Valley Hospital’s suit over rejected expansion plan could prove costly for Ridgewood
OCTOBER 10, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2014, 1:21 AM
BY MARY JO LAYTON
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
The Valley Hospital’s lawsuit against the Ridgewood Planning Board and Village Council is sparking fears of a costly, protracted legal battle and even some talk of a boycott of the hospital and its physicians.
The hospital, whose proposal to nearly double in size was rejected by the Planning Board in June, has turned to the courts to push the expansion through.
Mayor Paul Aronsohn said the board’s decision should stand. As a member of the Planning Board, he voted against the proposal to change the village master plan to allow the project.
“I fear this lawsuit will not only be divisive, but also expensive,” Aronsohn said Thursday. “By forcing the village to spend scarce tax dollars on a legal defense, this lawsuit runs the risk of undermining important village services and programs.”
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/health-news/valley-suit-may-prove-costly-1.1106700#sthash.IM82mvH9.dpuf
Rogers seems to know what he is talking about.
Well this time I agree with this Mayor.
Diane Palacios says:
If my candidate doesn’t win an election, I will sue and say the election was illegal.
It is my right. Everything I want is inherently beneficial.
I don’t care what anyone says. I have always wanted a pet pony at my house. And use the garage as its barn. I can have it , or I will sue.
I wonder if Valley will sue me because I recently used an NYC doctor to cure something , when a Valley doctor couldn’t help me.
I sought a second opinion and was helped immediately by NYC doctor at NYC hospital.
Will I be sued? Is what I am writing slanderous.
Diane Palacios
Whatever I want is inherently beneficial……. to me.
You don’t count.
Diane Palacios
So comforting (not!) to know that the mayor depleted our financial cushion so we will have no reserve $$$ to pay for this.
#6 said,
So comforting (not!) to know that the mayor depleted our financial cushion so we will have no reserve $$$ to pay for this.
Go away Tom your annoying the residents.
I’m happy the mayor at least seems to be gearing up to fight the hospital. I was worried….
The money is one thing, but the real cost of losing this, for all the residents of Ridgewood, will be felt for years to come, and it will not be pretty. Truly amazing how an entity synonymous with a town that attempts to at least try and do things the “right way,” now gets stabbed in the back by a greedy, relatively small group of people. Really pathetic…
Why is it that the two sides cannot come to a suitable compromise on this issue?
did you just move here ?
time to Boycott Valley
yes its just great that the council spent down the Village reserves, the Valley Suit and the Ridgewood Water suit are going to crush this town
I would like to know what the prominent Valley supporters on the council have to say about this lawsuit — will they side with Valley against the will of the Village? Will they use their influence with the Hospital to get it to drop the suit? And if Valley persists, will they have the strength to publicly stand up to Valley and say “enough, i’ve supported you, now you have betrayed the Village with this litigation.” Or, as many have alleged, are they on the Council simply to advance the goals of Valley?
I find Mr. Cornell’s comments to be incredibly vile. He’s “sorry” it came to this and wished there was a compromise. Why won’t he take a public stand in support of the Village? Valley refused to compromise. Valley refused to say this would be the last time they would ask for an extension. Valley went back on its prior promises during the prior expansions. Where was Mr. Cornell suggesting compromise during the hearings over the past two years??? Where were the other forked tongue Valley supporters? Valley has made it clear with Mr. Drill’s lawsuit that the goals of Valley as a regional hospital should be paramount to lives and well being of Village residents. How can Mr. Cornell or any Valley supporters in good faith claim they are doing what’s right for the Village? And, please, if one more person talks about the need for our “community” hospital….
I am simply amazed by the duplicity of some of these folks. Valley lost — twice — before the Planning Board. It has refused all reasonable settlements. Why do these supporters live in Ridgewood if they refuse to abide by its rules and procedures? There was (perhaps) nothing wrong with Valley seeking its expansion. But now that it has lost, fair and square, Valley’s managers should be ashamed to waste Village tax dollars and — more importantly — charitable donations. How many innocent children and others might benefit from what must be at least a million dollars or more paid to Drill and the other lawyers to perpetrate Valley’s conquests?
Has Valley no conscience? Of course not, its a corporation designed to propagate its business objectives in perpetuity. On the other hand, has its supporters any semblance of doing what’s right? Let’s see in the weeks ahead.
Wow – that was fast —
I knew the “it’s cheaper to let Valley do what it wants” argument would come, but I thought there would be at least some period of determination by the village (albeit false) to fight this lawsuit.
Once again, you are taking this personally. This is business, big business. Valley is not looking to go to court, they want to go to the negotiating table.
Valley lost 2x at the Planning Board so they know they can’t get what they want. They have been forced to the negotiating table by the strength of the community groups. To force Ridgewood to the table they have to file suit. But its not personal, just business.
