NEW ITEM FOR RECYCLING – RIDGEWOOD TAKES CARTONS
April 25,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, At the 2018 Earth Day celebration, Ridgewood Recycling announced an exciting new addition to the curbside recycling program. Residents may now recycle food and beverage cartons (juice, milk, soy milk, soup, broth, wine, beans, cream, liquid eggs) with their plastic, glass, and metal bottles & cans. Residents will receive an informational postcard (pictured below) in the coming days.
April 23, 2018, 11:48 am | in
Trenton NJ, The Murphy Administration is taking $69 million of the $141 million the state will receive from settlements with Volkswagen involving air-pollution violations and cheating on emissions tests will go into the general fund for the state budget. This is funding that is supposed to be going to clean air initiatives, including electric vehicles programs.
“New Jersey is supposed to move forward with electric vehicles. Instead of helping to jumpstart our goals, the Murphy Administration is stealing $69 million, the entire state portion, of the Volkswagen settlement to balance the budget. Volkswagen is paying for the damage they did to communities by increasing and failing to report on air pollution. We received the settlement money because of Volkswagen’s pollution and it should all go toward mitigating those affects and cleaning New Jersey’s air. Instead, Murphy is letting the air our of our tired by taking the money for the general fund,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “The Governor campaigned against taking environmental settlement monies for plugging budget holes the way Christie did. Now, he’s doing so. This goes against the spirit of the constitutional amendment.”
New Jersey accepted $72 million settlement from the Volkswagen Mitigation Trust on top of the $69 million previously awarded by the Volkswagen Group of America. The funds settle allegations that Volkswagen “violated New Jersey’s clean air statutes and defrauded consumers by selling diesel vehicles equipped with “cheat” software that deactivated their on-board emission controls except during emissions testing.” The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been named lead agency in administering the funds. The state must submit a “Beneficiary Mitigation Plan” that explains how the funds will be used.
“We desperately need the $69 million that they want to divert to make our economy greener with electric vehicles. This could jumpstart our clean transportation system. We need to make sure that that funds go to the right places including to plug-ins and helping urban areas where air pollution is worst. This will help create jobs and move our state forward with an automobile that has zero emissions and decrease fossil fuels. The biggest source of air pollution and greenhouse gases in our state comes from automobiles, which is why we need to increase electric vehicles to clean our air. We need to install plug-in stations along with providing things like zip cars, ride shares, and taxis to encourage EV’s that everyone can afford,” said Jeff Tittel. “We should be using the entirety of the $141 million to move New Jersey forward on electric vehicles.”
Last Fall, New Jersey voters approved Ballot Question #2 to dedicate environmental settlement funds to environmental clean-ups. This will block future administrations from robbing the money meant for repairing, preserving, or restoring natural resources. In NJ, these resources are held in the Public Trust. If you spill chemicals and destroy them, you not only have to clean-up your mess, but also compensate the public for their loss. The ballot language is as follows:
9. There shall be credited annually to a special account in the General Fund an amount equivalent to the revenue annually derived from all settlements and judicial and administrative awards relating to natural resource damages collected by the State in connection with claims based on environmental contamination.
“The voters overwhelmingly decided that environmental settlement money such as that from the Volkswagen settlement should be used only for non-environmental purposes. Isn’t air pollution an environmental contaminate as well? The Murphy Administration is going against these wishes by taking half of the funds for plugging budget holes. Volkswagen illegally added air pollution, creating increased health impacts and climate impacts. The entirety of the settlement funds should be used to mitigate those affects by improving our air quality and reducing greenhouse gasses,” said Jeff Tittel. “Even if it we believed it was legal to take the funds, we would recommend against doing so because it hurts the people and environment of New Jersey.”
The Clean Energy Fund is being raided once again; this time by $136 million or even higher. This includes $80 million for NJ Transit, $50 million for lights in government buildings, $2 million to the BPU and $5 million to implement RGGI. This Fund is meant to support projects that make our homes more resilient such as weatherization, along with energy efficiency and green jobs. The DEP is also suffering from budget raids and money being redirected.
