Thu, October 12, 2017 – Sat, October 14, 2017
Time: 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Location: Ridgewood Business district, E. Ridgewood Ave. and side streets
Ridgewood’s second annual Blow-Out Sale days
All participating store will be open all 3 days!
October 12, 13, 14th, Thursday-Friday-Saturday
Featuring:
Summer – endings
Fall trending’s and
Holiday comings
outside – weather permitting
Starting with
Art of Motion, Chestnut St., offering a costume exchange for HALLOWEEN with proceeds going to CancerCare. call for details: 201-652-5800 –
17 Chestnut St.
Participating stores-the # next business is their address #.
E. Ridgewood Ave.
GAP – 235
Fox’s – 230
Kate Spade – 202
Bookends – 211
Hot Jewelry Box – 203
Ridgewood Bootery – 200
DoubleTake Consignment Boutique – 189
Pink Bungalow – 185
Little Skye – 171
Little Nest Portraits – 168
Peachy Keen Kids – 136
Anik of Ridgewood – 119
Learning Express Toys – 111
Shelly Glam – 82
Oasis Clothing – 80
Lucky Brand – 67
P. Smith & Co. – 65
Duxiana Bedding – 63
Red Velvet Luxe- 59
Victor’s Mens – 55
GiGi’s Boutique – 48
Loft41 Jewelry – 41
Beauty Plus Salon – 25
Eat Your Spinach – 42
Jekyll & Hide – 7
Cottage Place
Savvy Chic Consignment Boutique – 30
S. Walnut St.
Suite 201 – 11
Chestnut St.
House of Glam Studio – 22
S. Broad Street
Alba Boutique- 10
DPARZ Shoes – 12
N. Broad St
Racefaster – 211
Look for some businesses in front of
Memorial Park at Van Neste Square.
M&T Bank
Little Ivy Learning Center
Beauty Counter – Rebecca
House of Glam Studio
Ridgewood NJ, An adult female brandishing a full sized sword on public property adjacent to an elementary school caught the attention of Ridgewood Police Patrol Officer Michael Karcher early Friday morning, 09/22. After securing the weapon in his patrol vehicle, Officer Karcher enlisted the aid of a Mandarin speaking patrol officer from neighboring Glen Rock and determined that the woman was visiting relatives who lived nearby, and was using the sword as part of a daily religious activity. No charges were pressed and the woman was driven back to her family’s residence and advised not to bring the sword onto public property again.
Ridgewood NJ, the Bamboo House a Chinese Restaurant in Ridgewood’s Central Business District is celebrating 30 years in business today ,October 1st. It is the second oldest restaurant in the Village of Ridgewood after Daily Treat and Bagelicious which tie for oldest. A special thanks for Councilmen Ramon Hache for filling us in .
Sherry was a single mom from Taiwan who didn’t speak English when she arrived. Wow, 30 years in business is quite an achievement and an amazing success story !
28 S Broad St
Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450
Phone(201) 447-3111
Hours
Tue – Thu:11:30 am – 9:30 pm
Fri – Sat:11:30 am – 10:00 pm
Sun:12:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Ridgewood NJ, Just published! Results of the May 2017 parent / guardian satisfaction survey are out and posted on our website. Lets see how the “Tradition of Excellence ” faired . Take a look at your school’s responses and that of the whole district at this link: https://tinyurl.com/y94h23eu
Participation Rate In-District 5690 enrolled , 8183 (63 bounced) total emails send , 2498 responded or 30.8% .
Respondents Strongly agree 33.41% or agree 53.59% with the statement I am satisfied with the overall quality of my child’s education.
While Respondents Strongly agree 40.09% and agree 43.85 with the statement I would recommend my child’s school to other parents.
School staff members (teachers / principal / support staff) are responsive to my parental concerns, Scored a 32.49% Strongly agree and a 47.16% agree , the district administration and/or Board of Education are responsive to my parental concerns, scored a very poor 13.73% Strongly agree and 29.72% agree.
Perhaps it is a good time to mark your calendars and grab a coffee. Members of the Ridgewood Board of Education and Superintendent of Schools Dr. Daniel Fishbein will host residents for coffee and casual conversation on Wednesday, October 18 from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Ed Center, 49 Cottage Place. Residents are welcome to drop in and share their thoughts, questions, suggestions and concerns
45 kilos of fentanyl seized by the State Police could have yielded 18 million lethal doses
September 30,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Trenton NJ, Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino today announced the indictment of four men in connection with the record-setting seizure of 45 kilograms – or nearly 100 pounds – of the super-potent synthetic opioid fentanyl by the New Jersey State Police in June. The State Police also seized nearly 40 kilos of heroin.
