Aug. ‘24: Council’s Business Update
Deputy Mayor Jaime Matteo-Landis
Councilwoman Michelle Kerr
PRESENTATIONS:
Economic Sustainability Trails/Tourism Plan presentation from Eric Tuvel, Sr. Planner from Dresdner Robin.
This presentation was funded by a $50,000 grant and was a study on economic access/ bike & walking trails/ tourism.
We already used these ideas to help with the bike lane on Skyline Lakes Drive.
We also plan on putting a crosswalk on Skyline Drive with flashing lights. County already approved our request.
We will consider other future ideas/ signage that was presented by this study.
https://www.ringwoodnj.net/filestorage/2500/2506/DR-Council_Meeting-08-20-2024-rev1.pdf
MANAGER’S REPORT
Azarian:
Mr. Heck has been in constant contact with Azarian regarding Fieldstone Park Plaza and the closing of Stop and Shop this Fall. Please read the most recent press release….
“The Azarian group previously announced that stop and shop was leaving the fieldstone park shopping center, and they will vacate in early November of 2024
As a further update to Ringwood and the surrounding communities The Azarian group is in the process of negotiating a potential lease with an occupant that is extremely interested in the existing Stop and Shop location.
Mr. Azarian and his team have prioritized securing a tenant for the existing Stop and Shop location and are working to attract new tenants to the remainder of the shopping center.
The Azarian Group is committed to renovating the center to create a modern enjoyable shopping experience in our community.
We are working closely with the Borough Manager and the Director of Economic Development and will provide additional information to the community when it is appropriate.
We strongly believe that with the support of the community, the local businesses and the assistance of the Borough Leadership coupled with the additional investment by the Azarian group- the future of the fieldstone park shopping center is exciting.” ~ Azarian Group Press Release 8/2024
Areas in Need of Redevelopment:
Over the past several months, we have conducted studies on areas in need of redevelopment.
It became clear that Mr. Pagano might challenge these studies because his property was not included. Therefore, we held off on the public hearing of the studies until such time as we owned the property and had a contract stating that he could not participate. This brought us to June.
We also wanted to ensure that our area in need of development was in compliance with the new State liquor license requirements.
Public Hearing will be held on September 25th with a time and location to be determined.
Skyline Drive Corridor Study:
The Borough published a study of the Skyline Drive Corridor on our website and have received the following feedback from 125 submissions:
The majority of the respondents would like to see a mixed business development including restaurants, green space, recreation, and retail spaces.
Pedestrian amenities were another popular response to include pedestrian crosswalks, improved lighting, and outdoor recreational paths for bikes and walking/running.
Other submissions include hosting regular events such as farmers markets, craft fairs, and concerts.
Town Wide Garage Sale:
Our town wide yard sale will take place Saturday, September 28th and Sunday, September 29th. This event is rain or shine.
Applications must be received at Borough Hall or emailed to recycling@ringwoodnj.net by 4pm on Friday, September 6th.
Maps will be available at Borough Hall and the Library on Friday, September 27th.
JCP&L:
JCPL will be attending the September Council meeting to discuss power outages, equipment failure, and their 5-year capital program to solve the problem.
OLD BUSINESS:
ORDINANCE NO. 2024-#10 - AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 7 – TRAFFIC – OF THE REVISED GENERAL ORDINANCES OF THE BOROUGH OF RINGWOOD, COUNTY OF PASSAIC, STATE OF NEW JERSEY TO PROHIBIT THE PARKING OF INOPERABLE OR DISABLED VEHICLES ON ANY PUBLIC STREET OR STREET RIGHT-OF-WAY IN THE BOROUGH OF RINGWOOD.
NEW BUSINESS:
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 4 - GENERAL LICENSING AND BUSINESS REGULATIONS – OF THE REVISED GENERAL ORDINANCES OF THE BOROUGH OF RINGWOOD, PASSAIC COUNTY, STATE OF NEW JERSEY TO PROVIDE FOR PORTABLE ADVERTISEMENT SIGNS.
We are proposing a sign ordinance to allow a 4’x4’ sandwich board sign in the right of way, based upon certain conditions, for a 30-day period, subject to approval.
Properties with one business will be allowed to display one sign, while properties with multiple businesses can display up to two signs.
We certainly do not want a proliferation of signs because it is not fitting within the character of our community.
RESOLUTIONS:
2024-162 Certification of the Annual Audit
2024-163 Approval to Purchase and Install a Simulcast System for Radio Coverage
This was discussed at our July meeting. We need to improve dead zones for our first responders.
Upgrade from a single site transmit location to a three transmit site simulcast system.
Goosetown Communications estimated that this will cost $424,081.39.
2024-172 New Computer system for our live stream purchase for $629
Our live stream has been spotty and we needed to make upgrades with our bandwidth/ computer system.
No executive session.
End of meeting notes:
Congratulations to our volunteer firefighters in Stonetown, BASS, as well as Ryerson School for collecting at least 1,000lbs of plastic each and for earning free Trex Benches.
The Green Team started a Trex collection this month. We have bins at Borough Hall, the library, and the Skylands Learning Center. We are collecting thin plastic film and have a goal of 1,000lbs in order to earn a free Trex Bench. You can email myself or the Green Team if you have any questions.
We had a resident ask about the progress of the Rain Garden at Ryerson, so we thought we’d give everyone an update. According to our Borough engineer, “We have been working with Princeton Hydro and NJDEP since September 2022 with this grant project. Ringwood was awarded the grant on March 1, 2024 in the amount of $194,700.00. From March 1, 2024 through May 2024 NJDEP required many grant revisions which delayed awarding a contract with Princeton Hydro. Princeton Hydro will execute the contract with agreed upon revisions as soon as we receive them. Ringwood can then execute [plans] and Princeton Hydro can begin the design. It is estimated that the construction of the rain garden will be next summer/fall of 2025."
Ringwood’s fireworks are coming up on Saturday, September 7th starting at 4pm. We are making it more of an event this year with amusement games, local food, and ice cream. The Ringwood Holiday Observers (a non-profit) are also sponsoring two local bands including the Lake Dwellers from 4-6pm and Kate Ryan Band Featuring Chris Parker from 6-8pm. We hope you can join us for this fantastic event for our residents!
Ringwood will be having a Food Truck festival on Saturday, September 14th from 12-4pm at the CVS parking lot. Live music and pony rides will be sponsored by the Ringwood Holiday Observers. We hope to have hungry residents and apple pickers that travel through our town, stop and join us at this food truck event.
The council has been to 4 ribbon cuttings for Ringwood businesses just this summer. We have to say that I’ve never seen so many new businesses opening up in town and we have hope. The four new businesses include new owners at Dairy Queen, Deliberate Fitness located in Cupsaw, McGowan Well Water Compliance located on 511, and Mapi’s Mechanics located at Lukoil on Skyline Drive. Other new businesses this year include: TLC Dog Grooming, The Collective Ringwood, and Ringwood Dental Studio. Other new businesses said to open in the near future include: Revitalize Rehab Physical Therapy and Avatar Recovery Center. Another potential new business is RQ Floors. We will give out more information on their opening dates in the future, but we’re so happy to welcome these new businesses to Ringwood.
