A look back at the places where we shopped
AN UNIDENTIFIED SHOPPER pauses to have his picture taken after leaving the Grand Union in Passaic, in this photo from 1955.
On Nov. 19, this and other vintage photos of supermarkets in the Garden State
will appear as "Vintage photos of N.J. supermarkets" on nj.com.
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State approval gives PSE&G the green light to expedite work on replacing lines installed in the early 1990s. The utility also will install excess flow meters that automatically shut off gas when a line is damaged.
Public Service Electric and Gas Co. will be replacing up to 510 miles of aging cast iron gas lines over the next few years, the company announced Monday.
PSE&G received approval Monday from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to expedite the replacement of the gas mains beneath streets and approximately 38,000 service lines feeding homes and businesses. The replacement program will take three years and cost a total of $905 million, the utility said.
The work will occur in urban neighborhoods in PSE&G's service territory served with cast iron and unprotected steel lines installed in the early 1900s, the company said. Cast iron and steel lines are prone to leaks.
"Accelerated replacement of our aging gas pipes ensures we can support a safe, clean and reliable gas system well into the future," said Ralph LaRossa, PSE&G president and COO. "Since 2009, our residential customers' gas heating bills are down 47 percent because of the lower cost of natural gas supply. The timing is right to accelerate this work -- while gas prices remain low."
Customers will begin seeing extra charges on their gas bills to cover the cost of the speeded-up program only after the work in their area is completed, according to the board.
RELATED: PSE&G proposes $1.6 billion gas main modernization program
PSE&G said the additional cost will be 1.5 percent a year over four years. Average customers who use 1,010 therms annually will have a total cumulative increase of $4.80 on their monthly bills, it said.
The utility will replace the lines with plastic lines that are less likely to leak. The improved lines will allow PSE&G to increase gas pressure, which also will allow the company to install excess flow meters. Excess flow meters can detect when too much gas is going through a line — signaling a potentially dangerous rupture — and shut off the line.
To identify lines that are in most need of replacing, PSE&G said it will use data from the Environmental Defense Fund, which developed a program with Google and Colorado State University to detect methane emissions from natural gas distribution systems.
"PSE&G is the first gas utility to provide extensive information to EDF on its existing gas system and on its method of targeting mains for replacement," said Jonathan Peress, Air Policy Director for Natural Gas for the defense fund.
Work is expected to begin in the spring.
PSE&G has 3,000 miles of cast iron and 1,000 miles of steel lines, said PSE&G spokeswoman Brooke Houston. Without approval to expedite the replacement of the lines — and recover the costs — it would take PSE&G 100 years to replace them all, she said. With the speeded-up process, the company could replace them in 30 years, she said.
Tim Darragh may be reached at tdarragh@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @timdarragh. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
An Elizabeth man was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for a string of eight bank robberies.
NEWARK -- Eight times over a period of 11 months, Claude Williams walked into a bank, pulled out a handgun, vaulted over a teller's counter and demanded money.
On Monday, Williams, 64, of Elizabeth, appeared in U.S. District Court and was sentenced to 22 years in prison for bank robbery and other charges for the hold-ups and one attempted hold-up, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman announced.
The spree of crimes occurred Somerset, Middlesex and Passaic counties from September 2011 through July 2012, Fishman said.
Each time, Fishman said, Williams entered a bank armed with a handgun and wearing a bandana, hooded sweatshirt or jacket, and white gloves. In each case, he went over a counter and demanded money from bank tellers at gunpoint, Fishman said.
RELATED: Man charged in string of bank hold-ups.
Williams previously pleaded guilty to the robberies before U.S. District Court Judge Kevin McNulty.
An accomplice, Andrea Dorsey, 56, of Plainfield New Jersey, who admitted that she served as a lookout and getaway driver for three of the robberies, was sentenced March 2014 to 87 months in prison.
A second woman, Teresa Webb, 45, of Plainfield, who admitted that she was the getaway driver for one of the robberies, was previously sentenced to 54 months in prison.
The robberies occurred in Clifton, Metuchen, Middlesex Borough, North Plainfield, Piscataway, Somerset and Somerville, Fishman said.