Fentanyl is one of the deadliest opioids, with a potency that is 50 times greater than heroin. The 45 kilos of fentanyl could have yielded over 18 million lethal doses, since a dose as small as 2 to 3 milligrams can be fatal. This case shatters the prior record for the largest seizure of fentanyl by law enforcement in New Jersey, which was set in March when the New Jersey State Police and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations seized 14 kilos of fentanyl in Camden. The fentanyl seized in June – including 40 kilos seized in North Bergen and five kilos seized in the same operation in Willingboro – was initially suspected to be heroin because of the huge quantity, but lab testing revealed it was fentanyl.
“The 45 kilos of fentanyl seized in this case is the largest fentanyl bust in the history of the state, having broken the prior record announced only a few months ago,” said Attorney General Porrino. “Dealers lace heroin with this deadly poison to boost potency, and with these amounts of fentanyl being stockpiled in New Jersey, I am desperately urging heroin users to seek treatment now more than ever, as their next dose could be their last. Fentanyl is so deadly that just these 45 kilos of fentanyl could have yielded enough lethal doses to kill the entire populations of New Jersey and New York City combined.”
The Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau obtained a state grand jury indictment charging the following three men with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl (2nd degree), possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute (2nd degree), and possession of fentanyl (3rd degree), in connection with the seizure of 40 kilos of fentanyl in North Bergen:
Jesus Carrillo-Pineda, 31, of Philadelphia, Pa.,
Jesus Yanez-Martinez, 22, of Somerton, Arizona, and
Daniel Vasquez, 28, of Somerton, Arizona.
Yanez-Martinez and Vasquez each face a charge of distribution of fentanyl (2nd degree), and Carrillo-Pineda faces a charge of possession of heroin (3rd degree) related to the North Bergen arrests.
The indictment also charges Carrillo-Pineda and Omar Zeus Rodriguez, 38, of Willingboro, N.J., in connection with the seizure in Willingboro of five kilos of fentanyl, nearly 40 kilos of heroin, and a smaller quantity of methamphetamine. They are each charged with conspiracy (2nd degree), possession of heroin with intent to distribute (1st degree), possession of heroin (3rd degree), possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute (1st degree), possession of methamphetamine (3rd degree), possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute (2nd degree), and possession of fentanyl (3rd degree).
“Cases like this involving the interdiction of major drug traffickers represent just one facet of our efforts to fight the opiate epidemic,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “We also have a strike team that has criminally charged six doctors with indiscriminately prescribing opioid pain pills for profit, including two who face first-degree charges of strict liability for a drug-induced death. We are bringing the full force of the law to bear on those responsible for fueling opiate addiction.”
“The unfortunate trend of adding fentanyl to narcotics has created a demand for this deadly opiate, putting not only the lives of users in grave danger, but also the lives of troopers and other first responders who may have come into contact with it,” said Colonel Rick Fuentes, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “It is without question that this record-setting seizure of fentanyl preserved life and saved countless families the agony of losing a loved one to this terrible scourge.”
During the investigation, New Jersey State Police detectives from the Trafficking North Unit developed information that a shipment of drugs was being delivered to a location in North Bergen. On June 28, 2017, State Police detectives, assisted by members of the North Bergen Police Department, located and arrested Carrillo-Pineda, Yanez-Martinez and Vasquez in the parking lot of a business in North Bergen after observing an alleged drug transaction, in which the fentanyl allegedly was transferred from a tractor-trailer occupied by Yanez-Martinez and Vasquez to a Mercedes Benz driven by Carrillo-Pineda. The arrests resulted in the seizure of the 40 kilograms of fentanyl, which were individually wrapped and held in two black duffel bags that had been transferred to the trunk of the Mercedes Benz. A search of the car also revealed a handbag containing $1,050 in U.S. currency and a small quantity of heroin. The 40 individually wrapped kilos of fentanyl were initially suspected to be heroin, but lab testing revealed the packages contained fentanyl.
The next day, June 29, State Police detectives of the Trafficking South Unit continued the investigation with assistance from the Willingboro Police Department, conducting a search at Rodriguez’s residence in Willingboro, where Carrillo-Pineda had been staying. As a result, detectives arrested Rodriguez and seized nearly 80 kilos of suspected narcotics. Rodriguez was loading suitcases into a Range Rover outside his residence when he was approached by detectives. The drugs were found in the suitcases and an open Fed Ex box in the vehicle’s trunk. Testing confirmed that the seized kilos included five kilos of fentanyl, nearly 40 kilos of heroin, and a smaller quantity of methamphetamine. Other kilo packages contained cutting agents.
