Hot topics: We make room for a new EV; lazy Democrats and a nail-biting election; The Record again stiffs its wretched staff

A NEW EV IN OUR GARAGE: Our new 2021 Tesla Model Y, above, has all-wheel drive and a maximum range of 330 miles. We charge it overnight in our garage when the battery is down to about 30 percent of capacity.

OUR OTHER TESLA: I bought this 2016 Tesla Model S 75D, left, in November 2019, when the luxury, all-wheel drive, 4-door hatchback had only about 7,600 miles on the odometer. It's the best car I've ever owned, and faster than my first EV, a 2015 Tesla Model S 60, which had a smaller battery and rear-wheel drive.

Trump's coup failed, but country

seems more divided than ever

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- When I turned 77 last week, I thought life is good:

I'm healthy, I get plenty of exercise food shopping and volunteering at a hospital a total of 4 days to 5 days a week, and we have a new zero-emissions Tesla in the garage.

But then I muttered, "What the fuck?" last Wednesday as I read the news that the election for governor in New Jersey was too close to call.

This with Democrats having a registration edge in the state over Republicans of more than 967,000, according to New Jersey Globe, so I should have been cursing Dems too lazy to get off their asses to vote or fill out a mail-in ballot.

Voter apathy

Did the apathy that paralyzes voters in Hackensack spread statewide, as Governor Murphy sought election to a second term, which a Democrat hadn't accomplished since 1977?

Could Murphy's opponent -- a former, not even a current Republican state assemblyman who lied like Trump during the campaign -- actually take the State House and wreak havoc in a nightmarish scenario recalling the 8 miserable years we experienced under that GOP thug, Chris Christie?

Yes. I buy cars painted red, but always vote blue.

MAIL-IN BALLOTS: On the day before the Nov. 2 election, I took the last of our 4 mail-in ballots to a drop box at the Bergen County Administration Building in Hackensack. Although the mail-in ballot is still a challenge to fill out, we have been using them to vote in every election, big and small, for many years, long before the pandemic.

New Jersey and Virginia

Well, eventually, Murphy was declared the winner in New Jersey, but in Virginia, a Democrat was defeated by a Republican for governor, as Richmond seemed to be reclaiming the title of "capital of the Confederacy."

"Save your Dixie cups, the South will rise again," my high school art teacher used to say. Indeed. 

News coverage of the New Jersey and Virginia elections was short on issues and long on polls and opinion writers trying to predict the future.

So, I was shocked to read a New York Times story about Murphy's narrow victory that reported the Democrat's "aggressive approach to controlling the [Covid-19] pandemic became a focal point of the bid to unseat him."

The TV and radio news had said little, if anything, about Murphy's Covid-19 policies during the campaign leading up to the election on Nov. 2. 

The pandemic

So, now we can add pandemic policies -- as well as anti-vaccine and anti-mask zealots in Trump counties asserting their right to die in droves -- to gun rights, abortion and racism as among the forces dividing us under President Joe Biden.

As hard as it is to believe nearly a year after Covid-19 vaccines first became available, the virus still kills more than 1,200 people a day in the United States, nearly all of them unvaccinated, according to The Times. 

I LIKE HATCHBACKS: The Model Y is a 4-door hatchback, one in a long line of hatchbacks I've owed -- from the forgettable Mustang II to a 1986 Toyota Celica to a 1988 Toyota Celica All-Trac turbo to 4 Toyota Priuses, one of which we still have, and the Tesla Model S.

SEXY CURVE: No design feature in our new Tesla Model Y or any other car I know can match the elegance of the curved door pull on each of the 4 doors in my Tesla Model S. I keep an eyeglass cleaning cloth in the space in the driver's door, but there is room for a pair of glasses or loose change for tolls.

PESCATARIAN'S DELIGHT: Jumbo Shrimp, above, and a beautifully composed Mahi-Mahi Ceviche with avocado, tomato and cilantro, below, were just 2 of the courses in a lavish lunch my wife and I enjoyed at The Hill in Closter to celebrate my birthday last week.

