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Village of Ridgewood and Neighboring Towns on Flood Watch

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file photo by Boyd Loving

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Village Manager Keith Kazmark stated and an email, “Three to five inches of rain are possible this afternoon into Wednesday morning, with much of the rain falling in a three-to-six-hour period, according to the National Weather Service. ”

Continue reading Village of Ridgewood and Neighboring Towns on Flood Watch

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Restoration of Maple Field in Ridgewood Begins

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photos courtesy of Village Manager Keith Kazmark

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, January flooding on top of repeated flooding has left Ridgewood athletic fields in terrible shape. LandTek has commenced the restoration of Maple Field, following two storms and flooding incidents in December and January. The project was postponed until the winter thaw, with the aim of completing it in time for play by mid-March to accommodate our youth athletes. Additionally, preparations for the restoration of Veteran’s Field and overall field maintenance will begin shortly.

Continue reading Restoration of Maple Field in Ridgewood Begins

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Ridgewood High School Stadium And Stevens Field Are A Go , Maple Field Making Progress

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file photo

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, according to the Ridgewood Village Manager Keith Kazmark the cleanup and restoration of Maple Field are now underway, although there was a slight delay due to weather conditions. Nevertheless, there is optimism that the field will be ready for our children to play on by the week’s end. Gratitude is extended to the dedicated efforts of our Parks & Recreation staff, who have been diligently working in the aftermath of the recent flooding to ensure the community’s enjoyment of the field once again.

Continue reading Ridgewood High School Stadium And Stevens Field Are A Go , Maple Field Making Progress

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Ridgewood: Putting a Turf Field in a Flood Zone Can Exacerbate flooding in Several Ways

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the Maple turf field vendor is reportedly costing the Village $52,000 to clean up Maple field . Putting a turf field in a flood zone can exacerbate flooding in several ways:

Continue reading Ridgewood: Putting a Turf Field in a Flood Zone Can Exacerbate flooding in Several Ways

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FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING

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file photo by Boyd Loving

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the national Weather Service has issued a FLASH FLOOD WATCH. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH
FRIDAY MORNING.

Continue reading FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING

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No progress made on reopening of Maple Field – Village of Ridgewood lags way behind BOE on clean-up efforts

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photo by Boyd Loving

the staff of The Ridgewood Blog

Ridgewood NJ, cost estimates to clean-up the flood damaged artificial turf at Maple Field (owned by the Village of Ridgewood) have not yet been submitted to the Village Council for review and approval.  It is believed Village Council members will discuss this issue during their scheduled October 6 Public Work Session, and formally approve clean-up expenses at their scheduled October 13 Public Meeting.

Continue reading No progress made on reopening of Maple Field – Village of Ridgewood lags way behind BOE on clean-up efforts

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Reader say , forget the lights , clean the porta potty and pick up the litter at Maple field

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Reader says , “How about putting in more portable toilets. Because one is not enough. And that’s only cleaned once a week always disgusting. Anyways feel free and full of poop. That one needs to be cleaned at least three times a week. I’d rather go to the bathroom in the parking lot. As a Taxpayer and field user. I don’t know who is in charge of parks and recreation but they don’t see this. Open up your eyes.”

Another reader stresses ,  “making sure the fields are kept up whether it is have her employees pick up bottles or clean the Porto potties ”

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Lights at Maple Field ?

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, When the artificial turf was first installed several years ago, weren’t the residential neighbors (particularly residents of adjacent Meadowbrook Avenue) told that there would be NO permanent lights installed at Maple Field?

Parks & Recreation Director Nancy Bigos told Village Council Members on May 1st that she expected the field to be lit until 9:30 PM, 7 days each week.

Continue reading Lights at Maple Field ?
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Reader says Looks good but did Parks & Rec add much needing lighting to the parking lot?

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Looks good but did Parks & rec add much needing lighting to the parking lot? After all Habernickle Park has had lights in the parking lot for 3 years. This field gets used a lot past dusk and could benefit from lights after all Tim said ALL Parks will be getting parking lot lights So either take them down at Habernickle or put them up at ALL Parks!!!!! Let’s face it our kids safety is way more important then the business at the gatehouse in Habernickle Park.

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Village of Ridgewood Moves Forward on Maple Field Replacement

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September 8th 2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ. the Maple Park turf field is in need of a major update , the Village will apply to Bergen County Open Space funding for the 50/50 matching grant to replace the turf at Maple Field. The Village plans to use Bergen County Open space funds, Village open space funds and money from the capital budget . The decision has been made to replace the 12 year old field due to is heavy use and deteriorated condition.

Resident Boyd Loving asked if the Village expected to receive any money from the class action suite filed against the manufacturing over the fields not living up to their expected life span? Village Attorney Matt Rogers explained that there were on going talks with Field Turf to defray costs of a replacement field and will be made public when negotiations are concluded .

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Illegal dumping along Ho-Ho-Kus Brook near Graydon Pool and Maple Field?

