Meet the Village Manager – Saturday, November 22nd 9am to Noon
Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld will hold office hours for Ridgewood residents and business owners on Saturday, November 22nd between the hours of 9am to 12 Noon. This is an opportunity to share your thoughts and provide input to Roberta. These sessions will be scheduled at 15 minute intervals and will be held in the Council Chambers on the 4th Floor of Ridgewood Village Hall. Please contact Beth Spinato at 201-670-5500, ext. 203 to make an appointment. Walk-ins are welcome but should realize that the schedule may already be booked. We will announce the schedule for these meetings on a monthly basis.
Ridgewood residents grow frustrated with planner’s housing testimony
NOVEMBER 21, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2014, 10:29 AM BY LAURA HERZOG STAFF WRITER | THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Frustration with a lack of certainty was the theme of Monday’s Planning Board hearing on a master plan amendment that would allow high-density apartments downtown.
At the meeting, which at one point attracted more than 70 people, about 20 members of the public continued questioning Village Planner Blais Brancheau about the proposed amendment.
That questioning first began at a meeting earlier this month.
This Monday, many residents related their concern to the “speculative nature” of the benefits expected from the amendment – like an expected boost to business in the Central Business District (CBD) and the belief that many local seniors would want to move from a home to an apartment.
These concerns came in combination with what many consider to be a biased decision on the village’s part: to say that, on the other hand, factors of speculative concern to the public either were unlikely or should not drive the decision-making process for the Planning Board.
Some of these concerning factors for the public included the maximum units that could be built with the proposed amendment and associated costs. On Monday, Brancheau revised an estimate he offered at the last meeting – 500-700 units – to 325-545 units, calling this an unlikely scenario and a “very, very rough guess.”
“I just would like to know what the real numbers are … We have not yet heard any numbers in terms of extra costs, much less the projected revenue of the taxes on these buildings,” said resident Felicia Angus.
Just wanted to provide you with another update on how our leaf collection season is going.
We have picked up 13,933 cubic yards of leaves so far this season; in 2013 the total number was 35,967 cubic yards so we still have a bit to go.
Most of our resident comments still relate to the schedule; I am including the schedule below, and as a reminder – if we get to your area earlier than we have indicated, we will be back.
The number of resident complaints is down significantly year over year Our most significant number of complaints over the previous two seasons was that we left a mess and didn’t clean up. This was a valid resident complaint as we stopped using rakers the last two seasons; the rakers are back and we believe that it is making a huge difference. We are also getting some kudos on the level of communication and the quality of the work.
The fact that the season is running better also has to do with each of you; following guidelines on what can be in the piles, as well as keeping the streets open so that we can work, makes us all more effective.
Leaf Collection Schedule:
Area A Dec. 1-5 Area B Nov. 24-28, Dec. 11-17 Area C Dec. 8-12 Area D Nov. 20-26, Dec. 15-19
Issa calls Gruber to testify before Oversight
By Sarah Ferris – 11/21/14 09:47 AM EST
The House Oversight Committee is asking embattled former ObamaCare consultant Jonathan Gruber to testify at a hearing next month on the “transparency failures” of the administration’s healthcare law.
Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) sent a letter to Gruber on Thursday, about two weeks after videos surfaced in which the adviser suggested that a “lack of transparency” and the “stupidity of the American voter” helped Congress pass ObamaCare.
The chairman also invited Marilyn Tavenner, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), whose own investigation found that the Obama administration had inflated its enrollment numbers by about 400,000 people, helping to lift it past the much-touted 7 million goal.
“The American people deserve honesty, transparency and respect from those who forced the federal government into their healthcare,” wrote Issa in a statement Friday.
“I expect Mr. Gruber and Administrator Tavenner to testify publicly next month about the arrogance and deceptions surrounding the passage and implementation of ObamaCare,” he added.
The hearing will take place December 9, the last week of the lame-duck Congress, in what would likely be the outgoing chairman’s last Oversight hearing.
