Ridgewood NJ, After what has been called by some as the “Reign of Terror” , the newly elected Village of Ridgewood Council opened on Friday with the election of its two remaining council members to the position of mayor and deputy mayor.
A celebratory atmosphere greeted the new council in what can only be characterized as a triumph of the people .
Councilwomen Susan Knudsen, who was elected to the council in 2014, was unanimously voted in as mayor and Councilmen Michael Sedon also elected in 2014 was then named deputy mayor by the same 5-0 vote.
Over the last several years Knudsen and Sedon made up the council minority often voting against their former colleagues . For their efforts they were often ostracized but continued to fight for sanity in a Village government driven by bullying tactics ,special interest and machine politics.
The pair is joined by newly-elected Ramon Hache and Jeffrey Voigt and former Councilwoman Bernadette Coghlan-Walsh to form the Village Council for the next two years.
2. Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act
3. Roll Call of Current Village Council – Village Clerk
4. Flag Salute
5. Invocation – Father Ronald Rozniak – Our Lady of Mount Carmel RC Church
6. Recording of Song by Ridgewood Resident, Kristen Plumley, Soprano, “Simple Gifts”
7. Comments from the Public (Not to exceed 5 minutes per person – 30 minutes in total)
8. Approval of Minutes
9. Resolution #16-181 – Approval of Girl Scout Gold Award
10. Remarks by Councilwoman Gwenn Hauck (as she leaves the dais)
11. Remarks by Councilman Albert J. Pucciarelli (as he leaves the dais)
12. Remarks by Mayor Paul S. Aronsohn (as he leave the dais)
13. Reading of Certificate of Election of Ramon M. Hache – Heather A. Mailander, Village Clerk
14. Oath of Office Administered to Ramon M. Hache by James J. Tedesco III, Bergen County Executive
15. Remarks by Councilman Hache
16. Reading of Certificate of Election of Jeffrey Voigt –
Heather A. Mailander, Village Clerk
17. Oath of Office Administered to Jeffrey Voigt by Sergio Alegre, Esq.
18. Remarks by Councilman Voigt
19. Reading of Certificate of Election of Bernadette Coghlan Walsh – Heather A. Mailander, Village Clerk
20. Oath of Office Administered to Bernadette Coghlan Walsh by Bergen County Freeholder Maura R. DeNicola
21. Remarks by Councilwoman Walsh
22. Roll Call of New Village Council – Heather A. Mailander,Village Clerk
23. Call for Nominations for Office of Mayor by Heather A. Mailander, Village Clerk
24. Administering of Oath of Office to Mayor by Matthew S. Rogers, Village Attorney
25. Call for Nomination for Office of Deputy Mayor by Mayor
26. Administering of Oath of Office to Deputy Mayor by Heather A. Mailander, Village Clerk
27. Remarks by Deputy Mayor
28. Remarks by Mayor
29. RESOLUTIONS
THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTIONS, NUMBERED 16- THROUGH 16- ARE TO BE ADOPTED BY A CONSENT AGENDA, WITH ONE VOTE BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL. THERE IS A BRIEF DESCRIPTION BESIDE EACH RESOLUTION TO BE CONSIDERED ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. EACH RESOLUTION WILL BE READ BY TITLE ONLY:
16-182 Appoint Village Attorney
16-183 Appoint Village Labor Attorney
16-184 Appoint Village Prosecutor
16-185 Appoint Public Defender
16-186 Appoint Community Development Representative
16-187 Appoint Representative to Open Space Trust Regional Committee
16-188 Appoint Members to the Planning Board
16-189 Appoint Members to the Zoning Board of Adjustment
16-190 Appoint Members to Community Center Advisory Board
16-191 Appoint Members to Financial Advisory Committee
16-192 Appoint Members to the Ridgewood Arts Council
16-193 Appoint Member to the Shade Tree Commission
16-194 Appoint Members to the Parks, Recreation and Conservation Board
16-195 Appoint Member to the Green Team Advisory Committee
16-196 Appoint Village Council members as Liaisons to Various Boards and Committees
30. Comments from the Public (Not to Exceed 5 minutes per person)
Yes, indeed Derek Schnure! Aronsohn, Pucciarelli, and Hauck HATE the Blog and complain endlessly about anonymous bloggers. Of course then we find out that Hauck’s husband was posting nasty comments about two of Gwenn’s colleagues on the council, and that Albert and Paul were posting anonymously all the time as was Roberta.
