I haven't been attentive to my blogging duties lately. Part of the reason is that my job hasn't been a picnic lately due to the dual collapses of the national real estate industry and the global capital markets. And yet I still have a job and for this I am grateful.
There's also some element of blog burnout. I'm weary of the cycle of blather about property taxes and fire fighters and schools and stealth synagogues. I know it serves a valuable role allowing people to speak out about issues that are meaningful to them, but the downside is that it allows anonymous jerkoffs to exploit the tragic death of children to make a political points.
So here's my plea. Please don't bring up that fire again on this blog unless it's the topic of a thread. Here's a good rule of thumb that applies to the topic of that fire, or any other topci for that matter: don't write anything that you wouldn't be willing to say out loud to someone's face.
To change the subject: Lately, due to my heavy workload at my job, I've been carrying around a tiny netbook in my purse so I can do some quick work-related writing or spreadsheeting while waiting for the kids, etc. In Votee Park the other day and I discovered that the south end of the park, near the Rodda Center has an excellent free wi-fi signal. Perhaps it's coming from the giant ersatz redwood tree. I'm also grateful to the Teaneck Swim Club for installing wi-fi, although the signal's not strong enough to reliably reach the shady places where I tend to sit. I would be interested in hearing from others about other places in town with decent and free wi-fi signals.
And for those who are more interested in food than technology, here are three new dining opportunities:
Here's the menu for a new restaurant in town called Dampa Ni Lola on Degraw Avenue, which serves Philipino cuisine. While I'm a rather experimental eater, I'm not sure that I have the stomach these days for Dinuguan, which is pork cooked in pork blood or Bopis which is ground pork intestine sauteed in tomato sauce. But nonetheless, I wish the proprietor much success and please, if anyone's tried this place, let us know how it is.
On a sweeter note, Zoe's Cupcake Cafe is open. According to their website: 100% of Zoe's Cupcake Cafe net proceeds support Zoe's Place, Inc., a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide safe, supervised housing, and support services for Bergen County, NJ pregnant teens, teen moms, and their babies. In addition to funding, the Cafe will offer training and employment opportunities to the young girls of Zoe's Place. The cupcakes are top-notch.
Finally, Bistro En / Zen Lounge has re-opened as Yakitori 39. Here's an excerpt from the press release: "Yakitori 39 uses the freshest free range chicken in our yakitori and of course, as usual, our Chef, Yoshikatsu Yamashita, has a special twist, duck breast yakitori, lamb chop yakitori, and an wide array of appetizers including cold tofu dishes, Japanese style salads, deep fried Japanese chicken wings (tebasaki) and some of his famous French desserts." I was there on opening night and I highly recommend it.
Parade Or Disruption?
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In its wisdom, the township has decided to disenfranchise a large part of
the community by insisting on holding the Independence Day Parade on the
morning...
4 months ago
69 comments:
Zoe's cupcakes are excellent!
Problem is Esther, that the Fire Dept issue is something immediately pertaining to the Township of Teaneck. On June 25th, roughly 10 days from now, there will be severe layoffs that will compromise the livelihood and safety of every resident living here. It may be a tiresome topic to some, but facts are the Town Council has an agenda here that does not necessarily reflect the views and feelings of many of the residents it is supposed to be representing. Personally I don't understand why this doesn't become a thread of its own so people can truly discuss the pros and cons without having to trample over other topics or issues. This is supposed to be "Teaneck Progress" afterall...
Men who have put their lives on the line (and yes despite some peoples OPINION- the Teaneck Firemen put their lives on the line regulary) have been given layoff notices by the Civil Service Commission as ordered by the Township Council. The Council states that layoffs are a last resort and yet even more men than previously projected have received notice of termination. The Council continues to deny this saying that the Township Manager is running the show and making the decisions. Do we really want an interim manager deciding what is right for this town??
