Breaking News:::: Major Gas Main Was Just Busted

Passaic N.J. Major gas main was just busted by a construction company at the corner of Main Avenue and Highland Avenue. The gas leak is reported in the new school. Multiple agencies are responding at this time. Passaic Fire is requesting P.S.E & G on a rush. Main Avenue is being blocked off by the Passaic Police at this time expect major delays in the area. Homes are being evacuated in the area.

Update– 2:45 Passaic Fire evacuating all Highland Avenue residents in the area. Clifton Police requested to block off Main Avenue in Clifton.

Update–2:49 Passaic Fire loads the fire hoses as a precautionary measure. Additional Fire trucks arrive on scene to help with evacuations. Construction company is shutting down all of their generators in the area.

Update–2:50 P.S.E & G representative on location at this time, P.S.E & G rep awaiting the gas shut off team.

Update–2:55 Passaic Police reaching out to the Passaic County Sheriff Department for more officers to block off streets in the area.

Update–2:57 P.S.E & G Gas shut off team on location and attempting to shut off the gas main on Main Avenue and Highland.

Update–3:09 As per Passaic Police and Passaic Fire all units will be leaving the scene within 15 minutes. P.S.E & G shut off the gas at this time.

P.B.J.N Staff on behalf of the residents of the City Of Passaic would like to thank the Passaic Police department and the Passaic Fire department for keeping us safe and protected.

P.B.J.N Exclusive Report

Passaic mayor ousts a top official

PASSAIC — Mayor Alex D. Blanco fired Jane Grubin, director of human services, late last week, in the biggest personnel move since he named a new business administration in June. And there may be more changes soon.

Sources with firsthand knowledge said Monday that the next employee on the chopping block is Planning Director Glenn Carter, who declined comment.

Grubin, who was appointed by former Mayor Sammy Rivera in 2001, was let go Friday. Business Administrator Anthony Iacono said Monday that there could be more restructuring. “Like all administrations, there are changes and that is our prerogative,” he said. “This is one of a few moves and other personnel moves are coming.” He declined to elaborate.

Attempts to reach Blanco were unsuccessful.

Iacono said that Grubin’s dismissal was not a political decision, even though Grubin’s husband, Simon Grubin, supported Blanco’s opponent, Vincent Capuana, in May’s mayoral election. Jane Grubin said she was proud of her work and both she and Iacono said her termination was unrelated to her performance.

“I serve at the pleasure of the mayor or at the whim of this mayor,” Grubin said. “It is their prerogative, that’s all. It wasn’t because I did a poor job. It had nothing to do with my job performance. I just hope they have someone from Passaic to fill that position and someone who cares about the people of Passaic.”

Grubin, who grew up in one of the city’s most prominent families, the Gurtmans, said her eight years in the job offered her a chance to give back to the community.

Her grandfather, Max Gurtman, owned a sheet company in Passaic, Max Gurtman and Son. He and the rest of the family contributed to local families and charities. Her father, Nathan, an architect, designed some of the city’s buildings, including the former Ginsburg’s Department Store on Madison and Lexington avenues, and the Ahavas Israel synagogue on Van Houten Avenue.

“Anything I can do is very important, because I have been blessed and this was the perfect way to give back to the community,” Grubin said. “These things are important. It wasn’t a job. I loved going to work every day.”

The Human Services Department is the fourth largest department in the city and oversees a wide range of programs that help city residents, from free HIV testing and food programs for children to running a health clinic.

Grubin, who made $77,000 this year, said one initiative of which she’s particularly proud was rehabilitating the city’s animal shelter, which was slated for closure by the state in 2003.

“I was able to get money to redo the shelter to become a state model for animal shelters,” she said.

Grubin thanked her staff, which numbers 55, for their work. She specifically cited those health professionals who developed a pandemic flu plan, after which the state modeled its program.

Grubin said she will remain active in the community, remaining as board chairwoman of the Mental Health Clinic of Passaicand continuing her work on the Jewish Family Service Board.

P.C.J.N would like to thank Jane Grubin for all she has done for our City and especially the Jewish community. We wish her all the best.

(News Source: NorthJersey.com/PCJN)

Learn today at P.T.I in passaic

Pedestrian Struck This Afternoon

Passaic Park- A pedestrian crossing the street, was struck by an auto at 6:40 PM tonight. The pedestrian was at the the intersection of  Van Houten Ave and Waverly Place. Passaic police department, E.M.S, the Fire department, as well as Hatzolah EMS were all on scene. The patient was transported to the hospital by Passaic Fire EMS in stable condition.

