Tag: Valley Hospital

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N.J. judge: Ridgewood has 90 days to clear way for Valley Hospital expansion

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BY STEVE JANOSKI
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD — A state judge ruled Thursday that the Village Council has 90 days to adopt an ordinance putting into effect master plan changes that clear the way for a vast expansion by The Valley Hospital, or else the hospital may “move to enforce” her decision through a court-appointed special master.

The ruling, issued by state Superior Court Judge Lisa Perez Friscia, said the council ordinance must be consistent with April Planning Board approvals allowing the hospital to nearly double in size, from 565,000 square feet to 961,000.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/n-j-judge-ridgewood-has-90-days-to-clear-way-for-valley-hospital-expansion-1.1624628

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Ridgewood’s Valley and Mount Sinai Partner to Provide Comprehensive Cancer Care in Northern New Jersey

Valley Hospital theridgewoodblog.net 131
June 27,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Valley Health System is pleased to partner with Mount Sinai Health System to offer state-of-the-art, comprehensive cancer care in northern New Jersey. This partnership will enable Valley to provide enhanced inpatient and outpatient cancer services by offering access to an expanded roster of clinical trials and Mount Sinai’s nationally renowned experts in the field of cancer care, and the development of new programs and services.

In December 2015, Valley and Mount Sinai announced plans to join forces on clinical programs, research, and educational offerings. The oncology alliance is one of the first such collaborations between the two organizations. Mount Sinai and Valley will work together to enhance patient care both at Valley’s Blumenthal Cancer Center in Paramus and the main campus inRidgewood by:

Establishing new clinical programs and services
Enhancing existing programs and services through access to and coordination with Mount Sinai’s nationally renowned cancer experts
Expanding access to clinical trials
Initiating research programs to advance education and medical science
Establishing clinical information system linkages that will enhance quality, continuity, and evaluation of care
Collaborating in the development of a clinically integrated physician network for the delivery of high-quality, cost-efficient care.

“We are proud to partner with Valley Health System to offer cancer care services,” said Steven Burakoff, M.D., The Lillian and Henry Stratton Professor of Medicine, Professor of Oncological Sciences, and Director of The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, a National Cancer Institute designated cancer center. “We recognize the high quality of cancer care that Valley Health System has traditionally provided, and see many opportunities to offer patients in northern New Jersey the foremost in cancer care through this partnership.”

Arthur Klein, M.D., President of the Mount Sinai Health Network, said of the alliance, “The clinical and academic affiliation between the Valley Health System and the Mount Sinai Health System will lead to better coordinated, higher quality health care in many arenas across our tri-state Metropolitan region.”

New York City-based Mount Sinai comprises seven hospitals and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Valley Health System, headquartered in Ridgewood, New Jersey, includes The Valley Hospital, Valley Home Care, and Valley Medical Group.

“This relationship with Mount Sinai will benefit our community by offering access to an expanded roster of clinical trials, programs, and services for patients diagnosed with cancer,” said Audrey Meyers, President and CEO of Valley Health System and The Valley Hospital. “We look forward to working with Mount Sinai to bring world-class cancer care to the residents of northernNew Jersey.”

According to Robert Korst, M.D., Medical Director of Valley’s Blumenthal Cancer Center, among the first Mount Sinai clinical trials that Valley patients will have access to include new treatments and treatment protocols for cutaneous malignancies, including melanoma and other skin cancers; genitourinary malignancies, including prostate and kidney cancers; and hematologic cancers and serious blood disorders, including leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and myelodysplastic syndromes. Some treatment protocols will include bone marrow transplantation and immunotherapeutic vaccines.

“Many of these new treatments are at the vanguard of cancer care today,” Dr. Korst says. “We are very excited that our patients will experience expanded access to these treatments and to Mount Sinai’s physician network – all integrated within the personalized high-quality cancer care that they receive at Valley and from their Valley physicians and cancer specialists. Our Valley cancer experts also look forward to expanded clinical research opportunities with their colleagues at Mount Sinai.”

