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It is Reported that Students were told to Pee in the Pool at the Ridgewood Y

Ridgewood-YMCA_theridgewoodblog
February 13,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, It is being reported that during swimming lessons weeknights from 6:30 to 8:30 a,t the Ridgewood Y  kids were told to urinate in the pool and not get out of the water. This is disgusting and uncalled for. Frankly, if you don’t want to instruct, and not get off your phones also, than find s new job! Are these people getting paid for this! It has happened several time. Who’s in charge!
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Jersey Mike’s Subs Opens Ridgewood Location

mikes Subs Ridgewood
February 13,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,  Jersey Mike’s Subs, known for its fresh sliced/fresh grilled subs, opened in Ridgewood on February 8. Franchise owners Bradford Fritts and Steve Korman held a grand opening and free sub fundraiser from Wednesday, February 8 to Sunday, February 12 to support the bell tower at Ridgewood High School.

The new restaurant, located at 305 E Ridgewood Ave, circulated 5,000 coupons throughout the community offering a free regular sub for a minimum $2 donation to the bell tower at Ridgewood High School.

“I look forward to bringing the authentic Jersey Mike’s sub sandwiches to the Ridgewood community, a town I know well” said Fritts. “During our grand opening fundraiser, we will be partnering with Ridgewood High School which not only provides an excellent education to the local youth but is the heart and soul of this town. We are as excited as local residents to finally open our doors and look forward to seeing you all there.”

Fritts and Korman are exemplary Jersey Mike’s franchise owners who share the company’s commitment to quality products and exceptional customer service, and who are dedicated to giving back to the local community. Since 2010, Jersey Mike’s locations throughout the country have raised nearly $18 million for worthy local charities and have distributed more than 1.5 million free sub sandwiches to help numerous causes. In 2016, the company’s 6th Annual Jersey Mike’s Month of Giving in March raised more than $4 million for 180 charities throughout the country.

About Jersey Mike’s

Started in 1956, Jersey Mike’s now has 1,500 restaurants open and under development nationwide. In 2016, for the third year in a row, the company was named the #1 fastest growing chain in the Nation’s Restaurant News Top 100, and continues to win best sub awards in virtually every market it enters.

The growth is fueled by passionate Jersey Mike’s fans who crave their subs made Mike’s Way® with the freshest vegetables – onions, lettuce and tomatoes – topped off with an exquisite zing of “the juice” – red wine vinegar and olive oil blended to perfection. Jersey Mike’s premium meats and cheeses are sliced on the spot, piled high on in-store baked bread and served up with a helping of neighborly banter from a dedicated and high-energy team.

The restaurant’s hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. You can contact this location directly at 201-857-5377.

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Aronsohn Cronies Continue to Undermine New Village Council

Ridgewood 3 amigos

February 13,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Nj, seems the attempts by the council to reconfigure parking have been met with new calls for “Garagezilla” .

In a recent NJ.com article on struggling downtowns Englewood was mentioned for having over 2000 parking spaces available, including a 345 space garage, many new, upscale downtown housing developments, and still stores are closing. The fact is the retail landscape has changed and it has nothing to do with the lack of parking or limited foot traffic/customer availability.

While in Ridgewood many allies of the former mayor Paul Aronsohn are using any attempt at incrementally adjusting parking allocations to promote a massive parking garage. Aronsohns supporters in the Ridgewood Financial Advisory Committee or FAC continue to use the eerily familiar tactics they used on Mayor Killion and Village Manager Ken Gabbert , blaming all cost increases on the new Village Council.

Remember the Financial Advisory Committee was created by the mayor Aronsohn solely as a breeding ground for future council members willing to live in his shadow. The fact remains that in order for the Financial Advisory Committee to be an effective part of the Village governance the following criteria must be met:

Publish clear and realistic by-laws
Post agenda’s of all meetings
Post minutes of all meetings promptly
All members must sign Financial disclosure forms  
All members must sign NDA’s or non-disclosure forms

These are professional standards that are used and commonly accepted everywhere in the world. If they are not met in Ridgewood the committee must be closed done otherwise the Village will continue to leave itself open to lawsuits.

