OCTOBER 6, 2015 LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2015, 10:02 AM
BY MARK KRULISH
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Losing your lawn for the greater good was the theme at an event organized by the Bergen Passaic Native Plant Chapter and the Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee (REAC).
The event featured a speaker who specializes in landscaping that aligns nature with function and design.
Christina Chrobokowa, a noted landscape architect, gave a presentation regarding alternative ground covers, which require less maintenance and resources in addition to being more environmentally-friendly.
Additionally, ground covers often use less water, which made the presentation timely as the village is currently under Stage 4 water restrictions. Ironically, the event was held on Tuesday, which was the first rainy night in weeks.
In the United States, there is almost 50,000 square miles of lawn, said Chrobokowa, almost three times more than the space occupied by corn. Lawns are still considered a coveted aspect of homeownership, even by millennials, she said, reporting that 83 percent in that age group said having a yard is important.
With the desire for a lawn still high, the aim is to strike a balance between meeting the needs of homeowners and the natural environment. While lawns serve as a place for active and passive recreation, relaxation and a place for pets to play, what currently exists on many properties is often not necessary.
“It’s not an easy road to travel when it comes to changing perspectives and a mindset that has been ingrained in people for many generations,” said Chrobokowa, referring to the lawn as “America’s most wanted and useless crop.”
May 2015, the Village Council tinkered with it and sent it to the Planning Board for comment, the Planning Board liked the tinkering. I don’t know whether the Village Council adopted the changes yet or not.
“Board member David Thurston asked if the new language opened up the board to a charge of making an arbitrary decision if it decides not to move forward with an application.
Village Planner Blais Brancheau said it should not be a problem in obvious cases,…..”
I am sure anyone who makes an application, particularly a big developer, will not regard their application as one that should obviously be turned down. We need to do what other towns do, not have such an ordinance.
Ridgewood NJ, Mike White,is a truck driver for our Sanitation Department and has been employed by the Village of Ridgewood for about 21 years. He is considered incredibly professional, very kind and extremely friendly . many residents in tyhe Village are familiar with him .
Last week we all learned that Mike’s son, Michael White, who had also worked directly with him as a seasonal employee, was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident in July. Michael was 25 years old and leaves behind a 22-month-old daughter, Breelyn Mikynlee.
Many in the Village were heartbroken to hear of Mike’s loss and recognize.how difficult it must be for Mike and his wife Cheryl as they try to function in their while working through their grief.
Mike and his wife Cheryl are now also helping to support their beautiful granddaughter. As we all know, diapers and toddler’s needs are expensive, and a little bit goes a long way.
If you would like to donate to help Mike and Cheryl during this difficult time,
OCTOBER 2, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2015, 8:52 AM
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
A daffodil for every resident
To the Editor:
The Conservancy for Ridgewood Public Lands is looking forward to spring! We are pleased to announce our 2015 campaign: “25,000 Village Residents = 25,000 Daffodils.” Our goal is to plant one daffodil bulb for each village resident.
Three years ago, the conservancy began the fall bulb planting project. To date, 14,000 bulbs were purchased and planted by residents, including Boys and Girls Scout troops, the Ridgewood Public School System and several local social service agencies.
Please join us on Sunday, Oct. 18 at the Stable between the hours of 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help us kick off this exciting event. As we keep working on our various park improvement projects, we also look forward to celebrating our Third Annual Daffodil Festival on Sunday, April 17, 2016.
Please visit our conservancy website at cfrpl.org for ways to participate, and for additional information. We thank our community for their continued support.
I dislike our deputy mayor as much as the rest of you but I think you are “burying the lede.” I do not think he meant, or even said, that he was the only RIDGEWOOD RESIDENT with a full-time job. I believe he was talking about the COUNCIL–thereby outing the mayor, who has claimed to have a job for years but clearly does not. The two councilwomen are not employed outside the home. The third male councilman LOST HIS JOB PARTLY BECAUSE THE MAYOR DROPPED A DIME and told his Staten Island boss that his running for council IN ANOTHER STATE would be a conflict of interest. Even the guy’s own legal team disagreed, but by then the councilman had left. This issue must never be allowed to die. Somebody, preferably a federal investigator, needs to get the mayor in a small room, shine a light on his shiny head, look him in the eye, and ask what happened. I would give a lot to be that investigator. Even in an elevator. He would not be able to look straight back.
