Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • June 23, 2010 Ridgewood Village council’s term concludes inconclusively by John Koster The last meeting of the Ridgewood Village Council with David Pfund as mayor and Councilman Patrick Mancuso (a former mayor) on the dais concluded with tributes to the service of both men, and with a critique of the inconclusive nature of the meeting. Several residents who spoke lauded Pfund for his eight years of service, including six as mayor; and Mancuso for his 20 years of service on the Ridgewood Village Council, including long service as mayor before Pfund took over. Eugene Rose, the owner of a local business, was concerned that the scheduled debate on his proposal to reduce parking fees had been first scheduled and then bumped off the agenda at the last minute – leaving him to explain to the local merchants he had asked to attend the June 16 meeting that their attendance would now be pointless. “My issue is, and has been, the parking meter increase,” Rose said. He asserted that, while the fee increase might have boosted municipal revenue, it discouraged shopping and made life tough on Ridgewood store and business owners. “I am totally upset that the issue has not been resolved by the council as it had promised it would in February and as it had promised that it would tonight.” The council also reversed a previous statement that a replacement for the late Councilwoman Anne Zusy would be named at last week’s public meeting. Councilman Paul Aronsohn reported that the new council member would instead be elected in November – a policy disclosure that was applauded by some residents, but one that caught the rest of the council by surprise. Mayor Pfund confirmed that nominating petitions would be accepted in September and that Ridgewood would elect a replacement to complete Zusy’s unexpired term in the November general election. Ridgewood traditionally conducts non-partisan elections every other May, with candidates who can obtain one percent of registered voters’ names on their nominating petitions running as individuals or members of local slates, but not as Republicans or Democrats. The council also decided to designate the courtyard area between Ridgewood Village Hall and the Ridgewood Public Library as the James Ten Hoeve Plaza. Aronsohn abstained from the vote. “We haven’t had time for a full debate,” Aronsohn said when the resolution came up. Mayor Pfund and Village Clerk Heather Mailander said the announcement had already been made at Ten Hoeve’s retirement dinner a year ago and the item had gotten on the agenda as an oversight. They regarded it as mandatory to approve it before the present council disbanded. Deputy Mayor Keith Killion and former Councilman Patrick Mancuso – who, like Pfund, will leave the council July 1 after having decided not to seek re-election – voted in favor and the designation carried. Former Deputy Mayor Kim Ringler-Shagin had urged some years ago that the plaza be named after Varian Fry, a Ridgewood resident who rescued about 2,000 fugitives from Nazi oppression from Vichy France during the early stages of World War II in Europe. Part of North Monroe Street had already been named for Fry, and the attempt to rename the plaza did not receive adequate votes for approval. Fry, a Presbyterian already honored in Israel and in Berlin as a Holocaust opponent, had lived in Ridgewood for about five years before attended private school, Harvard, and Columbia. Ten Hoeve had worked for Ridgewood for 28 years, and had served as chief financial officer from 1981 through 2004, as interim manager four times, and as Ridgewood Village Manager from 2004 to 2009. Helpful Hints Helpful Hints from ome “A drop of lemon juice rubbed on an insect bite or sting helps to relieve the irritation” 27 Franklin Tpk, Waldwick Open Sundays 9-3 201-652-5666 Mary Says... Two white males who claimed they were collecting money to send “care packages” to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan may have swiped a Ridgewood residents’ iPod instead of helping show support for the troops. On June 9, a Reynen Court resident spoke to the pair, who said they were selling care packages for the troops deployed overseas. The conversation took place in the garage, and the resident left the garage for a few moments. When the resident returned, an iPod that had been left in the garage was missing. Resident reports theft by ‘care package’ solicitors The day before, a Ramsey resident returned to retrieve a purse she had forgotten at the Ridgewood Coffee Company and found that the purse had disappeared. On June 14, the owner of a business on North Maple Avenue reported that someone had slashed three tires on her vehicle while it was parked in the rear of the store. The Ridgewood Police Department Detective Bureau is investigating these incidents. J. KOSTER ������������������ ��������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������ ���������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������ Boilers Repaired or Replaced in One Day • Oil Tank Abatement • Chimney Liners • Water Heaters • Sewers & Drains • Cast Iron Gas Fired Boilers ����������������������������������������� ������������������ �������������������� Senior Discounts • N.J. State Lic# 6980 ������������ ��������������������� �������������������� Email to: editorial@villadom.com. The Villadom TIMES Welcomes Your Press Releases & Photos Or mail to: PO Box 96, Midland Park, NJ 07432 (only quality photo prints can be used) Press releases & photos must be received by WEDNESDAY prior to publication. Digital photos must be JPEG files with a resolution of at least 300 dpi. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD NEWSPAPER