The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrests of ANGEL RAMOS-ORTIZ (DOB: 9/07/1997; single; unemployed) of 411 W. Preston Street, Hartford, CT and JEFFREY TORRES (DOB: 3/09/1999; single; unemployed) of 17 Sunrise Terrace, Bristol, CT for firearms related charges. The arrest is the result of an investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Jason Love.
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of MATTHEW SULLIVAN (DOB: 8/16/1989; single; mechanic) of North Syracuse, NY on a charge of possession with the intent to distribute marijuana in a quantity greater than 25 pounds. The arrest is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Jason Love.
Continue reading New York Mechanic Arrested with Over 25lbs of Marijuana in Ridgefield Park
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Ridgefield Park NJ , this week the Bergen County Board of Commissioners and I were glad to announce that the County has doubled its public electric vehicle charging capacity thanks to the addition of four new Volta Level-2 EV chargers located in our Bergen County Parks System. The new chargers, stationed in the Ridgefield Park section of Overpeck County Park, come at no expense to Bergen County taxpayers thanks to an existing public-private partnership between the County of Bergen and Volta.
Continue reading Volta Charging stations installed at Overpeck County Park
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Ridgefield Park NJ, a Ridgefield Park , man was sentenced today to 15 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud financial institutions of hundreds of thousands of dollars, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Dennys Tapia, 55, of Ridgefield Park, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Judge Chesler imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of DANIEL GATSON, JR. (DOB: 7/20/1997; single; unemployed) of 1 Elizabeth Street, Ridgefield, NJ on fraud-related charges. The arrest is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Jason Love and the Fairfax County, VA Police Department under the direction of Chief Kevin Davis.
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of AQUELLIO PARKER (DOB: 3/12/1992); single; unemployed) of 18621 140th Avenue, Springfield Gardens, New York on charges related to disturbing, moving and/or concealing human remains. The arrest is the result of an investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Jason Love, the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office under the direction of Sheriff Anthony Cureton, and the Ridgefield Park Police Department under the direction of Chief Joseph Rella.
Continue reading New York Man Arrested in Connection to Body Found in Barrel in Ridgefield Park
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella confirms the following information:
As previously reported, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the discovery of human remains that were found in the area of Hobart Street and Teaneck Road, Ridgefield Park, NJ on August 13, 2021. The victim has now been identified as 42-year-old Nicole Flanagan. The medical examiner’s office has not yet determined a cause of death, and this remains an active investigation.
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Ridgefield Park NJ, police are investigating a grizzly discovery of a container holding human remains found on a tree-lined street in Ridgefield Park on Friday morning.
Continue reading UPDATE: Body Discovered in a Barrel on a Tree Lined Street in Ridgefield Park
file photo
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced the arrests of JULIAN MANGAL (DOB: 4/26/2000; single; unemployed) of 53 Maple Street, Richland Town, PA, on charges of Robbery, Burglary, Aggravated Assault, Possession Of A Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose, Assault By Pointing A Firearm, Theft, and Resisting Arrest; RYAN BLAKE (DOB: 7/28/1999; single; unemployed) of 223 Third Street, Ridgefield Park, NJ, on a charge of Resisting Arrest; and TYSHEEM CLINTON-MCQUEEN (DOB: 3/8/1996; single; unemployed) of 28 Franklin Street, Little Ferry, NJ, a charge of Supplying A Handgun. The arrests are the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Robert Anzilotti and the Ridgefield Park Police Department under the direction of Chief Edward Rose.
On Tuesday, December 18, 2018, the Ridgefield Park Police Department contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Investigations Squad about an armed home invasion robbery. In the course of the robbery, the homeowner was slashed by a knife and hit in the head with a gun by an intruder. The intruder, who was later identified as Julian MANGAL, fled after taking the homeowner’s wallet and cellular telephone. As a result of the investigation, an arrest warrant for MANGAL was issued.
The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ridgefield Park Police Department located Julian MANGAL at the Knights Inn Motel on Route 46 in South Hackensack, NJ. The Bergen County Regional SWAT team assisted in the response and ultimately arrested MANGAL and another individual, Ryan BLAKE, who had attempted to flee through a crawl space in one of the hotel rooms.
On December 19, 2018, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the residence of Tysheem CLINTON-MCQUEEN in Little Ferry, NJ. Tysheem CLINTON-MCQUEEN was arrested and charged with Possession Of A Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4A(2), a 2nd degree crime. He was remanded to the Bergen County Jail in Hackensack pending a detention hearing scheduled for Monday, December 24, 2018, at 9:00 a.m.
