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The New Jersey Choral Society presents “Crazy for You,” a Gershwin Tribute

March 2016_New_Jersey_Choral_Society_72dpi

 

February 4,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

 

RidgewoodNJ, Kick up your heels and swing as the New Jersey Choral Society presents its Pops Spectacular, “Crazy for You,” a tribute to the glamorous and sophisticated music of George and Ira Gershwin. Performances will be Saturday, March 5 at 8:00 pm and Sunday, March 6 at 3:00 pm at Immaculate Heart Academy, 500 Van Emburgh Ave., Washington Township.

This lively program, under the direction of Eric Dale Knapp, opens with the famous classical-jazz piano composition “Rhapsody in Blue” featuring pianist Linda Sweetman-Waters.  Following this crowd-pleaser will be such popular Gershwin hits as “Strike up the Band,” “Fascinating Rhythm,” “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off” and “S’Wonderful.” A medley of songs from Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess will also be featured, including “It Ain’t Necessarily So,”  “I Got Plenty O’ Nuttin,” “My Man’s Gone Now” and “Summertime.”

 

The second half of the program will feature songs from the Tony award-winning musical Crazy for You, including “Embraceable You,” “I Got Rhythm,” “They Can’t Take That Away from Me” and“Someone to Watch Over Me.” Concluding the program will be a series of show-stopping Gershwin tunes, such as “Love is Sweeping the Country,” “Of Thee I Sing” and “Swanee.”

 

Pianist Linda Sweetman-Waters and the NJCS Pops Spectacular Band will accompany the chorus. Dancers Jen and Tony Landa will also be featured and Broadway actors David and Britt Cryer will host this Pops Spectacular.

 

Advance tickets are $25.00 for adults and $22.00 for students, seniors, and patrons with disabilities. (Add $5.00 at the door). Discounted group pricing is also available. Come one hour prior to performance time for The Inside Line, a complimentary lecture for all ticket holders that provides an intimate and entertaining preview of the music. For reservations or more information, visitwww.NJCS.org or call the New Jersey Choral Society at (201) 379-7719.

 

Established in 1980, the New Jersey Choral Society is one of the state’s most prestigious choral groups, well-known for presenting outstanding and unique programs. Under the direction of Eric Dale Knapp, NJCS performs three major concerts annually in Bergen and Essex counties. They have performed at Carnegie Hall and the White House and have toured internationally in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, China, Australia, England, and France.

 

Immaculate Heart Academy is wheelchair accessible. Funding has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

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New Jersey, 67 percent of moves were outbound

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file photo by Boyd loving

What the Top 5 States People Are Moving From Have in Common

Salim Furth / @salimfurth / January 06, 2016

Salim Furth, Ph.D., researches and explains how public policy affects economic growth as a research fellow in macroeconomics at The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis.Read his research.

Americans are moving to places with affordable costs of living and strong labor markets (or good retirement communities). The top destination states of 2015could hardly be more different geographically and culturally: Oregon and South Carolina. What they have in common is that both states are relatively affordable places to live.

The data on moving comes from United Van Lines, which ranks the states based on the proportion of interstate moves that were inbound or outbound.

In Oregon, 69 percent of moves were inbound. The state with the worst ratio was New Jersey, from which 67 percent of moves were outbound.

The top five outbound states of 2015 were:

New Jersey
New York
Illinois
Connecticut
Ohio

In metro Portland, Ore., the average owner-occupied home cost $305,402 in 2013, compared to $380,420 in Seattle or a budget-busting $730,156 in San Francisco. But even in Portland there is room for improvement: Easing regulation a bit could make the average house $39,000 more affordable.

In South Carolina, homes are even cheaper, with free-market competition keeping the price of a new home close to the actual construction cost.

Where urban and suburban land use regulation is modest, builders can meet demand with new supply. In places like San Francisco and Boston that lack that flexibility, people leave despite those cities’ high wages and dynamic economies.

Moving patterns show how important cost of living is to American families. With perfect weather and a booming, high-tech economy, California ought to be the #1 destination. Instead, more moving trucks are leaving the state than entering.

The top five inbound states of 2015 were:

Oregon
South Carolina
Vermont
Idaho
North Carolina

Policymakers can lower the cost of living by removing unnecessary regulations and licensure requirements, streamlining bureaucracy, and ending protections that have been granted to favored industries.