From what I hear, many SUV’s in town will soon be sporting posters of Albert Pucciarelli with bold letters stating that he is the only person in town with a full time job. This will be cause for fender benders as people all over town crack up laughing.
The only one in town? in the world? He can’t have meant that even if he said it–especially considering that speaker after speaker had been stating “I’m a lawyer” and “I’m in advertising” and “I’m in real estate” and so on, and, well, an entire town can’t be unemployed at the same time. I believe that whatever he said, what he meant (he was flustered, for a change, and grasping for words) had to be that he was the only council member with a day job. Well, a mystery.
Note: I was at the meeting and I counted every speaker and wrote down their names. Some names I could not hear because the speakers were placed so their backs were to the audience, making it very hard to hear their names. After they stated their names, then they got bolder and you could hear their messages LOUD AND CLEAR.
Anyway for the record, I logged 84 people speaking OPPOSED to the high density housing, and one who simply questioned Mr. Aronsohn about accepting a bribe (I mean donation) from a developer. I counted five who were in favor, one of whom was a developer with a plan on the table and one of whom was his attorney. Those two don’t really count, do they?
If you count the two developer guys, that is 89 people (84 plus five, not counting the bribe-questioner who did not weigh in pro or con), with only 5.6% in favor.
If you delete the two developer guys, that is 86 people with only 3.5% in favor.
Now of course my math might be wrong because I don’t have a full time job. But, I guess that puts me in the majority since only one person in the room has a full time job.
On Monday, October 5 the Kelly Creegan Memorial Fund will host its second annual golf outing at Apple Ridge Country Club in Mahwah. Founded in 2012, the Kelly Elisabeth Creegan Memorial Fund seeks to share the memory, life and spirit of Kelly Creegan through community philanthropy. Last year’s event funded two scholarships for the Ridgewood High School class of 2015. This year the hope is to continue and expand that mission.
Registration is at 8 a.m. with shotgun start at 10:30 a.m. Golfers will enjoy a full breakfast and lunch with auction along with their round of golf. Price is $200 per golfer. For further information and sponsorship opportunities please visit our Facebook page, Kelly Creegan Memorial Fund, or email kellycreeganfund@gmail.com.
The Village Council of the Village of Ridgewood shall conduct a Public Hearing in the Sydney V. Stoldt, Jr. Court Room on the fourth floor of the Ridgewood Village Hall, 131 North Maple Ave., Ridgewood, NJ at its October 14, 2015 Regular Public Meeting, which meeting begins at 8:00 p.m.
The purpose of this Public Hearing is for the Village Council to receive comments and suggestions from the public for the Village of Ridgewood’s 2015 Bergen County Open Space Trust Fund Municipal Park Improvement and Development Grant application. The Village has applied for this grant for Phase 1 work on the Schedler Park property, located at 460 West Saddle River Road, Ridgewood, NJ. Phase 1 would encompass basic infrastructure improvements to include: installation of underground utilities (water, electric, sewer); demolition of two-car garage, small shed; capping of inoperable well; selective removal of down, dead, diseased trees; site clean-up; and cut in proposed parking lot driveway entrance.
The coach of the women’s softball team at a Christian college in Rockland County tried to turn his players into porn stars by offering to help them get jobs in the adult entertainment industry — and even invited well-known skin-flick actress Allie Haze to a practice so she could deliver “life counseling sessions,’’ bombshell lawsuits state.
Kurt Ludwigsen, 44, was arrested in April for improper sexual conduct with his Nyack College players. Lawsuits filed Friday by three of them charge he would routinely slap their butts, grab their breasts and make them sit on his lap.
