Tag: Ridgewood NJ

>I know this is the wrong place to ask this, but is that above comment correct? Did the town really give this church $10,000 to tear down the house? I called Village Hall today, asked the question, and I got transferred for 20 minutes… engineering, zoning, parks dept, etc. No one would comment.

Not sure of the answer. The word I got was that the Church was paying just over $20K for the job. However, the Church was not obligated to fill in the hole left behind, nor to do other site work in preparation for the property being turned into a park ,perhaps the $10K covers that work; i.e., filling in the hole, leveling the land, and removing the fence.

>Valley Hospital is seeking to change the Village’s Master Plan and the H-Zone ordinances to allow them to increase the size of the structures on their 15.4 acre Ridgewood campus.

The two stage, multi-year, $750 million proposal is to increase the total Gross Floor area by 71%; reduce the building setbacks to 40 feet on all four sides of the property (from the present effective 144 ft); increase on-site parking by 400 spaces and to increase building heights to 80 feet (56 ft + 24 ft of mechanicals).

After examining the proposal, over 400 residents formed a group called the Concerned Residents of Ridgewood to fight the proposal. They have a website www.stopvalley.com. The group believes in quality healthcare, but not at the expense of the village. They believe that, if the proposal is allowed to pass without amendment, the unique character of Village will be destroyed and Ridgewood will become just another “hospital town”.

A major concern is the permanent nature of the proposed changes to the Master Plan and Ordinances. If the H-Zone ordinance changes are allowed to pass, the hospital will be able to continue building beyond their current proposal without the needing to gain variance approval at the public Board Meetings – only site plan approval.

If the Master Plan changes are approved, any future variance changes beyond what is requested by the Hospital today will be harder to oppose as the proposed changes to the Master Plan will render the Village “Hospital expansion friendly”.

The specific issues are:

Proposed changes to the Master Plan and H-Zone ordinances that will change the Character of the Village
The number of licensed beds will increase by 3, but the size of the hospital will be 374,333 sq feet at a cost of $750 million – will the health insurance companies pay the resulting higher fees?
-There will be more buildings and less open space.
-A reduction in house values of the surrounding neighborhoods
-Possible road widening creating safety and traffic issues
-Ben Franklin Middle School is right next to the hospital, Travell Elementary School only one block away and students transverse Van Dien to RHS. There are significant safety and quality of -life issues for those students during the 3+ years of proposed construction.

>Geez! I was an HSA President at Travell when TERC was brought in. I didn’t like it then and I don’t like it now. As President and a member of Travell’s HSA, we didn’t have the luxury of “voting” for TERC. It was handed to us on a silver platter with many promises of how “life changing” it would be for our kids. It wasn’t an option that we could say yes or no to as I recall. I worked hard as President all the while registering my complaints that we shouldn’t have to pay for air conditioning and even voting “No” to the budget…which by the way I have never voted for. During my tenure it was true the Superintendent’s office gave me a letter to distribute to all parents after I signed it but it did not say to vote “FOR” the budget it just said “TO” vote. Anyone who came to my meetings should have been very clear about where I stood on the budget (which I spoke against at Federated meetings – much to the chagrin of Dr. Porter)and other expenses the parents were expected to pick up because the budget couldn’t support them. I feel really badly that some parents may have felt excluded by the “clique” of the HSA that was never MY intention as President. I was always grateful for the support (financial or otherwise) of all of our parents. I am very disappointed that so many parents feel this way, I’m sorry for that. Please don’t let any of that discourage you from supporting the Math Moms with their hardwork in getting TERC taken out of the district or getting involved in any way you feel comfortable. This system will only change if people are willing to speak up and change it.