While it has been spotlighted for killing Prince and other celebrities, fentanyl also is responsible for a growing death toll in New Jersey, where there were 417 overdose deaths from fentanyl in 2015, and 394 overdose deaths from fentanyl and fentanyl analogs in just the first six months of 2016. Fentanyl is commonly mixed with heroin or cocaine for sale on the street, or is sold in powder compounds or counterfeit pills disguised as heroin, oxycodone or Xanax. Fentanyl is now found in approximately 30 percent of the heroin specimens tested by the New Jersey State Police forensic laboratories. By comparison, fentanyl was found in only 2 percent of the heroin tested by those labs in the first quarter of 2015. Given the tiny size of a lethal dose, drug users are dying because dealers are careless about how much fentanyl they put in such mixes and pills.
Fentanyl is so potent that medics and police across the U.S. have been sickened by coming into contact with it while responding to overdoses or making arrests. The State Police Hazardous Materials Response Unit assisted with the search in Willingboro to address the concern about collateral exposure.
In addition to fentanyl, seven fentanyl knock-offs have been sold on the street in New Jersey, usually disguised as less-powerful drugs like heroin or oxycodone, triggering overdose deaths. The Attorney General’s Office issued an emergency order last year adding those fentanyl knockoffs to the list of drugs subject to the strictest level of state control.
Deputy Attorney General Norma Garcia presented the indictment to the state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau, under the supervision of Deputy Bureau Chief Annmarie Taggart and Bureau Chief Lauren Scarpa Yfantis.
Detective Sgt. Jeovanny Rodriguez was the lead detective for the investigation for the State Police Intelligence Section, Violent & Organized Crime Control Bureau North, Trafficking North Unit. Detective Garrett Cullen was the lead detective for the investigation for the State Police Intelligence Section, Violent & Organized Crime Control Bureau South, Trafficking South Unit. Attorney General Porrino commended all of the detectives and troopers who participated in the investigation for the New Jersey State Police. He also thanked the North Bergen Police Department and Willingboro Police Department for their assistance.
The first-degree charges carry a sentence of 10 to 20 years in state prison and a fine of up to $200,000. Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while the third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $35,000.
The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Hudson County, where the defendants will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment.
Ridgewood NJ, The Ridgewood Health Department and Parks and Recreation invite you to Good Life Ridgewood. This event will be held Sunday October 1, 2017 from 11 to 3 at Memorial Park at Van Neste Square in downtown Ridgewood.
Come see what wellness services are available to Ridgewood area residents. Visit with 70 Local Health-Providers: Medical Providers, Non-profit Organizations, Health screeners, Vendors, and Entertainers.
The Mayor’s Wellness Campaign supports Good Life Ridgewood. The Mayor’s Wellness Campaign is a state-wide initiative to invite Mayors to play a leadership role in supporting opportunities to promote active, healthy lifestyles with long-term goals to include a reduction in health care costs for all. Come be a part of it all.
Three towns are pursuing a $13.4 million refund for customers of Ridgewood Water through the courts.
Wyckoff, Glen Rock and Midland Park have filed a joint appeal seeking new terms of restitution from the village of Ridgewood following a ruling in a water-rate lawsuit involving the village-owned utility. In addition to the refund, the towns are seeking $3.6 million in damages.
The four municipalities have been enmeshed in a lengthy legal dispute over whether Ridgewood Water overcharged customers and improperly used utility funds to supplement Ridgewood’s municipal budget. Ridgewood Water, which is owned by the village, also serves Glen Rock, Wyckoff and Midland Park.
Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood has rolled out the Ridgewood Estate Card, a new property tax savings program now available to Ridgewood property owners. The program offers a debit like card that offers a reward on purchases that is automatically applied to reduce Ridgewood property taxes billed to the cardholder. An even greater level of reward is offered at participating local and online merchants. Tax rewards are applied annually to the third quarter tax bill.
If you visit RidgewoodEstateCard.com you can learn more about this exciting opportunity and to sign up for the program. Once signed up, one will receive their card via US mail in 5-7 business days. Each time the card is used, a percentage of that purchase is earned toward property tax reduction. Reward amounts are listed in both the cardholder’s online account and on the easy to use Card Rewards mobile app.
Use the card for your everyday spending and simultaneously reduce your property tax! On every dollar you spend, a percentage is earned as a reward paid towards your property tax. The more you spend, the less you owe!
The Estate Card also encourages local spending with many Central Business District merchants are offering a higher reward earned on local purchases, ultimately creating growth and sustainability in your community.
