Category: village of ridgewood

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The New Jersey Choral Society holds auditions for Festival Youth Chorus

NJCS Festival Youth Choir small

December 11,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood

Ridgewood NJ ,The New Jersey Choral Society is seeking about 50 young singers from grades 6 through 12 for an ensemble to join in their spring 2016 performances of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana. Auditions will be held for treble voices (soprano, alto and unchanged tenors) on Monday, January 11, 2016 starting at 4pm at St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church, 169 Fairmount Road, Ridgewood, NJ. Registration forms with a $10 application fee must be postmarked by January 4, 2016. Audition requirements include a memorized solo. Other requirements and details are available on the New Jersey Choral Society website at www.njcs.org under “Upcoming Events”. Interested students, parents and educators should contact Festival Youth Chorus Director, Noelle Dachis, at [email protected] for more information.

Students selected for the chorus are expected to attend weekly rehearsals held at St. Elizabeth’s Church on Mondayevenings from January to June, 2016. Performances of Carmina Burana are scheduled for May 21 in Bethel, CT, and June 4 in Ridgewood, NJ. There is an additional potential performance at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall in mid-June. The Festival Youth Chorus will be singing the rarely performed Ragazzi portion of Orff’s beautiful work. This will be a unique and exciting opportunity for young choral singers to perform with the New Jersey Choral Society and Maestro Eric Dale Knapp, and a rare experience to include on college applications, especially for students heading into a music study.

Established in 1980, the New Jersey Choral Society is one of the state’s most prestigious choral groups, well-known for presenting outstanding and unique programs. Under the direction of Eric Dale Knapp, NJCS performs three major concerts annually in Bergen and Essex counties. They have performed at Carnegie Hall and the White House and have toured internationally in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, China, Australia, England, and France.

 

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Ridgewood Council schedules hearing for parking garage bond

Village Council Meeting

photo by Boyd Loving

DECEMBER 11, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The Ridgewood Council on Wednesday unanimously introduced a $12.3 million bond ordinance for the construction of a proposed parking deck at the Hudson Street lot.

A public hearing on the bond ordinance is scheduled for Jan. 6.

Despite the governing body’s full support of the ordinance introduction, two council members expressed their reservations about certain aspects of the parking garage proposal, most notably the lack of a definitive plan.

Councilwoman Susan Knudsen, who was concerned that the public may not know all of the details of the potential parking garage, said that she supported the ordinance introduction “with the understanding that I’m doing a reach out and getting a lot of information and public input as to their understanding of the structure, and making sure the financials are absolutely intact.”

Councilman Michael Sedon also noted his desire for additional information to be distributed among Ridgewood residents and members of the Central Business District (CBD).

“Once a concrete plan is in place with rates and enforcement times, I’d like to go out to send a letter to the business community letting them know exactly what the plan is, so if there are any questions or blowback, we can deal with that beforehand, and not after the fact.”

He further explained his reasons, recalling a Village Council decision several years ago to increase the sewage discharge fees assessed to CBD businesses. According to Sedon, “nobody seemed to know or care about [the fee increase when it was discussed].

“Once the bills hit the mailboxes,” he added, “there were 50 or 60 angry businesses owners here.”

Sedon said he hopes to avoid a repeat occurrence of that.

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/town-government/hearing-on-bond-scheduled-1.1472043

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Village of Ridgewood Leaf Collection Update

leaf me alone

Leaf Collection Update

Updated Information on Leaves from Ridgewood DPW:

• Collection: We are still running three to four days behind. With the recent damage to the pusher catching up is going to be unachievable.

