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The Ridgewood Blog Says Drain the Swamp and Supports Joseph Rudy Rullo for Governor

Jospeh Rullo

June 4,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,  With the primary this week and all the articles about the massive amounts of money being spent on New Jersey Political races the one thing we have noticed is no one seems to really be paying any attention. Perhaps it graduation month or the reality of New Jersey coming demise , the constant calls for cutting taxes and fixing school funding all of which ring hollow or just the fact that no matter who you vote for ;criminality is rampant, corruption is king ,the state is run by Unions and special interests ,taxes will go up and all the problems will get much worse .

The well funded state Democrats have all tried to out bid each other for who can get the biggest and best tax increase, protect illegals with free stuff, harbor and promote terrorism , chase out the last bit of “free enterprise” ,further deplete the tax base and pay off all their special interest supporters

While the Ridgewood blog is still unsure if the New Jersey GOP is actually trying win or not a couple of upstarts have caught our eye.

First a 31-year-old Indian-American entrepreneur Harsh Vardhan Singh entered the governor’s race with little political background and a promise to cut property taxes and make New Jersey a national technology leader. Singh seems to be getting his feet wet for further political ambition ,but he comes off a bit naive to New Jersey’s down and dirty political landscape . He is some to keep an eye on for the future.

So that leaves us Joseph Rudy Rullo. If you say who ,you obviously don’t use social media much. Rullo an actor and small business owner who has run an off beat campaign patterned after the Trump campaign.

He has waged a one man crusade against the New Jersey establishment . Even going as far as to channel Trump’s drain the swamp line and apply it to Trenton .  Rullo has managed to get into screaming matches with political opponents, tap into New Jersey Trump voters anger, use social media very effectively and offer some common sense ideas to fix some on New Jersey’s most pressing issues.

In his own words ,”As Governor I will reduce property taxes, repeal the $.23 gas tax, dissolve the transportation SLUSH fund, Veto all tax increases, cut billions in political earmarked jobs and contracts, eliminate state income taxes on pensions for retirees and add 1 billion in new revenue sources to further lower taxes. I Will dissolve the Transportation Trust Fund and consolidate all highway authorities eliminating redundant high level management positions, eliminate high cost earmark & specialty contracts tied to contributors.. It will produce millions in savings with shared services and purchases.

I will eliminate tolls and repeal the gas tax with the savings from the new efficient transparent highway entity. I will also eliminate 1.3 billion in pension fees to NYC politically connected brokerage houses and replace with licensed brokers in the state investors division to pay towards pension payment.

Superintendents and business administrators need to be reduced drastically. Instead of having one superintendent and business administrator per school district, we need to cut the number to one per county. By consolidating superintendents & business administrators, we can save $50 million per year by eliminating superintendents alone. And will work to also eliminate municipal tax assessors to one per county. I will fire hundreds of high-salary patronage jobs like indicted Port Authority’s David Wildstein, as an example, saving hundreds of millions of dollars to cut taxes. ”

Rullo is : Pro life , Pro Second Amendment  and supports marijuana legalization. He wants to make NJ Veterans a priority . On school funding and education he has a lot to say ,”The Abott school districts need to be held accountable for wasteful spending and all districts need to work together to reduce cost. This will reduce the impact of inevitable changes in funding formulas with state aid. After all school districts cut wasteful spending, we need to implement fair funding formulas for property tax relief.  One example is all school districts can drastically reduce costs by combined purchasing power. Another example is drastically reducing the number of Superintendents and redundant assistant Superintendents.  High cost business administrators should also be reduced.

Since the start of No Child Left Behind and continued under Race to the Top, NJ parents and students have been saddled with the Common Core Standards. Parents feel like they can’t help their children with their homework because it is something they have never learned before and the children are left floundering in schools with too many children and not enough teachers to explain things to them. The State then decided to force the PARCC (Partnership for Readiness for College and Careers) test on our children. This has resulted in schools and teachers focusing their teaching efforts, not on learning, but on test results. This is wrong and only hurts our children who deserve a comprehensive learning program not a regimen of tests.

As Governor I will end PARCC testing completely and direct the Department of Education to draw up new, independent education standards that will return NJ to the top of the best educated Students in the Country.

I support school choice and home schooling.

Students come out of High School and don’t know how to balance a checkbook, write a resume or know anything about personal credit. Common Core needs to become Common Sense. Teachers need to be allowed to teach and not recite facts mandated from Washington, or some Corporation making money from our tax dollars. We need to provide better opportunities for students who decide to enter the workforce directly from high school with expanded vocational schools. The future of New Jersey depends on it! ”

On illegal immigration  Rullo says the “police are overburdened with hands virtually tied because NJ is a sanctuary state. Out of state license plates and DMV fraud are the law of the land. As Governor I will implement E- Verify for all employees working in New Jersey and work with President Donald Trump to eliminate sanctuary cities across NJ. Everyone must follow the same rules in business and follow the law. Our veterans will of NJ will be first priority in NJ hospitals not illegal immigrants.”

