Ridgewood, NJ, The Concerned Residents of Ridgewood (CRR) is delighted to endorse Jeff Voigt, Bernie Walsh, and Ramon Hache for Councilpersons in the May 10th, 2016 Village elections.
“This election is about residents regaining control over the big decisions in our town, rather than falling in line behind applicants and institutions like Valley Hospital, which has sought to replace our Village planning with threats of litigation. As we embrace positive change in Ridgewood, our Council and Planning Board can no longer let applicants lead the discussion on the appropriate scale and intensity of new building and land use in our village,” said Pete McKenna, president of the CRR.
“We think Jeff, Bernie and Ramon will challenge a recent trend in Ridgewood government where bigger is always presumed to be better and where applicants for changes in land use are treated as higher authorities than our own residents. We
chose to endorse these three independent candidates because we feel they each will listen to residents on matters of village governance before reaching a conclusion. ,” added Mr. McKenna said.
fit,” a. Added Mr. McKenna.
The Concerned Residents of Ridgewood, Inc. (CRR), a grassroots organization that has sought moderation and sound land use planning at the H-Zone site, and opposes the expansion as currently exerted by Valley Hospital through its ongoing
litigation against the village.. A group of CRR members met individually with each candidate for Council in April of this year, to discuss their views and priorities for the village prior to their endorsement.
Hache, Voigt, Walsh…..the way to go
My issue the the CRR is the feeling (right or wrong) that they oppose any change to Valley while saying that they support moderenization within “reason”. Their signs say “STOP VALLEY”, not “COMPROMISE WITH VALLEY”. The members of the CRR are overwhelmingly Travell parents that (in my opinion) haven’t the faintest idea what it takes to provide quality healthcare to thousand of north Jersey residents each year. Comments like, “for a non profit, they sure made a lot of money”, prove my point. As if a non profit should break even each year, and if they run their business well and have “profit” at the end of the year they some how must doing something nefarious.
I’m sure Voigt, Walsh and Hache are all fine people but I suspect they have their minds made up regarding Valley just as much as the folks running who presumably support expansion.
I’ve said it before, the strategy of delay, delay, delay is running out of runway. Just like a kid playing on an iPad saying “just a minute”, it gets old fast. The ultimate decision regarding the expansion seems to be in the hands of a judge now. If we want ANY say whatsoever in the finished product at Valley, I’d be wary of locals politicains playing delay, delay, delay games with the judge.
Like it or not, Valley is not “Ridgewood’s hospital”. For all intents and purposes, Valley is already a regional medical center. And as a provider of medical services to north Jersey, the “greater good” argument is most likely going to win in the end.
Valley should move out of our residential area, like Princeton Medical Center did when the residents protested. Valley is greedy that is all there is too it. It won’t move onto the route 17 in Paramus where it owns land, because they would have to pay taxes.
7:39 – please go and watch the candidates debate from the other night. Well worth viewing. You can then make up your mind if Walsh, Hache and Voigt are completely against Valley. I seem more than willing to compromise but would like to see a greater than 3% reduction in size. I think everyone accepts that Valley will expand but it’s just a question of reasonableness given the 15 acres they have to work within.
7:53.
Not for nothing but what exactly makes the houses around Valley “our” (your) residential area? Valley has been at its current location since the early 1950’s. The area around the Hospital has been “a mixed use neighborhood” for 65 years.
Not that it really matters but how long have you lived in Ridgewood?
7:39- Not speaking for the CRR, but the problem all along has been Valley’ s ” I want what I want ” attitude, and screw the town. Without going into all of your statement ( although I am certainly not one of the “Travell parents,” or BF either, for that matter), I just have to say this. I beg people to take a look at the history behind Morristown, Hackensack, and St.Joe’s in Paterson, to get a better understanding of not what could just happen, BUT DID HAPPEN, in those areas where these”hospitals” became medical centers. And the town’s followed. For the “greater good?” Really ?
The bottom line is if Valley wanted to be even reasonable in their demands (modernize) you or I probably wouldn’t be on this blog.
