Town to unveil renaming of New County Road to Paul Amico Way
The County of Hudson and the town of Secaucus will officially unveil the street sign for Paul Amico Way on Tuesday, Aug. 7 at 10:30 a.m. The location is at the intersection of what was formerly known as New County Road and County Road Extension. The address for the ceremony is 5000 Riverside Station Boulevard.
The mayor and Town Council in April passed a resolution to rename New County Road “Paul Amico Way” in honor of the former mayor. Amico, 99, served as mayor of Secaucus for a total of 28 years, from 1963 until 1991.
Across the Hackensack: Carstadt club’s music and entertainment permits suspended
The nightclub Dragonfly, which is located in Carlstadt by the Izod Center, had its music and entertainment permits suspended after police reports indicated the club played amplified music on July 15 and 22 at 2:45 a.m. and 2:20 a.m. in violation of a provisional permit, according to a letter issued by Carlstadt officials to the club owner Rocco Giuliano on July 26.
The reports also indicate that on both dates a DJ on an outdoor stage was playing amplified music without the proper Outdoor Events permits required by the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission.
Residents who live in the Secaucus development Riverview Court and the surrounding area along the Hackensack River had complained about alleged noise disturbances coming across the river last month.
A hearing will be held on the matter on Aug. 2 at 7 p.m. in Carlstadt. The owners will have the opportunity to request that the suspension be revoked.
Calls for comment to Dragonfly were not answered.
Meadowlands Hospital audit reveals faulty finances
According to a story in the Record this past week, a draft of an annual financial audit of the Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center (MHMC) in Secaucus reveals that the 230-bed hospital defaulted on a loan and overdrew a bank account by $1 million in 2011, despite posting a 10 percent profit and paying investors $8.4 million.
In the story, employees said paychecks bounced at least three times since December, which prompted an investigation by the state Department of Labor. The story said the hospital recorded an unprecedented turnaround of $9 million profit in 2011 compared to a $10.4 million loss in 2010.
MHMC was sold to new owners – a for-profit private investment firm – in December 2010.
The owners disputed the findings in the financial audit. Owner Tamara Dunaev told The Record, “We made all the payments.” The loan, she said, was refinanced. The owners said the overdraft and the paycheck issues were their bank’s fault, not theirs.
Last year the principal owners, Dr. Richard Lipsky and Dunaev, blasted the previous nonprofit owners and said they left the hospital in poor condition, and also blamed the nurses union for “sabotaging” operations after a 25-page state report outlined deficiencies in the facility.
Last December, then-CEO Mike Gregorio praised the hospital’s accomplishments, saying, “one year ago we took over a hospital that was losing more than $1 million each month.” Among the accomplishments, the hospital included an updated department of neuroscience and cognitive rehabilitation, the purchase of two hyperbaric oxygen chambers, and an update to an electronic records system.
Local housing commissioner Louis C. Canavari passes away
Louis Canavari, 84, who served on the Secaucus Housing Authority since 1996, passed away on Saturday, July 21, 2012. Canavari was a Commissioner at the Secaucus Housing Authority for 16 years, serving many years as either the vice chairperson or chairperson. He was the husband of the late Anna Canavari; father of Grace Caparelli (married to Robert), Chris Canavari (married to Christina) and Michael Canavari (married to Camille); loving grandfather of Jason, Helene, Anthony, Nicole and Louis; and brother of John Canavari and Rosalyn D’Amico.
Canavari served in the United States Army and owned Louis Canavari Meats in Secaucus.
Celebration at Shree Swaminarayan Temple to honor Swamiji
The Shree Swaminarayan Temple, on Aug. 5 at 9 a.m. – during a globally-broadcast event –celebrates its 25th year anniversary with a special ceremony to honor H.D.H. Acharya Shree Purushottampriyadasji Swamiji Maharaj (Swamiji). Swamiji arrived in the United States in 1987 and established numerous temples throughout North America starting with Secaucus.
In recognition of his 70 years on earth, Swamiji and the representation of Shree Muktajeevan Swamibapa will be weighed against five holy objects including: sugar crystals, flowers, betel nut, coconut, and a precious metal. Five million dollars was raised to pay for 170 pounds of platinum to serve as the precious metal.