Several renowned Mount Sinai cancer experts are expected to begin collaborating with Valley’s cancer care team, including:

Philip Friedlander, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, and Dermatology
Luis M. Isola, M.D., Director of the Bone Marrow Transplantation Program, Gerald J. Friedman Professor of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, and Pediatrics
Sundar Jagannath, M.D., Director of the Multiple Myeloma Program and Professor of Medicine,Hematology and Medical Oncology
William K. Oh, M.D., Chief of the Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Ezra M. Greenspan M.D., Professor in Clinical Care Therapeutics, Associate Director of Clinical Research, and Professor of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, and Urology

An important aspect of this Valley-Mount Sinai partnership is the opportunity for prospective multidisciplinary videoconferences, during which cancer care experts at both hospitals will discuss patient cases with a goal toward determining optimal treatment, follow-up, and management of individual patients. Physicians, researchers, nurses, social workers, and other members of the cancer care teams at both cancer facilities will participate in these videoconferences.

“Our relationship with Mount Sinai also enables our physicians and other members of the cancer care team to reach Mount Sinaiproviders easily for consultations on specific patient cases and for combined educational opportunities, which will allow them to learn from each other,” notes Thomas Rakowski, M.D., Director of Medical Oncology at Valley.

The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons has awarded Valley’s Cancer Program a Three-Year Accreditation with Commendation Gold Level, the highest level of recognition and one attained by only 30 percent of cancer centers in the U.S. It has also been honored by the Commission with a prestigious 2015 Outstanding Achievement Award. Valley is the only hospital in northern New Jersey and one of only two in New Jersey to receive this award in 2015. Other recognitions include a Women’s Choice Award(r) as one of America’s Best Hospitals for Cancer Care and six Gold Seals for cancer care from The Joint Commission.

Valley’s cancer care services include:

Diagnostic pathology, mammography, MRI, CT scan, PET scan, and ultrasound
Medical, surgical, and interventional oncology
Radiation oncology and Gamma Knife Center
Chemotherapy and infusion therapy
Clinical trials
Specialized management of breast, lung, GI, gynecologic, urologic and hematologic cancers
Pain management services
Outpatient and Inpatient Palliative care services for patients needing symptom management
Integrative health services, including massage and exercise classes
Social work services
Nutrition counseling
Genetic counseling
Support groups
Educational programs
Free annual screenings
Home care and hospice services

For more information, please visit www.valleyhealthcancercenter.com.

About Mount Sinai Health System

The Mount Sinai Health System is an integrated health system committed to providing distinguished care, conducting transformative research and advancing biomedical education. Structured around seven member hospital campuses and a single medical school, the Health System has an extensive ambulatory network and a range of inpatient and outpatient services – from community-based facilities to tertiary and quaternary care.

The System includes approximately 7,000 primary and specialty care physicians; 12 joint-venture ambulatory surgery centers; more than 140 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and 31 affiliated community health centers. Physicians are affiliated with the renowned Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, which is ranked among the highest in the nation in National Institutes of Health funding per investigator. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked as one of the nation’s top 10 hospitals in Geriatrics, Cardiology/Heart Surgery, and Gastroenterology, and is in the top 25 in five other specialties in the 2015-2016 “Best Hospitals” issue of U.S. News & World Report. Mount Sinai’s Kravis Children’s Hospital also is ranked in seven out of ten pediatric specialties by U.S. News & World Report. The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked 11th nationally for Ophthalmology, while Mount Sinai Beth Israel is ranked regionally.

For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

About Valley Health System

Valley Health System is a regional healthcare system that employs close to 5,000 people and serves more than 500,000 residents in northern New Jersey and southern New York. It includes The Valley Hospital, a 451-bed, not-for-profit, regional acute-care hospital that has been consistently recognized for quality care and patient satisfaction; Valley Home Care, a home care and hospice agency; and Valley Medical Group, a multispecialty group practice of more than 200 doctors and advanced practice professionals representing over 40 medical and surgical specialties who practice at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, Valley’s Cancer Center in Paramus, eight urgent and primary care centers in New Jersey and New York and many community-based physician practices throughout the region.

