Now Cronk and Dowd WEIGH IN! Puciarelli, Hauck and Aronsohn attack fire and police salaries
Cronk and Dowd now come out in support of Puciarelli, Hauck and Aronsohn. Curious that these two also attack our police and fire fighters. Like Abdoo they complain about salaries in excess of $100,000 but there slick charts and glossy graphs are riddled with misinformation.
Brian Abdoo lives in a $2,000,000 home, Cronk lives in a $1,000,000 home, and Dowd lives in a $2,400,000 dollar home. They want to complain about the salaries of our firemen and police and talk about having the only paid fire department. What these three knuckleheads don’t seem to get is that the municipal budget is not allocated the largest piece of the tax pie. In fact school taxes, which they all support including TURF, is the biggest drain.
The three amigos want our police to earn less than officers in other areas of the state and less than those in New York City. What the fail to mention is they compared the lowest tiered police salaries from other areas to the highest tier of Ridgewood. The other point that fail to mention is those higher salaries are paid to officers who have given more than 20+ years of service. Why are they so inclined to pay the Ridgewood Librarian over $125,000 but not police and firemen?
With their home values averaging around $1.7 million dollars how much would they like to pay our police and firemen? $50,000? $25,000? $62,000? Where on earth would like our finest to live and raise a family? Rochester, New York? I hear there are real deals in Camden. Police and Firemen serve their community better when they live within the community.
These selfish three attempt to divide this community and serve themselves as West side residents with condescending and disparaging comments about their east side neighbors.
Never have I seen such a disgraceful display of divisiveness.
ARONSOHN MUST GO!
Bullet Killion and Shinozuka and tell CRANK , DUDD and ABDOO NO THANKS!
Cronk & Dowd made fools of themselves in the last election. Why would anyone listen to them now?
The thing you have to remember when discussing municipal salaries is that the actual salary is only part of the equation. We live in one of the most expensive areas in the country so it would be unrealistic to think our employee’s are not going to be paid more than “the average.” However; when you add to the salaries, the benefit packages and the retirement packages that Village employees receive you can pretty much double the salary to get an approximation for what the employee actually “costs.” Where it really gets expensive and is unsustainable is the benefits and retirement packages are forever and are passed on to a survivor.
Health care costs rise 5%, 10%, 15% per year, budgets are now capped at annual increases of 2%. Someone please do the math and explain to me how that is going to work as time goes on with the cost basis we currently have.
TURF, TAR & URBANIZE RIDGEWOOD!
I agree with you #2, but want to make the point that the attacks by Cronk, Dowd and Abdoo are very similar. Aronsohn has been a council member for four years and has voted for all of those packages and has taken health benefits courtesy village taxpayers for years.
Of course benefit packages should be a shared expense for all new hires but current contracts are negotiated and settled. The bigger point, which you agree to as well, is how Cronk, Dowd, and Abdoo expect anyone to live on considerably lower salaries to live in this area.
Of course these three, and many others, met with Aronsohn, Hauck and Puciarelli and formulated this “tax” platform to obfuscate the real agenda:TURF, TAR & URBANIZE RIDGEWOOD!
The TURF guys Abdoo, Cronk, Dowd, , The Cement Graydon Group Cronk Dowd and Hauck, Puciarelli who openly supports multiple condo complexes downtown, Puciarelli and Hauck who openly support the massive Valley expansion, Hauck who seeks to urbanize the village and cement over Graydon and wait, then there is Aronsohn. What does he get for all his troubles? Mr. Mayor? Not by my vote. Killion and Shinzouka only.
It is amazing to me that these people cannot take no for an answer.
“Never have I seen such a disgraceful display of divisiveness.” Well, until your post, of course.
yes turf fields ,lights and cement pools are way more important than police and fire
A report is being circulated touting support for Pucciarelli, Hauck & Aronsohn, originated by Cronk & Dowd, filled with ‘fact, figures & graphs’. It is very questionable & disingenuous…….
If it comes your way, read it through & decide whether it is real or false.
I have severe doubts as to accuracy & representation of Ridgewood.
Pages 4 & 5 …whose Municipal Tax Dollars & Expenses (what town)? No source quoted.
Page 6 “Ridgewood’s Municipal Budget Busters”….no source quoted.
On page 7 the source quoted is the Star Ledger on one column only.
Pages 8 are quotes about NJ (NOT Ridgewood only).
If some or all of this applies to Ridgewood, then it is not the fault of the present council but many councils in the past, expenses been increasing for years.
But I am mostly disturbed by the lack of sources for these “Serious Issues” & also the scare tactic of this group at the last minute.
Ido not mind the firemen’s salary they at least earn it but show me what the police in the village do to earn theres.
What’s divisive and wrong is stupid posts like this. YOU are turning it into us vs them or schools vs police/fire. who cares how much Cronk’s or Dowd’s or Abdoo’s house is worth? Right is right and they are right.
cronk and dude r right ??? like with the turf fields???
let me get this straight the guys who want to spend my money on everything and never complained about things like $400,000 toilets are gonna tell me turf fields are more important than cops and firemen
and even though they never objected to all the waste the last 15 years they find Gabberts pay raise objectionable?
big spenders have no credibility on fiscal matters
Let’s not mudsling and divide east & west. The east & west side children can get along, why not the adults?
ok #10…. then you tell me if 12 % was ok how much is too much? 13% 14% 19% at what point is one persons raise too much in your opinion?
Till they grow up