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Citi: World economy seems trapped in ‘death spiral’

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Katy Barnato | @KatyBarnato

The global economy seems trapped in a “death spiral” that could lead to further weakness in oil prices, recession and a serious equity bear market, Citi strategists have warned.

Some analysts — including those at Citi — have turned bearish on the world economy this year, following an equity rout in January and weaker economic data out of China and the U.S.

“The world appears to be trapped in a circular reference death spiral,” Citi strategists led by Jonathan Stubbs said in a report on Thursday.

“Stronger U.S. dollar, weaker oil/commodity prices, weaker world trade/petrodollar liquidity, weaker EM (and global growth)… and repeat. Ad infinitum, this would lead to Oilmageddon, a ‘significant and synchronized’ global recession and a proper modern-day equity bear market.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2016/02/05/citi-world-economy-trapped-in-death-spiral.html

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Ridgewood singer makes it to Hollywood with American Idol

Ridgewood 'American Idol' Caroline Byrne

FEBRUARY 5, 2016    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2016, 12:31 AM
BY DIANA OLIVEIRA
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Singing was something that burgeoned into a private talent for Ridgewood resident Caroline Byrne. Always too shy to perform in public, the 26-year-old mostly practiced at home until college, when her friends encouraged her to audition for television talent shows.

“My friends pretty much started telling me, ‘You would be crazy not to audition for one of these shows,’” recalled Byrne. “And I always thought to myself, ‘OK, when I’m ready.’”

After participating in preliminary competitions — the first that “lit a fire” under her was a contest in which the winner would be featured on a new track by Swedish DJ John Dahlback (she was runner-up) — Byrne leaped at the opportunity to audition for the 15th and last season of Fox’s singing competition “American Idol.”

And she earned that coveted golden ticket to Hollywood.

https://www.northjersey.com/arts-and-entertainment/music/local-singer-makes-it-to-hollywood-1.1506653

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Looking at the larger picture : the Ridgewood teachers’ contract is one of the highest in the county

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Looking at the larger picture

FEBRUARY 5, 2016    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2016, 12:31 AM
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Looking at the larger picture

To the editor,

As a former nine year member of the Ridgewood Board of Education I would like to recognize and thank the current five members of the Board for their service. Only a few of us fully understand the position that they find themselves in during the time of teacher negotiations.

These five community members are up against the most powerful union in New Jersey. While their conversations are with representatives of the Ridgewood Education Association, the NJEA is right behind the curtain. At the same time each member when they were sworn into office, they took an oath. The oath was pretty much their commitment to play by the established rules. Public education is a regulated industry. Knowing the five members of our Board, I have no doubt that they are doing everything possible to reach a settlement with the REA within the established constraints and what is feasible for all parties. I can understand that the REA may not like those constraints.

I know the fact finder is scheduled to come to Ridgewood, shortly. Unfortunately, it is not one of those situations that after a few hours of meetings the fact finder will appear on the steps of the Education Center and make a declaration of the facts. However, those financial facts will probably rule the day in a report issued weeks later.

Looking at the larger economic picture, we know that the salary guide in the Ridgewood teachers’ contract is one of the highest in the county. We know that the offered state health benefit plan is one of the best, if not the best available in the program. For those of us employed outside of the teaching profession, we have seen stagnant salaries for a number of years and have experienced job insecurity. As to health benefits, we may be contributing the same percentage to our health care premiums, but the plan in which we are enrolled is probably a lot different today than it was a few years ago. The days of $10 copays have been replaced with high deductible plans.

I know teachers have and will continue to express their views at the microphone during public comment of BOE meetings. They have every right to do that. But, does not every issue have two sides? I firmly believe our Board is doing everything possible.

Bob Hutton

Ridgewood

https://www.northjersey.com/opinion/opinion-letters-to-the-editor/ridgewood-news-letter-looking-at-the-larger-picture-1.1506624

 

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Michael Yannone President, Ridgewood Education Association : A “fair” settlement is when both sides give to get

Ridgewood_BOE_theridgewoodblog

Contract discussions continue

FEBRUARY 5, 2016    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2016, 12:31 AM
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Contract discussions continue

To The Editor,

Last week the Ridgewood Board of Education used this space to comment on the status of negotiations with the Ridgewood Education Association. In their statement they stated that they recently presented to us “a new and comprehensive proposal”. The village should know that this was not the case.

