Pascack Press 11.22.21

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Emerson • Hillsdale • Montvale • Park Ridge • River Vale • Township of Washington • Westwood • Woodcliff Lake

PA S C AC K VA L L E Y ’ S H O M E TO W N N E W S PA P E R

VOLUME 25 ISSUE 36

NOVEMBER 22, 2021

MOMS RUN THE GRIDIRON Holiday Hillsdale, Emerson host charity games Nov. 26

Shopping Guide MONTVALE

STATE AID IN BALANCE ON DEC. 14 BALLOT

BY MICHAEL OLOHAN OF PASCACK PRESS

More than 80 people took part in the public school districtʼs $29.4 million bond referendum virtual forum on Nov. 10, in advance of the special election itʼs called for Tuesday, Dec. 14. At the session, which lasted more than 90 minutes, the district noted that Montvale faces losing its small class sizes and its critical teacher-student relationships — and more than $7 million in state aid thatʼs available only through a successful referendum. Schools superintendent Darren Petersen said falling short at the polls “would be really challenging for the board. Weʼd be in a very difficult predicament” with the districtʼs old boilers. “Weʼd figure it out but we wouldnʼt be able to do what we planned to do. It wouldnʼt be good, letʼs put it that way.” See STATE on page 314

REPLACING GEORGE G. WHITE?

District eyes next chapter for veteran school BY MICHAEL OLOHAN OF PASCACK PRESS

See page 17

District draws 80-plus to forum on $29.4M school improvements

HILLSDALE

T

Above, the Hillsdale Lady Hawks in 2020. Undefeated, they’re taking on Tiki’s Turkeys of Oradell in The 4th Annual Mom Charity Flag Football game, Friday, Nov. 26 at Pascack Valley High School in Hillsdale. Right, the Emerson Mamaliers’ game face from 2019. Emerson is playing a team of moms from River Edge at Emerson High School on Nov. 26 in the first Black Friday Football Fundraiser. All teams are playing for local charitable causes. HE 4TH ANNUAL Mom Charity Flag Football game is on, and youʼre invited. The contest pits newcomers Tikiʼs Turkeys of Oradell against the undefeated Hillsdale Lady Hawks. The game is billed for Friday, Nov. 26 at 10:30 a.m., with kickoff by 11, at Pascack Valley High School, 200 Piermont Ave., Hillsdale. Hillsdale is asking for an “entrance fee” of a non-perish-

able food donation or support on its GoFundMe page in support of Helping Hand Food Pantry at Hillsdale United Methodist Church, serving Hillsdale, Westwood, Emerson, Oradell, and Woodcliff Lake. Itʼs also a contest of fundraising; Hillsdale boosters might want to reach deeper than Oradell, which is playing to benefit The Lewin Fund to Fight Womenʼs Cancers.) Meanwhile, the Emerson

TOP PHOTO: DANIELLE O’BRIEN; INSET: EMERSON MAMALIERS

Mamaliers — whose founder Karen Oberg Borenius got the idea for the annual momsʼ match from her sister-in-law, who played in a similar event in South Jersey — are gearing up to play a team from River Edge in what theyʼre billing as Black Friday Football

Continued on page 33

District officials will consider moving forward on a bond referendum in 2023 to replace George G. White School if a potential site across from the middle school on Magnolia Street clears due dilligence. The district is open to a range of outcomes that serve school families best — and the move has potential amid the boroughʼs search for a site for a community center. “The due diligence phase for the Board of Education will commence shortly to investigate the possibility of a new structure,” district superintendent Robert Lombardy told Pascack Press on Nov. 16. The Hillsdale Public School District includes George G. White Middle School, at 120 Magnolia Ave., constructed in 1922, and Ann Blanche Smith and Meadowbrook elementary schools. Lombardy said next steps include a demographics study, title and deed searches, and a topographic study. He added this would include environmental testing of the soil. A decision on a referendum might come as early as January 2022, officials said. A likely bond referendum could be held in March 2023 should efforts show no problems and the Board of Education

See REPLACING on page 384

ABOVE AND BEYOND

B ck in time...

Firefighters get into an apartment at Westwood House from the outside after police and EMS find a victim has fallen, blocking the door.

Kristin Beuscher brings us to a Pascack Valley in which a good portion of the land was occupied by farms — and local papers took up the excitement and drama of the poultry world. SEE PAGE 4

SEE PAGE 28


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