Author: James

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It was not enough of a disaster the first time : A Super Bowl return to MetLife stadium?

Met_life_stadium_theridgewoodblog

BY JOHN BRENNAN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

John Mara, a co-owner of the Giants, and Woody Johnson, the owner of the Jets, said this week that they are interested in bringing another Super Bowl to the metropolitan area, touting what they described as the success of the event that MetLife Stadium hosted in February 2014.

“I’ve spoken to Woody Johnson about it, and yeah, we think it would make sense to try to bring it back,” Mara told reporters at the NFL meetings in Boca Raton, Fla., on Sunday. “We think it was very successful, it was great for the region, so why not have it back?”

But many North Jersey officials are far less enthusiastic about the idea, saying that the previous game did little to stimulate the economy in the Meadowlands.

Asked if he would like to see another Super Bowl in his borough, Mayor James Cassella of East Rutherford replied: “If things were going to be run the same way as last time, then no. If they made some changes, I’d have to see.”

Michael Gonnelli, the mayor of Secaucus, was equally blasé on Wednesday.

“I have to tell you, it was a non-event for us in more ways than one,” Gonnelli said. “We didn’t see a lot of increased business for hotels and restaurants, and we didn’t see an impact on traffic. The problem was that it was billed as a New York Super Bowl, not New Jersey. We didn’t see benefits.”

The two mayors, along with state Sen. Paul Sarlo, D-Wood-Ridge, and Jim Kirkos, the chief executive of the Meadowlands Regional Chamber, all pointed to the necessity of avoiding a repeat of the massive delays that hindered fans who took trains to and from Secaucus Junction and MetLife Stadium on game day. The league’s estimate that 10,000 fans would take NJ Transit trains to the 82,500-seat stadium fell more than 20,000 short of the actual number who used the service, creating departure delays of up to two hours after the game ended.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/nj-state-news/a-super-return-to-metlife-1.1532780

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Superintendent and Board of Ridgewood Schools to Host Coffee and Conversation

Dan Fishbein 10

Superintendent and Board Host Coffee and Conversation on March 29
Ridgewood Nj, The Board of Education and Superintendent will host residents for Coffee and Conversation on Tuesday, March 29, 2016. The public is invited to drop in at the Education Center at 49 Cottage Place, floor 3, any time between 7 and 8:30 p.m. to ask questions and share suggestions and concerns.

The remaining date for Coffee and Conversation this school year is Tuesday, May 24, 2016.

The consensus of the Board is to proceed with Full day Kindergarten recommendation.

Click here to view the presentation given at the March 21, 2016 Board of Education meeting of the preliminary School budget

 

 

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Ridgewood Schools to Present 2016-2017 $102 Million School Budget

BOE_the ridgwoodblog
March 24,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood Nj, 2016-2017 School Budget Presentations are Set for April 6, and April 19 2016

Two opportunities are offered to residents to hear about the proposed 2016-17 school budget. Board members, the superintendent and the district business administrator will be at George Washington Middle School auditorium on Wednesday, April 6 and at Benjamin Franklin Middle School auditorium on Tuesday, April 19, from 7:30 – 9 p.m. They will review the proposed budget and answer questions.

Click here to view the presentation given at the March 21, 2016 Board of Education meeting.

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FBI offers reward for information on ‘Count Down Bandit’ in North Jersey bank robberies

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BY STEFANIE DAZIO
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

The FBI is offering a $5,000 reward for information about a man they have dubbed the “Count Down Bandit,” who has allegedly robbed seven banks in North Jersey since July.

In most of the robberies, the man approached the teller and demanded money, the FBI said in a statement. The man then counted from 15 or 10 to one and fled with the cash.

 

https://www.northjersey.com/news/fbi-offers-reward-for-information-on-count-down-bandit-in-north-jersey-bank-robberies-1.1531831

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Council Candidate Ramon Hache clears up “Special Needs ” Comments

Ramon Hache ridgewood NJ

March 24,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Nj, Council Candidate Ramon Hache further explains his statement regarding the effect high density housing on the Village schools and educational special needs programs .

“It seems some of your readers may have misinterpreted my comments regarding special needs children. The point I was trying to make is that this is a multi-factor model and we have to take all the factors into consideration. It’s the only way we can plan properly to ensure that we don’t strain our educational system and diminish the quality of both traditional and special needs programs.  I think it’s wonderful that Ridgewood’s educational programs are highly sought after, particularly the special needs program.”

