Ridgewood athletes Sophie Montgomery, Saskia Keppler and Libby DeVita benefited this spring from the tutelage of jumps coach Steve Opremcak, who has been chosen to lead the girls cross-country team this upcoming season.
JULY 10, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, JULY 10, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY MATTHEW BIRCHENOUGH
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
The fate of the Ridgewood High School boys and girls cross-country programs is now in the hands of two men in vastly different stages of their coaching careers but who envision their teams following a similar upward path.
For new girls coach Steve Opremcak, the position is the continuation of an already distinguished cross-country head coaching career. In Patrick Ryan, the newly appointed boys coach, Ridgewood is confident it has found a promising up-and-comer in the coaching ranks.
The appointments, approved by the district Board of Education late last month, signal the start to a new era for the tradition-rich boys and girls cross-country teams that achieved tremendous success under long-time coaches Jacob Brown and Mike Glynn.
“It’s a little intimidating, but I feel very honored,” said Opremcak, who was one of Brown’s assistants for the past six seasons during the cross-country and spring track seasons and served as the head coach at Indian Hills from 1998 to 2007.
The intimidation to which Opremcak referred is due not only to Brown’s role as the founder of the girls cross-country and track programs at Ridgewood but also his teams’ unparalleled success in the sport.
Since their inaugural season in 1974, Brown’s cross-country squads amassed a 243-15 record in dual meets, which included a 22-year undefeated stretch from 1984 through 2005. RHS also claimed 35 league championships, 29 county group titles, 28 Bergen Meet of Champions (BMOC) crowns, 22 state-sectional triumphs and two State Meet of Champions (SMOC) victories under Brown’s leadership.
Lisa Mayisoglu of Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine Introduces Personal Training and Healthy Meal Services
(RIDGEWOOD, NJ, July 9, 2015 — Lisa Mayisoglu, Chef/Owner of Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine, is pleased to announce an exciting new business venture, Mediterranean Zone, which combines her two greatest passions, food and fitness.
Mayisoglu, a certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Consultant, is now offering personal in-home training sessions, group fitness classes and balanced, healthy meals for clients.Mayisoglu, an avid fitness enthusiast and marathon runner, has acquired advanced training in fitness, wellness, nutrition and weight management for all ages. Said Mayisoglu, “Life is too short; I believe everyone should do what makes them happy. Fitness and food are huge parts of my life and with Mediterranean Zone, I have created a business that combines both. People lead such busy lifestyles and often don’t have time to take care of themselves properly. By offering exercise instruction and healthy, portion controlled meals, I’d like to help people lead healthier, more active lifestyles.”
In-home personal training sessions begin with an initial complimentary baseline fitness assessment, followed by exercise routines which are customized for each client based on levels and goals. Each program focuses on cardiovascular exercise, strength and agility building, balance and flexibility. By
using a mix of kettle bells, resistance bands, weights, Pilates/Bousu/medicine balls and more, Mediterranean Zones’ always-varying routines keep clients motivated and enthusiastic. Individual 55 minute sessions are $100, or ten sessions can be purchased for $900.
Mediterranean Zone also ofers group classes for those who want to team up with others on a fitness journey. Fat Burning, Energy Zone, Strength and Cardio classes include a total body workout in a group setting to boost motivation. Sessions are held Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings 8:00am, 9:30am and 10:30am now through October at the Ridgewood Duck Pond (1100 East Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood). Individual 55 minute sessions are $25, ten sessions $200. Reservations are suggested Tel. 201.978.5384.
To complement Mediterranean Zone’s fitness instruction, nutritional support is available for a complete lifestyle change. Mediterranean Zone meals, which are prepared at Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine and exclusive to fitness clients, can be picked up at the restaurant or delivered during in-
home sessions. The menu includes several deliciously, healthy appetizers, salads, main dishes and sides, each with calorie content and portion size noted. Highlights include:
Added Mayisoglu, “Fad diets come and go. The Mediterranean diet has been around for ages andproven to reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer. Mediterranean Zone’s menu includes heart-healthy foods that taste great and will naturally promote weight loss. Most diets aren’t successful
because they leave people feeling hungry; that simply isn’t the case here. This isn’t a diet, it’s a lifestyle with real food. You won’t find any shakes on our menu.”