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Three Vehicle Collision Shuts Down Oradell Avenue and Pascack Road in Paramus

Three Vehicle Collision Shuts Down Oradell Avenue and Pascack Road in Paramus

photos courtesy of Boyd Lovings Facebook page

June 23,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Paramus NJ, Two (2) drivers involved in a late Wednesday afternoon, 06/22, three (3) vehicle collision at the intersection of Oradell Avenue and Pascack Road in Paramus were transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital with non life threatening injuries. Two (2) of the three (3) vehicles involved were heavily damaged and removed from the scene by a flatbed tow truck. Paramus PD, FD Company #1, and EMS units responded. A minor crash related fluid spill was attended to by fire department personnel. The crash was reported at 5:55 PM.

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Pickup and Landscaping Truck Collision on East Glen Avenue and Paramus Road in Ridgewood

Pickup and Landscaping Truck Collision on East Glen Avenue and Paramus Road in Ridgewood

photos courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page

June 19,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Two (2) adult females were transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital following a Saturday afternoon, 06/16, crash at the intersection of East Glen Avenue and Paramus Road in Ridgewood. Ridgewood PD Patrol Officer Salvatore D’Amico issued three (3) summonses in connection with the crash, at least one (1) of which was to the driver of a large landscaping vehicle who was driving with a suspended drivers license. Both vehicles involved in the collision were removed by tow trucks. Injuries to both victims were reported as non life threatening.

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Thursday afternoon accident in Ridgewood , vehicle hit a utility pole

Ridgewood , Thursday afternoon, 6/16, accident

photo courtesy of Boyd Loving’s Facebook page

June 17,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

 

Ridgewood NJ, The adult female driver of a Toyota RAV4 SUV was transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital following a Thursday afternoon, 6/16, accident in which her vehicle hit a utility pole, crossed over a lane of traffic flowing in the opposite direction, then rolled into a tree before coming to a rest. The incident occurred in front of 678 Grove Street, Ridgewood shortly after 4 PM. The victim reportedly sustained non-life threatening neck and back injuries. There were no other occupants in the vehicle. Ridgewood PD, EMS and FD units responded. A minor crash related fluid spill was attended to by firefighters. The heavily damaged SUV was removed from the scene by a flatbed tow truck.

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The Valley Hospital of Ridgewood is Offering Concussion Baseline Testing on June 29

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Parents, Coaches: Know the Risks of Concussions in Youth Sports

June 7,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, To assist parents and coaches in protecting young athletes from the serious head injuries that can result from returning to play too soon after a suffering a concussion, The Valley Hospital Sports Institute offers the ImPACT Concussion Management Test.  ImPACT (Immediate Post Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) is an innovative computerized evaluation system that assesses the effects and severity of a concussion and helps determine when it is safe for an athlete to return to contact sports following a concussion.

ImPACT testing is suitable for athletes ages 10 and older.  Testing is appropriate in a “group setting” for athletes ages 11 and older.  It is a 20-30 minute neurocognitive test battery
that includes measures of verbal and visual memory, attention span, brain processing speed, and reaction time and balance.  If an athlete experiences a concussion, he or she is re-tested and the baseline data is compared to the post-concussion data to monitor recovery and to help determine when it is safe for the player to return to active sports.  This comparison helps to diagnose and manage the concussion.  Follow-up tests can be administered over days or weeks so clinicians can continue to track the athlete’s recovery from the injury.

The Sports Institute recently enhanced its Concussion Management Program with the addition of the Biodex Biosway Balance testing unit.  The test takes about 5 minutes and provides a psycho-motor assessment of concussion injuries.  Athletes should be tested in the preseason to gather baseline information that can be used for comparison in the event of a concussion to assess the extent of the injury and the athlete’s readiness to return to activity.