“The Clean Energy Fund has become the state’s ATM. Christie consistently used the money to balance the budget and the Murphy Administration is continuing that pattern. This has become a hidden energy tax on consumers. Instead of using this money for the environment and creating jobs, it is used to plug budget holes. On top of the clean energy fund raids, $80 million dollars are being diverted from the DEP. This is funding for important programs that would go towards cleaning up toxic sites, brownfield redevelopment, and watershed protection. This will have a real impact on the agency because by diverting those funds, they are not hiring enough staff for DEP to do its job,” said Jeff Tittel.
We should be using these funds for things such as promoting electric vehicles in New Jersey. We can electrify our ports, especially in urban areas, with electric busses to reduce air pollution in areas already highly affected. We can use electric vehicles for transportation in and around the ports including moving goods and containers. We can implement clean transportation programs so that our school children can ride in cleaner, quieter, and healthier school buses that are powered by electricity. This is especially important for children who live in urban areas already overburdened by air pollution. Electric busses will benefit all mass transit riders, as well as anyone living in the city where they run without released air toxins.
“Stealing half of the Volkswagen funds for plugging budget holes is wrong and unfair to the people of New Jersey. We need to take advantage of the full $141 million to create more in-state jobs, better vehicles, less carbon pollution, and cleaner, healthier air. We believe that these funds can ideally be used to move New Jersey forward with electric vehicles. We can see the benefits of clean air and clean jobs if we put this money to good use. We can build a state-wide network of charging stations, create green jobs, save people money on gas, and reduce air pollution,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.
April 24,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Paterson NJ, The Organization for Economic Growth endorses Pedro Rodriguez for mayor and his at large council team of Mohammed Akhtaruzzaman and Mitch Santiago in the May 8th election, announced OEG Chairman Joseph Caruso
“We believe the Rodriguez team has the most well rounded and realistic approach to economic revitalization to one of New Jersey’s most impoverished, but important cities,” said Caruso. The endorsement is based on responses to a questionnaire on economic issues given to all the Paterson candidates
“The Rodriguez Team responded with a sensible and detailed approach to restoring the city’s economic vitality rather than the general pie-in-the sky objectives that lead nowhere,” added Caruso. “His willingness to embrace public/private partnerships and tax incentives was a major factor for our support of Mr. Rodriguez.”
The city’s next mayor will inherit a city with many economic problems, including a 7.5 percent unemployment rate, a severe lacking of economic investment in the central city and significant problems in housing and crime. Previous administrations, dating back decades have failed to attract notable development to the city.
Caruso said Rodriquez is on the right track saying he will overhaul the building department to insure that it is business friendly; hire a professional to oversee economic development and will employ the use of PILOTs (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) and encourage public private partnerships.
“The city desperately needs to be more cooperative with those willing to invest in Paterson and it needs an outside economic development professional – not a political patron – with real world experience to guide the next administration in developing a vision for where the city wants to be in a decade.” said Caruso.
Noting that PILOTs are sometimes criticized as sops to businesses, Caruso said they are a necessary tool to incentivize developers to invest in areas that offer marginal return and significant risk. Rodriguez also said he wants to develop a grant application program to help spur redevelopment and embrace incentives for mixed use development to encourage construction of new housing. Paterson’s housing conditions, particularly in the North and Central wards, are in bad shape and must be addressed, says the OEG executive.
In his responses to the OEG questionnaire, Rodriguez said: “I have a comprehensive plan to place vacant and dilapidated properties into the hands of Patersonians. I vow to reduce the number of abandoned properties by introducing programs such as the 203K loan which will ease the ability for our residents to not only purchase a home but also renovate it. We must provide easier pathways for our residents to achieve the American dream of owning a home which has been statistically proven to ensure proper maintenance and upkeep.”
Rodriguez also recognized the city’s crime problem as a major stumbling block to investment and to attracting people to shop in and visit the city. To help combat crime, Rodriguez said he will commission an independent audit of the city’s budget to identify wasteful spending and redirect those resources into hiring more police officers and to take more cops from behind desks and put them out on the street. He also said he wants to invest in repairing existing — and installing — new surveillance cameras to protect the city’s residents.
“Mr. Rodriguez and his running mates Mohammed Akhtaruzzaman and Mitch Santiago provided thoughtful, well rounded responses to our questionnaire, showing that they have put in the time to consider the problems Paterson must overcome and formulated a way to overcome them,” said Caruso.
“Paterson doesn’t need a cheerleader for mayor; it needs someone who will roll up his sleeves and provide the hands on, serious leadership that will lead to investments, jobs and better housing. We are hopeful that Mr. Rodriguez may be that person.” added Caruso.