Tom Haydon may be reached at thaydon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Tom_HaydonSL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Two Paterson men will go to trial in March for allegedly providing the heroin that led to the fatal overdose of an Allendale man, The Record reported.
HACKENSACK -- Two Paterson men will go to trial in March for allegedly providing the heroin that led to the fatal overdose of an Allendale man, The Record reported.
Bergen County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Danielle Grootenbooer said last week attorneys for Timothy Volpe and Kaleik Easton, both 21, indicated their clients would accept a six-year sentence recommendation for pleading guilty to a first-degree charge of strict liability in the drug-induced death of Brandon Cole, 22, on Jan. 4, 2014.
But she learned Monday that Easton was not interested in pleading guilty and that Volpe had signed an affidavit exonerating Easton.
http://www.nj.com/morris/index.ssf/2015/11/prosecutions_get_more_frequent_for_providing_drugs.html
"The six-year offer is gone, never to be offered again," Grootenbooer said.
Volpe and Easton allegedly sold the heroin that killed Cole, prosecutors have said. A grand jury indicted them in 2014 on charges of manslaughter and strict liability for a drug-induced death.
Prosecutors are increasingly using the strict liability law to combat the heroin epidemic sweeping New Jersey. The once rarely used 1987 law allows prosecutors to go after anyone who provides the drugs in an overdose death.
Myles Ma may be reached at mma@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MylesMaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Police have arrested a 32-year-old city man who they say robbed the Capital One bank in Botany Village last week, but the getaway driver remains at large.
CLIFTON -- Police have arrested a 32-year-old city man who they say robbed the Capital One bank in Botany Village last week, but the getaway driver remains at large.
Francesco Carisi was identified Thursday as the man who handed a note to a teller at the Ackerman Avenue bank on Nov. 10 demanding money after police were able to connect him to the vehicle used in the robbery, Clifton police Detective Sgt. Robert Bracken said.
Carisi, who had checked himself into Bergen Regional Medical Center, was arrested Sunday afternoon after his release from the hospital, Bracken said. The reason for the hospital stay wasn't immediately clear, he said.
He was charged with robbery and has been remanded to the Passaic County jail in lieu of $75,000 bail with no 10-percent option.
An associate of Carisi remains at large, Bracken said. That individual is believed to have served as the getaway driver in the robbery, he said.
Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
An employee at the Exxon gas station on 21st Avenue was pistol-whipped and robbed early Tuesday morning, police said.
PATERSON -- An employee at the Exxon gas station on 21st Avenue was pistol-whipped and robbed early Tuesday morning, police said.
At 3:52 a.m., officers responded to the Exxon gas station on a report of an armed robbery in progress, Paterson police Detective Sgt. Michael McDonald said.
The employee told officers he was inside his store when he was approached by two masked men who brandished a handgun, McDonald said.
The employee was then pistol-whipped and robbed, he said.
Anyone with more information on this incident can contact the Paterson Police Department at 973-321-1111.
Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Two men were arrested Saturday in connection with a traffic stop but not before one of them led officers on a foot chase through the city.
CLIFTON -- Two men were arrested Saturday in connection with a traffic stop but not before one of them led officers on a foot chase through the city.
Narcotics detectives were in the area of Lexington and Highland avenues Saturday night when they saw two men -- later identified as James Murillo, 24, of Clifton, and Warren Jiminez, 34, of Paterson -- acting suspiciously near a car, Clifton police Detective Robert Bracken said.
Both men fled when police approached but officers were able to capture Jiminez at the scene, Bracken said. Murillo, however, fled the area on foot in the direction of Passaic, he said.
Officers were able to determine that Murillo lived on Harding Avenue so they headed over to his residence where they found him trying to get into his house, Bracken said. Murillo then led officers on another foot chase through his neighbors' yards, he said.
Police set up a perimeter and, with the assistance of a dog with the Paterson Police Department, they were able to track him two blocks, Bracken said. Murillo surrendered after he was cornered by the police dog, its handler and Clifton officers, he said.
After apprehending Murillo, police returned to the vehicle where they'd seen him and Jiminez acting suspiciously, Bracken said. It was during a search of the vehicle officers found a loaded handgun and a significant amount of marijuana, he said.
