Ridgewood NJ, beautiful weather and great sales drew big crowds for the opening of the Ridgewood Spring Sidewalk Sale .
The sale goes from Thursday May 12th to Saturday, May 14, 2016 ,from 10am to 6pm .
Participating stores:
Savvy chic Consignment – Cottage Ave.
Shopettes – Chestnut St.
Suite 201 – S. Walnut St.
Just Our Shoes/Mepisto – N. Walnut
S. Broad St.
B. Witching & Bath
Alba
E. Ridgewood Ave.
Shoe – Inn
Shelly Glam
Oasis
Ridgewood Eyewear
California Closet
Just our Shoes
Hot Jewelry Box
Beauty Plus
Duxiana
Studio 201
Gardnier & Co.
Loft 41
Hocus Pocus
Pink Bungalow
P. Smith
Femmebot
Kate Spade
Ridgewood Bootery
Gigi’s
Anik Ridgewood
Racefaster
Red Velvet Lux
Eat your Spinach
Alex And ANi
Victor’s
Learning Express
Running Company
GAP
Fox’s
Bookends
Double Take Consignment
Gypsy Warrior
The Green Olive Branch
Pangea
Lucky Brand
Panico Salon
ConnectOne Bank
SALES SALES SALES SALES SALES SALES SALES
Ridgewood NJ, As per Village Code 190-122 H 6: Election signs. Temporary signs for elective office shall be permitted in nonresidential zones. Such signs shall be removed no later than 10 days after the date of the election to which they pertain. In the case of a primary election, the signs of all candidates who fail to remain as candidates in the ensuing general election shall be removed no later than 10 days after the date of the primary election. Such signs may be freestanding or attached to a building wall
Ridgewood NJ , picked this up off of the It takes a Village Facebook page in a post by Marty Smith, In a post to Ann Loving today, Gwenn Hauck wrote “$50,000 of Independent Studies approved by all five council members confirmed (confidently) that the multi-family housing will significantly augment our tax base and will help our schools decreasing enrollment. Class sizes are diminishing so much that teachers are actually being laid off causing (ironically) higher class sizes!”
I thought the proponents of higher density housing were saying don’t worry, the apartments won’t be attracting a lot of new students. Now it seems they will be, and that the additional enrollments are what we need. Did I miss something? Dare we say vote of Hache, Walsh and Voigt .Poles are open till 8pm!
In the name of promoting PROGRESS for Ridgewood, a huge amount of very slanted public relations has been spread about the Hudson Street garage project.Much of it has been in the form of “facts” that are not relevant.They are used only to obscure the real issues.
Here are 10 simple, TRUTHFUL facts that you should consider in forming your opinion.
1. 3236 voters who voted “yes” on the non-binding referendum never saw a drawing that placed the original design in context prior to the vote. We were told to “vote now for funding, and we can work together for a design later”. But plans had already been drawn up in October AND were withheld from the public until December.
2. BEFORE A FINAL DESIGN WAS PICKED, Our Village Manager said $295,000.00 was spent for “full site civil, landscape, utility, structural, plumbing, mechanical, electrical & fire” documents. They then had to issue a change order for $120,000.00 for the redesign because of this.
3. When the original design was finally illustrated in context, and released to the public, throngs of people came to a Village Council meeting and spoke out against the design, which jutted out into Hudson St. by 12 feet.
4. Per our Village Manager, “That garage could have ZERO CARS IN IT and it (the parking utility) can cover it.” She also recently confirmed we have plenty of empty parking spaces in the Cottage Place and Walnut St parking lots. According to her, we don’t even need to consider leasing the Zabriskie lot behind the movie theatre, and that would add 80 spaces immediately.
5. The Archdiocese of Newark, on behalf of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, has been consistent in asking that the garage be reduced one level. They were told the redesign would fit on the footprint and be taken down a level. It has only been lowered 30 inches, and does not fit on the footprint.