The major issue before us is health care contributions that is no secret every time both sides meet that is all we talk about. Almost 200 teachers came to last Monday’s BOE meeting because of this issue with 20 of them speaking personally and passionately on this topic. The board’s “new and comprehensive” proposal on this issue has not changed in 11 months, they have offered nothing new. Their continued solution is to provide teachers with a level of health care that would be the worst of any district in the state. The only savings found in this plan are on the Board’s end any savings for teachers quickly evaporate once the plan is used. They would do nothing to lower the crushing costs of contribution levels.

Again we heard about 2 percent caps on their budget. The district has money in its $101 million budget, they just prioritize its use elsewhere: additional administrators, paid speakers and consultants, fancy furniture, and yes ebooks for elementary aged children who don’t have Chromebooks just to name a few. At Monday’s meeting they announced that they were allocating $970,000 for technology in next year’s budget. But there is no money to settle this contract?

What I found most interesting in the Board’s statement was the use of quotation marks around the word fair as if this is a foreign concept that has no place in the discussion. Good faith negotiations require compromise. A “fair” settlement is when both sides give to get. The REA understands this and has been willing to give in other areas of the contract. We have repeatedly pitched creative concepts to reach a middle ground and have been rebuffed at every step with no counter proposal offered. Their statement reads as if they have actually engaged in back and forth negotiations, when in fact they have yet to offer anything new and substantial for our team to consider. Successful negotiations can not be one sided, and right now the REA feels like we are simply talking to ourselves.

It should come as no surprise that we find ourselves in this impasse as this Board has stated publicly that they are against the rights of teachers to collectively bargain. The Ridgewood Board of Education doesn’t want “fair”, they want it all.

Michael Yannone

President, Ridgewood Education Association

 

https://www.northjersey.com/opinion/opinion-letters-to-the-editor/ridgewood-news-letter-contract-discussions-continue-1.1506617

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MORING SNOW CAUSING TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES IN BERGEN COUNTY

Ridgewood_snow_storm_theridgewoodblog

Winter Weather Advisory

URGENT – WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
341 AM EST FRI FEB 5 2016

…COASTAL LOW BRINGING SNOW TO REGION INTO THIS AFTERNOON…

…WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON EST
TODAY…

* LOCATIONS…NORTHEASTERN NEW JERSEY…THE LOWER HUDSON VALLEY…AND
NEW YORK CITY.

* HAZARD TYPES…MODERATE SNOW AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES.

* ACCUMULATIONS…SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 3 TO 5 INCHES.

* WINDS…NORTH 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 MPH.

* VISIBILITIES…ONE QUARTER TO ONE HALF MILE AT TIMES.

* TEMPERATURES…IN THE MID 30S.

* TIMING…RAIN AND SNOW WILL CHANGE TO ALL SNOW BY DAYBREAK. SNOW
WILL CONTINUES INTO EARLY THIS AFTERNOON.

* IMPACTS…HAZARDOUS TRAVEL DUE TO SNOW AND REDUCED
VISIBILITIES.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CAUSE
TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR SLIPPERY ROADS AND LIMITED
VISIBILITIES…AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING.

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Town Garage site in Ridgewood and the village owned property in that area still a DEP declared it a remediation site

town_garage_theridgewoodblog

February 4,2016
the Staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Nj , Reader offers a little recap . Seems that most of the neighbors are accepting the fact that the Health Barn is coming and as long as they get some concessions as to signage, sidewalks, lights and that tithe village is maintaining close control it is the best they can do.

Another issue has popped up regarding the Town Garage site and the village owned property in that area.  The DEP declared it a remediation site 10 years ago.  Nothing has been done and their is an underground water stream running through the property that is compromised by seepage from the hydraulic and diesel fuel tanks still buried there,  The village spent 35,000 dollars to identify what needed to be done several years ago and I have not heard a thing until last weeks meeting at the very end where the council discussed briefly the abandoned property ordinance, eminent domain and the fact that there is a toxic flume at the site which is adding to the contamination and needs monitoring so as to minimize the effect on the water and I believe wells were mentioned.  I have more information which I will forward to you.  Saw in old minutes where Keith Killion and Pat Mancuso saw the need to clean the site and put a garage there.  It is so much more centrally located and would be used by employees, shoppers ,diners as well as commuters more readily than HUdson Street.

