Valley and Secaucus. Customers traveling between Secaucus and Hoboken should use Main and Bergen County Line trains.
NOTE: For You Night Owls :Bergen County Line Train 69, which operates to Port Jervis and normally departs Hoboken at 12:40 a.m., will depart Hoboken 5 minutes later, at 12:45 a.m. Pascack Valley Line customers traveling from Hoboken and connecting with the last substitute bus from Secaucus will use Train 69.
Teterboro Station customers should note that the last weekend outbound bus of the night will stop at Teterboro ONLY by request.
A series that details the fundamentals of New Jersey’s budget, as well as its current budget woes
Richard F. Keevey
This is the first in a multipart series outlining New Jersey’s fiscal fundamentals, written by Richard F. Keevey, the former budget director and comptroller for New Jersey and currently a senior policy fellow at the School of Planning and Policy at Rutgers University. The idea behind this series is to demystify some of the state’s financial challenges, and put them in context of the broader issues New Jersey faces. It’s also intended as a way to underscore the importance of state government in a year that will see a new governor and a new Legislature chosen by voters.
New Jersey has a strong central government. The governor has potent appointment and financial powers. New Jersey’s local governments like to tout their home-rule powers — and they’re correct in certain circumstances — but when it comes to municipal, county, and school finance the state’s powers and oversight are quite significant.
The office of the governor is viewed as the strongest in the country. Unlike many states, New Jersey’s governor (and lieutenant governor) are the only officers elected statewide, and all cabinet officers and principal state officials are appointed by the governor — unlike Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New York, for example, where several cabinet officials are elected.
More taxes, no new taxes, higher taxes, marijuana taxes, corporate taxes, tax relief, and even a new tax structure — it’s definitely an election year in the Garden State
Tax reform is becoming a hot topic in Washington, D.C., as President Donald Trump is looking for Congress to cut both corporate and personal income-tax rates. Similarly, the future of New Jersey tax policy is also expected to become a key issue in Trenton once the state welcomes its next governor early next year.
Democrats who control New Jersey’s Legislature signaled several months ago as they were hashing out a new state budget with Gov. Chris Christie that they would be pushing once again for a millionaires tax to bring in more funding for local school districts once the term-limited Republican governor leaves office in January 2018.
And if Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy ends up winning the gubernatorial election in November — something that the latest public-opinion polls suggest is likely — legislative leaders should find a willing partner. Murphy’s own fiscal platform includes a call for enacting a higher levy on the state’s wealthiest residents, among other tax-policy changes.
But even if Murphy’s opponent, Republican Kim Guadagno, ends up pulling off an upset, she’s also talking about tax reform. The centerpiece of her economic agenda is a more than $1 billion “circuit breaker” property-tax relief initiative.
By
Brian K Sullivan
@WeatherSullivanMore stories by Brian K Sullivan
September 11, 2017 7:50 PM EDT September 12, 2017 1:10 PM EDT
Bermuda High kept Irma from becoming the costliest U.S. storm Westward shift and weakening checked ‘astronomical’ damage
Twenty miles may have made a $150 billion difference.
Estimates for the damage Hurricane Irma would inflict on Florida kept mounting as it made its devastating sweep across the Caribbean. It was poised to be the costliest U.S. storm on record. Then something called the Bermuda High intervened and tripped it up.
“We got very lucky,” said Jeff Masters, co-founder of Weather Underground in Ann Arbor, Michigan. If Irma had passed 20 miles west of Marco Island instead of striking it on Sunday, “the damage would have been astronomical.” A track like that would have placed the powerful, eastern eye wall of Irma on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
By one estimate, the total cost dropped to about $50 billion Monday from $200 billion over the weekend. The state escaped the worst because Irma’s eye shifted away from the biggest population center of Miami-Dade County.
Every year around the start of the academic calendar, we offer parents expert advice on what to do if their children are being bullied at school.
But what if your child is the one doing the bullying?
According to Maurice Elias, a professor of psychology at Rutgers University, there’s not much information available for parents whose children are accused of being responsible for harassment, intimidation or bullying at school.
Very few parents want to think of their children as a bullies, Elias said, and may not openly seek advice on the topic.
