Category: Village of Ridgewood

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>Rachel and Bray @ the Ridgewood NJ, 4th of July parade and Bray showing his LOVE for dancing!

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>Wishing You a Happy and Safe 4th of July Weekend from the staff of the Ridgewood Blog

Support the Tradition!

“50 States – One Nation”

9:00AM – Flag Raising at Wilsey Square

10AM – Parade begins at North Monroe & Godwin (rain or shine)

6:30PM – Gates open for Vet’s Field for Entertainment and Fireworks (tickets required). ridgewoodjuly4th.org

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>At the conclusion of last night’s Village Council Work Session, Mayor David T. Pfund directed that the resolution which will cancel a $3 million bond intended to partially fund construction of the now defunct parking garage project be removed from the list of resolutions scheduled to be approved by a “single vote – consent agenda” process during next week’s Village Council Public Meeting. By doing this, the Mayor has signaled his intention to vote “no” on the resolution.

What’s the matter Dave? Pissed off that you didn’t get your way? You requested a unanimous “yes” vote to approve the project; why can’t you suck it up and show a unified Council front now that the project is officially dead?

Give it a rest Mr. Mayor. Despite the last minute public plea made by your pal Mr. Jacques Harlow, the garage is now history! It’s over Dave; let it go. Be a man about it.

The Fly

>From BOE May 4, 2009 Meeting Agenda:

Approval: Award of Bid for Grounds Management,
Landscaping and Snow Plowing Services Contract

Whereas, the Ridgewood Board of Education advertised a bid for Grounds Management, Landscaping and Snow Plowing Services on March 23, 2009, Whereas, one bid was received and opened at 11:00 a.m. on April 2, 2009; now therefore, Be it Resolved, that the Ridgewood Board of Education award a contract to GCA Services, Pennsburg, PA, in the amount of $173,785.

Approval: Award of Bid for Landscaping and Snow
Removal Services Contract

Whereas, the Ridgewood Board of Education advertised a bid for Landscaping and Snow Removal Services on March 23, 2009, Whereas, five bids were received and opened at 11:00 a.m. on April 16, 2009; now therefore, Be it Resolved, that the Ridgewood Board of Education award a contract to Jacobsen Landscaping, Design and Construction, Inc., Midland Park, New Jersey, in the amount of $105,806. The hourly rates for snow removal are as follows: One Dump Truck $125 per hour One Front End Loader $130 per hour

>From BOE May 4, 2009 Meeting Agenda:

Resignations

Administrator

DeSIMONE, Angelo – Assistant Superintendent for Business/Board Secretary, Education Center, effective July 1, 2009, with four years of Ridgewood service.

>By a 4-1 vote (Councilwoman Anne Zusy cast the lone “no” vote), Village Council Members agreed last night to enhance the Central Business District portion of Ridgewood Avenue by spending an estimated $500k on the following “streetscape” enhancements:

1.) Design and installation of traffic calming bump outs at selected intersections
2.) Purchase and installation of pedestrian activated LED warning lamps for selected crosswalks and installation of decorative/brick print crosswalks
3.) Installation of electrical outlets in tree wells (to facilitate decorative lighting of all trees)
4.) Purchase and installation of light pole brackets (for kissing balls and banners)
5.) Removal of overgrown trees and replacement with new “decorative” trees
6.) Repairs to concrete sidewalks, brick bands, and tree wells
7.) Decorative sleeves and bases for parking meters

The $500K will be raised through the sale of bond notes.

>https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iZnHCegwMlJVSyJag5fH-4CipmTgD980BQH01
By ELI SEGALL – 1 day ago

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A small bank in northern New Jersey has been shut down by state banking regulators, and an industry advocate says he cannot rule out future failures.

Citizens Community Bank was shuttered Friday night. Banking regulators had ordered the Bergen County bank to stop a range of “unsafe or unsound” business practices, saying it had violated several state and federal regulations.

Among other problems, the 4 1/2-year-old bank had deficient management, an “unrealistic” budget plan and poor lending policies, officials say.

All of Citizens’ deposits were transferred to North Jersey Community Bank. Officials with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. are working out of Citizens’ former office in Ridgewood to sell off its assets. The office is now a branch of North Jersey Community.