Already 5 Deputy Chiefs have handed in their retirement papers due to the threat of demotions. Guys who served this town for a combined over 120 years were railroaded into leaving. And now a total of 22 firemen just received notice of termination letters from the Civil Service Commission as of June 25th. Do people realize the severity of this? Station 4 will be closed because there simply will not be sufficient manpower to keep all stations open. Teaneck already runs on a skelton crew compared to other departments. We roll with 2 firemen and an officer on each Engine, sometimes 3 firemen on the Ladder Truck if we're lucky, and 2 firemen on the Rescue when it's actually in service. FDNY has a minimum 4 firemen and an officer on each apparatus. This directly affects getting the wheels in motion during a situation. The less manpower the more time things take to get done and the more energy expended by each individual fireman. And as it stands we are looking at a possible 25% cut in manpower.
We all realize that people are losing jobs and the economy is suffering, but cutbacks like this in a 40,000 residential township are completely out of line. Look at Clifton, who recently laid of 12 firemen then realized it was a big mistake and rehired every one of them back. Where's the Teaneck Progress? Why can't we learn from other peoples mistakes?
I agree, Zoe's Cupcakes are excellent. I love the white cake and chocolate icing that melts in your mouth. And then there is the white cake with chocolate chips and caramel butter cream icing, another WINNER.
"Skeleton crew"?
Many of my friends expressed amazement that there were so many Deputy Chiefs in the first place.
You never, in the course of your defending the current structure of the FD (which was much smaller forty years ago when the population was larger and houses were less safe) explain why most Teaneck FD workers are content to live in non-professional department towns or why high rise towns like Fort Lee and Mall communities like Paramus manage without professional departments.
The current fiscal crisis is an excellent point in time for reevaluating what has developed over many years.
The burden of proving a need for Teaneck, almost alone in Bergen County, to bear these expenses connected with a professional department rests with the defenders of the incredibly expensive staus quo.
Anon 6:56 I appreciate your response and your thoughts on this situation with the Fire Dept. There are always areas to "trim the fat" and as a tax payer myself I too question where my tax dollars are being spent. I don't live in Teaneck, however I live in a township with a professional, paid fire Dept and wouldn't have it any other way.
I am not knocking the volunteer firemen; what they do is very noble and respectful and the majority I have come across have been decent firefighters. The problem I have is with response times- which are crucial. Facts are that these guys have to work, and depending on the time of day or night it takes extra time for them to sometimes assemble a crew. In this profession, minutes matter. Do you really think that Teaneck would be able to maintain a satisfactory amount of volunteers? I don't. Yes, our volunteer ambulance corps is a success but that is because many of those involved have medical careers in mind further down the road. Our Fire Dept responds on numerous medical calls every year due to the fact that TVAC is unavailable. How many Teaneck residents really aspire to be firemen in their future (Especially since there is apparently no job security there either) or have the time in their busy lives for such a committment?
According to your post Teanecks Fire Dept was much smaller years ago and worked with a much larger population. That was also in the days where content fires were made up of basic combustibles. Now in this tech-savvy society fires burn much faster and at extreme temperatures. They spew off noxious fumes that kill within minutes. They are alot more dangerous than they were in years past, for residents and firefighters alike.
Why cities like Ft Lee and Paramus don't have professional, paid Fire Depts is anyones guess. To me it really makes no sense and is an accident waiting to happen. Teanecks population is larger than both Ft Lee and Paramus and has more single family dwellings than those communities. We have a University and a hospital, highways 4, 80 and 95, and we have alot more runs per year than either of them. Teaneck having a career dept is progressive. Yes, tragedy and casualties will always exist but they will be lesser. They have been lesser. Teaneck had over 100 classified structure fires last year. The majority of those were stopped before they got started due to an aggressive initial attack and a fast response. As far as I'm concerned you can't put a dollar amount on that.
And speaking of dollar amounts the actual amount saved per resident would be nomimal. I don't have the actual numbers in front of me but it is a minimal price to put on peace of mind. We are an insurance policy- you hope you don't need us but if you do we are there quickly conducting ourselves in a professional and experienced manner.
