Emerson • Hillsdale • Montvale • Park Ridge • River Vale • Township of Washington • Westwood • Woodcliff Lake
T H E 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 30 ISSUE 8
E.R. visits up
BOZZONE GETS THE LAST WORD
Late veteran penned a childrenʼs book; wife, Dot, publishes found ʻMr. Big Mouthʼ
‘Tis the season. Emergency room visits for tick bites are running higher than normal across much of the country, with the Northeast among the hardest-hit regions, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. PAGE 37
BOROUGH
50 ʻaffordableʼ units; eyes on data center BY JOHN SNYDER OF PASCACK PRESS
The Borough Council has amended its affordable housing plan to require construction of 50 affordable units at the former KPMG site regardless of how the property is developed, officials said following an April 20 resolution. The change comes as Montvale remains in a legal dispute
See PLAN on page 104
HILLSDALE
SCHOOL TAXES UP ABOUT
$1,000
Budget, George G. White bond costs combine to push increase on $34M ʻsurvivabilityʼ plan
BY MICHAEL OLOHAN OF PASCACK PRESS
MONTVALE
REVISES HOUSING PLAN AMID KPMG SITE DISPUTE
MAY 4, 2026
Donated to the library: Park Ridge librarian Christina Doto with Dorothy Bozzone, wife of the late Jedh C. Barker American Legion Post 153 historian and past commander Dick Bozzone, with a copy of “Mr. Big Mouth.” Dick left the manuscript; Dot found it recently and had it edited, typeset, illustrated, and published. And another book is in the works. Tammy Levinson photo
T
BY JOHN SNYDER OF PASCACK PRESS
H E M A N U S C R I P T had
been sitting for more than a decade, though, true to its author, with plenty to say. Dorothy Bozzone found it
in the basement of her Park Ridge home after her husbandʼs death in September 2023 — one of two unpublished works left behind by Richard “Dick” Bozzone, a longtime community fixture, veteran and former commander of American Legion Post 153.
“I had no idea it was there,” she told Pascack Press on April 28. What she found was “Mr. Big Mouth,” a childrenʼs story Dick had written in 2013 — a playful, absurd tale about a
Continued on page 9
A unanimous Board of Education approved a $34 million 2026–2027 school budget April 27 that includes a 5.4% tax increase, or about a $372 annual increase on an average assessed home, according to the districtʼs business administrator. That said, combined with the tax impact from the latest round of bond financing for the George G. White Middle School expansion and renovations, the average assessed homeʼs tax bill will jump about $1,000 over the 2025 local school tax bill, officials said. Business Administrator Sacha Pouliot said that for an average assessed home of $477,981, annual taxes will increase $371.76. He said new debt service of about $46 million for bonds to complete the George White Middle School renovations will cost the average homeowner $53.22 per month, or $638.64 per year. Combined, officials said the increases total $1,010.40 for the average homeowner, a 24.2%
See HPS on page 84
WTFD ROCKS IT
B ck in time...
Firefighters free driver from wreckage after a vehicle rollover at Washington and Van Emburgh avenues. PAGE 12
Have you ever heard of Duncantown? You’ve probably been there. You might even live there. Kristin Beuscher reports.
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