All are invited to join us as we kick off to our Ridgewood Guild International Film Festival!! — with Anthony Damiano.
Ridgewood Guild International Film Champagne Brunch
Author: James
North Jersey vets, pet owners worrying dog flu virus could surface here
North Jersey vets, pet owners worrying dog flu virus could surface here
APRIL 18, 2015 LAST UPDATED: SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2015, 10:57 AM
FROM STAFF AND NEWS SERVICE REPORTS |
THE RECORD
A canine flu outbreak has sickened many dogs in the Midwest, but whether the potentially deadly bug will make its way here is still anybody’s guess.
“It’s a hard question to answer but with today’s mobile society and people bringing their pets wherever they go, I’m concerned about that — that it could hit the West or East Coast,” said Dr. John DeVries, assistant director of the Oradell Animal Hospital in Paramus.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Veterinary Medicine says the virus has sickened at least 1,000 dogs in Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana. Recent tests from the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory have identified the strain as H3N2. Clinical assistant professor Keith Poulsen says it’s not yet known how effective current vaccines are against this strain, which is believed to have come from Asia.
He said an older strain, H3N8, has also been detected in the region.
Both viruses can cause persistent cough, runny nose and fever in dogs. Experts say a small percentage will develop more severe symptoms. The H3N2 infection has been associated with some deaths.
Sol Abrams, Palisades Amusement Park promoter, dies at 89
FILE PHOTO Sol Abrams in 1979
APRIL 17, 2015, 3:45 PM LAST UPDATED: SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2015, 10:38 AM
BY JAY LEVIN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Sol Abrams stopped at nothing to promote Palisades Amusement Park. If that meant having an elephant water-ski with a showgirl on the Hudson, so be it.
“Genius? I’d give him that honor,” Vince Gargiulo, who runs the Palisades Amusement Park Historical Society, said of Abrams, who died Wednesday at home in New Milford. He was 89 and the last surviving member of the park’s management team.
For 20-plus years, until the day in 1971 that the landmark attraction straddling Fort Lee and Cliffside Park closed for good, Abrams, the consummate PR man, dreamed up ways to get Palisades Amusement Park on the airwaves and into the newspapers.
Beauty contests? Check.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/sol-abrams-palisades-amusement-park-promoter-dies-at-89-1.1311828
‘A fake and a charlatan’: Doctors call for Dr. Oz to be dismissed from Columbia surgery faculty over alleged quack science
BY LARRY MCSHANE
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Thursday, April 16, 2015, 2:29 PM
Updated: Friday, April 17, 2015, 4:39 PM
Dr. Oz doesn’t walk or talk like a duck — but 10 prominent critics say he’s still a quack.
The group of nationally known doctors, in a lacerating letter to his boss, called for the TV doctor’s dismissal from the prestigious post of vice chairman of Columbia University’s department of surgery.
“He’s a quack and a fake and a charlatan,” said Dr. Henry Miller of Stanford, the first person to sign the poison-pen letter.
“I think I know the motivation at Columbia,” he continued. “They’re star-struck, and like having on their faculty the best-known doctor in the country. But the fact is that his advice endangers patients, and this doesn’t seem to faze them. Whether they’re hoping Oprah will come and endow a center for homeopathic medicine, I don’t know.”
The one-page letter was also signed by Dr. Gilbert Ross, executive director of the American Council on Science and Health.
“We find it a shame that he has fled from the ethical and responsible practice of medicine to exploit his television popularity,” said the Manhattan-based doctor.
https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/doctors-dr-oz-removed-columbia-faculty-article-1.2187815
Ridgewood Girls Track & Field: opens coach’s final season with a victory
PHOTO COURTESY OF JACOB BROWN
APRIL 17, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, APRIL 17, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY GREG TARTAGLIA
SPORTS EDITOR |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
RIDGEWOOD — No matter how much multitasking Jacob Brown does, he keeps at least one eye on his athletes at all times.
The Ridgewood High School girls track and field coach was chatting about his 44th and final season Wednesday at Ben Franklin Middle School. And that was in between a practice with the Maroon distance runners and the opening events of the Jack Yockers Bergen County Relays, in which RHS was competing the high jump and pole vault.
The latter happened to catch Brown’s attention when Maxine Earl vaulted 7-foot-6.
“I tell you what, Earl just looked really good going over [the bar],” the coach said with an admiring lilt. “She cleared that by six inches or a foot.