"The current fiscal crisis is an excellent point in time for reevaluating what has developed over many years." I agree with your statement but disagree with the Town Councils way of doing things. Interim Manager Fehrenbach has a reputation for coming into cities and townships as a temp and basically cleaning house. The Town Council has stated that layoffs are a last resort knowing full well that was the intention all along. Firemen that have devoted themselves to their careers for as much as nine years working for Teaneck are suddenly not sure if they will still have a job come June 25th. Those of us still working will be in significantly more danger- and the bottom line is that Joe Taxpayer will be too. These are not "scare-tactics," they are an unfortunate truth.
By the way, the fire dept was larger years ago.
The question still stands. How many Teaneck Fire Fighters live in Teaneck(or another town with paid FD)and how many live in towns with volunteer fire department?
If it adds to response time (but NOT to fatalities) are you still against it? I have seen evidence of greater response times in volunteer towns (although, not THAT much) but I haven't seen an increase in fire related fatalities.
So the question really should be: is slower response time really that bad?
I'd assume if the volunteer towns had a greater fatality rate that 1) they would go to a paid system and 2) the pro-paid fd group would be using THAT argument which ismuch more persuasive than saying that response times will increase - and letting the crowd connect the dots.
to me the real issue is not the fire department and the layoffs. the real issue in the town is the need to bring in more revenue. So this year we make cuts and need to fire 20 TFD members. What is going to happen next year? what is different in next year's budget than in this year? Next year we have more lawsuits that were just settled to pay. the time is now to start talking about revenue. the council last year did that, it clearly didnt work well for certain members who didnt get elected, and I guess since there is an election next year they dont want to talk about revenue.
1-The FD was smaller forty years ago.
2-The old time wiring was far more dangerous. Fire is fire. Modern houses are SAFER than old time houses.
3-TVAC is sufficient for medical emergencies.
4-Revenue comes solely from taxes here. Everything else to do with income for the town is a chimera.
I completely sgree with the last posters statements. If this year we are having a hard time staying under the 4% cap what is going to change next year? this year we will fire firefighters and next year we will fire police officers till we totally gut the municipal workforce. WE NEED REVENUE. Former Mayor Katz spoke about revenue all the time. I actually havent heard him talk about it since he became councilman katz. He spoke about new development, parking meters, higher user fees so we arent subsidizing what other people are using. Without bringing in additional revenue we will be in the same place. Salaries will increase 4% and we know salaries are most of the budget.
When Elie was mayor there was a big push to bring in additional revenue by changing the zoning to allow more commercial businesses. What happened to that?
Real Estate Guru Barbara Cororan always said when you are working very hard, take a vacation or your entire outlook suffers. Welcome back and thanks for trying to bring back some clarity to the blog. I too tire of the above mentioned topics. Screaming, whining and just talking about something over and over and over again will not change anything, just make people tire of the topic and start thinking that they don't care. Even an important topic. I just don't care about a lot of this stuff anymore because of the ranters. Must be burnout.
Anonymous 6:42 and everyone who responded,
Why not start your own blog on this subject instead of hijacking Esther's? It's free, you can do it anonymously (Esther was anon when she first started Teaneck Progress) and you can control your own content. Then you can leave on-topic comments here which link to your blog. People will click the link and then get to read your perspective on whatever subject you want to talk about on your own blog. This is how social media works. Go for it!
Yes, Zoe's cupcakes are delicious! And they have good coffee. I was very sad to see that La Esperanza has closed. The food was very good and so, so cheap. I will have to check out the new incarnation of Bistro En.
the council fell to the loud mouths in town when it came to revenue. Mayor Katz wanted to see development and he got stoped. He tried to put parking meters and had one loud merchant. As I recall Karel Littman from the TEDC/CLSID/CLMG had spoken in favor of it and Mayor Katz had said that the town can bring in a lot of money and that the PEOs that they hired last year would pay for themselves.
We need more revenue!!!
Yoni - The economy and the global real estate market have collapsed since then. The prospect of increased commercial development in Teaneck was a reach 3 years ago. Now it's a joke.
