Category: North Jersey

Posted on by — 1 Comment

The Dynamics of Post-O’Toole World in LD40 Come 2017

paul Aronsohn

file photo by Boyd Loving

By Max Pizarro | 01/15/16 8:09am

Peter Murphy, left, with state Senator Kevin O’Toole (R-40).

The departure come the end of 2017 from the state senate of Kevin O’Toole sets up a possible (make that probable) coming battle royale for his 4.

Names that must be considered as O’Toole’s successors include Assemblyman Scott Rumana, Assemblyman Dave Russo, Passaic County Clerk Kristin Corrado, and Wyckoff Mayor Kevin Rooney, among others.

Those are the Republicans, who have the edge in a district heavy with Passaic (pop. 104,000 in the 40th) that also contains a portion of Bergen (pop. 79,000) and towns in Morris (19,000) and Essex (12,400).

It’s a tribute to his force of personality and political gamesmanship that O’Toole made 40 his domain, by the way, despite residing in its otherwise politically irrelevant Essex sliver.

Wayne by rights offers the most (on paper) power base.

Among Democrats, names include Ridgewood Mayor Paul Aronsohn and Woodland Park Mayor Keith Kazmark. If Aronsohn and Kazmark both ran, political junkies would be treated to a Passaic v. Bergen bloodbath.

https://politickernj.com/2016/01/the-dynamics-of-post-otoole-world-in-ld40-come-2017/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=New%20Campaign&utm_term=Wake%20Up%20Call%20NJ

Posted on by — Leave a comment

U.S. Reps. Scott Garrett, and Rodney Frelinghuysen push U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, to open a Vetrans clinic in northwestern New Jersey

Scott Garrett

Lawmakers make pitch for veterans clinic

By Rob Jennings New Jersey Herald
Posted: Jan. 8, 2016 12:01 am

Sussex County’s two representatives in Congress met Thursday with a top official at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, seeking support for opening a clinic in northwestern New Jersey.

U.S. Reps. Scott Garrett, of Wantage, and Rodney Frelinghuysen, of Harding, spoke behind closed doors on Capitol Hill with VA Under Secretary for Health David Shulkin.

Shulkin was president of Morristown Medical Center until last spring, when the U.S. Senate confirmed his nomination by President Obama to the VA post.

Garrett and Frelinghuysen, in separate interviews afterward with the New Jersey Herald, recapped the meeting.

Garrett said, “We were expressing our concern about the lack of adequate facilities here and to get a clarification on exactly what the VA is doing.”

Frelinghuysen said, “I think we made some progress.”

“He was very positive in his reaction to our request,” Frelinghuysen said of Shulkin.

The meeting was prompted by a Nov. 24 letter from Frelinghuysen to VA Secretary Robert MacDonald after Frelinghuysen, who said he had been led to believe that the clinic was nearing approval, subsequently learned of an apparent moratorium on new facilities.

Garrett said, based on their discussion Thursday, the moratorium was actually a short-term delay aimed at giving Shulkin an opportunity to assess the sprawling system.

Garrett said he is optimistic about the clinic’s prospects for approval, though Shulkin offered no commitments.

“I think it was a productive meeting. We made our cases strongly. It was heard,” said Garrett, whose 5th District includes most of Sussex County.

“We put a strong case that our veterans in Sussex, and also in Warren, are important. They’ve served. They’ve put their lives on hold,” Garrett said.

“A lot of them are just not taking advantage of the services that are available and that is in part due to the distance,” Garrett said.

The VA’s New Jersey Health Care System consists of two “main campuses” in East Orange and Lyons, with additional “satellite outpatient clinics and access points” in Brick, Elizabeth, Hackensack, Hamilton, Jersey City, Morristown, Paterson, Piscataway and Tinton Falls.

https://www.njherald.com/article/20160108/ARTICLE/301089976

Posted on by — 8 Comments

Just like what is about to happen at Habernickel park in Ridgewood

Habernickel Park Gate House

The Record: Letters, Monday, Jan. 4

JANUARY 4, 2016    LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 2016, 1:20 AM
THE RECORD

Keep school out of county park

Why do the Hudson County freeholders believe giving away part of Braddock Park to North Bergen for a school is a good idea? Many residents want to save this park for what it was intended: open space and recreation, not development.