AN EMPTY DINING ROOM: The Hill is the best seafood restaurant in northern New Jersey, when price is no object. But we were the only customers seated in the large dining room for lunch last Thursday.

The Record's wretched staff

The staff of The Record complained in a tweet last week that they have been denied raises by Gannett, the newspaper conglomerate that bought the former Hackensack-based daily along with the other papers and (201) magazine from the Borg family.

Calling themselves The Record Guild, they said they formed a union along with the staffs of two other newspapers, but that apparently has given them little muscle.

They refer to The Record, where I worked for more than 30 years, by the antiquated name of "The Bergen Record."

The daily newspaper also was called "The Wretched" by many critics.

Sold for $40M in cash

In the years before the July 2016 sale, then-Publisher Stephen A. Borg executed the biggest downsizing in The Record's history, moved the staff to Woodland Park, froze raises in the newsroom and then laughed all the way to the bank with the nearly $40 million in cash handed over by Gannett.

By March of 2017, Gannett had laid off more than 350 NJMG employees.

Borg became a partner in the construction of hundreds of luxury apartments being built along River Street after tearing down The Record's landmark Hackensack headquarters and a diner.

"OK, so where are our raises?" The Record Guild tweeted the other day in response to word Gannett is making progress in growing digital subscriptions -- more than 1.5 million across the chain, according to Poynter.org.

My advice to the dwindling number of staffers at The Record: "Suckers, don't hold your breath."

And those who formed a union -- notably Columnist Mike Kelly -- clearly waited much too long before doing so -- like 3 years too long.

READ: Many readers say Gannett 

turned The Record ino a rag

Bounced from Hackensack slate, official accepts backing of discredited Zisa family

WHAT IS HE HIDING? In this April 2018 photo taken at a Hackensack City Council meeting, then Board of Education President Jason Nunnermacker, in a black hoodie, hides from a cellphone camera. Now, Nunnermacker is serving as spokesman for Deputy Mayor David Sims, who was dropped from Mayor John Labrosse's slate in the upcoming council election.

 Deputy Mayor David Sims

heads own ticket on May 11

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Deputy Mayor David Sims is a walking contradiction.

Sims has served on the Hackensack City Council since 2013, when he and four others first won election on a reform platform after decades of rule by the Zisa family and its allies.

But after he was dumped from Mayor John Labrosse's council slate for violating the Covid-19 lockdown at City Hall, Sims has enlisted Zisa allies to run with him and serve as his spokesman in the May 11 council election.

And they've chosen to call themselves the "Coalition for Clean Government."

So, here's the contradiction: 

Is Sims saying that since 2013, he's been part of a governing council that wasn't "clean"?

A third slate

A third slate of candidates in the non-partisan May 11 election is led by Leila Amirhamzeh, development director of New Jersey Citizen Action and a former member of the Hackensack Board of Education.

Sims "is turning to the Zisa political dynasty for financial and political backing," Jason DeAlessi, a spokesman for the Amirhamzeh slate, told NorthJersey.com.

"The people of Hackensack are tired of the same political fights of the past and deserve better," DeAlessi said.

MAIL-IN VOTING: We've already received our 4 mail-in ballots for the non-partisan Hackensack City Council election on May 11, as well as campaign material from the Labrosse Team.

MAYOR AND COUNCIL: From left, Councilwoman Stephanie Von Rudenborg, Deputy Mayor Kathleen Canestrino, Mayor John Labrosse (seated), Deputy Mayor David Sims and Councilman Leonardo Battaglia (2017 photo from City of Hackensack).

Sims' spokesman

In a March 19 story in the Hackensack Chronicle, NorthJersey.com quoted Jason Nunnermacker as a spokesman for Sims.

Nunnermacker, a lawyer who is a key ally of the Zisa family, served as Board of Education president and ran unsuccessfully for the City Council.