Mediterranean Zone is located at 28 Oak Street, Ridgewood, NJ 07450. For more information, clients can call 201.978.5384, or visit https://www.facebook.com/MediterraneanZone, or Instagram at Mediterranean_Zone.
Fallen Ridgewood Tree Limb takes out Power Hawthorne
July 11,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, On 7/10/2015: Police and fire department personnel in two (2) neighboring municipalities responded to separate reports of fallen tree limbs that blocked roadways and disrupted electric service late Friday afternoon.
Ridgewood public safety teams were dispatched to a home on Oak Street, where a Village owned tree limb had fallen on the front lawn, knocking out electric, phone, and cable TV services. In neighboring Hawthorne, police and fire units converged on Minerva Avenue, where a limb from a privately owned tree had crashed to the ground, destroying a back yard shed and taking down several wires. No injuries were reported in either incident.
JULY 8, 2015 LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, JULY 8, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY KATHLEEN LYNN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Private-equity firms poured more money into New Jersey companies last year, investing $16.7 billion in 104 companies, up $4.1 billion from the previous year.
New Jersey ranked ninth among the states for the amount of private equity invested, according to the Private Equity Growth Capital Council’s annual investment report.
“The rise in private equity investment in New Jersey and nationwide reflects a positive economic climate and the growth of private equity as an industry,” said James Maloney, a spokesman for the private equity council.
Among the most notable private-equity deals in New Jersey last year was a $90 million investment by Goldman Sachs in AvePoint, a Jersey City technology company. In addition, Onex Corp. became an equity partner in York Risk Services Group, a Parsippany-based risk management company, and General Atlantic Partners took a stake in CitiusTech Inc., a Princeton-based health care technology company.
In a more recent deal, Craftmaster Hardware of Northvale, which provides security hardware and locksmith supplies, was purchased this year for an undisclosed amount by Boston-based private-equity firm Capital Resource Partners.
Private-equity firms invested more than $486 billion in U.S.-based companies last year, increasing investment by $43 billion over the previous year. Nationally, private equity investors put more than half their money into two sectors, business services (29 percent) and consumer goods (22 percent). Information technology, energy, health and financial services accounted for most of the rest of the investments.
California ($56 billion), Texas ($52 billion), New York ($43 billion), Florida ($34 billion) and Illinois ($29 billion) led the states in the amount of private equity investments.
Hans von Spakovsky / @HvonSpakovsky / July 09, 2015
There has been a fiery debate over the past few weeks about illegal aliens and crime, which has intensified with the murder of Kate Steinle in San Francisco by a seven-time felon and five-time deportee as the direct result of the city’s sanctuary policy.
What seems to have been overlooked in the back and forth on this is some of the very disturbing, actual data on crimes committed by illegal aliens, which should concern every American—particularly those who live in sanctuary cities like New Orleans or San Francisco that release criminal aliens rather than turning them over to the Department of Homeland Security.
As Jessica Vaughan of the Center for Immigration Studyoutlines, Department of Homeland Security records show that in just one eight-month period in 2014, more than 8,100 deportable aliens were released by sanctuary jurisdictions. Three thousand of them were felons and 62 percent had a prior criminal record. Nineteen hundred were later rearrested a total of 4,300 times on 7,500 different offenses.
Thus, these sanctuary policies directly victimized thousands of the residents of these sanctuary cities who were subjected to assaults, burglaries, sexual assaults, thefts and even murdersthat would not have occurred except for these sanctuary policies.
