First impressions of Plainfield

The house as it was when we bought it in December, 1983.

Neighbor Fred Cone and Dan take the hemlocks down,
Christmas Day, 1983.

The new, improved view, Spring 1984.

Fred Cone and Dan take down hollowed-out maple
next to rear of house, June 1984.

The Reillys introduce Maggie to her new home. She adopted us
quickly and became the undisputed head of the household.
A sweetheart, she had become unmanageable when the
Reillys' baby arrived. They lived in the house that later
became The Pillars bed and breakfast.

We closed on our Plainfield house in December 1983, at a sheriff's sale at the Union County Courthouse in Elizabeth. It was hardly the sale we envisaged when we signed the contract in September.

Besides its grand look, one of the attractions of the house was that the New York bus stopped literally at the front door. In the first year and a half, I was still working at my job in publishing on 39th Street in the city  and made the daily commute. Nat was still at IBM on Water Street in the financial district.

Our first lesson about Plainfield was looking for a restaurant downtown on the evening we closed on the house. We drove right by Lily Greenleaves without realizing it was a restaurant, and open. One certainly wouldn't have that experience these day in downtown Plainfield.

Another surprise was the cost of fuel oil for the 1,000-gallon tank that first winter. Needless to say, by the second winter we had installed a new energy-efficient gas furnace from -- where else? -- Sears.

I'm posting a few pix from that first year.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Santa visits Hannah Atkins Park Wednesday

Toys, books and coats were gathered in for the event.

 

Plainfield Councilors Bridget Rivers and Vera Greaves will host a visit by Santa at Hannah Atkins Park on Wednesday from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.

This is the second year the Council representatives have gathered toys and coats in a drive in memory of the late Joanne Hollis, who served as Ward 4 councilperson and was a champion for children of the 4th Ward.

Coats and unwrapped toys and books were solicited and gathered in last week at Douglas Hall.

Neighborhood children will enjoy a visit with Santa where the gits will be distributed. There will be food and live music.

Hannah Atkins Park is at the corner of West Third Street and Plainfield Avenue.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Plainfield Rec's Pre-Kwanzaa event a big hit

Mayor Adrian O. Mapp addresses the crowd at
Saturday's Pre-Kwanzaa event.

Kwanzaa symbols on display.

 

 

Left scrambling after the Plainfield shool district declined to make Emerson or Washington Schools available for the city's annual Kwanzaa event as they had in past years, the city's Recreation Division came up with a dream location -- the duCret School of Arts auditorium.

Hundreds jammed the auditorium for this year's pre-Kwanzaa event on Saturday (Kwanzaa itself starts on December 26).

Craftspeople and other vendors lined the walls, live music was on hand, and food and fellowship were shared as hundreds packed the auditorium to celebrate the festival.

The crowd was greeted by Mayor Adrian O. Mapp, who gave short remarks and welcomed all to the celebration.

Recreation Superintendent Veronica Taylor says she was thrilled with both the turnout and the location. "Parking has always been an issue in the past," Taylor said, "and has sometimes annoyed neighbors, but the duCret School has a magnificent parking lot and we had absolutely no issues at all."

Sounds like a winner to me.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Netherwood Heights Calendar, Drake House ornament great stocking stuffers

 

Two great Plainfield-themed stocking stuffers for last-minute holiday shopping!

If, like me, you find yourself looking for small gifts in the last few days before Christmas that will be 'keepers' (and not the Old Spice gift kit that was always my default gift for my dad when I was a kid), look no further.

NETHERWOOD HEIGHTS CALENDAR

The Netherwood Heights Historic District's annual calendars have becpme a collector's item looked forward to by many each year.

This year's calendar is themed around the fabled Netherwood Hotel, which gives its name to the district. Each month features a photo and facts concerning this high-Victorian retreat that was popular with the late 19th-century Wall Street crowd.

One new fact I learned is that in later years, the hotel was considered for use as a TB sanitorium.