• Schedule: We are recommending a shift in the leaf schedule based on the following new dates:

20151210 151316 resized

o Area A: Dec. 4 to Dec. 10

o Area B: No change

o Area C: Dec. 11 to Dec. 17

o Area D: Dec. 18 to Dec. 23

For further information: 201/670-5585

20151210 151141 resized

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Car Truck Collision at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Bellair Road, Ridgewood

Car Truck Collision at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Bellair Road, Ridgewood
photo courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook
Car Truck Collision at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Bellair Road, Ridgewood
December 08,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The driver of a roll off container truck was transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital following a collision in which his truck broadsided a white Toyota Matrix at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Bellair Road, Ridgewood on Tuesday, 12/08. The adult female driver of the Toyota was uninjured in the crash, which occurred just prior to 1PM. Ridgewood PD, FD, and EMS units responded to the scene. The heavily damaged Toyota was removed from the scene by a flatbed tow truck. A heavy duty wrecker took the roll off container truck away.

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Ridgewood Art Institute invites you to get your New Year off to a Creative Start

RAI
December 09,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, start your New Years off to a creative start by signing up for a painting class at the RAI. We have some wonderful teachers to enjoy -Rebecca Leer is teaching Oil Painting – Landscape, Seascape, Still Life and Portrait for Adults in the West Studio on Wednesday and Thursdays from 10am – 1pm.

Diana Gibson is teaching Oil Painting – Landscape, Seascape, Still Life and Portrait for Adults in the West Studio on Wednesday and Thursday Evenings from 7pm – 9pm.

Susan Hope Fogel is teaching Drawing for Adults, Figure and Still Life in the East Studio on Thursday evenings from 7pm – 9:30pm.

Janet Cunniffe-Chieffo is teaching Oil Painting for Adults – Florals and Still Lifes on wednesday’s in the east studio from 10 – 1pm

Joel Popadics is teaching water color for Adults in the east studio on thursday’s from 10 – 1pm.

Annette Hanna teaches Pastel-Portrait, Still Life & Landscape,
Fridays daytime – 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.

Edwin Broussard teaches Figure Drawing, Life Costume and Still Life for adults, Mondays -9:30 am – 12:00 pm.

Charles Brandenburg teaches Fundamentals of Watercolor, The Basic Techniques, Problem Solving, Design and Composition for adults, Tuesday evenings – 7:00 pm – 9:30 pm.

Murray Smith teaches Oil Painting: Floral, Still Life & Landscape Painting for adults, Monday daytime 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.

Peggy Dressel teaches Watercolor Techniques, Mixing Color, Composition, Landscape, Flowers & Still Life for adults, Tuesday daytime – 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.
12291946 1076862722325393 8657279825404393384 o
Or just stop by  the barn and pick out that special “hostess” gift to bring to Thanksgiving dinner – beautiful “Small Works” for sale for only $150.00. These beautiful, original works of art have been donated by local artists to help fund the “running costs” of the barn.
A beautiful selection is still left – give a gift that keeps on giving throughout generations to come.
Address: 12 E Glen Ave, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
Phone:(201) 652-9615

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Ridgewood Firefighters Sue fire truck, siren makers over ‘irreversible’ hearing loss

ridgewood fire department theridgewoodblog.net 1

N.J. firefighters suing fire truck, siren makers over ‘irreversible’ hearing loss

By Craig McCarthy | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on December 08, 2015 at 8:47 AM, updated December 08, 2015 at 5:00 PM

Bayonne Fire Department fire truck leaves the firehouse on Avenue C by City Hall.Jersey Journal file photo

More than two dozen New Jersey firefighters are suing five fire truck manufacturers and a siren maker alleging the noise from the emergency vehicles’ sirens have lead to an “irreversible” loss of hearing.

The lawsuit was removed from state Superior Court and filed in federal court in Newark on Dec. 4 on behalf of 34 current or former firefighters in Elizabeth, Linden, Bayonne, Union, Ridgewood, Kearny, Cranford and West New York. The suit names American LaFrance LLC, Kovatch Mobile Equipments Corp., Mack Trucks Inc., Pierce Manufacturing Inc. and Seagrave Fire Apparatus LLC, as well as the siren maker Federal Signal Corp.