Dozens Of Sukkahs collapsing!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dozens of Sukkahs collapsing through out the tri state area please use extreme caution when going into the Sukkah. A warning for strong winds is in effect until Thursday morning.

Tree falls on house on reid avenue

At approximately 12:40 this afternoon Passaic fire department as well as the Passaic police department responded to 36 reid avenue for a tree that fell into a house. No reports of injuries at this time.

Passaic Fire Parade

The Passaic Fire Department 100th Anniversary Parade
“Help us celebrate 100 years of proud service to the City of Passaic.”
Sunday – October 11, 2009
Starting at 11a.m. – Rain or Shine
Parade starts at Eighth St., continues the length of Passaic St./Ave. and ends in Third Ward Park
Refreshments in the park after the parade
For more information or to purchase an advertisement in the Commemorative Ad Journal send an e-mail to: passaicfire100th@gmail.com

*SAVE THE DATE* Editors note unfortunately it is during Yom Tov

Bankrupt hospital hopes changes will ward off closure

Bankrupt St. Mary’s Hospital in Passaic is hoping to revitalize itself by offering a speedier emergency room and other services to make it more marketable, officials said. The fast-track ER, which promises to treat and discharge some patients in an hour or less opened Monday. St. Mary’s has also expanded its infusion and chemotherapy center and brought in a specialized wound care nursing team as well as a new team of emergency medicine specialists and “hospitalist” doctors trained to care for hospitalized patients. The Home Depot company even spruced up the hospital’s landscaping by donating and installing $5,000 in cherry trees, mums, mulch and other plantings.

St. Mary’s, which was $100 million in debt when it declared bankruptcy in March, is making these changes in hopes it will recover financially and keep it from shutting down, as so many troubled hospitals in New Jersey have done in the past decade.

The new ER unit is part of the hospital’s “turn-around strategy, one of the many examples of how much healthier St. Mary’s is getting,” said Michael J. Sniffen, who tool over as the hospital’s president and chief executive officer in June.

The fast-track system for patients with non-life-threatening injuries or illnesses features five private exam and treatment rooms, including one for pediatric patients. Its $300,000 cost was financed by donations as well as golf tournaments and other fund-raising events,

The new ER system is “vital to the safety and health of the community” and the hospital, which handles 35,000 emergency department patients each year, Sniffen said.

“In a city with only one hospital, having a top-notch emergency room is a matter of life and death,” Sniffen said Monday.

About 50 hospital staffers and local officials lined the crowded hallway of the new facility for the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the emergency unit Monday morning.

“I’m very impressed with your commitment to the community,” said state Health Commissioner Heather Howard, who attended the event.

St. Mary’s, she said, has been through “an admittedly very difficult time,” since the 292-bed hospital took over PBI Regional Medical Center at 350 Boulevard in 2006, and became the sole survivor of three hospitals in Passaic.

St. Mary’s received $45 million in state funds to help finance the acquisition of PBI. But it’s financial struggles forced it to declare bankruptcy in March.

“Three years ago, having no hospital in Passaic was a very real possibility,” Howard said. The state government is “forming a unique partnership to save the hospital. Governor Corzine wanted me to convey his support.”

“St. Mary’s has a very special place in my heart and Governor Corzine’s,” Howard said.

Despite the new programs, the hospital continues to struggle.

St. Mary’s, which lost $21 million last year, faces a Wednesday deadline in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Newark to provide a plan for its sale or reorganization or ask the court for an extension.

The hospital projects a loss of $4 million to $5 million through the end of 2009, said Vanessa Warner, a spokeswoman. There are also $30 million in claims filed against the hospital by a committee of unsecured creditors, said Brett Moore, a Morristown attorney who represents them.

Meanwhile, the hospital is negotiating changes in its collective bargaining contract with 480 unionized nurses and technicians of JNESO, who agreed last summer to accept salary cuts and other concessions until Oct. 16.

Talks with unionized employees have “made some progress, but we’re not there yet,” Sniffen said.

St. Mary’s finished accepting bids Monday for its former psychiatric facility at 211 Pennington Avenue, which the hospital will auction on Oct. 15. Although 211 Pennington has a $2.75-million lien against it, Sniffen expects people to bid on the property. “We hope it’s worth a lot of money,” he said.

St. Mary’s, which is sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth, can survive, but it needs outside help, Sniffen said in a recent interview.  Northjersey.com

St. Mary’s closes psych unit

PASSAIC — St. Mary’s Hospital officials said Thursday that they closed the inpatient psychiatric unit at 211 Pennington Ave. and transferred five remaining patients to Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville.