But there is more. In 2005, at the request of several members of Congress, the Government Accountability Office prepared two reports on criminal aliens—legal and illegal—in prison for committing crimes in the United States. Those reports are very revealing. For example, the first report (GAO-05-337R) released on April 7, 2005, found that:
The percentage of federal prisoners who are criminal aliens is about 27 percent;
In 2004, there were 49,000 such prisoners in federal jails;
In 2002, the federal government gave reimbursements to the 50 states under the “State Criminal Alien Assistance Program” (SCAAP) for incarcerating another 77,000illegal aliens in state prisons; and
At the local level in 2002, the federal government reimbursed 750 local governments under SCAAP for incarcerating an additional 138,000 criminal illegal aliens, which jumped to 147,000 prisoners in 2003.
It is important to note that these reported numbers “represent only a portion of the total population of criminal aliens who may be incarcerated at the local level,” since the federal government does “not reimburse localities for all criminal aliens” and some states don’t submit requests for reimbursement. So where were all of these criminal aliens from? According to the GAO report, the breakdown was as follows:
Federal prisons: Mexico (63 percent); Colombia (7 percent); the Dominican Republic (7 percent); Jamaica (4 percent); Cuba (3 percent); El Salvador (2 percent); Honduras, Haiti and Guatemala (each 1 percent), and the remaining 11 percent from 164 other countries.
State prisons: In the five states (Arizona, California, Florida, New York and Texas) incarcerating about 80 percent of SCAAP criminal aliens, the prisoners were from Mexico (58 percent); Cuba (5 percent); Dominican Republic (5 percent); El Salvador (4 percent); Jamaica (3 percent); Vietnam (2 percent); and the remaining 22 percent from 148 other countries.
Local jails: In the five local jails with the largest criminal illegal alien populations, the prisoners were from Mexico (65 percent); El Salvador (6 percent); Guatemala (3 percent); Honduras (2 percent); South Korea, Vietnam, the Dominican Republic and the Philippines (each 1 percent); and the remaining 20 percent from 193 other countries.
Thus, it is clear that criminal aliens already represent more than a quarter of all of the prisoners in federal prisons and are present in large numbers in state and local jails.
The second GAO report (GAO-05-646R), released on May 9, 2005, looked at the crimes committed by 55,322 aliens who “had entered the country illegally and were still illegally in the country at the time of their incarceration in federal or state prison or local jail during fiscal year 2003.”
The path of destruction weaved by these 55,322 illegal aliens was truly shocking. According to GAO, these criminal aliens:
Were arrested a total of 459,614 times, averaging about eight arrests per illegal alien;
97 percent had more than one arrest, while 26 percent had over 11 arrests;
Committed almost 700,000 criminal offenses, averaging 13 offenses per illegal alien;
10 percent of these illegal aliens were arrested for committing 26 or more offenses;
Out of all of the arrests, 12 percent were for violent crimes such as murder, robbery, assault and sex-related crimes; 15 percent were for burglary, larceny, theft and property damage; 24 percent were for drug offenses; and the remaining offenses were for DUI, fraud, forgery, counterfeiting, weapons, immigration and obstruction of justice; and
80 percent of the arrests occurred in just three states: California, Texas, and Arizona
Of course, these statistics reflect the criminal histories of aliens who were in prison. Unfortunately, in fiscal year 2013, the Obama administration released over 36,000 convicted criminal aliens awaiting the outcome of deportation hearings upon an unsuspecting public, and another 30,558 in fiscal year 2014 according to the House Judiciary Committee.
The offenses for which they were convicted involved “dangerous drugs, assault and domestic violence, stolen vehicles, robbery, sex offenses, sexual assault, kidnaping, voluntary manslaughter, and even homicide.” As the House Judiciary Committee outlined, more than a quarter of these aliens “were so called ‘level 1s’ according to the administration—the worst of the worst.” And in 2013 alone, the administration didn’t even bring removal proceedingsagainst an additional 68,000 criminal aliens convicted of everything from homicide to sexual assault.
