Power Plays for Those of Us Still in the Dark

Sandy has been a life changing experience for we digitally dependent folks who are constantly checking our emails and Facebook updates. Much of Bloomfield was shrouded in darkness Monday night by falling trees and power lines. After initially being reassured by PSE&G that our power would be back in 45 minutes"at 7:59PM," a second call yielded an update that suggested an expectation of  7 days or more.
Blackouts were haphazard south of Bay, but nearly universal north of Bay. Most of our friends and neighbors were in the same boar, but were were finally able to at leas charge our dead phone Tuesday night. Hearing that the Bloomfield Library would reopen on Wednesday, we were first in line. Their 8 computer stations filled up very quickly, (and they may close early today) so here are some alternatives:

 Montclair's library on S.Fullerton has many more outlets(and free parking next door) but a higher percentage of blacked out patrons(80%). Montclair's YMCA and Town Council Chambers are also open to those looking for juice. We don't believe they check for ID, but if it gets crowded they may. Starbucks and Paneras have also just reopened.

Clifton's Allwood Library is also a good prospect, but call first to verify their hours(Clifton Commons was totally dark except for generator-enhanced Stop-N Shop) .

Whole Foods in West Orange is actually inviting folks to plug in.

PSE&G has updated its twitter page for fast moving progress reports.Stay tuned and plugged:

Halloween Spooktacular

Bloomfield's Bicentennial Committee outdid itself again with the most spectacular Spooktacular ever.  Children enjoyed Trick or Treating through a mini-village of decorated cardboard houses and shops.

Other fun and games included a Bean Bag Toss, a Magic Act,  a Pumpkin Patch,  a Contest to Guess the Weight of the Biggest Pumpkin, A Costume Contest,  A Haunted Courtyard in front of the Library, and a Jack-O-Lantern Contest.

Confronting the Board of Health

At last night's Board of Health meeting, more than a dozen people made comments before being stopped by the notorious Marimba ring tone 5 minute timer. I began by reading an excerpt from a letter that my wife, Rebecca wrote to the Mayor and Town Council. It was read at Monday's Council meeting:

"....the idea that the township has no authority over the Board of Health decisions is ludicrous - the Board of Health has to be responsible to somebody. You appointed the Board of Health. And although they may do a good job when it comes to Town Health issues involving humans, they know little about taking care of animals or running an animal shelter.

 Ms. Lore is one person making decisions that affect the entire township, and she appears to have no supervision above her, and no input from the public. Especially in the case of a director who is only an acting director, you would think there would be some sort of supervisor working with her and watching to see if she indeed, could handle the position. 

Whenever I have attended a BOH meeting, it seems like Ms. Lore makes a decision and no one even discusses or questions her - They seem to be "Yes" people who rubber-stamp what she decides to do."

Jeff Coltenback reaffirmed the commitment he made at Monday's meeting to take over responsibility for the training and adoption of all the dogs now at Bloomfield;s shelter -- including Memphis. I was able to shoot a video clip of his concluding comments.

 Some of my comments:

One of my unanswered questions in my September letter was whether you could refer me to a recent meeting where there had been a non-unanimous vote on an issue that Ms. Lore raised. 

 Silence.... 

I believe it was Mr. Mcloughlin who told us--at a recent meeting--that you never talk to each other between meetings regarding any issues that are on the agenda. Well many of us on the outside talk every day in the social media about some of the major issues that you seem determined to ignore. We do it publicly, so folks like Mr. Fitzpatrick can cherry pick rumors that he finds inaccurate. We do it partially out of frustration that we can't get all the facts we'd like to get from the Health Department or the Shelter.  

This week, our frustration at the lack of accurate information from this Board has led some residents to start yet another Facebook page. This one is not primarily about Memphis -- it's about YOU. It's called "The Truth About Bloomfield's Health Department." Rather than sharing rumors, anyone can share verifiable facts and documents about what's been going on with the Board and the Health Department. This may be your first chance for one or more of you to make a difference on your Board -- OR your last chance. 