Hospital officials originally announced they would close the 38-bed facility in September as a cost-saving strategy. Mental health advocates who feared the closure would mean a decline in services for mental health patients protested the decision. St. Mary’s was the only place in Passaic County where patients could be involuntarily committed. Advocates also worried that Clara Maass, 11 miles from Paterson, would be too far for patients.

On Thursday, officials from St. Mary’s and Clara Maass sought to reassure the public that mental health services would not dramatically change.

“There really is no difference in the care that they will receive,” Tom Quinn, vice president of Behavioral Health for St. Mary’s, said in an interview Thursday. “It’s just going to be delivered in a different county.”

MaryAnn Donahue, a spokeswoman for Clara Maas, a division of St. Barnabas Medical Services, said the facility was looking forward to the transfer of patients.

“We really believe we can offer patients the next level of service,” she said.

St. Mary’s officials said that despite the inpatient psychiatric unit’s closure, 12 other psychiatric programs would remain open, including the permanent adult residences at the YMCA, the Adult Patient Hospital Program and psychiatric emergency services.

St. Mary’s will still be the state-designated screening center for psychiatric patients in Passaic County. But after initial screening, patients seeking to stay at a hospital for short-term care would be referred to Clara Maass. NorthJersey.com

Free Parking In The City Of Passaic Starting The 15

Starting on December 15th and continuing until January 5th, the Passaic Parking
Authority in conjunction with Mayor Dr. Alex Blanco will offer free parking
throughout the city for the convenience of our residents, visitors and holiday
shoppers. We encourage everyone to take advantage of this yearly incentive and
visit our downtown area, do some holiday shopping and dine at our city’s many
restaurants.

The free parking program applies to the downtown parking malls and all of our
on-street parking meters. PCJN

Mayor With a Past Has a Future in Prison

 

WHEN a federal judge sentenced former Mayor Samuel Rivera to 21 months in federal prison on Aug. 15, an era ended in this tattered city of nearly 70,000, leaving many here debating Mr. Rivera’s tumultuous past and wondering what is to come.

To many, Mr. Rivera, 61, had been an improbable choice as mayor; he was an explosive man who had been implicated in the deaths of two young men. But to others in this city of shifting demographics, he was the forceful leader they needed to fight crime.

“He was a good politician in his first four years,” said Gary Schaer, the former City Council president who became acting mayor when Mr. Rivera resigned. “But in the last three years, he became inebriated with his own power, he forgot himself.”

Morning misery on Route 21

PASSAIC — A three-car accident Thursday morning caused a tractor-trailer to jackknife and shut down Route 21 south and sent one man to the hospital, police said.

The crash took place around 6:30 a.m. just past Exit 10B to River Drive.

Passaic police Detective Andy White described the accident this way: Rafael Perez, 49, of Clifton was driving a Honda Pilot in the middle lane of the highway when he entered the left lane, where Hawthorne resident Michael Alberta, 26, was driving a Ford Explorer.

The Honda caused Alberta to lose control of his car, White said, which led Perez to swerve and hit the guardrail. Perez’s Honda then spun out into the right lane of the highway, where Melesio Garcia, 39, of Clifton was driving a tractor-trailer.

Garcia swerved to avoid hitting the Honda, and in doing so lost control of the vehicle. The tractor-trailer spun into the left lane and jackknifed on the median.

Perez was taken to St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Paterson with non-life-threatening injuries, White said.

Passaic police shut down parts of Route 21 south for nearly three hours and diverted all traffic on the northbound side of the highway off at the Passaic Park exit.

Police reopened the highway around 9:30 a.m. Myheraldnews.com

St Mary’s is trying to close the very well needed psych unit.

Editors notePCJN has learnt that the St Marys psych unit is very well needed. And also would like the resident’s of passaic county to know that, the psych unit last week was completely full. So where would these 38 beds go? Also many of the Patients at st Mary’s psych facility are voluntarily going to the psych facility however if they have to travel they probably would not go. And many of the low income families would not be able to visit there loved ones. Which is very important for such patients

 The overburdened mental health system in North Jersey is closely monitoring the proposed closure of the 38-bed psychiatric unit at St. Mary’s Hospital in Passaic County, assessing the potential domino effect on other providers if the state approves the closure, officials said yesterday.

Chilton Memorial Hospital in Pequannock and Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville are two likely destinations for many patients, said officials, who noted such a move would make it less-than-convenient for some Passaic County families to visit loved ones who are hospitalized.