If the over 134,000 aliens released by the administration in just the past two years follow the pattern of those aliens studied by the GAO in 2005, they will commit hundreds of thousands of more crimes, victimizing countless innocent Americans in crimes that could have been prevented.
How many Americans have to be assaulted, injured, raped or killed, or have their homes, cars and personal property burglarized, stolen or damaged before both the federal government and local governments like San Francisco will finally do what is necessary to lock up criminal aliens who are a danger to the safety and lives of the public?
(CNN)Dylann Roof, the man who allegedly killed nine people in a Charleston church last month, should not have been able to buy a gun used in the slaughter, the FBI has now determined, contradicting earlier assertions that the background check was done properly, a law enforcement official tells CNN and FBI’s director told reporters in Washington.
FBI Director James Comey told reporters Friday “this rips all of our hearts out” and “we are all sick this happened.” He said he concluded the mistake had been made Thursday night after reviewing the latest information.
What we know about Roof, as told in photographs
Within days after the shooting, agents on the ground knew something was amiss and suspected that Roof’s arrest record should have prohibited the gun purchase, according to law enforcement officials.
Officials began a review, as is common after major shootings. About a week after the shooting, examiners officially denied the Roof application.
Comey said the FBI made the error due to a breakdown in the background check system and confusion with paperwork between the FBI, local police departments and county jurisdictions.
Reader says Village should offer an alligator amnesty program for residents who wish to get rid of these illegal, exotic pets?
Ridgewood NJ, Village and Wildlife officials in Bergen County believe an alligator found swimming in the Passaic River Wednesday may have been someone’s pet that was released into the wild.
The alligator discovery is now raising concerns about how the owners obtained it in the first place and where it will go.
In New Jersey alligators are classified as a “potentially dangerous species,” which means only highly trained expert should be handling them . A source at the Village Hall said , “keeping Graydon gator free is a top Village priority “.
Major Crash on Rout 17 South takes out Utility Pole
July 07,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Paramus NJ, The male driver of a 4-door Toyota Corolla was transported by ambulance to Hackensack University Medical Center’s main campus following a rollover crash on Route 17 southbound near Route 4 at approximately 10:00 AM on this Friday morning,
The crash severed a utility pole, knocking out phone and electric service to a nearby Porcelanosa tile showroom. The right shoulder and two (2) travel lanes of Route 17 southbound were closed due to the incident. The Corolla was removed by a flatbed tow truck. Paramus PD, EMS and FD Companies 2 & 4 responded to the incident. NJDOT crews assisted in blocking traffic lanes. PSE&G crews arrived at approximately 10:45 AM to attend to the utility pole issues.
Ridgewood NJ, Come enjoy beautiful music and art in downtown Ridgewood, NJ tomorrow, July 10, 2015. The Ridgewood Guild is coupling its weekly summer program, Music In the Night, with the first ever Art in the Park.This will be located in Van Neste Square Memorial Park. Visual artists will be present with their work on display and for sale.
The musical feature at the park will be Take 4, a trio fronted by James Mabli.
Around town, you can catch the following musical artists at these fine restaurants:
Mike Flanagan – It’s Greek to Me Emily Ertle – Ridgewood Coffee Company Brielle Liebman – Due / LaTour / Malee Dom Boresta – Mediterraneo / Sant. Egidio Deirdre Morgan – Kilwin’s Jake Thistle – Ben and Jerry’s Johnny Horizon – Daily Treat
Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) is co-sponsoring a bill to increase the federal gas tax to help pay for transportation projects across the nation.
The measure, which was originally sponsored by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), would increase the gas tax by 15 cents over the next three years, matching a proposal that was included in the 2011 Simpson-Bowles budget reform proposal.
Larsen said Wednesday that he is becoming the 35th co-sponsor of the measure because the gas tax, which helps pay for the nation’s infrastructure projects, has not been increased since 1993.
