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 48
PASCACK VALLEY
MASKS SOON ‘A PERSONAL CHOICE’ District smiles welcomed; WWRSDʼs Test to Stay optional
IN SCHOOL
FEBRUARY 14, 2022
THE HEALING POWER OF ART Partnership dazzles at 10th anniversary
BY JOHN SNYDER OF PASCACK PRESS
Westwood Regional School District Superintendent Jill Mortimer wrote families in Washington Township and Westwood on Feb. 7 to note that, in light of Gov. Murphyʼs announcement the same day — that the mask mandate inside schools, pre-K to 12, will end March 7 — masks will be optional in the district starting on that date. “I am looking forward to seeing smiling faces once again. I canʼt wait!” she said. She also underscored certain parts of her Feb. 3 update on Covid protocols, allowing families to opt in to a way that could see some kids ride out home quarantine at school, subject to restrictions (See “Test to Stay at WWRSD: New rules could keep more kids in class,” Pascack Press, Feb. 7, 2022.) A large number of parents and staffers have been calling for an end to restrictions, suggesting masks and vaccine status concerns are an affront to personal liberties, parentsʼ rights, and classroom morale. Many other adults are concerned that the risk is not behind us and that certain public health measures have been politicized and shouted down. Meanwhile, the novel coronavirus has killed an estimated 900,000 Americans and trounced productivity. Worldwide, some 5.5 million people have perished with Covid-19 in the past two years. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top White House medical adviser, said at the World Economic Forumʼs
See MASKS on page 214
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The 14 finalists in Westwood Regional School District’s WWRSD has heART, in partnership with Westwood Gallery. Their works are on display at the gallery through Feb. 19. Proceeds of card and T-shirt sales benefit Artworks: The Naomi Cohain Foundation.
BY JOHN SNYDER OF PASCACK PRESS
this yearʼs bounty of talented young artists, the 14 finalists in WWRSD has heART, in the Westwood Regional Art Department and Westwood Galleryʼs 10th Annual program. The K-12 finalists and their families enjoyed an opening reception and awards ceremony Feb. 3 at Westwood Regional High Schoolʼs Sanschagrin Art Gallery. The show then was moved for display at ONGRATULATIONS TO
Westwood Gallery, 10 Westwood Ave. in Westwood, Feb. 7–19, where notecards and prints of the winning images are on sale. The festivities typically take place at Westwood Gallery, which makes for a snug fit given the happy mob that ensues. For safety amid Covid, this year it was held at the much more capacious school. In 2021, the event was virtual. Thanks to the generosity of the gallery over the past decade, the district said, 140 works of art by WWRSD students have graced their walls
Continued on page 10
TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON
$792K SWIM CLUB BOND APPROVED
Mayor says township no longer bound on use
BY MICHAEL OLOHAN OF PASCACK PRESS
Mayor Peter Calamari said a renegoatiation means the town is no longer bound to preserve Washington Township Swim and Recreation Club, urging the council on Feb. 7 approve a nearly $792,000 bond ordinance and an $800,000 final purchase price. He said a pool use remained an option and that the administration would pursue grants. Members present backed the bond, voting at a second required hearing, 4-0, for the debt, and giving Calamari his second chance at the 6.5acre Ridgewood Boulevard North property, after a $1 million offer he tendered last summer flopped with bonded members of the private club. There was no information disclosed on the bondʼs average annual cost to taxpayers over its 40-year term. We reached out to new town CFO John Corcoran but did not hear back by press time. The funds will be available March 2, an official said.. During last yearʼs try for the land and improvements, the town evidently met the clubʼs asking price but came in second to a summer camp outfit. That deal collapsed, according to club trustees in an email on New Yearʼs Eve, who said theyʼd come back to Calamari in hopes of a new deal. Calamari offered few details at the time of the first attempted deal, but said the town would try to operate the club, established in 1963, for two years to see if it could be done prof-
See CLUB on page 264
FAST FRIENDS
B ck in time...
Valley Chabad’s Friendship Circle gathered for an afternoon of fun and giving, supporting kids with special needs, on Sunday, Feb. 6.
‘Lovers in Quarantine’ with Harrison Ford? It’s a real thing, and anyone going on a Valentine’s Day movie date in Westwood in 1929 would have seen it. Kristin Beuscher has the story. SEE PAGE 4
SEE PAGE 19