6. None of the buildings cited as references by “Progress Ridgewood” are 271 feet long. The three tallest buildings nearby all have front or side set backs of over 50 feet. Unlike all of the other “comparable buildings” in town, none of them jut out into the street by 5 feet.
7. The claim that the Village will spend $10 million to acquire 21 incremental spots if Design D is lowered one level, isn’t just bad math-it is an outright lie. The Village doesn’t own the Brogan or the Ken Smith sites, and the suggested garage will net the Village 187 parking spots.The truth about the garage size is that it needs to be a monstrosity in order to accommodate the parking needed for the high-density housing projects.
8. Resolution No. 16-110 is the resolution that was passed by the Village Council on April 27th after the petition was certified. It clearly states at bottom of page 2 that “the Village desires to submit the Ordinance(#3521) to the electorate at a special election to be held on June 21,2016 pursuant to the provisions of the Faulkner Act or, in the alternative, pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:49-27.” THAT IS THE HOME RULE ACT STATUTE. That language was included, according to Bond Counsel, “to protect the village from any litigation” – which means they know petitioners are correct.
9. $40-45,000.00 of municipal funds will be spent for a special election.The Village Council has every right call for one, under both Faulkner and Home Rule. That is a choice that the Council alone made, and for which the Council alone will be held accountable. Their inclusion of the Home Rule Act statute in Resolution 16-110 makes this abundantly clear.THEY ARE CHOOSING TO SPEND THE MONEY. NO ONE IS MAKING THEM.
10. JEFF VOIGT, BERNADETTE COGHLAN-WALSH AND RAMON HACHE refused to sign the pledge the other three candidates signed,which was created and put forth to the candidates by overzealous developers, landlords, business owners & investors.Bernadette Coghlan-Walsh, Jeffrey Voigt, Ramon Hache
HONESTY – INTEGRITY – TRUST A PLEDGE TO WORK FOR THE RESIDENTS OF RIDGEWOOD
Serendipity Labs Opens In Ridgewood / Towns First Premium Coworking Space
May 7,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood’s first coworking location at 45 N. Broad Street opened today in the iconic, totally renovated Lincoln building across from the Ridgewood train station. The three-story, 8,500-square foot space provides a vibrant coworking area, dedicated offices and team rooms. Members will also have access to an upscale lounge, ideation studio, work bar, event venue space and a café. The entire Lincoln building has been upgraded with a new lobby, modern elevator, new windows and HVAC systems.
Independent professionals, entrepreneurs, remote and mobile workers working in and around Ridgewood will now have a premium workplace and meeting venue offering a level of hospitality that rivals boutique hotels.
Serendipity Labs is offering a free day pass to anyone that is interested in coming to check it out. Here’s the link: https://woobox.com/k9ma6o
Serendipity Labs in Ridgewood will produce a full schedule of daytime and evening seminars and networking events designed for entrepreneurs, mobile workers and corporate members.
It has been a while since this group has communicated – I hope everyone is doing well. I received your email below and wanted to respond.
I respect Roberta. I think she has done a great job overall managing this Village. It’s not an easy job by any means. I personally know Roberta…she is a good neighbor and I like to consider her as a friend. She is smart, quick, effective – I respect her and admire her and from what I have heard she has done a better job of executing than previous VMs. However, I was shocked to see the full page ad in the news. I was even more shocked when I read your email and was targeted with a mass email chain from someone in my neighborhood (how she got my personal email is quite a mystery). I guess I am confused…why are we making this election about her or any village staff? Shouldn’t the election be about the issues at hand – high density housing, doubling the size of Valley hospital in the middle of a residential area? When did we turn this election into village hall staffing? You work for a corporation so you know very well that a new boss is entitled to evaluate the existing talent pool. So why is this even a concern? No company will hesitate to bring in the right boss for fear of cleaning up the existing talent pool. We shouldn’t either.
