Meet The Producers, Mike Muldoon, Gail McCarthy Linda Aktar and Vivienne Muldoon. Photo credit Susan Knudsen
January 12,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, RHS Jamboree’s World Tour 2017 takes off to a flying start with over a 120 cast and crew members including 40 NEWBIES plus returning Jamboree Alumni who all are working rigorously to put on a show this come February 8-11th. To place an AD, DONATE or purchase TICKETS please go to rhsjamboree.org We look forward to welcoming you onboard.
Ridgewood NJ, the positive highlight for many during last nights council meeting was the State Champion RHS Maroons football team members and Coach Chuck Johnson were presented with certificates of recognition and many well-deserved accolades receiving a huge round of applause to all of them.
Ridgewood NJ, Jeff Voigt missing in action (most likely because he knew room would be filled with commuters who were pissed off at the price increase for commuter parking – a plan developed & supported by the FAC, of which Jeff is the Village Council liaison).
After listening to all the comments, we do believe a 1000 dollar premier parking permit is too much. In two years it has gone from 600 dollars to 750 to the current 1000. Glen Rock was said to be 150 dollars and HoHoKus was around 375. 1000 dollars seems pretty steep
photo by Boyd Loving
January 12,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, wednesday night Village of Ridgewood Council meeting :
1. Councilman Jeff Voigt was noticeably absent. No explanation given.
2. The State Champion RHS Maroons football team members and Coach Chuck Johnson were presented with certificates of recognition and many well-deserved accolades. A huge round of applause to all of them.
3. There was public comment as well as official discussion about the new parking-space allocations. Some commuters complained passionately about increased difficulty finding designated commuter spots unless they get to the lot/s early. As a result, the Village Council on the spot changed the Ordinance to increase the number of spaces for commuters. Just like that, feedback was responded to. It was clear that the VC members had been looking at the lots this week, fielding phone calls and emails, and were very open to making adjustments as needed. They also made it very clear that they will continue to monitor the use of the spaces and make further adjustments as seems appropriate. There are early indications that CBD employees are continuing to feed the meters and take the prime spaces, rather than go to the designated CBD-employee spots. Too bad Mr. Tony Damiano, he of the loud and nasty complaints, was not there to hear how all those spaces he asked for (in his position on the Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce) are going unused. Some members of the public complained about the steep increase in the annual parking pass; too bad Councilman Voigt was not there since he was the biggest proponent of sticking it to the well-heeled commuters who ride to NYC every day. Yes, he did say that to some residents…..Councilman Voigt feels that those who make the big bucks will not feel the pinch of $1000 a year. Guess he was wrong. He missed out on their indignant remarks. One resident righteously stated that commuters who go to the city and work all day should get priority over shoppers and diners who are leisurely heading to Raymond’s for lunch. One resident felt she had to put in a plug for a parking garage. Really? There is an abundance of parking, it just has to be spread out more evenly. Several commented that parking for shoppers was very available this week, a pleasant situation. Mayor Knudsen made it very clear that all citizens are created equal, and the Village Council is working hard to strike a fair balance with the parking to ensure that everyone gets to park where they most need to. Kinks are being worked out.
4. Gary Cirrilo, who heads up Project Pride, stated that funding for Project Pride has dropped drastically. He would very much like sufficient money to cover beautification of the downtown, including flowers as well as wreaths to replace the aging kissing balls in December. To this point, Councilman Sedon said that a tree farm is being planned for the Village, and that the tree wells in the CBD are going to be altered and improved so that the trees can thrive (currently they pretty much die).
5. The “Air-BNB” ordinance passed. Short-term rentals cannot be for less than 30 days. This ordinance is meant to prevent a frequent turnover of rental homes by out-of-town visitors who just come in to town for a few days or a couple of weeks. Some residents had observed this going on in their neighborhoods and had expressed concern…..once again the Village Council stepped up and developed a reasonable set of guidelines.