“I am going to ear f–k you. This is your punishment. You are going to stand here and take it,” Ludwigsen told a pitcher after she lost a game in March 2015, according to her Manhattan federal court lawsuit. “Ludwigsen then began to lick [her] ear. When [she] tried to pull away, Ludwigsen held her tighter and said, ‘Stop moving. I told you that you are going to stand here and take it.’ ”
The suits also accuse Ludwigsen of “inviting Haze to practice and directing students to life counselling sessions with her.”
OCTOBER 4, 2015 LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2015, 12:29 AM
BY NICHOLAS PUGLIESE
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
NEW YORK — In the five years since Tyler Clementi committed suicide by jumping off the George Washington Bridge, concerns about online bullying and harassment have only increased as daily interactions are mediated more and more by technology.
Victims of online abuse — in the form of threats, personal data breaches or “revenge pornography” — often feel powerless to hold aggressors accountable, given the anonymity that the Internet provides and an opaque regulatory environment that lags advances in technology.
On Saturday, the New York Law School launched the Tyler Clementi Institute for Internet Safety, the country’s first pro bono clinic at a law school that represents victims of what is commonly known as cyberbullying. The institute, started in coordination with the Tyler Clementi Foundation and run by Celementi’s parents, aims to make lawyers available in all 50 states who will advocate on behalf of victims in schools, corporate settings and courts.
“It’s very encouraging,” said Clementi’s father, Joseph. “The Internet now allows people to make comments, post photographs, do all kinds of things that are in cyberspace forever and can be constantly referred to by anyone who chooses to look at it. The humiliation is amplified.
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Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Police report on Sunday September 27, 2015, two incidents of criminal mischief were reported in the area Meadowbrook Avenue and the Public Service & Electric & gas right of way.
Both victims had parked their cars in the area while attending soccer games. While the vehicles were parked someone had scratched their exterior surfaces causing damage to the paint as well as spraying an unidentified liquid inside of them.
On Wednesday September 30, 2015, an employee of the Ridgewood Board of Education reported vandalism at the Steven’s Athletic Field. Unidentified actor/actors had intentionally burned the synthetic turf playing surface in several areas.
Both matters are under investigation by the detective bureau, any witness to the incidents are asked to contact the bureau at (201)251-4537.
Ridgewood NJ, Members of Ridgewood P.B.A. Local 20 in conjunction with the Chiefs Office will be sporting PINK ball caps during the month of October to support breast cancer awareness. “We decided it was time to join the fight” said Peter Youngberg,
PBA president. “When a citizen sees a police officer wearing a pink hat out there it should grab their attention. We hope that it helps raise some awareness throughout the Village. We are also committing $500.00 to the National Breast Cancer Foundation”.
“Unfortunately most of us have family or know someone impacted by breast cancer, so as a department we stand together with the PBA in this effort. In support of breast cancer awareness we have authorized the wearing of Pink hats by department members”.Chief John Ward.
Above Photo: from left to right (Detective Peter Youngberg PBA President, Chief John Ward, Officer Jeff Kay, Captain Forest Lyons, Officer Michael Karcher, Officer Joseph Youngberg, and Detective Douglas Henky PBA Delegate)
Editors note : Great job to the Citizens for a Better Ridgewood but we would like to point out the it is an Elected Officials JOB to listen to their constituents concerns , council members do not need to be thanked because it took 500 screaming residents to show up to a Village Council meeting to pay attention to obvious short comings in their misguided efforts to transform Ridgewood into Hoboken .
Hello Friends and Neighbors!
We would like to thank each and every one of you!
Thank you for sending emails to Village Council members and for showing up at Wednesday night’s meeting. Hundreds and hundreds of concerned residents came to Village Hall! Many of you not only showed up, but you waited on line, spoke at the podium and stayed late into the night. Your comments were thoughtful and heartfelt. We are grateful for your passion and support.