Let’s get to the table and find a solution that works for everyone. Even the community groups agree that Valley should be allowed to modernize and we all know they need more parking. We also all know that a 92 foot tower isn’t going to happen and that the hospital should not be allowed to double its capacity. There is plenty in there we agree on. Time to start negotiating.
The “supporters” of Valley do so usually because of self-interests, ie. either they or a friend/relative work there, business interest, etc. It has very little, if anything, to do with the idea of it’s being for the good of the residents simply because you just can’t find a justifiable reason as to why it is. So why they would quote this guy’s asinine remark, other than his title and to fill up space, is beyond me.
By the time this thing winds its way through the courts and all the other legal nonsense there will be a completely different Village Council. Just look at the BOE. Every single person elected in the last two elections were “anti-Valley.” Expect the exact same thing to happen with the next Council election. I know Valley wants what they want but I really don’t believe they are getting accurate information. I think some of them believe that their opposition is coming just from their immediate neighborhood. When there are three new faces on the Council after the next election they might then start to understand there are a lot of people that feel that what they are proposing is just too big. I don’t know of anyone who is against them improving/updating/expanding it is just that what they are trying to do is way out of whack for that piece of property in that location.
Did Shiela Brogan run ? She was anything but anti-Valley.
I reviewed aerial photos of Valley on line at http://www.historicaerials.com and was amazed to see that Valley has expanded no less than six (6) times since 1953. Additionally, the original Valley building no longer exists. So how many more times will Valley wish to expand after their currently contemplated plan? Astonishingly, the neighborhood homes have essentially remained the same since 1953 and haven’t encroached on Valley’s property. Valley has outgrown the site, pure and simple. Time to seek a new plan, which based on their recent real estate acquisitions, they have already begun. BTW, Dom is on record as saying the blog censors him.
Nope, not Tom Riche here. Matter of fact I am female, slim, attractive, and I have never been on the Village Council. Don’t look a bit like Mr. Riche. Do you honestly think that Tom was the only one who was against depleting the entire cushion of cash?
Ridgewood MUST NOT LET VALLEY HAVE ITS WAY IN THIS MANNER! We will NOT be BULLIED. Give me liberty, or give me death! I regret I have but one personal reputation to offer up to be publicly annihilated by well-funded PR-machine Saul-Alinsky-Trained community-organizer-type Valley-shilling hacks! Millions for arms, not a penny in tribute! Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead! Remember the Alamo! You may fire when ready, Gridley. Mr. Aronsohn, if you are not presently using your army, might I borrow it? Win one for the Gipper! We will fight on the beaches, we will fight in the hills, we shall fight in the landing zones. NUTS!!! We have met the enemy, and they are ours. The trick is to get the other poor bastard to d*e for his parasitic, so-called regionally-beneficial juggernaut of a crappy neighbor. Nuke ’em all and let G*d sort ’em out! You need to ask yourself: Do I feel lucky? Well, Do ya’, punk? Peace through superior firepower! Some things in here don’t react well to bullets. My other plane is a B2 Stealth Bomber. Ms. Meyers, tear down this wall! Ridgewood residents, you may not be able to hear me, but Valley Hospital will soon hear from all of you!
Don’t you dare signal weakness to this enemy! Don’t forget, P.A., they won’t respect you in the morning!
Nope, not Tom Riche here. Matter of fact I am female, slim, attractive, and I have never been on the Village Council. Don’t look a bit like Mr. Riche. Do you honestly think that Tom was the only one who was against depleting the entire cushion of cash?
YEA….. Right! Nice try Tommy boy but YOUR finger prints are all over that dumb comment about the cash reserve.
sorry but the “cash reserve” comment is spot on Deputy Mayor
If we are to work this out over the negotiating table, we have to do it from a position of strength. Valley’s cushion of cash means that, from a financial perspective, they are that much more well-positioned to afford the additional incremental month of litigation expenses that Ridgewood’s councilmembers and village manager rightly view with dread. So the question is, what and where are Valley’s pain points, and how can we exploit them in such a way to cause Valley’s total pain ( financial pain plus ‘other’ types of pain) to mount in a monthly increment that eventually exceeds ours? I have my ideas but I would be interested to hear other residents’ perspectives. Only if Valley estimates that Ridgewood’s fiscal watchdogs will cry ‘uncle’ first will they decide to fund that additional month of expenses. Otherwise they will begin to present an increasingly conciliatory aspect that will signal to us that they are getting ready to capitulate.
Why do I feel like I live in the Upper East Side?
James said, sorry but the “cash reserve” comment is spot on Deputy Mayor
Not a chance, your agenda is showing James.
its all going to come out in the wash
The defense just has to say that Valley can expand by building separate buildings in nearby locations. What is wrong with that? A judge would agree. It wouldn’t cost much for a lawyer to say that.
What can Valley say? That they can’t afford separate buildings? That’s just not true. The cost of the huge renovation is probably more expensive than a separate building. They have land on RT. 17. That can used for something. Something real tech and useless. Something they can hype like robotic surgery. Real scalpel is the best, and safest, most effective.