$362K In Drainage Improvements To Hit Ridgewood Streets

RIDGEWOOD, NJ — A bond ordinance that appropriated $362,000 in funding for Circle Avenue drainage improvements was just amended to include other various locations in the village.

Adopted Sept. 9, 2020, the ordinance named Circle Avenue as the designated recipient, though in a village council meeting late last week, the title was renamed to broaden the scope of the coverage to include parts of Hope Street, Ackerman Avenue, North Irving Street and elsewhere.

"I am here to say, 'thank you,' to Mayor Susan Knudsen and the village council for advancing the ordinance, because it allocates not an insubstantial amount of money to a number of places in the village that are having drainage problems," Hope Street resident Gerald Maurer said, adding that the poor drainage has led to flooding in the area.

After the amended ordinance was unanimously approved by the council, Mayor Knudsen thanked Maurer in return and other neighborhood residents, who were present at the meeting, for their patience on this matter.

"I am grateful for the opportunity to rename this ordinance and reallocate the funds," Knudsen said. "Hopefully, this will resolve many of the issues."

However, Maurer noted, in the public comment period, that the ordinance still does not provide much information as to what the exact nature and location of the work will be.

"I would ask that greater detail and information be in there," Maurer said.