So wish we would clean the site and have two smaller decks at both sites. Currently the Town Garage site owners are current on taxes but have done nothing else and Matt Rogers was asked to look into the abandoned property ordinance.  If we gained ownership of that property, it would give the town so many more options as to the best use of the property.  I think Kennsington is almost out of the picture.  Assisted living facilities are so expensive for the client and those people who would reside there are not the shoppers and diners.   55 and older might be a good fit and those people would bring business to the town.

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BCIA Ridgewood Garage Financing Its a “win -win” for who?

BCIA

Ridgewood draws county financing support for downtown parking garage construction

FEBRUARY 4, 2016, 7:26 PM    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2016, 9:15 PM
BY STEVE JANOSKI
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD — Plans to have county money fund construction of a municipal parking garage on Hudson Street took a step forward Thursday after the Bergen County Improvement Authority agreed to bond for the project.

The unanimous vote was taken after nearly two hours of commentary from village residents that, at times, mirrored those at recent Village Council meetings — business owners and local officials spoke in favor of the 325-car garage, while various residents concerned with its size, scope and aesthetics spoke against it.

But BCIA commissioners reiterated that the board provides financing, not judgment, on an individual project’s merits. That, they said, was best handled at the local level.

“We offer conduit financing,” Commissioner Philip Wilson said afterwards. “They need to go back and talk some more — but it doesn’t have to do with this board.”

The five-member BCIA now will apply to have the state Local Finance Board consider the project of about $11.9 million in cost and give an opinion on its finances. That hearing is set for March 9.

Meanwhile, the Village Council will vote next Wednesday on whether to adopt its agreement with the BCIA.

Discussions about building a parking garage in Ridgewood goes back decades. Local officials hope its construction will ease longstanding parking concerns in the village’s often-cramped downtown.

The BCIA’s action likely will be seen as a victory for Ridgewood Mayor Paul Aronsohn, who has moved the parking deck proposal forward despite vocal opposition from some residents. After Thursday’s meeting, Aronsohn said it was a “good moment for the village.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/ridgewood-draws-county-financing-support-for-downtown-parking-garage-construction-1.1506335

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Passaic prosecutor says Wayne cops never publicized that hostage was shot

Keystone

Local police department issues a press release claiming that they shot a perpetrator when in reality they shot a hostage.  No correction ever made to the press release.  Two years later the truth comes out in court.  Wow!  Heads need to roll there for sure.

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Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA Invites nation to act and endorse the True Islam campaign

Koran

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA Applauds President Obama’s Remarks At Mosque Visit

Invites nation to act on President’s remarks and endorse the True Islam campaign

February 4,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA applauds President Obama’s historic mosque visit. President Obama’s visit comes at a time of rising Islamophobia and anti-Muslim violence. The President championed freedom of religion for all faiths, our collective responsibility to speak up against discrimination in a unified voice, and reassured American Muslim youth that they belong here. “As President of the United States, let me clear, you fit in right here,” said President Obama, “You belong here. You’re part of America. You’re not Muslim or American. You’re Muslim and American. Stay engaged in your community.  Help move our country, your country, forward.”

“This speech and visit is a reassurance for all American Muslims and indeed all Americans,” said Dr. Nasim Rehmatullah, National Vice President of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, “We must act on President Obama’s remarks about setting aside sectarian differences, remaining united, and teaching our youth to be proud American Muslims. We invite all our fellow Americans, regardless of faith, to embrace this unity by endorsing the True Islam campaign.”

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA launched the “True Islam and the Extremists” campaign in December 2015 to unite Muslims and non-Muslims. To date, thousands have endorsed the True Islam campaign, including several members of Congress, police chiefs, and community activists. The True Islam campaign educates all Americans about true Islam, distinguish it from extremism, and to promote national security. We invite all Americans to visit www.TrueIslam.comand endorse the eleven points.