Soon the decision will be up to the state, as the freeholders have applied to the state Green Acres program for a diversion that would allow this school to remain in the park.

This school was moved into the park 15 years ago in violation of Green Acres regulations, and it has remained there even though, in my opinion as a retired safety investigator, the public’s health has been jeopardized. A recent traffic engineering safety study at the school’s location recommended widening the school’s too-narrow roadway and installing a sidewalk.

Why was this study never conducted before the school was moved into the park? And why were the school trailers never tested for formaldehyde (a cancer-causing chemical used in trailer construction), when it was well known after Hurricane Katrina that this is an important safety concern? After Katrina came Sandy, which caused two of the trailers to be destroyed by fire after trees fell onto electric wires during the storm.

New Jersey officials should enforce state regulations and safeguard the public. This school should be moved out of the park and into the community, where it belongs. Affordable alternative sites are available. If the state rewards North Bergen and Hudson County with this diversion, no park is safe from similar municipal expansion. For 15 years North Bergen has disregarded state regulations, and it should not be rewarded by a loophole in the same regulations.

Robert Walden

North Bergen, Dec. 29

https://www.northjersey.com/opinion/opinion-letters-to-the-editor/the-record-letters-monday-jan-4-1.1484674

Posted on by — 4 Comments

Earthquake Strikes North Jersey

NJ earthquake

 

January 2,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, according to state officials an unusual and very mild earthquake struck in New Jersey on Saturday. The 2.1-magnitude quake with its epicenter in Ringwood, New Jersey, came at 12:58 a.m., according to the United States Geological Survey.

According to various police departments the earthquake could be felt in Sloatsburg and Suffern. There was no reported damage to people or property, according to Ringwood police and no reports in Ridgewood , Glen Rock , Paramus , Ho Ho Kus or Saddle River as far as we know .

According to Gary, Barbara and Collin,all residents of Ringwood who own and run the Tobacco Shop of Ridgewood & Davidoff Lounge , “they were asleep and didn’t feel a thing.”

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Home Renovation Severs Gas Line in Hawthorne

Gas Leak Hawthorne

photos courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook
Home Renovation Severs Gas Line in Hawthorne
December 31,2015
the staff of the Rmidgewood blog

Hawthorne NJ, A late afternoon interior gas main break at a home under renovation, located at 275 Warburton Avenue, Hawthorne, forced the evacuation of eight (8) nearby homes as workers from PSE&G struggled to shut off gas to the affected residence. No injuries were reported in the incident, which drew response from Hawthorne PD & FD personnel. The gas line was reportedly severed by workers performing renovations on the home.

PSEG reminds us that If you smell gas, open a window, leave the building and call 1-800-880-7734 (PSEG) to report the problem.

Natural gas is a colorless, odorless hydrocarbon that’s nearly 100% combustible. A distinctive odor, like rotten eggs, is added to natural gas to help assist in the detection of leaks, though it should not be solely relied upon to provide warning.

860534 464867347032637 660398067442124322 o

If you smell gas in your home:

Put out all open flames. No smoking.  Do not attempt to light any appliances.
Don’t touch electric switches, thermostats, appliance controls or electric panel breakers. These items may cause sparks that could lead to an ignition.
Do not use an automatic garage door opener.
Do not start your car if it is in the garage or close proximity to the house.
Open windows and outside doors for ventilation.
If the odor is strong, don’t use your telephone or cell phone inside the house.
Leave the premises on foot and call 1-800-436-7734 (PSEG) from a neighbor’s home and remain outside until PSE&G arrives. PSE&G provides 24-hour emergency service every day of the year.  PSE&G technicians are expected to respond to leak emergencies within 60 minutes.
Do not assume someone else will report the condition.
PSE&G does not charge customers for responding to gas leak emergencies.