There has been a noticeable increase repeat critical comments on the Ridgewood blog mirroring the same lines over and over. The same lines once used against Mayor Killion and Kenn Gabbert are now used against the current mayor and Village council.

“My friend went to park at one of the lots that require an app and was unable to download so couldn’t use the lot. She said the lot was mostly empty and also that there was a fee to use the app. I think the VC made these parking rules so complicated now people are just staying away. I’m not aware that merchants supported this plan. I think the new VC came in with ideas of how to “fix” parking and this is the result. I’m sure merchants would rather have seen a parking garage. Good luck. I stay out of downtown altogether now.”

To bad this poster forgot to mention the “parking app ” was the brainchild of the Aronsohn administration and  Former village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld.

“The poster does have a decent point about commuters getting screwed by the vocal, anti-development, municipal-election voting majority in Ridgewood who control the Council agenda. Commuters are too busy to care much despite the fact the Council screws them at every turn, i.e. $250 annual increase to $1000 for a commuter parking space which was moved further away from Ridgewood station after the pass was paid for last Dec. Thanks VoR!”

While complaints about the overpriced commuter parking seem valid blaming the current council for the insane property taxes is a recurrent theme,“So go on blaming Aronsohn for the continued inability of this Council to come up with a viable solution for the commuters who pay the bulk of property taxes in Ridgewood. As 12:43 noted, if Ridgewood is no longer attractive to commuters as a place to raise their families (due to high property taxes versus declining schools despite a $100mn annual BOE budget, etc) then property values fall. As potential revenue sources like Valley leave, those who remain will have to just pay more to cover for the excessively expensive contracts the Village and BOE have agreed to with the public sector unions we contract with. Commuters and taxpayers getting screwed, a declining CBD, and a school system that no longer ranks highly in the nation are all facts”

Again,not sure what the Village Council has to do with the Ridgewood Board of Education, and all the residents voting for constant tax increases ie full day kindergarten and turf fields?

Other comments ecco the same shots taken against Killion ,“What proposals does the new Counxil have James? Rebuild Schedler (no conflicts of interest there, right?). Raise taxes to pay the police even more (again no conflicts, wink, wink)? Are we still studying traffic flow? Where’s the Valley PILOT? What’s the plan to renew the CBD? Commuter parking? How do we replace the potential tax revenues from Valley? Do we need such big, expensive police & fire depts if Valley is leaving in 3 years? Even you know the Village is in decline James, while Summit, Tenafly, Scarsdale and Greenwich all see the increase in their property values outpace ours. Why is that?”

This comment is so full of misinformation it ended up in our spam folder.

It all gets summed over and over by the following comments , The poster does have a decent point about commuters getting screwed by the vocal, anti-development, municipal-election voting majority in Ridgewood who control the Council agenda. Commuters are too busy to care much despite the fact the Council screws them at every turn, i.e. $250 annual increase to $1000 for a commuter parking space which was moved further away from Ridgewood station after the pass was paid for last Dec. Thanks VoR!

Anotherwords if we built the garagezilla and massive high-density housing all problems would be solved …. right that’s the ticket oy vey.

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Ridgewood Teachers Rally Against School Choice for Childern

Ridgewood Teachers Rally Against School Choice for Childern n

February 13,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Hackensack NJ, Ridgewood teachers joined the “Bergen County Unity March and Rally” on Sunday, February 12th, at the Bergen County Courthouse in Hackensack . It was promoted by the NJEA , REA and its bought and paid for Democrat allies and claimed,”as we come together to celebrate and reaffirm our American values of freedom, diversity, and inclusively, and to push back against hateful, divisive rhetoric. With one voice, we will send a clear message to those around the country who seek to drive us apart: We will not be divided, and we will not be silenced.”