St. Mary’s has a pending application with the state Department of Health and Senior Services to close its 40-year-old psychiatric unit. Hospital officials said they don’t have adequate funds to continue the operation.

Ex-Mayor of Passaic Gets Nearly 2 Years in Prison

TRENTON (AP) — Samuel Rivera, the former mayor of Passaic, N.J., was sentenced on Friday to nearly two years in prison and fined $4,000 for accepting cash bribes in exchange for influencing city contracts.

Mr. Rivera, who was caught in a corruption scheme that netted 11 public officials, resigned last year after pleading guilty to attempted extortion.

Mr. Rivera, 61, admitted taking $5,000 in exchange for using his official influence to help a company become the city’s insurance broker. The company turned out to be an F.B.I. front.

The only explanation Mr. Rivera offered on Friday for his role in the scheme was “poor judgment.”

A former police officer, Mr. Rivera is among nearly two dozen New Jersey mayors charged with corruption since 2000.

Among the most well known is Sharpe James, the former mayor of Newark, who is set to surrender to prison officials next month. Mr. James was ordered to serve a 27-month sentence and pay a $100,000 fine for his role in the sale of city-owned properties at a discount.

We at PCJN wish our former Mayor the best of luck. And we acknowledge all the great things he has done for our city.

Chinese teens in passaic see benefits of Olympics

Visit Passaic as part of 2-week tour

The students, boys and girls between the ages of 13 and 16, traveled to the Northeast to take in American culture and learn about education.

With the Olympics in full swing, some students were more than happy to see China hosting the mega international event and were OK with the fact that they weren’t home to experience it.

“It can introduce China to the people all over the world,” 15-year-old Lu Fong said, “to let people know more about China, and a chance to know that China is making progress.”

Meanwhile, classmate Xiao Feng said the group watched the opening ceremony of the Olympic last week in hotel rooms in Washington, D.C., and sang songs together.

“We are so excited and proud of our country,” said the smiling 13-year-old Feng. “We love China.”

The New Jersey chapter of America Asia Amity Association hosted the teenagers during their 15-day-tour, which included visits to New York, Washington, Boston, Irvington and Philadelphia.

Passaic Resident Taxed for Basements and Attics they are Not Allowed to Live in, Gary Schaer Thinks it’s Fair.

By MEREDITH MANDELL, STAFF WRITER | 08/08/08 04:02 AM

Dorothy Blostein sits in her attic on Ascension Street in Passaic. She has lived here for 44 years and says a recent reassessment that includes her attic is unfair. (KEVIN R. WEXLER/Staff Photographer)

City reassesses space in 1,000 homes

PASSAIC — Roughly 1,000 city homeowners will be paying hundreds more in their quarterly tax bills this year because the city has adjusted its assessment for basements and attics that have been untaxed for more than a decade.

Tax bills sent out in July reflect the changes, and some residents are complaining that the city failed to give them advance notice.

City Tax Assessor Thomas Poalillo said that, because of a computer error, for 16 years about 1,000 homeowners had been paying a lower amount in taxes than they should have as a result of their property being incorrectly assessed.

Poalillo said Appraisal Consultants, the company that did the city’s last revaluation in 1992, put the wrong amount of livable space these residents have into the city’s tax assessments computer database.

Poalillo said that last year he decided to correct the error by 2008 and add these people’s attics and basements as part of their assessments.

“From 1992 to 2008, these people weren’t paying taxes on the correct assessment,” he said.

“It’s my job to treat everyone equally. Now everyone is being assessed correctly. Now everyone is on the same playing field.”

Dorothy Blostein has been living in her two-story house at 168 Ascension St. for 44 years and said she never has been assessed for her attic.

The assessment on her home went up $15,000 this year, which translates into a tax increase of $909 a year under the current tax rate.

Standing on the stairs of her dusty wooden attic on Thursday, the 79-year-old Blostein said she was shocked in July when she received her third- and fourth-quarter bills for 2008.

“You can see it’s not finished,” Blostein said, looking at the various objects she keeps in her attic: suitcases, a box of photo albums, an old computer and speakers. “It’s just junk,” she said, her voice beginning to rise.

Schaer wants bus shelters, Rivera had opposed them because “they attract nuisances such as the homeless, public urination and graffiti,” and Jewish residents concerned about inappropriate ads.

by PCJN Staff, with some quotes and information from a Herald news article by Karen Keller.

Passaic, NJ — Acting Mayor Gary Schaer would like a private company to install bus shelters in Passaic, in return for advertising rights. Of the city’s 119 NJ Transit bus stops, only three have shelters. Schaer himself takes a public bus from the intersection of Van Houten and Main avenues to his finance job in Manhattan at least twice a week.

