Reader asks Will the Planning Board flip a collective bird to residents again?
Is the Valley Expansion Bought and Paid For a long time ago ?
Was “treating residents with contempt” the best strategy
I don’t think that residents had the opportunity to provide any input on the revised plan. Will the PB flip a collective bird to residents again?
Valley has “Treated with contempt” the whole Village . If this was a group that was truly interested in being a trusted part of a community they sure as hell would have approached this whole thing differently. They don’t come across as dumb, just arrogant. Would it not be better to accomplish their goals working WITH the community they do business in ?
I notice that what was once a fierce group of Valley supporters has gone noticeably silent. To watch Valley’s attorney shout down everyone from the little old ladies to Planning Board members themselves must have made them cringe. To say that Valley has contempt for Ridgewood and its residents is a massive understatement. If it were such a great plan why are they so afraid of letting those opposed to their plan speak? Why did they feel the need to lock their opposition out of the last Planning Board vote?
Sad thing is, they are going to get most of what they want. This deal was bought and paid for years ago.
Don’t be confused by a yes vote by the Planning Board. They might better protect the Village by voting yes with the understanding the Village Council will vote no. This avoids the likely lawsuit which Valley would bring following a Planning Board rejection.
Sue for what ?
Procedural details. Planning boards have very strict rules for what they can and cannot allow as far as testimony, commentary, etc. They are sort of like courts but run by laypeople. It is a horrible system that leads to these huge wastes of time even when a proposal has almost no chance of success. You have to allow due process and can be sued if there is any flaw in that process.
Thanks for the clarification. So, I’m a member of the PB and vote against it (in other words I use common sense!). What could possibly happen ?
My $20 says the plan will be approved by the Planning Board and the Village Council (in a 3-2 vote, of course).
My $20 parlay bet is on a yes from the PB and a no from the Council 3-0 because of abstentions.
DO NOT bet the ranch on either Ms. Hauck or Mr. Pucciarelli abstaining.
Ms. Hauck has already strongly hinted that she will not be abstaining (her thought being that voters knew her position when they pulled the lever and she has no skin in the game from a financial standpoint, thus no conflict).
And it is rumored that Mr. Pucciarelli may offer a legal opinion that holding an elected office differs from being appointed to a position. Therefore, although he recused himself from Planning Board matters about Valley, he will not do so in connection with Village Council business about Valley.
Case in point, he did not recuse himself from the discussion about whether Council members should accept a donation from Valley to cover printing costs for the OEM manual.
It will not be over until the fat lady asks for a roll call vote.