>I am a teacher of mathematics in a metropolitan school district. I have witnessed over the years the down spiral in quality of curricular resource materials for mathematics. I have found it increasingly necessary to enhance, augment, and compensate (for) the materials with which I have been expected to teach. The politics by which inferior resource materials have been foisted on math teachers (and therby students and parents) is insidious and anti-educational. State, district, school, and corporate administrators (attempt to) pressure, misdirect, and manipulate teachers to buy into the math flavor fad of the day. Teacher input is all but ignored unless (of course) it reinforces what the powers-that-be wish to be heard and/or publicized.

Administrative media access so highly filters the information which is output to the public that the quite intelligent and well-meaning parents, who want only to advocate what is best for their children, are often undertandably confused by the discrepancy between administrative lip-service and academic results (e.g. WASL). Being that the math WASL has been all but diefied (unjustifiably) as an academic measure, parental angst becomes preyed upon by smooth talking demagogues offering a reformist concoction of snake oil and mediocrity to remedy a near-disaster of their creation. The apple of mediocrity will always be mediocrity regardless of how well is polished or spiffed up by the minions of fuzzy mathematics. Each year the number of students arriving to my classroom without basic and essential arithmetic skills in place
increases. Many students cannot do simple arithmetic operations without a calculator.

Basic multiplication, division, addition, subtraction, fraction, decimal, exponent, and percent facts are often just not in place… the simple stuff! Often, students are recommended from middle school into high school courses for which they are either less than adequately prepared or for which they are not prepared at all. TERC & CMP exposure and/or induced calculator “dependency” (in elementary and middle school are the usual culprits. Those students who arrive and are indeed ready to advance must then patiently endure the requisite review process in order to bring as many of their classmates up to speed as possible. The math reality… it is insufficient that a student can merely perform calculations on a calculator. Unless an inculcated arithmetic process is operative (consciously or unconsciously) in the student’s reasoning, use of the calculator becomes little better than a crap shoot. It is just as important to have a sense of when an answer is not in the ballpark as when it is. Without a developed sense of knowing the difference, one answer might often be just as well as any other answer.

If I had a Lotto ticket for each time I heard a student remark that an answer was correct because “that’s what the calculator says”, I would have won the lottery long ago.Calculators do not speak. Calculators do not have an opinion. Calculators calculate. (A hammer does not suggest where to place the nail. That is the carpenter’s job.)Good “basic math skills” supply the basis for good mathematical reasoning. Calculators cannot reason. Reasoning is the student’s job. CMP, TERC, IMP, CPM, Core Plus, Everyday Math, etc,… all fail the student. The fundamental cognitive tools of mathematical reasoning (basic skills) are abandoned by these curricula. Rather, these curricula nurture a handicap… a dependence upon the superficial and uninsightful non-reasoning tool, the calculator.Calculators do have their uses. But those uses first need to be tempered by experience… the experience of an acquired comprehensive body of knowledge and interpretive skill. As an educator, I do my best to guide my students through the process of acquiring that mathematical experience. Such experience will surely serve them qualitatively far better (than mere calculator “dependence”) as they progress through their education and, insofar as choices are made, through their lives.

The advocates and purveyors of fluffy math curricula do not seem to be genuinely concerned with the academic and future well-being of students. Such advocates and purveyors seem only to be concerned with the promotion of their ideological agenda(s). I believe that the next step forward should start with one (or more) step(s) backward. Fluffy math texts (and corporate interference) should be scrapped regardless of administrative or governmental pressures. The true educators (parents and teachers) should take back the educational system and do what is right for the kids. Thank you.

NOTE: My point of view tends to get me into hot water with school and district administrators. It is a small price to pay.

>Whether we are talking about our fire department, police department, other VOR departments, or our school system, it seems nepotism is alive and well in Ridgewood or is it? It seems that this topic has ruffled some feathers.

Some families in the village have a proud history of public service but offering employment to a relative, despite the fact that there are others who are better qualified and willing to perform the job, would be considered a form of nepotism.

Hundreds of applications are received when an opening occurs in our fire department, police department or in our school system. When a relative is hired for one of these open positions it is only natural to question whether or not he/she was the best candidate.

