Author: James

Ken Gabbert Photo by Boyd Loving

Ridgewood preparing to remove village manager from post
Tuesday July 30, 2013, 8:51 PM
BY  CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER
The Record

RIDGEWOOD — Ken Gabbert will remain the village manager until at least Aug. 14, when a council vote is expected on removing the administrator from a post he has held since 2009.

“We have begun discussions about transitioning the village manager’s office,” Mayor Paul Aronsohn said after an hourlong closed session Tuesday night, convened specifically to discuss Gabbert’s employment. Aronsohn said the council would “continue discussing” the transitioning of Gabbert’s post and work to “find an unanimous conclusion” that satisfies both the village manager and the governing body.

Administration sources have said tensions have developed between Gabbert and the council majority over several years of missteps and disagreements. Gabbert has known for some time his job was in jeopardy. A similar closed-door session in February resulted in a joint statement from the council, explaining his performance would be evaluated over coming months.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/Ridgewood_readying_to_remove_village_manager_from_post.html#sthash.2Jr5ZehQ.dpuf

file photo by Boyd Loving

Readers says so let’s all whine about PSEG when the power is out for a week

Ok so let’s all whine when the power is out for a week the next time a storm takes down the low hung power lines.

The optimal solution would be to bury at least the trunk lines. I’d shell out a couple grand to dig a trench from the street to my house, if it meant that the power would stay on.

I’ve been watching Parks & Recreation on Netflix recently, and their depiction of the public is not far off the mark. No matter what happens, half the room is outraged.

file photo by Boyd Loving

Ridgewood Council to continue monitoring manager’s job performance
Tuesday July 30, 2013, 7:19 PM
BY  DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News

The Ridgewood Council will continue close monitoring of Village Manager Ken Gabbert’s job performance, an announcement made by Mayor Paul Aronsohn following a 30-minute closed session Tuesday night.

The council called the special public meeting in the spirit of “transparency” to notify Ridgewood residents that the evaluation of the village manager’s office is ongoing. The process will “culminate” at the governing body’s Aug. 14 public meeting.

“Because it’s a personnel issue, we can’t go into the details right now. [Tonight] was just to make sure everyone knew this was happening,” Aronsohn said.

Aronsohn was the only member of the governing body to speak at Tuesday’s meeting. Gabbert declined to comment after the meeting.

Councilwoman Bernadette Walsh, who had previously scheduled commitments, did not attend the special public meeting.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/217674101_Ridgewood_Council_to_continue_monitoring_manager_s_job_performance.html#sthash.RUhOcs4L.dpuf

Congress signed without reading : The Revenge of Obamacare

Wrinkle in Health Law Vexes Lawmakers’ Aides
By ROBERT PEAR

Published: July 29, 2013 530 Comments

WASHINGTON — As President Obama barnstorms the country promoting his health care law, one audience very close to home is growing increasingly anxious about the financial implications of the new coverage: members of Congress and their personal staffs.

Under a wrinkle that dates back to enactment of the law, members of Congress and thousands of their aides are required to get their coverage through new state-based markets known as insurance exchanges.

But the law does not provide any obvious way for the federal government to continue paying its share of the premiums for the comprehensive coverage.

If the government cannot do so, it could mean an additional expense of $5,000 a year for individuals and $11,000 for families under some of the most popular plans.

https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/30/us/politics/wrinkle-in-health-law-vexes-lawmakers-aides.html?hp

Shelia Jackson Lee at Sudanese Embassy in Protest Against Genocide in Darfur

CBC recommends Sheila Jackson Lee for Homeland Security post

Just two weeks after Janet Napolitano announced her resignation as Secretary of Homeland Security, the Congressional Black Caucus has suggested Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Houston fill her spot.

A letter dated July 25 and signed by Rep. Marcia Fudge, Ohio Democrat and caucus chairwoman, urges President Obama to consider Miss Jackson Lee for the position, calling the Democrat a “voice of reason” that the agency could stand to gain, the Houston Chronicle reported.

“Representative Jackson Lee would serve as an effective DHS Secretary because she understands the importance of increasing border security and maintaining homeland security,” the letter reads.

Read more: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jul/29/cbc-recommends-sheila-jackson-lee-homeland-securit/#ixzz2aZGySpnC

Detroit looks to dump retiree health costs on Obamacare

Detroit Looks to Health Law to Ease Costs
By MONICA DAVEY and ABBY GOODNOUGH

As Detroit enters the federal bankruptcy process, the city is proposing a controversial plan for paring some of the $5.7 billion it owes in retiree health costs: pushing many of those too young to qualify for Medicare out of city-run coverage and into the new insurance markets that will soon be operating under the Obama health care law.

Officials say the plan would be part of a broader effort to save Detroit tens of millions of dollars in health costs each year, a major element in a restructuring package that must be approved by a bankruptcy judge. It is being watched closely by municipal leaders around the nation, many of whom complain of mounting, unsustainable prices for the health care promised to retired city workers.

Similar proposals that could shift public sector retirees into the new insurance markets, called exchanges, are already being planned or contemplated in places like Chicago; Sheboygan County, Wis.; and Stockton, Calif. While large employers that eliminate health benefits for full-time workers can be penalized under the health care law, retirees are a different matter.

https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/29/us/detroit-looks-to-health-law-to-ease-costs.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=1&

Entry Level Law Enforcement Exam is now open
Closing date is 9/4/2013

State of New Jersey,
Civil Service Commission

Candidates interested in employment for any of the titles within the 2013 LEE announcement must submit a LEE application and related fees. Candidates who took the 2013 State Correction Officer Recruit exam and apply for any title within the 2013 LEE announcement will NOT be scheduled to take the LEE exam. Candidates who took the 2013 State Correction Officer Recruit examination will automatically have their score applied to all titles for which they apply as part of the 2013 LEE announcement, when that eligible pool becomes active.