The calendar is available at $20 each, tax included. Proceeds help fund the Netherwood Heights Historic District's community outreach programs. If you want one for the holidays, call Harold at (908) 668-0388 and leave a message. You will get a callback with details. If you're not in a rush, reserved  your copy online at netherwoodheights.com/.

DRAKE HOUSE TREE ORNAMENT

 

The Drake House is issuing its 2016 Tree Ornament, a gorgeious holiday red globe.

Not only will it be a special treat on your holiday tree, proceeds will help the Drake House extend its community activities throughout the year.

The ornaments are $10 each, tax included, and make perfect stocking stuffers for your history-minded friends. If you want to give them for Christmas, stop by the Drake House this afternoon between 2:00 and 4:00 PM and pick them up.

The Drake House Museum at 602 West Front Street (at the foot of Plainfield Avenue) is open to the public Sunday afternoons from 2:00 - 4:00 PM, and at other times by appointment. For more information, call (908) 755-5831 or visit the website at drakehouseplainfieldnj.org/.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Cedar Brook Park improvements bicycle-kicked to State

A bicycle-kick in soccer is a spectacular play in which
the kicker, in mid-air and paralell to the ground,
kicks the ball over his or her head in a downward slant to another player.

Plainfield Planning Board attorney Michele Donato's final meeting on Thursday was an endurance match unlike any other she has seen. Thursday's meeting marked the end of a 30-year run for the highly respected land use attorney.

You might be forgiven for thinking that she was refereeing a futbol match as she had to step in several  times in the course of the meeting to separate quarreling players and enforce the rules.

The subject matter was the Planning Board's capital project review of Union County's proposed improvements to Cedar Brook Park, which include two new artificial turf fields for soccer and football, drainage improvements, night lighting, fencing, bleachers and sidewalk and parking improvements.

The County team, captained by Assistant Union County Counsel Kevin Campbell, seemed to have learned several lessons from its bumpy start at the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) hearing (see my post on that meeting here).

Last night's meeting began with an aerial view of the park, orienting Board members to the proposed work in relation to nearby streets and landmarks (Score!). The presentation also included copies of historic maps prepared by the Olmsted firm in 1922 and 1928 showing active recreational use (Score!). There were, as well, several detailed tinted sheets showing the position of the fields, lighting and drainage work (Score!). All of this much improved the presentation.

These pluses were marred by less than convincing testimony concerning the present condition of the fields (overdramatized by Campbell, IMHO), unsupported assertions about the national shift toward night programming in recreation, and the highly suspect 'expertise' of one witness regarding Olmsted parks.

Board members engaged in lively questioning of the Union County team and it emerged that there were many concerns -- among them the night lighting, a permanent scoreboard, the question of fencing, and removal of trees integral to the Olmsted plan.

When it came time for public comment, Chairperson Ron Scott Bey invited HPC chair Bill Michelson to the table to report the HPC's recommendation. In a letter distributed to Board members at the meeting, Michelson reported that the HPC had declined to issue a Certificate of Appropriateness as the County had not completed answering questions posed by the HPC or supplying further information that was requested.

When pressed by Board attorney Donato whether the letter represented the actions and conclusions of the HPC, Michelson said that it contained his expansions and explanations of the HPC's concerns but was not formally adopted by the HPC.

At several points when Michelson was at the table, Campbell attempted to interject. His assertion was that Michelson has a conflict of interest because he represents a group which is opposed to improvements being proposed by the County for its Rahway River Park.

Donato ruled that the Board was only receiving the letter from Michelson on behalf of the HPC and was not ruling on the question of a conflict of interest.

Donato read from a NJ Supreme Court opinion that underscored that community concerns must be taken into account by an applicant even though the Planning Board's review and recommendation are not binding.

Then, in a bicycle-kick, she noted that in order to proceed with work, the County would need a Certificate of Appropriateness. Since the park is also on the State and National Registers of Historic Places, that meant that a review at the State level was also required. (She also pointed out that if any federal money was being spent, that would invoke a review at the national level also.)

At length, Board member Billy Toth framed (with Donato's help) a lengthy, detailed resolution outlining the Planning Board's review and concerns. That motion was passed, 8-1.

