Memorial Day in Bloomfield

Saluting those who sacrificed their lives to keep us free.

Candidates' Forum for Dems

The forum, sponsored by the Bloomfield Neighborhood Association Committee, had about 70 residents in attendance. It was moderated by Michelle Bobrow from the League of Women Voters of New Jersey.
There were spirited mini debates between 2nd Ward challenger Paul Halligan and Incumbent Nick Joanow. Halligan positioned himself as an anti-tax candidate while Joanow emphasized his 24/7 accessibility to residents. Many of Incumbent Robert Ruane's comments appeared to be directed less to his young challenger, Carlos Bernard, than to Mayor Ray McCarthy, who sat in the middle of a sea of empty seats next to Councilman Bernard Hamilton.

The only heckling during the forum came after Ruane delivered a blistering attack on several of McCarthy's policies. "Well read!" was the Mayor's loud retort.

The last 45 minutes of the Forum was devoted to questions from a long line of attendees (photo at left). Time limitations prevented several residents from getting their question asked. Unlike most recent such forums in Bloomfield, there was no local TV coverage available. A brief video clip can be found on YouTube.

Candidate's Forum for Bloomfield Council Primary

Where --:Van Fossan Theater, Bloomfield College,
Corner of Fremont and Franklin, Bloomfield, NJ

When -- Thursday May 26, 7 - 9 PM

Who -- Incumbent Councilman Nick Joanow and Paul Halligan are vying for the 2nd ward council seat; incumbent Robert Ruane and Carlos Bernard are vying for the 3rd ward seat in the Democratic Primary. Questions from residents encouraged.

Sponsored by the Bloomfield Neighborhood Association Committee

Welcome to Glenwood Village in Bloomfield

At it's Thursday meeting, Bloomfield's Planning Board unanimously approved the Glenwood Village redevelopment project. To be located opposite the Lackawanna Place train station, the development will be comprised of 224 residential and retail units, and a 440 space multi-level parking garage. About 20% of the added 50,000 square feet of retail space is slated for several new restaurants.

Sunday in Bloomfield

"Begin challenging your own assumptions. Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in."
-- Alan Alda,

Artifacts Recovered from WigWam Brook

Councilman Nick Joanow assisted the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission's River Restoration Division, last week, in removing the larger pieces of accumulated debris from a section of WigWam Brook (near the Dog Run.) which flows through Watsessing Park. Objects like this bike required a heavy duty winch operated by the PVSC.(video link)

The cleanup was requested by the Bloomfield Open Space Trust Fund Committee, the Watsessing Park Conservancy and the Watsessing Heights Neighborhood Association. It was completed less than two weeks after 100 residents began the annual cleanup.

Watchung Bridge

It's still open most weekends. One lane each way.

Bloomfield's Master Plan

Bloomfield's current master plan is a masterfully done vision of how a town can accomodate continual growth and still respect it;s parks and open spaces. It was finalized about five years ago before the towns's current ambitious downtown redevelopment plans were approved. The Plan mapped Bloomfield from many different perspectives. The overall Land Use Map pictured here depicts zoning. It's interesting to note which neighborhoods multi-family homes are still permitted.(CLIck on map to enlarge) The entre plan can be studied at Bloomfield's Library pr downloaded from the township website.

The Town Paints

On Saturday, "The Town Paints" celebrated the 60th anniversary of art on Bloomfield's Town Green by inviting residents and families to bring their own works of art in all media for display. The one day exhibit was sponsored by Bloomfield's Art League and the Bloomfield Recreation Department.Awards were given to all age groups. In bottom photo, three member of The Porter Family are pictured showing off their framed paintings.

Bloomfield Developer In Morristown Trial -- Could Oakes Plan Crumble?

We were planning to get away from the temptation of speculating on Bloomfield politiical issues, but today's Ben Horowitz at the Star Ledger has a breaking story that could undermine Bloomfield's largest new residential development in years.

Zygmunt "Zygi" Wilf, the owner of the Minnesota Vikings, owns the company whose "Oakes Pond"plans were recently approved for converting the warehouse/office complex at 225 Belleville Ave.(photo at right) into 300 luxury condos and apartments.

Unresolved questions include what did those council members know about Wilf and when did they know it? The civil case against Welf has been 19 years in the making and may not reach a verdict until fall. Could a guilty verdict cause the council to revisit its vote? Why give one of the wealthiest men in NJ a 30 year tax abatement? Will this be an issue in the Bloomfield's Democratic primary or the November election?

Emergency Budget Meeting today.

No time was mentioned at Monday's Conference Meeting. Nothing on township website to confirm location or time. Only 4 of the 7 Council members will probably be able to attend because of conflicts with their day job. A bare quorum. We suspect the fire department will be well represented as they were at the last few meetings.

New Era at Board of Ed

Tuesday's Bloomfield Board of Education meeting made history on several fronts. The seismic shift in control after April's election sweep led to the election of a new President, Mary Shaughnessy. (Click on photos to enlarge) In her opening remarks, Shaughnessy promised "to make this the best and most high functioning Board that Bloomfield has ever had."
Perhaps sensing a change in the receptiveness of the new BOE majority, John Shanagher, the head of the teachers union(at right), mobilized a record number of teachers and students to bolster his case. The room overflowed with attendees attentively soaking up every word. Another hundred or so stood in the halls picking up the highlights in a quiet relay of whispers.
A disappointing element was the lack of customary TV Coverage for the most dramatic early part of the meeting. I shot a few clips, which will be posted on Youtube ASAP. Until then, check out the sample below..

