Ridgewood NJ, Gannett owner of the Bergen Record is issuing layoff notices to 141 employees in a second major round of job cuts since it purchased North Jersey Media group.
Many long-time readers of the Ridgewood blog know there was not much love loss between this blog and the former owners of the Bergen Record, the Borgs. The Ridgewood blog was frequently the target of their ire.
The Record like most of New Jersey’s local media worked in collusion with the far left and seemed to support every new tax, and regulation chasing every business out of the state along with most retirees and high earning tax payers.
While we hate to see people lose their job, we know the same consideration would not be given to us.
The company said Monday the cuts will take place across its North Jersey Media Group, which includes The Record, the Herald News of Passaic County and NorthJersey.com
The McLean, Virginia-based Gannett Co. Inc. has previously eliminated over 100 jobs at the newspaper group right after purchasing the papers last summer.
The company says North Jersey Media Group is reorganizing to meet the growing digital demands of its readers and advertisers.
“This news article, about the increased number of storefront vacancies in an “upscale” Bergen County downtown, may be of interest to many of you, particularly since Joseph A. Banks Clothiers shut their store on East Ridgewood Avenue last week.” Boyd Loving
Editors note : “I am a Joseph A. Banks customer , yet I never set foot in that store , always shop on line ” PJ blogger
By Fausto Giovanny Pinto | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on January 22, 2017 at 7:30 AM, updated January 22, 2017 at 7:32 AM
ENGLEWOOD — Signs that advertise available space are prominent on the windows of empty storefronts along Palisades Avenue in the heart of Englewood’s downtown shopping district.
A man walks by two empty storefronts on Palisade Avenue in downtown Englewood.Fausto Giovanny Pinto
Officials and realtors say the changing landscape of retail shopping has affected this area, filled with ritzy boutiques, chain stores and a host of eateries.
“Englewood is not the only one with empty stores,” said Carol Rauscher, president of the Englewood Chamber of Commerce. “Two things have contributed to the decline, online shopping and off-price stores, and that’s something we don’t have and won’t get.”
Recent departures from downtown include Victoria’s Secret, Chico’s, Nine West and Wendy’s. The downtown currently has a 5 percent vacancy rate, according to recent survey by the city’s Economic Development Corp.
Ho Ho Kus NJ, Two (2) individuals were transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital following a collision at the intersection of Hollywood Avenue and North Franklin Turnpike in Ho-Ho-Kus on Sunday afternoon, 01/22. A 4-door Honda sedan was removed from the scene by a flatbed tow truck. Ho-Ho-Kus PD, FD, and EMS personnel responded to the incident.
Death Of Media Icon Dorothy Kilgallen Latest Case Drawing Renewed Interest
January 23,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood Nj, America loves a good murder mystery, as evidenced by endless TV dramas, movies such as The Girl on the Train, and novels by writers such as Patricia Cornwell and Michael Connelly.
But the infatuation isn’t limited to fiction. The public is also riveted by every detail of real-life homicides, whether it’s the O.J. Simpson trial, the murder of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey, or the extraordinary phenomenon of the TV documentary Making a Murderer.
“People can’t help but be captivated with the human drama when another person’s life ends in violence,” says attorney and investigative reporter Mark Shaw, author of The Reporter Who Knew Too Much (www.thereporterwhoknewtoomuch.com).
Shaw’s own fascination these days is focused on the mysterious death of Dorothy Kilgallen, the Pulitzer-Prize nominated newspaper columnist and panelist on the popular TV show What’s My Line. She was a household name in 1965 when she was discovered dead in her home at age 52.
“With Dorothy, I think you have all the compelling elements,” says Shaw, who served as a legal analyst for USA Today and CNN during the O.J. Simpson trial. “We have a famous journalist killed in the line of duty for writing a ‘tell-all’ book and there are celebrity suspects galore who were never investigated.”
Officially, Kilgallen’s death was ruled accidental, caused by a fatal mixture of sleeping pills and alcohol. Shaw says his research uncovered new evidence that points to murder (posted at www.thedorothykilgallenstory.org.) The motive: Her book that would have exposed a mobster’s involvement in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Shaw has called on the NYC District Attorney to investigate since “murder is the worst form of censorship” and a main suspect remains at large.
Kilgallen’s own journalistic career serves as evidence that fascination with true-crime stories is nothing new. She wrote about seemingly every “trial of the century” of her era, including the Lindbergh baby kidnapping, the Dr. Sam Sheppard case that gripped Americans and inspired the TV series The Fugitive, and the trial of Jack Ruby, who killed Lee Harvey Oswald, the man accused of assassinating Kennedy.
