Author: Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

This author has written 1987 articles
Read more about the article Things to Do

Things to Do

Montclair Honeybee Fest
Originally uploaded by bloomfieldguy

Last night, we were suprised to hear the sound of jazz music coming through our front window, at first thinking our neighbor might be having a party, then realizing it was LIVE music from a concert going on in Watsessing Park. According to the Essex County website, it was the Carrie Jackson Quartet, performing as part of the 2008 Essex County Free SummerMusic Concert Series, which I only know because I Googled it this morning out of curiosity.

Last month’s Dionne Warwick concert in Brookdale Park, which I first heard about the night of while having dinner at Vinnie’s, was part of the same series and while I wouldn’t have attended that one, it was a little disappointing to find out about last night’s as it was happening because we would have probably shaken the Sandy Hook sand out of our Neat Sheet, grabbed a couple of chairs and walked over to check it out. I don’t recall seeing any promotion for the concert series in The Star-Ledger (which I pick up sporadically), or Bloomfield Life (which I pick up weekly), or Baristanet (which I check daily), or even a flyer stapled to a telephone pole somewhere between the Park and the train station, but maybe I just missed it?

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Read more about the article Online vs. Print Reality Check

Online vs. Print Reality Check

Buried in a glowing American Journalism Review article about the success of The Politico -- a politics-only news website that launched a couple of years ago and is getting 25 million page views/month -- is the fact that 60% of its revenue comes from its laser-targeted, thrice-weekly 27,000 circ print edition, without which, the site would  "be losing catastrophic amounts of money." THE PLIGHT OF POLITICO -- AND EVERYONE ELSE. The success of Politico actually seems like an incredibly discouraging sign for the media. Here you have this forward-thinking, primarily virtual venture to create a political news organization that marries…

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Read more about the article Favre Comes to Jersey

Favre Comes to Jersey

Brett Favre, Post-Retirement
Originally uploaded by purpleslog

As atheletes go, I’m a big Brett Favre fan. I admire the guy’s passion and grit and, hypothetically speaking, if I were a head coach, would love to have him be the QB of my team for as long as he was able to play.

That said, I completely understand Packers coach Mike McCarthy not welcoming him back with open arms after his changing his mind about retiring. There’s an extreme selfishness underlying the whole situation that reflects poorly on Favre and is the kind of thing that has tarnished the reputation of way too many atheletes who didn’t know when to hang it up and move on. (I’m looking at you, Vinnie.)

As a Jets fan, I’m not the least bit excited about them trading for him and unceremoniously shoving Chad Pennington — a real stand-up guy and true team player who’s been treated like a red-headed stepchild ever since Mangini took over the team — out the door before he had a chance to prove his worth working with a revamped offensive line and a more experienced head coach and offensive coordinator. That Favre stands to benefit from the major roster overhaul this season instead of Pennington is disappointing as I believe the Jets will turn things around and a have a realistic shot at a 10-6 season, at worst, and will be poised to make a serious run through the playoffs.

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Read more about the article BroadAcres’ Bustling Business A Boon?

BroadAcres’ Bustling Business A Boon?

1455 Broad Street
1455 Broad Street

Taxes are pretty much Greek to me, especially property taxes, but as I understand them, a viable commercial tax base is critical for keeping residential property taxes down and is theoretically one of the reasons moving forward on the redevelopment of Bloomfield Center is such a critical issue. (Assuming, of course, that the plan isn’t loaded with the kinds of tax breaks and loopholes that end up costing taxpayers MORE money.) The New Jersey League of Municipalities has a nice primer, A SHORT AND SIMPLE GLIMPSE AT THE PROPERTY TAX IN NEW JERSEY, that is somewhat helpful, leaving me feeling mildly clueless instead of completely dumbfounded.

With taxes on the brain — Bloomfield Life, I think, had a recent article about the township-wide assessment happening this Fall that has me a little nervous — I figure it has to be a good thing to see that Prism Captial Partners is having success luring new tenants to their BroadAcres Office Park in northern Bloomfield, that they paid $52m for in 2006 and are in the process of an extensive renovation and upgrading of its grounds and infrastructure.

