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Reader says You need metered parking because we have so much demand for parking

parking+meters_the+ridgewood+blog

Disagree with both. There’s no disconnect. You need metered parking because we have so much demand for parking. Without limits and enforcement, the businesses will suffer. Might seem counterintuitive but it’s a matter of supply and demand. We can’t find parking today with 3 hour limits and meter rates….imagine how much parking you’ll find if it was free! Glen Rock has like two delis and a couple of shops. They don’t have nearly the same amount of retail stores or restaurants that we have. Same goes for Midland Park, HoHoKus, Waldwick, Wyckoff, Allendale. Should I go on? So no, we don’t have any competition. Route 17 and Garden State Plaza are not substitutes for a Downtown like ours.
And to suggest that people here live in a bubble, and that they don’t know what else is out there, is simply ridiculous. We have a very educated consumer who chooses to live here for the very reasons people trip over themselves to come here. And by the way, taxes in Glen Rock are actually higher than in Ridgewood. But somehow, people in Ridgewood think that their taxes are higher than any other place on earth. It’s just a high class brag that gives some people the justification for being an asshole. So stay home, order from Amazon, home-school your children and become a hermit. Just make sure to Amazon Prime some Vitamin D supplements.

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Readers say NJ Supreme court shows without any doubt that the judiciary in New Jersey has arrogated to itself governmental powers that should have been committed exclusively to the legislative branch

Projects_theridgewoodblog

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.

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Live Near a Train Station , rent your driveway out for Ridgewood Commuter Parking

Ridgewood Train Station

file photo by ArtChick

January 14,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, and idea proposed by Ridgewood resident Saurabh Dani‎ on the Facebook page “it takes a Ridgewood Village ” and could lay to rest any ambitions of build a parking garage in Ridgewood .

Dani suggests, if you live at a walking distance from Glen  Rock ,Ridgewood or HoHokus train stations, there may be an opportunity to make money.

How about renting your driveway to a village resident or a few village residents if it’s big enough.You can charge anything that’s less than 83$ a month depending on how far you live from a train station, as that’s what the town is charging and is profitable at that price.

83$ a month is 1000$ a year. To spend $1000 a year, most of us have to earn about 1600-1700 a year (pre tax). So this is a good bonus for not much work.. you will just need to designate a specific spot on your driveway and exchange money every month.

We can probably use this Facebook page to create this market place. Thoughts?

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Ridgewood Financial Advisory Committee Pushed Parking Plan and Fee Increase

parking CBD

January 12,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Jeff Voigt missing in action (most likely because he knew room would be filled with commuters who were pissed off at the price increase for commuter parking – a plan developed & supported by the FAC, of which Jeff is the Village Council liaison).

After listening to all the comments, we do believe a 1000 dollar premier parking permit is too much. In two years it has gone from 600 dollars to 750 to the current  1000. Glen Rock was said to be 150 dollars and HoHoKus was around 375. 1000 dollars seems pretty steep

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Ho Ho Kus Police uniformed patrol officer safely recovered an uninjured dog that had wandered onto the tracks

HoHoKus PD uniformed patrol officer safely recovered an uninjured dog

photos courtesy of Boyd Lovings Facebook page

November 29,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Train traffic on NJ Transit’s Bergen County and Main Lines was temporarily halted through HoHoKus on Tuesday morning, 11/29, while a HoHoKus PD uniformed patrol officer safely recovered an uninjured dog that had wandered onto the tracks after escaping from a yard on Hillcrest Road in Ridgewood. The dog ran after a deer and never looked back; this according to its adult female owner. Tyco Animal Control Services also responded to the incident. HoHoKus PD had received multiple 911 calls from train passengers who saw the dog wandering the tracks and dispatched two (2) patrol units to the area to recover it. The dog was wearing a collar with a tag bearing the cell phone number of its owner.

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Bolger Heritage Center, Ridgewood Public Library Presents Who Was John Jacob Zabriskie?