Murillo and Jiminez were each charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school, possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm by certain persons not permitted to possess a firearm, Bracken said.
Additionally, Murillo was charged with resisting arrest while Jiminez was charged with obstruction of justice.
Both men were remanded to the Passaic County jail in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
It seems like it should be very easy, but it's trickier than you think.
It's a safe bet that faced with a map of New Jersey with the county borders outlined, that any state resident worth their salt could point to the county where they live.
But is it so simple when you take away the state outline and just leave individual county borders? Sure, Cape May is likely a gimme. Perhaps Sussex is an easy get too, but what about the rest?
While putting together a collection of county silhouettes for another project, I was surprised by how often I was mixing up my New Jersey geographies.
Taken out of context, suddenly Monmouth looked a lot like Salem. Union and Essex were strikingly similar. And Mercer County looked alien to me.
It could very well be that my state geography game is no longer on point, so I put it to you: Can you name New Jersey's counties on sight alone? Technical constraints kept us from showing all 21, but there are 18 here that are waiting for you to weigh in.
Take the quiz below to find out.
NJ Advance Media reporter John Shabe contributed to this article. Stephen Stirling may be reached at sstirling@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @sstirling. Find him on Facebook.
Muslim leaders from around New Jersey gathered at Rutgers University in Piscataway Tuesday morning to issue a statement condemning "on the strongest possible terms the barbaric terrorist attacks on innocent civilians in Paris."
PISCATAWAY -- Muslim leaders from around New Jersey gathered at Rutgers University Tuesday morning to issue a statement condemning "on the strongest possible terms the barbaric terrorist attacks on innocent civilians in Paris."
"Islam is against terrorism and does not condone or provide any justification, whatsoever, for such despicable acts," the statement said. "There is no cause or injustice done to anyone that can ever justify killing of innocent human beings."
The leaders, most of whom were imams, the religious leaders of their mosques, said their statement also covered the terrorist attacks in Turkey, Beirut, Lebanon and Iraq.
"These terrorists do not represent Islam or Muslims in any sense and more often Muslims become the victims of their terror as in Beirut and Baghdad (Iraq) most recently," the statement said. "We stand in solidarity with the people of France and express our deepest sympathy with families of those who were killed and pray for the recovery of those injured in these horrific attacks."
Several of the Imams, who represented 26 different Islamic societies and mosques from New Jersey and one from New York City, gave statements stressing how important it was for their voices to be heard throughout their communities, both Muslim and non Muslim, so that people knew how they felt.
"We need our voice to reach everyone," said Imam Mohammad Qatanani of the Islamic Center of Passaic County. "We always hear the question, 'where are the voices of the Muslim community.' We are voicing it, but it is not always heard."
Imam Mustafa El-Amin, whose center is in Newark, said, "these radical terrorists are very damaging to our image and the greatest backlash is in people's perception of us."
"I'll say to everyone that the overwhelming majority of Muslims are as American as apple pie. Our aspirations are the same as every other American's," he said.
Related: N.J. resident in Paris: 'People are going through a lot of pain here'
There were representatives from the U.S. Attorney's Office, the New Jersey Attorney General's Office and the State Office Of Homeland Security at the press conference.
The attacks in Paris on Friday left 129 people dead and hundreds of others injured. The terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, also known as ISIS, ISIL or Daesh, has claimed responsibility, and France's government has stepped up bombing campaigns in Syria as European authorities crack down on militant networks.
M. Ali Chaudry of the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge, who presided over the event, made a point of noting that the Muslim community cooperated with law enforcement.
He said there was a conference call Saturday night between the law enforcement agencies and several Muslim leaders to discuss the events in Paris and possible backlash from them.
"Thank God so far we have not heard of any retaliation," Chaudry said. "We all need to work together."
The imams would not address most of the political questions reporters asked them and none would say what kind of solution they would like to see other than Qatanani's answer that "all governments have to work to solve the issues in Syria, Yemen and Iraq."
They also acknowledged they are working to prevent the younger members of their community from finding radical groups like ISIS attractive alternatives.