Schaer, also a state assemblyman, pushed for the concept in January, But Samuel Rivera, then the mayor, said he didn’t want shelters. Rivera said he believes they attract nuisances such as the homeless, public urination and graffiti.

Many residents rely on buses in Passaic, where 31 percent of city residents over age 16 do not have access to a car, according to the Census. Statewide, 6 percent of adults don’t have car access.

With the rising cost of gas, that figure is likely to increase.

“The cost of gasoline is such that (riding the bus) is the way everyone is going,” Schaer said.

Many residents of Passaic have expressed concern about the shelters. Shelters in other cities are known to attract undesirables, litter, and even used drug needles. Jewish residents are also concerned about the appropriateness of the ads, in terms of modesty. Often, oversized images of barely-clad females can be seen at bus shelters throughout city’s that have them. A local Passaic Rabbi, on condition of anonymity told a PCJN staff member, “better to get wet in the rain occasionally, than have ourselves and our children exposed to constant schmutz (filth)!”

On the blog PassaicJews, poster Kalman Eller writes: “Any way to make sure that the ads are not a-la-Times Square?”

A quick search of the words “bus shelter ad” on Google Image Search, reveals images of a number of highly inappropriate ads on the first results page alone.

Passaic Numero Uno for Mexican firms

By KAREN KELLER, STAFF WRITER | 08/10/08 04:00 Am

Bianca Gonzalez talks about her business, Nicomex, in Passaic. First Street in Passaic, with its increasing number of Mexican food distributors, has become the largest hub for Mexican goods in the tri-state area. (Photos by David Bergeland/Staff Photographer)

Food distribution sales now in ‘tens of millions’

PASSAIC — The city’s First Street business district has a decidedly Mexican flavor these days.

With recent openings, Passaic is now the largest hub of Mexican food distributors on the East Coast. Roughly 20 such businesses have opened in the city in recent years, likely lured here because Passaic has the largest Mexican-born population in New Jersey, entrepreneurs said.

Puebla Foods was the first company to settle here, in the late 1970s. Juarez Wholesale opened just two weeks ago. The warehouses sell products that Mexican hearts and bellies yearn for, such as a chocolate-based mole sauce, cactus leaves and even Mexican-made marshmallows.

Everyone has a personal favorite.

“Chiles!” said Eric Suarez, 21, a customer in the parking lot of GroMex, the largest distributor in Passaic, as he loaded boxes into a truck destined for a local corner store. “Mexicans want them really spicy, burning!” he explained.

Ray Carrera, president of the city’s 25-member United Mexican Chamber of Commerce, founded in 2006, savors the blossoming industry — literally and intellectually. Carrera grew up in Lodi and remembers being one of just a few Mexicans in North Jersey, feeling out of place among ethnic groups such as the Italians and Irish.

Now, nearly one out of every five Passaic city residents is Mexican.

“I feel right at home,” said Carrera, who now lives in Passaic.

Carrera isn’t worried that the sluggish national economy and tighter immigration laws will threaten the industry. Business is guaranteed to increase based on the current population, he said.

“It’s growing merely because the Mexicans are having kids,” Carrera said.

He estimated the annual sales of the local Mexican foods distributors at “tens of millions of dollars.”

According to the Pew Hispanic Center, the national Hispanic population, already the largest minority group, will triple in size and account for most of the nation’s population growth from 2005 through 2050.

Mexicans comprise the largest Hispanic group in the U.S., with 11.6 million in 2006, or a third of all Hispanics.

Police subdue man with two machetes and Police Officer in Passaic gets hit.

A police officer convinced a man waving two machetes to put both weapons down and surrender following a brief chase, authorities said today.

“These officers did an outstanding job — they showed a lot of restraint,”  said West Milford Police Chief Paul Costello.

Police received a call around 7:30 last night from a family member who said Erich Bujese, 43, of Otterhole Road, was threatening to harm himself and other family members.

Costello said his department alerted nearby towns and Bujese’s 1997 Ford Ranger pickup was spotted heading toward West Milford by Greenwood Lake, N.Y., police.

West Milford Officer Jill Brickman tried to pull Bujese over on Lakeside Road, but he kept driving toward Ringwood, police said.

Officers pursued Bujese until he pulled into a boat launch area for Monksville Reservoir and got out of the truck holding both machetes, each with an 18-inch blade.

“Officer Joseph Nevin was able to persuade Mr. Bujese to put down the machetes and hand over his driver’s license,” Costello said. “When he put down the machetes to get his license, he was subdued by the officers.”