Nunnermacker noted Sims' past electoral successes, saying they were the result of "his devotion to our community," according to NorthJersey.com.

'Zisaville'

The Zisa family's decades-long grip on Hackensack turned the city into a laughing stock called "Zisaville."

Jack Zisa, the former 4-term mayor (1989-2005), tried to return to power in the 2017 City Council election by backing a 5-member slate, just as he is doing now.

His father, the late Frank Zisa, served 16 years on the City Council and as mayor for one term (1977-81); his brother, Ken Zisa, was the city's police chief for many years and served in the state Assembly (1994-2002); another brother, Frank Zisa Jr., served as deputy police chief; and a cousin, Joseph C. Zisa Jr., was the city attorney for many years.

When the Zisas ruled Hackensack, greed, nepotism and partisan politics were king, as I reported in 2017.

READ: When the Zisas ruled Hackensack...

READ: The Record was clueless 

on Zisas' bid to regain control of city

Pandemic idles paving work at H Mart, apartment construction at old Record site

NO SALE: The new H Mart on Bergen Turnpike in Little Ferry is marooned in a sea of paving material behind a wall of concrete blocks, above and below, but work to level and finish the parking lot of the Korean supermarket and the rest of the new shopping center appears to have been suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic.

260 BERGEN TURNPIKE: The 14.6-acre shopping center site is owned by 250 Little Ferry TL LLC of Englewood Cliffs and assessed at $12.5 million. The owner paid $407,500 in property taxes in 2019.

GARDEN APARTMENTS: Garden apartments border the construction site, above and below.

OLD H MART: In front of the old H Mart on Wednesday, the only sign of activity was this excavation power shovel being operated atop a huge pile of paving material, above and below.

CLOSED JULY 31: The old H Mart in Little Ferry closed last July 31, forcing customers to drive to the chain's Korean supermarkets in Ridgefield or Fort Lee until the new store opens.

IDLE BUILDING SITES: Meanwhile, at the old site of The Record in Hackensack, above right and below, I saw no activity on Wednesday, postponing the dreams of the original owners, the Borg family, of further riches. They sold North Jersey Media Group, their newspaper-and-magazine publishing company, to Gannett for nearly $40 million in cash in July 2016, but held onto nearly 20 acres along River Street.

RUSSO DEVELOPMENT: The Borgs have partnered with Russo Development, based in Carlstadt. The company website says Vermella Hackensack at 150 River St. will include 653 luxury apartments (studio to 3 bedrooms) and 17,000 square feet of retail, with the first phase to open by 2021.

-- VICTOR E. SASSON

A stroll on Main Street: New restaurants and apartments, but where do you park?

SIGN OF THE TIMES: A sign in the window of Frank's Shoe Repair at 179 Main St. in Hackensack could serve as a theme for the city's ambitious downtown redevelopment.

NOW LEASING: The apartment project at Main and Salem streets is now leasing, according to signs on the building, and on Thursday, a homeless man and woman made themselves at home on one of the new benches. Cap Diner is expected to open in January 2020 with "plans for farm-to-table dining using locally sourced and farm-fresh foods," according to BoozyBurbs.com.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Who doesn't like to eat?

More than a half-dozen new ethnic restaurants opened on or near Main Street this year as work continued to complete nearly a dozen apartment buildings.

Another development in 2019 is that the most ambitious project -- 382 apartments above street-level retail at Main and Mercer streets -- no longer is just a big hole in the ground, where work stopped after damaging an adjacent building in July 2o16.

New parking meters take both coins and credit cards, but to patronize Main Street restaurants and other businesses blocks from free lots on State Street or the municipal garage on Atlantic Street, residents and visitors still have to scramble for parking.

Less parking?

Hackensack may be in the midst of a renaissance, as city officials say, but the long-delayed conversion of Main Street to 2-way traffic is expected to reduce street parking even more.

