June 24,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Monday, June 26th may be residents last chance to weigh in on the five story, 66 unit, multi-retail store complex coming to Franklin and Broad from local developer John Saraceno. The village planning board will meet at 7pm Monday night to hear both of Saraceno’s high-density applications. One at the corner of East Ridgewood and Maple the other at the NJT underpass on Franklin and Broad.
This high-density housing project sets off a chain reaction of public safety problems in Ridgewood. Between Saraceno’s 60+ families plus new stores on Franklin and the 40+ families moving in yards away at the new Chestnut street high-density development, the Franklin Ave corridor will likely be overwhelmed with hundreds upon hundreds of more cars and pedestrians creating an even bigger threat to public safety on an already dangerous road. The Franklin ave corridor has a long history of accidents and pedestrians struck by cars and busses. New traffic signals could cost millions that would be paid for by Ridgewood property tax hikes.
High-density development downtown is allowed thanks to controversial laws championed by Ridgewood resident Saraceno and then-mayor Paul Aronsohn in the face of overwhelming public opposition.