Since most high schools in the area have the testing in place already, the Sports Institute is providing this service primarily for the recreation and town-sponsored youth sports teams for athletes ages 11 and older.

The next scheduled baseline testing sessions will take place on Wednesday, June 29, at Valley’s Kraft Center, located at 15 Essex Road in Paramus.  Two sessions will be held on that date: at 4:30 p.m. and at 6:00 p.m. at The tests will be conducted in the 3rd Floor Computer Lab.

Pre-Registration is required, as space is limited.  The fee is $25.  Please call 201-447-8133 for more information and to register.

A concussion is a brain injury.  Concussions are most commonly caused by a bump or blow to the head, but, can also be caused by a sudden deceleration or acceleration of the head.  In either scenario, the brain, suspended inside the skull and surrounded by fluid, continues to travel with momentum until it “bangs” up against the skull – causing a brain-bruising injury – or concussion.  What may seem to be a mild bump or blow to the head can be serious.

You can’t see a concussion.  Signs and symptoms of a concussion can show up right after the injury, or may not appear or be noticed until days or weeks after the injury.  If your child reports any symptoms of concussion, or if you notice the symptoms yourself, seek medical attention right away.  Common symptoms include: headache, dizziness, feeling foggy, nausea, fatigue and confusion.  Common signs include memory loss, a loss of balance and coordination, and changes in personality.  Concussion severity varies widely, and the number of signs and symptoms vary also – serious injuries may show few symptoms.

Although less common, bleeding in the brain can occur with some head injuries.  Loss of consciousness, mental status deterioration and worsening symptoms raise the concern for a bleeding injury.  An athlete does not need to lose consciousness (black out) to suffer a concussion.  In fact, less than 10 percent of concussed athletes lose consciousness.

An athlete who suffers a concussion can be at risk for a condition known as Second Impact Syndrome if he or she returns to sports before full recovery.  Second impact syndrome is a life-threatening condition in which a second concussion occurs before a first concussion has properly healed, causing rapid and severe brain swelling.  Second impact syndrome can result from even a very mild concussion that occurs days or weeks after the initial concussion.

“Second Impact Syndrome can be prevented,” Donald Tomaszewski, Director of The Valley Hospital Sports Institute.  “Don’t allow an athlete to return to sports after a concussion until their symptoms have completely resolved and they have been cleared by a medical professional experienced in treating concussions.”

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Please donate to Concerned Residents of Ridgewood

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Your past contributions have made the difference.

If not for our grassroots involvement, a decade of massive demolition and construction would likely be underway today at Valley Hospital, doubling in size in a location that is already over-burdened.

The Fight Continues!  We vitally need your donations to: 

1) Finish our legal work.  The flawed Master Plan Amendment of 2010 is still on the books of Ridgewood.  The current or any future council could allow Valley to build to the 1.2 million square foot limits approved compared to the current building approximating 550,000 square feet.   While expensive, this legal action is essential to putting a final halt to Valley’s determined drive to expand in the Village.

2) Continue public advocacy before Ridgewood’s Village Council and Land-Use Boards.  The Valley Corporation has seemingly infinite resources and connections to get their way. It is imperative that we continue our grass-roots efforts to counter their efforts to put an incompatible building in our midst.

While there is much corporate and personal money being spent in support of the Valley aspirations, all the opposition is funded by our hard-earned donations. 

ALL DONATIONS ARE NEEDED. BECAUSE LEGAL WORK IS COSTLY, WE ASK YOU CONSIDER $200 OR MORE. HOWEVER, ANY DONATION WILL HELP.

PayPal service is available for you convenience — or please mail your donation to

Concerned Residents of Ridgewood

P.O. Box 150 Ridgewood, NJ 07451.

