Ridgewood NJ, The Village Council’s Work Session and Special Public Meeting on 4/1/2020 will be held on Zoom. The public may attend on Zoom audio/video or audio only or may watch the meeting live on television or from their electronic device by live streaming it. Those attending from the public will be muted during the meeting, except for the time set aside from Comments from the Public, at which time they will be unmuted. The Village Council meeting will be broadcast live on Channel 77 (Optimum) and Channel 34 (Verizon Fios) and streamed live on YouTube or the Village website, www.ridgewoodnj.net.
Good afternoon! I hope this update finds you and your families doing well. Although we are not together in school, we are continuing to find creative ways to maintain some of our traditions. This week is Spirit Week! For me, I have celebrated our Elementary School Spirit Week as follows:
Maroon Monday: Ridgewood gear! As Superintendent of the Ridgewood Public Schools, I have plenty. Back in the good old days when my wife, Sue (she asked me not to only refer to her as my wife…. done) and I cleaned out some closets, we found 17 Ridgewood sweatshirts, dozens of t-shirts, and much more. We did not donate any. My kids participated in sports at RHS, so we had plenty of gear to go around.
Team up Tuesday: I am a Dallas Cowboys fan. Ok, stop rolling your eyes and muttering under your breath. For all of you Giants fans, Jason Garret is your problem now.
Last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use to Abbott Laboratories for the point-of-care COVID-19 test. The Illinois-based company said the test can give positive results in as little as five minutes, and negative results in about 13 minutes.
Ridgewood NJ, according to Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security the US FDA issued an Emergency Use Authorization for the Battelle Critical Care Decontamination System, which is designed to decontaminate N95 respirators in order to allow healthcare workers to safely reuse them (as many as 20 times) and extend existing inventory in health systems across the country. The system utilizes hydrogen peroxide vapor to “destroy bacteria, viruses and other contaminants, including…SARS-CoV-2,” and it can process up to 80,000 masks per day. The FDA initially limited the throughput to 10,000 masks per day, but the system is now permitted to operate at full capacity. The system is currently in use in Ohio, and Battelle intends to deploy units to New York, Washington state, and Washington, DC.
School budget supports the district’s mission and vision
This year’s election faces many challenges due to the COVID-19 public health emergency, which has resulted in the closure of schools, businesses, and public spaces across the country. On Thursday, March 19, Gov. Murphy announced that Annual School Elections scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, will be postponed until Tuesday, May 12, and will be conducted solely via vote-by-mail ballots, which will be sent to all registered voters.
These unprecedented yet necessary measures to flatten the curve and lessen the burden on our health care system have already had a significant impact on our daily lives. Parents are juggling work schedules and remote learning for their children. Grocery stores are scrambling to restock items as quickly as possible, but shelves continue to be emptied. Our beautiful, vibrant downtown is still and quiet; our businesses are being hit hard. People are feeling isolated and disconnected. As the district leader and a community member, I empathize with the students who miss their classmates, teachers, and school activities, the elderly who are alone, the individuals who are being laid off, and the health care workers who are on the front line of this crisis.
Ridgewood NJ, Andrew Saul, Commissioner of Social Security, reminds the public that Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit payments will continue to be paid on time during the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency also reminds everyone to be aware of scammers who try to take advantage of the pandemic to trick people into providing personal information or payment via retail gift cards, wire transfers, internet currency, or by mailing cash, to maintain Social Security benefit payments or receive economic impact payments from the Department of the Treasury.
Hackensack NJ, Gannett announced Monday it is cutting pay and furloughing ” journalists” at its newspapers across the country as ad revenue plunges during the coronavirus pandemic.
Gannett is the publisher of more than 100 newspapers, including ,North Jersey Media Group, USA Today, the Detroit Free Press, The Columbus Dispatch and The Arizona Republic, is reportedly furloughing workers who make more than $38,000. Those employees will be subject to furloughs of one week per month in April, May and June, according to a tweet from investigative reporter Gregory Holman of the Springfield News-Leader in Missouri, a Gannett-owned paper.
Ridgewood NJ, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, and New Jersey Acting State Comptroller Kevin D. Walsh today announced the formation of a joint federal-state task force to investigate and prosecute a wide range of misconduct arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, including the unlawful hoarding of medical supplies, price gouging, charity scams, procurement fraud, insurance fraud, phishing schemes, and false and misleading investment opportunities.
Paramus NJ, as the Ridgewood blog previously reported a court-supervised asset auction, Fairway Market awarded bids for two store leases in New Jersey to Amazon and six locations in New York City to ShopRite operator Village Super Market Inc. and Key Food Cooperative member Seven Seas Georgetowne LLC.
Washington, D.C., Larry Klayman, the founder, chairman and general counsel of Freedom Watch, Inc. (see www.freedomwatchusa.org) filed a criminal complaint against the People’s Republic of China over its alleged criminal conduct in causing a worldwide pandemic of such a huge magnitude never witnessed in either the 20th or 21st centuries and perhaps world history. A copy of the complaint is embedded below and can also found at www.freedomwatchusa.org.
Cranbury Township NJ , While we talk about the shortages people are experiencing in trying to obtain home, health and medical supplies, there is another population of people who are facing long lines and serious shortages.
Medical marijuana patients who are suffering from Cancer, Alzheimer’s, Chron’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Epilepsy and more, are facing 4 hour waits at dispensaries in New Jersey and upon getting to the front of the line are turned away due to a shortage of product. Many dispensaries had to close their doors due to the shortage earlier in the week, while others sell out of their supplies within just a few hours, leaving many patients without the medicine they need.
Ridgewood NJ, Assemblyman Kevin J. Rooney gave the following updates on what you can and can not do auto dealerships to conduct online or remote sales, Realtors can operate and show houses and microbreweries/brewpubs can provide home delivery to their customers. On the down side golf is cancelled.
