June 15,2007. The Kearny Board of Education suspended English teacher Celeste Adamski with pay. The suspension is the result of a student's allegation of inappropriate sexual activity. According to a Jersey Journal newspaper article Superintendent Bob Mooney stated "We notified the police department immediately".
June 11, 2007. Saturday marked the last day of business at Amaral Auto Sales in Harrison. Manny Amaral and his two sons loaded their BMW's, Audi's, Mercedes Benz's and other cars onto car transporters and headed out to their new location on River Road in Lyndhurst.
Amaral is trying to take some of his 25 years of good will with him to his new location. Amaral Auto Sales announced its relocation on its website along with a Stop Eminent Domain Abuse advertisement. The scars of having to uproot after 25 years of being in Harrison are evident. What does the future hold? According to our sources, It may be a return to Harrison.
At the end of May, New Jersey Public Advocate Ronald K. Chen issued an updated report on Eminent Domain abuse in New Jersey. Many of the issues raised in the Public Advocates report exist in Amaral's appeal which is currently pending in the Appellate Division. Amaral lost the right to stay on his property because his stay was denied but his appeal (and that of his neighbor Steven Adler) are pending in the Appellate Division. Given the Public Advocate's updated report and a renewed public awareness of cases such as Amaral's, the Appellate Division or the New Jersey Supreme Court may look more favorably upon property owners than they have in the past.
June 15, 2007. On the other side of the street, the Red Bulls construction continues. Several weeks ago the Red Bulls removed the slate sidewalk along side Frank E. Rodgers Blvd. To date, the sidewalk has not been replaced. Commuters utilizing curbside parking meters have been forced to walk in the street because the sidewalk is missing. Given the traffic levels along Frank E. Rodgers Blvd, walking in the street is a risky endeavor. If a long time resident of Harrison removed their sidewalk and left only dirt would the Harrison Building Inspector fine that resident? We believe so. But if you are a connected developer, you can remove your entire sidewalk and simply get away with it.
June 13, 2007. The New Jersey Supreme Court released its opinion in the matter of Gallenthin Realty Development v. Borough of Paulsboro holding that the New Jersey Constitution authorizes government redevelopment of only "blighted" areas, the Legislature did not intend the Redevelopment Statute to apply in circumstances where the sole basis for redevelopment is that the property is "not fully productive." Rather, subsection 5(e) applies only to areas that, as a whole, are stagnant and unproductive because of issues of title, diversity of ownership, or other similar conditions. The court then goes on to invalidate Paulsboro's classification of Gallenthin's property as in need of redevelopment.What does it mean?
June 15, 2007. Manny Amaral was not yet settled in his new location in Lyndhurst when Central Parking began operating his former parking lot adjacent to the Path Station. It didn't take the designated developer long to start to cash in on a prime parking location for commuters using the Path train. The Harrison Redevelopment Agency opposed a stay of eviction pending appeal because the designated developer needed to move forward quickly with the town's redevelopment plan. The developer apparently is not in such a rush. By renting the parking lot, the developer is cashing in on an asset (prime parking spaces). It is not clear whether the operation by Central Parking is legal since the parking lot license issued by the Town of Harrison was for the Amaral Auto Group and not Central Parking. The Mayor and Council have not met since Amaral vacated his property.
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