The NJOEG was founded to support candidates and policies that improve the state and regional economies. To learn more about the NJ OEG visit our website www.NJOEG.com; or visit us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/StrengthThroughIndustry/
VOTE KNUDSEN & SEDON FOR VILLAGE COUNCIL, TUESDAY, MAY 8TH.
Dear Residents and RCRD/CBR Supporters:
Ridgewood Citizens for Reasonable Development (RCRD), formerly known as CBR (Citizens for a Better Ridgewood), proudly announces a strong endorsement for Mayor Susan Knudsen and Deputy Mayor Michael Sedon in their re-election to Village Council.
RCRD/CBR is committed to ensuring that Ridgewood thrives with fitting development and proper master planning. For many years, Susan and Mike’s positive words and actions have been closely aligned with our cause. Right now, they are spearheading Ridgewood’s first New Master Plan in over three decades. This long overdue, “real” Master Plan will include broad outreach to Residents ensuring that our voices are finally fully heard in the planning arena. Work on it begins this year.
That’s not all they’ve done. Promptly upon taking office, they repealed Ordinance #3066, the loophole that opened the floodgates for oversized development in Ridgewood. During the high-density crisis, they fought overdevelopment and spoke and voted with our interests at heart. It was never easy and the other side came at them relentlessly, and often wrongly. But they never backed down.
The high-density housing issue is far from over. Right now, outside forces are trying to impose high-density “overlay development zones” throughout Ridgewood, including in residential areas. This could open our Village to more oversized development in the future. We need Susan and Mike’s experience to limit this.
Susan and Mike have earned our support. There is a reason that other resident-focused groups, including C.R.R. (“the Valley group”) and Friends of Schedler, endorsed Susan and Mike as well. Susan and Mike look out for us, our Village and they wisely represent all Residents of Ridgewood. In our many meetings with them, we’ve found their only agenda is to put Ridgewood first. They promote positives, not negatives. We need more of that.
In just two years as Mayor and Deputy Mayor, Knudsen and Sedon have made Ridgewood a stronger and kinder community. So much of the division and negativity we experienced from the prior administration is gone. For a long time, RCRD/CBR had to mobilize supporters to attend every Planning Board and Village Council meeting to ensure that nothing unexpected could happen without notice to Residents. For the past two years we have been able to call off that guard. That’s because we know the Council is in such experienced, open and honest hands.
Please help Susan Knudsen and Mike Sedon finish the important job they started.
ON TUESDAY, MAY 8th, VOTE KNUDSEN AND SEDON.
If you have any questions, please email RCRD at [email protected]
Respectfully,
Dave Slomin
Christine Clay
Todd McNamara
Ellen McNamara
Community Outreach,
Ridgewood Citizens for Reasonable Development
April 23,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, At all regular meetings, two opportunities are provided for citizens to make comments. The public comment periods will be scheduled after presentations and approximately 9:00 p.m. or just prior to the end of the meeting, whichever occurs first. The first opportunity may be limited by the presiding officer to conclude at about 8:00 p.m. in order for the Board to continue with its scheduled agenda. The second opportunity will occur at about 9:00 p.m. at the discretion of the presiding officer taking into consideration a break point in the agenda.
At every opportunity for public comment, citizens are invited to comment on subjects on the agenda or general topics.
At the discretion of the presiding officer, public comments may be permitted at other times.
Persons wishing to speak must, upon being recognized, rise, sign in, and state their names and addresses. Each speaker shall be limited to four minutes. The Board Recorder will note the time. A speaker who has not finished in the allotted time will be directed by the presiding officer to summarize quickly and relinquish the floor within 30 seconds.
Comments shall be limited to issues. If personal remarks or discourteous statements are made, the presiding officer shall require the speaker to stop. No person will be recognized for a second time until all others asking to speak have been heard.
The public is invited to attend the meeting, or watch it live on Fios channel 33, Optimum channel 77, or on the “Link in Live” tab of the district website at www.ridgewood.k12.nj.us.
April 23 2018 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM
Location Board Room, 3rd Floor, Education Center
April 23,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Trenton NJ, A New Jersey state trooper was indicted today for allegedly conducting improper stops of two female drivers for the purpose of pressuring them to begin a personal relationship with him. The trooper allegedly falsified records to cover up his actions.