Take a look , White Maple Café offers a 5% tax reward , Ridgewood Eyewear a 10% tax reward , Taylor & Taylor Oriental Rugs offers a 30% tax reward , so if you just replace the card you are using for the shopping you are currently doing you will save money on your property taxes. https://ridgewoodestatecard.com/shop/localstores .
There are also over 3,200 online merchants that offer Ridgewood property tax rewards https://ridgewoodestatecard.com/shop/stores .
Cardholders can earn a base reward of .25% on all transactions and as much as an additional 25% at participating local and online merchants.
The RidgewoodEstateCard website also offers a Search function to find the best price with the largest tax reward amount. Save money while paying down your taxes!
You can also share a deal in your reward account. If you want a family member or friend to be able to take advantage, no problem, share the deal with them or post it to social media, they will get the deal and you will earn the tax reward!
Voigt wrote an even longer letter that The Record edited down. In his longer edition he wrote:
“Looked at another way: Since 2008, the central business district (CBD) has lost approximately $120 million in assessed value due to declining sales – with a main reason for this being a lack of parking. This $120 million loss in assessed value translates into a loss of approximately $3 million in tax revenue from the CBD. This is the amount that househoulds are paying that could have been paid by the CBD. In other words, improving the parking issue, helps CBD businesses increase their sales and their assessed value and; in turn lowers resident’s property taxes.”
How much is wrong with this idiot thinking? A garage will lower our property taxes??? The main reason that the businesses are not doing well is parking (and not internet sales)?????
He has not lost his mind – no, actually he HAS NO MIND.
Trenton NJ, The 2% cap on the raises police and fire unions can win in arbitration saved property taxpayers nearly $3 billion and should be renewed before it expires in December, but Top Democrats in New Jersey including Phil Murphy, the party’s nominee for governor quickly rejected the idea .
A report released on Thursday concluded the law limiting the raises that police and fire unions can win in arbitration should be renewed in an effort to keep property taxes in check.
From the executive summary …. in order to enable public employers to restrain increased costs within the 2% tax levy cap, public employers needed a tool to restrain increases to police and fire salaries, especially when labor disputes are submitted to interest arbitration. The data reviewed by the Task Force confirms that the 2% cap has provided that tool. Since the inception of the law, the average annual base salary increase provided in interest arbitration awards subject to the 2% cap is 1.85%. Even in voluntary settlements to which the 2% cap does not apply, the data confirms that the cap law has had a profound effect.
Indeed, the data shows that for interest arbitration cases subject to the 2% cap settled before an interest arbitration award was issued, the average annual increase to base salary was 1.80%. These numbers are a stark contrast to the average annual increases that were reported to PERC prior to the effective date of the 2010 amendments.2 Not surprisingly, with the right reforms in place, the rate of property tax growth in New Jersey has declined significantly.
While the cap law significantly reduced the growth of labor costs, the Governor Appointees have not uncovered any evidence that these reductions have negatively impacted crime rates or the ability of public employers to recruit qualified candidates for police and fire positions. In summary, the Governor Appointees conclude that the 2010 and 2014 amendments to interest arbitration have effectively addressed the concerns that were at the heart of this bi-partisan legislation. Accordingly, its recommendations set forth herein include the permanent continuation of the most critical elements of those amendments – namely, the procedural changes requiring expeditious resolution of all interest arbitration proceedings and the 2% cap – to ensure that the progress made over the last five years is not lost. (https://www.njassemblyrepublicans.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2017-Governors-Appointees-Arbitration-Report.pdf )
Fiction: Many believe that paper bags are more environmentally friendly than plastic bags because they are made from a renewable resource, can biodegrade, and are recyclable.
Fact: Plastic shopping bags outperform paper bags environmentally – on manufacturing, on reuse, and on solid waste volume and generation.
The Facts
The belief that paper is better than plastic is not based on science or fact. It is based on misconceptions about how plastic bags are made, how landfills work, the incidence of plastic litter, and that non-biodegrading products are bad for the planet.
Numerous life cycle assessments demonstrate that conventional plastic bags are better for the environment than paper bags.
On resource use: plastic bags play an important role in the conservation of the natural gas resource. Plastic bags are made from clean energy natural gas in Canada, specifically from are a piece of natural gas – ethane that is often burned off in the natural gas refining process so that the gas will not burn too hot when used to heat our homes.
On manufacturing: paper bag manufacture is much more resource-intensive than plastic bag manufacture.
On reuse: it is difficult to reuse paper bags because they tend to tear.
On solid waste: paper bags have much greater mass and weigh five to seven times more than plastic bags so they add five to seven times more tonnage to the waste stream for municipalities to manage. This in turn results in a fivefold to sevenfold increase in greenhouse gas emissions.