"We have to open doors for them," said Imam Wahy-ud Deen Shareef, representing the Council of Imams of N.J. "We have to address their environmental and economic situations. The ISIS attraction to young people is not necessarily in the mosque."
Shareef added, "we have to fight against all types of hatreds."
Sue Epstein may be reached at sepstein@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @susan_epstein. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Mayor Mohamed Khairullah, who fled Syria in 1980 at age 5, says he and other Syrians came to the United States to escape a cruel and brutal dictatorship.
PROSPECT PARK - Mayor Mohamed Khairullah is calling on Gov. Chris Christie to apologize for his remarks that the United States should not admit any refugees from the Syrian civil war -- not even "orphans under age 5."
"For a governor to make such a broad statement - to label people who are being attacked by their own government, to paint them all with a wide brush as ISIS or terrorists - is disgusting," Khairullah said Tuesday.
"The governor is absolutely wrong and he must apologize for his statements," he said.
The Republican presidential candidate made the remarks Monday on conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt's syndicated radio show.
Khairullah, who fled Syria in 1980 at age 5, says he and other Syrians came to the United States to escape a cruel and brutal dictatorship.
"That doesn't make me a terrorist or a terrorist sympathizer," the mayor said.
"There are 23 million Syrians in the world or in Syria," he said. "For him to label every single one of them as a possible terrorist including those who are under 5 years old is absolutely disgusting."
Khairullah has been mayor of Prospect Park for 10 years. He calls the Passaic County community diverse, estimating that Middle Eastern Muslims and Christians make up about 10-15 percent of the population. A small percentage of those are Syrian, he said.
"Knowing the governor, he's probably not going to apologize but I think he should," Khairullah said. "I think his statements were uncalled for, particularly by someone who's seeking to be the leader of our nation."
Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
State authorities have charged nine current and former U.S. Postal Service workers with each stealing $2,000 to $9,000 through fraudulent unemployment insurance claims.
TRENTON -- State authorities have charged nine current and former U.S. Postal Service workers with each stealing $2,000 to $9,000 through fraudulent unemployment insurance claims.
Three of the nine employees, including Ivory Downey, 41, of East Orange; Diana Rivera, 34, of Paterson; and Aaron J. Buie, 71, of Piscataway, were charged Monday with third-degree theft by deception. Six others, Mikikia C. Johnson, 40, of Jersey City; Gloria Long, 64, of Jersey City; Siobhan Austin, 40, of Irvington; Tea Graham-Gates, 45, of Jersey City; Eboni M. Bush, 35, of Plainfield; and Atalaya C. Haskins, 26, of Newark, were indicted earlier in October and November.
The charge carries a three to five year prison sentence and up to $15,000 in fines.
According to the Attorney General's Office, the nine workers "purposely misrepresented their unemployment status, or their hours worked and income earned" to the state labor department.
Between 2010 and 2015, they collected a combined $49,564 in unemployment benefits, authorities said.
ALSO: N.J. laws allowing cops to seize assets among 'worst in country,' report finds
It was not immediately known whether the defendants have attorneys.
"Unemployment insurance provides a financial safety net for New Jersey workers when they fall on hard times," Acting Attorney General John Hoffman said in a statement, "and we won't tolerate selfish criminals who lie about their employment status and steal from this critical fund."
Downey is accused of underreporting her income or days worked for 27 weeks to collect $8,721 while she worked at a postal distribution center in Kearny. Kearny center employees Haskins and Graham-Gates each collected $2,058 and $3,388, respectively, according to the Attorney General's Office.
During several stretches, Long underreported her income or reported she hadn't worked and received no income while she worked 1,000 hours for the postal service, authorities said.
Rivera, a former carrier assistant at the Elmwood Park Post Office, allegedly filed fraudulent unemployment insurance claims over 10 weeks in spring 2012, collecting $6,792.
As a carrier technician in Paramus, Austin earned $34,000 but reported earning less than $3,000, authorities said. She received $6,629 in unemployment benefits. Buie, a letter carrier for the Muhlenberg Station Post Office in Plainfield, and Bush, a carrier in New Brunswick, each received more than $2,000.
Austin and Haskins are suspended from their jobs, while the rest no longer work for the postal service, according to the Attorney General's Office.
Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
Pena and another man, Michael Campbell, conspired to distribute information that was previously deemed inadmissible, the Morris prosecutor said.
MORRISTOWN -- A 48-year-old man who was found guilty during his second trial in a Morris County rape case this month has been accused of trying to influence the jury during that trial.
Andrew Pena, formerly of Vernon and Hewitt, was found guilty on Nov. 10 on five charges, including first-degree aggravated sexual assault.
The jury found Pena guilty of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman outside a Butler bagel shop on Route 23 after 3 a.m. on Jan. 28, 2007.
Pena had been found guilty during a previous trial in 2009, but an appeals court reversed the verdict and ordered a new trial after deciding the trial judge had allowed the jury to hear too many details of a prior sex offense Pena had committed.
During the second, recently completed trial, an investigation was undertaken of attempts by Pena to influence the jury, Morris County Prosecutor Fredric Knapp said in a statement issued Tuesday. Pena represented himself during the second trial.
http://www.nj.com/morris/index.ssf/2015/11/man_again_found_guilty_of_raping_young_woman_outsi.html
Pena "conspired" with Michael Campbell, 44, of Wharton, to "distribute information that was previously deemed inadmissible," in an effort "to influence the jury," Knapp said.
Confidential documents provided to Pena were "duplicated, altered and then disseminated" in areas near the courthouse, Knapp said.
The investigation revealed communications between Pena and Campbell detailing their plans to give out the information, discussing how, when and where the materials would be distributed, Knapp said.
Campbell was arrested on Nov. 5 and charged with obstructing the administration of law and corrupting or influencing a jury, Knapp said.
On Tuesday, Pena was also charged with obstructing administration of law and corrupting or influencing a jury, Knapp said.
Pena, who was sentenced to nearly 28 years in prison following his first trial, was held on $300,000 bail after his conviction was reversed.
He is scheduled to be sentenced again on Dec. 4 following his conviction in the second trial.
No date has been set for a court appearance on the new charges, Knapp said.
During the second trial, Morris County Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Schellhorn told the jury that Pena told the young woman to move her car to an isolated area, and later went there and assaulted her. The woman had waited in the car while her friends went inside the shop.
Pena acknowledged he had been at the bagel shop that night, but said he was the victim of a mistaken identity and someone else had assaulted the woman.
Ben Horowitz may be reached at bhorowitz@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @HorowitzBen. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Flames could be seen in two side-by-side multifamily houses on North 4th Street in Paterson.
PATERSON -- Firefighters battled a five-alarm blaze Tuesday evening on North 4th Street in Paterson, city officials confirmed.
Flames could be seen in two side-by-side multifamily houses, climbing up the sides and shooting through the roofs, as firefighter aimed streams of water at the homes. Multiple trucks and ladder were on scene.
The fire was under control by 8:30, according to ABC 7.
The Red Cross said its Disaster Action Team responded to help the families affected displace by the fire that started at about 5:30 p.m. as well as city emergency services, according to Paterson Police Director Jerry Speziale.
#RedCross Disaster Action Team responding to help families affected by #fire in #Paterson. #rcdar
-- RedCrossNorthJersey (@RedCrossNorthNJ) November 18, 2015
According to NorthJersey.com, 19 adults and 15 children were displaced from 195 and 197 North 4th Street. One firefighter suffered a minor injury and was taken to a nearby hospital.
"The firefighters did a tremendous job keeping the fire from spreading," Speziale said.
None of the occupants were injured, Speziale said.
Early this month, the historic Paterson Armory was ravaged by a seven-alarm fire that took more than 100 firefighters to get under control.
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
The cause of a fire that displaced 19 adults and 15 children is under investigation Wednesday, fire officials said.
PATERSON -- The cause of a fire that displaced 19 adults and 15 children is under investigation Wednesday, fire officials said.
Firefighters arrived at a blaze at 195 North 4th St. about a minute after it was reported at 5:06 p.m. Tuesday, Paterson Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Hancock said. A unit was just down the street when the call came in.
There was heavy fire at the multifamily house when firefighters arrived, spreading to 197 North 4th St. Firefighters went into 195 North 4th St. but the fire forced them to back out.
