Tag: Marcia Ringel

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Our sycamore deserves a second opinion

Ridgewood's Iconic Sycamore Tree on the island at Graydon Pool is dying

file photo by Boyd Loving

from Marcia Ringel, The Preserve Graydon Coalition,

Last night I submitted three comments separately. Only the last one appeared (making no sense of its “P.S.”) I asked about this and was informed that the spam filter has been acting up. PJ asked me to send them again. Here they are:

Interesting that this announcement appeared the day after I submitted an OPRA request for the arborist’s report. Here is my argument: Is it possible that this is all accurate and the tree poses a danger? Sure. But if your doctor says, “There’s nothing I can do; you’re dying,” do you buy a cemetery plot or seek a second opinion? Rutgers has an expert in every county and the one in Hackensack might conceivably agree to look at the sycamore. This is not just any tree, but one that has been admired, photographed, and painted by residents and others for many decades. The decision to cut it down would feel a lot more valid if confirmed by another tree expert. If Rutgers can’t do it, the town can pay for it. An expert arborist has agreed to do a complete report for $750. That is only $50 more than was spent in tax money to create a video that has now been officially deemed an ethical failure. Our sycamore deserves a second opinion. It will hardly be free to take it down. Having a professional written report in the records would help to protect the village in case of an accident. When the town talks about safety, what percentage of that is fear of liability?

Regarding the age of the tree: the Ridgewood Library’s local history section has photos of the sycamore taken before the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the stone wall around the periphery of the Graydon swimming area and a smaller version of the wall around the tree island. (There used to be two such islands with trees along the Linwood Avenue side; one was removed when the swimming area was formalized from its earlier swimmin’-hole past.) The WPA also built the Skaters Shelter, now used as the badge office and food concession but intended as a place to warm one’s toes while ice skating. The cornerstone of that building, located in the lower right corner as you face the door to the badge office, says “1936.” The angles at which the sycamore’s limbs are extended in both old and more recent photos make it clear that the same tree has been there all along, watching Ridgewood go by for over 80 years and perhaps far more. Let’s give it a second look before we knock it down.

P.S. Anyone wishing to endorse this proposal (a second opinion) can reach the Village Manager by calling Village Hall at 201-670-5500 ext. 201 or via email at hmailander@ridgewoodnj.net. If this interests you, please don’t wait.

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Councilman Pucciarelli attacks Marcia Ringel for merely exercising her civil right to speak

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Councilman Pucciarelli attacks Marcia Ringel for merely exercising her civil right to speak
November 21,2014
Marcia Ringel

On July 21, 2014, after Councilman Pucciarelli had raked me over the coals (and before he did more of it) for my comments on the way the election of mayor and deputy mayor had been arranged with the help of Skype, the mayor took over. In one of his comments he used phrasing identical to what is in his email message posted here.

I was startled, considering that I hadn’t used profanity, approached the dais, even raised my voice–merely exercised my civil right to speak. Haul in the clergy to teach us how to behave? It sounded canned. Five months later, we see that it was.

Next Monday night’s meeting has clearly been in the works since at least early summer. Those words were on the tip of his tongue in July.

[about 16 minutes in:] https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/49862179

Is the intention to use the clergy’s comments as an excuse for rewriting ordinances on public deportment at meetings? Is it appropriate in the first place to introduce clergy to discussions of public issues in such a setting? No.

Should this not be a real public meeting with appropriate public notice–not a private meeting in which the names of attendees are checked in advance? What is happening here? These sort-of-private, sort-of-public meetings on important topics that legally squeak through because fewer than three council members are present are an insult to residents and to the rules of governance. All council members SHOULD be present to hear such things if they are heard at all.

At a council meeting on July 21, 2013, after the Village had refused to buy a Mobi-Chair for Graydon after years of empty talk about making Graydon handicap accessible, I suggested from the podium that the mayor resign, with an apology, from Access for All. I said I could see an invisible “H” on the wall behind the dais, and it stood for Hypocrisy.

[about 10 minutes in:] https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/36140109

That H is getting bigger.

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Marcia Ringel responds to Mayor and Deputy Mayor Personal Attacks on her

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file photo Village Council Meeting  by Boyd Loving

Marcia Ringel responds to Mayor and Deputy Mayor Personal Attacks on her 

Marcia here. Hit a nerve, I believe. Why attack me endlessly instead of addressing the points raised? I have lowered the tenor of colloquy? I don’t think so.

Village attorney ought to sue me for slander, quoth the Deputy Mayor. Nothing I said was slanderous–merely embarrassing.

Mayor himself has gone around town telling people I don’t like the handicapped. THAT’S slander.

Everybody who thinks I ought to be ashamed of myself, as the Deputy Mayor also asserted, please raise your hand. Or maybe some other persons ought to be ashamed.

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The Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli called Marcia Ringel’s statement last night at the Village Council meeting a “slanderous personal attack”

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file photo Village Council by Boyd Loving

The Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli called Marcia Ringel’s statement last night at the Village Council meeting a “slanderous personal attack” 

The Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli called Marcia Ringel’s statement last night at the Village Council meeting a “slanderous personal attack” on the Village Attorney Mathew Rogers according to videotape of the meeting on the Village website. He added “perhaps he can sue you”.

We know that Mr. Rogers can’t sue Ms. Ringel. A standard defense to defamation is privilege. When the defendant is a certain type of public official or the statement was during certain official proceedings, the
statement was “privileged” and therefore the plaintiff cannot successfully sue for slander.

However, Ms. Ringel may be able to sue Mr. Pucciarelli for slander. Ironically, after Mayor Aronsohn admonished the tone of Ms. Ringel’s statements and asked everyone from now on to “put aside accusations” and also “put aside personal attacks”, Mr. Pucciarelli could not stop himself. He said Ms. Ringel is “a very angry person” and is “loose with the truth”. I think Mr. Pucciarelli himself would agree he committed slander.
I guess it’s up to Ms. Ringel to decide if she wants to sue or just get an apology for this slanderous personal attack by Mr. Pucciarelli. We will see at the next meeting or before. To paraphrase, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the Village Council.”

Watch our elected officials in action here:

https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/49862179

Ringel statement begins shortly after 9 minutes.

Pucciarelli response begins at around 13 minutes. He goes into a spin like John Belushi in one of the characters he used to do during the news segment of SNL where he fell off his chair at the end.

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Residents and Council Class Over Councilwomen Hauck’s Selective Skype Appearances at Council Meetings

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file photo Boyd Loving

Residents and Council Class Over Councilwomen Hauck’s Selective Skype Appearances at Council Meetings

Mayor Paul Aronsohn, Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli, and Village Attorney Mathew Rogers each got nasty with Village resident Marcia Ringel during last night’s Village Council Work Session. Mr. Pucciarelli went so far as to raise one of his arms and point a finger aggressively at Ms. Ringel as he addressed her from his seat on the dais.

All of this came after Ms. RIngel suggested that Mr. Rogers’ professional opinion regarding the legality of Councilwoman Gwenn Hauck’s July 1 meeting participation by Skype was result driven (i.e., votes needed to ensure outcome of election for Mayor and Deputy Mayor) as opposed to being based on an existing Village ordinance or precedent.

This blogger finds it somewhat amusing that just prior to Ms. Ringel being publicly thrashed for suggesting there was only one reason for the July 1 Skype connection, Councilwoman Hauck had been officially recorded as being absent from the meeting at which the thrashing was taking place.

It was convenient for Ms. Hauck to connect by Skype to the July 1 meeting, but not convenient last night?

And a upstanding citizen of this community is verbally abused in public for suggesting that politics may have played a large role in the incident?