November 21, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 11 Holiday Open House at Skylands (continued from page 10) organization that supports the garden, sponsors this annual fundraising event. Daytime tours of the NJBG Holiday Open House will be available Nov. 29 through Dec. 2 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, $5 for children ages six through 12, and free for children under six. Note: Please do not use strollers when bringing babies or young children. Group tours are also available by appointment. The last tour will begin at 4 p.m. Champagne and Candlelight Receptions will be held Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 from 6 to 8 p.m. During these special evening showings, the manor will be yours for leisurely enjoyment with champagne, light refreshments, and valet parking. Tickets are $35 and reservations are required. To reserve tickets, call (973) 962-9534 or visit www.njbg.org. NJBG is located on Morris Road in Ringwood. The New Jersey Botanical Garden is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission to the garden is always free. Call (973) 962-9534 or visit www.njbg.org for more information about NJBG events, directions, membership, and volunteer opportunities. Originally assembled from pioneer farmsteads of the 1890s, The New Jersey Botanical Garden has a venerable history. In 1922, Clarence McKenzie Lewis, an investment banker and trustee of the New York Botanical Garden purchased the property and original Victorian mansion from Francis Lynde Stetson. Over the next three decades, Lewis built the current 45-room Tudor manor house and transformed Skylands into a botanical showplace, engaging prominent landscape architects to design the grounds and collecting plants from all over the world. In 1966, the State of New Jersey purchased the 1,117 acres of Skylands as the state’s first acquisition under the Green Acres preservation program. Governor Thomas Kean designated the central 96 acres surrounding the manor house as the state’s official botanical garden in 1984. The gardens contain many unique features, including an extensive collection of statuary, historic trees, formal annual garden, perennial beds, and an heirloom collection of lilacs. Since 1976, NJBG/Skylands Association, an incorporated, member-supported non-profit organization, has worked with the state to preserve and protect Skylands and its historic structures. Guided tours of Skylands Manor are available one Sunday per month. Guided group tours are also available. Call NJBG for more information. nor the council had stepped forward to spend that kind of money up-front. Since the locations involved are on county roads, the Bergen County Planning Board would also have to approve any changes in the lanes or lights. Developments now being considered include the Dayton, a 106-unit five-story building proposed for location near the train station on South Broad Street; the 52-unit Chestnut Village located on Chestnut Street at the site of the former NJDMV inspection station; and the 57-unit Enclave, located at Maple Avenue, East Ridgewood Avenue, and Franklin Avenue. All these projects would require zone changes to be introduced as ordinances, advertised and adopted by the Ridgewood Village Council. Traffic consultant (continued from page 9) He recommended state-of-the-art lights with push-buttons and sensors at $300,000 each. But the planners invited Jahr to return and speak at another meeting. Mayor Paul Aronsohn and Deputy Mayor Albert Pucciarelli had stated, even before the meeting began, that the funding for the full-scale solution Jahr had recommended was problematic, since neither the proposing developers Skylands Manor is decorated floor to ceiling to welcome visitors to NJBG’s annual Holiday Open House. (Photo by Joseph Cooper.)