 

12401770 464867470365958 5857120293644113793 o 1 1

Underground Gas Leak – Warning Signs:

You smell natural gas outside. Natural gas smells like rotten eggs.
You hear a hissing sound coming from the ground.
You see dirt blowing from a hole in the ground.
You see water bubbling in a puddle or around a valve box.
You see a ring or circle of dead grass or vegetation in a lawn area.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

911 recordings after bear attack reveal badly injured Scoutmaster, calm kids

Bears

file photo of a Ridgewood bear
By Ben Horowitz | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on December 28, 2015 at 5:52 PM, updated December 29, 2015 at 7:12 AM

ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP — Emergency calls received by Rockaway Township police on the day a Boy Scout leader was attacked by a bear in Splitrock Reservoir in Rockaway Township reveal an anxious, injured man and a calm child reporting the incident.

Recordings of 911 calls, obtained by NJ Advance Media under an Open Public Records Act request, show that when Scout leader Christopher Petronino of Boonton Township called on Dec. 20, he was too injured to move.

Asked how injured he was, Petronino replied, “pretty bad … I can’t move at all now.”

“I’m sorry about all this,” the victim said, and the dispatcher told him not to be sorry, asking him where he was bleeding.

Petronini said the bleeding had “subsided” but he was still bleeding from the left arm, left leg, neck and head.

 

https://www.nj.com/morris/index.ssf/2015/12/911_recordings_reveal_anxious_scoutmaster_calm_kid.html?ath=9c46bfc08d76232bb5a5e00eeaf0bfa2#cmpid=nsltr_stryheadline

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Two Paths to NJ Redistricting?

VOTE_theridgewoodblog

By Jeff Brindle | 12/28/15 8:32am

In the Legislature, a bill is moving that would propose a constitutional amendment that would change the way the state’s legislative districts are configured.

Rather than basing redistricting on ten-year, census-driven population changes, the amendment would base redistricting on polling data measuring the average vote statewide over nine legislative election cycles.

Democratic proponents of the amendment maintain that it would ensure that ten legislative districts would be competitive, in turn contributing to higher voter turnout. But Republican opponents counter that it could undermine democracy by indefinitely locking in the current Democratic majorities in both legislative houses.

The proposed amendment is being introduced at a time when the U.S. Supreme Court is considering a case that well might affect state legislative redistricting, but in a different way.

The divergent paths of these two actions may clash at some future time, depending on the outcome of the ballot question and the decision of the high court.

https://politickernj.com/2015/12/two-paths-to-redistricting/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=New%20Campaign&utm_term=Wake%20Up%20Call%20NJ

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Hawthorne Bar Robbed at Gun Point

Hawthorne Bar Robbed at Gun Point
photo courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook
Hawthorne Bar Robbed at Gun Point
December 26,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Hawthorne NJ, At approximately 7:30 PM on Friday, 12/25, Hawthorne PD responded to a reported armed robbery of the R.D. Benders bar located at 589 Lafayette Avenue, Hawthorne. Five (5) Hispanic males under the age of 25 reportedly entered the bar and robbed the owner of $185 and a cell phone. Police said that two (2)black handguns were shown along with one (1) knife.

A witness in a nearby apartment building said two (2) vehicles fled the scene headed southbound on Lafayette Avenue. One (1) vehicle was reported to have been black in color, the other white in color. No information was available at the scene as to whether the bar is equipped with security cameras.

Posted on by — 1 Comment

Fulop critic wants state audit of Jersey City tax office

Steven Fulup

Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco , Mayor of Jersey City,Steve Fulop!

A rival of Mayor Steve Fulop is asking state officials to audit Jersey City’s tax program, saying the city’s recent move to halt new assessments of renovated homes was outside of Fulop’s legal authority. Terrence T. McDonald, The Jersey Journal, Read more

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Bear attacks Boy Scout leader who entered Rockaway cave, authorities say

yogi-bear_L01

By Justin Zaremba and Marisa Iati | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on December 20, 2015 at 4:24 PM, updated December 20, 2015 at 8:46 PM

ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP — The leader of a Boy Scout troop was attacked by a bear while leading three scouts through the woods Sunday afternoon, according to authorities.