“I need to get my camera and take pictures of this,” he said, turning to head for his car.
Brown’s love and appreciation of the sport is just one of the reasons the Ben Franklin facility was recently rededicated as the Jacob Brown Track & Field Complex. The founder of the RHS girls program, who will retire at season’s end, was conferred the honor in a surprise ceremony prior to the April 4 Steve Pawlowski Ridgewood Relays.
The Maroons then went out and edged Ramsey, 110 1/2-110, to win the large schools title
On council’s vote on residency hiring
Editors Note : several erroneous statements in this letter must be addressed , italics is mine
PJ Blogger Founder of the Ridgewood blog and King of the Anonymous bloggers
to the editor:
While watching the council meeting last Wednesday, I was appalled by the rancor and allegations of harassment.
Our councilmen and councilwomen donate an inordinate amount of time and energy for the betterment of Ridgewood. There is a growing tendency on the part of our citizens to vilify some of our council because of disagreement with their positions on public policy and local law. This has got to stop.
Actually it is three members of the council who continue to attack and vilify the opposition ,
Anonymous blogging is an especially onerous method of this, seeing that a forum already exists at every council meeting by going to the podium and stating your name and address. Criticize the ideas if you must, or add constructive ideas regarding the dialogue or issue at hand, but do it openly and expose your views to public debate.
This is a perfect example of the previous statement , you are responsible for your own behavior , poor manners and an ill temper are no ones fault but your own
During the heated discussion of the residency requirement, it has come to light that one of the two dissenters on the council has a personal stake in the eventual outcome that was not previously made known. I find that there are few coincidences in life, and it appears that the catalyst for one of the dissenting votes bears this out. If you have three sons on the current village list with aspirations to pursue careers with the police force, a dissenting vote on this issue of civilian hires can be seriously construed as another dissenting vote down the road on uniformed employees, and a potential conflict of interest.
To our knowledge Public safety employee hiring was not effected by the “residency ” rule change making the hole conflict issue specious.
Regarding this question of residency preference, Deputy Mayor Pucciarelli summarized it best in voting against continuing the preference: The people of Ridgewood are best served by hiring the most qualified candidate for village jobs, whether they are residents of Ridgewood or not. The village does not need to fill civil service positions as a way of providing work for residents which could become a recipe for patronage and nepotism.
No one would argue that hiring the best for the Village , but it seems the change in the law will open the floodgates for importing more partisan hacks in in attempt to destroy the Village ie welcome to Hudson County .
Glenn F. Jorgensen
Ridgewood
Reader says Arosohn and Company practice ,“When you’re imposing tolerance and respect on people, there’s no need to actually show them any.”
PJ: Have you viewed any of Pat Condell’s videos?
For a Brit, he’s pretty clear on the evils of tyrrany.
Here he demonstrates clearly that he must have visited Ridgewood in person at some point in the recent past, and that when he did, he enthusiastically imbibed the message of public civility imparted by our treasured public icons, the three amigos:
Pat Condell’s words: “When you’re imposing tolerance and respect on people, there’s no need to actually show them any. Just keep throwing mud until it sticks, because you’re up to your neck in double standards here, so you need to be extra vigilent against unwelcome opinion, which in your position can be more than inconvenient (if that wasn’t outrageous enough), it can be downright threatening. So anyone trying to stir up healthy, rational debate should always be swiftly marginalized and crushed, in the spirit of reconciliation and healing. And, if your conscience troubles you, just remind yourself that you’re doing the wrong thing for the correct reason, and you’ll be fine.”
Civility Forum – May 11th at 7:30PM
The next Civility Forum will be held at 7:30pm in the Senior Lounge at Village Hall.
Rev. Jan Phillips will lead the discussion. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Council should focus on good governance
file photo by Boyd Loving
To the Editor:
I read Darius Amos’ report of the Village Council April 8 meeting (“Hiring eligibility expands,” April 10, page A1) and, although I always like Darius’ reporting, I believe he missed out on the most important part of the presentation by the labor attorney for the village.
Someone, I don’t know who but I can guess, invited Ridgewood’s labor attorney, Beth Hinsdale, to speak before the scheduled public portion of the meeting. Everyone in the room had to sit quietly and listen for over 45 minutes as she skewered Councilwoman Susan Knudsen. From her first erroneous statement to the end, it was an attack on the person of a council member who dared to ask a question, or question an answer.