Julian MANGAL was charged with three counts of Robbery, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:15-1A(2), a 1st degree crime; four counts of Possession Of A Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4A(1), a 2nd degree crime; three counts of Aggravated Assault, by pointing a firearm, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1B(4), a 2nd degree crime; two counts of Aggravated Assault, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1B(2), a 2nd degree crime; two counts of Burglary, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:18-2A(1), a 3rd degree crime; three counts of Theft, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-3, a 4th degree crime; and one count of Resisting Arrest, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2A(2), a 4th degree crime. He was remanded to the Bergen County Jail in Hackensack pending a detention hearing scheduled for Monday, December 24, 2018.
Ryan BLAKE was charged with one count of Resisting Arrest, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2A(2), a 4th degree crime. He was released on a summons and is scheduled for an appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack on January 3, 2019.
Acting Prosecutor Calo states that the charges are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. He would also like to thank the Ridgefield Park Police Department, South Hackensack Police Department, and Little Ferry Police Department for their assistance in this investigation.
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Ridgefield Park NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced the arrest of DERAN ROGERS (DOB: 07/13/1973; single; employed as an electrical technician) of 586 East 39th Street, Paterson, NJ and MARITZA RODRIGUEZ (DOB: 02/09/1966; single; self-employed) of 86 Hudson Avenue, 3rd Floor, Ridgefield Park, NJ, on charges of Distribution Of A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin, Possession With Intent To Distribute A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin and Crack-Cocaine, and Endangering The Welfare Of A Child. The arrests are the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Robert Anzilotti and the Ridgefield Park Police Department under the direction of Chief Edward Rose.
On Wednesday, December 19, 2018, pursuant to a narcotics investigation, law enforcement officers from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ridgefield Park Police Department executed a search warrant at the residence of Maritza RODRIGUEZ in Ridgefield Park. A 13-year-old male was in the residence during the search. He was released to his father at the scene. During the search, law enforcement personnel located and seized approximately 350 wax paper folds containing suspected Heroin and approximately 47 baggies containing suspected Crack-Cocaine.
Maritza RODRIGUEZ was arrested on December 19, 2018, in Ridgefield Park and charged with one count of Endangering The Welfare Of A Child, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4A(2), a 2nd degree crime; one count of Distribution Of A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin, in an amount less than one-half ounce, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5B(3), a 3rd degree crime; two counts of Possession With Intent To Distribute A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin and Crack-Cocaine, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5B(3), a 3rd degree crime; and one count of Possession With Intent to Distribute A Controlled Dangerous Substance Within 1,000 Feet Of School Property, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-7A, a 3rd degree crime. RODRIGUEZ is scheduled for a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack on Wednesday, January 9, 2018, at 8:30 a.m.
Deran ROGERS was arrested on December 19, 2018, at RODRIGUEZ’s residence in Ridgefield Park and charged with three counts of Distribution Of A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin, in an amount less than one-half ounce, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5B(3), a 3rd degree crime; two counts of Possession With Intent To Distribute A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin and Crack-Cocaine, in an amount less than one-half ounce, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5B(3), a 3rd degree crime; one count of Possession With Intent to Distribute A Controlled Dangerous Substance Within 1,000 Feet Of School Property, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-7A, a 3rd degree crime; one count of Endangering The Welfare Of A Child, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4A, a 3rd degree crime; and one count of Conspiracy To Distribute A Controlled Dangerous Substance, namely Heroin, in an amount less than one-half ounce, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:5-2/2C:35-5B(3), a 4th degree crime. ROGERS was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending an appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack.
Acting Prosecutor Calo states that these charges are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and would also like to thank the Ridgefield Park Police Department for its assistance in this investigation
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Bogota NJ, Acting Prosecutor Dennis Calo announces the following information:
The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Bogota Police Department, and other local agencies are investigating a fatal shooting that occurred early this morning, December 12, 2018, in Bogota, NJ.
At approximately 1:43 a.m., the Bogota Police Department received a 9-1-1 call of shots fired outside Buddy’s Bar, 13 East Fort Lee Road, Bogota, NJ. Officers from the Bogota, Teaneck, and Ridgefield Park Police Departments responded to the scene, where they found a 28-year-old male on the front lawn of a nearby house, 286 Leonia Avenue, Bogota, suffering from a single gunshot wound. The victim was transported to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
The suspects fled the scene. The investigation is ongoing, and more information will be released at a later time.
August 1,2018
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Hackensack NJ, New Jersey is home to about 900,000 residents who are not United States citizens . That’ equals about 1 in 10 people in the state, according to most recent estimates. Census figures put Ridgewood’s non-citizen population at about 2,000, or approximately 8 percent of the village’s 25,500 residents.