Other projects include:

• At 150 River St., former headquarters of The Record, the Borgs, who sold the paper to Gannett in July 2016, and their development partners plan to build 654 units in three phases, plus 18,000 square feet of retail.
• On the parking lot near the Midtown Bridge, a building with 374 apartments is planned, and a building with 88 units is going up at 22 Sussex St.
• On the former site of the Oritani Field Club at East Camden and River streets, a developer is finishing a 5-story building with 254 apartments across the street from the Toyota dealer.
• Hackensack, Bergen County and NJ Transit are working on a mixed-use development on the site of the former County Probation Department on River Street. The bus station would be expanded, and the 6-story structure would have 140 apartments and 300 public parking spaces. 
• Two more projects are 389 Main St., where 83 apartments are going up where Main Street turns and connects with State Street; and 435 Main St, where 230 apartments and 5 2-bedroom townhouses are planned.

You can find a complete list on the city's website at Hackensack redevelopment, but many of the so-called fact sheets are woefully out of date.

READ: Ethnic restaurants pop up in Hackensack

MAIN STREET CONSTRUCTION ZONE: Apartment projects stretch from Main and Anderson streets, above -- where 430 Main St. will have 40 1-bedroom apartments -- to Sussex Street, where another building is going up on the former site of the Social Security office.

BIG HEADACHE: 150-170 Main St., a 14-story residential-retail building at Main and Mercer streets, has proven to be a big headache to businesses like Art of Spice, an Indian restaurant that lost parking spaces on Main. In July 2016, pile driving cracked the foundation of a building and day care center next door to the excavation; the day care center was evacuated, and eventually, the building was condemned and torn down.

210 MAIN: The former United Jersey Bank building is being converted into luxury apartments, including 3 duplex penthouses.

CLOSED FOR NOW: Art of Spice at 159 Main St. closed after a fire in an adjacent building, according to a notice on the front door. When the Indian restaurant was open, parking spaces in the rear were far from appetizing so we'd try to find a space on the street or go elsewhere.

OPEN AND SHUT CASE: Yasou Paros, which calls itself a Greek rotisserie, opened in the first week of July on the same block as Art of Spice and served big salads and delicious Greek specialties, but closed sometime this month. On Thursday, a sign on the front door said the store was closed for vacation and would reopen after Labor Day (Sept. 2). Guess what? It's still closed.

THE WOOLWORTH: Across the street from 150-170 Main St., The Woolworth will offer 4,000 square foot of retail topped by 4 floors of apartments.

MORE PARKING IN 2 YEARS? The Alcova Cos., many months behind schedule on completion of 150-170 Main St., has purchased a law office and other businesses on Main Street, above, and plans to tear them down for a parking lot, but tenants have been given 2 years to vacate, one said on Thursday.

PUBLIC ART MURAL: In the Demarest Place Walkway just off Main Street, you'll find artist Damien Mitchell's mural, "Greetings from The Sack," above and below. Presumably, "The Sack" is an abbreviation for Hackensack I am not familiar with despite working at The Record for nearly 30 years before the Borgs moved the paper to Woodland Park, and living here since 2007.

WHY COLTRANE? The mural includes legendary saxophonist John Coltrane, above left. Coltrane once was part of the bebop group led by pianist Thelonious Monk, but didn't play on a Monk tune called "Hackensack," which was recorded in 1954 in a home studio on Prospect Avenue that is long gone.

DON'T LITTER: A colorful reminder not to litter at Main and East Salem streets, above and below.

NOT MUCH LITTER: I didn't see much litter on Main Street, but many of the storefronts are run down or empty, and owners seem to be holding onto them, hoping to make a killing by selling out to a developer.

MAIN STREET VETERANS: V&T Salumeria, above left, one of the oldest restaurants on Main Street, and Galapagos Restaurant survived the decision by the Borg family to move more than 1,000 workers out of Hackensack and close The Record's headquarters in 2009.