We have to remember, this election isn’t about any Village Hall staff. It’s about whether we trust the people we elect to represent the town fairly and responsibly. It’s about where they stand on the issues that we each find important to our families, to our property values, to our future, to our way of life.
It saddens me that you are trying to turn this campaign around and divert the attention away from the true issues. Not to mention make up deceitful lies. Not one candidate has made any statement about Roberta and her role. It’s simply not part of this election, nor should it be. It’s a non issue. It saddens me that we are not able to campaign with dignity and respect for one another. I hope that changes.
Respectfully,
Bonita Shimpfky
———- Forwarded message ———
From: Paul Aronsohn <[email protected]>
Date: Fri, May 6, 2016, 9:04 PM
Subject: Vote for Brooks, Weitz and Willett
To: <[email protected]>
Dear Neighbor,
Last week, I endorsed council candidates Rich Brooks, Evan Weitz and Janice Willett in a letter-to-the-editor, noting that they have solid experience, uncompromising integrity/ethics and a proven commitment to Ridgewood. I also noted that they are right on issues important to me, such as the budget, the parking deck, the special needs community and the Village Manager.
This week, several additional community leaders – past and present – have also endorsed Rich, Evan and Janice – community leaders who have helped shape Ridgewood’s traditions, while moving Ridgewood forward. And importantly, a group of residents took out a full-page ad in the Ridgewood News today, noting that “only 3 candidates are committed to keeping Roberta Sonenfeld as Village Manager – Rich Brooks, Evan Weitz and Janice Willett.”
Please see the attached list of endorsements and the full-page ad.
Needless to say, many of us believe that this year’s election is especially important, and as explained by the Ridgewood News Editorial Board, every vote matters. Remember, in 2012, there was a difference of only 15 votes between the 3rd and 4th placed candidates.
If you have any questions, about this year’s election, please feel free to email me. If you want to learn more about Rich, Evan and Janice — and their positive, inclusive vision for Ridgewood — please visit their website – www.Ridgewood2020.com.
Thank you for your consideration. Thank you for voting on Tuesday.
Ridgewood NJ, The Mayor and the Village Manager have persistently and knowingly mischaracterized the Village Council’s decision to call a $ 40-45k special election as being required by the terms of the petition.
The special election is NOT required and the Mayor, the Village Manager, The Village Council and now the taxpayers know it.
The clear and compelling evidence of this is that the language of the special election Resolution #16-110 which was passed by the Village Council on April 27 th incorporates the very statute (NJSA 40-49- 27 otherwise known as the Home Rule Act) that specifically provides the option of waiting until the next General Election in November,or if the municipality desires it may call a special election.
This statute was included in the Resolution, according to Matt Jessup, bond attorney for the council since Matt Rogers recused himself (little known fact), “to protect the Council from any litigation.” That says it all right there. Matt Rogers recused himself because he had done some pro bono work for the church, & felt that if he counseled on the petition, it could be perceived as a conflict of interest.
The Mayor, the Village Manager and the rest of the Mayor’s customary voting bloc desire a special election because:
1) It creates a diversion from the fact that to date they have wasted $ 415,000 on the design process. They were so arrogantly confident that they could shove the original Plan A and its looming 12 Foot encroachment into Hudson Street through the Council, that they ordered $295,000.00 worth of construction documents BEFORE THE DESIGN WAS SELECTED. They subsequently issued a $120,000.00 change order to try again and we are not done yet
2) They bootstrap a false claim that the petitioners don’t support building a Hudson Street garage at all and are anti -everything. This is false and can be verified as such by any number of Council Meeting recordings and correspondence
3) They can falsely claim that the petitioners are causing the Village to incur the roughly $ 40-45k in expenses, thus smearing the petitioners, when in fact, the Council is deciding to call a special election
4) It puts the election on the calendar when they will be still be using the bully pulpit to misinform the public
5) It fits with their overall victim narrative. They are claiming to hostage to the demands of the petitioners when it’s clearly the Village that is being held hostage to the agenda of the other way around. All the petitioners want is either a more reasonable garage or the residents to make an informed decision Mayor, please stop making stuff up. It hurts the Village you claim to Love
Ridgewood NJ, Reader challenges Ridgewood blog on “Free Market principles “claiming we are picking the candidates in favor of more regulation against “free market developers and development”.