On the Heroin epidemic Rullo wants stricter sentencing for drug dealers , “to make it a living hell for heroin dealers in NJ. With that being said they should be charged for attempt of murder for distribution and automatic manslaughter if someone dies from their distribution. ”

Rullo suports Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi efforts on Forced Overdevelopment in Bergen County, and is the one candidate for that has promised to dissolve COAH  altogether while other candidates have only spoken in vague generalities or ignored the subject all together.

And finally the pervasive pension mess, Rullo says Eliminate 700 million in pension fees to NYC politically connected brokerage houses and replace with licensed brokers in the state investors division to pay savings towards pension payment.  The pension fees went from 125M to 700M per year in the last 7 years.

*Open up state employee health insurance bids across America to create competition to lower premiums and get better coverage for employees.

* Dedicate a portion of recreational marijuana revenues to pay towards pension payment.

* Open up a formal investigation and audit the pension fund for the last several decades to hold politicians in both parties accountable for their actions.

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Councilmen Voigt continues his attack of Village residents Making OPRA Requests

Voigt OPRA

June 4,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Councilmen Voigt continues his attack of Village residents over the weekend with more posts on who is making legal OPRA requests .Voigt and his cronies on the Financial Advisory Committee clearly prefer to operate in a vale of secrecy .

While this is clearly an attempt to pressure residents , from exercising their legal rights and limit and restrict public access to information in the Village .

Councilmen Voigt  continues to attempt to squash OPRA requests by pushing the idea of a vast Mayoral conspiracy against him. However years of running this blog would suggest that sunlight is still the best political sanitizer.

Screenshot 2017 06 04 at 7.33.36 AM e1496577271920

So what is OPRA:

SECTION 1 – OPRA DEFINED What is the Open Public Records Act (OPRA)? OPRA is the State statute that replaces the old “Right to Know Law” which governs thepublic’s access to government records in New Jersey. The law is compiled in the statutes as N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.

In accordance with the Open Public Records Act, Village offices, officials  and departments  have to make available public records through formal requests. Requests may be submitted in writing by submitting a “records request form”  by completing the online form below.

According to the  Citizen’s Guide to the Open Public Records Act – State of New Jersey ; OPRA provides overriding public policies in the legislative findings (N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1) which must be considered during the handling of all OPRA requests for access to government records. Those public policies are:

 Government records must be readily accessible for inspection, copying, or examination by its citizens, with certain exceptions, for the protection of the public interest.

 Any limitations on the right of access to government records must be interpreted in favor of the public’s right of access.

 A public agency has a responsibility and an obligation to protect a citizen’s personal information that is in the possession of a public agency when disclosure of that information would violate the citizen’s reasonable expectation of privacy.”

In fact, in Burnett v. County of Bergen, 198 N.J. 408 (2009), the Court held without ambiguity, that the privacy provision “is neither a preface nor a preamble.” Rather, “the very language expressed in the privacy clause reveals its substantive nature; it does not offer reasons why OPRA was adopted, as preambles typically do; instead, it focuses on the law’s implementation.” “Specifically, it imposes an obligation on public agencies to protect against disclosure of personal information which would run contrary to reasonable privacy interests.”

If you want to exercise your legal right to access records under the Open Public Records Act this is how you do it in Ridgewood :
How to Request Government Records?

1. All government records are subject to public access under the Open Public Records Act (“OPRA”), unless specifically exempt.

2. A request for access to a government record under OPRA must be in writing, hand-delivered, mailed, transmitted electronically, or otherwise conveyed to the appropriate custodian. N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5.g. The seven (7) business day response time does not commence until the records custodian receives the request form. If you submit the request form to any other officer or employee of the Village of Ridgewood, that officer or employee must either forward the request to the appropriate custodian, or direct you to the appropriate custodian. N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5.h.

3. Requestors may submit requests anonymously. If you elect not to provide a name, address, or telephone number, or other means of contact, the custodian is not required to respond until you reappear before the custodian seeking a response to the original request.

4. The fees for duplication of a government record in printed form are listed on the front of this form. We will notify you of any special service charges or other additional charges authorized by State law or regulation before processing your request. Payment shall be made by cash, check or money order payable to the Village of Ridgewood.

5. You may be charged a 50% or other deposit when a request for copies exceeds $25. The Village of Ridgewood custodian will contact you and advise you of any deposit requirements. You agree to pay the balance due upon delivery of the records. Anonymous requests in excess of $5.00 require a deposit of 100% of estimated fees.

6. Under OPRA, a custodian must deny access to a person who has been convicted of an indictable offense in New Jersey, any other state, or the United States, and who is seeking government records containing personal information pertaining to the person’s victim or the victim’s family. This includes anonymous requests for said information.

