NO Joe, NO!

Please don't stop posting (4.00 / 2)

Please continue to post.  We need your voice.  Funny, I was at the same planning board meeting.  I did not know you were there.  Like you, I always cringe when the Mayor is present.  I know it will be a long night with all the  speeches.

I was the engineer representing a client.  The last time I represented a client in Englewood, a democrat that Michael Wildes hated for writing a non-flattering PR piece in the paper about them, the board put my client through the wringer.  They made me specify ductile iron pipe under the parking lot for the entire drainage system - not just the sanitary - an expensive solution that NO OTHER engineer who gets plans passed in town has to do. 

They made this applicant jump through so many hoops that are not required of other applicants, it really made me wonder if the mayor was not settling vendettas this way.  If this has happened to anyone else, I'd like to hear about it. 

One Vote.  Yours.  It really does matter.

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by: carolh @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 14:07:51 PM UTC

Long nights at the planning board. (0.00 / 0)

Thanks. I believe the next planning board meeting is on Thursday. So maybe I'll see you then! That meeting was only the third planning board meeting I've ever been to since I've been in Englewood. I've only taken an interest in it because I have never seen so much rapid change to the city in the eighteen years that I've lived here. The entire city seems to be under construction. These meetings are the reason why I one day I MAY pursue a law degree. During most of the meetings I've gone to I've sat absolutely clueless as to what was being said. The process is painful. I cannot stress how painful to a regular citizen that does not have any background in urban planning, engineering, law, etc. But I guess it is probably more so to the people (such as yourself) that understand exactly what elected officials can sometimes get away with or put people through simply because most of us don't have the knowledge nor the time to follow the Planning Board closely.

  As far as I understood that meeting, the planning board may vote to give the Route 4 developer and Ferriero client HKT relief from building condos/offices/hotels. I read in a Bergen Record article that Ferriero was once the lawyer for HKT when they approached the city with development plans.
A concerned Englewoodian following this closely wrote that "the impact of allowing the route 4 developer to build apartments with no commitment to build an office/hotel will result in an effective loss of tax ratables of almost $2m/year every year." That seems like a lot of money. And my professional interpretation of that is that life is only going to get more expensive for Englewood residents if this goes through. They are now insisting that rentals are the best option for the city. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the developer is also threatening the city with a lawsuit if such relief is not provided? And that they want to undo the agreement with the city they initially insisted upon?
And now we are supposed to have faith that our Mayor will speak for the city when he has appointed the current planning board and when he is being supported by Ferriero to run for the state legislature?

This is the challenge that we all face. These are issues that impact my life directly as a resident of Englewood. But just beginning to understand them at the most basic level, as I currently am, is challenging, to say the least. One basic step the city can take is to at least give those residents that have the knowledge to question and follow what is being done the opportunity to actually ask questions.  Public comments are scheduled for the end of the meeting. And these meetings regularly end close to midnight.

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by: lsanchez490 @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 19:55:37 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Planning Board (0.00 / 0)

I credit you with coming to the meetings.  I have to say, it has been very disconcerting over the years to see only the usual suspects in these public meetings.  The only time residents seem to come out is if the planned construction is right next door. By then, it is sadly way too late. 

I think we should have some kind of seminar or Meet-up or something to educate voters on how to read a site plan, etc.  How land uselaw works etc.  I would be willing to help explain this stuff to any voters who want to know.  Maybe at one of these drinking liberally nights.

What truly scares the bejebus out of me is the fact that Ferriero's right hand guy - Oury - is a land use lawyer.  The kind that represents clients who try to build huge 6 story buildings in single family zones and is ready and willing to swamp the afflicted town with legal paperwork that will make their fax machines run out of paper.

One Vote.  Yours.  It really does matter.

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by: carolh @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 20:27:51 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

It was a lot closer than you think (4.00 / 1)

Apparently I just learned from a Dem at the BCDO Bylaws vote that they actually demanded he fill out his ballot in front of them so they could see how he voted.  Shameless.

And, the rumor is the BCDO had been planning on challenging the entire Englewood contingent for not backing Wildes in his Mayoral election.  Our protest probably made them reconsider.  Things may have come to blows if they had challenged the Englewood CC who didn't back Wildes.  We only won by 3% of the vote. That trick with Englewood, had they pulled it, may have produced a different outcome. 

We cannot trust the Chairman and the BCDO.  They are behaving like this is 100 years ago.  We have to fight this.  They have left us no other choice. In Bergen County, there is no real strength to the opposition party - the Republicans.  It has to be us, folks.  It is our dysfunctional family. We need an intervention.

One Vote.  Yours.  It really does matter.

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by: carolh @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 14:23:57 PM UTC

Challenging the Englewood CC members (0.00 / 0)

If they were planning on invoking the rarely-before-enforced "public support for opposition candidate" clause that they attempted to strengthen last week, I'm not sure it would have applied.  The bylaws specifically refer to a CC member who supports a candidate opposing a "BCDO endorsed" candidate in a general election.  I don't recall BCDO making endorsements in local races; did they endorse Wildes for mayor?  If not, I don't believe the bylaw applies. 

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by: Bill W @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 18:11:54 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Let's All Keep Our "Cool" :-) (0.00 / 0)

http://www.youtube.c...

If you've seen "West Side Story" you know what I mean and if you haven't the above link to a HS play version of the number is pretty "kewl" itself.

This is a long term struggle that'll take a log term commitment. 

The Ticks are deeply embedded in the body politic and it'll take a while to extricate them.

It is they who should be losing sleep, eh?

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