John Jacob Zabriskie

 

November 12,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Who Was John Jacob Zabriskie? The Zabriskie family is one of the original settlers in Bergen County dating from the 1600s. John Jacob Zabriskie of “Hohokus” is one of many in a long line of descendants who had a decided impact on the way of life in Bergen County. This presentation will correct some historical and biographical misinformation to see who he was & what accomplishments, professions, lifestyle & other details are known about John Jacob Zabriskie. All welcome, Belcher Auditorium. Speaker Stanley Kober

Monday at 7 PM – 8:30 PM

Bolger Heritage Center, Ridgewood Public Library
125 N Maple Ave, Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450

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No Injuries were Reported in a Two Vehicle Crash in HoHoKus

Ho Ho Kus Police

photos courtesy of Boyd Loving

October 6,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ho Ho Kus NJ, No injuries were reported in a two (2) vehicle crash at the intersection of East Saddle River Road and Bogert Road in HoHoKus on Wednesday morning, 10/05. Both vehicles sustained heavy damage and were removed by a flatbed tow truck. HoHoKus PD, FD, and EMS personnel responded. Ridgewood PD provided traffic control assistance.

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Ridgewood firefighters battled a Single Family Home Fire on Corsa Terrace

Ridgewood firefighters battled a Single Family Home Fire on Corsa Terrace

photos courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page

September 12,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,  Ridgewood shortly after 11 AM on Sunday, 09/11. Fire department personnel from Glen Rock, HoHoKus, and Waldwick assisted Ridgewood units at the scene. All occupants of the home were safely evacuated by Ridgewood PD officers prior to the arrival of firefighters. No one was injured in the blaze, however the house sustained damage that rendered it temporarily uninhabitable.

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Reader says No More Kicking the Can down the Road for the Ridgewood School Board

Ridgewood EA teachers protest

Will the kicking of the can continue with the Teachers contract??? Now is the time to stop this nonsense!!

Let’s hope we can at least put a dent in the can! One would think the REA has gotten the message by now. It would appear that most of Ridgewood (excluding the teachers who actually live in town) oppose their union’s demands. Why are we paying our teachers more than surrounding towns with better or comparable ratings? There goes your real estate values. Wyckoff, Allendale, HoHoKus, Franklin Lakes, Upper Saddle River are all lovely towns with lower taxes. I just can’t get that photo of those teachers’ and their mean, arrogant and angry faces out of my mind. The blonde and one next to her wearing sunglasses look particularly nasty! If they knew who my child was I’m sure there would be ramifications in the classroom for this comment!

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HazMat Issues Delay Make Ho Ho Kus Accident Clean Up

HazMat Issues Delay Make Ho Ho Kus Accident Clean Up

photos courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page

August 18,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ho Ho Kus NJ, A seemingly minor, injury free, one (1) vehicle crash created major headaches for HoHoKus PD and FD personnel on Wednesday night, 08/17 when the driver of a Saturn SUV drove over a traffic control island, knocked down two (2) traffic control signs, and ruptured her vehicle’s fuel tank in the process. The entire contents of the fuel tank spilled onto East Saddle River Road near Wiermus Road. Members of the Mahwah FD HazMat unit were dispatched to assist HoHoKus FD in containment of the spill and the subsequent cleanup.

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Making matters worse, the initial towing company called to remove the vehicle from the scene could not transport the contaminated absorbent material, so delays occurred as a result of another towing operator having to be called. No word from police on the scene as to how many, if any, summonses were issued to the Saturn’s driver.

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Reader says Vote NO on all day Kindergarten, it will drive out Seniors

kindergarten-cop-comedy

The school system is eating up my income.

They are having committees to study why people over 55 are leaving. Shiela Brogan is on the committee. The survey showed that moving is a financial decision. She needs to pay attention.

Complete agreement with all of the above. Taxes are out of control. And as for the moving truck option, don’t think for a minute that Ridgewood taxes will make the town and your home desirable to young families. Nice towns with lower taxes and higher rated schools surround us. Pay for your own pre-K and Ridgewood teachers need to get a grip on reality when it comes to their demands.

Driving out seniors is not going to help the school population or tax base. Add-ons like this may be the last straw for many who already get nothing from approximately 2/3 of their enormous property tax bite. Tired of hearing that good schools help property values, etc. The fact is that this school system has been going down the tubes for years and the world at large is finally starting to realize it. Throwing more millions at it won’t help. Eliminate half the jobs at the Ed Center and resolve the teachers’ contract dispute before coming to taxpayers for more and more.