Before proceeding, you MUST Click here and read the 2013 Law Enforcement Examination Fact Sheet.

1. Applicants must be citizens of the United States as of September 4, 2013.

2. Where hiring preferences apply, applicants must meet the residency requirements of the appointing jurisdiction as of September 4, 2013 and may be required to maintain continuous residency in that jurisdiction up to and including the date of appointment.

3. Applicants must be high school or vocational high school graduates, or possess an approved High School Equivalency Certificate by September 4, 2013.

4. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age as of September 4, 2013. Applicants for Municipal Police Officer positions cannot be over 35 years of age (one is considered over 35 on the day after his/her 35th birthday) as of September 4, 2013, unless they meet the exceptions in “Maximum hiring age requirement for Municipal Police Officer”. NOTE: The age 35 maximum hiring requirement applies only to Municipal Police Officer and its bilingual titles.

5. Appointees will be required to possess a driver’s license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform the essential duties of the position.

6. Appointees may be required to pass thorough medical and drug screening, and psychological/psychiatric examinations. Failure of any of these is cause for removal from that title area.

NOTE: Appointees will be required to successfully complete a training program mandated by the NJ Police Training Commission. This training must be completed prior to enrollment in the Police and Fire Retirement System.

For more information click on the link below

https://info.csc.state.nj.us/Vats/WebAnno.aspx?FileNumber=17220

keeping the SPAM at bay

New technology manager hired for Ridgewood Public Schools
TUESDAY JULY 30, 2013, 9:22 AM
BY  LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The Ridgewood Public Schools district has hired a manager of information technology. Ryan Kenny was hired effective Sept. 23, “or earlier if possible,” at a salary of $130,000.

According to the position’s job description, Kenny, who is currently the Westwood Regional School District’s technology coordinator, will serve as the “chief information officer for the district,” providing “leadership in the development, implementation and coordination of the district’s information technology (IT) plans.”

This includes assisting staff in managing cross-curricular technology instruction and district-wide technology infrastructure – “file servers, mail server, domain controllers, wireless networks, storage area network, backups, switch configurations, mail archives, firewalls, spam filtering, anti-virus, printing” and other software and devices.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/217582151_New_technology_manager_hired_for_Ridgewood_Public_Schools.html#sthash.K4bD1njO.dpuf

Bergen County Freeholder John Mitchell at the Schedler property

Ridgewood purchases final piece of land to merge with Schedler plot

TUESDAY JULY 30, 2013, 9:22 AM

BY  DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The village has officially acquired a final plot of wooded land sandwiched between Route 17 and West Saddle River Road, essentially completing the deliberate process to merge it with the former Schedler tract.

Ridgewood Council members formally approved the purchase of the .358-acre site last Wednesday, authorizing a payment of $90,000 to General Energy Transport and Terminal Yards, a Midland Park-based operation. The company is a subsidiary of Shotmeyer Bros. Fuel Company.

Based on the 2013 village-wide reassessment, the current assessed value of the triangular-shaped parcel is $54,000. Assessment figures can be accessed through Ridgewood’s municipal website.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/217582141_Ridgewood_purchases_final_piece_of_land_to_merge_with_Schedler_plot.html#sthash.yv4hc0ze.dpuf

Ridgewood planners seeking crux of Valley Hospital proposal
TUESDAY JULY 30, 2013, 9:31 AM
BY  DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Regularly lost in the lengthy discussion and debate that has marked The Valley Hospital’s expansion public hearing is the fundamental question at hand: Is the request to amend the master plan amendment an appropriate action?

In 2011, the village’s governing body voted against the introduction of an ordinance to amend the Ridgewood master plan, essentially defeating Valley’s attempt at a large-scale Renewal project, and instead adopted a resolution stating specific reasons why it did not support the proposal. The H-Zone (hospital zone) amendment, however, remained valid with the Ridgewood Planning Board, which had approved it more than one year before the council said no.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/217583291_Ridgewood_planners_seeking_crux_of_Valley_Hospital_proposal.html

Summer school enrollment goes up in Ridgewood
Monday July 29, 2013, 10:37 AM
BY  LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News

The renewed summer school program at Ridgewood High School (RHS) enrolled 50 more students this year than last year, when the program lost money, but whether or not the program is in the red or black this year remains to be seen.

THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS FILE PHOTO
Buy or license this photo

Asked about this year’s program finances, Superintendent Daniel Fishbein said he has “not had a chance to review the figures.”

Summer School Principal Keith Cook noted that “revenue did not increase as we had hoped.”

“We are currently examining new means of increasing the public’s awareness of the program and ways to improve our financial capabilities,” he said.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/217388491_Summer_school_enrollment_goes_up_in_Ridgewood.html#sthash.7d2cVQbw.dpuf

the fly goes two for two https://theridgewoodblog.net/the-fly-sees-lots-of-changes-coming-cottage-places-way/

Human resources administrator Gary Hall leaving Ridgewood school district
Monday July 29, 2013, 11:10 AM
BY  LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
The Ridgewood News

After five years of service in Ridgewood, human resources manager Gary Hall has resigned, effective Sept. 1.

Hall will be taking a job as human resources administrator for Bergen County Technical Schools and Bergen County Special Services School District.

“Gary, it’s been a pleasure to work with you for the last five years,” said Board of Education (BOE) President Sheila Brogan at last week’s meeting, when the announcement was made. “Thank you for the good work that you’ve done.”

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/217392921_Human_resources_administrator_leaving_Ridgewood_school_district.html#sthash.g2olQWZz.dpuf