July 27, 2011 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 7 Ridgewood Ordinance cracks down on shopping cart dumping by John Koster Ridgewood Mayor Keith Killion was civil but determined as he led the council through a 5-0 vote on an ordinance to crack down on abandoned shopping carts that are wheeled out of parking lots and sometimes remain in the side streets of Ridgewood for days or weeks. Two supermarket operators asked the village council for leniency, but Mayor Killion said something had to be done about the abandoned shopping carts, and so far nothing had been done. “We’ve had people saying, ‘I called the store and they didn’t pick it up,’” Mayor Killion said at a recent public meeting. “We’re going to be punished for people taking our property and leaving it around town,” one store manager said. The store managers said they tried to dissuade shoppers from wheeling the carts away from the parking lot and simply abandoning the carts at their apartments -- and implied that some of the culprits are senior citizens who were challenged by physical issues or lack of energy when they elected not to return the carts to the stores. “We specifically want (these) objects taken off the street,” Village Manager Kenneth Gabbert told the merchants. Mayor Killion said Ridgewood officials had repeatedly asked store managers to pick up abandoned shopping carts, and opined that the latest upsurge of merchant interest was due to the possibility of fines included in the ordinance. “The reason that we’re looking at this ordinance is that (requests for cart pickup) fell on deaf ears,” Killion said. “I don’t know if you’ve ever seen what a carriage does to a motor vehicle when it’s pushed into the street. We have a safety concern.” The ordinance as adopted provides that shopping carts found on streets, non-store parking lots, gutters, curbs, sidewalks, or village or private property will be removed to the Village Recycling Center. The owner will be notified in writing and charged $25 for each abandoned shopping cart. Anyone convicted of abandoning a shopping cart will be fined $50. “These shopping carts are left overnight or sometimes for days and it becomes a public safety issue,” Mayor Killion said. He said that at one point, 18 abandoned shopping carts could be counted in the streets and yards of Ridgewood. The day after the meeting, local stores were displaying printed statements asking shoppers not to take carts away from the store lots. Ridgewood High School graduates Shelby Taylor and David Freides recently received United States Marine Recognition Awards. Taylor, who has enlisted in the Marines and will be starting boot camp this summer, received the Athlete Award. Freides received the award for Musical Excellence. He was nominated by music teacher Jeff Haas and will be attending the Mannes College of Music in the fall. The award winners are pictured with Principal Jack Lorenz and Guidance Counselor Alice Tepfenhardt. RHS grads recognized