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July 25,2017

the staff of The Ridgewood Blog

Ridgewood NJ, An anonymous tipster alleges that the Village’s tree crews are illegally dumping wood chips too close to the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook, on a walking path connecting Maple Field to the Graydon Pool parking lot.

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Several years ago, NJDEP formally cited PSE&G for doing the same thing, only PS was dumping the chips on their right of way, which adjoins the Brook between Spring Avenue and Grove Street.

We assume the Village will plead ignorance to the law?

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Hearings to examine conduct of top U.S. turf company

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By Christopher Baxter and Matthew Stanmyre | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on December 09, 2016 at 11:15 AM, updated December 09, 2016 at 10:15 PM

The state Legislature will hold hearings to examine the conduct of the nation’s leading maker of artificial sports fields, FieldTurf, after a report that the company made millions selling high-end turf for years after knowing it was falling apart.

Sen. Nellie Pou (D-Passaic) said Friday the Senate Commerce Committee wants to hear from top officials at the company, Montreal-based FieldTurf, as well as school districts and local officials to determine the extent of the alleged fraud.

“Millions of dollars in taxpayer funds were spent on this product that the company reportedly knew was defective and after its own executives began sounding alarms within the organization about the product failure,” Pou said in a statement.

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2016/12/state_hearings_to_examine_conduct_of_top_us_turf_c.html

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Artificial turf gets a closer look after report raises safety concerns

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By Caitlin Gibson September 23, 2015

For many athletes who play on artificial turf, the tiny granules of rubber that pad the field are familiar and ubiquitous. The black specks often get trapped in folds of clothing, carried home in shoes or embedded in scrapes and under fingernails.

Crumb rubber infill — the most common material used in artificial turf fields across the country — is intended to improve safety and create a more accessible, easily maintained playing field. But after recent public concerns about possible health risks from exposure to crumb rubber, several local jurisdictions are searching for clearer answers about its potential dangers and considering alternatives.

The issue is a modern one.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/artificial-turf-is-getting-a-closer-look-after-a-report-raises-safety-concerns/2015/09/22/fcf6a0ee-5649-11e5-abe9-27d53f250b11_story.html

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Reader says grass is financially responsible and is less toxic to the environment

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New grass blends are water retentive and need much less pesticide treatments. Grass does not need to be treated with antibacterial solutions and temperatures on the field NEVER reach the temperatures that artificial turf does when exposed to direct sunlight. But the biggest problem is that Maple Field is in an active flood plain. The extensive damage to the field was predictable and as we knew in 2004-2005 , it would be costly. Recent articles on the subject state that grass is financially responsible and is less toxic to the environment.

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Village Council Meeting Produces Big News on Many Fronts

Ridgewood Village Council
September 29,2016
the staffof the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewooood NJ, Once again, much was accomplished with this new and improved council!  Of course somethings never change ,Rurik Halaby came to the mic twice to insinuate that Ms. Knudsen( pronounced once correctly, second time with a hard k!) should be transparent about her raffle win and her sons becoming Ridgewood police officers. Thankfully Susan called for a point of order and Bernie Walsh made reference to Roberts Rules and that personal comments made to a council member from the floor are not allowed.  It probably won’t stop future rants.

Richard Calbi from the Water Department gave a good report on the chromium 6 that has been in the news. According to Ridgewood Water Ridgewood is below the level considered dangerous even though the EPA has made no formal recommendations or issued guidelines.Currently Ridgewood Water is below the California guidelines and those issued by The World Health Organization.

Matt Rogers reported on the status of Affordable Housing, the water suit filed by Glen Rock, Midland Park and Wyckoff and the Valley Hospital appeal.

Affordable Housing: a status conference is scheduled for October, otherwise all is quiet on that front.

Ridgewood Water: a possible trial in November if a scheduled mediation in October is not successful.

Valley Hospital: Appeals Court Agrees to hear Ridgewood against Valley Hospital Expansion Case. It sounds too good to be true but after a long battle it another opportunity for the new council to make their mark. What happens next is any bodies guess.
The status of suit filed against the Planning Board was not mentioned.
A discussion about parking at the council level was very productive as they are looking at immediate remedies to improve parking before any construction is initiated.
Ramon Hache gave a Field’s Committee update and possible solutions to remediate Maple Field. One suggestion is to infuse the current field with millions of rubber pellets or replace the current field.Another idea was to build berm to protect the field better from floods . What was not mentioned is that these pellets will go into the drains, the brook and on the kids!  As we all know Maple Field is in an active flood plain. Perhaps an analysis as to what would be the cost of replacing it with natural grass  vs. new artificial turf and or its remediation? No easy solution for this one .
Discussion on the placement of art in the village. The Library might be making a presentation soon on their plans to build a performing arts center, approx. cost , 5 million dollars! They are seeking help from the Village to bond this amount .Not sure how that will be received. Love the library but other issues may be higher on the agenda.