7. By law, the Village of Ridgewood must notify you that it grants or denies a request for access to government records within seven (7) business days after the agency custodian of records receives the request. If the record requested is not currently available or is in storage, the custodian will advise you within seven (7) business days after receipt of the request when the record can be made available and the estimated cost for reproduction.

8. You may be denied access to a government record if your request would substantially disrupt agency operations and the custodian is unable to reach a reasonable solution with you.

9. If the Village of Ridgewood is unable to comply with your request for access to a government record, the custodian will indicate the reasons for denial on the request form or other written correspondence and send you a signed and dated copy.

10. Except as otherwise provided by law or by agreement with the requester, if the agency custodian of records fails to respond to you within seven (7) business days of receiving a request, the failure to respond is a deemed denial of your request.

11. If your request for access to a government record has been denied or unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a right to challenge the decision by the Village of Ridgewood to deny access. At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government Records Council (“GRC”) by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form. You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at PO Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email protected], or at their web site at www.state.nj.us/grc. The Council can also answer other questions about the law. All questions regarding complaints filed in Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.

12. Information provided on this form may be subject to disclosure under the Open Public Records Act.

Click here to download OPRA Request Form

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Big New Jersey religious-liberty case: Did you hear who backed efforts to build a new mosque?

blue+mosque+turkey

Terry Mattingly

So, did you hear about that major victory for religious-liberty activists the other day?

In this case, the reference to “religious liberty” in that first statement is not framed in scare quotes for a simple reason. This particular case did not have anything to do with debates about the Sexual Revolution clashing with ancient religious doctrines and traditions.

This important case involved a win for Muslims in Somerset County, N.J., who have been fighting their suburban powers in defense of their right to build themselves a mosque.

This is where things get interesting. The Islamic Society of Basking Ridge had the U.S. Department of Justice on its side, but also received help from a broad coalition of religious-liberty activists. This was a rare sighting of the old left-right coalition that used to stand together back in the heady days in the 1990s, when Democrats and Republicans all embraced the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (click here for GetReligion links on that).

https://www.getreligion.org/getreligion/2017/6/2/big-new-jersey-religious-liberty-case-did-you-hear-who-backed-efforts-to-build-a-new-mosque

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Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi to hold Major Legislative Hearing on Forced Overdevelopment in Bergen County

Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi

Tired of Being Number One in all the wrong things? Hope to see representation from all of our communities on June 15, 2017. Help be part of the solution !

June 3,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

WESTWOOD NJ,  Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi will initiate a series of statewide legislative hearings to address New Jersey’s affordable housing crisis. The first will be held on June 15 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Bergen Community College’s Technology Education Center room 128.

One candidate for New Jersey Governor GOP Joseph Rudy Rullo  has promised to dissolve COAH  altogether while other candidates have only spoken in vague generalities or ignored the subject all together.

“The tough job of finding a solution cannot wait another day,” said Schepisi (R-Bergen). “If the state Legislature won’t hold meetings on court-forced overdevelopment, I will.”

Schepisi will be joined by other invited guests, including fellow legislators, mayors, town officials and planners, engineers, traffic experts, board of education members, environmental groups and other interested parties.

She said the hearings will examine ways to provide a better way toward affordability for the residents of this state while protecting towns from a recent state Supreme Court ruling that could force the construction of up to 1.5 million unneeded housing units to satisfy a fictitious population increase of 3.35 million in the next nine years – while Rutgers projects a population increase of only 219,000.

“We have reached a critical juncture in the State of New Jersey. We are the most costly, the most densely populated with the highest number of outmigration because people can no longer afford to live here. Instead of smart discussions regarding how to implement change to reduce living costs for all of our residents, the legislature’s inaction is forcing communities to potentially double their housing population in just the next nine years, destroying all existing housing prices while increasing property taxes,” said Schepisi. “We need to stop the court’s action and fix this issue while we still can.”

Schepisi recently introduced two bills to freeze municipal affordable housing obligations through the end of the year, and establish a commission to study the issue and determine each town’s obligations. As a result of the failure of the legislature to move any of these initiatives forward, Schepisi has decided to hold her own hearings and provide the transcripts and testimony to the NJ Legislature.

Over forty-five municipalities in Bergen, Gloucester, Morris, Essex, Union, Somerset, Mercer, Passaic and Hudson counties have passed a resolution urging action by the legislature to stop such discrepancy. The resolution also supports Schepisi’s bills to temporarily halt affordable housing litigation and create a special commission.

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ICE arrests Mexican, Honduran nationals after New Jersey County declines detainers

ICE : U

June 1,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

NEWARK NJ, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers arrested two individuals, one from Mexico and one from Honduras, after they were released from the custody of Middlesex County with active ICE detainers in place.