Not sure if it was in response to many of our complaints about their unresponsiveness, but one of the members, Mcloughlin, actually chose to engage in a brief discussion with several of the commenters. Elkins also made a couple of comments. The 3 women on the Board, however, still seem to have lost their voices.

Lighting Up the Historic District

Once upon a time, when Glen Ridge was a part of Bloomfield, gas lamps were ubiquitous throughout the township. The last two lamps have been continuously maintained by the residents living on the charming cul de sac of East Church Street.

New Walking Tour of Bloomfield Historic District Begins This Saturday

In 1937, Bloomfield had 525 retail stores, with a total annual sales of over $15 million (approximately $246 million in 2011 dollars) with employment for over 1,000 men and women.

Come to the Bloomfield Civic Center at 84 Broad Street and enjoy a 30 minute slide show of the Bloomfield Historic District and Bloomfield Center exploring historic sites from the late 1800s to early 1900s, many of them taken during the Centennial celebrations in 1912, with ‘now’ photos showing the same locations today.

The slide show, produced by Rich Rockwell, will be shown continuously between 1:30 and 3:30. Pick up a self-guided tour guide, then take a self-guided tour at your own pace at your convenience.
Refreshments will be served at the Civic Center. In case of rain, the refreshments and slide show will be held, and self-guided tour guides will be handed out so you can the tour in the future at your convenience.

The Women’s Club, corner of Montgomery and Franklin Streets. Replaced by a parking lot.

Memphis/BOH Issues on Tuesday's Conference Agenda

Expect another long meeting.

Don't Miss Free Bicentennial Bus Tour of Bloomfield This Saturday

In 1937 Bloomfield had 68 plants employing approximately 6,500 people manufacturing products valued in excess of $53 million (approximately $830 million in 2011 dollars). Explore the locations of some of Bloomfield's past industrial sites and other historic sites - houses, churches, the Morris Canal, schools and businesses on this 90 minute tour with a handout of photos and maps of historic sites.

Sponsored by the Bloomfield Bicentennial Committee, Bus tours will leave the Bloomfield College parking lot on Liberty Street near Austin Place every half hour between 10 am and 2:30 pm. A handicapped accessible bus will be available. Parking is available in the College parking lot. Refreshments will be served at the end of the tour at Westminster Hall, corner of Fremont Street and Austin Place.

Photo at right of Westinghouse Factory is part of the souvenir booklet that will be given to all participants in the tour.

BOH Rebuffs Council Efforts to Resolve Memphis Issue

Much has transpired in the week since the Council voted unanimously to urge all the attorneys involved in the Memphis lawsuit to reach a positive outcome that would return Memphis to Jeff Coltenback:

 1. The BOH has reiterated their version of events -- with too many misstatements to go into here -- and told the council it has no authority over them.
2. The BOH attorney has taken to the internet to further misrepresent the situation. Basically claiming that the Lexis Attorney is now on Ricci's side, and blaming Jeff for scaring alternative trainers away, but suggesting that their undisclosed new trainer is successfully re-educating Memphis at their undisclosed location for adoption by an undisclosed family to be named later.
3. Ricci has closed down his e-mail and Facebook site and refused to participate in any serious discussions with other attorneys.
4. The intake report on Memphis's arrival at our shelter was finally released, through Opra, showing that he was originally characterized as NON- Aggressive.
5 The ACO officer who originally caught and gave Memphis his name, has come forth with a chronology of events that belies many of Karen Lore's statements on the case. Moira may have been fired for staying within Health Department channels and spelling out truths that did not corroborate Lore's agenda.
6. Our Board of Health is still advertising online for another Animal control officer to replace Moira.
7. The shelter has announced that it is returning to it's old hours of 1 to 4 every day.
8. The largest of several petitions to free Memphis has hit 40,000 signatures.
9. The first legal hearing on the Lexis lawsuit against Bloomfield has been rescheduled to November 9. 10. Hundreds of Memphis supporters turned out to support the return of the dog to Jeff and Diana Coltenback.

Tragedy on Broughton

All news reports indicate that there was a drag race in progress on  Saturday night on Broughton Avenue -- at speeds excedung 80 mph.  R. I. P. Christine Lembo.