Dennis Trimper, the federal official leading the liquidation, said the main reason for Citizens’ closure was its failing loan portfolio. Many customers, he noted, weren’t making their payments.

It was the first time since 1992 that a state-chartered bank had been shuttered, said Ed Rogan, a spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance. He said the closure was “an isolated situation,” as banks in the state are generally healthy.

At least one industry advocate says future bank failures are always possible.

“When you’ve got a deep recession, that affects banks that otherwise would be fine,” said James Silkensen, co-chief of the New Jersey Bankers Association.

Silkensen said he was not aware of any banks that could soon be shuttered, but said closures can happen in good and bad economic times.

The banking industry has been taking a beating. Layoffs have swept the industry, and several once powerful firms have been toppled, in part, by risky investments that soured, such as mortgage-backed securities. More than 30 banks nationwide have been shuttered this year.

Meanwhile, New Jersey’s community banks largely avoided those risky ventures, making simple, traditional loans to their customers, state and private sector officials have said.

At a state Assembly hearing in February, bankers association co-chief John McWeeney said some of New Jersey’s community banks faced a grim future of loan defaults and thinned profits, despite performing well during the economic crisis.

Closing Citizens did not mean officials came to padlock the bank. Trimper and eight state and federal officials walked into its only branch, on East Ridgewood Avenue, around 4:15 p.m. Friday to say the bank had lost its charter.

Trimper said the bank was given no advance warning of the closure, which is normal procedure. However, state and federal officials had been openly monitoring the bank since September, when they issued Citizens a 39-page “cease and desist” order for a host of allegedly bad banking practices.

“They have this suspicion, all right, and they see us all walking in around 4:15 on Friday, they can draw their conclusions,” Trimper said.

https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iZnHCegwMlJVSyJag5fH-4CipmTgD980BQH01

>You should not address the Principal as “Margy”.

Is 100 families the same as 100 signatures? Isn’t it just 100.

Travel is the laughing stock because they have a group of parents who think that they run the school. A petition is meaningless against a school contract. Maybe one of the parents should run for the board of ed – O wait, they tried that already. We don’t want them running any of our schools.

>”The facts speak for themselves… over 100 families signed the petition regarding Margy, with a marginal percentage for approving her tenure. Vallerini’s rant about public speaking before moving into public comment kept people from saying anything negative at the mic. View the webcast for yourself. Vallerini ranted about “after consulting with our attorneys…”. These scare and bully tactics happen all of the time from Cottage Pl. Do you think it is coincidental that RPS server went down right before a BOE meeting that brought in many, many concerned parents?”

>”things to consider. Mayor Pfund was a personal donor to Valley Hospital until 2006, his law firm (Reiseman, Rosenberg & Pfund, LLP) listed Valley hospital as one of its clients on their website until the listing mysteriously disappeared, Pfund’s father has willed part of his estate to Valley after he dies! Yet Pfund has not rescued himself from the considering the H-Zone issue? Others on the Planning Board have for less association.”

Can we put this to rest once and for all ?….or not?

>New Jersey has doubts about state budget plan, poll finds

Posted by pcox May 04, 2009 06:23AM

A poll found many New Jerseyans aren’t sold on the proposed state budget.

The Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey Poll released Sunday found more than 80 percent of respondents have heard about the spending plan. Nearly half of them say it does too little to cut spending, while 17 percent say it cuts too much.

Patti Sapone/The Star-LedgerHundreds of New Jerseyans protest April 23 at the State House to keep our public lands open, including at least nine parks that have been slated for closure due to the Governors proposed budget cuts.

However, respondents overall differed on how to address the state’s fiscal woes.

Seventy-five percent support plans to boost income taxes on those earning more than $500,000 and 69 percent back higher taxes on cigarettes and liquor. But 68 percent don’t want state aid cut to municipalities and 63 percent oppose cutting arts funding.

The poll also found 53 percent oppose ending property tax rebates for those earning more than $75,000, while 45 percent support it.

The telephone poll was conducted April 23-27 with 803 New Jersey adults and has a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.