On April 14, 2016, ICE lodged an immigration detainer on Elder Antonio Quintero Rodriguez, a Honduran citizen. On May 19, 2017, the facility released him from custody without notifying ICE. Quintero Rodriguez has a felony conviction of endangering abuse; the neglect of a child. ERO Newark officers arrested him in New Brunswick, New Jersey, May 30, 2017.

On April 21, 2017, ICE lodged an immigration detainer on Rolando Herrera Saavedra, a Mexican citizen. On April 29, 2017, the facility released him from custody without notifying ICE. Herrera Saavedra is currently facing state criminal charges. ERO Newark officers arrested Herrera Saavedra in Long Branch, New Jersey, May 24, 2017.

Neither Herrera Saavedra nor Quintero Rodriguez has lawful status in the United States. Both remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

“As a nation, we must protect the integrity of our immigration system and aggressively pursue the removal of illegal criminal aliens; this is one of ICE’s top priorities,” said John Tsoukaris, ERO Newark field office director. “ICE shares the county’s ultimate objective to protect public safety and national security while simultaneously preserving the critical community-police bond; however, counties such as Middlesex that fail to work with ICE in the transfer of custody of criminal aliens, place the citizens of their communities at serious risk.”

In fiscal year 2016, ICE removed or returned 240,255 individuals. Of this total, 174,923 were apprehended while, or shortly after, attempting to illegally enter the United States. The remaining 65,332 were apprehended in the interior of the United States, and the vast majority was convicted criminals.

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Judicial Watch: New Clinton Emails Show Classified Information Sent to Clinton Foundation Employees

bill-and-hillary-clinton-foundation-global-initiative-AFP-640x480
Emails also show Abedin providing government plane and hotel reservations to Chelsea Clinton for trip to Germany while employed at Clinton Foundation

 Abedin tells Band that she has ‘hooked up’ people from the Russian American Foundation with ‘the right people’ at the State Department

June 2,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington DC,  Judicial Watch today released 2,078 pages of documents revealing more instances of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sending and receiving classified information via an unsecured email server. They also show Clinton’s daughter Chelsea and others involved with the Clinton Foundation receiving special favors from Huma Abedin, the former secretary’s deputy chief of staff.

The records were obtained in response to a court order from a May 5, 2015, lawsuit filed against the State Department (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. U.S. Department of State (No. 1:15-cv-00684)) after it failed to respond to a March 18, 2015, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking: “All emails of official State Department business received or sent by former Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin from January 1, 2009 through February 1, 2013 using a non-‘state.gov’ email address.”

The new documents included 115 Clinton email exchanges not previously turned over to the State Department, bringing the known total to date to at least 432 emails that were not part of the 55,000 pages of emails that Clinton turned over to the State Department. These records further appear to contradict statements by Clinton that, “as far as she knew,” all of her government emails were turned over to the State Department.

On December 6, 2010, Secretary Clinton shared classified information with non-U.S. government employees Justin Cooper, then-aide to President Clinton who helped manage Hillary Clinton’s unsecure email system, and Clinton Foundation director Doug Band (neither of whom held security clearances). The email instructs her aide Oscar Flores to “print for Bill” (presumably Bill Clinton). The email exchange, which involved allegations of the theft of foreign aid by Bangladeshi banker and major Clinton Foundation donor Muhammad Yunus, started with an email from an unidentified person to State Department official Melanne Verveer, who forwarded her exchange on to Hillary Clinton, who then sent it on to Flores, Cooper and Band.

Yunus was accused of embezzling $100 million from the Grameen Bank he founded and was removed from it, although the charges were never proven, and Yunus reportedly returned the money. Subsequently, Clinton’s State Department was accused of threatening IRS action against the Bangladesh prime minister’s son in an attempt to stop a Bangladesh government investigation of Yunus.

In a similar instance on March 14, 2011, State Department official Maria Otero emailed Clinton information about the Grameen Bank/Foundation that was again deemed classified as Confidential by the State Department and redacted under FOIA exemption B1.4(D) – “Information specifically authorized by an executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy … Foreign relations or foreign activities of the United States, including confidential sources.” Clinton then responds to Otero using her HDR22@clintonemailcom account and copies Abedin on Abedin’s unsecure email account, [email protected].

In May 2010, Ben Ringel, whose donations to the Clinton Foundation Judicial Watch previously documented, asked Abedin to intervene in an employment dispute on behalf of a USAID employee. Abedin agreed, telling Ringel to forward the woman’s documents to her official State Department email account.

In a May 21, 2011, email exchange sent to Abedin’s unsecure account, then- Ambassador Princeton Lyman sent information relating to his conversation with South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit that is also redacted and classified as “Confidential.”

On July 17, 2012, Abedin forwarded to her private email account for printing a call briefing sheet for Clinton’s upcoming call with Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan, which was classified Confidential and redacted under FOIA exemption B1.4(D).