The Division of Criminal Justice Corruption Bureau today obtained a six-count state grand jury indictment charging Trooper Eric Richardson, 32, of Camden, N.J., with the following offenses:
Official Misconduct (2nd degree),
Criminal Coercion (3rd degree),
Tampering with Public Records or Information (3rd degree),
Falsifying or Tampering with Records (4th degree),
Wrongful Access/Disclosure of Information (2nd degree), and
Obtaining Information from a Motor Vehicle Record (4th degree).
Richardson was investigated by the New Jersey State Police Office of Professional Standards, which uncovered incidents involving two women whom Richardson allegedly pulled over and harassed about initiating an intimate relationship. He allegedly stopped each woman repeatedly and deactivated the dashboard camera in his car during some of the stops.
Richardson initially pulled over the first woman on Nov. 22, 2016, warning her that her windows were illegally tinted. Although her registration was expired, Richardson allegedly attempted to win favor with her by not towing the vehicle and letting her drive away. He allegedly followed her, however, and activated his lights to stop her a second time. He then allegedly pressured her to give him a phone number, persisting even after she said she was in a relationship. Later, Richardson sent numerous texts to the woman using the number he obtained. On Jan. 3, 2017, Richardson allegedly pulled the woman over again in Atlantic City. He allegedly falsely reported in the official computer dispatch log that he stopped to aid a motorist, when in fact he allegedly stopped the woman to ask if she still had the same number and was receiving his texts.
On Dec. 23, 2016, Richardson allegedly pulled over the second woman in Gloucester Township and threatened to arrest her if she did not give him her phone number. This is the basis for the criminal coercion charge. He allegedly pulled out his handcuffs and threatened to handcuff her. The woman’s license and registration were suspended, and there was a warrant for her arrest. After obtaining her phone number, Richardson released her, despite the active warrant. He allegedly told dispatchers and reported in the dispatch log that the driver he stopped on that occasion was a man. He allegedly communicated with the second woman via texts using the phone number he obtained.
The charges of wrongful access/disclosure of information and obtaining information from a motor vehicle record relate to an incident on May 8, 2017 when Richardson allegedly illegally accessed the FBI—Criminal Justice Information Services database on behalf of a male friend to do a “driver inquiry” on a woman the friend employed to determine if her driver history reflected any warrants or drug activity. Richardson allegedly photographed her driver history and texted it to his friend.
“Police are given great authority and are rightly held to the highest standards of integrity,” said Attorney General Grewal. “When officers abuse their authority, as alleged in this case, they must be held accountable. Public trust and public safety demand it.”
“We allege that the defendant used his authority as a police officer to harass two women and he then falsified official records to cover up his misconduct,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “These are serious charges.”
Richardson was suspended by the New Jersey State Police after being charged by complaint in this case on May 31, 2017. He remains suspended.
Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in state prison and a fine of up to $15,000. Fourth degree charges carry a sentence of up to 18 months in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
The charges are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
This Village needs to come to the realization that the Harwin camp is not looking to better Ridgewood in any way, this candidate and her wannabe political groupies are looking to use this town as a stepping stone for what they think is the beginning of some pipe dream of a NJ political career. The math on the garage doesn’t add up and i’m surprised that a candidate that will drop her Ivy League education on anyone that will listen can not look at projected financials and figure that out. I’ve listened to council meetings where one pro Harwin supporter actually used the argument that a garage would result in less pedestrian / automobile accidents….this is the type of nonsensical argument that this group will throw out for effect. As is the similar argument the Harry Truman look alike threw out about the garage being the foundation for the future of Ridgewood. People, we need to use our brains…we need to vote in residents who are looking to better this town and effectively manage budgets so that the over taxation of residents does not lead to an exodus of the people from this town. The argument that since this parking debate has gone on for 20+ years so we should just build a garage makes no sense. We need to plan for the future by looking towards the future, not the past, as some residents would like. As someone that grew up in this town, I could care less that my parents generation wanted a garage, that belief doesn’t better this town or pay the bills. This garbage and slanderous platform that Harwin and her irrelevant, wannabe “political players” have launched should be beneath every resident in this town. They are not good for Ridgewood now and will not be good for this town in the future. The main problem we have is that this town’s majority have no idea about the weasle know nothings that are trying to change the core of Ridgewood. Get out and spread the word. The former mayor and his cronies are the past…..do not let these sub intelligent hacks dictate the future of this town.