Very high-minded words but in reality, the rally was another attempt by teachers unions to suppress school choice and charter schools. There is nothing high-minded about repressing a child’s education and forcing kids into failed schools.
The rally commenced in the snow at 2:00 PM at the municipal parking lot near Foschini Park before marching to the Courthouse where we will hold our rally.

Anti-Choice Sponsor Organizations were:

Communication Workers of America
Bergen County Education Association
Bergen County NAACP
Bergen County LGBTQ Advisory Committee
Mount Olive Baptist Church, Hackensack
Central Unitarian Church, Paramus
The Latino Coalition
Women for Progress
WEDO of Bergen County
Democratic Women of Bergen County
Bergen County Brady Campaign Chapter
Women Lawyers of Bergen County
Garden State Equality
Smile for Charity
Northern NJ Chapter, NOW
Latino American Democratic Association
Council of the Unitarian Society, Ridgewood
Korean American Civic Empowerment (KACE)
Indivisible NJ 5th
Darulislah Mosque, Teaneck
Young Democrats of Bergen County.

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PSEG Continues Roadwork South Broad Street, Hudson and East Ridgewood Avenue

A gas main break , West Glen Avenue , S Hill Road, PSEG

file photo by Boyd Loving

IMPORTANT UPDATE: PSE&G ELECTRIC RELIABILITY IMPROVEMENTS- UTILITY UNDERGROUND INFRASTRUCTURE UPGRADE

WORK SCHEDULE UPDATE: February 13, 2017 – February 17, 2017

VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD

February 6, 2017 –February 10, 2017

Underground Manholes & Pipe Installation

South Broad Street

(at the cross section of Ridgewood Avenue)

Road Closures

(7:00am – 5:00 pm)

Monday- Friday

8 Parking Spots

As part of our electric reliability improvements in Bergen County, PSE&G will be performing utility underground work in the Village of Ridgewood. As of early-February 2017, PSE&G will beperforming the following activities in your area:

Excluding inclement weather delays, PSE&G anticipates working Monday –Friday, (7:00am – 5:00pm)

Safety is our primary concern. PSE&G will work with the Ridgewood Police Department to minimize any traffic concerns or inconveniences to the public. During construction, please refrain from going near our construction work zones.

The upgrades will enhance your electric capacity, system redundancy, and service reliability within the Village of Ridgewood, as well as surrounding communities. If you have questions or concerns, please call our toll free number at 1-877-678-5784

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Study: More Older Adults Prefer ‘Living Apart Together’

senior citizens

11Feb – by Daniel Steingold –  336 – In Family Studies Happiness Studies Men Studies Original Studies Relationship Studies Women

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Perhaps love and marriage don’t go together like a horse and carriage after all. A new study finds that older Americans looking for love are latching onto a new trend that tempers the demands of a committed relationship, a phenomenon known as “Living Apart Together,” or “LAT.”

Spurred by a divorce rate that has doubled among this demographic since 1990, many older singles— often divorced or widowed— have taken on “an intimate relationship without a shared residence.” New research was conducted upon the increasingly popular relationship arrangement among those 50 years of age or older.

A new study finds that older Americans are embracing “living apart together.”

According to Jacquelyn Benson, a researcher at the University of Missouri who is entrenched in the topic, LAT has long been an established phenomenon in Europe, but it is just now reaching the United States en masse.

“What has long been understood about late-in-life relationships is largely based on long-term marriage,” Benson explains in a release. With marriage rates amongst older Americans declining, she argues that “if more people— young and old, married or not— saw LAT as an option, it might save them from a lot of future heartache.”