Ms. Hinsdale also impugned an employee of Civil Service, calling her incompetent. Nobody stopped this presentation when it became personal, not our mayor, not our attorney, not our manager, nobody. This confrontation did not belong at a public meeting; if Ms. Hinsdale had a problem with something a council person said, it should be resolved either by a brief statement of facts or a letter read by the mayor.
Ms. Hinsdale even inferred illegalities on the part of Ms. Knudsen because of her sons, which in the end was the final straw for me.
Incredibly, with composure, Ms. Knudsen refuted some of the charges, especially the charge that the Civil Service employee who gave an official answer was incompetent, and even having the composure to apologize for any misunderstanding.
But this was not enough as the accusations continued until Ms. Hinsdale finally stopped talking.
I urge all residents to see the video of the meeting for themselves and decide if this is the kind of government we want to support, or do we want to reform. I said at the meeting we should forget about civility and focus on good governance, which is being totally ignored these days.
Ellie Gruber
Ridgewood
Councilwoman treated unfairly
file photo by Boyd Loving
To the Editor:
Recent headlines reported on the Mahwah councilwoman who was so angry at her mayor that she cursed and gave an inappropriate gesture which was directed at him at a public meeting. As bad as that was, it was over in a moment and was nothing compared to the harassment Ridgewood Councilwoman Susan Knudsen was made to endure at the April 8 meeting.
Right before public comments, Mayor Paul Aronsohn invited the village labor attorney to the microphone to answer questions related to the ordinance to be voted on that evening. The attorney then proceeded to verbally attack Ms. Knudsen for 47 uninterrupted minutes. It was clear that the mayor was complicit in this outrage as no one intervened to stop her.
It was a terrible thing to watch and our tax dollars paid for this debacle. Ms. Knudsen was, as one resident said, “grace under fire.”
Later on, another resident stated that she had witnessed the mayor and the village manager screaming at Ms. Knudsen at the close of the previous meeting. They denied it even though another council member was present to hear it.
To add insult to injury, it appeared that an ethics violation was to be brought against Ms. Knudsen for responding to her attackers. While this did not happen, I question the motive for even putting it out there.
Ms. Knudsen’s crime seems to be that she sought more information regarding the proposed ordinance so that she could make a better informed decision. I don’t know if what happened at the meeting was illegal but it was certainly against any rules of order that decent people operate under.
I believe our mayor owes Ms. Knudsen a public apology at the very least and he must discontinue the town civility meetings immediately. It is the height of hypocrisy to hold these meetings and a clear case of the pot calling the kettle black.
Linda McNamara
Ridgewood
VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD RESIDENTIAL PERMIT AMNESTY PROGRAM
PERMIT AMNESTY PROGRAM
The Building Department is offering an amnesty program for residential work that has been previously completed without the required permits from the Village of Ridgewood.
The purpose of the amnesty program is to ensure that any work that was completed without permits does not cause a safety hazard to our residents. The program will also give Village homeowners the opportunity to apply for these permits before they are subject to administrative action.
Construction permits are required for, but not limited to, decks, interior renovations, pools, mechanical equipment installations, generators, fire/burglar systems, electrical services and subpanels, additional light fixtures or receptacles and water and gas piping. The program requires that homeowners apply for all permits and securing all the necessary inspections during the amnesty period. A comprehensive list of permitted items can be found on the Village’s website at www.ridgewoodnj.net under The Department of Community Services.
To participate in the amnesty program, you must apply for the proper permits prior to any discovery by our inspectors. Violations will not be issued to any owner occupied dwelling provided the homeowner takes advantage of the amnesty program while the program is in effect from April 20, 2015 until the close of business on August 21, 2015.
Residents doing work without a permit and who do not take advantage of this program will be subjected to the normal administrative procedures mandated by the New Jersey Uniform Construction Code. Please note that if your property has zoning non-conformities, you will be required to obtain the proper zoning approval. This is an opportunity to ensure that should you consider selling your home, all the necessary paperwork will be in order and you will avoid any last minute delays.
The amnesty program does not exempt any zoning, engineering or any other required prior approval issues which must be satisfied prior to the issuance of any permits. Also, some work may have an impact on your property taxes.
Contractors and commercial properties are not eligible for the amnesty program.
Should you have any questions, please contact the Construction Department at 201-670-5500 extension 506.
