the staff of The Ridgewood Blog
Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Planning Board and Village Council members are set to approve changes to current land use ordinances that would permit construction of a 120-bed, multi-story assisted living facility on the east side of North Maple Ave., between Franklin Ave. and Marshall St. The property is currently the site of multiple medical/professional office buildings, all of which would be demolished to facilitate construction of the planned facility.
It is believed the Kensington Senior Living Organization of White Plains, NY had approached Village officials with conceptual plans for developing the noted property as an assisted living facility. Kensington has made at least two previous attempts to open a long-term health care facility in Ridgewood; once on North Walnut St. (a massive public parking garage was included in those plans) and another on South Broad St. (heavily opposed by residents of the area). Both attempts were completely unsuccessful.
Residents of Franklin Avenue and Marshall St. should be aware that the Village plans to prohibit any vehicular access to the facility from North Maple Ave. All vehicular traffic will be directed to entrances/exits on Franklin Ave. and Marshall St.
The Ridgewood Blog will keep its readers updated on this project as more information becomes available. http://eepurl.com/bgt6T #RidgewoodBlog #News #LocalNews #StateNews #NationalNews #Subscribe #StayInformed #Community
Nice. They introduce the zoning changes in the summer when few residents are in town, and by the fall once people realize what is going on, your council will be holding the final vote to allow massive changes the infrastructure can’t handle. By then it’s too late to do anything about it. I think I have seen this play before. New faces, same playbook, accept this time not one of them will even question this project. Full steam ahead! Elections have consequences.
Actually, the ordinance will be introduced in July and the public hearing will be held in August. done completely under the cover of summer vacations. How nice!
What infrastructure issues? Water, sewer, power, fire, parking, police? They are all in place there now. I don’t see it being anything but an upgrade. We Boomers need a place to reside, too.
Have a little sympathy.
These posters who don’t work, still live with their parents, and don’t pay taxes are frightened.
They’re about to get jolted out of their cushy lifestyle when Daddy and Mommy downsize the big house for the retirement community.
Thumbs down?
Waaaaah.
We don’t want to leave our Daddy and Mommy’s house.
Even though we’re 50 years old, we like it here.
Waaaah.
Boomers are not gonna be able to afford what this is going to cost
Yes, it’s called Hell.
Yes. Thank you.
this is clownish. what infra are you talking about??? u afraid seniors will invade our school? call the cops too much? pull the fire alarm?
accept this time? Why? I don’t. Or do you mean except?
I think the zoning laws in Ridgewood are becoming way too lenient when it comes to building huge living spaces. These apartment buildings, and now assisted living are against everything I believed Ridgewood would ever allow. After nearly 30 years, I will plan to relocate if this is approved & this continues.
They are going to change the zoning in order to accommodate this
They always do.
There is a very old apartment building right across the street that is likely taller than what is proposed.
I see pedestrians trying to cross there at most once a week, unlike the flood of people crossing from the parking lot on Ridgewood Ave to Foxes and/or Tatas.
All of this potential must be from people getting off the blog and going to visit the residents of this new facility…
People don’t cross here BECAUSE it’s too dangerous. This intersection has been called out for years for pedestrian safety BUT we’ve always been told “it’s a county road, nothing we can do about it “
Follow the money – Kensington was a heavy donor to Paul Vagianos – (may be through indirect donations as they have been eyeing this for a while, so they may not have put their own name on donations).
At what cost? How much staffing is going to be required to be added to the fire department to cover the hundred additional ems calls?
That is one of most unsafe intersections in the downtown area. One block from the high school and filled with pedestrians/students who are constantly crossing through the middle of the intersection due to one poorly painted and other non-existent, safe crosswalks. Because it will be impossible to have a driveway for the new facility onto Maple Ave their solution is to use Franklin and Marshall. These two streets are narrow and already congested at rush hour and especially during school pickup and drop off. There is absolutely no way that this intersection can handle a facility of this size and the traffic it will bring. The safety of pedestrians is already an issue there and adding staff members who will want to walk into town for coffee/lunch will just compound the problems. There has to be a better location for this business.
Village of Ridgewood? It’s not a village
It’s a village of the rich and stupid
I like that one.
We’re rich and stupid
https://www.njmls.com/listings/index.cfm?action=dsp.info&mlsnum=25020407&openhouse=true&dayssince=15&countysearch=false
Read the description…. even the realtor knows that the council is in on the rezoning BEFORE a vote has even taken place.
The old Village Ford dealer on Maple Avenue is next you just wait and see
It should be designed for access via Maple only.
They should prohibit left hand turns entering the parking lot from Marshall and right hand turns entering the parking lot from Franklin. In addition, prohibit right hand turns out of the parking lot onto Marshall and left hand turn out of the parking lot onto Franklin.
Excellent recommendation!
The real point is that these 2 side streets can not handle the volume of traffic needed to run a facility of this size. They are both narrow streets, not suitable for multiple trucks bringing daily deliveries of medical supplies, food service items etc. It is difficult to navigate the curve at Marshall when a few residents have their cars parked in the street, I can not see how a large delivery truck could manage that.
More cars, more traffic, more reasons to avoid Downtown and take my money elsewhere.
Lots of people use these streets as a short cut to bypass the main roads. They are also heavily used as parking for sports events. Few follow the speed limit. Dangerous area.