For their study, Benson and another researcher interviewed adults who were at least 60 years of age and in committed relationships, yet didn’t live together. From their interactions with this demographic, the two researchers found that there were a number of motivating factors for a LAT-type relationship.

https://www.studyfinds.org/study-finds-living-apart-together/

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N.J. woman dies in fall from escalator at World Trade Center Oculus, authorities say

wtc new

By MaryAnn Spoto | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on February 11, 2017 at 2:15 PM, updated February 11, 2017 at 4:02 PM

MANHATTAN — A New Jersey woman plunged to her death early Saturday morning at the World Trade Center’s famous Oculus after she fell over the side of an escalator, authorities said.

Port Authority police responded to the incident at 5:30 a.m. after the 29-year-old woman had fallen from the escalator to the main concourse, said agency spokesman Joseph Pentangelo.

The woman, whom Pentangelo only identified as living in Hudson County, was rushed to Bellevue Hospital where she was pronounced dead, he said.

Citing the need to notify next of kin, Pentangelo said he could not release the name or hometown of the woman or details of her death.

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2017/02/woman_dies_in_fall_from_escalator_at_world_trade_c.html#incart_2box_nj-homepage-featured

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Ridgewood Knights of Columbus to Host Annual St. Patrick’s Dinner Dance

St Patrick Shamrock Image

February 12,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The Ridgewood Knights of Columbus are once again proud to be sponsoring their annual St. Patrick’s Dinner Dance on Saturday, March 18, beginning at 7:00 p.m. in the Mount Carmel gymnasium at 52 Passaic Street in Ridgewood.

Guests will first be greeted by bagpipers. The Best of Everything will cater a full-course of traditional Irish fare including corned beef and cabbage. The Celtic Cross Band will be playing Irish classics and great dance music, along with a special appearance by the Irish Step Dancers from the Ridgewood Irish Dance Academy.  There will also be a grand prize raffle drawing for a trip to Ireland, with the proceeds going to benefit many local and worthy charities.

Tickets are $55 per person. Payment can be mailed to:

Ted Bragg
471 Heights Road
Ridgewood, NJ 07450
(201) 421-7209

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Flu outbreak forces closure of North Jersey school district

flu+season

By Fausto Giovanny Pinto | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on February 11, 2017 at 1:22 PM, updated February 11, 2017 at 1:23 PM

LITTLE FERRY —  An outbreak of the flu among students throughout the district prompted the closure of schools Friday, officials said.

“Due to the amount of flu and flu like symptoms that have gripped the district in the last two weeks, I am closing school on Friday, February 10, 2017,” Superintendent Frank R. Scarafile told parents.

Custodial staff spent Friday disinfecting both Memorial Middle School and Washington/Memorial Elementary School to “eradicate the facility of any lingering germs,” Scarafile said. As a result, all afterschool and weekend activities were also canceled.

https://www.nj.com/passaic-county/index.ssf/2017/02/flu_outbreak_forces_closure_of_north_jersey_school.html#incart_river_index

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Wintry Mix Expected into Late Sunday Night

snowstorm_theridgewoodblog

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT TILL MIDNIGHT SUNDAY NIGHT…

* Hazard Types…Snow, sleet and ice.

* Snow/Sleet and Ice Accumulations…2 to 4 inches of snow and
sleet, with up to a tenth of an inch of ice accumulation.

* Timing…From late tonight through Sunday evening.

* Impacts…Hazardous/slippery travel due to snow and ice
accumulations.

* Temperatures…Upper 20s to Lower 30s.

* Visibilities…1/2SM or less at times in snow.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A Winter Weather Advisory means that periods of snow…sleet…or
freezing rain will cause travel difficulties. Be prepared for
slippery roads and limited visibilities…and use caution while
driving.

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Why We Should Stop Drugging Our Kids

285-KidsHeadphones

Naomi Schaefer Riley | February 10, 2017

Maybe it’s time to stop drugging our children. A new study from the Medical Journal of Australia has found that the youngest kids in any given class are twice as likely to be receiving medication for behavioral disorders as the older kids in the class. And the proportion of boys receiving such medication was three times as high as it was for girls.

