April 13, 2011 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • Page 15 Area Ho-Ho-Kus pursues grants by Jennifer Crusco The Ho-Ho-Kus Council recently voted to pursue two separate and distinct grants. One application could net $10,000 for the Ho-Ho-Kus Municipal Alliance from the Governor’s Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse. This grant would be dedicated to local programs that aim to prevent drug and alcohol abuse. The second application is for a 2011 Green Communities Grant -- Community Forestry Management Plan that could draw $3,000 from the State of New Jersey. Councilman John Mongelli, who works closely with the Ho-Ho-Kus Shade Tree Commission, noted that the $3,000 grant request is part of the borough’s ongoing work to remain part of the Tree City USA program. Mongelli explained that the borough is required to have a succession of five-year plans for replacing trees in the borough. The grant would help fund this effort. “It’s not a big thing, but it would help the budget for this year,” Mongelli said. He pointed out that Ho-Ho-Kus has been a Tree City for the last 11 years, and called that designation “a nice accomplishment.” Tree City USA is a national recognition program sponsored by the National Arbor Day Foundation in association with the National Association of State Foresters and the USDA Forest Service. In order to be eligible for the Tree City USA designation, a municipality must meet multiple standards. The community must have a tree board or department that indi- On Friday evening, May 6, the Friends of West Bergen Mental Healthcare will once again host That’s Amoré at Christ Church, 105 Cottage Place (corner of Franklin Avenue) in Ridgewood. Highlighting the evening are four ‘celebrity’ waiters: (l-r) Quentin W. Wiest, Ridgewood, president of West Bergen’s Board of Trustees; Michael J. Tozzoli, CEO, West Bergen; Lorraine A. Kallman, Ridgewood, member of West Bergen’s Foundation Board, and Patrick J. Fletcher, River Edge, member, West Bergen’s Board of Trustees. The evening begins at 7 p.m. DJ Rich of Rich Resz Entertainment will test your mobster expertise with questions about mobster movies, actors, and quotes. Answer correctly and you could win a prize. Wine will be personally selected by Carlo Russo’s Wine & Spirit World of Ho-Ho-Kus. Highlights of the evening include three types of pasta, salad, bread, and hors d’oeuvres. Tickets are $50 per person and are tax deductible as allowed. Call Chrissie at (201) 444-3550 or e-mail her at clijoi@westbergen.org. Credit cards are accepted. Register online at www.westbergen.org. ‘Chefs’ featured at ‘That’s Amoré’ cates that someone is legally responsible for the care and management of the municipality’s trees. In addition, the community must have an ordinance that covers tree care in the municipality, and must have a comprehensive community forestry program with an annual budget of at least $2 per capita. The final criterion calls for the borough to have an official municipal Arbor Day observance and a related proclamation. According to the National Arbor Day Foundation website, these standards provide an initial direction for a local forestry program and a start to managing local tree resources. In addition, communities that are named Tree City USA designees send a message to the residents that officials care about the environment and about the quality of life in the municipality. The website also indicates that Tree City USA communities sometimes receive preference when grants applications are made for tree or forestry programs. The website lists several benefits of becoming a Tree City, including the encouragement of better care of community forests; cleaner air, shadier streets, and improved aesthetics; increased public awareness of the social, economic, and environmental benefits of urban forestry; and the ability to reach large numbers of people with tree care information. Recent statistics available on the National Arbor Day Foundation website indicate that there are currently more than 3,400 communities that have received the Tree City USA designation, and over 135 million people live in a Tree City USA. HARDING WINE & SPIRIT Wow! We knew it was good, but not in our wildest imagination did we think Coastal Vines would become such a success in our store. We have people coming from towns all over Bergen County buying cases of Coastal Vines. Thanks to Coastal Vines and this newspaper, at our last count we have sold 8,232 bottles. Unbelievable but true! 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