I left at the three-hour mark as the Board prepared to fête Donato with well-deserved refreshments.

Michele, we all thank you for your years of dedicated (and patient!) service to the City of Plainfield and wish you well wherever you go and whatever you do!

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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County snubs Preservation Commission on Cedar Brook Park plans, expected before Planning Board tonight

Union County's proposal includes new artificial turf fields,
bleachers, fencing, lighting and drainage improvements.

 

Union County officials snubbed Plainfield's Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) Tuesday evening, refusing to come back to the table to answer further questions by the commission on the County's proposed Cedar Brook Park improvements.

Chairperson Bill Michelson recounted various phone conversations and memoranda exchanged since the November hearing, which was inconclusive due to the lateness of the hour and further information sought by the commission (see post on that meeting here).

At the end of the November meeting, Michelson says Assistant Union County Counsel Kevin Campbell accused him of a conflict of interest after Michelson revealed he was representing a group opposed to the county's plans to build a stadium and other changes to Rahway River Park.

Michelson made the disclosure during the county's presentation after asking Campbell if any of the representatives there that evening were also involved in the Rahway River Park matter. When Campbell said 'no', Michelson said, 'Good, because I represent the group opposed to that project'.

More importantly, Campbell claims the HPC has no jurisdiction over the project. Contention over this claim ultimately involved Corporation Counsel David Minchello and Planning Board attorney Michele Donato. Minchello sided with the County. Donato, a highly respected land use attorney, was brought in to mediate the matter. According to Michelson, Donato affirmed the HPC's role in issuing a Certificate of Appropriateness.

The county is expected to appear before the Planning Board at this evening's meeting, 7:30 PM in City Hall Library. The Planning Board's review is required, but it can only make suggestions to the County.

Planning Board meetings are open to the public and opportunity is always given for questions and comments. The County's proposed plans are on file in the Planning Division office on the second floor of City Hall and are available for inspection up to 4:30 PM.

Parking and entrance to tonight's meeting are in the lot at the rear of City Hall, Watchung Avenue at East 6th Street.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Did El-Amin catch Council President Rivers in a fib?

Siddeeq El-Amin put Council President Rivers on the spot Monday.

Retired Plainfield police captain Siddeeq El-Amin put Council President Bridget Rivers on the spot at Monday's City Council meeting and there is a question as to whether she fibbed about the matter at hand.

During public comment, El-Amin came to the mike and asked for resolution of a matter that dated back to the beginning of Mayor Adrian Mapp's term.

When Mapp came into office in January 2014, El-Amin was his nominee to be Public Safety Director. His nomination failed to gain sufficient votes among Council members.

What went on behind the scenes is not known, but El-Amin read an eloquent statement at a Council meeting, outlining his efforts to meet or have discussions with various Council members in relation to his nomination (see my post here), which had failed after Councilor Brown stated she had received 'disturbing' information about him.

At the time, El-Amin said he had had conversations with Brown and Taylor, but that Council President Rivers had canceled four meetings she set up with him.

Supposedly, the Council was going to issue an RFP to hire someone to investigate El-Amin's background in relation to the 'disturbing' information.

At this past Monday's meeting, El-Amin told the Council that, after waiting for two years to have the matter resolved (there has never been any further discussion of it by the Council), he had OPRA'ed the supposed RFP and another one concerning more recent demolition activity.

El-Amin read an email from Municipal Clerk "AJ" Jalloh informing him that the responsible party for the RFPs could find no such document as he requested.

Council President Rivers insisted nonetheless that an RFP had been issued.

El-Amin asked that it either be produced or that he be given a public apology in the matter, saying that he would not give up until the matter was resolved.

Rivers sat stone-faced.

After a long pause, Councilor Williams personally apologized to El-Amin for the Council's action.

After another pause, Councilor Brown (she of the 'disturbing' information comment) also apologized.

Rivers said nothing.

So, if an RFP cannot be produced, the unanswered question is whether Council President Rivers fibbed. She can dispel any doubt by providing the RFP.

Will she?