The Blog enables people to say what they really think, to air grievances, to reveal hidden secrets, all without fear of retribution. Pucciarelli vilified the blog all the time, but he was obvioulsy one of the big anonymous posters. Hauck told everyone to be very careful what they put on social media, and then she blasted people viciously on facebook while her husband was doing so on the blog. Aronsohn touted transparency but then fed total BS to the news outlets, who were too lazy to get the facts and just printed his falsehoods.
The Blog and other forms of social media are amazing tools for the little people. Seems that the VOCAL MINORITY that Aronsohn and Halaby always talked about weren’t so minority after all.
We are simply fortunate that this is a educated town for the most part and that the public serves as checks and balances. Think it is healthy that there was a housecleaning of the council because there was obviously mistrust whether warranted or not. Certain issues can now be looked at with a relatively clean slate. though some large issues like Valley will still carry forward. On that matter, I hope Ridgewood will stand its ground and not accept any cave in and also follow what other communities are doing as far as challenging the farcical tax exempt status From experience , local govt isnt easy especially for newcomers who are usually idealistic before realities set in. NJ govt excesses and obligations to an over sized public sector has impacted all municipalities .
I can say that no one should come in to local politics with a personal agenda unless it is to serve their community. Shouldnt be a stepping stone to better and greater things. Ridgewood doesnt need career politicians but civilans that fight for their townspeople at every turn. Unfortunately influence peddlers muddy the waters so much that which was once a clear vision become foggy. It can be difficult to stand against the self interests of the influential when you become influential enough to be in those circles.Others simply make mistakes out of good intent.
I wish this new council the best and hope that they remember that they were elected to serve their community first and foremost. This isnt about them but the overriding wishes of the majority. Best advice I can give is to listen to your citizenry and communicate with them with honesty. Never gonna make all happy but Ii people respect your reasoning then they can accept even if they cant embrace
I think we need to vote NO, I personally don’t trust what is going on regarding the garage project. I think we need to have the incoming council with the help of our residents and town professionals ie engineer and superintendent take a step back and come up with a plan that is acceptable to our residents. The vote that elected new council members basically was an outcry from our residents that enough is enough and we need a council that works together.
I went to many town council meeting over the last year and could not believe how Susan and Michael were not given information regarding the Garage. If they were given info it was hours before the meeting while the 3 amigos had all the information way ahead of the meetings. IT is apparent by the 2015 vote for a new garage our town wants additional parking, I say let’s let the new Council resolve this issue. I have lived in this town 26 years and can wait another 6 months to resolve this problem.
Don’t Be Fooled – Special Garage Election Video Don’t Be Fooled – Special Garage Election Video
June 20,2016
Dana Glazer
Ridgewood NJ, if there is any doubt in your mind what the incoming Village Council thinks about tomorrow’s special election, look no further than this short video.
The outgoing threesome were completely unelectable. That is why they did not run again. They will tell you that they CHOSE not to run, but get a reality check. They did not run because they did not want the public humiliation of losing big time. The three they supported so heavily lost in an epic landslide, a tidal wave of a statement against the HAUCK-ARONSOHN-PUCCIARELLI machine.
Now they have the audacity to be openly critical of the newly elected, and not yet sworn in, council members. Letters, videos, facebook postings, etc, they are finding ways to slam Ramon and Jeff and Bernie every chance they get. How the hell dare they criticize Ramon, Jeff, and Bernie. Give them a chance for heaven’s sake. Aronsohn, Hauck, and Pucciarelli are so low class it is disgusting. They have left the biggest mess in their wake, and we look like fools thanks to their antics. And oh, yes, what was it that blondie stated the other day? I HAVE NEVER DISRESPECTED ANYONE. More accurate would have been for her to state that I HAVE NEVER DISPRESPECTED ANYONE IN THE LAST THIRTY SECONDS. Gwenn has been the nastiest most uncivil elected officer imaginable, well, so has Albert and so has Paul. Good riddance to them. For awhile they were like herpes, always lurking and causing outbreaks. Thankfully the voters found a cure for this disease, and we are almost rid of them.
Vote NO on Tuesday. Let the new council make the wise decisions regarding parking solutions. Thank you
Some confusion has been building the past few days surrounding the upcoming June 21st special referendum vote for local bond ordinance 3521, and I want to take this opportunity to unequivocally state my opinion.