The unidentified man was airlifted to Morristown Memorial Hospital with what authorities described as non-life threatening injuries, Rockaway police said in a statement.

Police were called to the scene around 12:26 p.m., when one of the scouts reported that the man had been attacked after entering a cave off one of the hiking trails surrounding the Splitrock Reservoir.

Local officers and firefighters were joined by a state police helicopter to search the 625-acre area straddling the Rockaway-Kinnelon border, using signals from a scout’s cell phone to locate the group, according to police.

https://www.nj.com/morris/index.ssf/2015/12/scout_leader_attacked_by_bear_scouts_uninjured_may.html

Posted on by — 6 Comments

How the Ashley Madison hack triggered N.J. superintendent’s mysterious downfall

ashleymadison

By Kelly Heyboer | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on December 15, 2015 at 9:30 AM, updated December 15, 2015 at 10:55 AM

RANDOLPH — David Browne appeared to be a rising star in New Jersey education.

The veteran educator had a $167,500-a-year job as superintendent of the Randolph school district in Morris County.

In recent years, Browne had been taking a more public role in education, writing editorials and speaking to legislators as an advocate for statewide education issues. He and his wife, Upper Saddle River school superintendent Monica Browne, lived in a historic house in an upscale neighborhood in Bergen County with their two young daughters.

“For too long, educators – and I’ve been guilty of this myself – have stopped trying to have a voice. No more. I don’t want to stay quiet anymore,” Browne, 56, told an education blogger over the summer.

Then, he went silent and his life appeared to fall apart.

In September, Browne took a medical leave from his job with no public explanation. On Oct. 13, he was found lying outside his garage as it burned to the ground. Two weeks later, he resigned from his superintendent job, accepting a $62,350 payout from the school district.

https://www.nj.com/education/2015/12/secret_ashley_madison_account_lead_to_randolph_sup.html?ath=9c46bfc08d76232bb5a5e00eeaf0bfa2#cmpid=nsltr_stryheadline

Posted on by — Leave a comment

A dozen suspects charged in major ID fraud ring that stole $3M

Nigerian scam michael-scott-

Six from Secaucus among a dozen suspects charged in ID fraud ring that stole $3M

DECEMBER 9, 2015, 5:04 PM    LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2015, 6:17 PM
BY JOHN SEASLY
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

A dozen people face first-degree money-laundering charges after they allegedly stole about $3 million from banks in an elaborate scheme involving fake identities, bad checks and hundreds of credit cards, state acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman said Wednesday.

Many of those charged are from Secaucus or Jersey City, and all but one have been arrested, Hoffman said.

The group allegedly created “synthetic” identities by combining real Social Security numbers with fake names and birth dates so they could open numerous checking and credit card accounts online. Authorities allege that through bad checks, the accused deposited money into the accounts, which they then used to pay off credit cards, increasing the cards’ credit limits. They allegedly also withdrew the money from ATMs and via money orders before the bad checks were discovered.

False “merchants” created shell businesses solely to participate in the scheme, Hoffman said. Those businesses swiped the fraudulent credit cards for nonexistent purchases, then received reimbursement from credit card processing companies.

“While the credit card holders, businesses and purchases in this scheme were fictitious, the losses suffered by the banks were very real and totaled an alarming $3 million,” Hoffman said.

The 12 charged allegedly split the proceeds, while the bank accounts of the fake businesses were used to launder the money, with checks written from one company to another as if they were doing business, Hoffman said.

The scam was active from 2012 to 2015 and involved hundreds of credit cards and millions of dollars in fake transactions, said state Division of Criminal Justice Director Elie Honig.