I don't drive on Broughton every day, but I happened to have business in the area yesterday. I find myself driving much slower than on Broad even tho the speed limit is the same. There are so many side streets and kids playing on the sidewalks, it just seems appropriate to go closer to 20 on many occasions. Of course I'm frequently tailgated, but that's OK.

After a tragedy like this, I'm sure I'm not the first one to suggest that a couple of speed bumps might have saved a life. In fact someone posted on the Patch today that they've asked the town to do just that in the past. Was there any followup on that suggestion?

Yet Another Open House on Montgomery

Interesting to see there are still 2 townhouses for sale at 102 Montgomery. It has been over 4 years since they listed the first units of their modestly sized development on the MLS. They're in a great location near shops, schools, and RR. They were as good a value then at 339k as they are now at 299k.

Yet Bloomfield's Planning Board is about to vote on a MUCH larger 332 unit condo/apartment complex at 225 Belleville Ave. Unlike the Montgomery units, the Belleville units are at a very isolated location in a flood zone. Care to guess how many years it will take them to sell?

What's Up With Watsessing?

About two dozen Bloomfield residents got together at the Civic Center, last night, for what was billed as an "evening of brainstorming and strategizing to create a plan for land use, pedestrian mobility, traffic calming and redevelopment" in the area surrounding Watsessing RR Station. They were encouraged to take advantage of a recently awarded $50,000 Smart Future Planning Grant from from the state’s Division of Community Affairs. During the initial brainstorming session,  a consensus developed that new apartment projects should be avoided with a preference for commercial or light manufacturing developments. Ben Morse pointed out that RR tracks that cross Bloomfield avenue near Grove could become an asset:

"I asked about the train line that runs past Hartz Mt, and whether it hooks up with the Newark Port.They are expanding the port, so having a container line going to the port could be attractive. The shale gas boom is for real and will facilitate trade to those areas that have logistic capabilities. Not to export gas but finished products."

Attendees were shown slides of visual options for street layout and building types for residents to select their picks for aesthetic and practical preferences. Some of them seemed like visual "push polling"(would you prefer an intersection with more visible or less visible crosswalks?)


Pictured is one of several breakout sessions where map overlays were used to design a better flow of auto and foot traffic. Town engineer, Paul Lasek (r) monitored their progress.

Psst! It's HarvestFest Time!

You'd hardly know if from our local media, but this is our annual Harvest Fest weekend. Both Bloomfield weeklies ran this ad from the Downtown Alliance. Good old Shoprite incorporated reminders of the festival into its weekly back page ad (we love those coupons). But, curiously, we couldn't find any editorial copy about the Saturday and Sunday events. Not even a press release marking the 20th anniversary year.

Even the official festival website is simply a copy of the Harvest Fest poster with links to websites for several of the musical attractions and the major sponsors. But it's guaranteed to provide some great photo opps for next week's papers.

Among the under-publicized attractions are the nonprofits and community oriented groups. They can usually be found on the south end of the Green.

Bullied

An Open Letter to Bloomfield's Board of Health:

I find it a bit ironic that we happened to be at a Board of Health meeting in the town courtroom, last night.  Karen Lore may have been trying to put Jeff on trial, but in a real sense it's Karen Lore,  F. Michael Fitzpatrick -- and this board -- that are on trial right now.  And the rest of us in that room were the jury -- along with the Town Council.  If you doubt this,  I'd suggest googling "Karen Lore," Bloomfield, or "Board of Health," Bloomfield, and take a look at the "Images" tab.

At your September meeting, you may have set a record for violations of the Open Public Meetings Act. You began by announcing, without justification, that no photography or video would be allowed, and promptly went into an unscheduled closed session before finally allowing comments 55 minutes later. You then announced that a decision had been reached on Memphis that would be announced the next morning.  So we were then allowed to comment on an issue that had already been decided -- except we would be told nothing about the decision. Kafka would be proud!
 Kafkaesque is commonly defined as:
 1. Marked by a senseless, disorienting, often menacing complexity. Kafkaesque bureaucracies

 1. Marked by surreal distortion and often a sense of impending danger.

Your continued unresponsiveness to the worldwide condemnation
of your actions truly fits all these definitions.  You've also dismissed Facebook comments on the subject by saying that many of them are inaccurate belying the fact that Lore's misleading statements and refusal to interact with volunteers about shelter issues -- as well as Memphis -- have sparked thousands of passionate reactions in the social media.