“Ironic that “Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View” is in favor of a government that promises to be more restrictive than the alternative, but in this case, Jamsie, I agree with you 100%.
I hope you are learning the flaws in your Randian world view, specifically, left to their devices, the “job creators” would starve themselves out of existence. In the case of Ridgewood: motivated by short term benefit, the Job Creators (i.e. CBD restaurant owners and landlords) would overdevelop the CBD and surrounding areas to the detriment of our community, schools and way of life. In the long term, the quality of the schools would decline even more, the quaintness of the village would erode, property values would drop, and before you know it, you live in a version of Caldwell or whatever.
The judicious application of regulation is a good thing.”
Got to laugh on this one but the reader is a bit confused ;
The Free Market is ,”A system of economics that minimizes government intervention and maximizes the role of the market. According tothe theory of the free market, rational economic actors acting in their own self interest deal with information and price goods and services the most efficiently. Government regulations, trade barriers, and labor laws are generally thought to distort the market. Proponents of the free market argue that it provides the most opportunities for both consumers and producers by creating more jobs and allowing competition to decide what businesses are successful. ”
What we have in Ridgewood and New Jersey as well as on a National level is called by many Crony capitalism or Cronyism , “Crony capitalism is a description of capitalist society as being based on the close relationships between businessmen and the state. Instead of success being determined by a free market and the rule of law, the success of a business is dependent on the favoritism that is shown to it by the ruling government in the form of tax breaks, government grants and other incentives.”
Developers using the Village Council forcing tax payers to pick up the tab for a parking garage that clearly benefits certain businesses ie those that support the Mayor and his consorts is not in any way shape or form “Free Market Capitalism” but clearly a local example and the very definition of “Cronyism”. The negative issues associated with over development in the Village are all a direct or indirect cause be they foreseen and unforeseen consequences of government intervention ie.. 3066 , COAH, open space , and so on . These tax breaks, government grants and other incentives are all put in place to aid developers and to garner political contributions .
Crony capitalism is the marriage of the state and private special interests. Some people have called it corporatism, mercantilism, fascism, or even Communism.
I have known Tony for many years and am a long time Ridgewood resident, am a member of the Guild from the beginning and I do NOT want Garage D, however, let’s put things into perspective. I believe that Tony was wrong to say it fits on the lot, but as a long time businessman, who by the way, has revitalized this town with the Guild when the Chamber of Commerce refused to do anything to make Ridgewood a destination, and who has done many generous things for the town, including Habitat for Humanity and having many charity events at his store, and has spent countless unpaid hours, to promote events that bring people in and keep businesses open, he has the right to want this garage built. When you think of the fact that he is doing this, NOT for political gain or financial gain like some promoters, except to keep his business going, I’m sorry but I can’t fault him for that. He is also a resident right in town and a parishioner of OLMC, and I just think of all the years he has had a business, he knows that he may not thrive unless we get some kind of parking. I think we must remember that we need to keep unique businesses in Ridgewood, instead of just banks and restaurants and chain stores. When I moved here nearly 28 years ago, there were so many wonderful and unique stores that are now gone and even now, there have been too many stores that open for a short time that can not sustain the rents and keep their businesses going and a big part of that is parking. What we also have to remember is that Tony didn’t start this mess, it was began because our Village Council members were not transparent about their plans with the garage and the developments. If they had been, we would’ve already begun building a garage that the majority of Ridgewood would be thrilled with, instead they made a mess of things, that many people, including myself, are trying to rectify. So let’s put the blame where it belongs. Just remember there are two sides to every story and lets act accordingly before we start throwing out conspiracy theories.