The fire reached four alarms by 5:23 p.m., Hancock said. Firefighters went into 199 North 4th St. to keep the fire from spreading to that multifamily house. The fire never reached 199, but it took water, smoke and heat damage.
The fire was under control by 8:53 p.m. 195 and 197 North 4th St. were left uninhabitable. The heat from the fire damaged the siding on two houses on Haledon Avenue, just around the corner.
Two residents were hospitalized for smoke inhalation, Hancock said. Two firefighters suffered leg injuries and a third had a back injury. They were treated at St. Joseph's Medical Center for the minor injuries.
All the residents evacuated before firefighters arrived. The Red Cross Disaster Action Team provided temporary lodging, food and clothing to the displaced residents.
Firefighters were investigating the cause of the blaze, Hancock said.
Myles Ma may be reached at mma@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MylesMaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A 31-year-old man was shot in the upper arm Tuesday evening in Paterson, police said.
PATERSON -- A 31-year-old man was shot in the upper arm Tuesday evening in Paterson, police said.
Police responded to the area of Broadway and Madison Avenue at 6:15 p.m. on a reported shooting where they found a man with an apparent gunshot wound to his arm, Paterson police Detective Lt. Patrick Murray said.
The man was taken to St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center for treatment, Murray said. He was in stable condition as of Wednesday morning.
Based on the preliminary investigation, the man was in the area of 12th Avenue and East 22nd Street when he was approached on the passenger side of his vehicle by a male in a gray hooded sweatshirt, Murray said.
The male then opened the passenger door of the vehicle and produced a handgun, he said. As the driver tried to flee from the vehicle the male fired into the vehicle and struck him in the arm, he said.
The driver then drove his vehicle to the area of Broadway and Madison Avenue where he sought help at a nearby gas station, Murray said.
More information regarding the motive behind the shooting wasn't immediately available.
The investigation into this shooting is ongoing, Murray said.
Anyone with more information can contact Detective Edgar Taylor or Detective Edgar Torres of the Paterson Police Department's Ceasefire Unit at 973-321-1342. Information can also be forwarded anonymously by accessing the Paterson Police Department website at patersonpd.com.
Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
The Paterson Narcotics Division said it believes the nine pounds of pure heroin were heading to a processing mill in the city, Police Director Jerry Speziale said in a release.
PATERSON -- City police seized $2 million worth of heroin on Market Street Wednesday afternoon based on tip, authorities said.
The bust was made by Paterson Police and K-9 "Barry" at the intersection of 21st Avenue, 31st Street and Market Street at about 5 p.m., Police Director Jerry Speziale said in a release.
The Paterson Narcotics Division said it believes the nine pounds of pure heroin were heading to a processing mill nearby in the city, Speziale said.
Paterson resident Gabriel Mercado, whose age was unknown, was charged in connection with the drug bust.
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
This homeowner renovated the 1929 property himself.
N.J. Home Makeover is a new feature on NJ.com. To submit your renovation for consideration, email home@starledger.com with your full name, email address, phone number and town/city.
Spending the first night in your dream home on an air mattress with your dog is not so unusual when your movers haven't arrived with the furniture. But for Phil Lundquist and his black Labrador, Champion, the first night in their new home was a different experience entirely.
"When I moved in, I had no heat, no hot water, a window was blown out and there were leaves all over the floor," he said, recalling a chilly January night nearly three years ago. "I moved in anyway."
For Lundquist, recreating a sense of home after the end of a 35-year marriage meant finding a place in West Milford, a forested sportsman's paradise in the highlands of Passaic County. Previously, it had been his place to get away from it all and go fishing on one of the township's nearly 40 lakes.
And once he scraped away the years of grime with a razor blade, he would be able to see one of those lakes from his windows.
He identified a foreclosure property, a severely distressed 1929 log cabin at Lindy's Lake. He named it DintheR, an abbreviation for "diamond in the rough." As if the cabin's condition alone weren't a sufficient challenge, Hurricane Sandy hit days before Lundquist was scheduled to close, downing a 70-foot pine on a lot that would require a backhoe to clear masses of overgrown vegetation. His move-in date was delayed for months, and he grew weary of living in his daughter's attic.
