January 7,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, the Village of Ridgewood now has 21 boards and committees while some serve needed functions many seem to have become personal fiefdoms propelled by special interests, self-fulfilling prophecies and mission creep
the town?
So this begs the question, is the Village of Ridgewood being run by a bunch of non-elected self-appointed special interests or do voters and taxpayers still have a say in how the town is run.
It is clearly time to review the functions of many of the committees, clean up the overlap or even close some down because their time has passsed.
21 BOARDS AND COMMITTEES
Board of Adjustmentoters and tax payers
Central Business District Advisory Committee
Chamber of Commerce
Citizens Safety Committee
Community Center Advisory Board
Community Relations Advisory Board
Field Committee
Financial Advisory Committee
Green Team Advisory Committee
Kasschau Shell
Library Board of Trustees
Open Space Committee
Parks, Recreation and Conservation Board
Planning Board and Historic Preservation Commission
Project Pride Committee
Ridgewood Arts Council
Ridgewood Community Access Network (CAN)
Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee
Ridgewood Fourth of July Committee
Shade Tree Commission
AGREE.
What is your counter solution? Hire people to do all these jobs? These are volunteers giving of their time. They have no power to actually spend any money and anything they do can be overruled by the council.
These committees are the very foundation of what it means to live in Ridgewood and what it should mean to live in America. DeTocquivillle talked about this a lot in Democracy in America and explained how each of these committees helps bind us together and to make us Americans.
Brian that’s really lame, unelected committees are more a symptom of totalitarianism
Interesting. I cannot disagree more.
In this instance, the claim is that the committees are “running amok.” That by its very definition says that they are out of step with the government. In other words, the opposite of totalitarianism. Totalitarian governments first ban committees and other bodies with any power or voice. They may setup the Brown Shirts or Soviet Youth Leagues to march in step with the government, but they do not institute committees that can act independently.
I really think there is probably nothing better about Ridgewood than its committees. All of our best moments: 4th of July parade, Memorial Day Run, MLK Day, Christmas tree lighting, West Side Pres. concerts, etc. all come from the work of committees. The value of living in a place like Ridgewood is that there are citizens who are willing to give time and energy to create great public opportunities. It is that spirit that makes Ridgewood great.