Ridgewood NJ, Tony Damiano is the owner of Mango Jam , When the train station was renovated a lot of parking spots were taken away and because of his business’ location it is difficult to park near his business.Tony Damiano is also the President of the Ridgewood Guild .
We can understand how someone with a business interest in the central business district would support a garage but we question all the significant conflicts of interests on the HPC ,Historical Preservation Commission.
Tony was recently appointed a member of HPC. There was a vote at HPC for design D. He could not attend and send a letter saying since the new design ‘fits the lot’ he was voting for it. Another member who owns a building right next to the garage voted for this design. When this vote was later questioned, they just said it was a ‘poll’ not a ‘vote’. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOCBptQJMcs
Published on Mar 10, 2016 this is all the footage Dana Glazer recorded at the Historical Preservation Meeting in Ridgewood. This is typical of how public meetings are currently in our town. We look forward to a time when ‘civility’ is more than just a political catchphrase and commissions like this do more than just green stamp massively inappropriate changes to our village.
Historic Preservation Commission Members: Vincent N. Parrillo – Chairman Joe Suplicki – Vice Chairman Lynne Brady Barbara Ferrante Tess Giuliani James Schimmel Tony Damiano Isabella Altano – Alt
Ridgewood NJ, Progress Ridgewood? Ridgewood 2020? The Truth About Ridgewood Facebook page moderated by Ron Simoncini who was previously linked to a Hoboken, Hudson County mess with some dubious mail-in ballots. Google away using search terms Simoncini, Hoboken, mail in ballots, etcetera. Isn’t Mr. Simoncini the big time supporter behind the Weitz, Willet, Brooks ticket? Pay attention Ridgewood. Link here to one article but there’s more if you care to dig for The Truth. By the way Ridgewood had over 450 votes by mail for garage referendum in Nov. hmmm..
https://hudsonreporter.com/view/full_story/24627525/article-Hoboken-s-legacy-of-vote-by-mail-schemes–Rent-control-referendum-results-stand–and-shed-light-on-dubious-election-pastime–?instance=latest_story
Ridgewood NJ, The progress Ridgewood group has an ad in the paper saying those are the 3 that will be at the candidates forum at Park West Loft on May 2nd.
The Progress Ridgewood group is clearly the developer sponsored group .You can only go, if you signed the pledge, so i guess that means they signed it. Nice to know that 3 of the candidates have already decided to be exclusionary, and not listen to others that may have a different opinion then them.
At the candidates debate, all 6 candidates said the current council has been too divisive. Some of the language from the 3 that signed the pledge said “all groups need to be included and involved”, “the council works for everybody. Everybody needs to be informed”, “lead by example”, “public discourse needs to be lifter to a higher level”, “inclusiveness, solutions, and a united approach to figuring out where we’re going, and how to get there”.
Nice to know that the 3 have already shown us that their words don’t mean much, since their actions have proven to be the opposite.
If you want your village government to be exclusionary, then you know who to vote for, Weitz Willet and Brooks.
If you want your village government to be individually thinking people, with varying backgrounds, who are willing to discuss the issues with anyone, you need to vote for Voigt, Hache and Walsh.
Anyone who would like to challenge Weitz, Willett and Brooks on any or all issues should make themselves known at Park West Tavern tonight, 7PM. There is a Happy Hour sponsored by Progress Ridgewood. Maybe you’ll get a free beer and a handful of nachos for your troubles.
Anyway, here are the bullet points that came with the invite:
Each of these experts can bring financial, legal and communication skills to Ridgewood’s Village Council.
They will be the most thoughtful stewards of your tax dollars.
They can successfully negotiate necessary compromises.
They are constructive, not de-constructive.
They epitomize character.
Weitz Willet and Brooks signed the Paul Vaggianos pledge.Bernie Jeff and Ramon refused, that says it all .
A reader says, “Personally, I would not lower myself to drinking their free beer. It would make me feel like Louie at that last scene of Casablanca where he looks down and sees that he has been drinking Vichy water and he tosses it out in disgust.