Caputo Moving to Bloomfield?

Despite an earlier announcement of a move to Nutley, todays Star Ledger is breaking news that State Assemblyman Ralph Caputo is planning to move from his native Belleville to Bloomfield. While hIs new address is yet to be confirmed, the chess game of musical chairs behind the move was deconstructed by "THe Auditor" on SL's political blog. Some of the following is pure speculation, but it would make a great who-done-it -- and a suitable addition to our towns reputation for political theater.

Pay attention closely, because this is a case of lawmaker dominoes, where one falling piece pushes the other.
The new legislative district map put three incumbent Assembly members into one district: Coutinho, Ralph Caputo (D-Essex) and Grace Spencer (D-Essex).
The Auditor is told DiVincenzo first hoped Caputo would give up his Assembly seat and run for reelection as a freeholder, solving everything. But Caputo wanted to do the opposite, and planned to move from his hometown of Belleville so he could run in a district that resembled his old one.
That, however, would put him in competition with brand-new Assemblyman Kevin Ryan (D-Essex), widely viewed as a placeholder for when DiVincenzo’s son, Joseph G. DiVincenzo, runs one day.
So DiVincenzo’s next step was to try to get Caputo to run in his new district — in place of Coutinho. But Essex County Democratic Chairman Phil Thigpen objected.

Ultimately, Ryan stepped aside, Caputo moved to Bloomfield to run for his seat, and Coutinho got to keep his Assembly seat.

Wildlife LIving it up in Bloomfield

It ain't easy being a wildlife photographer in North Jersey. Especially if you live in Bloomfield and only focus on what passes by your back deck. Pat Ciesla shows us a few of the fauna that a dedicated amateur can capture-- without leaving her condo off Liongate Drive(she admits to following the hawk a block or so down the road.). Pat's other passion is documenting new additions to the Bukowski Animal Shelter, and then helping to find them good homes. (Click on smaller photos for larger image)

This happens to be part of the tract that The Bloomfield Third RiverBank Association was fighting to preserve against two developers' plans to build upwards of 150 townhouses.

Money Doesn't Always Talk

Final Returns for Bloomfield BOE

Three 3-Year Terms
√ Catherine Catzel Bumpus 1,388
JoAnn Castro 972
Derek Grimes 379
Joel Rosen 727
√ Emily M. Smith 1,554
Susan Wolf* 944
√ Paula R. Zaccone 1,448

School Budget
√ Yes 1,603
No 774

Following the BOE Money -- Into the Mud

Bloomfield voters have had several ways to determine the 3 candidates most deserving of their votes for their Board of Education representatives on Wednesday. Besides a personal conversation, they could have compared the 7 candidates responses at last week's Forum on the town's cable station. They may have read the editorial endorsement in either
Bloomfield Life or The Bloomfield Independent Press. Or they may have checked out a website. But by far the most expensive vehicle is the only one that can potentially reach all voters is the direct mailing. Saturday's mail gave Bloomfield voters a glimpse into the power of machine politics in our town. Every registered voter received three different color mailing cards and brochures(on center and right in photo above.) for the three official Democratic Committee endorsed candidates for the Board of Education. Each one was a slick well designed mailing piece addressed to each prospective voter. Some homes got 12 or more -- at an estimated cost of tens of thousands of dollars. Why go to such great expense for a nonpaying position on the "nonpartisan" school board? Answers can be found in the recent history of how "pay to play" campaign contributions have influenced BOE elections.

The BOE election is Wednesday, April 27, and polls are open from 1 PM – 9 PM.

In Bloom

A Semi-Serious Proposal for the Garden State Pkwy

The latest revenue raising idea to be advanced by NJ's best and brightest is to allow trucks of all sizes on the Garden State Parkway north of exit 105. Although it may slightly reduce the truck flow on Bloomfield's Broad St., the overall increase in congestion on the GSP, could lead to continual gridlock -- especially at entrances and exits. As it is, most trucks don't seem to have a problem detouring via rts287, 280, or The Turnpike. Comments are flying fast and furious in nj.com'a news site.

About That Storm

Last night may have seen the first official Bloomfield flood of the year.

Mapping T-Mobile in Bloomfield

Last night's Zoning Board Meeting introduced T-Mobile's RF Expert, Joseph Minio, who used a battery of GIS Maps(click on map to enlarge) and overlays to show the need for atan additional tower Broad and Bay Streets . My favorite punchline came in response to a resident's comment that T-Mobile's website map suggests great reception for the area in question. Medio's response was essentially that their website was designed to promote their service to consumers or as Steve Colbert might have tweeted: #notintendedtobefactual, The pink area in the map indicates weaker cell reception.
An excellent summary of the evening's highlights can be found on Baristanet. In the comments section, Pat Gilleran, from Bloomfield's Open Space Fund, echoes the Town Administrator's suggestion that an alternative site might be found on Liongate. If it has to go anywhere, this may be the best alternative. At least two more meetings will be needed to address this issue.