TODAY'S SPECIALS: The Ecuadorian specials at Galapagos Restaurant on Thursday included Fish Soup and Cow Feet Soup.

MAIN STREET NEWCOMER: Pho Saigon was opened by a young Vietnamese couple who moved to New Jersey from Queens, N.Y., and renovated the space long occupied by Wondee's Fine Thai Food and Noodles.

WRAPPING IT UP: An appetizer of Crispy Veggie Spring Rolls ($7.99) at Pho Saigon.

At the Jersey shore, they ran or walked 5K, but I headed straight for the lobster buffet

LOBSTER RUN: Runners crossing the start line on Saturday afternoon in Asbury Park for the 3rd annual 5K Run/Walk To Care For The Coast, a fundraiser for the American Littoral Society, above and below.

FISH HEAD: Head gear included this fish head, but others wore lobster or squid heads. A delicious lobster buffet awaited runners and walkers at the Langosta Lounge on Ocean Avenue.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

ASBURY PARK -- I'm always amazed and delighted at how a drive of less than 65 miles on the Garden State Parkway takes me back decades to summers on the New Jersey Shore.

On Saturday, I drove down to this faded shore resort with my wife for a 5K run/walk and lobster buffet -- a fundraiser to benefit the coastal-conservation programs of the American Littoral Society, a non-profit I joined in the 1990s.

To avoid a repeat of last year, when the buffet ran out before the last walkers were served, we did a brisk 2.5-mile walk on the boardwalk before the official 2 p.m. start, and were first on line for the delicious buffet.

Our next stop was nearby Bradley Beach, where my parents owned a summer home from the late 1940s until the late 1970s.

Brooklyn to Bradley

Every summer, we drove there from Brooklyn, shopped in the farmer's market across the tracks in Neptune, and welcomed my mother's brothers and sisters and their families for extended stays in the 8-bedroom house with a wraparound porch.

We usually stopped at the Neptune market after picking up my father at the railroad station on his return from running his dry goods store on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.

My mother, who like my father was born in Aleppo, Syria, cooked her Sephardic Jewish specialties every night, and the refrigerator was always full of leftovers for lunch and snacks or sandwiches in fresh pocket bread.

Great memories. 

See:

In 2017, no crustaceans

 were harmed at Lobster Run

The harsh realities

 of trying to save the coast

LOBSTER TWO WAYS: The buffet at the Langosta Lounge on Saturday included a sinful Lobster Macaroni and Cheese, foreground, and a chilled half Maine lobster from The Lusty Lobster, a seafood market in Highlands.

LUNCH BUFFET: The format of the fundraising run/walk and buffet was switched to the afternoon this year after last year's morning event and brunch included only scrambled eggs with lobster; no half lobsters were served last year.

TOMATO PIE: Before driving back to Hackensack, we stopped at Vic's, an Italian-American restaurant in Bradley Beach that opened in 1947. I ordered a large thin-crust whole-wheat pizza with onions, garlic and anchovies to go.

FULL MENU: Vic's has a full menu and a liquor license.

WEBSITE: Vic's Italian-American Restaurant is at 60 Main St. in Bradley Beach.

WRAPAROUND PORCH: A house on Third Avenue in Bradley Beach.

Asbury Park renewal

Every time we visit Asbury Park, there seems to be little progress on renewing the boardwalk, although many new apartments have been built a few blocks away in the business district.

When I worked at The Record of Hackensack in the late 1980s, I was sent to the faded resort to write about promises of renewal.

Here are some photos I took on Saturday:

AT A STANDSTILL: Not much has changed on this section of the Asbury Park boardwalk, above and below, since our last visit a year ago.

RESIDENTIAL PROJECT: From the boardwalk in front of the Langosta Lounge, we could see and hear work on what looks like a residential high-rise.

ROCKERS' ROOTS: The Stone Pony, know for launching rockers Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi, is going strong.

SPLISH SPLASH: A splash park for children is a bright spot on the boardwalk.