Bloomfield residents and animal lovers from throughout the region have pled Jeff's case to a stonewalling BOH.  Joel argued with a Zoning Board member who called attention to your violations of the Open Public Meetings Act.  Maybe it's time for an "intervention" by Bloomfielders on other volunteer boards.  I know members of virtually all of them who are incredulous at the actions of Lore and the BOH: That includes the BOE, Planning, Zoning, Recycling, Open Space, Downtown Alliance, Oakside, Bicentennial, Watsessing Heights, Halcyon Park, Save Bloomfield Now, Bloomfield Neighborhood Assoc., and Friends of Clarks Pond.

 Like many of them, I literally don't have a dog in this hunt. But I react strongly when I see injustice.  As others have stated about their rescued pets,  the dog I rescued as a teenager, would not have passed Crosby's evaluation.

I e-mailed Lore and Fittzpatrick 5 months ago for a legal justification for your continued unresponsiveness to pertinent questions at BOH meetings and got no response.  I assumed she never read the e-mail until I was confronted by your fundraising chair who angrily referenced other Shelter issues raised in the the email. This occurred in the shelter office in early spring when my wife and I were applying to adopt a cat. Of course, our application was never acknowledged. Instead, we wound up adopting two wonderful cats through PAWS.

 In going over the minutes of several of your meetings and watching the last two in person, one gets the impression that your main function is to rubber stamp every item on Lore's agenda. I've been to a number of other board meetings in Bloomfield, and this appears to be the one with the most unanimity and the least discussion. Please advise me of an issue that provoked a divergence of views or a dissent from Ms. Lore, as I'm still looking for one. Undisputedly, the Health Department has a vital role to play in Bloomfield's continued well being. But your arrogant procedures and practices is dragging our town into international notoriety and threatening the security of its taxpaying residents.

Not only aren't they from this area, Lore and Fitzpatrick may be insulated against lawsuits like this one.  They'll get their hefty paychecks and pensions no matter what.  Bloomfield's taxpayers will pay in the end. That said, I still hope Jeff wins it all.  Maybe HE could take over the shelter and begin repairing Bloomfield's severely tarnished reputation.

Sincerely,

Geoff Gove

Vote Possible on 225 Belleville Plans at Tonight's PB Meeting

From Save Bloomfield Now: The Township of Bloomfield is considering a massive 5 story 332 rental unit at 225 Belleville Avenue (aka Oakes Pond) leaving taxpayers with a 30 year bill of $2.46 million. Approved by Bloomfield’s town council with the developer, Garden Commercial Properties--headed by Minnesota Vikings billionaire owner Zygi Wilf—it is not only a financial negative for the town, it will worsen traffic jams, and stretch a school system already using trailers to house its ballooning school population.

The project is a precedent setting development, and with over 1600 rental units in other proposals across town, Bloomfield faces choices that will impact more than its fiscal health for years to come. It is a picture of poor planning.

Residents have been against the project and their concerns have largely been ignored, except for a demand to generate a fiscal impact study.

The report will be reviewed at the next Planning Board meeting on Tuesday September 18 at 7pm in council chambers at 1 Muncipal Plaza, Bloomfield. The study has galvanized the town’s Board of Education who will appear at (tonight's) meeting to plead its case. Schools near the project are at capacity and the estimated 33 more students that would live in the development create the need for more costly trailers and buses. Also, with 653 more parking spaces, the anticipation for extreme traffic jams at peak hours has been met with heated discussions and no solutions.

The environmental non-remediation aspect to the project is another issue. The developer was grandfathered in to clean the site to 1999 non-residential standards per DEP, instead of more strict residential standards enacted in 2008. With 150 years of industry and toxic waste on the site, the health of future residents could be at risk.
 Save Bloomfield Now is nonpartisan group of Bloomfield residents committed to keeping Bloomfield an affordable town, with a high quality of life and good schools.