Bujese was brought to St. Mary’s Hospital in Passaic for observation.

There, Costello reported, Bujese took a swing at and hit Officer Greg Post Jr., who didn’t require treatment.

Bujese is charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, driving under the influence, eluding police officers, menacing and threatening a police officer, resisting arrest, and a list of motor vehicle infractions. He is being held at the Passaic County Jail on $50,000 bail.

Trial of ex-official in Passaic postponed

  TRENTON– A judge on Thursday agreed to postpone the corruption trial of Jonathan Soto, a former Passaic city councilman, until the fall so that his lawyer can have more time to review the government’s evidence.

Soto, 33, is facing a 15-count indictment, including charges that he took $22,000 in bribes and solicited narcotics from undercover FBI operatives.

Soto appeared at an early afternoon hearing at U.S. District Court. Following a series of closed-door meetings between Judge Ann Thompson, Soto’s lawyer, Jose L. Ongay, and U.S. Attorneys David Bocian and Hope Olds, the judge agreed to allow Soto’s lawyer more time to review the hundreds of documents and tape recordings the government is using as evidence against his client.

Soto, dressed in a charcoal gray suit, remained silent throughout the five minute hearing.

Two weeks before, Ongay wrote the court asking for more time because he plans to file a motion to dismiss the charges due to “entrapment.” In addition, Ongay said he has not met enough times with his client, who has missed five appointments with him because of “health problems.”

Soto and Ongay quickly exited the courtroom after the hearing and declined to comment. Bocian, the U.S. attorney, also declined to comment.

After his arrest in September, a judge ordered Soto to get treatment for drug abuse and to receive mental-health counseling as a condition of his bail.

According to the March indictment, Soto told FBI agents in recorded conversations that he “wanted to go smoke.” The indictment did not specify what controlled substance Soto was referring to.

Soto’s father, Arturo Soto, 64, said in a telephone interview after the hearing that his son was never addicted to drugs. When asked what the court meant by “health problems,” Arturo Soto said, “That’s the first I’ve heard of it. No, no, no way. Maybe cause he’s gained weight. He’s heavy, you know.”

FBI agents arrested Soto, along with former Mayor Samuel Rivera and former Councilman Marcellus Jackson last September.

They were accused of taking bribes from undercover FBI agents in exchange for helping to get public contracts for a fake insurance company called Coastal Solutions LLC.

The three were among 11 public officials nabbed on corruption charges in a statewide FBI sting dubbed “Operation Broken Boards.”

Rivera and Jackson have already pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

Soto, a teacher at Lincoln Middle School in Passaic, has been suspended without pay since his indictment in March.

He has avoided speaking publicly and has kept a low profile. He is active in church, at Principe de Paz, where his father is pastor.

And he worked briefly as an election poll worker during the Democratic primary in February.

The next hearing is set for Sept. 12.

Soto’s trial is scheduled to begin October 27.  Myheraldnews.com

Is it a miracle that Route 21 in Passaic is clean!

PASSAIC – The usual piles of litter — old tires, beer bottles and flyaway papers — along the sides of heavily traveled Route 21 have suddenly disappeared.

It’s not an environmental miracle, but the hard work of 10 young people — nine teenagers and a 24-year-old — hired to prune, cut grass and clean up eight grassy strips adjacent to the highway.

The Downtown Merchants Corp., a non-profit dedicated to beautifying the city, hired them to work for five weeks during the summer. They are being paid $9 an hour through a $35,000grant that Downtown Merchants received from the state Department of Transportation this year. Wearing long pants and long-sleeved T-shirts and armed with machetes and weed-whackers, the crew worked seven hours a day, five days a week, cleaning up the debris in the blazing summer sun. They said that although it’s hard work, they are learning valuable life lessons.

“It gives you respect for people who do it year-round,” said Branden Valenzuela, 18, who recently graduated from Passaic High School and plans to attend Bergen Community College this fall. Valenzuela wants to study business.

And with college tuition rising, Valenzuela said the summer job will help defray the cost. “I’m trying to take the weight off my parents’ shoulders for college,” he said.

The Downtown Merchants Corp. applied for the $35,000 competitive grant through the DOT’s Urban Gateway Enhancement Program. The program provides jobs and employment opportunities for urban youth in the fields of forestry, landscaping and streetscaping. This year, the Passaic group was among 10 awarded grant money for the summer program. It is the first time in two years that a city group has received such a grant.

City officials have lauded the program for helping young people find jobs in the summer, when traditionally the part-time job market is crowded with college students. At a time when the economy has taken a downturn and families may need the extra money, the summer program is a good opportunity, they added.