6. Not every vote was unanimous this evening, and there was some disagreement~discussion among elected officials on the dais. But, there was no animosity, no nasty exchanges, no crude language. Civil discourse. And why was this? Hmmmm…..could it be due to Councilman Voigt’s absence?????
Ridgewood NJ, On Thursday, January 12, the Ridgewood High School Department of Fine and Applied Arts will present the second Maroon & White Music Recital and Art Exhibit for the 2016-17 school year. The second of five such events for this year, the concert will be held in the newly renovated RHS Learning Commons beginning at 3:45 p.m., followed immediately by a reception and gallery opening in the Carroll Art Gallery. Admission is free and open to the public.
The recital will feature four outstanding musicians, presenting a varied program. Following the concert, the January Maroon & White Art Exhibit will officially open in the Carroll Art Gallery. The exhibit will include original works by highly accomplished students in a variety of media.
The Maroon and White Recital Series began in 1964 as a means of highlighting outstanding Ridgewood High School musicians in a featured solo capacity. Over the past five decades, the series has expanded to include art exhibits as well as a recital featuring only dancers. Musicians and dancers are selected through competitive audition, while artists are chosen after an extensive portfolio revue. Past Maroon & White recitalists include Jonathan Spitz, principal cellist with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Elizabeth Ostling, associate principal flutist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the piano duo of Sarah and Susan Wang, renowned Broadway singer/dancer Ali Stroker, Stephanie Buesser, dancer with Ballet West, New York City choreographer Yael Nachajon, Broadway director Marc Bruni, jazz organist Jared Gold and many others. The list of past artists includes Lauren Roth of Lauren Roth Art, renowned illustrator Kyle McCullough, Giovanni Forlino, whose work can be seen on display at the Getty and Guggenheim museums, plus a host of professional freelance artists who work in a wide variety of visual art related fields.
Upcoming Maroon & White Recital/Exhibits will take place on February 2, March 9, April 6 (Dance) and April 27. All recitals are held in the RHS Learning Commons, with the exception of the dance recital, which takes place in the Little Theater. For more information, please contact the RHS Department of Fine and Applied Arts at 201-670-2800 x. 20542.
Among the top 20% of hospitals considered the best for having your baby in 2017
January 11,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, The Valley Hospital has received the 2017 Women’s Choice Award® as an America’s Best Hospitals for Obstetrics for a third consecutive year. This evidence-based designation identifies the country’s best healthcare institutions based on criteria that considers female satisfaction and clinical excellence.
The national list of more than 400 award winners represents hospitals, including The Valley Hospital, which women feel confident in choosing for their maternity needs. By carrying the Women’s Choice Award seal, Valley has joined an elite network of hospitals that are highly regarded by women for providing high-quality and patient-friendly healthcare services.
“We are very pleased to receive this recognition,” said Paul Quinn, Director of Inpatient Women’s and Children’s Services at Valley. “This recognition is a wonderful testament to the personalized and compassionate care our Valley staff and physicians at The Center For Childbirth deliver to mothers and their babies, and as well as their hard work in achieving the best clinical outcomes possible for their patients.”
“Pregnancy is one of the most special times in a woman’s life,” said Delia Passi founder and CEO of the Women’s Choice Award. “Our award gives a woman the confidence that her choice of a hospital for her delivery will be the best in terms of quality care and patient safety for her and her baby.”
The Center for Childbirth at Valley offers a family-centered approach to the childbirth experiences, recognizing that each family has individual needs and desires concerning childbirth on emotional, intellectual, spiritual, and physical levels. The Center offers a relaxed, flexible and comforting environment, which includes private Labor Delivery Recovery rooms that combine a beautiful homelike environment with sophisticated medical technology, as well as state-of-the-art Cesarean Delivery Rooms and a Level 3-Intensive 15-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The professionals at The Center For Childbirth help to bring more than 3,000 babies into the world each year.
For more information on The Center For Childbirth, please visit www.experiencevalleychildbirth.com.