7:39 – Allow me to retort. While I’m not a “member” of the CRR, and do not speak for them, I am familiar with their views and philosophy. They have sought compromise with Valley for nearly 10 years now and just this year, Valley has come back with a reduction in square footage of around 3%. It’s not the CRR’s job to suggest a suitable square footage increase on Valley’s behalf but I have never heard them advocate for a 0% increase.
Your observation about the CRR being “overwhelmingly Travell parents” is also not true. While any Travell parent should be concerned about an expansion of this magnitude, the CRR’s support comes from all over town. In 2010, the CRR-endorsed candidate Steven Wellinghorst (hope I got his name spelled right) beat the “pro-Valley” candidate Russ Forenza (ditto) by taking 70% of the vote. Mr. Wellinghorst carried 50% of the West Side vote.
Next, Valley is not a regional medical center. Hackensack is and Hackensack has already defeated Valley in the race to be the region’s premier medical center. Why? Because Valley failed to compromise and has failed to modernize in any way in the past 10 years as they dug in to get their way. Even if Valley gets 100% of what they want from today forward they have already lost the war.
Finally, as for “non-profit” Valley should pay taxes to the Village for the services they utilize on their Linwood Ave campus. And please don’t to try to sell the “Valley does pay taxes” like the uninformed Mr. Weitz did the other night. Yes, when Valley buys a residential home or another commercial property in town, they have to pay taxes on it but they still pay zero on their main campus. The assessed value of that campus would generate about $4 million per year or nearly 10% of the Village’s non school budget. Non profit or not, they have the money, they use the services and they should pay up.
739 Appreciate your thoughtful comments, but I respectfully disagree on several points. I am a lifelong resident of the Willard School area and might happily live the rest of my life without going near the Valley Hospital except when I need its excellent services or am visiting nearby friends.
That said, I don’t accept the “greater good” argument you raise. I am gravely concerned with the effect of ten years of construction on our school children at BF and Travell as well as on Valley’s immediate neighbors. And, yes, perhaps one could say I am not being entirely altruistic – – but that’s because I realize if you hurt part of the whole without good cause, you hurt the entirety of the whole.
For example, as property prices decline near Valley due to construction and expansion, so do prices throughout the entire town. And even if the reduction in real estate value is confined to that portion of town, that means the rest of our taxes go up to make up for the shortfall resulting from the reduction in real estate prices. And think of the young couple that has heard great things about Ridgewood and for the first time pulls down Linwood avenue to go see their realtor. At the first traffic light they come to, they will be greeted by a 1,700 car garage. Does that garage foster the image of a town they want to move into, or does it cause one of them to turn to the other and say, “honey, take a right over to Glen and let’s go check out Waldwick and Ho-Ho-Kus?”
And in terms of three “minds being made up,” I think Voigt hit the nail on the head when he noted at the debate that he just met this week with the Valley CEO, its director of communications and its legal counsel. He went alone to discuss the construction and see what compromises might be reached. If you listened to the debate, you heard he did not get much of a response. Hache, too, spoke eloquently regarding his affinity for the Hospital in contrast to his concerns over the expansion. So, I don’t think the they (or Walsh) are closed to the notion of compromise and discussion. In fact, I think the three have demonstrated just the opposite.
I can’t think of a single person who wants to see Valley shut down. But, by the same token, are the goals of the Valley expansion worth sacrificing the standards of living for a whole section of town? I view Voigt, Hache and Walsh as three candidates who are not willing to sacrifice that part of town, or any part of town for that matter, in the pursuit of some undefined goal of “progress.”
That’s why this election really is all about where we live and how, and whether we want to maintain the vibrant vestiges of our Village life or change into something else. Perhaps I am being selfish here, and not thinking of the greater “regional good,” but don’t years and years of tax payments lead all of us to vote for candidates who want to preserve the Village for Villagers?
Thanks,
Kevin Mattessich
my issue with 7:39 is that she presents herself as a reasonable citizen who is for the greater good and a compromise for valley and the residents, but is actually a Valley shill….
CRR supporters it is imperative that we get out the vote on Tuesday May 10. Start talking now with your neighbors to remind them of the municipal elections. Don’t wait until the last minute. Have them put it on their calendars. And make sure you let them know which lines to vote on Voight #1, Coghlan-Walsh #4 and Hache #6.