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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County's Cedar Brook Park proposal tonight at HPC

The proposal would put two new artificial turf fields
in the area between the pine tree icon and Cedar Court.

Union County's proposed improvements to Plainfield's Cedar Brook Park are on the agenda for tonight's Historic Preservation Commission meeting in City Hall Library at 7:30 PM. The agenda can be viewed online here.

The proposal is being continued from last month where it was initially presented but was carried over owing to the lateness of the hour and more information being requested by the Commission.

I wrote about that meeting and outlined the county's proposal in an earlier post (see here). The proposed improvements include two new artificial turf fields (one soccer only, and one combination football/soccer) and a drainage system for same, night lighting, bleachers and removable fencing to enclose the fields.

The proposed improvements would necessitate the removal of a number of trees as well as the installation of 80' poles for night lighting.

Well into their presentation at the November meeting, county officials introduced maps (from the 1920s?) showing that sports fields were in use in the earliest days of the Olmsted-designed and landmarked park. The maps, however, were not submitted to the Commission as an exhibit, which is a shame because they would help to reinforce the County's case.

I spoke at that meeting in favor of the turf proposal -- though I am not a particular fan of artificial turf, which must be replaced periodically and studies have shown is harder on athletes than grass fields.

My reason for supporting turf fields was that Plainfield is woefully short of soccer fields and the recreational equity demanded by the city's changing demographics would begin to be addressed by the proposed new fields.

I also brought up the annual mass events at the park (the R&B By The Brook festival and the annual July 4th Fireworks) which meant that any fencing must be removable to accommodate the large crowds.

But the lighting proposal gave me pause.

The park has always operated on Union County's rules: it is for dawn-to-dusk activity. All sports activities take place in daylight hours and conclude when it is too dark to play. (When I was a kid, we even had a 'twilight baseball league,' whose games were played before dark.)

Then there was the fact that the County was proposing 80-foot towers. No rendering was offered to the Commission to show the scale of the proposed lighting, existing trees and houses in the neighborhood.

I checked out the light towers at Seidler Field, the only field in Plainfield with night lighting. I was told they are 70-foot poles, making them considerably shorter than the county's proposal. Though focused on the field, there is light spillage affecting the nearby homes.

Seidler Field light poles, shorter than those proposed for
Cedar Brook Park, tower over the neighborhood.

To my mind, the proposed lighting is unnecessary and intrusive, given the historic use of the park dawn-to-dusk only and the likelihood of an adverse impact on neighboring homes (notwithstanding the County's assertions to the contrary). In addition, the towers would literally tower over everything in the park, visually changing its character completely.

Less importantly, the trees whose removal is being proposed are part of the fabric of the park as designed and intended by the Olmsted firm -- which makes it a landmark in the first place.

So, I would hope that a close examination of this aspect of the proposal is being made, making sure that only absolutely necessary removals are done and that there are plans to "mitigate" (as resident Gerry Heydt said) the effects of their removal.

The public is encouraged to attend the meeting and will have an opportunity for questions and comments.

The meeting is in City Hall Library. Parking and entrance are at the rear of City Hall, Watchung Avenue and East 6th Street.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Dottie Gutenkauf passes

Dottie Gutenkauf (seated) with Councilor Rebecca Williams
and Mother Carolyn Eklund at 2015 Muhlenberg closing commemoration.

Plainfield political icon Dottie Gutenkauf passed away this morning, I learned in a text message from her son John shortly after 9:30 AM.
 
She will be greatly missed. I will post a personal appreciation of Dottie later and keep everyone informed about memorial plans.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Will tonight's Council meeting be baloney roll-ups?

As food, baloney roll-ups are tasty. In governance, it is another matter.
Shown above are Lebanon Bologna and cream
cheese roll-ups. Lebanon Bologna, a Pennsylvania
Dutch delicacy, is available locally at Aldi's on Park Avenue.

As Plainfield City Council's 2015 meetings draw (thankfully!) to a close, residents have a special treat: a roll-up session combining the December agenda-setting and business sessions and the agenda-setting session for the first meeting of 2016.