The new Abedin emails also reveal additional instances in which Clinton’s then- scheduler Lona Valmoro forwarded the former secretary of state’s detailed daily schedule to top Clinton Foundation officials.

The new emails also reveal a number of favors that were requested and carried out.

In May 2010, Abedin tells Band that she has “hooked up” people from the Russian American Foundation with “the right people” at the State Department after Abedin received a request from Russian American Foundation Vice President Rina Kirshner, forwarded by Clinton Foundation donor Eddie Trump (no relation to President Trump).

On Mon, May 10, 2010 at 9:41 PM, Huma Abedin <[email protected]> wrote:

Hi Rina – wanted to connect on meeting at state department. Eddie trump passed on your email. Will be in touch soon.

From: Rina Kirshner
Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 2010 11:29 AM
To: Huma Abedin
Subject: Re: Eddie Trump/Doug Band

Ms. Abedin,
Just wanted to follow up and express our gratitude. I was contacted today by Ms. Christina Miner who invited us to be part of the US-Russia Cultural Sub-Working Group meeting next week. Thank you very much for all your assistance – if there is any way we can be of assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Rina Kirshner

From: Huma Abedin [[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 2010 12:19:12 PM
To: Doug Band
Subject: FW: Eddie Trump/Doug Band

fyi – we hooked her up with the right people here

The Russia-American Foundation was staffed by Clinton political supporters and operatives, received over $260,000 in grants for “public diplomacy” from the Clinton State Department, and its leadership was supportive of Obama’s Russia policies.

In July 2011, when Chelsea Clinton, using the alias Diane Reynolds and the email address[email protected], was planning to fly to Germany to see the U.S. women’s soccer team play, her travel agent asked Abedin to confirm that Chelsea’s travel costs could be placed on her parents’ credit card. In response, Abedin tells the agent that she can “stand down” from making arrangements to get Chelsea to Germany, as Chelsea and Bari Luri, Chelsea’s Clinton Foundation chief of staff, would be made part of the “official delegation” going to the match and she would “fly on official govt plane both ways and they will take care of hotels and all transportation.” Chelsea was a fully employed Clinton Foundation executive at this time.

In July 2011, Clinton tells Abedin that she doesn’t wish to fly on the same airplane with Michelle Obama on their way to Betty Ford’s funeral: “I’d be honored to speak. Is it ok that we and Mrs. O take two separate planes?”

A December 15, 2012, email chain shows that a committee of Clinton staffers, including Cheryl Mills, Huma Abedin, Jake Sullivan and Philippe Reines, was required to draft a “doctors statement” as to why Hillary supposedly fainted due to “dehydration,” causing her supposedly to hit her head and suffer a “concussion” in December 2012. The same committee then prepared a “discharge statement” when Hillary was released from the hospital.

“These shocking new Clinton emails show why the Justice Department should reevaluate, reopen, or reinvigorate Clinton, Inc. investigations,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The casual violation of laws concerning classified material and noxious influence peddling show the Clinton State Department was ‘corruption central’ in the Obama administration.  No wonder Clinton’s allies in the State and Justice Departments had been slow-walking and hiding these emails.”

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Ridgewood Professional Firefighters FMBA Local 47 offers Some Pool Safety Tips

children in pool

June 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the Ridgewood Professional Firefighters FMBA Local 47 reminds us that although it may be a bit cool for swimming this weekend, the hot weather will be upon us soon enough. Let’s take a minute to review pool safety.

From the American Red Cross :

Millions of us enjoy warm weather every year by swimming in our backyard pools and relaxing in hot tubs. Tragically though, over 200 young children drown in backyard swimming pools each year. The American Red Cross suggests owners make pool safety their priority by following these guidelines:

Secure your pool with appropriate barriers. Completely surround your pool with a 4-feet high fence or barrier with a self-closing, self-latching gate. Place a safety cover on the pool or hot tub when not in use and remove any ladders or steps used for access. Consider installing a pool alarm that goes off if anyone enters the pool.

Keep children under active supervision at all times. Stay in arm’s reach of young kids. Designate a responsible person to watch the water when people are in the pool—never allow anyone to swim alone. Have young or inexperienced swimmers wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket.

Ensure everyone in the home knows how to swim well by enrolling them in age-appropriate water orientation and learn-to-swim courses from the Red Cross.

Keep your pool or hot tub water clean and clear. Maintain proper chemical levels, circulation and filtration. Regularly test and adjust the chemical levels to minimize the risk of earaches, rashes or more serious diseases.

Establish and enforce rules and safe behaviors, such as “no diving,” “stay away from drain covers,” “swim with a buddy” and “walk please.”