Does knowing someone or being related to someone get you the job? Does nepotism create an environment conducive to preferential treatment to family members? When relatives work in the same department or unit do work-related issues arise that can negatively affect that department or unit? Or is it simply a matter of good people looking to carry a tradition of public service ?

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The idea for Life Bath & Body came about in late 2003 when I was in
between jobs as Editor-In-Chief of Remix magazine and Editor of
Future Music US. I wanted to open a store that was like the boutiques
I encountered when I traveled to England and France, carrying the
products that I loved but that were hard to find over here. More
specifically, the store is inspired by the shops lining Jermyn Street
in London’s St. James district (Floris, the numerous gentlemens’
stores specializing in badger brushes and safety razors) and soap
stores in the tiny villages all over Provence.

When I first envisioned the store, I was living in Los Angeles. Soon
afterwards I helped launch the US-edition of Future Music magazine,
which eventually led to me moving back East in February 2006 to work
in the company’s New York office. In January 2007 Future Music ceased
publication and I was moved to an editorial position for Guitar One
magazine. Then in April 2007 that title closed along with several
other publications and I was laid off. Looking back at the last 20
years, I realized I had six jobs that each required me to relocate
between LA, San Francisco and New York (basically I’ve been a
magazine editor for publications like Guitar Player and Guitar World,
and I’ve also done artist relations for Digidesign, the developer of
Pro Tools recording software).

Of course, I fell in love with North Jersey and I was determined to
settle down my roots here once and for all. My only viable course of
action was to open my own store, and I knew that Ridgewood would be
the best place to do it. My wife checked the real estate listings and
found a location on North Broad Street that was perfect for opening
the store that we envisioned.

The idea behind Life Bath & Body is to bring a little of the
sensations of Europe to Ridgewood, especially the smells (if anyone
makes jabs about Jersey’s distinct aroma, tell them to visit the
store for a different perspective).

The store carries products from:

* photos by ArtChick

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AMARANTH flower shop
7 North Broad Street
(lower Level)Suite 3

Been here 9 years

(201)493-2009

11-5 or latter just call out making deliveries at 3pm

* photos by ArtChick

>The individual wanted in connection with Saturday night’s aggravated assault
on Police Officer Sean Amoruso was arrested at 10:12 PM this evening on
Steilen Avenue in Ridgewood. The arresting officer was Detective Sergeant
William Amoruso.

The suspect, a male juvenile who resides on Steilen Avenue, was transported
to Ridgewood Police Headquarters for processing. He was accompanied by his
father.

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>If the Fly’s memory is correct, an assistant manager at the East Ridgewood Avenue Starbucks was arrested earlier this year for allegedly selling drugs in the franchise’s rear parking lot. This is the same location that Ridgewood Police Officer Sean Amoroso was assaulted on Saturday night. Officer Amoroso was trying to detain an individual suspected of being engaged in some sort of narcotics related activity.

These two incidents make the Fly wonder what the story is with this particular Starbucks location? Are these two incidents coincidental/totally unrelated, or is the Ridgewood Avenue Starbucks an established gathering point for drug sellers and buyers? If so, should Ridgewood’s police department enlist help from the Bergen County Narcotics Squad to clean up the mess there?

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>Ridgewood Police Officer Sean Amaruso was assaulted on Saturday evening as
he attempted to detain a individual involved in suspected narcotics activity
at the rear of Starbucks on East Ridgewood Avenue.
The suspect eluded Amaruso and other uniformed patrol officers by fleeing on
foot. However, his identity was determined and communicated to plain
clothes officers; an imminent arrest is expected.

Although Amaruso did not require medical attention, this incident
nonetheless underscores the relatively dangerous nature of a police
officer’s daily routine, even in a seemingly safe community such as
Ridgewood.

The Fly wonders when Ridgewood PD’s brass is going to finally crack down on
loiterers in the front and rear of Starbucks. Obviously, more than coffee
is being sold in the area.

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School District misrepresents mathematician’s views

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