The business agenda -- which both Olddoc and Bernice have discussed is pretty straightforward. But this being Plainfield, there are always possibilities that things will go off the rails and that baloney will prevail.

"Discussion items", which is where the monkey business usually starts, contains only one innocent-sounding item: Demolished properties (referring to the North Avenue demolition).

Following the business meeting, the Council will set the agenda for the first session of the new year. This practice always puzzles me a little.

I understand wanting to have an orderly transition to the new year. But each Council year (as with each session of Congress) is considered a unit in and of itself. That is why the first meeting is a "reorganization," with officers being elected, chairs appointed, a schedule of meetings adopted and other roll-over business.

However, one year's Council cannot carry business over into the next year -- hence the push to get ordinances adopted before the end of the year. So, with one Council member not being returned for 2016, and a newly-elected member not yet sworn in and able to participate, how is it that an agenda-setting session for the next year is legit?

Another Plainfield mystery?

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Feedback on Youth Summit, Ward 3 meetings

The Ward 3 meeting was held at Hubbard School.

 

 
This past Thursday night was hopping in Plainfield with three public meetings (and a performance at Cedar Brook School that got lost in the shuffle).

I took in parts of the Youth Summit and Ward 3 meetings. Resident and former Board of Ed member Terri Slaughter-Cabbell also did,  and wrote up her thoughts on Facebook, which I am posting below.

YOUTH SUMMIT LISTENING SESSION

This was the third of three planned "listening session' to get input from young people and other residents to help shape the upcoming citywide Youth Summit (set for mid-January).

I got there shortly after it got under way and found about 35 people drawn into a discussion facilitated by the group organizing the Youth Summit. There were a good numer of young peole there and they took an active part in the discussion.

I will post more about this important event as the time draws nearer.

WARD 3 "COMMUNITY MEETING"

While the City Council scheduled four Town Hall meetings near the end of 2015, all went without a hitch except for the Ward 3 meeting, which was twice rescheduled. As presented, Councilor Gloria Taylor stood the concept on its head to turn the meeting into "The Gloria Show."

Town Hall meetings are an opportunity for elected officials to listen to concerns and questions from residents, and that's how the other three were run. Not so this one.

The meeting Taylor constructed was taken up with presentations (on worthwhile topics, but more than enough for a two-hour meeting) and left no time for questions. One attendee told me that only one participant got to ask a question before time ran out.

Members of the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District were miffed to find Taylor billing the District as a "sponsor" of the event, which they say definitely was NOT the case.

Some people have said they heard there were a hundred people in attendance. I counted 37 before I left at 7:30 PM and some who stayed told me that very few people came later and some left, so that was probably it on balance.

Here is how Terri Slaughter-Cabbell saw the meeting (you can see her Facebook post here) --

Plainfield has a habit of scheduling multiple meetings on the same night and tonight was one of those nights.

There was the meeting on the Teen Summit that started at 6 and the 3rd ward meeting at 7. Now, being me, I'm going to try to make them both. So I went to the teen summit meeting at the library at 6 which was very interesting (I should have stayed). I was impressed by the number of youth there and how vocal they were.

But I left to go to the 3rd ward meeting (being that I live in the 3rd ward) which was billed as a "Community Meeting", but was anything but. Each of the other 3 ward meeting have been good. They Welcome you to the meeting, then we dialogue. The COMMUNITY member asks questions, states concerns and any other comment they may have, there is conversation. I was soooooo disappointed (although not surprised) that my Councilwoman went completely left field.

She scheduled speakers and if you had a question on their presentation, you asked questions pertaining to THEIR presentation. A gentleman from SIDS (I forget his name) who represents the businesses on South Ave and downtown (who by the way does not live in NJ, let alone Plainfield) spoke of what they have done here, the family day downtown, the Christmas trolley on South Ave and Front St, (what does that have to do with the 3rd Ward) and the Christmas decorations.

The next speaker was the Supt of Schools, okay that is important not only to the 3rd ward but to everyone in Plainfield, but that is what we have monthly BOE meeting for.