Ensure everyone in the home knows how to respond to aquatic emergencies by having appropriate safety equipment and taking water safety, first aid and CPR courses from the Red Cross.

https://www.redcross.org/get-help/prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/water-safety/home-pool-safety

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PSE&G Preps for 2017 Summer Electric Demand

PSEG

file photo by Boyd Loving

$2.8 billion infrastructure investments will maintain reliability

June 1,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ,  Public Service Electric and Gas Co. (PSE&G), New Jersey’s largest utility, has made significant infrastructure investments that are in service for the first time this season, ensuring the utility is better prepared than ever to meet customer demand for safe, reliable electricity this summer.

“PSE&G customers are benefiting from the $2.8 billion in electric and gas investments the utility made this past year,” said John Latka, senior vice president of electric and gas operations at PSE&G. “These investments, along with our highly skilled and dedicated workforce, play a big role in making us one of the most reliable utilities in the country, and the most reliable in the Mid-Atlantic region 15 years running.”

Notable projects completed since the start of last summer include:

Eliminated, or raised and rebuilt six substations and switching stations that were damaged by water during storms, including stations in Elizabeth, Garfield, Hoboken, Jersey City, Rahway and South Hackensack.
Installed relays and remote terminal units at 45 substations and installed a new Distribution SCADA system in all four divisions. This program deploys smart grid technologies to better monitor system operations to increase our ability to more swiftly deploy repair teams.
Completed 62 projects that address critical facilities, including hospitals, water treatment plants, telecommunications facilities and police stations. This program creates redundancy in the system, reducing outages when damage occurs.
Replaced 12 aging station transformers to maintain electric service reliability for customers in Bergen, Camden, Essex, Hudson and Union Counties.
Completed transmission hardening projects to raise station equipment in five flood-prone stations, benefiting customers in Bergen, Camden, Hudson and Union Counties.
Energized eight 69,000-volt substations and associated lines. The new networks provide increased local transmission supply capacity to customers across our service area, including many living in Bergen, Burlington, Hudson, Passaic and Union Counties.

In addition to these electric distribution upgrades, phase 2 of the $1.2 billion Bergen to Linden corridor upgrade is fully energized and completed on schedule. This portion represents the upgrade from Bayway station in Elizabeth, to Linden station. When complete in 2018, the 345-kilovolt (kV) line will run from Ridgefield to Linden, maintaining reliability by relieving congestion on other regional transmission lines.

The 2017 forecasted summer peak is 10,057 megawatts. Last year’s peak was 9,800 megawatts, set on August 12. PSE&G’s all-time summer peak was 11,108 megawatts, set on August 2, 2006.

PSE&G expects to have no problem delivering the additional power, but utility crews are at the ready to respond to service interruptions should they occur. The utility’s rigorous preparedness program for summer includes conducting annual hurricane and tropical storm drills, employee training, developing emergency summer operating plans, and performing summer peak reliability analysis, helicopter and climbing inspections of transmission circuits, infrared inspections, system reinforcements and transmission line work.

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Ridgewood Commuter update from New Jersey Transit

Ridgewood-Trainstation1_theridgewoodblog

June 1,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Assemblywomen Holly Schepisi shares a commuter update from New Jersey Transit.

COMMUTER UPDATE from NJ Transit:

NJ TRANSIT has heard from our customers that their lives have been turned upside down by the almost daily delays resulting from Amtrak’s emergency repair work that is going on at Penn Station New York (PSNY). This is before the continuous summer work that Amtrak will perform in July and August.

Amtrak has acknowledged that it must do extensive and disruptive work to its tracks and infrastructure at PSNY this summer due to years of its neglect. NJ TRANSIT has challenged Amtrak to make the necessary repairs and Amtrak maintains this work must be done now.

Amtrak’s summer repair and renewal work will reduce the number of trains that NJ TRANSIT can send in-and-out-of PSNY, particularly during peak periods. With Amtrak taking out multiple tracks that NJ TRANSIT uses every single day, NJ TRANSIT developed a modified summer rail schedule that will be in effect from July 10th through September 1st. The location and extent of Amtrak’s work means that instead of being able to send 21 trains into New York during the busiest hours of the morning rush, NJ TRANSIT will send 15.

Even under these constraints, NJ TRANSIT’s experienced transportation service planners were able to develop a service plan that allows three-quarters of our customers to continue to experience their regular travel pattern into New York. Nearly all customers traveling on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast Line, Raritan Valley, Montclair-Boonton, Pascack Valley, Main/Bergen and the Port Jervis Lines will continue their same travel pattern as they do today.

However, there is an impact to having fewer trains per-hour into New York during this two-month period; some of NJ TRANSIT’s customers will move to a two-seat ride into-and out-of Manhattan each weekday.

Recognizing the inconvenience of the affected customers on the Morris & Essex Lines, they will be charge much lower fares – 50 to 63 percent less than the price they usually pay for tickets and passes. To provide the maximum number of travel options, we are also developing a strategic increase to bus service in affected areas; light rail service will be adjusted and NJ TRANSIT will offer free cross-honoring with PATH and the ferries.