Checks should be made out to Concerned Residents of Ridgewood

The group does not push that hard for money, but we cannot let them pay for this themselves. Please consider giving any amount–small is a lot better than zero. Let’s dig deep so that Valley doesn’t! Once is not enough–this has been going on for nearly a decade and is expen$$$$ive.

https://stopvalley.com/Donate.html

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Shakespearean tragedy in Ridgewood

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May 26,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, The CRR vs. PB and Valley complaint reads like a Shakespearean tragedy (or comedy), brought about by Valley’s scorched earth tactics and Gail Price’s hubris.  How so?
First, during those “Whispering Woods” hearings, Valley attack dog/super lawyer Jon Drill sends an oh-so polished legal brief to the Board demanding Wendy Dockray be recused for being on Jeff Voigt’s campaign team.  What a smarty pants Jon must have thought he was.  But OOPS, wait a minute Jon, guess you didn’t know that Valley’s second favorite attorney, Ms Gail Price, is married to candidate Richard Brooks? (Hurrah for women who retain their maiden names.)  You didn’t see that one coming, did ya?  And as a good attorney like Jon knows, the ethics rules that govern lay people (like Dockray) go QUADRUPLE for attorneys. It’s called the “appearance of impropriety” standard, meaning CRR doesn’t need to prove there will be a new “Price-Brooks” wing at Valley; there just needs to be the potential for some stank.  But to make it ACTUALLY stanky, when confronted with the conflict allegation in public, Gail still refused to step down as PB attorney and went straight to Facebook and threatened anyone in Ridgewood with “libel” for mentioning that she and Rich are married.
Gail hurdled “impropriety” and went straight to the “F–k you all, I know what’s best for Ridgewood” standard.  That’s why I’m betting we say bye-bye to that mediated settlement, and perhaps to Gail as well. And as for Drill, though he can’t unhoist himself from that petard, I’m thinking Queen Audrey will give him a reprieve because she didn’t know Price and Brooks were married either.
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Ridgewood Emergency Services and Valley Hospital Pioneers Innovative EMS Communication Technology

Ridgewood EMS

EMT Mary Hefferan accessing the Twiage smartphone  application.

May 26,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ ,Ridgewood Emergency Services recently became one of the first EMS providers in New Jersey to participate in a pilot trial of Twiage, a novel prehospital communication and ambulance triage system that accelerates life-saving emergency care. The trial sponsored by Valley Hospital, will utilize Twiage’s smartphone platform aimed to streamline and accelerate the care of patients with medical emergencies upon arrival at the hospital. “Believe it or not, we are in the 21 st Century, but radios are still the current standard of communication between ambulances and the emergency room. Nurses have to step away from patient care to take incoming ambulance calls without knowing which ambulance calls carry patients with critical conditions, ” said John Hui, Executive Vice President of Twiage.

Ridgewood EMTs can use Twiage’s secured smartphone app to capture patient vital signs and demographic information via photos and videos, so hospital emergency departments can improve preparedness for incoming patients. Designed to reduce reliance on antiquated radio communication, Twiage is a HIPAA-compliant system that delivers real-time situational awareness of incoming ambulances to busy emergency departments by providing live patient data and GPS-tracked ETA for all incoming ambulances.

Valley Hospital is one of the early pioneers in the country to launch Twiage. The care of nearly 150 patients to Valley Hospital has been coordinated over the Twiage platform in just 2 months. Ridgewood EMS Captain Murray Yang said, “I believe this program can be of great benefit to achieve our duties as Emergency Medical Technicians. Every second matters in achieving apositive outcome for a patient who's in need of emergency medical care.  Twiage can reduce our patient turnover time to definitive care by 5 to 10 minutes.  In turn, this application will fortify our objective as an organization, the commitment of the 100+ volunteers, who have, and will continue to provide the upmost quality of emergency medical care for the residents of the Village of Ridgewood and its visitors." In addition to Ridgewood Emergency Services, Valley Hospital
EMS and Paramus EMS are also participating in this pilot trial.