The Ridgewood Public Library even hosts six-week program meets twice weekly for 90-minute classes. It uses the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services booklet “Learn About the United States, Quick Civic Lessons for the Naturalization Test.”
The federal government is planning to have the 2020 Census ask people their citizenship status. Many elected officials and community advocates say such a question could threaten federal funding for states like New Jersey.
The simple solution would be to create more US citizens in order to safe guard Federal Funds .
The next Census Day is set for April 1, 2020, and a 2017 release from the U.S. Census Bureau identified the date for wording of all Census questions to be submitted to Congress as March 31 of this year. So for those fighting for a question on citizenship status to be excluded, the clock has been ticking for months already.
To give you an idea of the magnitude of the issue the Ridgewood blog has listed the towns the have the largest concentration of Non-citizens in Bergen County .
Palisades Park
U.S.-born citizens: 6,887
Naturalized citizens: 6,057
Non-citizens: 7,215 — 35%
South Hackensack
U.S.-born citizens: 1,534
Naturalized citizens: 455
Non-citizens: 725 — 27%
Fairview
U.S.-born citizens: 6,843
Naturalized citizens: 3,687
Non-citizens: 3,608 — 25%
Little Ferry
U.S.-born citizens: 5,669
Naturalized citizens: 2,570
Non-citizens: 2,431 — 22%
Hackensack
U.S.-born citizens: 25,272
Naturalized citizens: 8,238
Non-citizens: 9,631 — 22%
Fort Lee
U.S.-born citizens: 16,475
Naturalized citizens: 11,398
Non-citizens: 7,941 — 22%
Leonia
U.S.-born citizens: 4,853
Naturalized citizens: 2,220
Non-citizens: 1,935 — 21%
Teterboro
U.S.-born citizens: 63
Naturalized citizens: 5
Non-citizens: 18 — 21%
Edgewater
U.S.-born citizens: 6,698
Naturalized citizens: 2,559
Non-citizens: 2,503 — 21%
Garfield
U.S.-born citizens: 17,663
Naturalized citizens: 6,885
Non-citizens: 6,251 — 20%
Ridgefield
U.S.-born citizens: 5,790
Naturalized citizens: 3,087
Non-citizens: 2,208 — 20%
August 1,2018
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Ridgewood NJ, To accommodate the lane closures necessary as part of the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s (NJDOT) rehabilitation of the Route 495 Bridge over Routes 1&9 and Paterson Plank Road in North Bergen, several NJ TRANSIT local bus routes will require detours.
The Exclusive Bus Lane (XBL) will be maintained weekday mornings (6 a.m. – 10 a.m.) throughout the construction.
Beginning Friday night, August 10, the 31st Street ramp from Kennedy Boulevard to Route 495 westbound will be closed with traffic detoured onto Paterson Plank Road, directly affecting NJ TRANSIT’s local service on 18 bus routes requiring detours in the afternoon and at night. A week later, on Friday, August 17, one lane of Route 495 in each direction will be closed, limiting the roadway capacity and causing severe congestion. The construction requiring detours is anticipated to last approximately two and a half years.
· Buses will operate their regular routing westbound along 31st Street through Union City the entire span of the day.
· All current Union City bus stops on 31st Street will be served, including both Bergenline Avenue and Kennedy Boulevard.
· Between 6 a.m. and 1 p.m. on weekdays, all NJ TRANSIT Buses using the 31st Street ramp will follow regular routes and continue to have access to Route 495 westbound.
· All buses between 1 p.m. and 6 a.m. the next morning will continue to use the 31st Street ramp but will be detoured onto Paterson Plank Road.
· Delays through Union City are anticipated due to increased traffic volume, and customers should plan accordingly for these delays.
Buses may encounter conditions that result in significant delays in the outbound direction during both the morning and evening peak periods.