Candidate Hache comments caused some controversy and seemed to be misinterpreted in our view,  https://theridgewoodblog.net/council-candidate-ramon-m-hache-shares-his-thoughts-on-the-proposed-high-density-housing/

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Ridgewood Mayor says he will be introducing an ordinance to repeal ordinance 3519 (BCIA funding) at the next meeting, and not to proceed with the referendum question on the May ballot

Hudson Street Parking Garage

march 24,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the no2BCIA petition was certified by the village clerk at the village council open public meeting tonight. (certified means she confirmed that we needed 814 signatures and we had at least 814 valid signatures).

The petition provided two options -the council could either withdraw the ordinance 3519 (bond for garage through BCIA), or put that as a referendum question to the voters of Ridgewood.

The mayor tonight at the council meeting, promised that he will be introducing an ordinance to repeal ordinance 3519 (BCIA funding) at the next meeting, and he decided not to proceed with the referendum question on the May ballot.

According to the petitioners , based on understanding of the law, the BCIA option for garage funding, as it was passed in ordinance 3519 appears to be dead for now.

Ridgewood will get a garage that’s funded by a local bond where Ridgewood will be in complete control. (The size of the garage is still an open question, and if you would like to be a part of petition, which will request the council to consider a smaller sized garage that’s right for that specific lot, please reach out to us at its2big.com

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Ridgewood Village Coucil Majority Votes For High Density Housing In Ridgewood

3 amigos

file photo by Boyd Loving

March 24,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,last night It was a very predictable, 3-2 votes on anything meaningful and the majority stating all the reasons they were voting yes except representing the people. The leaving council majority aka the 3 amigos are enacting a “scorched earth policy” as they will be gone. Turn out was lower than expected because so many saw the vote as a for gone conclusion.

Zoning vote 3-2
Garage vote 5-0

All 5 voted for the Village to bond the garage not the county., Susan and Mike had no other choice but to vote that way because the council majority aka the 3 Amigos would have just gone to the BCPA. This way Ridgewood may retain control of the size, commuter parking and rates. Mike said something about researching a surcharge for businesses owner that are close to the garage to defray cost of maintenance.

The traffic study spokesman talked about increased traffic in several locations( 2 on Broad) and that is without the consideration of the garage.  He mentioned some additional policing. No one in the garage discussion talked about the need for policing there or the need of an attendant.  I believe I could live with the garage if it was one deck shorter, remained completely on the foot print and the street parking spaces would remain on Broad and Hudson Streets. Local business in those locations will take a hit without them.

Residents again questioned how is it that the council majority refuses to listen to the public? Could it be that they truly are in their own heads and are immune to incoming sounds,like the voices of the residents?

One nuclear physicist spoke wondering how they could be so emphatically certain that the were correct and that the developers could see no cause for concern?  He said nothing is that certain and his world is one of exactness.

Mike and Susan seemed on there game and nobody clapped for Rurik and Jim when pontificated .

For most residents it is just too much development/ construction at once ,Yes these developments will bring traffic. The Hudson garage will not be enough. and the business owners must be salivating  but  most central business district businesses will not survive the construction phase.

Lastly Former Mayor Kieth Killion gets the last laugh , so many voted for this trio ,now buyers remorse .

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Now Englewood Steps Up with Teaneck to challenge their local hospitals’ exemption from property taxes

valley_hospital_theridgewoodblog

BY MARY DIDUCH AND LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD

Both Teaneck and Englewood are challenging the tax-exempt status of their local hospitals, joining a growing list of municipalities who want non-profit hospitals to pay property taxes.

The councils of the two municipalities voted to file tax appeals against Englewood Hospital and Medical Center and Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck. Of 62 non-profit hospitals in the state, 17 others now face similar lawsuits.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/englewood-teaneck-to-challenge-their-local-hospitals-exemption-from-property-taxes-1.1532070

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Fears grow for priest ‘kidnapped by ISIS’ who may be crucified on Good Friday

Father Tom Uzhunnalil

22:48, 23 MAR 2016
UPDATED 23:30, 23 MAR 2016
BY RUTH HALKON

Father Tom Uzhunnalil was seized when four armed militants stormed an old people’s home in Aden in Yemen on March 4, killing 16

Fears are growing for a priest believed to have been kidnapped by ISIS as sickening reports suggest he may be crucified on Good Friday.

Father Tom Uzhunnalil was seized when four armed militants stormed an old people’s home in Aden in Yemen on March 4.

The gunmen killed 16 people, including four nuns, in the brutal attack on the home run by the in a brutal raid which killed 16 people including four nuns.

No group has come forward to claim responsibility for the kidnap of the priest, who was a member of the Silesian order in of Bangalore, India, but a survivor said ISIS was to blame.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/fears-grow-priest-kidnapped-isis-7618221

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ISIS TRAINS 400 FIGHTERS TO ATTACK EUROPE IN WAVE OF BLOODSHED

Iraq ISIS Abu Wahe 2941936b

BY LORI HINNANT AND PAISLEY DODDS
ASSOCIATED PRESS

PARIS (AP) — The Islamic State group has trained at least 400 fighters to target Europe in deadly waves of attacks, deploying interlocking terror cells like the ones that struck Brussels and Paris with orders to choose the time, place and method for maximum chaos, officials have told The Associated Press.

