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Archive for the ‘Letter to the editor’ Category

Letter to the Editor: “Outraged” over property tax increase.

Posted in Letter to the editor on August 3, 2019| 2 Comments »

TO THE EDITOR

August 3, 2019

Re:  New property tax bill:

I just received my new property tax bill and I am outraged by the lack of understanding this Township and the State of New Jersey have shown on their current residents with almost a 20% increase in the tax for 2020 and just as much increase in the previous year.

I have lost several neighbors, just this year, selling their homes and moving south, as their income was going to just taxes; enough is enough.

Gouging retired people of their lifetime savings, with high taxes just can’t continue in this Township or the State. People live on fixed costs and these erratic tax increases must come to an end!

Why should senior citizens be responsible for school taxes?

When you compare the plus and negatives of living in Ocean Grove, the negatives win out by far.   The only positive is living near the ocean, but the negatives include:

a. overcrowded congested living

b. horrible parking problems

c. high taxes with no representation

d. no longer a year round community with neighbors

e. poor police protection

f. high taxes force homeowners to rent to winter transients

g. difficulty getting code permits

h.   Airbnb’s have become epidemic.

i. And there are more…..

These negatives are creating a poor standard of living  in the Grove.  If this trend continues, would you buy in Ocean Grove?

 

A LONG TIME OCEAN GROVE RESIDENT

EDITOR’S NOTE:

Here is a “plus” that our writer forgot:

 

IMG_1616 (1)

Mt. HERMON WAY.. Monday, August 5, 2019. Paul Goldfinger photo. Blogfinger.net ©

AND ANOTHER:

 

2016 illum

ILLUMINATION NIGHT. OG summer 2016. Blogfinger photograph. ©

AND MANY MORE PLUSES.

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Letter to the Editor: Problems with Handicap Parking in Ocean Grove. (Re-posted from 2014, but still a talking point)

Posted in Letter to the editor, tagged on March 10, 2018| 17 Comments »

Unknown-1

To the Editor:

Here are my concerns about handicap parking in Ocean Grove. I hope this generates some discussion.

We have a handicap parking spot in front of the home we purchased in town.  We are on the second block from the beach, and parking fills up quickly.  Over the course of the 3 years we have had our house there have been maybe 2 or 3 instances of a “handicapped” person emerging from a car taking the spot. (By handicapped I mean real ambulatory disability, not the medical definition.)

More typically, like today, an older  (or young overweight) couple pulls in, unpacks multiple chairs, cooler, umbrella and hikes it all down to beach.  Today that couple came jogging back to the car when the rain opened up.

I also have neighbors (older) that bike miles multiple days a week and hike around town just fine, but they too park in handicap spots just in front of their building.

I’m not sure what the handicap can be that necessitates access to a preferential spot. To a non-medical layman, it looks like they are gaming the system. In fact, a friend offered to get me a tag through a connection, but I declined the offer as I am healthy but I could have gotten one.

So, here are the issues:

 

1. What are the standards for obtaining such a tag?    How liberally do doctors offer prescriptions for the handicap designation?

2. Do others who live in town observe similar activity in relation to handicapped parking spots around the Grove  ?

3. I think it demonstrates a lack of character to use the spots or to game the system to get the spots.   Do others agree ?

DAVE

Ocean Grove, N.J.  July 31, 2014

 

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Letter to the Editor: South End Sandy Damage

Posted in Letter to the editor, tagged on October 30, 2015| 1 Comment »

Broadway west of Pilgrim Pathway, Sept 2014. Paul Weinstein photo, special to Blogfinger

Broadway west of Pilgrim Pathway, Sept 2014. Paul Weinstein photo, special to Blogfinger

To the Editor:

Blogfinger, the entire South End received damage from Hurricane Sandy, not just the Southeast. Starting from Broadway @ Ocean Ave, all the way down 2 blocks past the Inskip tennis courts. That’s pretty much the entire South End.

What is disturbing to me is despite the damage, the OGCMA and the Township  has done very little to protect the South End from future storms. During the cleanup it was brought to light that there is NO BULKHEAD on the southern end of the OG boardwalk; Bulkheads existed, and were repaired, on the North and Central sections.

Yes the South end is at a slightly lower elevation than the rest of the town, but it is not a significant difference. OGCMA fundraising was directed to key tourist attractions, the Auditorium, Thornley chapel, and the boardwalk.

Providing the South End with a bulkhead is costly, but zero efforts have been made to fundraise or apply for grants towards achieving that. The South End comprises 1/3 of our town; why are we were left vulnerable and treated like a red-headed stepkid?