“All of the agencies involved deserve great credit for unraveling this tangled scheme and obtaining the evidence necessary to prosecute these individuals to the full extent of the law,” Honig said.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/six-from-secaucus-among-a-dozen-suspects-charged-in-id-fraud-ring-that-stole-3m-1.1470772

Posted on by — Leave a comment

5 Clifton Elementary School Children Plot School Destruction

clifton police
December 3,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

CLIFTON, N.J. , Clifton Police report that five elementary school children from Clifton, N.J., have been arrested for allegedly planning to set off an explosive device at Clifton high school.

The kids, ages 10 and 11, are fifth-graders from Clifton Elementary School number 11. Police said they were allegedly planning to set-off an explosive device at an assembly being held at Clifton High School Wednesday.

Teachers and administrators at Clifton Elementary School #11 uncovered written plans on how the attack would occur and contacted police.

Police discovered the “device” but there were no explosives found inside of it. Instead, it was filled with vinegar and cinnamon . A this point the intent seemed clear but the scheme would not have worked.

The kids were arrested and released to their parents.All five have been suspended from school.There are no official charges at this point.

Posted on by — 16 Comments

A Sign of things to Come : Paterson May Not Meet Payroll

Paterson Falls

Paterson looks to hold emergency meeting to make Friday’s payroll

NOVEMBER 30, 2015, 10:16 AM    LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2015, 10:16 AM
BY JOE MALINCONICO

PATERSON – Officials were scrambling Monday morning to schedule an emergency City Council meeting later in the day in an effort to issue Friday’s paychecks to Paterson’s 1,800 municipal workers.

The mayor has said the council must approve temporary budgets for December and January on November 30 in order for the employees’ next checks to be issued on time.

The employee checks were placed in jeopardy last week when the council objected to the administration’s lack of spending cuts and voted 4-4-1 to reject its proposed temporary budget.

The state on November 25 sent the city council a letter criticizing its action. “The City Council’s failure to act on a temporary budget jeopardizes the fiscal well-being of the City,” wrote Timothy Cunnnigham, director of the New Jersey Division of Local Government Services.

Cunningham said the council should “work with the administration to identify specific budget cuts” and approve the temporary budget in the meantime so that Paterson could meet its financial obligation to employees, vendors and bondholders.

It’s not clear whether the council would budge at an emergency meeting. Under laws government fiscal decisions, the administration needs six votes to get the temporary budget passed. That means at least two council members among the five who abstained or voted against it would have to change their minds.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/paterson-looks-to-hold-emergency-meeting-to-make-friday-s-payroll-1.1464758

Posted on by — 9 Comments

Clean slate gives Rutgers chance at redemption

Rutgers theridgewoodblog.net

NOVEMBER 30, 2015    LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2015, 12:37 AM
BY TARA SULLIVAN
RECORD COLUMNIST |
THE RECORD

The first six words of Robert Barchi’s open letter to the Rutgers University community were probably the only ones we really needed to hear Sunday, revealing action that has not simply been a long time coming, but a long time needed.

“Today is a day of change,” Barchi wrote, the preamble to a seven-paragraph explanation of his decision to fire both Athletic Director Julie Hermann and football coach Kyle Flood. The Rutgers president also announced Pat Hobbs as the immediate replacement for Hermann, moving the former Seton Hall law school dean and short-term Pirates athletic director from an interim solution to a permanent one in the same day.

Barchi’s swift action comes in the wake of a losing season on the football field and an embarrassing one off it, and represents the first important step toward fixing an athletic department that has floundered as the stubborn president continued to back the ineffective reign of Hermann. By finally owning up to the mistake his search committee made two years ago, Barchi has a new opportunity to fill the leadership profile the athletic arm of the school so desperately needs.

“It was appropriate to start fresh, wipe the slate clean and move Rutgers forward,” Barchi said in an evening conference call with a small group of reporters.

What happens from this point forward will go a long way in determining whether Barchi can change the public perception of his disdain for athletics in general, a story he hopes will begin to change under Hobbs’ direction. That Hobbs comes to the job directly from the office of Governor Christie, where he served as ombudsman, sure makes this feel like a move with a Trenton stamp of approval.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/sullivan-clean-slate-gives-rutgers-chance-at-redemption-1.1464505