20210107 - CBDAC Minutes

Central Business District Advisory Committee  (CBDAC)

Minutes

Thursday, January 7th, 2021

Zoom Call: 8:30 – 10:00am

present: Kathryn Schmidt, Jordan Kaufman, Rob Delcalzo,, Anastasia Bamberg, Gary Kolesaire, Chris Rutishauser, Pamela Perron, Stephen Aspero, Stacey Tsapatsaris, Randy Carson

Bollard Posts for Dining Corrals 

• Discussion: More permanent version of outdoor corral. Construct a socket in the pavement and then put in steel pipe above grade marked with reflective material color coded to each establishment. Can be removed and a lid could be put up. Bollards would follow existing outlines about 32 inches apart. Assumption that the cost to remove bollards would be cheaper than existing barrels. Chris mentioned this would be an extension of the sidewalk cafes--outline of the corrals as they exist now. Permits would be part of the sidewalk cafe regulatory structure. Loss of parking revenue would be covered by the restaurants.
• Feedback: more attractive than water barrels. Could get different types of protective covers. Uniform look and spacing. Restaurants would pay for materials and installation would be paid for by the village. Restaurants are already spending $100 to $1000 a week to set up for pedestrian mall--initial investment in bollards and set up/removal will be much less.
• Action items/next steps: If we do this, we must act immediately to get it set up in time. Randy, Rob, Paul and Stacey volunteered to spearhead the bollard effort. Spacing, pricing, safety concerns. Next step would be to discuss with the VC.  Chris R will present to VC either Jan 27 or Feb 3 Village. Chris to check whether the bollards could be lifted by people or need a lift. Schedule 40 or 80 steel pipe (not concrete.)  Stacey T will get samples/cost.Using bollards to close off streets temporarily was also discussed. We just invested in barriers to shut off streets.
• Retailers are concerned that a non-COVID environment will not support the pedestrian mall each week. Perhaps the first weekend of every month. Bollards are for corrals and don’t necessitate street closures. They would not take up an entire block of parking spaces.

Downtown for the holidays recap

• Feedback from Downtown for the Holidays was positive. Suggestion for next year would be for better sound. Grinch effort was successful. 143 bags filled with toiletries were sent to Ridgrecrest and other facilities. Great opportunity for people to help. A Lot of other effort went on behind the scenes. Collaborative effort.
• Other ideas: Seasonable Gift Catalogue, artificial sledding, gathering around a fireplace/firepit (Graydon), utilize top floor of garage (fireworks?)

Liquor licensing for beer, wine, and cider (pending legislation)

• Pam will circulate bill number and contacts at the State legislature for those who wish to advocate to allow restaurants to sell beer and wine without a liquor license while maintaining the price of existing licenses.

Blue Laws; potential to increase revenue, impact on attracting anchor stores

• Steve wrote up an executive order to petition Gov Murphy to lift the blue laws for Bergen County. Paul and John S are working on this. Concern that Murphy will not rock the boat in an election year. Revisit after the 2021 election, but we won’t have the pandemic as a catalyst so it would have to be a referendum. Bergen County Executive will be a key player in the decision, but Paramus is unlikely to support it.
• Pam suggested maybe we could get a petition together to make a referendum to put on the County ballot.

Parking/Parking Garage

• Parking garage has 10 cars on the top floor and 2 or 3 on the 1 and 2nd. Sale of parking permits is up so maybe it will be used more. Part time employees can use the top floor.
• Drivers license, registration, and note for the employer need to be presented at Village Hall to get employee sticker/hang tag for employee lotes.
• Steve contacted NJDOT in Trenton about grants for wayfaring signs. If we were a transit village, (which we are not) we could get more funding for signs. Main Street recovery fund could possibly give us funds. Steve is still investigating. Steve will investigate advantages/disadvantages of being designated as a transit hub. We might be able to get funds to refurbish the bus station, more bike parking.

Other

• Anecdotal reports increased traffic and trash on broad. No trash cans. Do we need more trash cans, especially with outdoor dining?
• How can we incentivize people to shop downtown? The retail shopping base is Ridgewood Residents. We need to consider significant changes in commuter behavior (fewer days.) Less commuter parking needed, more restaurant lunch business. Ridgewood might be a beneficiary of that shift. Consider increasing grab and go spaces to encourage people to park in lots rather than on the street.
• Snowplowing Downtown is last to be plowed and parking spots have snowbanks. Corner stores need to be fined if not compliant, including curb cuts on crosswalks. Chris mentioned the Village priority is streets, next day is removing snow from the Central Business District. Care was given to be cautious about dining infrastructure.
• We decided to keep meeting every two weeks. Next meeting Jan 21.