The old log cabin up in the mountains was just what he had wanted: a project house he could restore with his own hands.
The work would be a meditation and a metaphor, perhaps, for rebuilding his own life at the same time.
With about 1,000 square feet of living space, the log cabin was the right size for a man and his dog.
Lunquist, 59, has had a more than 20-year career at Home Depot, where he handles large accounts for six stores. He describes himself as exceptionally handy. "If I can't fix it, it's not broken," he said.
Much was broken in his new home, and for 30 months, his tasks were guided by the seasons. In the first winter, he restored the electrical system so it passed code, and he replaced the water heater.
In the spring, he worked on the landscape, having soil trucked in to change the property's grade and redirect storm water. "I had to change the pitch so it ran out into the streets instead of into my basement," he said.
What he didn't already know how to do, he researched and learned, he said. More than a few areas required creative solutions. He needed to insulate the house, for instance, so he attached strips of wood between the exposed beams to support foam board insulation. The strips also created surfaces for him to nail up cuts of wood-like laminate flooring, repurposed for a stunning angular ceiling.
"I did it by myself on the ladder," said Lundquist. "None of the boards are evenly spaced, so I had to go up and measure, come down and cut. Go up and measure, come down and cut."
In the tiny kitchen, log walls were blocking the open floor plan he envisioned. "I was in the house with my chainsaw cutting the logs," he said. "I had never really used a chainsaw before. You didn't need a chainsaw in Bloomingdale, he said, referring to his previous hometown where he had lived with his wife and two now-grown daughters in a 3,300-square-foot 1890s Victorian.
In his new home, the chainsaw helped make room for French doors leading to the enclosed porch. It cut two corner walls to countertop height, leaving a base for a bar-style dining area topped with granite cut to match the configuration of the logs. On the other side, cabinetry supports a second granite slab and the sink.
While he worked on the kitchen, one of the home's two first-floor bedrooms became a makeshift pantry and storage area. "I slept in one bedroom, and the other bedroom was used for everything but a bedroom," he said.
By the time Lundquist finished the kitchen, it was spring. It was important to him to turn the exterior around because he wanted to show that the house was being cared for and on the rise. He built a fence over two summers, and he got to know his neighbors.
"Two of my good friends up here on the lake are masons," he said. "They poured me a new sidewalk in front of the house."
Lundquist continued work inside the house as the calendar changed. He sectioned off part of the enclosed wraparound porch for a walk-in storage closet for his vacuum and other household supplies. He also created a basement workshop to keep his tools, including the chainsaw, which is now used to split wood for the fireplace he repaired with a new insert.
While the bathroom's fixtures required a lot of scrubbing and scraping, it was the room that required least work, Lundquist said. The only problem was that the tub and shower were installed against a log wall, which was constantly getting wet. Because of the uneven log surface and the way the tub was installed, he could not apply tile or any other covering to waterproof it. So he painted it with five coats of white exterior paint.
Lundquist said he started out with a basic vision for the house, but it evolved along the way.
"I'm very eclectic," he said. "There's nothing stopping me from doing what I want. I always wanted to move into a place like this. With the divorce, I said, 'Now I can do whatever I want.' "
2 1/2 years
The kitchen, bedrooms, loft, porch, basement, electrical system, landscape, ceilings, closets, walkways. "The outside logs were the one thing I paid to have done," Lundquist said.
$65,000. Lundquist notes that there was no discount on any materials he purchased from Home Depot because the chain does not give employee discounts. "I pay the same price as everyone else," he said.
On the repairs to the home's exterior and the kitchen materials, including new cabinetry and a granite countertop.
"By doing so much work myself, with some help from great neighbors."
"Not sure I would do anything different," Lundquist said. "I purchased for $68,000. When I refinanced, the bank appraised it at $230,000. Not bad."
Kimberly L. Jackson may be reached at home@starledger.com. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A Wanaque man was arrested Wednesday after he fired a gun at the ground outside of his home while he was intoxicated, police said.
WANAQUE -- A borough man was arrested Wednesday after he fired a gun at the ground outside of his home while he was intoxicated, police said.