The lawsuit alleges the firefighters, who were each employed by the departments for decades, “have suffered irreversible hearing loss and a permanent decrease of their hearing” making them unable “to enjoy life’s pleasures.”

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2015/12/nj_firefighters_suing_fire_truck_siren_make_over_h.html

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Ridgewood senior citizens asked to complete survey

senior citizens

DECEMBER 8, 2015    LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2015, 2:22 PM
BY MARK KRULISH
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Local seniors can still have a voice in helping the community make changes for the betterment of not only their own age group, but Ridgewood as a whole through a survey currently being circulated by a village committee.

A subcommittee of Ridgewood’s Community Center Advisory Board (CCAB) has taken on the task of helping older adults stay in Ridgewood and provide avenues to better engage them in the community.

The survey has been available since early October and features a variety of questions focusing on housing, transportation, service needs, social participation, civic engagement and how seniors stay informed of village news and events.

As of last week, 455 seniors have taken the survey, which is slightly less than half of the set goal of 1,000 responses. Among those 455 people, many of them have been in the age range of 70 through 85, noted Sheila Brogan, one of the subcommittee members, meaning younger seniors aged 55 to 70 years and the oldest have not had their voices heard.

The CCAB subcommittee is interested in seniors’ opinions on the village’s current housing stock – whether or not options are available in town if they decide to leave their house; on transportation options for seniors; social engagement – what clubs and organizations in which seniors are actively involved; and how seniors get their information and what the best way would be to reach them.

The survey will also allow the advisory board to tailor programs currently on-going in the Community Center, such as the various exercise programs, to the needs of the village’s seniors.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/health-news/senior-citizens-sought-to-complete-ridgewood-survey-1.1469909

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Distracted Walkers Pose Threat to Self and Others

Pedestrian3 Struck South Maple theridgewoodblog.net

file photo by Boyd Loving one of many pedestrian accidents in the Village

By JANE E. BRODY DECEMBER 7, 2015 5:45 AM

While distracted driving has commanded lots of attention (albeit not a commensurate amount of correction), another digital hazard — distracted walking — is on the rise, with sometimes disastrous consequences.

We’ve all seen it, and often felt it, as people looking down to text, tweet, read or play games on their smartphones crash into us, typically as we walk in a straight line and they don’t. A study by Eric M. Lamberg and Lisa M. Muratori at Stony Brook University found that distracted walkers veer off course by as much as 61 percent while texting and walking.

When about to collide with a distracted walker, I used to politely say, “Excuse me,” to get the person’s attention. But I’ve become so annoyed by this behavior that I now harshly proclaim, “Watch where you’re going!” My friends of a certain age are frankly scared that they will be knocked down and injured by a distracted walker.

Distracted walking is most common among millennials aged 18 to 34, but women 55 and older are most likely to suffer serious injuries, including broken bones, according to a 2013 study in Accident Analysis & Prevention. Visits to emergency rooms for injuries involving distracted pedestrians on cellphones more than doubled between 2004 and 2010 and continues to grow. Among more than 1,000 people hospitalized after texting while walking, injuries included a shattered pelvis and injuries to the back, head and neck.

 

https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/12/07/its-not-just-drivers-being-driven-to-distraction/

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Ridgewood continues process to update master plan

clock_cbd_theridgewoodblog

DECEMBER 7, 2015    LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2015, 11:11 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Planning Board members continued their review of the village master plan at last Tuesday night’s meeting, focusing much of the discussion on the housing element of the plan.

As part of his presentation, Village Planner Blais Brancheau explained the review process, noting that the state mandates that municipalities update their master plans at least once every decade.

“State law requires that planning boards, at least every 10 years, require a re-examination of the master plan of the village,” he said. “The purpose is to make sure that those documents are still current and not dated.”

However, he said that the plan should be updated more often than what is required.

Brancheau also went through Ridgewood’s master plan, explaining a few changes he recommended to the board.