April 22,2018
PJ Blogger and the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, got an interesting email/txt yesterday from the Village Mayor Susan Knudsen asking the blog to change the photo in the , ” Harwin Wrong on the Issues ” https://theridgewoodblog.net/harwin-wrong-on-the-issues/. She stated that she preferred to take the “high road” her words ,since they have taken such a very low road , those are my words. .
While the Harwin campaign has spent the last several months undermining the Ridgewood Police and Fire departments , attacking anyone who disagrees with them as the “mayors stooges ” . Leveling charges of racism, homophobia and anti Semitism . Even going as far as to send out a mailer outlining a series of lies in black and white including what can only be considered flaming anti catholic rhetoric penned by a guy named Hans Jurgen Lehmann ,surprisingly enough Chairmen of the Board of adjustment and married to “minister” Jan Phillips aka Ms. Civility .
Are we the only ones who think someone with such and obvious dislike for Catholics should represent Ridgewood on the Public Body?
Yes folks Ridgewood has truly hit a new low . A campaign that attacks Police ,Fire ,Our lady of Mount Carmel and its 5000 or so parishioners along with the Knights of Columbus ,all the mayors supporters , just to name a few .
When the out right lies and bigotry of the mailer were pointed out and every last line was refuted over and over Harwin did nothing but left the erroneous and unsubstantiated allegations stand.
Sorry Mayor these people do not deserve the benefit of the doubt or even the time of day , photo stays.
I grew up in Ridgewood and we always took pride in this being a “non-political party” place. Not since Paul Aronson saw this as a stepping stone to reverse his previous two failed attempts at running for Congress. He put a voting bloc together of three and basically ignored Susan Knudsen and Mike Sedon until the Village got fed up with the political games and tossed them out. Looking at Ms. Harwin’s campaign piece that arrived in the mail yesterday obviously same inaccurate smear campaign tactics as was the case before. So lets answer some of her charges:
1. Higher taxes – as we all have always knows, the Council has little control over Village spending – this is a school cost issue.
2. Nepotism – hiring by the police and fire department is by state law subject to exam and qualifications. The Mayor can’t do anything to influence this.
3. Fines to residents for leaves – this is a close one to my heart, as last fall we received a summons, as did everyone else on our end of the street. The leaf ordinance was passed by the previous Aronson team, not by Susan Knudsen’s administration. We contracted the Mayor and she could bnot have been more helpful researching the issue for us, talking to the contractor hired by the previous administration, and ultimately telling us what we needed to present to the Court – she told us we needed proof, what kind of proof and how to present it – when we went to Court all charges dropped.
4. The charge is made that Susan Knudsen is somehow responsible for storefronts not being filled. Funny how same problem at malls all over the country. Yet I see Amazon Prime trucks everywhere. We used to have TWO hardware stores in Ridgewood – now we go to Home Depot. The economy is changing from brick and mortar across the country and this means change for the Village too. Hard for me to fault the Mayor for a national trend, and did-honest for Ms. Harwin to do so.
5. My Dad was on the Planning Board in the 70’s and a parking garage was on the agenda then. The Aronson administration was in favor of a garage that would include retail space on the first floor to pay for it – how would more competition for Village merchants help them – so this was dropped. Next a mega-garage was proposed for the Hidson lot, over-hanging the sidewalk – an eye sore as well as an impediment for parking that was not paid for at the garage for church goers (not just Mt. Carmel as some have said but also the United Methodist Church also across the street. In the face of overwhelming upset the Aronson administration backed off on this as well. If we are going to build a garage (*which we need to do) this will involve a bond issue that will cost tax payers for 20+ years – so we want to do it right. Susan Knudsen has been working with the current Council to do it right, and attacking her for not just doing what previous administrations had been unable to do is again not honest.
6. The Harwin mailing also mentions a “failed valet parking experiment” – hard for me to blame the current Council when this was initiated by the Aronson administration.
I look at the two mailings we received yesterday – the Knudsen/Sedon piece noting issues being worked on and achieved, and the Harwin piece full of lies and blaming the current Council for things initiated by her patron, Paul Aronshon. Not much of a doubt in my mind that I am voting for the honest candidates trying to pull our Village back from the mess created by the Aronson team, instead of the one who is spreading lies and backed by the previous failed administration. Don’t be complacent as often happens in non-national elections – this is important, and whether you agree with my comments above or not, get out and vote.