“They are making money, they are keeping busy and, third, they are learning skills,” said Victor Santiago, Downtown Merchants director, as he drove around the city on a recent sunny afternoon, pointing out some of the newly manicured spots.

One local businessman, Jaime Delgado, owner of JFJ Delgados Landscaping & General Contractor, of Passaic, is working with the crew, teaching them pruning techniques and how to use the equipment.

At the end of the summer, those who successfully complete the program will receive a diploma listing the job skills they have acquired, Santiago said.

Some of the workers said the money they earn this summer will give them extra cash for things like a new laptop computer or pay for public transportation.

“If my mother is in a good mood, she’ll give me money,” said 15-year-old Yusef Reaves, “but usually I have to buy my own ride or [movie] ticket.”

Reaves said he is saving money so he can attend college out-of-state and not make his parents pay the extra tuition costs.

“It’s going to cost a lot of money to get a dorm room,” he said.

Darnell Burrells, 24, said the summer program was teaching him something more important than just landscaping. Burrells said he understands how important it is to get a college education so he won’t have to do menial jobs. He wants to work in a field he really likes: music.

Burrells said he sings in the church choir at Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church on Autumn Street and operates a recording studio out of his home.

Although he was happy to have a job, Burrells said, he was less than enthusiastic about the cleanup work.

“The only thing is the bugs and allergies and stuff,” Burrells said. “It has got me thinking, do I really want to do this for the rest of my life? Definately no.” Northjersey.com

Will Gary Schaer really run for Mayor this coming November?

Acting Mayor And Assemblyman Gary Schaer

Editor’s Note  We at PCJN believe that Acting Mayor and Assemblyman Gary Schaer has to much to lose to run for Mayor in November. If Gary Schaer would run for Mayor, and win he would only be Mayor for several months, and have to give up his Assembly seat. If he gives up his Assembly seat and lose the Mayor Race next year he is pretty much out of politics’s.

 Why would Gary Schaer pretend to run for Mayor?  Gary Schaer would pretend to run for Mayor to build him self up for the Mayor election next year in 2009.

Also interesting to note that Gary Schaer may try to put a weak Mayor in, this way he can run for Mayor next year and win the Mayoral seat easily.  PCJN Exclusive

Vehicle rear-ends jitney bus, injuring 7

PASSAIC – Seven people were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, after a car rear-ended a jitney bus on Friday, police said.

At 3:16 p.m., Jorge Lesmes Jr., 23, of Bloomfield was driving a two-door Acura on River Drive at Elliot Street, when he hit a jitney carrying 16 people plus the driver, said police Detective Andy White.

Lesmes was taken to St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson with facial injuries. The jitney driver, Gil Abreu, 51, of New York, was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital, along with five of his passengers.

The jitney bus had been headed to Union City, then New York, White said.

According to jitney passenger Priyank Rana of Passaic, the jitney was parked at a bus stop on River Drive when the accident occurred. Rana’s friend, Badal Rana, was among those injured. Northjersey.com

Passaic Police Ticket Cars Out Side Shul

The Passaic Police Dept. this morning was out this morning at approximately 8am ticketing cars outside of the Ahavas Israel. In recent days the Passaic Police Dept. has been giving out a lot of ticket’s in the Passaic Park area. It might have something to do with our “Mayor”. All residents should be aware you may not park with in 50 feet of a stop sign or with in 25 feet of any corner or cross walk. Please be advised it does not matter if it is marked or not. Also all ways remember to wear your seat belts. PCJN

Passaic woman charged after leaving tot in SUV

A 33-year-old Passaic woman was charged with endangering the welfare of a child yesterday after she accidentally left a toddler inside her SUV for about three hours in Clifton, police said.

The 2-year-old boy, also of Passaic, was not breathing and had al most no pulse when she finally no ticed him and got help, but the toddler was expected to fully recover, Clifton Detective Sgt. Robert Bracken said last night.

Meira Lebovitz spent part of the day carpooling six children, including several of her own. Later, after dropping off five of the children, she stopped at the Home Depot in Clifton at about 2 p.m., not realizing the 2-year-old was still asleep in the back, the detective said.

While in the store parking lot on Bloomfield Avenue, Lebovitz suddenly noticed she had forgotten to drop off one child, who had fallen asleep in the rear of her Chevrolet Suburban sport utility vehicle, Bracken said. Lebovitz, a friend of the boy’s family, rushed the child into the store, the detective said.