TOMORROW (Saturday, November 22nd) NEWT & CALISTA GINGRICH at Bookends Ridgewood
NEWT & CALISTA GINGRICH will discuss and sign there new books: BREAKOUT and FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA at 1:00pm…
Appearing authors will only autograph books purchased at Bookends and must have valid Bookends Receipt.Availability & pricing for all autographed books subject to change.Bookends cannot guarantee that the books that are Autographed will always be First Printings. Autographed books purchased at Bookends are non-returnable. While we try to insure that all customers coming to Bookends’ signings will meet authors and get their books signed, we cannot guarantee that all attendees will meet the author or that all books will be signed. We cannot control inclement weather, author travel schedules or authors who leave prematurely. Bookends, 211 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450 201-445-0726
N.J. mayors vent anger at legislative leaders at League of Municipalities
Matt Friedman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
ATLANTIC CITY — New Jersey’s legislative leaders got an earful today from angry local officials during an event at the State League of Municipalities Conference.
“If we ran our towns like you run this state, we would have been tarred and feathered a long time ago,” Beraards Township Mayor John Carpenter said.
“You guys are skimming off of everything. I mean, organized crime doesn’t skim as well as you do,” said Point Pleasant Beach Mayor John Barrella, seconds before apologizing for the organized crime comparison.
Carpenter’s complaint was that much of the discussion had been on whether to raise the gas tax and cut the estate tax, but that he had not heard anything about reducing or controlling spending. Barrella’s beef was that his town couldn’t levy local option taxes that target tourists so it could reduce dependence on property taxes.
They were just two of the many gripes lobbed at state Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean Jr. (R-Union), state Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-Hudson) and Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick (R-Union) during a wide-reaching, hour and a half discussion.
Many of the issues, like pensions, transportation and property taxes, might seem dry to most people, but not elected officials grappling with strained budgets and angry constituents.
Piscataway Mayor Brian Wahler, who sat on the panel, said of the Legislature: “If they don’t meet, that’s actually a good thing.”
Scott with Old Tappan resident Soyoung Park, the winner of the 2014 Congressional Art Competition
Rep Scott Garrett Statement on Obama’s Unconstitutional Amnesty
Nov 20, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), founder and Chairman of the Congressional Constitution Caucus, issued the following statement after President Obama announced that he would violate his oath to uphold the Constitution and grant approximately 5 million illegal immigrants work permits:
“After repeated admissions that the Constitution precludes him from granting amnesty, President Obama has chosen to cast aside his oath to uphold the supreme law of the land and is going to grant amnesty anyway. The president’s frustration with Congress, as the Washington Post’s editorial board noted, ‘doesn’t grant the president license to tear up the Constitution.’ No provision of the Constitution grants the president the power to change the law simply because the president disagrees with Congress. This sets a fatal precedent – is there no longer any limit to a president’s power?
“Today, President Obama has also turned his back on American workers and law-abiding immigrants. At a time when American workers are desperate for jobs, the president has decided to unfairly reward those who have blatantly broken the law with blanket amnesty and work permits, allowing them to directly compete with American workers for jobs that are hard to find already. I am committed to undoing the damage this unconstitutional action will have on our republic.”
BACKGROUND: As the New York Times’ Michael Shear pointed out, President Obama has already explained why he cannot do this:
In a Telemundo interview in September 2013, Mr. Obama said he was proud of having protected the “Dreamers” — people who came to the United States illegally as young children — from deportation. But he also said that he could not apply that same action to other groups of people.
“If we start broadening that, then essentially I’ll be ignoring the law in a way that I think would be very difficult to defend legally,” Mr. Obama told Jose Diaz-Balart in the interview. “So that’s not an option.”
During a news conference in Australia, he said that his earlier answers about the limits of his executive authority were prompted by people who asked him whether he could enact, by fiat, a bipartisan immigration bill that had passed the Senate, which would have provided a path to legalization for more of the 11 million unauthorized immigrants here.