Note: The developer of the residential project near the Stop and Shop razed some low-rise buildings that had heretofore been generating cash flow and now they have an empty lot with an "Available" sign on it.
As for the issue of the Fire Department - I take a middle position which I think is probably shared by many in town. I think that cuts are necessary but I don't want to see the whole Fire Department eliminated.
I suspect that there are a very small handful of people who are pushing hard on this Volunteer Fire Department issue. Perhaps it's even one obsessive person.
Due to the anonymity, there's no way to know, which is why I hate the anonymity. I'm actually beginning to believe that all of the anonymous posters are actually one single cowardly person. Perhaps I should exercise my right as proprietess of this blog to randomly delete anonymous posts whenever I feel like it for no reason. Should I do it?
No. And it is definitely more than one person that is concerned about the mess that is our current FD.
Some of us would support a partial volunteer FD. Most people would not want to go over cold turkey to an all volunteer department.
Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it!
The council's original "worst case scenario" of laying off 11 firefighters, has now just jumped to 23 layoffs. That is almost 1/4 of the TFD being let go. In addition to the deputy chiefs leaving and unfilled spots due to other retirements, it is more than 1/4 of the dept. First the members of the fire department are told that only 11 guys will be let go, now it's up to 23!?!? So much for transparency in gov't. BLT, care to comment on why the number went up? Any council member want to tell the truth?
Let's talk a little about "that". The Record reported this weekend that next week will be a critical week as far as the Township budget is concerned. My question is - Why hasn't our illustrious Mayor Feit taken a leadership (Mayor? Leader?) role is helping the residents understand what's REALLy going on? He, and his Council cohorts, are cowering behind Fehrenbach's (and Broughton's) apron strings and are refusing to discuss how THEY feel on the issue. Using the 4 percent budget cap is a cop-out. Ms. Parker - Where are you at when the kitchen is getting a little hot? Ms. Toffler - How come you won't tell us how you REALLY feel about laying off employees? Mr. Katz - Stop talking about PAL building for a minute and talk about services.
Esther,
1. If we work on changing the zoning now, we can get a head start when commercial reat estate comes back. Otherwise we will miss the boat around the next time there is a boom.
2. I'm all in favor of requiring screen names. It helps the conversation when you know which posts are made by the same person. But if you are going to allow anonymous posters you shouldn't delete based on content. TP would be a lot less interesting if there was a thought police.
How is the budget cap a cop-out? Money has to be cut from somewhere. If you oppose cutting the FD budget, where do you propose we cut?
Please don't answer something vague like "wasteful spending". THAT would be a cop-out.
Why do you think the budget cap was written into law? To protect taxpayers from the outrageous leaps budgets were taking in an era when inflation was confined to the public expenditure/taxation realm.
Now that we are experiencing the deflation of real wages going down in the private sector it is truly imperative to apply caps.
The unionized workers know how to deal with the situation: voluntarily give back so that jobs may be kept. This is still a fresh idea, but it will sink in ultimately, just as the 20% inflation thirty years ago led to the idea of constant jumps in public salaries.
Speaking of lost revenue, why doesn't Teaneck develop its greenbelt around route 4? This would seem to be an ideal place for a starbucks or something similar.
Dream on.
The tree hugger element in Teaneck is still opposed to such sensible moves.
Chimera indeed.
There's a Starbucks opening soon on Rt. 4 on the way to the bridge. I think it's in Ft. Lee. Can't wait!
There's a Starbucks opening soon on Rt. 4 on the way to the bridge. I think it's in Ft. Lee. Can't wait!
Is it where the old one was on RT 4 by the gas stations or closer to the bridge?
Yoni sez: TP would be a lot less interesting if there was a thought police.
Agreed - That's why I propose to erase anonymous posts randomly for no reason. No thought involved.
As for the Mr. ANONYMOUS, who in addition to being obsessed with creating an all volunteer fire department, is also obsessed with developing the Route 4 greenbelt: the green belt isn't wide enough for modern day retail development.
Developers don't build a standalone new construction Starbucks these days along highways. (The one under construction toward the GWB is an adaptive re-use of an old gas station site.)