The child was dehydrated, had a temperature of 102.6 degrees Fahrenheit, was not breathing and did not have a noticeable pulse, Bracken said. The boy ap peared to have advanced heat stroke, he said.

Two customers in the store began cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the child as they waited for emergency rescue crews, according to the detective. Nj.com

Squad leader claims ‘harassment’

Letter says Jewish group not up to code

PASSAIC — The city has told one of two Passaic-based Orthodox Jewish volunteer ambulance squads that it must shut down because the squad isn’t up to city code.

But the squad’s founder called the city’s action “harassment” and questioned why the other Jewish squad wasn’t scrutinized.

On Monday, the city sent a letter signed by its law firm, Scarinci & Hollenbeck, to David Kaplan, 26, founder of Hatzolah EMS of North Jersey, saying the squad wasn’t in compliance with city law.

The letter said Hatzolah must shut down operations by the end of the day on May 19 if it did not fulfill the requirements of proving that all volunteers are qualified and that the squad has insurance that covers any legal action against the city up to $2 million. The requirements are outlined in a 2004 ordinance.

Kaplan said his squad does meet city requirements and showed necessary proof to the city last September. A letter to Kaplan from former Mayor Samuel Rivera, dated Sept. 12, states that Hatzolah is qualified to provide emergency medical services in Passaic and that a certificate remains in effect for two years from that date.

But Acting Mayor Gary Schaer said to the best of his knowledge Hatzolah had not met all the city’s requirements.

Hatzolah is licensed to operate by the state’s Department of Health and Senior Services, although a license is not necessary to operate, said spokeswoman Marilyn Riley.

As of Wednesday, Hatzolah had not provided documentation to the city, Kaplan said. But Hatzolah is continuing operations anyway, he said, because Kaplan believes the city’s letter is unfair and unfounded.

To complicate matters, a second Hatzolah ambulance service with a similar name — Hatzolah of Passaic/Clifton — has never been used informally by the city and is not on the list of squads the city uses. Hatzolah means “rescue” in Hebrew. The squads are local chapters of a worldwide organization that has volunteer ambulance squads in Jewish neighborhoods.

Greg Hill, the business administrator, said the city has not checked whether the second Jewish squad is violating city law. Schaer, an Orthodox Jew, said he asked Hill on Tuesday to verify that all private ambulance squads comply with city law. Passaic has only the two Hatzolahs as private squads.

The city’s paid squad, which has two ambulances, is overseen by the Police Department. When both vehicles are in use, the city calls other municipalities and private squads to ask if they can dispatch an ambulance immediately. Andy White, police spokesman, said Kaplan’s Hatzolah has been called in recent months after the Clifton squad and a private company based at Hackensack University Medical Center.

Last week, the City Council entertained a resolution that would formally add Kaplan’s Hatzolah to the city’s list of mutual aid services. But the resolution was defeated by a 3-3 tie vote. A tie means the measure is rejected.

The three Orthodox Jewish council members voted against the resolution, while the three Hispanic members voted in favor.

Schaer, who proposed the resolution, said he voted against it because he believes Hatzolah was stoking ethnic divide in the city.

“Picking up an ambulance group that’s working primarily in one part of town — I don’t think it’s a good idea, if we’re continuing our fight to unite Passaic,” Schaer said.

Kaplan said Hatzolah serves the entire city, not just Jews.

“It’s ludicrous, because the whole point of doing 911 is we service anybody. We don’t ask them, ‘Are you Jewish? Are you Orthodox?’ when someone calls,” Kaplan said. “Gary Schaer has furthered the stereotype that we only want to help ourselves.”

Hatzolah gets an average of 600 calls a year to its direct line, Kaplan said. He did not know what percentage was Jewish.

Councilman Gerardo Fernandez said he supports the squad.

“We never had a problem before. We voted for it. I voted ‘yes’ because they’re providing a service with the community. They’ve been doing it all along,” Fernandez said.

On Tuesday, Schaer said that the letter sent to Kaplan was purely out of concern for public safety.

“It’s not my personal feelings at play here. This affects the health and welfare of city residents,” he said. “What’s relevant is what’s in compliance.”

Reach Karen Keller at 973-569-7158 or kellerk@northjersey.com myheraldnews.com

Breaking News Mayor (sammy) Samuel Rivera to plead guilty tomorrow

Passaic New Jersey   Mayor Samuel Rivera will plead guilty on Friday tomorrow ( 05/09/2008 ) to taking bribes last year.

 The mayor will be resigning from his office tomorrow. He will plead guilty for a plea deal. As more will come we will update you.

You heard this story first from P.C.J.N