Walking for Memphis

A planning meeting for October's Bicentennial bus tour of Bloomfield kept me from joining the 200 participants in today's peaceful walk around Town Hall, The Green, and the downtown area. (Photo at right by Vishous Rhage; click on photos to enlarge.)

Fortunately for those of us who could not be there, an extensive slide show captures the hopeful and peaceful atmosphere (thanks largely to police support to insure their safety at intersections) of the event on the Save Memohis Facebook page. Memphis supporters are expecting another large turnout at Monday's town council meeting, as well as as Thursday's Board of Health meeting -- at a location yet to be disclosed.

 UPDATE: The Bloomfield Patch has just published a terrific group of pictures with their story -- including a picture of a Memphis look-alike parade participant, Dakota," whose adoption was also discouraged by Bloomfield Shelter staff.

Brookdale Stakeout

Le Taqueria, Bloomfield's popular new Mexican Restaurant is being featured on an upcoming edition of Restaurant Stakeout on the Food Network. A large production crew and their trucks took over a good chunk of Broad and Johnson streets.

The "Reality" show has become somewhat controversial for creating story lines for the staff and owners of the some of the featured eateries. One of it's latest episodes put Montclair's renowned Naunas under the spotlight.

New Liongate Developer Blocked by Council

"The latest development in our neighborhood's two-decade long effort to prevent a massive townhouse development on Liongate's flood prone Scientific Glass site is: No Development"

 I wrote the above sentence over 3 1/2 years ago after the previous owner of the 12.7 acre section of Liongate put a For Sale sign on the flood prone property he had bought in 2003 for $3 Million. His asking price at the time was $13 Million.

The current developer bought the property last winter along with its previously approved plans for 104 Condos, for $1.2 Million.

On Monday, Bloomfield's town council stopped the developers plans in their tracks with a 3 to 3 vote. In the past 20+ years, that the property has been a tempting target for several ambitious developers, more 4 legged critters have lived on the site than 2 legged ones. Walking down Liongate Rd. this afternoon, I caught a glimpse of what may have been the same red fox that Pat Ciesla photographed in 2008.

I also saw two well dressed examples of the 2-legged variety, tailgating in front of the padlocked driveway to the site.  Stay tuned....

Coltenback vs. Aloia

Before the public comment portion of last night's council conference meeting, Mayor McCarthy acknowledged the town's latest lawsuit against them and stated they were advised by counsel not to comment on the situation because of the litigation. This caveat did not disuade anyone from stating their arguments for returning Memphis to the care of Jeff and Diana Coltenback, who filed the suit on Friday. The lawsuit is scheduled to be heard early in October in a County Courtroom in Newark.

The mayor waited for comments on all subjects to conclude before inviting Jeff to state his case and briefly explain the basis for his lawsuit agains the township. The details of the suit are yet to be made public, but one of the incidents that motivated the suit was his frustration at discussing the contract issues with it's author,town attorney, Brian Aloia -- who hung up on him. During Jeff's entire presentation, Aloia(above) could be seen staring intently at his Macbook without glancing up for a second to acknowledge Jeff. The Memphis issue goes way beyond just letting the dog out. Aside from the insanity of firing dozens of experienced volunteers and silencing whistle blowers, Bloomfield's unelected attorneys are the ones pulling the strings that have made us a magnet for costly lawsuits.

St. Vals Fest

Sounds For Hounds in Brookdale Park

Music lovers and animal lovers joined forces on Saturday when Sound for the Hounds, a concert/festival sponsored by United Against Puppy Mills returned to Brookdale Park for their second annual fesdtival.

There were dozens of exhibitors from throughout participating in the the day long show including Bloomfield's Bukowski Animal Shelter. Many handed out samples of dog treats to the 4 legged visitors and dog training tips for the two legged ones. The event was devoted to raising awareness about “puppy mills” – large scale breeding operations notorious for putting profits before animal welfare.

The concert climaxed with the The WhiskeyHicken Boys rock band inviting all the attending dogs onto the stage for a doggy "be-in".