Perhaps someone else in the development business can confirm that retail developers assemble multi-acre parcels and build strip developments or big box retail. These uses require a certain minimum amount of parking or they are not sustainable and will not attract retail tenants. Multistory parking is not economically feasible unless the retail project is large enough to sustain it.
At no point along Route 4 is the greenway wide enough for modern day new construction retail development. At it's widest point on the north side of Route 4 near the Englewood Border, the only possible way to build retail would be to assemble a parcel by acquiring one or several of the industrial buildings adjacent to the greenway.
And Mr. Anonymous, stop blaming "tree huggers". This has nothing to do with environmentalism. This has to do with real estate economics plain and simple - which you don't understand.
(I'm in a cranky mood today, aren't I?)
I'm NOT happy with the new Starbucks location. It is too close to the bridge and during hours where there is a lot of congestion if you have to get all the way over to the left lane it will be nearly impossibly. There is no changing it now but I liked it better where it was or at least 1/2 mile further back. It will be interesting to see how the traffic "flows".
and Yoni - I think it's a good idea to be pro-active about rezoning. As a pilot, let's upzone West Englewood and see if any commercial development occurs.
Esther,
I don't think you are in a cranky mood, just kind of fed up with unrealistic or unknowledgable people and their postings. I myself agree with you regarding the fire dept and at this point, any post by anonymous regarding the fire dept I just don't read. He has bored me to tears.
Upzone WE and see if any commercial development occurs?
Not if Elie Katz can help it. He has been throwing monkey wrenches into new business applications for years in properties he doesn't own.
esther said...
and Yoni - I think it's a good idea to be pro-active about rezoning. As a pilot, let's upzone West Englewood and see if any commercial development occurs.
Not sure if this was sarcastic or not but I'd be happy for West Englewood to be upzoned. And I think cedar lane should have multi-story buildings.
Elie was very business friendly despite what some anonymous idiot just said.
@Anon
"Not if Elie Katz can help it. He has been throwing monkey wrenches into new business applications for years in properties he doesn't own."
What are you talking about? I'll go out on a limb and say, I think he has been the MOST pro-business person in Teaneck government, ever. Sounds like libel to me.
Zev is correct.
What constitutes a fire "run"?
odor from electrical ballast?
brush smoldering?
help lift patient?
assist at HS bonfire?
smoking fireplace or barbeque?
cat in tree?
shovel snow from hydrant?
anit-freeze spill at accident?
sweep up broken glass?
How many fires are there?
west englewood avenue and cedar lane were all upzoned two years ago with the new master plan. WE is 4 stories with setback. this was done against this wishes of the cramers that "didnt want a canyon of darkness". and elie recused himself on this matter.
Perhaps the town can take advantage of the fallen home values to buy up adjacent houses for sale, change the zoning to commercial & sell the land to a developer.
Upzoning WE makes no sense as long as Elie is on the Council he couldn't do anything to support it nor would he. Besides for being a good councilmember he is one of the most ethical ones. Being on the Council has hurt him from being able to do more. If he were to do something he would be attacked for it.
You people who don't know how to give yourselves names are a bunch of morons!!!!!
Please give yourselves names in future posts. I'm ten seconds away from erasing all anonymous posts just to make a point.
Esther,
Chillax!!
Remember, you specifically gave permission to people to post anonymously & didn't follow through on your toilet paper threat.
Regarding the Greenbelt being too thin for development. Well, there are houses that border the greenbelt, which can be taken by eminent domain, making the area viable for construction. The town took resident's land for the Glenpointe Hotel complex, so why not take houses along Rt 4?
Yoni - my toilet paper threat still stands.
And I was not being sarcastic about W. Englewood. I've gone on the record previously advocating upzoning in West Englewood. I would also like to see Cedar Lane upzoned. But it's not going to make a difference in the current market. Nor is it likely to make a difference when the market recovers. Teaneck is not a desireable commercial location in any market.