Customers will see a robust communication campaign in concert with the release of schedules and travel alternatives the first full week of June through all traditional and social media outlets available to us. NJ TRANSIT employee ambassadors will be out at key terminals including Penn Station, Hoboken, Newark and other locations beginning next month, to answer questions and hand out information to help prepare customers for the continuous Amtrak outages that will impact them this summer.

For the summer, NJ TRANSIT has insisted on having a Joint Station Operations Center at PSNY for better crowd management and customer communication. NJ TRANSIT has also insisted Amtrak have rescue engines crewed and ready to respond if there is a breakdown or disruption this summer, to keep one delayed train from creating a cascade of misery for the customers on many other trains.

NJ TRANSIT also insisted on a number of other steps to benefit New Jersey customers this summer, including:
· That the west end concourse at PSNY be opened for NJ TRANSIT customers.
· That the blanket 10 mph speed restriction now in place near PSNY be lifted prior to July 10.
· That NJ TRANSIT is allowed to perform field inspections of the renewal work.
· That Amtrak provide daily written progress reports.
· And that an NJ TRANSIT representative be involved in day-to-day dispatching decisions.

Longer term, NJ TRANSIT will demand that New Jersey have more input on Amtrak’s priorities for repair and replacement of infrastructure, to ensure that state of good repair efforts – those projects most directly tied to the safe and reliable service, are being advanced where they are needed most, so that NJ TRANSIT’s customers can have safe, reliable service, day in and day out.

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Homeland Security : Manchester Attack Calls Attention to Security Concerns at New Jersey Events

Met life stadium theridgewoodblog.net 1

May 31,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, from the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security ,the bombing at an arena in Manchester, England, after an Ariana Grande concert on May 22 illustrates the need for security measures and vigilance by the public at the conclusion of a major event. Often at a concert or a sporting event, security measures such as checkpoints and bag checks are in place at the beginning, when ticketholders are entering the venue. After the event, however, there are fewer security measures, and since the event is over, security personnel and the general public may have a tendency to let down their guard. At the arena in Manchester, the attacker was able to inflict multiple casualties by detonating his explosives as spectators were exiting the arena, taking advantage of the fact that there are typically larger concentrations of people in confined spaces as spectators are leaving an event than when they are arriving (photo shows a crowd exiting on a stairway in Manchester).

The attacker was also able to avoid detection by security personnel by detonating his explosives outside the arena, rather than attempting to smuggle them in through a checkpoint. The explosion occurred on a walkway connecting the arena to the Victoria train station. Extending the security perimeter, by measures such as placing bollards to impede vehicles and adding surveillance cameras looking outward from the venue, could potentially reduce the threat. However, as at airports, no matter how far outward security measures are pushed, eventually there comes a point where security stops—and that seam becomes a vulnerability. Accordingly, an attack such as the one in Manchester could potentially occur in the United States, including New Jersey.

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IN NJ, AS IN NEARBY STATES, COMPETITIVENESS DRIVES AFFORDABILITY

for sale Ridgewood_Real_Estate_theRodgewopodblog

file photo by Boyd Loving

MICHELE SIEKERKA | MAY 30, 2017

The only way to stem our tide of outmigration is to bring our economic policies in line with our direct regional competitors — Pennsylvania and New York

NJBIA president and CEO Michele Siekerka

New Jersey has many positive attributes. We added almost 60,000 jobs in 2016, the state’s largest gain since 2000, according to the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. We have among the best K-12 public education systems in the nation and a highly skilled workforce including the highest concentration of scientists and engineers in the world — more than 225,000 statewide.

New Jersey also has a strong transportation network. We are home to the Port of New York and New Jersey, the third largest seaport in North America and the largest and busiest maritime cargo center on the East Coast. And we are among the national leaders in logistics and distribution. New Jersey is also a great recreation state with more than 130 miles of shoreline, beautiful parks, and mountains.

Despite these great assets, New Jersey remains a significant outlier, both nationally and regionally when comparing competitiveness and affordability including our state’s high cost of living and its heavy tax burden. New Jersey’s border states, Pennsylvania and New York, continue to be the No. 1 and No. 2 outmigration states for New Jersey residents and are challenging our competitiveness.

To reverse this trend we must examine our policies on taxation, revenue generation, and spending, and we must do so through the filter of competitiveness and affordability.

https://www.njspotlight.com/stories/17/05/25/op-ed-in-nj-as-in-neighboring-states-competitiveness-drives-affordability/

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Young adults today: No school, no job, living at home with mom and dad

millenials

By Dino Flammia May 29, 2017 10:00 PM

It’s no secret that young adults today are experiencing milestones — purchasing a home, getting married, having a child — later in life compared to previous generations.