The network of agile and semiautonomous cells shows the reach of the extremist group in Europe even as it loses ground in Syria and Iraq.

The officials, including European and Iraqi intelligence officials and a French lawmaker who follows the jihadi networks, described camps in Syria, Iraq and possibly the former Soviet bloc where attackers are trained to target the West. Before being killed in a police raid, the ringleader of the Nov. 13 Paris attacks claimed he had entered Europe in a multinational group of 90 fighters, who scattered “more or less everywhere.”

But the biggest break yet in the Paris attacks investigation – the arrest on Friday of fugitive Salah Abdeslam- did not thwart the multipronged attack just four days later on the Belgian capital’s airport and subway system that left 31 people dead and an estimated 270 wounded. Three suicide bombers also died.

Just as in Paris, Belgian authorities were searching for at least one fugitive in Tuesday’s attacks – this time for a man wearing a white jacket who was seen on airport security footage with the two suicide attackers. The fear is that the man, whose identity Belgian officials say is not known, will follow Abdeslam’s path.

After fleeing Paris immediately after the November attacks, Abdeslam forged a new network back in his childhood neighborhood of Molenbeek, long known as a haven for jihadis, and renewed plotting, according to Belgian officials.

“Not only did he drop out of sight, but he did so to organize another attack, with accomplices everywhere. With suicide belts. Two attacks organized just like in Paris. And his arrest, since they knew he was going to talk, it was a response: ‘So what if he was arrested? We’ll show you that it doesn’t change a thing,'” said French Senator Nathalie Goulet, co-head of a commission tracking jihadi networks.

Estimates range from 400 to 600 Islamic State fighters trained specifically for external attacks, according to the officials, including Goulet. Some 5,000 Europeans have gone to Syria.

“The reality is that if we knew exactly how many there were, it wouldn’t be happening,” she said.

https://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_BRUSSELS_ATTACKS_CELLS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-03-23-15-15-46

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The Ridgewood blog we will be livestreaming the meeting starting at 7:30pm

ridgewood village council

file photo by Boyd Loving

Dear Friends,

After the September 16th Village Council meeting, everyone I spoke with said, “Well, it’s a done deal with the High Density Housing.” But then September 30th proved us different.

The point is, as Rocky Balboa once said, “It ain’t ’til it’s over.” To add to that: It’s only over if we don’t show up.

Tonight is probably the most important Village Council meeting in the history of Ridgewood. It is the night when it’s decided whether we live in a Village or a City.

No one can foresee the future, but one thing is for sure: coming tonight will send a strong message – not only to this outgoing Village Council majority, but also as a mandate to those who are running for election. Perhaps even more important is that we can say that we showed up when our Village needed us the most and did what we could to stop this madness.

Lastly, if it’s absolutely impossible for you to come,  The link to the broadcast can be found here: https://livestream.com/accounts/18208820/events/4985052

(NOTE: this is an unofficial broadcast and can ONLY be viewed at the above link.)

Please share this link and forward this note to as many residents as you can.

Thank you for helping protect our most wonderful village. Hope to see you tonight.

Sincerely,

Dana

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Ramon Hache , “I hope the Ridgewood Council will listen to the input from residents and will decide on responsible development that will preserve the character of our town while improving traffic safety

Ramon Hache ridgewood NJ

march 23,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Council candidate Ramon Hache also shared his feeling on the high density meeting tonight , “I think tonight’s meeting is unfair to residents. There are two major decisions on the agenda tonight. Having two major topics on the same agenda will cause the meeting to go until early Thursday. The issues should have been split onto two agendas.”
First Ramon commented on the Hudson Garage ,”I hope the Council will vote to bond the garage ourselves. The newest design option, although not perfect, represents a compromise between residents and the Council.  The original proposed size and footprint of the garage were simply too large.”

Then Ramon followed up on the high density housing, “The Council will vote on the proposed housing density of 35 UPA.  I understand the need to develop the proposed sites but I would like to see mixed use, and a density of between 20 and 24 units per acre, more in line with the total average throughout the CBD. Although the recent study by BFJ suggest there would be minimal to no impact to the schools, Ridgewood is known for its schools and exceptional educational programs for special needs children. Therefore I would be cautious to rely on the student enrollment projections alone, which did not take into account the higher cost of special needs programs.
Ideally, I would rather see us approve one of these zoning changes first, to see how it goes.  We would get real-world data while providing a good ratable which we need to finance the things we need and to stabilize property taxes.”