Why are we so enthralled by these cases? Shaw says there are several reasons:
• A belief in justice. Most people want to see justice served, whether they suspect a guilty culprit got away with murder or worry that an innocent person was wrongly accused. “In fiction, everything usually gets wrapped up very tidily,” Shaw says. “In real life, justice can be a whole lot messier.” • A natural attraction to mystery. People are captivated by the unknown, whether it’s the “whodunit” at the end of an Agatha Christie novel, the contents of the large package under the Christmas tree, or the very meaning of human existence. “This is probably one reason there’s still so much interest in the JFK assassination,” Shaw says. “There are elements of mystery all around it and we can’t help but want to get at the truth.” • A preoccupation with death. As gruesome as it seems, people have been drawn to stories about violent death for thousands of years. Even the Bible wastes little time working in a murder, with Cain offing his brother Abel in a fit of jealousy in one of the earliest chapters.
“One other reason may be that we have empathy for the victim and feel they deserve their ‘day in court,’ so to speak,” Shaw says. “And that’s true whether the murder happened five days ago or 50 years ago as it did with Kilgallen. She deserves justice today and I’m determined to get that for her at all costs.”
About Mark Shaw
Mark Shaw, author of The Reporter Who Knew Too Much(www.markshawbooks.com), is a former criminal defense attorney and legal analyst for CNN, ESPN and USA Today. He is an investigative reporter and the author of 25 books including The Poison Patriarch, Miscarriage of Justice, and Beneath the Mask of Holiness. Shaw, a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors, has written for USA Today, Huffington Post, and the Aspen Daily News.
Paramus NJ, A 64-year-old, 12-inch, cast iron gas main cracked in Paramus last week. Traffic snarled on Rt. 17 while we made emergency repairs…again. That was the third time in two years we’ve had to patch up this section of pipe. Installation of a replacement gas main is underway.
After decades of freezing and thawing, unprotected steel and cast iron pipes can become brittle and crack, and the joints that tie them together can leak. Along that stretch of Rt. 17, nearby construction may be another contributing factor. We have 4,000 miles of this cast iron pipe, and another 1,000 miles of unprotected steel, in our system. That’s the largest inventory of any utility in the U.S. We have so much old piping because PSE&G has been serving customers for 113 years.
As part of a $905 million program approved by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, we’re replacing old pipes three times faster than in the past. Last year alone, we installed 189 miles of new gas mains across our service area, including nearly 6 miles in Paramus. And we’re replacing them with highly durable plastic piping and protected steel pipes that rarely leak and will ensure safe, reliable gas service now and in the future.
For us to replace all this pipe in Paramus, we are working closely with Paramus Mayor Richard LaBarbiera. Mayor LaBarbiera knows the investments PSE&G is making in his town’s infrastructure ensure residents and businesses will continue to have safe and reliable gas service. By working together, we are minimizing disruption and able to complete the work safely. And we are all grateful to the residents of Paramus for their patience.
We expect to have the pipes along that stretch of Rt. 17 replaced by April. There is never a good time to close traffic lanes. So while the work is a one-time inconvenience, rest assured we won’t be back to make repairs on those new mains for a long, long time.
Waldwick NJ, Waldwick PD, FD, and building department personnel responded to 11 Ridge Street, Waldwick on Saturday afternoon, 01/21, in response to an incident in which a 4-door Saab left the roadway, went down an embankment, and crashed into a single family home. No one in the vehicle, nor any occupant of the home, was injured in the mishap. The vehicle was removed from the scene by a flatbed tow truck. Damage to the structure was moderate; the occupants are believed to still be occupying the premises post crash.
TEANECK, N.J. – Transit police say they’ve arrested a New Jersey man who avoided paying tolls nearly 900 times and owes more than $56,000 in unpaid tolls and fees.
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police say an officer stopped Alesandel Rodriguez’s car Friday morning after it failed to post a payment in an EZ-Pass lane on the George Washington Bridge.
Authorities say the car was missing front and rear license plates, and a temporary New York tag inside the vehicle had expired.
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
652 PM EST SAT JAN 21 2017
...DENSE FOG TONIGHT INTO SUNDAY MORNING...
...STRONG EAST WINDS LIKELY ALONG THE COAST FROM LATE SUNDAY
NIGHT INTO MONDAY NIGHT...
...DENSE FOG ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM EST SUNDAY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN UPTON HAS ISSUED A DENSE FOG
ADVISORY...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM EST SUNDAY.
* VISIBILITIES...ONE QUARTER MILE OR LESS AT TIMES.
* TIMING...INTO SUNDAY MORNING.