But a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau digs even deeper and finds a statistic that’s hard to ignore: A quarter of 25-to-34-year-olds still living at home are considered “idle” — meaning they have no job or schooling to attend.

More than 2 million older millennials fall in this category nationwide, according to the report. The majority are men and most are aged 25 to 29. About half are white.

“In 2005, the majority of young adults lived independently in their own household, which was the predominant living arrangement in 35 states. A decade later, by 2015, the number of states where the majority of young people lived independently fell to just six,” the report said.

In New Jersey, most young people are not living independently.

Read More: Young adults today: No school, no job, living at home with mom and dad | https://nj1015.com/young-adults-today-no-school-no-job-living-at-home-with-mom-and-dad/?trackback=tsmclip

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New Ridgewood Water Conservation Regulations

ridgewood water

May 26, 2017

Dear Great Friends At the Ridgewood Blog,

As we enter the warmer weather, we all look forward to being outdoors more often and tending to our lawns and gardens. A postcard will be sent to all Ridgewood Water customers in Ridgewood, which will summarize the new permanent water regulations, for conservation purposes. I encourage you to use the postcard as a reminder of the new regulations, by putting it in a place where it can easily be referenced. The new regulations are summarized below:

Two-day per week irrigation is permanent year round, including private wells:

Odd numbered addresses on Tuesday & Saturday
Even numbered addresses on Wednesday & Sunday

Restrict irrigation hours to limit water evaporation:

No irrigation between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
Automatic system use permitted only between 3:00 a.m. & 7:00 a.m.

Watering exemptions are offered for the use of smart controllers (must seek approval from Ridgewood Water Administration in Village Hall).
All automatic irrigation systems shall be equipped with an operational automatic rain sensor.
Approved uses of water, at any time, include:

pool filling
power washing
cleaning gutters
recreational use of sprinklers for children
hand-washing of vehicles

Please conserve water during these approved activities to the greatest extent possible.

– View the Conservation Ordinance, Water Saving Tips, and Frequently Asked Questions at https://water.ridgewoodnj.net.

– Questions – Customer Service at 201-670-5520 or [email protected].

– To report non-compliant watering, please email [email protected] or call 201-670-5500 ext. 271

We appreciate your efforts and thank you for helping to sustain the future of our water.

Please share this information with your friends and neighbors.

Heather A. Mailander
Village Manager
201/670-5500 x202

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RIDGEWOOD’S GRAYDON POOL OPENS JUNE 3rd

Graydon Pool
photo by Boyd Loving
May 29,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, it is being reported once again the a great white shark, has been spotted at the  southern tip of the Jersey Shore just in time for Memorial Day but if you looking for a safer alternative you can still purchase Graydon Pool memberships online.

CONTACTS :
Pool Manager’s Office – 201-670-5500, ext 7002 (in season)
Badge Office – 201-670-5500, ext 7003 (in season only)
Recreation Office at The Stable- 201-670-5560
[email protected]

GRAYDON POOL/2017 HOURS OF OPERATION

Early Season
June 3 through June 22
Weekdays – 12 noon to 7:30 pm
Weekends – 10 am to 7:30 pm
Regular Season
June 23 through August 13, 2017
Daily 10 am to 7:30 pm
**Holiday**, July 4th, closes 4 pm
Late Season
August 14 through Labor Day, September 4, 2017
Weekdays – 12 noon to 7:30 pm
Weekends/Holiday – 10 am to 7:30 pm

, Visa/MasterCard accepted.

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Bergen Record down the “rabbit hole” with Councilmen Jeff Voigt

mad hatter

May 29,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, once again it looks like the Bergen Record has picked sides and gone down the “rabbit hole” with Councilmen Jeff Voigt and the 3 amigos . In a recent article ,”Email search exposes distrust among Ridgewood council members” ( https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/ridgewood/2017/05/27/email-search-exposes-distrust-among-ridgewood-council-members/343478001/ ) the Record clearly with the help of former Mayor Paul Aronsohn attempts to miscast the Villages version of the “Mad Hatter” Councilmen Voigt as a victim in the latest OPRA conspiracy .

Aronsohn’s failed political exploits have left him with little room to maneuver, and lots of favors that need repaying ,yet he can still call the Bergen Record his friend . The new owners seems to have fallen for the same nonsense the destroyed the papers credibility in the past.  The ridiculous one sided article tries to paint Jeff and his two supporters in town as the victims of an organized effort to harass him with OPRA requests . As usually the Record takes the side of another failed politician over the wishes of the taxpayers and residents .

Residents and taxpayers have every right to OPRA politicians emails period and it both offensive and totally dishonest to suggest otherwise . The reality is like Aronsohn’s 3 Amiogos administration Voight was caught red handed actively undermining his colleagues . It was poor judgement on his part and poorer judgement for the Bergen Record to consort with a 3 times political loser like Aronsohn .