Tonight’s event was the set up they tried – – the “debate” where you had to pledge allegiance to the developers – – let it be poorly attended. they are trying to whitewash the fact these candidates are for massive overbuilding in our downtown. Their party line at the public debate was “call me an optimist, I am sure the developers will do just fine” and “bring on those additional school children to our overcrowded schools.”
Reader says ,Without the blog there is political retribution. Several residents have been TARGETED with tickets, summonses, investigations, and more because they spoke out at meetings or on facebook. On the blog you can speak your piece without fear of retaliation from Aronsohn-Pucciarelli-Hauck-Sonenfeld. Of course they try like hell to guess who the anonymous posters are, but they are never sure. And of course the four of them post often, and we can always identify them.
Since so many have felt the sting of political retribution perhaps its time to share the pain ?
Reader says , “I’m boycotting our central business district over these stupid signs and the chamber of commerce.village is a mess and I refuse to support them any longer”
Since so many have been targeted ,some think its time to target back by Boycotting “Its Greek to Me” . While some readers think “Boycotting Its Greek to Me won’t do anyone any good. It won’t change the minds of people, it won’t stop Paul from living his everyday life. That is beyond childish. If you want to speak up and say something go to the village hall meetings, ask questions, get involved. And PLEASE make your OWN decisions. Stop listening to articles that don’t have the best interest for the reader nor the actual people involved.”
while others say, ” Boycotting the Greek place is easy for the simple reason that the food is certainly nothing to write home about, As for the rest of the CBD, more than 50% of the time it looks like it’s already being boycotted, so you probably won’t even see much of a difference if people did. But moving a few homeless folks into the garage should help with that issue.
Wake up, Ridgewood ! These clowns, just like those at Valley, are nothing more than opportunists trying to capitalize on fulfilling their business fantasies at the expense of an entire town. The very least one could do is get out there and vote against people who are going out of their way to wreck the great things Ridgewood has going for it.”
Others say “No boycotting just don’t go, period. Let the council know that you are not going to spend your money in a town where your concerns are not being addressed.The out of town people will have to subsidize the CBD.
No signs, no formal making a scene. Just stop going. And let the council know through e-mails why and how you feel.
Money always talks.”
Location: Downtown Ridgewood, Various Stores and Restaurants
Save the dates!
Always have fun and SAVE MONEY during Ridgewood Sale Days!
The Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce invites you to enjoy three days of experiencing Ridgewood with excellent shopping, discounts and selections galore. Stop by for lunch or dinner at one of Ridgewood’s finest restaurants.
For more details, please call us at 201-445-2600 or email [email protected]
Ridgewood NJ , A special election will be held in June on the size of a proposed multi-level parking garage in Ridgewood on Hudson street. The June 21 was chosen because it falls within a date range officials were required to hold a special election.
Saurabh Dani is a Village resident who worked on the “its2Big ” petition and he used the Facebook group “it takes a Villlage to answer some questions about the garage referendum .
Saurabh Dani ,”The issue of 4 story vs 5 story will be decided by the residents. I have no idea why some candidates are claiming that they will be able to over turn that vote. Whatever is the outcome of that vote, the candidates should pledge to support that outcome, instead of signing the pledge for a specific plan.”
Dani goes on ,”My guess – some of them want to distract the residents from real issues – i.e. Valley, conflict of interest, High density housing, and lack of comprehensive master plan.”
Saurabh Dani , “the council had 20 days to act from yesterday (April 27th), as per their bond attorney. They could have easily waited until May 11th to make a decision. Depending on the outcome of the election on May 10th, they could have decided if a special election is really needed. They just wanted to cause a distraction and make a big deal out of special election, so they went ahead on the day of certification to call for a special election on June 21. The mayor had press release ready to circulate when he came for the meeting, while the village clerk had not even announced the results of the certification.”