739 is a he
8:30 a.m I have lived in Ridgewood for 40 plus years. Paul Gould , the former head of CRR said that Princeton Med Center moved away from residential neighborhood when they wanted to expand, Valley should do the same. They are rich enough, but they are selfish pigs, and a crappy hospital. I know from experience of family and friends. Have to go to Hackensack or NYC to get decent care or all but very basic medicine. If I have a medical emergency and I am conscious I will ask to go to Hackensack. Hey, it’s not in a horse and buggy!
Bill H.
Every town is unique. There are myriad reasons for the decline in Morristown, Patterson and Hackensack. To place blame squarely on the hospitals in these towns seems a bit of a stretch. Hackensack was a working class town and a punch line all the way back in 77′ when Billy Joel sang “Who needs a house out in Hackensack – Is that all you get with your money”.
8:34 Everyone is convinced that property values are going to drop. I ‘m sorry but I don’t see this happening. Wall street jobs have been declining for some time due to regulation, automation and off shoring. A good portion of Ridgewood residents work on “Wall Street”. Is it possible, just possible that some of these formerly well paid workers might have to move because of job loss or relocation? Is it also possible that some well paid healthcare professionals might want to live within walking distance to their employer? Dodd/Frank will ultimately have much more to due with collapsing house values then any expansion of Valley. I honestly believe that a modernized hospital could attract new, well paid heath care workers to town to buy some housing that opens up because the above mentioned reality.
I’m sorry, but if people are willing to live near the hospital, which I am and do, what difference does it make if its double the size?. You’re either willing to live near a hospital, or train tracks or route 17, or the CBD etc… or your not! Its like being pregnant, you can’t be a little bit pregnant. I believe it’s unreasonable to imply that a bigger hospital is somehow the death knell for Ridgewood.
8:55 I am indeed a reasonable resident, who just happens to have a view that’s different from yours. That doesn’t make me a “Valley shill”, whatever that’s suppose to mean. There is absolutely ZERO upside for me taking the position I do, trust me. I just think the Valley expansion isn’t the Godzilla menace its being turned into and it just might work out in everyones favor in the long run.
9:17.
Like it or not, if you’re having a heart attack or stroke, (very common among Bergen County’s population) the ambulance driver will take you to the “crappy Valley hospital” because its closer and seconds count in these situations. You can complain all the way there, but that’s wants going to happen.
9:05.
“You may be right, I may be crazy”…But sometimes “I just feel like a woman!”
9:57- I didn’t place blame “squarely on the hospitals.” What I’ m saying is they contributed to the decline in those neighborhoods which, in turn, helped lead to those towns declining even further. Ridgewood does not gain from this in either the short or long run. Princeton got it right, the others did not.
7:39 AM, if you think Valley is already a regional hospital, come back in six years if they get what they want. It’s “regional” in that most people who use it don’t live here, but if they did, it would mean everybody in town was sick.
8:28 AM, where can a video of the LWV debate be watched? Please provide a link. Thank you.
There is a website know as http://www.historicaerials.com which you can place any address into. It will show you aerial photos both current and and as far back as the 1930’s. What Valley Hospital needs to understand is that they built their original facility in a fully developed residential neighborhood. Just look at the photos. The fishbowl was only so big from the start, but the fish kept growing. Their whole plan and history was short sighted.
7:39 is flat out wrong. I’ve been watching the Valley issue for years and the CRR representatives have not once said they didn’t want Valley to build at all. They just want something more appropriate for the site. That’s the part that makes the last decade seem so ridiculous — had Valley cared about and listened to its citizens and village officials and scaled back, a new buildings would already have been built there.
12:53.
“…the CRR representatives have not once said they didn’t want Valley to build at all. They just want something more appropriate for the site”.
As if the members of the CRR have the faintest idea of what it takes to provide quality medical care. Do any of the members of the CRR have any medical background in either direct patient care or hospital management? I doubt it. The CRR folks like to propose completely arbitrary figures for square footage, room count, building height, etc… and say that this is compromise. It’s not.