Don’t panic, college seniors: Jobs for grads likely to grow
APRIL 17, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, APRIL 17, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY PAUL WISEMAN
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS |
WIRE SERVICE
* After struggles spurred by the Great Recession, job picture brightens
WASHINGTON — The consulting and accounting firm EY is aggressively recruiting on college campuses this spring. The company formerly known as Ernst & Young plans to hire 9,000 graduates from U.S. universities this year, up from 7,500 in 2014. But recruiting isn’t as easy as it used to be.
“I’m seeing a lot more competition” from rival employers, said Dan Black, EY’s Americas recruiting leader.
That’s good news for college seniors and graduate students preparing to accept diplomas this spring, and a sign that new graduates will fare better than they did in 2014. The Labor Department reported on Thursday that the unemployment rate for Americans in their 20s who received a four-year or advanced degree last year rose to 12.4 percent from 10.9 percent in 2013.
“This is a real breakout year,” said Philip Gardner, director of Michigan State University’s Collegiate Employment Research Institute.
In a survey of employers last fall, the employment center found that hiring of graduates with four-year degrees will rise 16 percent this year.
“It’s led by the ones you would expect — engineering and business,” Gardner said. “But there seems to be a lot of room for everybody. … Even arts and humanities are making a comeback.”
Employers have more openings to fill because baby boomers are retiring and more workers are feeling confident enough about the economy to switch jobs. Overall, the United States generated 3.1 million jobs last year, the most since 1999. The overall unemployment rate has fallen to 5.5 percent in March from 6.7 percent at the end of 2013.
Obamanomics: Concerns That U.S. Is Ceding Its Leadership Role
At Global Economic Gathering, Concerns That U.S. Is Ceding Its Leadership Role
By JONATHAN WEISMANAPRIL 17, 2015
WASHINGTON — As world leaders converge here for their semiannual trek to the capital of what is still the world’s most powerful economy, concern is rising in many quarters that the United States is retreating from global economic leadership just when it is needed most.
The spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank have filled Washington with motorcades and traffic jams and loaded the schedules of President Obama and Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew. But they have also highlighted what some see as a United States government so bitterly divided that it is on the verge of ceding the global economic stage it built at the end of World War II and has largely directed ever since.
Graydon hours of operation to be limited this summer
Tim Cronin and Nancy Bigos of the Dept. of Parks & Rec have posted the Graydon schedule on the Graydon page of the Village calendar as follows (asterisks have been added):
2015 SEASON
Early Season – Saturday, June 6 to Thursday, June 18
Weekends, 10 am to 7:30 pm
Weekdays, ***12 noon*** to 7:30 pm
Regular Season – Friday, June 19 to Sunday, August 16
Daily, 10 am to 7:30 pm
July 4th – Holiday hours, 10 am to 4 pm
Late Season – Monday, August 17 to Sunday, August 30th
Weekends, 10 am to 7:30 pm
Weekdays, ***12 noon*** to 7:30 pm
****POOL CLOSED – Monday, August 31 through Friday, September 4****
Labor Day Weekend – Saturday, Sept 5 through Monday, Sept 7
Daily, 10 am to 7:30 pm
https://www.ridgewoodnj.net/department_detail.cfm?dept_id=41
Translation:
1. Graydon will open two hours late (at noon) on the first 9 weekdays in June following theJune 6-7 opening weekend (that is, June 8-12 and 15-18). Full opening hours (10 AM to 7:30 PM) will begin on Friday, June 19, the day after the last day of school. Late opening resumes for 10 weekdays in late August (Aug. 17-21 and 24-28).
Total of short days: 19 = 38 lost hours of beach time.
Note: Crestwood Lake in Allendale will open two full weeks earlier, on May 23. Weekday hours until school is out will be 1-5 PM throughout that period.
2. Graydon will be CLOSED for the entire 5 days before Labor Day weekend (Aug. 31-Sept. 4). Rationale: lifeguards will not be available because they’ll be in school, with Ridgewood and some other schools opening before Labor Day (Sept. 7)–but none as early as Aug. 31, and Ridgewood with a half-day on Wed. 9/9 and only 2 full days of school, why close all week?
The other part of the argument is that pool managers will be unavailable because they are teachers.
So maybe hire a couple who aren’t teachers? There’s still time.