As for eminent domain - that's the ticket. Let's buy up and raze large swaths of occupied middle class housing to be replaced by speculative retail development that will adversely impact the quality of life for thousands of residents.
Esther, I'm anon 6:21. So why was it ok for the town to oust middle class residents from Glenwood Park and Frog Hollow, but it's not ok to do it along Rt 4? Less taxpayers equals less demand for services, less kids in schools. Commercial businesses would add revenue. I'm playing devil's advocate here by the way. If you do TP me, please use charmin and not that cheap no frills stuff.
Nor is it likely to make a difference when the market recovers. Teaneck is not a desireable commercial location in any market.
Finally got you to admit it!
Clearly most of you do not know jack s--t about real estate.
Hometown Cleaners soil was contaminate from fluids and leaky tanks...i think we are better off without that spot.
Why would you right off future growth. It will come a time when the cromers and wienbergs will be out of the scene and things will improve. Charlie and Barbie will join the growth team for Teaneck as well...Watch
1. There is a perfect place to develop on the side of Route 4 in Teaneck. It's a huge property called the Teaneck High School football field. Maybe the school can set up something in Votee Park or Argonne Park or maybe use FDU's baseball facility (converted for football)and let Teaneck sell the prime space where the football field is now.
2. Did anybody miss how our town "saved" money by coming to an agreement with one of the unions? The deal with the Prof. Supervisory Group removes 3 names from the layoff list, gives them a 3% raise and increases health care contributions.
We gave them a raise? We're flat broke, the town's unemployment rate is probably the same 10% or so as the rest of the country, and THEY GOT A RAISE!
Esther has provided a reasonable analysis, from a business perspective, of why there will be no development along the greenbelt. Those who propose eminent domain to widen the greenbelt should understand that the greenbelt is unlikely to ever be developed, as it is listed on the NJDEP's Recreation and Open Space Inventory (ROSI) and received Green Acres funding.
For the town to develop this property, the diversion from protection would have to "fill a compelling public need."
From the NJDEP Program Rules:
"It is the Department's policy to strongly discourage the disposal or diversion of both funded and unfunded parkland. The use of parkland for other than recreation and conservation purposes should be a last resort, and should
only be considered by a local government unit or nonprofit when the proposed disposal or diversion is necessary for a project that would satisfy a compelling public need or yield a significant public benefit as defined at (d)1 below."
NJDEP 7:36-26.1
>1. There is a perfect place to >develop on the side of Route 4 in >Teaneck. It's a huge property called >the Teaneck High School football >field.
?????
I think someone is using that!
I've never been a fan of eminent domain. It always seemed a bit totalitarian to me for the government to seize property against the will of the owner. But in today's real estate market they should be able to purchase property the old fashioned way - with the consent of both parties.
I don't see why Teaneck is an inherently bad place for commercial property. I grew up near White Plains which built office buildings in the middle of a middle-class suburb and it attracted Westchester residents who didn't want to commute to the city anymore. Why can't Teaneck have office buildings so Bergen County residents could have somewhere local to work?
Yoni,
Cause we already have Paramus with its lower property taxes. Exactly how would Teaneck compete?
Yoni-
Teaneck could have office buildings but where would you put them?
OOR-
Instead of developing the THS field why not redevelop one of the parcels housing a day school in town.
Karin,
None of the Jewish day schools are in Teaneck. Most are in Paramus, one in Englewood. And none have football fields.
Teaneck has so many parks, we surely can put a football field in one of them for THS (and the community) to use.
That parcel on the side of Route 4 would be an excellent commercial or retail spot; at a highway exit, and HUGE.
Yoni - Teaneck does have an office park, Glennpoine at the optimum location in town for one: at the interesection of Routes 95 and 80. And yet, vacancy rates at the complex have been disappointing, even when the regional commercial markets are strong. Problem is that nobody is going to build more speculative office space in a submarket that has traditionally had high vacancies. Can't get financing.
As far as Glenpointe is concerned,
the NY Times had this to say in 1988
"At Glenpointe in Teaneck, N.J., Alfred Sanzari built 160 town houses and has sold all but five. He built 567,000 square feet of office space in two seven-story towers and has leased 95 percent of it."