“The purpose of the re-exam is not to identify every possible solution to the direction that we would like to pursue, but to identify what we can in the time that we have,” he said. “This doesn’t preclude identifying additional changes or issues when the re-exam is finished.”

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/town-government/planners-continue-re-exam-process-1.1469121

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Public Hearing on Ridgewood’s High Density Housing will continue during the Village Council meeting WEDNESDAY evening..

village parking flyies

THIS Wednesday, December 9th at 8:00 pm at Village Hall

PLEASE try to attend the meeting.  The Mayor and Council will be discussing TWO very important issues that could change the character of our village forever:  Multi-Family Housing and the Hudson Street Parking Garage.   It is crucial that as many residents as possible attend the meeting to show the Mayor and Council that residents remain vigilant and demand responsible decision-making.  On September 30, more than 600 residents turned out and our voices were heard when the Council voted 4-1 to perform studies to understand the effects of adding high density housing to the CBD before voting.  Let’s continue to have a voice!

Agenda:

At approximately 8:30 pm, after presentations, Village Manager and Council reports, and comments from the public, a $12.3 million bond ordinance will be introduced to fund the Hudson Street Parking Deck.  The parking garage discussion is relevant to the high-density housing debate.  If the largest of the 3 parking garage options is approved (which is likely, as it is favored 3-2 by a majority of the Council members), the new parking garage could set a precedent for the height, size and bulk of future buildings in the CBD, and could have implications for the size of any new apartment buildings.  See attached for photos of the proposed garage, particularly the view on Hudson Street.

The Public Hearing on Land Use and Development (High Density Housing) will continue, and the Mayor and Council will discuss the next steps to be taken with regard to the four independent studies approved onSeptember 30, including financial impact, comprehensive traffic, school impact, and infrastructure studies.  We must demand Village Council members honor their commitment and hire an independent firm to conduct all of the promised studies, taking into consideration the effects of adding four multi-family developments, a 98-unit assisted living facility and a large parking garage all at once.

Please come to the meeting at 8:00 pm on Wednesday.  Let’s show the Mayor and Council that we did not forget what they voted for on September 30th!

If you can not attend the meeting, you can watch the meeting on Fios Channel 34 or Cablevision Channel 77.

Thank you for your continued support.

Citizens for a Better Ridgewood

[email protected]

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Village of Ridgewood Manager Explains Delays with Leaf Pick Up

Village_Manager_Roberta_Sonenfeld_theridgewoodblog

E Notice – December 4th – Leaves Update

Dear Neighbor,

As mentioned in a previous E-Notice, we had an early heavy leaf drop this year. Through December 1 we have collected 31,544 cubic yards of leaves – this compares with 20, 567 last year at the same time – a 50% increase! The total leaves collected last year were 35,257 cubic yards so this upcoming round is really like our final clean up. As a result we are taking longer in each of our Areas (an extra three to four days)and are updating our collection schedule as follows:

Area A: December 4 to December 10

Area B: Remains the same

Area C: December 11 to December 17

Area D: December 18 – December 23

This has also been posted on our website – which I would encourage you to monitor: www.ridgewoodnj.net

As I have also mentioned, we will do a post mortem on the season and have been benchmarking with like communities around us to share ideas and best practices. I would like to include some residents in our post mortem process as I know through my correspondences with you there are residents that have a passion about this issue and have many ideas as well. If you would be interested in attending a meeting at Village Hall (probably in January) to discuss your thoughts, please let me know. And also let me know your preference for timing, e.g. daytime, evening, etc.

Best wishes for a safe, happy and healthy holiday season, Roberta

Best regards,

Roberta Sonenfeld
Village Manager

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Santa will be Checking his list this Saturday in Van Neste Square in Ridgewood

Santa Clause Ridgewood PD and FD
photo courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page
Santa will be Checking his list this Saturday in Van Neste Square in Ridgewood
December 7,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Police and Firefighters escorted Santa who arrived on a firetruck last Saturday at Columbia Bank on South Broad Street.

