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Ridgewood Council votes 3-2 to bond with BCIA for parking garage

Council meeting assult

photo by Boyd Loving minutes after the alleged assault at the council meeting

BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

RIDGEWOOD – Ridgewood’s Village Council voted 3-2 to bond with the Bergen County Improvement Authority (BCIA) on Feb. 10 in order to fund the proposed Hudson Street parking garage.

This came on the heels of last week’s unanimous vote of the BCIA to authorize the submission of an application to the state local finance board, accelerating the process along.

Just as there was at the BCIA version, Wednesday’s meeting featured both proponents and opponents of the decision to bond with the county, including village residents and council members.

Councilwoman Susan Knudsen, who voted against adopting the ordinance to bond with the BCIA, said that she still has some serious concerns with moving the process along at this time.

“I think that before we get into this, it’s really important to have a conversation with Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and be neighborly and have the simulations and all of the information available to address and allay any concerns that they have,” she said.

While she did admit that bonding with the BCIA “seems like a great option,” she said that she continues to believe “that when we find the appropriate scale and design of this garage, it could be done on self-bonding.”

“While there seems to be some financial benefits to be gained by going through the BCIA, some of the detriments are very real,” Knudsen said. “Maintaining ownership and absolute control is imperative to the success of this garage … I think it’s still an opportunity to bond on our own.”

Councilman Mike Sedon, who cast the other dissenting vote against bonding with the BCIA, said he thinks it is necessary to have a payment plan in place before moving forward.

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/town-government/bcia-bond-to-fund-garage-passes-3-2-1.1510815

10 thoughts on “Ridgewood Council votes 3-2 to bond with BCIA for parking garage

  1. This council should be on Candid Camera.For those poster that remember Candid Camera but y tube works too..

  2. Hey Dana I found this for you. (Family Protection at home and while traveling
    If your family needs protection we will handle it. Our bodyguards are trained to act discrete and blend in with the environment. We will protect you at home, on your everyday life and on vacation. ) Just send the bill to Village of Ridgewood in care of the 3 Amigos.

  3. Gotta rush to get their 300 space legacy garage in before they get voted out. After all these years of needed parking we now settle on a 300 space garage on Hudson St. Why? Because they had to do something. Time tor those 3 to plan how big their names will be on the plaque on this monstrosity. Yes, 100% a garage should be built here. The size here is way over sized. This location should have 100-150 spaces and two other garage locations should be built elsewhere at 100-150 per location. Ken Smith, behind Hillman Electric, and behind BOE building? Better options and plans could have and should have been followed. 300 cars now piled on top of each other at one site…looking forward to the increased accidents here, increased crime here, and people being run over here. Should be lovely

  4. Concerned about being on the hook for endless property taxes while the county calls the shots for “our” enormous parking garage? Consider signing the petition to put the BCIA bonding on a referendum in the May council election. Times and places: http://www.no2bcia.com

  5. It is inexcusable for the Council Big 3 to decide that a garage deck should be built that does not conform to the Village building codes for height and set backs.
    I understand that, technically the Village cab claim eminent domain and ignore the Village’s own ordinances. But they cannot, and should not, just do it on their own.
    Eminent domain claims must be heard in court and decided by a judge. I have not heard of any Council requests for an eminent domain hearing. How can our “Big 3” council members claim eminent domain on their own?.
    If the Village flouts its own Ordinances, what is to prevent all applicants (such as Valley Hospital and the various high density housing applicants) from claiming that they should have the same rights for their height,set backs, etc. The Big 3 Boondoggle will open us up to years of litigation. STICK TO THE LAW AND RESIDENTS DESIRES COUNCIL!

  6. This was right after Dana showed Gwenn the video of the assault. Gwenn was trying to figure out how this really happened since NO ONE SAW IT. Then she said she would like to be subpoenaed. Really? After she said on tape that she did not see anything?! Oh, that would be rich, we would all like to see your sworn statement as to what happened when you saw nothing. Good lord, Larry David needs to come to Ridgewood. He would have more material here than he would ever need for the rest of his life.

  7. Look at her body language

    Arms can act as the doorway to the body and the self. When they are crossed, they form a closed defensive shield, blocking out the outside world. Shields act in two ways: one is to block incoming attacks and the other is a place behind which the person can hide and perhaps not be noticed.

    Crossed arms may thus indicate anxiety which is either driven by a lack of trust in the other person or an internal discomfort and sense of vulnerability (that may, for example, be rooted in childhood trauma).

  8. To add to my other post

    When someone crosses their arms, it usually means that they’re closed for arguments. By crossing the arms, a barrier is put in front of the body, as some sort of protection. Putting an object in front of you may be the same signal.

  9. William Bartlett is so right,..Ends DONT Justify the means…this is not Moscow …yet..sign the petition … Then recall the whole panel of these people,,we will vote Big…vote for change,,

  10. Who benefits from buildings that sit idle? Should this deal have been made with NJ Transit?

    “RAMSEY — Five years after the $37 million Park & Ride train station on Route 17 opened, little more than half of the spaces are being used by commuters…. In the five-floor parking deck on Island Road, some 574 of the 1,274 spaces are empty. Roughly 200 of those empty spaces are being rented to car dealerships in Mahwah and Ramsey.”

    Who is the BCIA today and what are their underlying motivations? Why do you need them to complete this deal?

    Former BCIA Chairman and Principal in New Jersey Mortgage Brokerage Firm Indicted with Colleague in Mortgage Fraud Scheme

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