Council Tables The Vote and Orders New Studies
The meeting lasted 5.5 hours and 76 residents took to the podium, almost all in favor of housing but at a lower density level. At 11:00 pm, council members began discussing whether or not to continue the public hearing to another date, as it was already late into the evening. Councilman Michael Sedon made a motion to table the ordinances until a fiscal impact study could be done, which would help determine the effects the new apartment buildings would have on the tax base. Councilwoman Susan Knudsen seconded the motion, and asked that a comprehensive traffic study and school impact study also be completed.
These are three important studies that were never conducted at the Planning Board level. The Planning Board is not allowed to consider fiscal or educational impacts in decision-making. Although this seems unreasonable, it is common practice throughout municipalities everywhere. The financial and school-related considerations are left to elected officials, who have the final word and who are presumably much more in touch with the public at large.
Some traffic studies were conducted at the Planning Board level. However, the studies were specific to each proposed development and only addressed the traffic effects at individual each site. The studies never addressed the cumulative effects that developing all of these sites at the same time, while also adding a parking garage and an assisted living facility, would have on traffic in downtown Ridgewood. Similarly, the analyses that were done at the Planning Board level to estimate the number of school-aged children that may be added to our school district if hundreds of apartments were to be built, were based on data from other towns in the state of NJ, but not towns with school districts comparable to the Ridgewood Public School system.
Mayor Paul Aronsohn agreed with the need for further studies and voted yes with Sedon and Knudsen. Councilwoman Gwen Hauck initially expressed concern about the additional cost and time needed to complete studies, but she ultimately went along and voted to approve the studies. Deputy Mayor Pucciarelli was the only one to vote no at the time, because he was intent on finishing the process of public comment before taking any action. Once public comment was finished, Mr. Pucciarelli appeared supportive of further studies.
Next Steps
The Public Hearings have been continued until Monday, November 9th, with the hope that the new studies will be completed in a timely manner. We are thankful that our Village Council is moving forward with these additional studies, and it appears as if democracy has prevailed. Now it is up to you to continue to show up to the meetings. As the process continues, residents will be able to listen to the experts and question them as well. This is your opportunity to fully participate and have a stake in how our village moves forward. Please continue to stay engaged!
Final Note
We encourage you to reach out to your council members to thank them for hearing us and for agreeing to continue the process with further studies. We continue, as always, to encourage respectful and thoughtful dialogue!
If you know of any one who would like to receive CBR emails and notifications of upcoming meetings, please tell them to email us atCitizensforaBetterRidgewood@aol.com and put “Add me to Email List” in the subject line.
Thank you again for all of your support!!
Citizens for a Better Ridgewood
citizensforabetterridgewood@aol.com
Ridgewood NJ, One (1) adult male was taken into custody by Ridgewood PD officers following an altercation at a 2-family home on Ethelbert Place during which one (1) tenant of the house held a knife to the throat of another tenant.
The victim and alleged perpetrator are not related. The individual taken into custody was transported to Ridgewood PD headquarters for processing.All defendants are considered innocent until found guilty in a court of law.
Ridgewood NJ, Finally, it has become abundantly clear, that the current Council majority totally disrespects the will and wishes of the taxpayers of Ridgewood. The Ridgewood “elite” has woken from their Pinot Noir induced stupor and seen and heard the arrogance of the three worst Council members of all time.
They are, by far, the most self-serving, small minded nit wits ever to grace the dais. The jig is up! Their back room dealing and campaign donor promises, at the expense and pain of the Ridgewood taxpayers, have come to light and people now have seen the three deceitful Council members as they truly are.
Let them know it’s time to pack their “carpet bags” and move on. Al can go back to his day job, Gwenn can get back to her regularly scheduled nail and hair appointments and Paul can move to Washington and help Hillary pack for prison.
By the way October 13 is the last day to Register to Vote in Nov. 3 Election. On Tuesday, October 13 from 8:30am to 4:30pm, voter registration forms are available in the Village Clerk’s Office on the 5th Floor of Village Hall.
On October 13 from 4:30pm to 9:00pm the Village Clerk will be in the Ridgewood Library Lobby with forms to assist residents with voter registration.
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