April 22,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to the Ridgewood Historical Society the immense popularity of feathered hats for women were the subject of intense controversy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries? It began a popular movement in defense of the environment and to save birds. Read more about it here: www.npr.org/…/4228603…/hats-off-to-women-who-saved-the-birds
Eventually, the feathery fashion trend subsided, but photos abound. Here is one of a smartly-dressed woman in 1891, photographed by C.S. Roshon, who had a studio in Pennsylvania and a gallery in Morristown, New Jersey.
The beautiful amethyst hatpin is protected in our attic archives in the Schoolhouse Museum. Visit our current exhibit, “The Thread of Life” to take a journey through the centuries and life’s milestones that celebrate what we wore and why we wore it.
The Ridgewood Historical Society is housed in a one-room schoolhouse at 650 East Glen Avenue in Ridgewood, New Jersey. The schoolhouse was built in 1872 and was an operational school until 1905. It now serves as a museum of historic artifacts and is maintained by the Ridgewood Historical Society. Formerly District School No. 45, the Museum features exhibits that emphasize the historic Saddle River Valley area in the 18th and 19th centuries, an area that was primarily Dutch when first settled.
Please visit our website for more information and to donate:
Days/times open:
Thursday and Saturday.: 1pm to 3pm
Sunday: 2pm to 4pm
https://ridgewoodhistoricalsociety.org/
650 E Glen Ave
Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450
(201) 447-3242
April 21,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Wyckoff NJ, Wyckoff Police Chief David V. Murphy reported that the police department received a report at approximately 12:41pm, from the Bergen County Mental Health Screening Agency (262-HELP). They requested an officer respond to a home on Martom Road with them to assist in a mental health screening of an adult male. Officers arrived on location and attempted to make contact with the male. The male came to the door and made several concerning comments and then barricaded himself in the home.
Wyckoff officers took a tactical position and contacted the Bergen County Regional SWAT Team for a response. The SWAT Team is under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Dennis Calo, Chief of Detectives, Robert Anzilotti and Bergen County Sheriff, Michael Saudino. With the assistance of the SWAT Team and negotiators, the adult male exited the home and was safely taken into custody at approximately 3:17pm. He was evaluated on scene and then transported to a local medical facility to receive treatment. Chief Murphy is grateful for the successful and safe conclusion, and the cooperation and patience of all residents in the immediate area. Chief Murphy would like to thank the Bergen County Prosecutors Office, Sheriff’s Department and all of the regional team members that responded.
photos courtesy of RBSA
THE SPRING SEASON IS ALMOST UPON US, SO LETS KICK IT OFF WITH THE…………
RBSA OPENING DAY PARADE & FAMILY FUN DAY
APRIL 21, 2018
9AM – 2PM
Parade begins at the Ridgewood Train Station in Wilsey Square and marches to Veterans’ Field for Opening Ceremony and activities
Sample fare from the Metro area’s best food trucks
Browse the Vendor Corner
Hangout at the Entertainment on Wheels Zone
Dance to the Live Deejay
Lots of Inflatables
Participate in Baseball & Softball Instructional Clinics
Sports Demonstrations
Carnival Games for all ages
Raffles
& MORE!!!!
file photo by Boyd Loving
April 21,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, once again the “Bergen Record” pushes a dishonest one sided news coverage of Ridgewood Politics and tries to under mine the Deputy Mayor as a favor to form Mayor and Harwin string puller Paul Aronsohn.
In its recent article , “Ridgewood election candidates talk issues, online vitriol ” the author Nicholas Katzban, North Jersey Media Staff Writer, goes as far as to make up a ridiculous story ,”Sedon, who also supports an expansion of shared services, referenced a plan he had been spearheading to use Bergen County’s central 911 dispatch. He dropped the plan after residents took issue with the fact that Frank DelVecchio, director of the county Public Safety Operations Center, had served as his campaign manager. They hinted at a quid pro quo.”That is simply a lie,” Sedon stated, arguing that his filings with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission would show that was not the case.