Sanitation – Please remember to bring your garbage to the end of your driveway at the curb when snow & ice are forecast for our area.
Sidewalks – Snow must be removed from all residential sidewalks within 24 hours of the snowfall. This is especially important on school walking routes.
Ridgewood Police : Ice & Snow – Remove It Before You Go
Remember to remove all ice and snow from your vehicle before driving, especially from the hood, windows and roof. It’s the law in New Jersey! Motorists who fail to do so face fines of $25 to $75 for each offense, regardless of whether the ice and snow is dislodged from the vehicle. If flying ice or snow causes property damage or injury to others, motorists face fines of $200 to $1,000 for each offense.
Ridgewood Police :Keep fire hydrant clear
If you have a fire hydrant in front of your house, help yourself and help your neighbors by keeping it clear of snow.
Ridgewood Police : Overnight parking is suspended in the Village
Overnight parking is suspended in the Village. Residents are prohibited from parking on village streets overnight. Please reconfirm but residents residing in the Central Business District are permitted to park vehicles in the Cottage Place and Hudson Street lots.
Ridgewood NJ, The Ridgewood League of Women Voters, in conjunction with Ridgewood Water, will be hosting a public forum on issues relating to local water resources. Ridgewood Water Business Manager Dave Scheibner and Director Richard Calbi will address how drought affects supply and demand, Ridgewood Water’s contaminant controls, and what customers can do to conserve. Thursday, January 26th, 2017 from 7:30-9:00 p.m. in the Senior Center at Village Hall, 131 N. Maple Avenue, Ridgewood, New Jersey, on the first floor. A question and answer period will follow. Attendance is free.
The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed, active participation in government. We welcome all individuals aged 16 years or older to join. [email protected].
The old town garage site which is in the process of being remediated due to gasoline and dry cleaning contaminants is the perfect place for a new garage if it is deemed needed. It is in the center of town baking it useful to employees, shoppers, diners and commuters. Franklin Avenue is in desperate need of a makeover. It is a wide much used street and could fit in quite nicely. In 2008 aproposal was made to put in apartments over some shops and a garage with a small park ( trees and a bench or two) on the Franklin Avenue side. At the time the developer would have done the cleanup.
Tanks have been removed already There is 900,000 dollars in the budget for cleanup and the DEP is coming in March to test soils in the area
It is now 2017, we are doing the remaining cleanup and could own the entire area with minimum difficulty. Now we have an asset and would be in control of how we develop it. An enviable position to be in and a much better spot than the Hudson Street location which is a narrow street, across from a church and could have a negative impact on small businesses in the area. I see the sign every day as I drive up Franklin and it says ” Town Garage”! can the message be any clearer?
By Larry Higgs | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on January 09, 2017 at 12:55 PM, updated January 09, 2017 at 5:19 PM
Unions representing locomotive engineers filed a lawsuit to overturn a state law that prohibits NJ Transit engineers from operating trains if their motor vehicle driver’s license is suspended.
The suit was filed in U.S. District Court Trenton on Monday by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART-TD). Union officials contend that the state law, which was signed by Gov. Chris Christie in August, conflicts with federal regulations, is punitive and doesn’t improve safety.
The bill was proposed in May after news reports of an NJ Transit locomotive engineer who was still operating trains while his driver’s license was suspended for 10 years.
Ridgewood NJ, The Village Council is well aware that there is ample parking in town and they are simply trying to redistribute the cars. This is a sensible solution instead of putting up an unneeded, unsightly, unwanted and unaffordable parking garage.
The plan to get CBD employees away from the “prime spots” up near the restaurants is a great one. However, it does seem that there might be too many CBD-Employees spots set aside, based on these photos. There was a ton of empty spaces for them Monday mid-morning and again mid-afternoon. Perhaps the number will need to be reduced. There was also ample parking available in the lots as well as on street for shoppers and diners.