Once the program is over, the platinum will be returned, and the millions will be used to support charitable programs all over the world. By weighing Swamiji and the representation of Shree Muktajeevan Swamibapa, the group is symbolically attempting to weigh Shree Swaminarayan himself. For more information, visit: www.swaminarayangadi.com/newjersey or call: Rashmin Patel (201) 647-5485.
Bomb threats at Walmart lead to evacuation and temporary shutdown
The Walmart in Secaucus was evacuated Thursday afternoon, a second time this week, for a bomb threat that was called in at 1:41 p.m.to the store according to news reports. A search of the store by local police and firefighters did not turn up a bomb. The store opened after an hour. This follows a similar incident that took place on Monday, July 31 when an anonymous bomb threat caused an evacuation according to local officials. The Hudson County Sheriff’s office says roughly 700 customers and employees were evacuated from the store in Secaucus after the threat was received around 2 p.m. Monday, July 30. The threat was the latest in a string of such threats to stores across the country, starting Friday. Threats were called in to several stores in Kansas and Missouri over the weekend.
The FBI is investigating the series of threats. Police would not say if they believe they are the work of one person or group, or copycats.
American Dream project gets another approval
The American Dream at Meadowlands complex on Route 3 has advanced further after the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection on July 27 gave out water quality permits to Triple Five Developers for the proposed indoor amusement and water parks expansion, according to news reports.
This comes a month after the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission approved the environmental plan for the 21.75-acre park. The New Jersey Department of Transportation and the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA) have also given a green light to the expansion plans.
Despite the recent approvals, the project still needs federal permits from the Army Corps of Engineers, and a few financial and legal obstacles remain.
The $3.7 billion project, previously known as Xanadu, includes a Dreamworks Animation theme park, attractions, retail and other venues. The retail and entertainment venue will also have a water park, ice skating rink, indoor ski park and theaters along with nearly 1.7 million square feet of retail space and 150,000 square feet of fine dining and restaurants.
The developers have agreed to purchase 5.41 acres of wetlands credits to pay for filling in 5.41 acres of wetlands for the water park, and has also agreed to preserve the 128-acre Walden swamp, which is located on the western portion of the Meadowland Sports Complex.
Triple Five also recently sought to dismiss the lawsuit filed by the New York Giants and New York Jets against the project expansion. The professional sports teams sought an injunction in June to prevent the developer from reviving the project. The lawsuit filed in a state court in Bergen County alleges that Triple Five did not receive their consent to expand the project and also cites traffic impacts.
Area mayors have also expressed concerns about potential traffic impacts due to the expansion and have considered joining the lawsuit.
“My municipality has had to deal with significant traffic issues and problems whether on Route 3 or on our local roads, almost every work day when our population goes from 17,000 full time residents to a daytime population of 60,000,” said Mayor Michael Gonnelli during the June 27 Meadowlands Commission meeting. “Everybody knows what is happening with traffic [and] there is nothing out there to solve it.”
Local environmental groups have also expressed opposition to the project.
“This is not only bad for the environment, but they are looking for taxpayers to fund this environmental mess. A billion dollars worth of subsidies have been given when there is supposedly no money for police, firefighters, education or money to buy open space. The public doesn’t want it, but the pay to play machine does,” said Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “This will not only take money from the tax payers wallets, but will cause more traffic, more air pollution, more water pollution, and more flooding in an area that has too much of that already.”
Metropolitan Family Health Network 2012 National Health Center Week
Metropolitan Family Health Network (MFHN) invites the community to join in the organization’s celebration of National Health Center Week. The festivities are planned for Wednesday, Aug. 8 through Friday, Aug. 10. The theme dedicated to the 2012 National Health Center Week is “Celebrating America’s Health Centers: Powering Healthier Communities.” Metropolitan Family Health Network will begin their celebration with an opening ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 8 at 10 a.m. at the organization’s 935 Garfield Avenue site in Jersey City. Daily events include free health and dental screenings, education sessions, free Zumba classes, music, refreshments, and kids activities and entertainment. For more information or for a schedule, contact: Carolina Dellepiane, (201) 478-5836.