Four Leases Signed at BroadAcres

BLOOMFIELD, NJ-Prism Capital Partners has secured 27,000 sf of leases at its BroadAcres Office Park here. Four companies, three current tenants and one new occupant, have committed to space at the 380,000-sf, class A campus…

Kingsbridge Financial Group has relocated its headquarters from Seacaucus to 1455 Broad St., where it will occupy 5,000 sf on a five-year lease. Diversified Cos., Senior Financial Solutions and Kingsbridge were all represented by Prism Capital Partners principal Edwin Cohen, who also represented Prism, the owners of the property…

Rental rates for BroadAcres are listed as $25.50 per sf for 1455 Broad St. and $23.50 per sf for 200 and 300 Broadacres Dr. The property has seen a considerable amount of leasing activity in the past few months.

“We’re encouraged by the activity,” says Cohen. “Brokers are responding well to the improvements they’ve seen throughout the complex.”

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Read more about the article Bloomfield Cyclist Assaulted by NYPD Rookie

Bloomfield Cyclist Assaulted by NYPD Rookie

The cyclist in the middle of the latest NYPD controversy is Christopher Long of Bloomfield, NJ, who is a lot more Zen than I’d be considering the cop is clearly an outright liar and thug:

“I’m really sorry, but I’m not talking to the press,” Christopher Long, 29, said as he manned an organic fruits-and-vegetables stand at the Union Square farmers market.

“There are charges against me, and I don’t want anything to affect my case,” said Long, who had two large scabs on his knees from the body block.

Long, of New Jersey, was charged with assault and resisting arrest after the cop insisted the cyclist had tried to run him over in a Critical Mass rally Friday in Times Square.

A dramatic video starkly contradicted rookie Officer Patrick Pogan‘s statements. It shows the 22-year-old cop running toward Long and slamming him to the sidewalk.

Pogan, a former high school football lineman, has been stripped of his gun and badge while the incident is investigated.

Police sources have said the charges against Long would likely be dropped.

Long will “get over it and he’s not the type of guy to hold a grudge,” said Justin Ford, 25, a bike courier and a friend of Long’s, but Long’s lawyer said he may sue.

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Read more about the article Cory Booker: Hero?

Cory Booker: Hero?

Cory Booker at StoryCorps Griot launch by jsmooth995
Despite my previous reflexive defense of East Orange, I’ll admit to buying in to the some of the negative perceptions of Newark, and was originally going to post a link to a great article on Newark’s Mayor Cory Booker that I just got around to reading in last month’s Esquire (with the inane Mike Myers on the cover), but when I went to their site to get the link, I was suprised to come across a scathing letter from Booker, ripping the article’s author Scott Raab a new one.
While I thought the article was a well-written bit of hero worship, it does go a bit overboard in comparing Booker to Will Smith’s character in I Am Legend, effectively casting Newark as a blighted dead zone with little hope of recovery, pretty much what I believed it to be despite knowing better. In his letter, Booker takes Raab to task on a number of points, particularly his narrow focus on the ills plaguing the largest city in New Jersey while ignoring the strides made in the past couple of years — of which he cites numerous examples — but perhaps more impressively, I appreciated his lengthy rebuttal of the idea that he is some lone hero facing insurmountable odds:

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Read more about the article Light Green Thumb

Light Green Thumb

Garden After, originally uploaded by bloomfieldguy.

When we bought our house, I knew there were a lot of things we’d have to deal with that were never a consideration while we lived in an apartment, from the obvious fixing whatever breaks to paying separately for everything short of the air we breathe, but the one thing I underestimated was the time and effort involved in maintaining a yard.

Way back in High School, I’d done the basics, like mowing the lawn and raking and even helped with building a deck and a small pond, but those were more chores than responsibilities, so my emotional investment in them was minimal. (I did take a bit of pride in the pond, at least until my turtle ran away!) While we lucked out with a house that was in move-in condition and only had to paint the kids’ rooms, buy new furniture and unpack our things to get the interior squared away, the yard was in need of some TLC.

I’ve learned from our neighbors that the property had been sort of a jungle for years before the guy we bought it from bought it last summer and fixed it all up — with 8-foot hedges enclosing the back and all sorts of animals residing in them — so relatively speaking, it was overhauled as much as the house itself, but unlike the house, it didn’t have any real character at all. Plus, there were some concerns with the landscaping with certain areas pooling water up against the foundation of the house.

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