Total of lost hours that week: 47.5 (9.5/day x 5 days)
Total lost beach time: 38 hours (late opening) + 47.5 hours (week before Labor Day weekend) = 85.5 hours
That’s the equivalent of 9 full lost days (9.5 x 9).
Full hours all season would include 893 hours. Since the first Saturday in June is late this year (June 6), the season is already short. From the first Saturday in June through Labor Day runs 13 weeks 3 days, or (13 x 7) + 3 = 94 days; that’s 9.5 hours/day x 94 = 893 hours. Removing 85.5 hours constitutes a 10.44% reduction. An additional 3.5 hours of closing occur on July 4, when Graydon is closed at 4 PM as a “drop zone” for fireworks.
WHY IS IT NECESSARY to demonstrate to the council every year that people still care about Graydon? I don’t know, but it is.
WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE if people show up at a council meeting to express their views/displeasure? I don’t know, but it often helps. And the less familiar their faces are, the better–also odd but true.
I am not attempting to convene a rally. However, next Wednesday’s council meeting is our last shot at trying to get this year’s proposed reduced hours rolled back. THE COUNCIL MUST STILL VOTE ON IT, although it would have slid through this important step if I hadn’t noticed the web page announcement and yawped at them at the April 8 council meeting. There was no meeting this week; Graydon, I’m told, will be on the agenda for next week. (The agenda has not been posted yet; https://www.ridgewoodnj.net/agenda.cfm/)
If you care about this, please make your voice heard.
The council is tired of hearing my voice and so am I. It has been amply demonstrated that a show of strength and interest at a council meeting makes an impression on elected officials. It may not help, but it can’t hurt. And there is always next year and beyond for the council to consider and plan for.
Village Council
Public Work Session
Wednesday, April 22, 7:30 PM
Village Hall courtroom, 4th floor
Public comment is likely to begin shortly after 7:30, after the Pledge of Allegiance. Please consider stating briefly why the opening hours matter to you and why you believe our council and staff should make whatever effort is required to keep Graydon open for full summer hours–a situation that was assumed and unquestioned for decades.
Be specific, if possible: morning swim fan; work schedule prevents going when it’s open; want to invite guests or take children/grandchildren when a late opening is now scheduled; like to take vacation days from work to go swimming, but want to arrive before noon; council claims to care about seniors; school-aged children do not comprise Graydon’s only constituency; unnecessary to shut down for the entire week before Labor Day, even considering school schedules; why not at least open from 3 to 7:30 on those days?
If you can’t come, please consider contacting the council to express your views. Their email addresses will pop up in an email form through this link:
https://www.preservegraydon.org/write-council
And then we’ll see! Thanks.
Swimmingly,
Marcia
===========================================
Marcia Ringel, Co-Chair
The Preserve Graydon Coalition, Inc., a nonprofit corporation
“It’s clear—we love Graydon!”
www.PreserveGraydon.org
Ridgewood groups join forces for Earth Day
APRIL 16, 2015 LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2015, 3:38 PM
BY BY TIFFANY KATEHAKIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
With this year’s dreary winter weather officially a memory, Ridgewood is gearing up for a blossoming spring season with its Daffodil Festival and Earth Day celebration set for Sunday
This year for the first time, the Conservancy for Ridgewood Public Lands (CRPL) and the Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee (REAC) have teamed up to create a joint event.
The theme of the event is “Ridgewood Grows Green and Yellow.” Attendees are encouraged to wear green and yellow attire to the event.
CRPL organized last year’s first ever Daffodil Festival; REAC organizes the village’s annual Earth Day celebration.
“The yellow symbolizes the daffodils and the green symbolizes trees for Earth Day,” said Councilman Michael Sedon.
The two organizations have similar environmentally conscious initiatives in the village and when they held meetings to discuss the potential combination the two events, “It seemed like a natural partnership, combining the family fun of the Daffodil Festival with the environmentally conscious mind of Earth Day,” said Angela Leemans, REAC chair. “The message is to focus on the environment and making Ridgewood a more beautiful community.”
Jury finds former Bergen Democrat Boss Ferriero Guilty of racketeering
A jury today issued a verdict of guilty to three out of five charges in the corruption case of former Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joe Ferriero.
Guilty of racketeering, wire fraud and bribery-related charges, Ferriero escaped conspiracy to promote bribery and mail fraud charges. (Pizarro/PolitickerNJ)
Jury finds Ferriero guilty | New Jersey News, Politics, Opinion, and Analysis