The Australian researchers looked at data for more than 300,000 students, of whom almost 6,000 received at least one government-subsidized ADHD prescription in 2013. (The actual rate of use might have been higher given that some people presumably bought the medication without government assistance). As the study found:

“The proportion of boys receiving medication (2.9%) was much higher than that of girls (0.8%). Among children aged 6–10 years, those born in June (the last month of the recommended school-year intake) were about twice as likely (boys 1.93 times, girls 2.11 times) to have received ADHD medication as those born in the first intake month (the previous July). “

https://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/why-we-should-stop-drugging-our-kids

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Reader says Since NJT raised the fare more than 1 yr ago things have been going downhill

Ridgewood_Train_station_train-_is_coming_theridgewoodblog

NJ Transit is trash. Have a polling of people who traveled yesterday and I don’t think they get a passing grade. It wasn’t even a major storm and they consider it a success doing their job.
Since fare was raised more than 1 yr ago things have been going downhill. To pay more than $300 for such crappy service is a robbery. They raised fees, eliminated trains at rush hour, shortened number of cars and now you have overcrowded trains where you have to push in order to get a seat. Add to it daily morning delays from Secaucus to NY and you have a garbage service. As long as no one complains loudly we will keep getting screwed.

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VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD OFFICES – CLOSED FEBRUARY 13TH AND FEBRUARY 20TH 2017

Abraham_Lincoln_head_on_shoulders_photo_portrait

February 11,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, All Village offices will be closed on February 13, 2017, in observance of Lincoln’s Birthday and on February 20, 2017, in observance of Presidents’ Day.  There will be no garbage or recycling pickups on these days and the Recycling Center will also be closed.  All Village offices will open the day after these holidays, at 8:30 a.m.

Abraham Lincoln was born February 12, 1809 died April 15, 1865. Abraham Lincoln was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865.Republican Lincoln led the United States through its Civil War—its bloodiest war and perhaps its greatest moral, constitutional, and political crisis. In doing so, he preserved the Union, abolished slavery, strengthened the federal government, and modernized the economy.

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Ridgewood Fire Uses “Jaws of Life” to Free Passenger Broadsided at the intersection of Greenway Road and Highland Avenue

Ridgewood Fire Uses "Jaws of Life"

photos courtesy of Boyd Loving

February 11,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, One (1) summons was issued in connection with a two (2) vehicle crash at the intersection of Greenway Road and Highland Avenue in Ridgewood on Friday afternoon, 02/10. Ridgewood firefighters used the “Jaws of Life” to free a passenger from a Nissan that was broadsided by a Jeep. Both occupants of the Nissan were transported by separate ambulances to a local hospital for treatment. Ridgewood PD was assisted by Glen Rock PD at the scene. Ridgewood FD and EMS personnel were also put into service, as was a paramedic team from The Valley Hospital. Both vehicles were heavily damaged and removed by a tow truck. Interestingly, the only 911 call reporting the accident was received from an occupant of the Nissan. No one in the neighborhood where the accident occurred called the police to report it, nor did the driver of the Jeep. Go figure.

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Engineer talks traffic impact near Brogan Cadillac site

brogan_Cadillac_themridgewoodblog

Mark Krulish , Staff Writer, @Mark_KrulishPublished 5:45 p.m. ET Feb. 9, 2017 | Updated 6:18 p.m. ET Feb. 9, 2017

As the battle over affordable housing continues across New Jersey, the Ridgewood Planning Board heard more testimony from professionals about a development slated for the former Brogan Cadillac site on South Broad Street.

The board has four different applications pending for multifamily housing proposals in parts of downtown that were rezoned last year. The Dayton, subject of Tuesday’s hearing, is a luxury apartment project with 93 units proposed – including 15 percent set aside for affordable housing as required by ordinance.

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/ridgewood/2017/02/09/engineer-talks-traffic-impact-near-brogan-cadillac-site/97606772/