“When I talked with local transportation leaders, the message I got was that Congress needs to act quickly,” he said in a statement about the proposed legislation, which is known as the Update, Promote and Develop America’s Transportation Essentials (UPDATE) Act.
“Federal funds make up about a quarter of Washington state’s transportation budget each year,” Larsen continued. “We cannot have a big league economy with little league infrastructure. Raising the gas tax for the first time in more than 20 years will mean states and cities can count on funds to upgrade aging bridges, make rail crossings safer and expand transit options to reduce traffic congestion.”
The new support for the legislation to increase the gas tax comes as lawmakers are searching for money to pay for an extension of federal infrastructure funding that is currently set to expire on July 31.
Congress has been grappling since 2005 with a transportation funding shortfall that is estimated to be about $16 billion per year, and they have not passed a transportation bill that lasts longer than two years in that span.
The 18.4 cent-per-gallon federal gas tax has been the main source of transportation funding for decades, but it has not been increased since 1993, and more fuel-efficient cars have sapped its buying power.
JULY 9, 2015, 7:53 PM LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015, 11:32 PM
BY JANE FRITSCH
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
New Jersey’s federal courts, among the busiest in the nation, are operating under a “judicial emergency,” as declared by the body that sets standards for caseloads, because of vacant judgeships that have gone unfilled for months.
Four of the state’s 17 federal judges have retired or moved to part-time status since the beginning of the year, but the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, under Republican control, has taken no action on three pending nominations backed by New Jersey’s Democratic senators.
“We’re at the mercy of the Senate,” Jerome B. Simandle, New Jersey’s chief federal judge, said in an interview.
JULY 9, 2015, 8:39 PM LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015, 8:47 PM
BY HANNAN ADELY
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
A state task force on school security issued a final report Thursday that recommends more police presence, the creation of a school safety academy, and a requirement that all staff and students carry identification, among other measures.
The task force was created two years ago as state officials and educators sought ways to improve safety after the school shooting rampage in Newtown, Conn. in which 20 children and six adults were killed. The group, which included leaders in education and law enforcement, made 42 recommendations in the report.
The report calls for New Jersey to create and fund a “school safety specialist academy” to centralize information, resources and training in one place. The academy would oversee school compliance with safety rules and regulations and conduct a certification program.
For school security staff, the report recommends hiring school resource officers, sworn police officers assigned exclusively to schools, though the high cost of this approach was noted in the report. Schools that use non-police security guards should develop agreements with local law enforcement on qualifications, communications, chain of command and responsibilities, the report states.
The task force calls for more police patrols on school grounds, especially at busy times like the start of the school day, dismissal and at activities and events. Police should also be invited to talk about topics like bullying, “sexting” and school violence in an effort to build trust and cooperation with the community.
The report also urges that the state should require students and staff to carry identification cards in a visible place when school is in session, the task force concluded. It also calls for the state to require school security to have two-way radios in schools with a dedicated channel to talk directly to emergency responders.
JULY 9, 2015 LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015, 2:53 PM
BY MICHAEL OLOHAN
CORRESPONDENT |
WALDWICK SUBURBAN NEWS
Waldwick – Following more than two hours of testimony Wednesday, July 8, by residents who have been opposing construction of an assisted living facility on Wyckoff Avenue, the zoning board voted 5-2 to reject the application after 13 months of hearings.
The board will formalize its decision by resolution at its Aug. 12 meeting, said board attorney John D’Anton. He said the developer, Formation-Shelbourne Senior Living Services, would then have 45 days to file an appeal in state Superior Court.
Formation-Shelbourne had originally proposed an 85-unit, 100-bed facility, to be known as Solana of Waldwick, on 3.5 acres that is now occupied by four single-family homes at 237, 239, 241, and 247 Wyckoff Ave. Formation-Shelbourne attorney Robert Podvey said the applicant had submitted a final revised site plan on July 7 that reduced the number of units from 85 to 79 and the bed count from 100 to 94. He said the facility was moved back on the property approximately 16 feet from Cambra Road neighbors by removing six residential units on three floors.