* IMPACTS...SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED VISIBILITIES WILL MAKE
TRAVEL DIFFICULT.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A DENSE FOG ADVISORY MEANS VISIBILITIES WILL FREQUENTLY BE
REDUCED TO ONE QUARTER MILE OR LESS. IF DRIVING...SLOW DOWN...USE
YOUR LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS...AND LEAVE PLENTY OF DISTANCE AHEAD OF
YOU IN CASE A SUDDEN STOP IS NEEDED.
Tax policies sometimes have unintended consequences that outweigh their benefits.One consequence of high state cigarette taxes is increased smuggling. People procure discounted packs from low-tax states to sell in high-tax states.
Excessive tax rates on cigarettes approach de facto prohibition in some states, inducing black and gray market movement of tobacco products into high tax states from low tax states or foreign sources.
New York has the highest inbound smuggling activity, with an estimated 55.4 percent of cigarettes consumed in the state deriving from smuggled sources in 2014. New York is followed by Arizona (49.6 percent of consumption smuggled), New Mexico (46.2 percent), Washington (45.2 percent), and Minnesota (35.5 percent).
New Hampshire has the highest level of outbound smuggling at 81.1 percent of consumption, likely due to its relatively low tax rates and close proximity to high tax states in the northeastern United States. Following New Hampshire is Idaho (24.8 percent outbound smuggling), Virginia (24.4 percent), Delaware (23.9 percent), and Wyoming (21.2 percent).
Following a cigarette tax increase from $2.51 to $3.51 in midyear of 2013, Massachusetts has seen a substantial increase in cigarette smuggling. Since the last year’s edition of this report, the state has jumped from 12 percent inbound smuggling to 29.3 percent inbound smuggling, the seventh highest in the country.
Cigarette tax rates increased in 31 states and the District of Columbia between 2006 and 2014.
Public policies often have unintended consequences that outweigh their benefits. One consequence of high state cigarette tax rates has been increased smuggling as people procure discounted packs from low-tax states to sell in high-tax states. Growing cigarette tax differentials have made cigarette smuggling both a national problem and in some cases, a lucrative criminal enterprise.
Each year, scholars at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a Michigan think tank, use a statistical analysis of available data to estimate smuggling rates for each state.[1] Their most recent report uses 2014 data and finds that smuggling rates generally rise in states after they adopt cigarette tax increases. Smuggling rates have dropped in some states, however, often where neighboring states have higher cigarette tax rates. Table 1 shows the data for each state, comparing 2014 and 2006 smuggling rates and tax changes.
New York is the highest net importer of smuggled cigarettes, totaling 55.4 percent of total cigarette consumption in the state. New York also has the highest state cigarette tax ($4.35 per pack), not counting the additional local New York City cigarette tax (an additional $1.50 per pack). Smuggling in New York has risen sharply since 2006 (+62 percent), as has the tax rate (+190 percent).
Smuggling in Massachusetts has notably increased since the last data release. The state implemented a tax increase from $2.51 to $3.51 per pack in midyear 2013, and smuggling rates increased from 12 percent to 29.3 percent between the 2013 data and 2014 data. Over the same period, outbound smuggling increased in nearby low-tax New Hampshire, from -28.6 percent to -81.1 percent, suggesting that many cartons of cigarettes are crossing the border from one state to the other.
Other peer-reviewed studies provide support for these findings.[2] Recently, a study in Tobacco Control examined littered packs of cigarettes in five Northeast cities, finding that 58.7 percent of packs did not have proper local stamps. The authors estimated 30.5 to 42.1 percent of packs were trafficked.[3]
The study’s authors, LaFaive and Nesbit, note that smuggling comes in different forms: “casual” smuggling, where smaller quantities of cigarettes are purchased in one area and then transported for personal consumption, and “commercial” smuggling, which is large-scale criminal activity that can involve counterfeit state tax stamps, counterfeit versions of legitimate brands, hijacked trucks, or officials turning a blind eye.[4]
The Mackinac Center has cited numerous examples over the many editions of this report, including stories of a Maryland police officer running illicit cigarettes while on duty, a Virginia man hiring a contract killer over a cigarette smuggling dispute, and prison guards caught smuggling cigarettes into prisons.
Policy responses in recent years have included banning common carrier delivery of cigarettes,[5] greater law enforcement activity on interstate roads,[6] differential tax rates near low-tax jurisdictions,[7] and cracking down on tribal reservations that sell tax-free cigarettes.[8] However, the underlying problem remains: high cigarette taxes amount to a “price prohibition” of the product in many U.S. states.[9]
Ridgewood NJ, Bergen County Parks Department initiated a master planning process for the Bergen County Park system. The goal is to identify the characteristics of the Bergen County recreation and open space system, accommodate the needs of current residents, and respond to projected future growth of the County.