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Valley of Ridgewood Partners with Share 911 to Implement a New Emergency Alert and Response System

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May 17, 2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The Valley Health System has partnered with Share 911 to implement a new emergency alert and response system that will provide real-time information to both employees and first responders. This new technology will play a critical role in increasing the system-wide safety measures that protect employees, physicians, volunteers, patients and guests.

Share 911 is not a substitute for calling 911; rather it is a powerful tool that enables co-workers to help each other and make more informed decisions to protect themselves while the police, fire or EMS are en route.

According to Daniel Coss, Director of Security and Public Safety, The Valley Health System, “Over the past few years, Valley has implemented a number of new safety measures to protect both its staff and its patients. Access to Share 911 will serve as a 24/7 emergency resource for all employees.”

Share 911 was founded in 2013 by Ramsey resident Erik Endress, a 30-year volunteer firefighter, and Ray Bailey, a former deputy police chief. The program was then developed by a Ramsey, N.J. based start-up, OnScene Technologies Inc., which is led by developer Adrian Lanning.

The primary goal of Share 911 is to change the way that people respond to emergencies, with a focus on large buildings that have a large number of occupants. Its web-based system is currently being used in approximately 1,000 locations nationwide including hospitals, K-12 schools and private businesses.

When an individual calls 911, the information they share has to be funneled through dispatchers prior to being disseminated to first responders such as police and EMS. This system is highly effective during small scale emergencies, but can become less effective during large scale incidents due to dispatchers receiving an overwhelming volume of calls.

With the invention of Share 911, building occupants, security and police are able to receive real-time information about a current threat— fire, medical or other—on their smart phones, computers or tablets without going through a dispatcher. And, because it’s web-based, there are no limits to the number of people using it at any given time. This means that all employees can use the system simultaneously.

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Reader says Bigger is not always better for Ridgewood

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why are you so interested in Valley increasing it’s business? To bring more traffic, more people smoking on our sidewalks, more employees parking on our streets, more of our police and fire department time spent filing reports of theft and unruly behavior? Maybe you are looking forward to talking to the residents of Steilen Ave who have been dealing with noise and light violations from Valley for years or maybe you are just looking forward to driving into Ridgewood and seeing a 1700 car garage at the intersection of Linwood and Van Dien. Won’t that look beautiful! Maybe they can make the lights that will shine from it 24 hrs a day in a residential neighborhood color coordinated for the holidays. Maybe we should turn the houses on either side of you into high density housing in order to fulfill our fair housing. It will only take 8 months of construction for that, not 6 years. What’s the matter? Just because you bought a house in a residential zone that doesn’t allow hdh doesn’t mean things can’t change, right? In just the same way that Valley’s lot cannot be turned into apartments, Schedler cannot be a 7-11, so just stop with that stupid argument. And yes, the car dealerships should be developed, but changing the density in our cbd from 12 units per acre to 36 was unnecessarily excessive. 24 units per acre would have brought the same benefit without as much downside. Unless of course all you’re concerned about is maximizing the profits of developers. Here’s a word for you to ponder…moderation. Is that so hard to achieve? Bigger is not always better.

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Reader says Councilwoman Hauck claimed on Facebook that all of the Village Council unanimously wanted her to serve on the mediation team

gwenn hauck

Councilwoman Hauck claimed on Facebook that all of the Village Council unanimously wanted her to serve on the mediation team. She wrote that “all five” of them wanted her to serve. This proved to be inaccurate. She asked to be on the mediation team so she could “learn about the litigation.” Susan Knudsen did not want her to be, Mike Sedon was interested but had childcare issues, Albert was recused from the discussion, and Aronsohn wanted Gwenn to serve. According to public comments by Councilman Sedon, the four of them “conceded” to allow Mrs. Hauck to serve. Valley got exactly what they wanted. A friend and generous donor served on the mediation team that was in place to help the residents of Ridgewood. And who won? Surprise, surprise, The Valley rode herd on us.