AFFECTED BUS ROUTES
The following bus routes will be detoured between 1 p.m. and 6 a.m. daily during construction:
No. 87 Jersey City-Hoboken
No. 107 South Orange-New York
No. 108 Newark-New York
No. 111 New York-IKEA-Jersey Gardens
No. 124 Secaucus-New York
No. 127S Ridgefield-Union City-New York
No. 129 Secaucus-Union City-New York
No. 144 Elmwood Park-Hackensack-New York
No. 160 Elmwood Park-Wallington-New York
No. 161 Paterson-Passaic-New York
No. 163 Ridgewood-New York
No. 167 Harrington Park-Teaneck-New York
No. 190X Paterson-Rutherford-New York
No. 190 (local) Paterson-Rutherford-New York
No. 191 Willowbrook-Montclair-New York
No. 192 Clifton-New York
No. 195 Willowbrook-Cedar Grove-New York
No. 199 Clifton-Lyndhurst-New York
The following bus routes do not require a detour, but are expected to be impacted by delays due to increased traffic congestion:
No. 83 Hackensack-Jersey City-Journal Square
No. 85 Mill Creek-Harmon Meadow-Hoboken
No. 127 (regular) Ridgefield-Union City-New York
No. 320 Mill Creek-North Bergen Park & Ride-New York (a detour will be necessary in later stages and information will be provided in advance)
July 30,2018
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Ridgefield park NJ, A railroad bridge collapsed Saturday in Bergen County just as a freight train was passing over it, officials said. No one was injured and the rail bridge does not effect New Jersey Transit.
The track collapsed at about 8:20 a.m., according to NYSW Railroad. The train didn’t derail, but the last wheels on the last car of the train went into the water.
The rail bridge crosses Overpeck Creek in Ridgefield Park near the NJTurnpike. All operations over the bridge has been suspended.
It was scheduled to be replaced this year and contractors had already set up equipment to start driving piles on Monday, according to Nathon Fenno, a spokesman for NYSW.
July 5,2018
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What is Northern Branch?
The Northern Branch is a freight rail line owned by CSX Transportation that runs through Hudson and Bergen Counties to the New York State Border. The Northern Branch Corridor, through which the rail line traverses, is a densely settled suburban environment that has not been served by passenger rail since the discontinuation of service on the Northern Branch and West Shore Lines in the 1950s and 60s.
The Northern Branch Corridor Project calls for transit improvements in northeastern Hudson and southeastern Bergen Counties through the restoration of passenger rail service on an existing freight rail line. The electric light rail service would operate on West Side Avenue in North Bergen, and then on existing railroad right-of-way owned by CSX Transportation (CSX) between 91st Street in North Bergen and the northern border of Englewood and would introduce new station stops in North Bergen, Ridgefield, Palisades Park, Leonia, and Englewood.
Project Planning
The growth of automobile usage and accompanying roadway congestion in recent decades led planners and officials to search for solutions to the growing traffic problems in the Bergen County area. In the mid-1990s the West Shore Region Study provided a comprehensive examination of multi-modal opportunities throughout Bergen County, New Jersey and Rockland County, New York. Recommended for further study was an extension of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) from 85th Street in North Bergen along the Northern Branch to Tenafly, New Jersey.
The Northern Branch Corridor DEIS was prepared by NJ TRANSIT in cooperation with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to evaluate the benefits, costs and social, economic and environmental impacts of constructing and operating passenger rail service on the Northern Branch. The DEIS evaluated two Build Alternatives: the Preferred Alternative, which extended existing Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) service from North Bergen to the Tenafly-Cresskill border, and a similar HBLR extension that terminated at Route 4 in Englewood.
The DEIS was published in November 2011, and can be reviewed here: Northern Branch DEIS.
Public hearings were held in January 2012, and the public comment period closed on February 21, 2012. More than 1,200 comments were received and reviewed by NJ TRANSIT. While many comments expressed support for the service, residents and community leaders in Tenafly were strongly opposed to the extension of service into their community. After considering the comments, FTA and NJ TRANSIT have developed a new alignment that would extend HBLR service from North Bergen to Englewood Hospital, which is north of Route 4 and south of Tenafly. Light rail service would not extend past Englewood.
This new alignment results in changes to the service plan and potential environmental and social impacts explored in the DEIS circulated for comment in 2012. As a result, this new alignment and associated changes have been analyzed in a Supplemental DEIS (SDEIS) and circulated for public comment and agency feedback in a process closely approximating the one undertaken for the DEIS.
The SDEIS was published on March 24, 2017, and can be reviewed here: Northern Branch SDEIS.
Similar to a DEIS, an SDEIS requires a public hearing and public comment period. The comments on the SDEIS and DEIS will be addressed together in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). A 60-day public comment period will follow the notice of availability (NOA) of the SDEIS, during which time NJ TRANSIT will hold a public hearing. Comments will be collected and reviewed in the same manner as conducted for the DEIS. Provided that the SDEIS comments do not present compelling arguments for substantial revision to the SDEIS Preferred Alternative, an FEIS will be prepared, incorporating the SDEIS findings and unchanged elements from the DEIS. A response to comments chapter will be included in the FEIS, addressing all comments received during the prior two comment periods.