Unless you’re completely unhinged and think that the Valley management and board of trustees simply want to create some kind of Taj Mahal to their egos, one has assume the changes they are proposing are what they feel is best for the hospital moving into the future and the greater good of the public as a whole. If they we’re truly nothing more then money hungry jerks at a sub standard community hospital, why on earth would they want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on the expansion? Wouldn’t it make a lot more sense to just jack up their own salaries as much as possible with the extra $40 million in profits they throw off each year and milk the place dry?
Audrey Myers might not be the warm and fuzziest, or best public face of the hospital, but if she was really as awful as so many people like to portray her to be, she wouldn’t be pushing for the expansion at all.
1246 – that is an amazing website. if you go to the 1953 picture (presumably right after Valley was built), you can see that almost the entire neighborhood is built as it is today (with the exception of part of Bogert).
1253: it was pointed out by P. McKenna that the Orange Regional Medical Center in Middletown, NY recently updated itself and was rebuilt providing single patient rooms at a level of square footage per room that if applied to Valley, would limit Valley’s expansion to ~750k sq feet.
Per ORMC’s website, “In August 2011, ORMC closed its two outdated hospitals and consolidated services into the first newly built, state-of-the-art hospital built in New York State in over 20 years.”
ORMC was the result of a merger of 2 hospitals. They purchased a new location and built one new complex.
“On October 5, 2002 the combined institutions of Horton Medical Center and Arden Hill Hospital became known as Orange Regional Medical Center.
In 2003, planning began for a new hospital to physically consolidate the two campuses at a new location. On Thursday, May 29, 2003 a press conference was held at Orange Regional Medical Center’s Horton Campus to announce details of the purchase of a site for a new hospital. The 61 acre site is located at 707 East Main Street in the Town of Wallkill. Plans were developed, a Certificate of Need was secured, financing was arranged and ground was broken in March 2008 for the first new free standing community hospital in New York State in twenty years. Opening is anticipated in mid 2011.
In 2005, a committee comprised of board members and community representatives began to guide development and design of the new state-of-the-art facility.
On June 18, 2008, over 600 guests attended an enormous ground-breaking celebration which featured music by the U.S. Military Academy Band. It was a project of colossal scope and significance.
After three years of construction by HBE Corp. from St. Louis, Missouri, the hospital opened on Friday, August 5, 2011 and was the first new, freestanding hospital in New York State in more than 20 years. It involved closing two hospitals, rich in history and importance and combining them at one centrally located property. 234 patients were moved from the old hospitals to the new hospital in just eight hours.
Donor support helped bring the new campus to life, raising $21 million, the largest capital campaign in the hospital’s history. The largest single gift to the campaign, $6 million, came from philanthropists Alan and Sandra Gerry. Today, Orange Regional Medical Center is a lasting reminder of the support, dedication and vision of those who sought to dramatically enhance the health and well being of you and your family.”.
When hospitals like Princeton and ORMC can rebuild in new, more suitable, locations, but the residents of Ridgewood get something rammed down their throat by Valley mgmt, one can see why people may be hostile to Valley. They have not proven what they need just that they want it and that they want it on the small site that they currently have.
Thedimus
1:23 she is an awful person.
1:23- With the rapidly changing technology and landscape in the healthcare field, how can anyone, including them, predict the future ? They may not want a “Taj Mahal” that they can have an easy commute to in Ridgewood (Audrey and husband to name two),but having their workplace right in their “backyard” is certainly the next best thing. In short, you don’t need any kind of advanced degree to know this thing, as proposed, does not belong in any residential neighborhood.
1:23-One other thing. At 2mil plus perks a year, plus whatever hubby makes, and they could walk to work if they had to, you wonder why she wants this expansion ? Wouldn’t we all like that ! I don’t think she is “awful,” maybe just a little greedy. Sort of like the rest of them. And that’s o.k., after all this is America. What I don’ t like is when it comes, at least in this case, at the expense (eventually) of an entire town.
Thed, with all of the name calling and references to “new comers” over the past few months and years, what was Valley in 1953? FACT: Ridgewood was here a long time before Valley. They should pay a little more respect to their “sponsor”.
Construction took 20 years….not surprised….
Bigger does not mean better!