Kudos to the VC for working toward resolving this. I am confident that they will be monitoring the ebb and flow of open parking spaces in the weeks ahead, and probably adjusting things as needed. But it is more and more obvious that a massive garage is not needed and it never was.
Ridgewood NJ, An overabundance of open parking for shoppers/diners and for CBD Employees on Monday mid-morning and again on Monday mid-afternoon in Prospect, Hudson, N. Walnut, Cottage, and Chestnut lots.
Ridgewood NJ, 2017 Supplemental School Tax Billing – As per the Village residents’ November 2016 affirmative vote to approve a permanent $929,800 school tax Levy increase to support a full day kindergarten program for the school district, supplemental tax bills are required to reflect this increase. Questions can be directed to Dr. Alfredo Aguilar, the school district’s Business Manager at [email protected]
or 201/670-2700 x10503.
Both the supplemental school tax bills and the current tax bills are due on February 1st & May 1st 2017.
West Point Army Band Sunday, January 29, 2017 3:00PM
January 9,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, The West Point Concert Band will perform its annual Marches Concert at West Side on January 29 at 3 pm as part of the West Side Concert Series. Admission and parking are free; donations are welcome. For more information, please visit westsideconcerts.org.
The West Point Band, the U.S. Army’s oldest active band and the oldest unit at the United States Military Academy, traces its roots to the Revolutionary War. At that time, fifers and drummers were stationed with companies of minutemen on Constitution Island, across the river from West Point. In 1778, General Samuel Holden Parsons’ 1st Connecticut Brigade crossed the Hudson River and established West Point as a permanent military post. After the American Revolution, Congress disbanded most of the Continental Army, but “the 55 men at West Point,” members of the 2nd Continental Artillery, remained. Among their ranks stood at least one drummer and one fifer, who alone maintained the tradition of military music at West Point.
With the establishment of the United States Military Academy in 1802 came an increased demand for military music. As the academy grew, it needed fifers, drummers and buglers to drill the new cadets and provide an audible order to their duty day. In 1817 the ensemble was named the “West Point Band,” and by this time was performing on a full range of instruments, which included two bassoons, two Royal Kent bugles, a tenor bugle, ten clarinets, three French horns, a serpent (an early bass horn), cymbals, a bass drum, eight flutes, and two trumpets.
Today’s band consists of four components: the Concert Band, the Jazz Knights, the Hellcats and Support Staff. They combine to form the Marching Band. The organization fulfills all of the official musical requirements of the Academy, including military and patriotic ceremonies, public concerts, sporting events and radio and television broadcasts, as well as social activities for the Corps of Cadets and the West Point community.
As the senior premier musical representative of the United States Army, the band has appeared at many historical events. It performed at the dedication of the Erie Canal; at the Chicago and New York World’s Fairs; and for the funerals of Ulysses S. Grant and Franklin D. Roosevelt as well as the inaugurations of numerous presidents. Additionally, the West Point Band has collaborated with some of the finest musical ensembles in the country, including the New York Philharmonic and the Boston Pops. Members of the West Point Band have also been showcased in Carnegie Hall and featured on The Today Show, 60 Minutes, Dateline NBC as well as on documentaries occurring on The History and Discovery Channels.
Comprised of graduates from America’s finest music schools, the musicians of the West Point Band continue to present provocative performances to audiences nationwide while providing the Corps of Cadets with a piece of living history.
West Side Presbyterian Church
6 S Monroe St, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
Phone: (201) 652-1966
Ridgewood NJ, Simon Sinek on Millennial and Internet Addiction tries to answer the question ,”Whats wrong with Millennials”, this is something that has a lot of meaning, and this gives us a look into our lives and the errors that we make.
“So you take this group of people, and they graduate school, and they get a job, and they’re thrust into the real world, and in an instant they find out that they’re not special, their moms can’t get them a promotion, that you get nothing for coming in last, and by the way you can’t just have it ‘cause you want it. And in an instant their entire self-image is shattered.”