Has anyone seen the plans for this? Do they include enough off-street parking for the staff? How about the residents who have at least one car per unit? Look at the other assisted living sites around the area — The Cupola for instance — to see the massive amount required. Way more than a conventional apartment building
True, actually.
Miki Sherrill is going to be the next governor.
Keith Kazmark who is the village manager is her pal and will get away from anything once she’s the governor.
He was appointed by Paul Vagianos as village manager to do his dirty business because of his political connections. Keith Kazmark worked as Paul’s campaign manager before being appointed to the village manager position.
Follow the money that Kensington paid to Paul’s campaign!!!
These are among the most abused streets in the Village and this will only make worse unless architected to use Maple.
It could have stayed a nice Village fixing the right things and prioritizing the projects that would benefit the most amount of residents, but you have a council who have been nothing short of sneaky Mrs and who are laser focused on creating a sports complex on a historic property next to a highway, then this is what you get. So the kind of municipal leaders we are stuck with unfortunately are the ones who are funded and follow along with the instructions by their backers, the sports organizations as well as the developers. I think it is safe to say that our Mayor will happily be wined, dined and pocketbook lined. He is a real estate owner in the central business district too so what does that tell you? The rest of the dopes go along with his plans but kid you not, he is the puppet master behind everything that is happening in this village…and it ain’t good.
What’s his connection to Healthbarn and building them that huge pavilion when Ridgewood needs so much more before this luxury for a business. There has to be a reason for such grandiose favors to one business?
you’ve got to follow the money trail.
Having lived in Ridgewood years ago, I’m simply stunned by this news. Worked in an office at #65 and attended the Berkeley School at #75. Marshall Street is residential and too narrow to accommodate the necessary support vehicles. An assisted living facility is located near my current job, and the police/fire/EMS are frequently called there. Also, the last time I drove through town, I was shocked at the growth, especially the high buildings on Broad Street. That’s fine for a city like Hackensack but not for a village like Ridgewood. Those who think it’s progress should be ashamed.
The issue is not the need for this. As an aging senior, I agree we need more of these facilities, but this location will be a logistical and safety nightmare. Access is to be only via Franklin Ave. They will have at least 150 employees – administrative, pt, nurses, orderlies all coming on a residential road that already sometimes backs up to the N. Irving intersection. During high school drop off & pick up, it will be even worse, and a safety issue for students and other pedestrians. Just drive around in the area at 7:45am on a school day and you’ll see! The village council has put off fulfilling the Mount Laurel doctrine since 1975 and now they’re scurrying to get those filled. Not having that filled opens the town to legal challenges, including “builder’s remedy” lawsuits, which allow developers to bypass local zoning laws to build affordable housing projects. This should’ve been taken care of many years ago. Too bad they didn’t consider the town garage location.
Let’s remember severe floods on Marshall and Franklin Ave. The proposed access roads to the proposed assisted living facility will shut down. We are flooding more and more. Remember January 2024 we had a flood. The residents who need special care will not be able to leave the building or be helped. It just doesn’t work at this location.
I also don’t understand the proposing of 120 units verses the facility in White Plains NY which is 120 units. The facility in NY also has an adjacent additional parking structure and is near the hospital. They have access of their Maple Ave and only use the side street for deliveries. Marshall and Franklin are already busy and narrow old residential size streets. This location won’t handle the extra traffic of administrator and support staff and deliveries. We need to keep current with our own floodplain management. We have to work on stabilizing the HoHoKus Brook by the bridges and areas of erosion. We have to make sure our roads are structurally sound. We also have a water challenge. The facility in White Plains, NY is in a mostly commercial area. The town is twice as big as the Village of Ridgewood, NJ.
Sorry, I meant the Kensington facility in White Plains NY has 100 units. They have access off their main road which is also called Maple Ave. The design is urban with very little green space for the residents of the assisted living facility. It means many people will be walking around Maple Ave. It is already very hard to cross Maple Ave. The biggest worry to me is the people who need assistance will be stuck during floods. Just like the residents are stuck during our many floods in our floodplains. We need to remember the floods and know the future holds more floods.
Let’s remember severe floods on Marshall and Franklin Ave. The proposed access roads to the proposed assisted living facility will shut down. We are flooding more and more. Remember January 2024 we had a flood. The residents who need special care will not be able to leave the building or be helped. It just doesn’t work at this location.
I also don’t understand the proposing of 120 units verses the facility in White Plains NY which is 100 units. The facility in NY also has an adjacent additional parking structure and is near the hospital. They have access off their Maple Ave and only use the side street for deliveries. Marshall and Franklin are already busy and narrow old residential size streets. This location won’t handle the extra traffic of administrator and support staff and deliveries. We need to keep current with our own floodplain management. We have to work on stabilizing the HoHoKus Brook by the bridges and areas of erosion. We have to make sure our roads are structurally sound. We don’t have a clear evacuation plan in our flooding residential areas. We also have a water challenge. The facility in White Plains, NY is in a mostly commercial area. The town is twice as big as the Village of Ridgewood, NJ. I don’t think the downtown Village of Ridgewood NJ can handle anymore traffic. What about building by Valley Hospital? Maybe they have extra space.
wait to you hear what my friend from Boston brings up at the meeting!