Ramon emphisized, ” These are very important issues that will have an enduring impact on the future of our community. I encourage residents to attend the meeting. I hope the Council will listen to the input from residents and will decide on responsible development that will preserve the character of our town while improving traffic safety.”

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Why smart people are better off with fewer friends

albert_einstein

By Christopher Ingraham March 18

Hell might actually be other people  — at least if you’re really smart.

That’s the implication of fascinating new research published last month in the British Journal of Psychology. Evolutionary psychologists Satoshi Kanazawa of the London School of Economics and Norman Li of Singapore Management University dig in to the question of what makes a life well-lived. While traditionally the domain of priests, philosophers and novelists, in recent years survey researchers, economists, biologists and scientists have been tackling that question.

Kanazawa and Li theorize that the hunter-gatherer lifestyles of our ancient ancestors form the foundation for what make us happy now. “Situations and circumstances that would have increased our ancestors’ life satisfaction in the ancestral environment may still increase our life satisfaction today,” they write.

They use what they call “the savanna theory of happiness” to explain two main findings from an analysis of a large national survey (15,000 respondents) of adults aged 18 to 28.

First, they find that people who live in more densely populated areas tend to report less satisfaction with their life overall. “The higher the population density of the immediate environment, the less happy” the survey respondents said they were. Second, they find that the more social interactions with close friends a person has, the greater their self-reported happiness.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/03/18/why-smart-people-are-better-off-with-fewer-friends/

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Teaneck to legally challenge Holy Name Medical Center’s exemption from local property taxes

valley_hospital_theridgewoodblog

BY MARY DIDUCH AND LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD

Teaneck’s township council voted Tuesday to file suit against Holy Name Medical Center’s exemption from local property taxes, as municipal governments around the state take aim at non-profit hospitals for potential tax revenues.

The council voted, 5-1, to authorize the action after two Holy Name executives spoke against the resolution.

“We can avoid all those legal expenses,” said Ryan Kennedy, the hospital’s chief financial officer, appealing to the council to work with the hospital to find a solution.

“It’s a silly route to go,” Michael Maron, the hospital’s president and CEO, said before the meeting. “We’ve had a reasonable relationship over the course of time. We should sit down and talk.” Once a tax appeal is filed, both sides have to hire lawyers and litigation takes years.

The town should wait and negotiate with the hospital, he said. “Worst case scenario, another year goes by,” he said. “Is that the end of the world?”

“We support the town, and we’re willing to consider supporting the town even more,” he said.

Emboldened by a recent state tax court decision, the council took action to “preserve its rights” to potential tax revenues as an Apr. 1 deadline for 2016 tax appeals looms.

Under the current tax rate, if Holy Name’s entire 20-acre property were to be taxed, the liability would be about $2 million. But Maron said the hospital already pays taxes on various smaller properties it owns. It provides free flu vaccines to borough employees, supplies to the ambulance corps, and funds to support special township initiatives, he said.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/teaneck-to-legally-challenge-holy-name-medical-center-s-exemption-from-local-property-taxes-1.1531590

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New Jerseyans on the scene in Brussels recount panic

Brussels terror attacks

BY NICHOLAS PUGLIESE AND ABBOTT KOLOFF
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD

As she waited for a flight out of Brussels, Wyckoff native Ashley Bruggemann saw people suddenly rushing toward her on Tuesday morning, and thought they were trying to catch a plane.

“Then a whole lot of people started running,” Bruggemann, 25, said in a telephone interview Tuesday afternoon. “They were panicked. A few people were crying.”

Another New Jersey native live-tweeted his evacuation from a Brussels subway train and wrote that there was smoke in the tunnel as he and others walked in darkness to the nearest safe station, with a child heard crying on a video he posted.

New Jersey residents with Belgian roots received text messages from relatives letting them know they were safe, and expressed shock at the terrorist attacks in Brussels at the airport and a train station that left at least 34 people dead and scores injured.

“People cannot get their minds around something like this,” said Wim Vanraes, a Hillsborough resident who grew up in Belgium and was an editor of a Belgian-American newspaper based in Michigan. He said some people in his native country have been expecting a terrorist attack for “a long time” but that others have been “in denial.”

Valerie Blouin-Hunter of Oakland, whose mother came from Belgium, said she received text messages from aunts and cousins Tuesday morning letting her know they were safe. She said she thought about the possibility of a terrorist attack in her mother’s homeland after the Paris attacks last year but put it out of her mind. After Tuesday, she said, “I am very concerned for my family.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/new-jerseyans-on-the-scene-in-brussels-recount-panic-1.1531558