As for property values: People will just look at other towns – Allendale, Wyckoff, HoHoKus Upper Saddle River, Ramsey, Montvale, Woodcliff Lake all have lower taxes and comparable if not better schools. Yes, Ridgewood may have a certain status and reputation in its favor but times are different now. The town has changed and more changes are could be on their way. BOE needs to keep a strong position that considers taxpayers. Our teachers are already higher paid than most and pre-school should be the parents’ responsibility.

Schools used to be top class in the entire country 25 years ago. Now it’s all on fumes of past reputation. Current teachers care more about their health benefits than they do about our students, which is sad.

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Routine Motor Vehicle Stop Leads to Arrest in Ridgewood

Routine Motor Vehicle Stop Leads to Arrest in Ridgewood

photos courtesy of Boyd Lovings Facebook page

July 10th 2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ho Ho Kus NJ,  One (1) arrest of an adult male was effected by a HoHoKus PD uniformed patrol officer following a routine motor vehicle stop on Route 17 southbound near Franklin Turnpike, Ridgewood on Saturday afternoon, 07/09.

A Ridgewood PD patrol officer and a K9 unit from the Bergen County Sheriff’s office assisted in the subsequent search of the vehicle involved in the stop. A second occupant of the vehicle, also an adult male, was not arrested, but transported to HoHoKus PD headquarters along with the arrested individual. Police on the scene did not say what the arrest was for.

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Tree Limb Falls igniting a brush fire, snapping a utility pole and causing power outages

Tree Limb Falls igniting a brush fire, snapping a utility pole and causing power outages

photo courtesy of Boyd Loving

June 22,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington Twp, A large limb fell from a tree located near the intersection of Washington Avenue and Van Emburgh Avenue in Washington Township on Wednesday afternoon, 06/22, igniting a significant brush fire, snapping a utility pole, knocking out electric, cable and telephone service to several homes, and closing a portion of Washington Avenue for an extended period. Washington Township PD, FD, and EMS units responded to the incident. Traffic control assistance related to the road closure was provided by HoHoKus PD units. PSE&G and Cablevision crews were also observed working in the area.

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AIR FORCE GENERAL TO SPEAK AT RIDGEWOOD ROTARY MEETING

Major General Garrett Harencak
May 9,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Major General Garrett Harencak, Commander of the U.S. Air Force Recruiting Service, will be guest speaker at the regular Tuesday midday meeting of the Ridgewood Rotary Club, May 17, at Old Paramus Reformed Church Hall, on East Glen Avenue.

General Harencak’s will speak on “Airpower and Defending America As an Aerospace General Harencak, who grew up in Elmwood Park, entered the Air Force in 1983 as a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. His assignments included command of the B-52 bomber; instructor pilot and squadron command in the B-1B bomber and service as aide to the Commander of the U.S. Central Command. Before his current assignment,General Harencak was the Assistant Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear
Integration, stationed in Washington, D.C. The general’s appearance was arranged withthe assistance of Ridgewood resident, Dr. Anthony Cipriano, who is President of the Iron Gate Chapter of the Air Force Association, in the New York area.

Club president, Bob Freudenrich announced that the public is invited to attend the meeting which begins with buffet lunch at 12:15 P.M. Reservations should be made by emailing Harris Reinstein at harrisreinstein@msn.com or telephoning him at
(201) 652-7877. The cost of the lunch is $15.00, payable at the door.

In addition to Ridgewood, the local service club draws its members from Glen Rock and HoHoKus. Information on becoming a member of Rotary can be requested from Mr. Reinstein.

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Man sustained a serious head injury after falling 20 feet from a ladder at construction site in HoHoKus

Ho Ho Kus fall

photo courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page

May 6,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

HoHo Kus Nj, HoHoKus PD and EMS were called to the scene of an early afternoon construction accident on Wednesday, 05/04. An adult male sustained a serious head injury after falling 20 feet from a ladder at a home under construction on Hollywood Place in HoHoKus; there was no LOC. The victim was transported by ambulance to Hackensack University Medical Center. HoHoKus EMS was assisted by a paramedic unit from The Valley Hospital