I will be voting no in Tuesday’s special election.
In order for the new council to move forward with a comprehensive parking plan for the Central Business District, which includes a reasonable parking structure, it is imperative that we can do so without having our hands tied by the outgoing council majority.
A no vote will not defeat a parking structure. It will allow us, the new council, to incorporate such a structure into the fabric of our CBD along with other solutions that have been mentioned in the past by some of my other colleagues and myself.
I would like to explore the option of creating one way streets on Chestnut, Oak, North Walnut streets and Cottage Place to add angled parking on both sides. This could potentially increase parking by 60 to 80 spots on the street right in front of where customers are trying to go. A side benefit could also be increased pedestrian safety, as visitors to our CBD would only have to look one way for oncoming traffic.
A comprehensive plan could also include the purchase or leasing of private lots throughout the CBD and an expansion of technology to aid in the parking solution.
A true parking committee should be formed that includes residents, property and business owners along with Village officials to further explore any other ideas that could improve our situation.
The mayor’s previous parking committee did not include residents, and in my opinion resulted in information that appeared filtered and then potentially misrepresented when it reached the wider public.
This outgoing council majority has proven over and over that they cannot be trusted, and I for one will not give them any more trust by supporting what has become a monument to deceit and manipulation.
The new council is willing and excited to work with the public and bring all interested residents along in a process that we can be proud of as a community.
Residents spoke loud and clear in the May 10th Village Council election with the landslide victory of three bright, intelligent and independent candidates, who I am greatly looking forward to calling my colleagues very soon.
Please send that message one more time with a no vote on Tuesday and let the new council finish this important work for the benefit of all of Ridgewood.
First, the referendum in the Fall was non binding. Second, the Council majority has apparently spent over HALF A MILLION DOLLARS on a design the may very well be voted down next week. And you gripe about $45K? For the past 4 years, these 3 individuals, emboldened by a 3/5 majority on the Council which they won by 8 votes, have acted as though they know what’s best for the rest of us and had a mandate to do whatever they wanted.
They have ignored, ridiculed and threatened anyone who has presented an opposing point of view. Having done this to as many of their constituents as they have, they are now dealing with the backlash. While the backlash has not been kind, it has been more than deserved.
The past 4 years should be presented as a civics course at Ridgewood High School. This is why you vote, this is what happens when you vote for the wrong people, this is what happens when elected officials misuse their authority, this is what happens when you get caught insulting your political adversaries anonymously on social media, this is what happens when the tax payers revolt and take back their government. This petition and special election are a perfect example of what the People are capable of when they band together. Vote NO on June 21.
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Ridgewood NJ, Jane Milanos, owner of Milridge Realty LCC, a major property owner within the RIdgewood Central Business District, gave $2,000 to the Richard Brooks for Council campaign according to records filed with the NJ Election Law Enforcement Commission.
Milridge Realty is headquartered at 35 Park Street, Tenafly, NJ, the same address as was reported on the below noted document.
The most recent post election related report filed by Janice Willett shows no contributions received from outside sources and Evan Weitz has not yet filed a post election report.
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.
Ridgewood NJ, readers continue to takes issue with Gwenn “drunken tiriad” at village hall after the humiliating defeat of the Aronsohn slate .Many residents can’t get over the fact that Gwenn lost it the night everyone met at the Community Center to hear the election results. She certainly had been drinking but that really is a non issue( Many drunks are nice!) .
Gwenn literally went into the face of a resident screaming and cursing and saying, ” Are you fucking gloating” and other curses. Her extremely rude husband who,is known for his rudeness, grabbed her to take her away all the while smiling and saying, ” we have freedom of speech, she can say anything she wants!” A classy act .
All three of the outgoing council members have demonstrated serious narcissistic rage issues. So many have witnessed these rants or have been the victim of them.
They have held these anti free speech civility meetings for two years basically attacking everything and everyone but themselves.
If the new council is only better in this department, we are most definitely in a better place. The behavior has affected so many areas of village government including not allowing for real conversation about problems in the departments.
Add that to the fact that the village manager acted as a 6th council member and was encouraged to do so made it impossible for Susan and Mike to have the impact they tried so hard for.
Fortunately, for residents a perfect storm developed: so many citizen groups with a variety of issues speaking out at once. There was no way they were going to beat that and that it is why they tried to push everything through in such an aggressive manner so quickly.