“Getting a comprehensive deal of the sort that is in the Senate legislation, for example, does extend beyond my legal authorities,” Mr. Obama said Sunday. “There are certain things I cannot do.”
The president was pressed on that very issue during a Google Hangout in February 2013. An activist asked whether he could do more to keep families from being “broken apart” while Congress remained gridlocked on immigration legislation.
“This is something that I have struggled with throughout my presidency,” Mr. Obama said. “The problem is, is that I’m the president of the United States, I’m not the emperor of the United States. My job is to execute laws that are passed.”
November 21, 2014, 12:20 PM Last updated: Friday, November 21, 2014, 1:40 PM
By STEFANIE DAZIO
staff writer |
The Record
RIDGEWOOD — A 48-year-old village man is charged with aggravated assault in connection with shoving his girlfriend Thursday and training a gun’s laser sight on her earlier Saturday, authorities said.
Robert Luh was originally charged with simple assault in connection with Thursday’s shoving match, but the victim told police about previous incidents, village police Detective Chris McDowell said. He is now charged with aggravated assault, unlawful possession of a weapon and terroristic threats.
NOVEMBER 21, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2014, 12:31 AM
BY GAIL KISLEVITZ
CORRESPONDENT |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
What does it take to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 up the side of a volcano, and then run a 26.2-mile marathon? Ask Ridgewood resident and Fire Lieutenant Brendan Corcoran, who completed the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii last month. Corcoran battled heat and extreme winds in order to complete the event in just over 10 hours.
Brendan Corcoran completed the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii in just over 10 hours placing him in the top quarter of more than 2,100 racers. At right, he relaxes with his wife, Kate, and daughters Cailin, 4, and baby Keira.
Corcoran secured his spot for the World Championships in Kona, a qualifying event, by placing fifth in his age group at Ironman Mont Tremblant in Canada in August, leaving precious little time to recover and start training again. Qualifying and succeeding in Kona has been a goal of Corcoran’s for years – this was his fifth Ironman event since his inaugural Ironman in 2007.
What got him hooked on the Ironman began in middle school when he was watching sports on television. He saw an Ironman competition and was intrigued with the whole concept, enough that he tucked it in the back of his mind as something he would want to do someday. It took just about 25 years for that dream to become a reality.
Gymboree on East Ridgewood Avenue now shuttered November 20,2014 Boyd A. Loving 9:22 PM
The Gymboree retail children’s clothing chain closed its store located at 234 East Ridgewood Avenue late last week. The building is owned by Milridge Realty, LLC of Tenafly, NJ. No word on whether the building owner has a new tenant scheduled to move in.
The Gymboree Corporation is a specialty retailer operating stores selling high-quality apparel and accessories for children under the Gymboree, Gymboree Outlet, Janie and Jack, and Crazy 8 brands, as well as play programs for children under the Gymboree Play and Music brand.
The nearest Gymboree store to Ridgewood is at the Paramus Park shopping mall
Reader says with 500-700 new units at a bare minimum, water and sewer services will need upgrades
At a bare minimum, water and sewer services in NJ will need upgrades. We have water restrictions every summer, so hard to imagine that problem goes away. There have been many articles in past year on need to upgrade sewers.
As noted, traffic will be a nightmare, particularly at the Broad st intersection (now proudly sporting a nice bike lane) despite the experts believing these people will walk everywhere they go.
Schools will have to be re-districted at minimum for elementary, and maybe middle school. I don’t know how close to capacity the HS is, but I suspect it’s close.
I think the “experts” projected some ridiculously small number of students, but I think we all know better.
The council needs to balance the costs of all of these upgrades with the benefit of the tax revenues the projects would generate. To a certain extent, it is likely an all or nothing proposition, as if they reject 1 and allow another, we’ll be in court fighting that, too.
Reader says Previous Reports make it obvious that the densities being proposed in ridgewood are too dense.
