The issue of door to door solicitors in Ridgewood came up for discussion to ban the practice in Ridgewood, at past town council meetings well over 10-15 years ago due to residents complaints of solicitors. At the time, the mayor felt a complete ban on registered solicitors would also affect/include the girl scouts/boy scouts/h.s.band from their door to door sales of cookies, plants, etc. and it was decided not to procede with a ban.
As far as the girl/boy scout cookies sellers, there’s been less of them, I only had one this year. Most of their troops set up at the local grocery stores and get bigger sales, and its safer for them. Their parents sell/get orders from co workers. Everyone knows when the RHS band has their plants and fruit sales, can order online, they always deliver to your door anyway.
Times have changed, each year in spring thruout the season, the door knockers ramp up in greater numbers. As long as they obtain a permit from the town, and not all bother to get a permit, there’s been an influx of peddlers from cable companys, pest control, new windows, painters, home improvements, lawn treatments, solar panels, driveway sealers, magazine sellers (they use a team of children), donations, the list goes on. Just love the line of some canvassers – we’re doing some work in the neighborhood and wonder if you’re interested in home improvements. Some use aggressive measures. All one can do is to put a “No Solicitors” sign on the door.Hopefully its about time to enact a complete ban on door to door solicitors in Ridgewood. (With an exception for the girl/boy scouts ? and RHS band sales).
I’m not sure its legal or desirable. Its nice to have kids in the neighborhood visit. There is also a free speech issue for campaigns, etc. i think registering is enough. You can use those solicitation signs if you are concerned.
If you want to live without neighbors go move to Saddle River or one of those places with no side walks and no neighborhoods. But let the rest of us enjoying living in a community. Its not that friggin hard to say no thanks and shut the door. Get over yourselves.
8:28 – I agree that there will be legal challenges to a complete ban. At the same time, I disagree that the current process of ‘registering’ is enough. I have no way to validate whether someone claiming to be ‘registered’ is carrying a legitimate permit or not.
An improvement on the current process may be to send out an email / set up a webpage where the village lets residents know of the entities/individuals/organizations that have been issued permits for door-to-door solicitations on each day. That way, we will know who to expect.
I have been begging various village councils to enact a strict ban for quite a few years. Scouts etc. was the usual reason for declining. However, as the poster notes, this is changing, too. But mostly the safety and peace of residents constitute a more compelling argument than whether the school band gets uniforms–sorry. I hate it when somebody rings my doorbell, especially when it wakes me up. And I never buy anything from them because I don’t appreciate being coerced by hopeful-looking children sent door to door by their organizations. Even Halloween is on the wane. Let’s finally do it.
So 12:11 go move to a 55 and older community with strict rules and no children. Or as I said before to Woodcliff Lake or one of these snooty places with no sidewalks or libraries.
Most of us have chosen to live in a community where people interact. If anything our door bells ring too infrequently since we all fail to stop by and visit neighbors and friends. Everything today is planned on texts and emails. But even if the drop-ins have to be planned at least it would be interaction.
8.28: I totally agree. You don’t like someone knocking on your door just ignore them or just just refuse them.
Ridgewood is not snooty?!