Santa will host a breakfast at the Office Bar and Grill 32 Chestnut St, 8:30 am at Ridgewood, NJ 07450 call for reservations 201-652-1070. YWCA Bergen County will be participating.

Santa will be in the Memorial Park at Van Neste Square, E Ridgewood Ave and Oak Street, Saturday, December 12, 2015 from 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM.

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Raymond’s Resturant will host a Breakfast with Chris Snee, 2 Time Super Bowl Champion

Chris Snee NY Giants

Fri, December 11, 2015
Time: 7:00 AM – 8:30 AM
Location: Raymond’s Restaurant, 101 E Ridgewood Ave., Ridgewood, NJ 07450

Ridgewood NJ, We thought the December breakfast meeting would be a wonderful time to have a guest speaker on a non-investment related topic. We are excited to have Chris Snee, a two time Super Bowl Champion with the NY Giants at our breakfast on December 11th. Chris will share his experiences as a Pro Bowl offensive lineman and reflect on the team’s Super Bowl victories over the Patriots.

Parks Wealth Management is making a donation in Chris’s honor to the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund, which helps families tackle childhood cancer by providing financial, emotional and practical support. We will also be collecting gently used or new winter coats, hats, scarfs, gloves and mittens for The Relief Bus, a mobile soup kitchen helping the poor and homeless in NY and NJ.

Those who make a donation or bring a clothing item will be entered in a raffle for a personally signed football by Chris.

The event will take place at Raymond’s Resturant on Friday, December 11th, 2015 from 7:00AM to 8:30AM. Raymond’s is located at 101 East Ridgewood Avenue in downtown Ridgewood. You can park free on the street until 10am.

You are welcome to invite a guest that you would like to introduce to Parks Wealth Management.

Please let us know if you are attending by clicking on the following link. Jim, Jonathon, and Ania’s Breakfast Club RSVP

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/15RZpuwZ2KDzPB9H9ojpND0P9rNzUPHmfu98OAOh8GbM/viewform

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Ridgewood Knights to Host Senior Citizen Christmas Party

santa knights of columbus

file photo 2014

December 7,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood-NJ,The Ridgewood Knights of Columbus Council #1736 will hold their annual senior citizens Christmas party in the Parish Center at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church on Sunday, December 20, 2015. All are welcome. Guests will be treated to a buffet lunch, entertainment, Christmas carols, and a surprise visit from Santa Claus.

For more information, contact event organizers Mark Stappenbeck (201) 444-3346, or Mike Mengin (201) 689-0562

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Ridgewood Mayor Tries to Walk back his Commitment to 4 comprehensive, independent impact studies regarding the high density housing

Village Council
file photo by Boyd Loving
December 7,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Mayor Aronsohn moves to recommend that we push back our consideration of the 5 housing amendments until February .

It is well documented that the Village council agreed to 4 comprehensive, independent impact studies regarding the high density housing .The hundreds of residents were present on September 30th and the thousands watching at home remember very clearly the council voting in favor of doing 4 comprehensive independent impact studies (financial, school, traffic, infrastructure). While Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli voted against the new impact studies ,Gwenn Hauck, Susan Knudsen ,Michael Sedon and the Mayor Paul Aronsohn all agreed to do the 4 comprehensive studies.

Other issues based on the September 30th meeting is the residents understanding that these 4 comprehensive studies:
1) will not be based on any previously done studies.
2) will include the 4 multifamily developments, the Hudson street Garage and the North Walnut Street redevelopment zone.
3) will be handled  by a single independent firm outside of the village’s jurisdiction.

The Mayor has since been walking back the vote and currently seems to feel he voted for 1 impact study with the possibility of the others or to study the idea of studies.Residents have become alarmed as to whether the Mayor and the Village council are committed to doing what he voted for on September 30th.