Ridgewood NJ, how quickly they forget, in his recent letter to the editor , “Will Ridgewood ever build a garage?” ( https://www.northjersey.com/story/opinion/readers/2017/09/28/letter-ridgewood-ever-build-garage/712949001/ ), Councilmen Jeff Voigt continues his efforts to undermine the current council . In the piece Voigt claims ,”One of the initiatives important to Ridgewood council members elected last year is to build a garage on Hudson Street” . Interesting because Voigt ran for office on a “no garage” platform.
The entire letter is once again an effort by Voigt and his small band of “developer owned ,pave over Ridgewood at all cost types ” , to blame the current mayor for all the stupid things done by the previous administration, “the 3 Amigos” . “The mess they created will take years to clean up and a lot of hard work if the Village is not to join the growing list of ” Most White Trash Cities In New Jersey ” ( https://theridgewoodblog.net/website-rolls-out-list-of-10-most-white-trash-cities-in-new-jersey/ ).
The letter like Councilmen Voigt’s behavior on the Dais is a bit convoluted , in one instance he argues to proceed with the garage and on the other he says there is no information on the project and the voters have a right to know . Interesting didn’t that same councilmen try to stop residents from accessing his emails thru OPRA requests ?
Perhaps the councilmen would read the Ridgewood blog more thoroughly in order to get better informed as to the comings and going in the Village of Ridgewood.
Ridgewood Water to upgrade infrastructure piping at 4 Stream Crossings in the Village of Ridgewood
Ridgewood Water announced that the contract to upgrade infrastructure water piping at 4 stream locations has been awarded to Fred Deven’s Construction Company. The project will be managed by Consulting Engineer, Mott MacDonald.
Construction activities have been underway at the East Ridgewood Avenue stream crossing. The casing pipe and water main pipe have been installed across the streambed. Final piping, testing and tie-in’s will be completed in the next few weeks.
In the meantime, Deven’s Construction is anticipating mobilizing to the North Irving Street stream crossing on or about Monday, October 2nd. Construction activities will include setting up temporary barriers for pedestrian traffic, moving equipment and materials on site followed-up by sheet piling of stream bed and construction of the new water main. We anticipate approximately 6 weeks for completion of the North Irving Street stream crossing barring any unforeseen conditions.
Fred Devens will be coordinating with the Ridgewood police who will be directing traffic around work areas on an as needed basis. Expected work hours will be Monday through Friday, 7am – 5:30pm, weather permitting.
Ridgewood Water appreciates the patience of our residents while performing this important work as part of our ongoing commitment in upgrading our water system.
Sincerely,
Ridgewood Water
205 East Glen Avenue
Ridgewood, NJ. 07451
Ph: 201-670-5524
Ridgewood NJ, Three (3) passenger vehicles parked in the driveway of a single family home located on Richards Road in Ridgewood were literally wrecked late Thursday evening, 09/28, when a massive oak tree fell onto them. Ridgewood Police and Fire department responded to the incident. Ridgewood Fire department personnel spread absorbent material under the vehicles to contain leaking motor oil. The tree narrowly missed hitting the nearby home.
Putting aside all of the time wasted on pseudo-science feel good social engineering (bike path to nowhere, garbage tree, gay flag week, Bee City, village wide 25mph speed limit to name a few…)
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and putting aside the obvious irony of a move to ban plastic bags (which have little to no impact in Ridgewood) to save the earth while supporting other large impact projects (like the Ginormous Garage and Multi-unit Low Income Housing) which will greatly impact Ridgewood environmentally (and otherwise)
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it is telling that the REAC to show support for their proposed plastic bag ban quoted a Wired magazine article who’s Title is:
“Banning Plastic Bags Is Great for the World, Right? Not So Fast”
Link: https://www.wired.com/2016/06/banning-plastic-bags-great-world-right-not-fast/
This article concludes that “The larger takeaway is that no bag is free of environmental impact… stating that paper, plastic and even reusable bags all have pros and cons as it relates to the environment.
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Wired ALSO ran another article which was PRO plastic bag “Throwing This Out Here: Plastic Bags Are Amazing and You Should Appreciate Them More”
Link: https://www.wired.com/2016/01/plastic-bags/
This article concluded that “In the grand scheme of environmental problems, ubiquitous plastic bags do not rank that high…” and “Plastic bags may be symbolic of everything bad in our consumerist culture,…”
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SO… it looks like (AGAIN) that the REAC and the increasingly disappointing and useless Village Council is trafficking in feel good social engineering which will only harm and inconvenience Ridgewood residents while making no positive contribution to society other than having yet another hashtag cause to trumpet on social media