The next speaker had just started which was Sgt. Brown, and Lt. Ken Reid who were speaking about the police uniform cameras and the system that lets them know when shots are fired. OK we heard that at the 4th Ward meeting.

This is when I left. It was 8:15, they were just getting started, we only have the school until 9 and there was to be another speaker on Historic Neighborhood Revitilization to come after that.

WHEN WOULD THE COMMUNITY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO VOICE THEIR CONCERNS FOR THE 3RD WARD????

I'm not even going to speak on how long Councilwoman Taylor went on her tangents (just attend a council meeting and you know how she can go on) or her co-host Robinson-Briggs. This is just another example (to me) on how out of touch Mrs. Taylor is with her constituents. I know this was long and I apologize but I had to get if off my chest.

Well put, Terri!

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Did the Campbells really think BOE election switch through?

Julius Caesar has a message for Wilma Campbell.

You have to ask yourself if Plainfield Board of Ed president Wilma Campbell and her husband John (also a BOE member) thought through the switch from November to April elections before making it.

By leading the Board of Ed to make the decision at a Work-Study session, public notice and discussion of the switch were effectively sidestepped.

This secretiveness -- was it an outright attempt to make the decision out of the public eye? -- explains why folks have not been able to find a notice of the proposed change or any record of the resolution to do so.

Not only that, it leads to suspicions that the Board's motives are not as "progressive" as Davud Rutherford asserts in his defense of the switch on his blog (see here).

According to Assemblyman Lou Greenwald's office (he sponsored the bill to allow the move from April to November in the first place), Plainfield is the ONLY school district in New Jersey to move its election back to April.

As Councilor Williams pointed out on her blog (see here), the cost to Plainfield taxpayers will be on the order of $115,000, based on estimates provided by Municipal Clerk "AJ" Jalloh. That is for ONE YEAR.

Since Plainfield is the only district in Union County to hold an April election, all of the cost must be borne by Plainfield taxpayers. That means over the next ten years, we will have spent well over $1 million for the "privilege." Rinse and repeat ad infinitum.

If this is "progressive", we need to hear the Board of Ed's explanation.

Then there is the impact on turnout, which will be to significantly narrow voter participation. April school board elections in Plainfield hardly ever exceeded 1,000 total.

In 2016, it would be reasonable to expect a minimum turnout of 30% of registered voters for the November election -- in the range of 6,500 to 7,500 votes. So, in the face of such numbers, how would a reduced voter turnout of 1,000 or fewer be more "progressive"?

My suspicion in this whole matter is that this "progressive" talk is a smokescreen for the real motive, which I would describe as "numerophobia" -- a fear of numbers.

As I see it, what scares the bejeezus out of Wilma Campbell (who must run in 2016) and her slate is the prospect of seeking votes in a presidential election year when it seems likely Hillary Clinton will be on the ballot in Plainfield.

In such a heavily Democratic town, that is likely to sweep all across the board -- notwithstanding that the Board of Ed seats are "nonpartisan" and cordoned off on the actual ballot. If Wilma has saved her neck from the possibility of being obliterated by a Clinton landslide, she has stuck it in another noose.

Wilma's problem is that the downside of the April school board election for her is that if there is a slate to oppose her, there will be no competition for attention or resources by a competing partisan electoral campaign.

This means those who want to reform the school board will be undistracted and can rally the public much more effectively to clean house at the Board of Ed.

As Caesar said, "alea iacta est" -- the dice have been rolled; the Rubicon has been crossed.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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Steve Gallon in the news...again

Wilma Campbell's old buddy is back in the news.

 

Former Plainfield schools superintendent Steve Gallon III is in the news again.

A story Wednesday in The Miami Times notes that Gallon is running for a seat on the Miami-Dade Public Schools Board (see story here).

Gallon, a personal pick of current Plainfield Board of Ed president Wilma Campbell, is running against a two-term Miami district incumbent.

Gallon says he was persuaded by others to run and that he has decided to "step back in the public realm in education."

He has the backing of a nonprofit concerned with urban education.

His misadventures in Plainfield are not mentioned.

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  -- Dan Damon [follow]

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