OHGEE

Ocean Grove, NJ, October 30, 2015

The  writer lives on the south side of Ocean Grove

Editor’s Note:  OhGee:  You can check with Bill Bailey on this point  (just call him at the CMA offices,) but I believe that there was an old metal bulkhead which protected the south boardwalk.  I know that the metal bulkhead stretched north, but was not protective in the middle because it was situated to the west of the destroyed middle beach boardwalk.

Blogfinger link:   metal bulkhead link

Paul Goldfinger, Editor  @Blogfinger.

Addendum  October 30, 2015.       Bill Bailey, Chief Operating Officer of the OGCMA has submitted the following:

“Dr.,  Just a note in reference to the letter to the editor in your blog today.  After the 92 nor’easter a bulkhead was constructed at the south end of the boardwalk, approximately from the Bradley Beach border to Embury Avenue or just shy of the beach office.  This bulkhead was engineered and in some cases integrated with the original metal bulkhead that had been in place.   The new bulkhead constructed after Sandy (to the north) is similar to the south end one from 93.  During Hurricane Sandy Ocean surges came up and over the bulkhead / boardwalk but the bulkhead remained intact as did the boardwalk.  I have attached photo’s taken today of the existing south end bulkhead constructed in 1993 after the 1992 storm.   Respectfully, Bill Bailey ” 

OG South End bulkhead Bulkhead constructed in 1993. Oct. 30, 2015 photo by Bill Bailey.

OG South End bulkhead Bulkhead constructed in 1993. Oct. 30, 2015 photo by Bill Bailey.

 

Closeup of South end bulkhead. Oct. 30, 2015 by Bill Bailey.

Closeup of South end bulkhead. Oct. 30, 2015 by Bill Bailey.

 

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Letter to the Editor: bikes on the OG boardwalk

Posted in Letter to the editor, tagged on September 10, 2015| 18 Comments »

Ocean Grove boardwalk. 2014. Paul Goldfinger photo © Blogfinger.net

Ocean Grove boardwalk. 2014. Paul Goldfinger photo © Blogfinger.net  Click to enlarge

OG Boardwalk 2014. Paul Goldfinger photo ©

OG Boardwalk 2014. Paul Goldfinger photo ©

To the Editor:

I agree with the rules of not allowing skateboards and bikes on our boardwalks. I wish all towns at the shore would enforce this rule. One they are dangerous and some of the people riding them act like they on a racing track. Boardwalks are for people to walk and enjoy and relax on a bench. The scenery at the shore is just so beautiful, I mean how can you stop and admire it with bikes almost running you over. I was almost hurt by a biker when all I did was turn around on the boardwalk to tie my sneaker.

So. yes . keep it…with no bikes or skateboards on boardwalks. The towns could hire auxiliary guards to help keep our boardwalks safe. Thank you.

MICHELLE GUILLAUME

Ocean Grove, N.J.  Sept. 10, 2015

Editor’s note:  Here is a link to a pre-Sandy 2012 letter on this subject.   There were many comments.   —PG

Blogfinger 2012 link

 

 

 

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Letter to the Editor: Trivia question

Posted in Letter to the editor, tagged on August 10, 2015| 1 Comment »

To the Editor:

Trivia Question:      Greenleaf Park: in the 1970’s and 1980’s there were benches in that park. Then in the 1990’s the benches disappeared only to reappear some 15 years later.What’s the story?

BARBARA MUZYCHKA  of Ocean Grove.  August 9, 2015

Editor’s Note:  Perhaps someone from the Historical Society will respond to this inquiry.

Here is a link to our post about the names of parks in Ocean Grove:

OG Parks link

—-PG

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Letter to the Editor: One good urn deserves another.

Posted in Letter to the editor, Ocean Grove beachfront, Ocean Grove boardwalk, tagged on June 14, 2015| 12 Comments »

June 13, 2015. photo by New Kid.

June 13, 2015. Photo by New Kid.

To the Editor:

Wassup with our boardwalk planters? Our neighboring towns always have spectacular and very colorful pots and planters while our planters always are very lackluster and barely alive. This year is no exception as evidenced by this pic. And this planter was better than most.
NEW KID IN TOWN

Ocean Grove, NJ. June 13, 2015

 

THE EXCELLENTS:    These guys in Coney are not paying  attention to the plant life.

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Letter to the Editor: Spring musings

Posted in Letter to the editor, Music from the Broadway stage. on April 29, 2015| 8 Comments »

Great Auditorium. June Doo Wops; 2011. Paul Goldfinger photo. ©

Great Auditorium. June Doo Wops; 2011. Paul Goldfinger photo. ©

To the Editor:

Spring is bringing long awaited changes to our town.  Birds, flowers, smiles, conversation and unfortunately Asbury Park bar hoppers and their cars.  Free parking is a great attraction.  Imagine how crowded our beach would be if there was no fee.