About Ahmadiyya Muslim Community:

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is a dynamic, reformist and fast-growing international movement within Islam. Founded in 1889, the Community spans over 200 nations with membership exceeding tens of millions. Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, established in 1920, is among the oldest American-Muslim organizations.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the only Islamic organization to believe that the long- awaited messiah has come in the person of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908) of Qadian, India. Ahmad claimed to be the metaphorical second coming of Jesus of Nazareth and the divine guide, whose advent was foretold by the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad. The Community believes that God sent Ahmad, like Jesus, to end religious wars, condemn bloodshed and reinstitute morality, justice and peace. Ahmad’s advent has brought about an unprecedented era of Islamic revival and moderation. He divested Muslims of fanatical beliefs and practices by vigorously championing Islam’s true and essential teachings.

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Six charged in Bergen County armed robbery spree

Gurbir Grewal

FEBRUARY 3, 2016, 4:58 PM    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2016, 7:57 AM
BY JOHN SEASLY
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

Six young men have been arrested in connection with a string of armed robberies of gas stations and convenience stores throughout Bergen County, the acting county prosecutor announced on Wednesday.

The robberies happened between March 2014 and January. In one of the holdups, a gunman shot a gas station attendant with a 9-millimeter handgun and two other robberies involved “brutal assaults,” said Gurbir Grewal, the acting Bergen County prosecutor.

The prosecutor’s Special Investigations Squad began looking into the robberies in April 2014. Between March and June of that year, a pattern began to emerge as six Delta Gas Stations in five towns were targeted.

In each case, a gunman asked the gas station attendant for change for a $20 or a $50 bill, and as the attendant counted the change, the gunman pulled out a handgun and demanded the money, Grewal said.

On May 12, 2014 in Teaneck, an assailant pistol-whipped an attendant. On June 9 that year in Ridgefield Park, the gunman shot the attendant in the chest with a 9-millimeter handgun, then reached into his pocket and took the money, Grewal said. The attendant underwent surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center and survived.

In November 2015, in a joint investigation of two Lodi robberies by local police and the Special Investigations Squad, police identified David Thomas Jr., 21, of Lodi, as the gunman responsible for the Lodi robberies as well as those throughout Bergen County in 2014, Grewal said.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/six-charged-in-bergen-county-armed-robbery-spree-1.1504958

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Facebook shuts down medical marijuana pages in New Jersey

cheech-and-chong

 

Three of New Jersey’s five medical marijuana dispensaries have had their business pages shutdown by Facebook, cutting off what advocates call an integral place for customers to learn about which plant strains best treat their illness and where to find discounts. Associated Press Read more

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Slight Hike in Tax Revenue Adds Up to Surplus For State

gov_christie_press_lrg-1

 

Gov. Chris Christie is scheduled to present his next state budget to lawmakers in less than two weeks. And it looks like he’ll be able to deliver that address feeling some confidence about how his spending plan for the current fiscal year is holding up. John Reitmeyer, NJSpotlight Read more

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New worry on N.J. school test scores; graduation in doubt for some who didn’t pass

standardized-testing

FEBRUARY 4, 2016    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2016, 1:00 AM

BY HANNAN ADELY
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

One day after the state released dismal scores on new state tests, high schools were dealing with the reality that it could be harder or at least more complicated for their students to get a diploma in New Jersey.

Most students failed the new state tests, called PARCC, which are among about a half-dozen options that students can use to graduate — part of an overhaul that state officials unveiled in the prior school year. Some who did not meet graduation benchmarks on state exams or on other eligible tests are now scrambling to find ways to prove their readiness for graduation so they can receive their diplomas in June with their peers.

“We are concerned about the impact on students,” said Janina Kusielewicz, curriculum director for Clifton schools. “We know our students can show proficiency. We just hope they can do so, given all the changes.”

The release of statewide test scores came just one day before the state released news that the high school graduation rate had grown for the fourth consecutive year to nearly 90 percent. But those rates were calculated for years when students had to pass the state’s High School Proficiency Assessment in math and reading to graduate and most North Jersey districts had fairly high passage rates for those tests.

Education officials say the new requirements are better measures of college readiness. The change was needed, they said, because students had been graduating without basic skills they needed to succeed in college, and some had to take remedial classes before they could start their first semester.

The overhaul to graduation requirements came as thousands of students refused to take PARCC exams last spring amid criticism about test quality and overtesting. Many more students did not take the test seriously, officials said, in some cases even rushing through it or putting in a half-hearted effort because they believed it would not matter for graduation.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/new-worry-on-n-j-school-test-scores-graduation-in-doubt-for-some-who-didn-t-pass-1.1505586