Ridgewood NJ, the Village of Ridgewood Budget passed no issues, 5-0 .Yes, the threesome Hauck, Puccrelli and Aronsohnand even Roberta were a bit subdued after their humilating loss and rejection at the polls. Both Ramon Hache and Jeff Voigt attended the meeting.
The discussion of Albert’s proposed resolution/ ordinance regarding filming/ recording of public committee meetings was a bit misleading. The deputy mayor made it sound as if he was protecting members who might be talking about personal issues: children’s grades,etc. This novel interpretation was a bit of a stretch .The issue of taping meetings only occurred after citizens were concerned about what was going on at these meetings ie the treats and intimidation and possible undue influence from council members, the Village manager and others. Sure enough when Dana went to the HPR meeting with Lorraine and others, they witnessed Paul aggressively challenging an attendee and then losing it when he realized Dana was filming it.
Our committees seem to have lost all their independence and act sometimes at the bequest of the mayor. One of our readers has suggested that these meetings ( Financial Advisory Committee) should have available minutes and also that the interviewing process is intimidating and biased. In the past , we weren’t interviewed and members who came often and showed interest often become chairperson, etc. We hope that this can be reviewed with the new council.
As far as our water and sludge! , we have problems and all the feel good forums in the world won’t fix that.
You came out in record numbers. With your votes you said, loudly and clearly: “No more grandstanding. No more bullying. No more manipulation. No more hypocrisy. No more special interests, outside influence, self-promotion. We are taking our village back.”
You said: “We want to see planning—not plotting. We want to see dreaming—not scheming.”
You said: “No more ‘deals.’ No more promises or pledges except to the community at large.”
You said: “No more ‘council majority’ for every vote. No more insults and contempt from the dais to fellow residents and to the populace who elected them. No more ignoring the impassioned pleas of hundreds of calm, well-spoken residents on issues of great importance to us.”
GOODBYE to all that.
Hello to three independent-thinking council members who will join our two continuing independent-thinking council members to cooperate and collaborate—not conspire and collude.
Hello to true, not lip-service, transparency and sunshine, with discussions held in public and decisions made afterward, not before—as Councilman Mike Sedon assured a cheering crowd at Village Hall last night after the results had been announced.
Welcome back, democracy.
Congratulations and thank you to the large number of people who worked to get out the vote and to everyone who voted. The grassroots groups finally attained unity and showed what our village is made of. We could not be denied.
This is a historic win for Ridgewood. We can now look to the future with hope.
“Unofficial” results (must be vetted by the county to become “official”), from highest to lowest number of votes received:
Ramon M. Hache: 3867 (67.87%)
Jeffrey Voigt: 3839 (67.37%)
Bernadette Coghlan-Walsh: 3611 (63.37%)
Janice M. Willett: 1803 (31.64%)
Evan Weitz: 1736 (30.47%)
Richard S. Brooks 1656 (29.06%)
Number of registered voters: 16,740
Number of votes cast: 5,698
Percentage of registered voters voting: 34.04%
In all 19 districts, the winning candidates had the most votes.
A district-by-district breakdown of election results, showing votes cast for each candidate, percentages, and totals, is available in a table posted on the village website:
For a more legible type size, click on the “plus” sign in the middle of the band across the top of the screen or use the tiny arrows to increase the percentage to 200%. To read the part of the table that no longer shows, hold your cursor on the “right arrow” at the bottom right of the screen.
A small map showing the borders of each voting district can be found on the 2016 village calendar: flip one page in from the back cover. We have asked Dylan Hansen, Director, Management Information System, Village of Ridgewood, to post the map on the village website for general and future reference. He said he would, probably today.
The polling place list, by district, below can be deceptive; for example, District 12, surrounding Travell School to the south and west, votes at the high school. Check the voting map for a better idea of who lives where.
District 12 came out in force at 48% of registered voters there—a first? District 1 at 41% and District 15 at 40% displayed similarly impressive shows of strength.
Our new council members have a lot to do. They are eager to start.
They will be sworn in at noon on Friday, July 1, in the 4th-floor courtroom at Village Hall. At that time the current regime will officially end. The public is, as always, invited.
Onward.
Swimmingly,
Marcia Ringel and Alan Seiden
Co-Chairs, The Preserve Graydon Coalition, Inc., a nonprofit corporation