Once again the use of “FAKE NEWS” to cast dispersions of Sedon and Knudsen , like the debunked “nepotism” charge ,the reality is far different ,first of all Frank was not Mike’s campaign chairman. He gave Mike some advice but he was not his chairman. Second of all Frank does not have any personal gain if they go to central dispatch. Frankly it is so stupid that somebody suggested that.
Frank is on salary he does not get more money if other towns are brought in. Mike came up with the idea as a possible way to save money. Shared services often saves money. Some are opposed to central dispatch. But that’s a personal opinion one way or the other. There’s no quid pro quo involved as far as I know. Frank would gain nothing and Mike would gain nothing.
April 20.2018
the staff of the Ridgewood bllog
Ridgewood NJ, Gov. Phil Murphy today announced the appointment of former Ridgewood Mayor and ethically challenged Paul Aronsohn to head up the newly created Office of the Ombudsman for Individuals with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities and Their Families, serving as the administration’s lead advocate and ally for New Jersey residents in need of critical services ranging from early childhood through adulthood.
Arosohn’s tenure as mayor was marred by ethics scandals, acrimony from the dais, insane over development of the central business district, suicide bike lanes , dangerous ,over budget and ill-advised ramps at Graydon Pool ,bad Village business decisions and fermenting a hostile environment, impinging on the quality of life in the Village of Ridgewood. Many residents consider his tenure an all time low in the history of the Village of Ridgewood.
The Office of the Ombudsman, which is in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury, was created by law in January, granting the governor appointment authority.
As the ombudsman, Aronsohn will organize and direct the work of the office with duties that include:
Serving as a source of information for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities and their families and interested members of the public, to help them better understand state and federal laws and regulations;
Coordinating with the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, to provide information and support on navigating and understanding the process for obtaining services from the state Division of Children’s System of Care and the Division of Developmental Disabilities, including information on transitioning between the two programs;
Providing information and communication strategies to individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities and their families for resolving disagreements with various state agencies, as well as education on the available options for resolving such disputes;
Working with service recipients, families and the departments to facilitate the provision of services and supports;
Identifying common concerns for individuals and their families, and making recommendations to the Division of Children’s System of Care and the Division of Developmental Disabilities or the Department of Children and Families and the Department of Human Services; and
To assist the Division of Children’s System of Care and the Division of Developmental Disabilities in creating public information programs designed to inform individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities, their families, and the public about the role of the ombudsman.
Under law, the ombudsman is also required to issue a written report annually to the commissioners of both the Department of Human Services and the Department of Children and Families, as well as the governor and the legislature.
(pictures were taken yesterday April 17 and today April 18, 2018)
April 19,2018
Derek Michalski
Upper Saddle River NJ, Three days in a row muddy waters of Pleasant Brook in Upper Saddle River and Westearly Branch Of Saddle River in the town of Saddle River continued filling various ponds between Mahwah, Upper and Saddle River with heavy mud. This topic dominated also for the third day local discussions about the potential impact of this unprecedented continuous silt/dust/mud pollution by Apple Ridge massive construction site.
The presence of heavy mud floating thorough Upper and Saddle River aquatic system in opinion of many is another piece of evidence of continuous (since December 2017) mud pollution from the site that was ordered by NJDEP to undergo remediation of arsenic and lead within the top soil rata. Consequently on January 13, 2018 Stop Work Order was issued on 100 plus acres of the so called by GreenUSR members “Arsenic Field”.
In the past the public was informed that the sediment within the stream channel was tested but nobody provided any info whether the test occurred before or after the rain. In the light of over 4 month long pollution period the author of this post publicly demands to test all three ponds within 5 mile radius of the contaminated site. Logically the tests should be done two days ago but today (April 18) the waters are still full of mud and who knows if arsenic and lead that is being the subject of remediation on the site is not present in the heavy mud imported from the site to our GreenUSR aquatic ecosystem.
If Upper and Saddle River residents want to preserve the beauty of this neighborhood and to STOP continually deteriorating values of our homes this call for action shouldn’t be ignored by our local leaders. It’s too late to stop the destruction of 1000 trees, it’s too late to stop the construction site but on the Eve of 48th Earth Day Celebration it’s not to late to test the muddy waters and to dispel the fear and suspicion in our GreenUSR communities. Please show us your leadership. Happy Earth Day GreenUSR! ?
Link to stop work order:
https://www.usrtoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Scan0073-1.pdf