The retail didn't do so well but in better times the office space was renting. Kudos to Elie & the rest of the previous council (except Monica) who supported it. The commercial ratables bring taxes down for all of us.
Perhaps if we had more ratables & lower taxes we COULD compete with Paramus for businesses. Kind of a chicken & egg thing.
Yoni - To provide some context as to why we should hitch our wagons to the commercial development star, here's a paraphrase from an earlier post:
According to the Pathway to the Future document:
"An increase of $6.5 million in total assessed property value in Teaneck would reduce the tax burden of the average taxpayer by $20 per year."
Using these assumptions, it would take $325 million dollars in new assessed property value to reduce the tax burden of the average tax payer by $1,000 per year.
If an average square foot of commercial space has an approximate value of $400 (based loosely on $30 per square foot in rent triple net capped at 7%), it would take development of 784,000 square feet of commercial space to reduce the tax burden of the average tax payer by $1,000 per year. In typical office building terms, this is equivalent of a thirty story office building with a 25,000 square foot footprint or three 10-story office buildings, or six five story office buildings, etc....
People can quibble about rents, assessed values and cap rates, but the point is that it would take a significant amount of commercial development to have a visible impact on the tax bill of an average Teaneck resident.
If you want to save real money, send your kids to public school - It you have three kids you could save as much $45,000 a year.
I have been a supporter for building a new Teaneck downtown area (mixed development) south of Degraw, across from Genpointe, for years. It would take a massive developmet, away from the current cedar/WE areas, to bring in the ratables and services needed. If only, A we could get the land, and B someone could get the funding to develop it. Would save the trip to Paramus for some items, it would have access to a hotel, business park, gym, and an assisted living center.
It's a dream, but that's what we need.
OOR-
None of the Jewish day schools are in Teaneck. Most are in Paramus, one in Englewood. And none have football fields.
There is a Jewish High school or two in town that would do nicely. No need for a football field just commandeer the building for repurposing.
That parcel on the side of Route 4 would be an excellent commercial or retail spot; at a highway exit, and HUGE.
Hmm, wonder what that would do for the security of the kids that attend THS? I see parents having issues with this just like they had issues with the DMV moving into the old Duane Reed on Teaneck Rd.
Zev Mo-
Can you actually build in that area I thought it was protected/no building allowed.
Zev - It's part of Overpeck Park. It's protected. I posted a long proposal for developing it in 2006 only to learn that it's protected land. Here's a link to my original thread:
The Best Development Site in Town
Sounds like each office building can save the job of a fireman.
Sending my kids to public school won't do that.
Esther, I know. I was just responding to both the eminent domain and ratables. That has always been my biggest problem with all of these ideas, the actual land that is needed is prohibited, and the areas that are really not recommended for development, but are the only spaces for development, are debated over endlessly. It is a catch 22.
How about a football or better still golf in OORF's backyard? Frontyard? A few hits on the head from stray balls may make her see more rationally...
While she is wearing her tefilin or not?
I'm starting to doubt that OOR is even Jewish. I think it is someone who wants others to hate the Orthodox population in town.
the stuff that comes out of her mouth is so absurd. I have never heard a single real-life Orthodox Jew in this town propose anything like it. While many in the Orthodox Jewish population would love to see cuts in the public school programs, no one has ever suggested that they should get rid of the football field (and presumably the track around it).
I would propose instead that we get rid of hte class rooms at TABC. No matter what time I go by, the kids always seem to walking between Sammys and/or EJs and the school. It would seem that TABC doesn't actually use the classrooms.
At least Teaneck High uses its sports fields.
Last but not least, no surprise that OOR has no idea of the important of team sports, given that he/she/it is clearly anything but a team player.
Anonymous 4:59 - you are probably right. She stated in a late night rant many months ago that her father was a Christian Holocaust survivor raised by Christians. Even this behavior is VERY UN-Christianlike! Does anyone want to claim her?
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