And oh, by the way, Councilwoman Hauck violated the confidentiality of the Closed Session meeting on December 2nd by announcing on social media how the discussion went. Not only did she violate the closed session meeting confidentiality, but what she said was also grossly inaccurate.

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CONCERNED RESIDENTS OF RIDGEWOOD FILES COMPLAINT AGAINST VILLAGE PLANNING BOARD AND THE VALLEY HOSPITAL

Bike Valley theridgewoodblog.net 71

CRR Alleges 2016 Master Plan Amendment to Allow Valley’s Expansion Was An Improper Settlement of Valley’s Lawsuit Against the Planning Board; Cites Conflict of Interest of Board Attorney; and Finds Fault with Prior Planning Board Processes.

May 16,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ. Concerned Residents of Ridgewood, Inc. (CRR), a New Jersey not-for-profit corporation, filed a Complaint on May 12 th, in the Superior Court of New Jersey against the Planning Board of the Village of Ridgewood and Valley Hospital Inc., demanding that both the 2016 and 2010 Master Plan Amendments tailored to Valley Hospital’s immediate and long-term growth plans be declared null and void. CRR is represented by Michael B. Kates of the law firm of Kates Nussman Rapone Ellis & Farhi, LLP, of Hackensack.

On April 5, 2016, the Planning Board reversed itself and voted to settle the lawsuit that Valley Hospital had filed against the Board in 2014 for rejecting a proposed Master Plan Amendment that would have allowed Valley to more than double in size at the Ridgewood site. The “settlement”reduced Valley’s proposed development from 1,240,000 square feet to 1,206,000, whichrepresents an insignificant 3% reduction in the size of the proposed expansion that was denied in 2014.

CRR’s Complaint questions the motivation behind such a capitulation on principle and sets forth several flaws and improprieties in both the process and reasoning the Board used in arriving at that settlement. Pete McKenna, CRR President, commented, “It is astounding that our Planning Board would capitulate to Valley Hospital for this almost immaterial reduction in the immensity of Valley’s proposed expansion. Neither this settlement, nor the manner in which it took place andwas enshrined as a Master Plan Amendment, are in accordance with the Municipal Land Use Law.”

In another Count of its Complaint, CRR asserts that the process culminating in the settlement was compromised by a conflict of interest, stemming from the fact that the Planning Board’s attorney, Gail Price, did not recuse herself and her firm from advising on the settlement at the same time that her husband, Richard Brooks, was a candidate for Village Council and was expounding in public on his positions on the Valley litigation. This conflict was brought to the Board’s attention by a resident attorney (not CRR), in a letter and during hearings on the settlement, calling for the appointment of outside counsel to replace Ms. Price’s firm, Price, Meese, Shulman and D’Arminio PC. But the Board disregarded the conflict, failed to investigate it, and made no public announcement as to its position following closed session discussions. CRR asserts that the failure to disclose what transpired in closed session, in and of itself, is a violation that should render the settlement null and void. CRR president McKenna contends there may be more to the issue, saying “the conflict issue raises other serious questions about how this settlement process was handled by the Board, and we intend to get some answers in this lawsuit.”

In a further Count of the Complaint, CRR asserts that the Board, at the direction of attorney Price, committed major procedural errors during the Board’s consideration of Valley Hospital’s proposed Master Plan Amendments, dating back to 2006. The Complaint focuses particular attention on how Ms. Price applied Ridgewood’s Ordinance 3066 in a way that severely restricted the participation of CRR and the residents, created prohibitively narrow standards for evidence to be put forth by the community, gave disproportionate control of the proceedings to Valley, and ultimately, in CRR’s words, “turned the master plan process upside down”. As set forth in the Complaint, the Planning Board attorney wrongly precluded any modification of the Amendment proposed by Valley, stating that such a narrow approach was “in contravention of the Municipal Land Use Law’s vesting of absolute discretion in the Planning Board to craft a Master Plan according to the Board’s understanding of the public interest and not according to the narrower interest of any property owner.” In sum, Ms. Price’s handling of the Master Plan Amendment hearings pervasively skewed the process in Valley’s favor.