Here’s a few thoughts.  Parking kiosks installed at “problem areas”.  My thought is the first two beach blocks, the North End, Broadway and the Main St. shopping blocks.  Residents will be able to buy, reasonably, a Neptune pass sticker.  A second sticker would cost double.

This is an necessary evil.  With more development planned for Asbury Park’s South End and our own North End, this issue will get much worse.  I live in the North End;  it’s bad now.

Davis

April 29, 2015

Ocean Grove, NJ

KISS ME KATE:

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Letter to the Editor from Steve Valk in Frankfurt, Germany

Posted in Letter to the editor, Ocean Grove feature article, Ocean Grove fire February 2015, Ocean Grove opinions, tagged , on February 7, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Dear Paul and everyone at Blogfinger… Thanks for doing this reporting. Main Avenue isn`t just private property. It is part of the Ocean Grove “commons”… Am sure the wider OG community (extending all the way to Frankfurt, Germany where I am writing from and beyond…) will come together to make the rebuilding of this part of town.. once again… “an example for others to follow… (as was the case with the boardwalk and further damage from hurricane Sandy)

Calling on everyone in the larger Ocean Grove Community to take up their roles as loving and active neighbors and friends as I am sure they will… Your work Paul… is one powerful example of this indefatigable spirit and communitarian work ethic… Many Thanks… Steve Valk

Steve Valk, Feb. 7, 2015.

Editor’s Note:  Steve is a summer visitor to Ocean Grove. His family has been coming here for generations, so he has a Grover view of things.  We have posted prior interviews with him.  He is a social scientist with some unique opinions about our town and how it could work in the future.  Here is a link to our last post about him.   —PG

Steve Valk on Blogfinger August 2014

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Letter to the Editor: Crime in Ocean Grove

Posted in Letter to the editor, tagged on January 2, 2015| 2 Comments »

crime-watch

To the Editor:

Re: Crime in Ocean Grove

Last night, on Dec 26, 2014, a neighborhood house at 70 Mount Hermon Way had their doorbell ring at 3:30AM! Our bedroom is directly across the street and I happened to be awake with the windows open. The door was answered, and there was a man asking for $10-$20 to get home to his family.

The man answering the door said “no” and called the police who arrived within a few minutes. The man gave description etc…., and, unbelievably, the man who rang the bell walked up the street right into the police. The police questioned him and he gave the same story.

I am uncertain of the end of story as the man disappeared; he either ran away or the police let him go, but it sounded like the police took off to look for him.

It is now such a shame that in Ocean Grove we to install alarms, cameras and have neighbors look after our house when we are away. It never used to be that way. What is happening to our little town?

Also: Drug dealings have become rampant on my street. I was working in my office alone on a Monday this summer (I work on Pilgrim Pathway). I keep the doors locked when I am alone in the office. There was a knock on the door.

I went to answer, no one was there, but I opened the door. 3 DEA agents rushed in with bullet proof vests and hands on guns; they showed me a photograph of what appeared to be a 60 year old woman. They asked if I knew her. I didn’t recognize her at all, but later found out that she had lived in the apartment building in which our office is housed. She was about 30 years old. What drugs can do to age you and so quickly!

By the way…….heard on the street that the guy that rang the neighbor’s doorbell at 3:30 am the other morning actually has a page on Facebook.

SHAUN

Ocean Grove, NJ, Dec. 26, 2014

(The writer lives and works in Ocean Grove.)

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Letter to the Editor: A glass of Ocean Grove wine.

Posted in Letter to the editor, tagged on November 7, 2014| 2 Comments »

Mail Attachment

Hello Paul…I thought you might like to know that Ocean Grove, Australia has it’s very own wine. My goddaughter is a junior at Bard College and she is finishing up a semester in Australia. She messaged me on Facebook with this picture…just a note to say she was thinking of me while enjoying a glass of Ocean Grove wine.

I think she and her fellow students must be doing a lot of research for a class called “Alcohol 101”. Every time she posts a picture of herself with friends on Facebook, there’s always booze in the background (or foreground).

MaryLou

Ocean Grove, NJ

THE WAYFARERS  “The Drinkers of Australia”

 

Editor’s Note:  Mary Lou—–Your family must be very proud that she’s learning to drink cabernet sauvignon and not that rotgut swill in the pubs of Australia.    And when she gets back to Bard, you can be thankful that there are no frat boys there to lead her astray.—

Paul

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