CUES is leading the project team that will analyze existing strengths, programs, and opportunities, as well as future active and passive recreational options for each of the individual park properties. This analysis will consider how the various parks can best be integrated into the overall Bergen County open space and recreational context. In order to meet future needs of Bergen County residents, demographic and economic trends will be considered. The Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public policy will provide input for these scenarios using existing data and forecasts describing future population and demographic trends in Bergen County.
The recent NJ Supreme court case pinning untold thousands of units of affordable housing obligations on “recalcitrant” municipalities who fought against them in court shows without any doubt that the judiciary in New Jersey has arrogated to itself governmental powers that, if they could be legitimately be exercised at all, should have been committed exclusively to the legislative branch. Heaven help us, because whatever real differences that exist between New Jersey and the average banana republic state are becoming very difficult to find. The unfortunate exodus of decent citizens from New Jersey can only increase from here on out.
These judges are like gods. They can take decisions without much worry about people’s lives in the name of “common good”. How is it possible to not take residents’ concerns into consideration but just shove it to them?!?! HoHoKus may be asked to build close to 300 affordable units. How crazy is this? A tiny , nice place right next door to Ridgewood. How can 300 units fit in there. If HHK is asked for 300 how many will Ridgewood be asked for? It has to be over 1000. There are plans to build where Granny’s attic is and also to take away the lower parking lot by the train station. Add to this the looming Valley building by N Maple and you don’t have a village anymore. In a few years if nobody does something about this (residents are all asleep or occupied with Trump’s upcoming “disasters”) we won’t have a village anymore but a city called Ridgehokus.
Westwood NJ, Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi released the following statement on the state Supreme Court decision requiring municipalities to provide affordable housing for the “gap period:”
“I am deeply disappointed in the Supreme Court’s decision to enforce a gap-period. This ruling will devastate all 23 municipalities I represent and suburban municipalities throughout the state. The failure of the legislature to address the social engineering of the court should not result in changing communities forever.”
“I implore our Senate President and Assembly Speaker to do everything in their power to move forward with bi-partisan legislation addressing this issue. The court rules on what is constitutional, not aggressively ruling what it thinks is best for the state. We cannot let the court legislate what is best for individual communities.”
Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi goes on, “While ideologically I think our communities want to welcome all regardless of income levels the mandates of COAH have implications far beyond that. Many of our communities with populations under 10,000 people are facing the threat of population increases of 10 percent or more without the infrastructure, schools or services to support massive population increases. We currently receive virtually no money from the state to support our schools, our Municipalities, our infrastructure. Mandating massive building in our communities (many of which are done with PILOT agreements) without any financial help to do so will cause a significant financial burden on all. As an example the new 150 unit apartment complex with commercial components will be paying less than $1,750 per average unit per year (in property taxes and payments in lieu of taxes combined) for 30 years with slight increases based upon rental incomes received by the developers. Meanwhile every other home in the Borough is paying an average of about $12,000 per year in property taxes . That $12,000 figure is guaranteed to rise in order to make up for the shortfalls. Further, people have chosen to live in the suburbs for a reason. Prior to moving back to Bergen County I lived many years in cities including Washington, New York and London. I choose where we live today because of the open space, the small class sizes, the fact that there weren’t five or six story buildings around me. Why should the Courts be able to change the entire character of the community I live in?”
By S.P. Sullivan | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on January 19, 2017 at 5:43 PM
TRENTON — The head of the New Jersey State Police on Thursday decried a deal struck between the United States and Cuba because it did not require the return of convicted cop killer Joanne Chesimard.
Earlier this week, the White House announced an agreement on law enforcement cooperation with Cuba, part of President Barack Obama’s effort to normalize relations between the two countries.
The Associated Press reported the State Department and Cuba’s Interior Ministry agreed to share information on international criminal activity including human trafficking and terrorism.
Attorneys for Triple Five, the developer of American Dream Meadowlands, told the state Appellate Court in September that immediate dismissal of a lawsuit against the project must be made so as not to impede a complex financial sequence that must culminate on Nov. 4. The court dismissed the case the next day.
Yet more than nine weeks later, the project site looks as deserted as it has since before Christmas – and as it has many times over the past decade. The bond issuance plan – which has expanded to a planned $1.15 billion offering – was approved by the state for the first time in fall 2013.
Some Republicans who opposed the deal to replenish the Transportation Trust Fund have a rallying cry after losing that fight: The new money should only be spent on roads.
Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, kicking off her campaign for governor on Tuesday, implied as much in her speech. She criticized the new $16 billion deal, which includes $12 billion in borrowing over eight years and a 23-cent per gallon increase in the gas tax, saying the state “cannot afford to borrow billions of dollars to build a new rail line when our roads and our bridges are crumbling.”