So Brancheau doesn’t consider the extensive report prepared by CBR’s attorneys to be adequate planning? CBR spent tens of thousands on hiring a well respected law firm which prepared a 25 page report comparing densities of the most desirable municipalities in Bergen, towns comparable to Ridgewood, which have maintained densities per acre in line with, or just slightly higher than Ridgewood’s current master plan which allows for 12 units per acre in the business district…This report analyzed regs of 72 municipalities in Bergen..a quick review of this report makes it obvious that the densities being proposed in ridgewood are too dense.
The board also heard testimony from and received an 18 page report from professional planner Brigitte Bogart…who was also hired by CBR..this report details how the proposed development/amendment to the master plan would affect our schools, traffic, open space deficiency, need for additional resources such as police, fire, etc.,…Bogart also discusses in detail how any proposed amendment to the master plan should be reviewed with respect to open space and recreational facitilites…
Doesn’t sound like poor planning to me…I hope the board is considering this evidence it has before them and acts responsibly. We will remember come election time..in 2016 and for years to come… whether or not they acted to protect and preserve Ridgewood.
NOVEMBER 21, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2014, 1:21 AM BY CHRIS HARRIS STAFF WRITER | THE RECORD
RIDGEWOOD — The village will start the search for a new chief financial officer.
Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld said officials have “decided not to renew Steve Sanzari’s contract as CFO.”
However, Sanzari will retain his position as the village’s treasurer, Sonenfeld said.
Ridgewood’s next CFO will also be responsible for overseeing the village’s Parking Authority, Sonenfeld added.
Sanzari will continue to earn a base salary of $110,197.61 as treasurer. He had received a $5,000 stipend as CFO — a post that will end Jan. 1. The village is open to negotiate the salary for the next CFO, Sonenfeld said.
The village manager appointed herself the Parking Authority’s head after first assuming the office last spring.
Civility in our public discourse or Silencing Dissent
Friends / Colleagues —
I am writing to invite you to a meeting to discuss the need for more civility in our public discourse. The meeting will be Monday, November 24 at 7:30pm in Village Hall.
Specifically, we would like to begin a community-wide conversation about ways in which we can elevate public discourse and improve the way in which people publicly treat each other … whether it be at a Council meeting … on a ball field … in an online discussion … or anywhere else.
Joining me to lead this informal meeting will be Councilwoman Gwenn Hauck, Rev. Jan Philips and Rabbi David Fine.
Please let me know if you can join us and if you think someone else should be invited, too. In fact, please share this invitation with those who you think should attend, but please keep me posted so that I can keep track of those planning to attend.
New Jersey loses jobs in October as it prepares for bond sale
By By Hilary Russ | Reuters – 4 hours ago
(Reuters) – New Jersey’s economy showed more cracks on Thursday as the U.S. state with the second-lowest credit rating in the country reported 4,500 jobs lost in October and an upward tick in its unemployment rate.
The latest bad news broke a streak of much-needed labor market improvement that had been slow but steady for the Garden State, and it came in advance of a planned $525 million state borrowing on Dec. 3.
The unemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage point to 6.6 percent in October. More than half of the jobs lost were in the private sector, particularly in construction, preliminary data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed.
A spate of casino closures in Atlantic City, which has suffered from increased competition in nearby states, also weighed on the state in October, as they did in September, said New Jersey labor spokesman Brian Murray.
Accommodation and food service jobs declined by 2,200 jobs in October, due in part to the closure of the Trump Plaza, he said.
The state has now recovered only 48 percent of the jobs it lost during the 2007-2009 recession, far less than New York and nationwide, according to the left-leaning research group New Jersey Policy Perspective.
Wall Street credit rating agencies have downgraded the state eight times because of its poor economic recovery and large public pension shortfalls. Governor Chris Christie, a potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate, took controversial actions – not putting the money into the pension system that the state was supposed to contribute – in the middle of a budget crunch this year.