Regarding the conflict of interest issue, CRR believes Mr. Brooks’ pursuit of public office to be laudable, and in fact recognizes his considerable contributions to our Village. The fault here, CRR contends, lies with the candidate’s spouse who is a government official and who does not recuse herself or her law firm from concurrent mediation and settlement discussions that concern the largest single development project in Village history. CRR also stated that it resolved to take this action during the first week of May, but did not want it to appear to unfairly influence Mr. Brooks’ candidacy or the municipal election; therefore, the organization purposefully delayed filing its Complaint until the election had ended.

“Concerned Residents of Ridgewood does not take legal action lightly, and realizes such action incurs an unfortunate expense to Village taxpayers and even more to those residents who will donate to CRR to fund our legal effort; however, due to the continued mismanagement of the Master Plan process and the potentially dire and irreversible consequences of the Master Plan Amendment of 2016, we feel bound to take this action to protect the character of the Village and the wellbeing of the community, and most importantly, the welfare of children attending BF Middle School who would have to endure more than six years of construction during phase one of the expansion,” Mr. McKenna further stated.

Constant Contact newsletter page, where you may help support us through Pay Pal or a check. If you’d like to be on our email list for updates, wish further information, or have any questions, please contact [email protected].

CRR’s efforts on behalf of our community are expensive. 
We are in need of donations to pay our legal fees.
 
Please donate generously today by using this link: 
Donate
Or checks payable to “CRR” can be mailed to: 
CRR,  PO Box 150, Ridgewood, NJ 07451
Thank you for your support!  
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Morristown Medical Center Tax Court Ruling Opens door for Valley Hospital to pay Property Taxes in Ridgewood

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May 17,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, In a closely watched property tax case with significant financial and policy implications for hospitals and possibly the broader non-profit community statewide,and the Village of Ridgewood , a Tax Court of New Jersey judge on June 25, 2015, ruled that Morristown Medical Center is not entitled to tax exemption on nearly all of its property in Morristown.

In Ridgewood ,Valley’s main campus would be rated for tax purposes at over $4 million per year. EVERY district was won by Voight, Walsh and Hache in a total rejection of the mayor and his policies .Given the statement made in Tuesday’s election, there would be popular support behind pursing this revenue using any and all means necessary.

Noteworthy elements of the Morristown decision:

Except for some very narrow exceptions such as its parking garage, auditorium and fitness center, almost all of the hospital’s property was deemed to be taxable for failing the “profit” test (see below) because non-profit and for-profit activities were significantly commingled and conferred substantial benefits on the for-profit entities as a result.

Compensation was a significant factor in the opinion.  Although IRS guidelines have for years allowed exempt organizations to establish the reasonableness of compensation under federal law by analyzing compensation levels against those of comparable organizations, the judge dismissed such a standard as insufficient because the hospital failed to also verify that the compensation at the other comparable institutions was itself also reasonable.  In essence, this ruling disregards the IRS framework for reasonableness of compensation in use by thousands of charities nationwide.

In his conclusion, the judge stated that if all hospitals in their current form are structured like Morristown then none are justified in receiving property tax exemption, and it’s up to the legislature to enact statutory changes that would change this framework.

On November 11, 2015, a settlement was announced between Atlantic Health System (the parent of Morristown Medical Center) and the Town of Morristown, in which the hospital agreed to pay $15.5 million in back taxes and penalties, plus annual property taxes on 24 percent of the hospital’s property from 2016 to 2 . (https://www.njnonprofits.org/PropertyTax_MorristownMedical.html)

It is hard to argue that these same or similar elements would apply Valley Hospital as Well.