Vito Tafaro, 44, of Wanaque, was charged with disorderly conduct, Wanaque police said in a news release.
At 9:06 p.m., borough police received a 911 call from Pompton Lakes Police Department reporting a possible gunshot and women screaming on St. George Place in the Haskell section of the borough, police said.
Officers responded to the area and spoke with witnesses regarding the general location where the shot originated, police said. It was while police were speaking with the first 911 caller that another call came in requesting a welfare check on Tafaro, who was intoxicated, police said.
Three officers responded to the call as they believed it might be related to the gunshot call, police said. When they arrived, family members told the officers Tafaro was intoxicated and fired a handgun into the ground outside of his home, police said.
Officers then removed the family members to a safe are and made contact with Tafaro, police said. After speaking with him, Tafaro voluntarily exited the home and surrendered to the officers at the scene, police said.
He was then arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and given a court date of Dec. 3.
Tafaro was taken to Chilton Hospital for an evaluation, police said. His current medical status wasn't available Thursday morning.
Detectives Charles Sahanas and Edward Schroeder, who took over the investigation, were able to recover the Glock 43 handgun, bullet and shell casing from the scene, police said.
Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A 17-year-old boy was arrested after he pointed a loaded handgun at two city police officers who were chasing him early Thursday, authorities said.
The teen, whose name was not released because of his age, was also suspected of firing the gun in the air near Main and Mary streets around 3 a.m, according to police.
Patrol Officer Michael Avila responded to the gunfire and saw the teen walking toward his squad car, police said. The officer immediately held him at gunpoint, but the suspected shooter took off running.
Sgt. Donato DeAngelis joined the chase and noticed the teen had a silver handgun, according to police. The youth pointed the .45 caliber handgun toward the pursuing officers, leading them to take cover.
The teen then tossed the weapon about 15 feet up on the roof of a building and kept running, police said. Avila stayed with the gun while the sergeant chased down and overpowered the suspect in a nearby alley.
Footage from the city's camera system linked the teen to the early shots fired case, authorities said.
Police Director Jerry Speziale praised the response and restraint of the two officers.
"This situation could've turned out to be a very different set of circumstances, but based on the officers' quick actions this was defused and ended safely," the director said in a statement. "Thankfully, no officers were injured and the juvenile was transported to the juvenile detention center in Newark."
The teen faces charges, including aggravated assault, obstruction of a governmental function, resisting arrest by flight and receiving stolen property. Police said the gun was reported stolen from Pennsylvania.
Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Police said the woman's plan was uncovered by her post on social media saying, "silly piggies tricks are for u"
WAYNE -- A 25-year-old Parsippany woman gave police a false report of being attacked so that she could avoid a driving under the influence charge when leaving a bar in Wayne, according to Wayne police.
A key piece of evidence that led them to her, police said, was her social media post mocking "silly piggies."
Hayley Oates, from the Lake Hiawatha section of Parsippany, was charged with filing false reports to law enforcement and creating a false public alarm, according to police.
Police said they received a 911 call on Monday at 3:15 a.m. reporting "a female being attacked in the parking lot" of Mother's Ale House at 95 Mountain View Blvd.
The caller said the assailant was in a blue pick-up truck and then she "abruptly" hung up the phone, police said in a statement.
Police said they responded with "lights and siren," but found "no evidence or witness of the assault," and surveillance cameras did not show anything.
Detectives were later "informed" that it was a false 911 call placed so that police would go to Mother's and Oates and her unidentified male companion could leave the Grasshopper bar and grill at 26 Erie Ave. without being arrested for driving under the influence, police said.
Detective Sgt. Robert Simpson and Detective Dave Collins conducted an "extensive investigation" and were able to locate Oates, police said.
A major clue, police said, was a post by Oates on social media saying she was laughing over the fact that "2 mins later the cop peals out ... silly piggies tricks r for u."
Police added in their statement, "The Wayne Police Department takes these events extremely seriously ... Falsely creating a situation that requires officers to execute emergency response, indicating that an event exists that's a threat to life or property, is inexcusable and reprehensible behavior."
Ben Horowitz may be reached at bhorowitz@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @HorowitzBen. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