The applicant’s engineer, Joseph Miele of Dresdner Robin, Fairfield, said it had also slightly reduced the building’s floor area ratio and impervious coverage, though both still required variances. The facility required a total of four variances, including ones for side parking and its height of three stories. It also required a minor subdivision.
Board members Eugene Sullivan, George Tencza, Ken Gurian, Jesus Mones and Stan Wekarski opposed the application, while member George Pedersen and chair J. Patrick Hunter favored it.
Village of Ridgewood – E-Notice – Thursday, 09 July 2015
Dear E-Notice Residents,
Early this week we had a burglary on the west side of town – last week we had one as well. I wanted to drop everyone a note as a reminder as to how we best protect ourselves; the economic demographics of Ridgewood make this a highly attractive town for burglaries but there are many things that we can do together to deter this.
First and foremost if you see anything or anyone suspicious please call our Police Department. Look out for your neighbors. Also, try to make your home look like it’s occupied – for example, take your newspapers in, try not to leave dry cleaning on your front door, leave a car in the driveway, and put your lights, tv and/or radio on timers so they are on during the proper times. Also, please make sure that your doors are locked. If you have two sets of doors, i.e. a storm/screen door and a regular entry door insure both are locked – locking just the screen door (which tends to be easier to force open) is not sufficient. Close and lock your garage door; one of our burglaries recently was the theft of a bicycle out of a garage. In fact we have had a significant number of bike thefts so putting bicycles away is a good idea as well. When you are leaving your home for an extended period of time, you can call our Police Department and let them know. Also, if you leave your car outside, please make sure that nothing of value is visible within the car and that it is locked – entering a car and stealing is common and can largely be avoided.
I am by no means minimizing the level of burglaries in Ridgewood this year but the metrics indicate that this is similar to last year. We have had 9 residential burglaries and 3 attempts this year versus 10 last year during the same time frame. We remain a very safe community with a top notch law enforcement capability.
In the last two weeks the two west side burglaries were in the Old Country Club area, and last fall we saw a number of burglaries on the east side of our Village. We see this concentration of activity in a particular area for a time and then it seems to shift to another section of town or other municipalities. The Police Department is actively investigating these crimes and they are a priority.
Have a safe, relaxing and wonderful summer, Roberta
JULY 10, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, JULY 10, 2015, 12:31 AM
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Print
Council should not rush hearings on downtown housing
To the Editor:
Re: “Council sets up meeting timeline,” The Ridgewood News, July 3, page A1.
Why is the Village Council eyeing its mid-September public meeting as the one and only date on which an official public hearing will be held for as many as four ordinances related to a master plan amendment approved by the Planning Board last month which would permit high-density multifamily housing in the village’s Central Business District?
In 2011, Village Council members scheduled its official public hearing on The Valley Hospital’s proposed expansion over six separate dates. The schedule was developed to ensure there would be ample opportunity for residents to express their views on the issue, and that no individual(s) would miss out due to planned business travel/vacation, family emergency, illness, etc. Council members then were also concerned about meeting room capacity and allowing ample time for comments. Current Mayor Paul Aronsohn was a member of that council.
Although Mayor Aronsohn has indicated that the issue may be brought up during the public comment portion of any council meeting held between now and mid-September, strict time limits may be imposed on comments made during those meetings, and individual speakers desirous of speaking again may not be given the opportunity to do so as is required during an official public hearing.
The question now becomes, what’s the rush here? Why are Mayor Aronsohn and his fellow council members planning to schedule just one official opportunity for residents to comment? The mayor was a primary proponent of a former council’s plan to allow multiple opportunities for official public comment regarding The Valley Hospital expansion plan. Why the change in attitude related to a proposal for high-density, multifamily housing in our Central Business District? Am I missing something here?
