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Inside 3,500-Square-Foot Gastropub Now Open In Bergen County Inside 3,500-Square-Foot Gastropub Now Open In Bergen County
Inside 3,500-Square-Foot Gastropub Now Open In Bergen County June 2023 was when Mike Madigan says he experienced the scariest moment of his life. The 44-year-old Wyckoff, NJ, dad had finally taken the leap on owning a bar and restaurant of his own and had everything he needed to move forward with the project. He had the lease. He had the architectural plans. And he had the approval from everyone he needed. All he needed was a construction company to agree to the work. "I spent a good three or four months calling construction companies and setting up appointments," said Madigan, a Burlington, MA native who by day works as a controller for Keller Wil…

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by Cecilia Levine
Business
Storied Disappearing Dumont Donkey Is Hero Mascot At Builder's New Ice Cream Shop Storied Disappearing Dumont Donkey Is Hero Mascot At Builder's New Ice Cream Shop
Storied Disappearing Dumont Donkey Is Hero Mascot At Builder's New Ice Cream Shop It was 2017 and Matt Dagistanli was in the process of building the structure that stands today at 65 W. Madison Avenue in Dumont, when his donkey went missing. He wasn't a real donkey, of course, but a statue that Dagistanli and his former business partner had affectionately called Dumbo. Dagistanli grew quite fond of Dumbo, and wasn't ready to get rid of him at the turn of his career change. "I didn’t want to sell it or throw it away, so I took it home," said Dagistanli, 63, of Rutherford. "My wife said, 'You need to take this away.'" Dagistanli had nowhere to keep Dumbo except for …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Human Remains Found At NJ Construction Site Not Believed To Be Suspicious: Prosecutors Human Remains Found At NJ Construction Site Not Believed To Be Suspicious: Prosecutors
Human Remains Found At NJ Construction Site Not Believed To Be Suspicious: Prosecutors Foul play was not suspected after human remains were found at a Jersey Shore construction site, authorities said. An analysis of the skeletal remains hasn't shown any evidence of the people's deaths being suspicious, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago and Wall Township police Chief Sean O'Halloran said in a news release on Friday, Apr. 19.  The remains were found on the 1100 block of Narrumson Road in Wall Township on Tuesday, Mar. 12. Work had just started on the foundation of a new home when the remains were discovered. A state police anthropologist perf…

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by Chris Spiker
News
Stop-Work Order: North Brunswick Company Cited Amid Newark Project Stop-Work Order: North Brunswick Company Cited Amid Newark Project
Stop-Work Order: North Brunswick Company Cited Amid Newark Project A Central Jersey construction company has been issued a stop-work order by the state's labor department. Blue Line Drywall and Builders Inc. of North Brunswick was subcontracted to install drywall at 355/365 Broad Street in Newark, the DOL said. The company was cited for improper classification of construction workers; failure to properly classify employees; minimum wage violations; failure to pay wages; earned sick leave records violations; earned sick leave notification/posting violations. A total of nine workers were impacted, the DOL said.

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by Cecilia Levine
Neighbors
Help Boy Scout Renovate Glen Ridge Ambulance Headquarters Help Boy Scout Renovate Glen Ridge Ambulance Headquarters
Help Boy Scout Renovate Glen Ridge Ambulance Headquarters A Boy Scout in Glen Ridge is raising money to refurbish the Glen Ridge Volunteer Ambulance Squad headquarters. Alan Breslin has set up a GoFundMe as part of his Eagle Project to help build the ambulance squad a new office area at its headquarters, providing them with a new desk, countertops and flooring that will allow the squad to better complete their electronic patient care reports. Breslin said the current space is dilapidated and inadequate for the volunteers As of Wednesday, May 10, $7,613 has been raised. Breslin said he was looking to raise $6,500 and that any extra money raised wil…

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by Sam Barron
Obituaries
Newark Motorcyclist Died Doing What He Loved Newark Motorcyclist Died Doing What He Loved
Newark Motorcyclist Died Doing What He Loved Helder Martins, 45, is being remembered as a loving father, son and brother.  A GoFundMe campaign has been created to assist the family. As of Wednesday, April 26, more than $13,000 has been raised.  Martins died in a motorcycle accident in Kearny on Friday, April 14. Born in Portugal, he came to the United States in 1996, living in Belleville, before moving to Newark. He worked as a foreman at JR Cruz Construction in Aberdeen and belonged to the Mondego Motorcycle Club in Kearny. "He lives behind many broken hearts," Marina Rodrigues said. "Helder's life was shortened while doing somethi…

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by Sam Barron
Business
Ground Level Beach Club Among Highlights Of Luxury Athletic Club Coming To Jersey Shore Ground Level Beach Club Among Highlights Of Luxury Athletic Club Coming To Jersey Shore
Ground Level Beach Club Among Highlights Of Luxury Athletic Club Coming To Jersey Shore A massive athletic club complete with a ground-level, resort-like beach club is under construction in Monmouth County. The Life Time facility in Middletown, its eighth in New Jersey, is expected to be complete in 2024. Click here to get on the wait list. Once finished, Life Time Middletown – Red Bank will provide a highly personalized, luxury approach to health and wellness with modern architecture, beautiful spaces and an abundance of amenities.  Highlights include: Three-floor building with an additional 50,000-square-foot, ground level outdoor beach club and bistro with leis…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
DREAM TEAM: Tiger Woods, MLB Star Mike Trout Building NJ Golf Course DREAM TEAM: Tiger Woods, MLB Star Mike Trout Building NJ Golf Course
Dream Team: Tiger Woods, MLB Star Mike Trout Building NJ Golf Course Baseball superstar Mike Trout has found the perfect teammate for his new golf course in his South Jersey hometown: Tiger Woods.  The two are collaborating on Trout's National — The Reserve, an 18-hole private course in Vineland, offering world class amenities, including a wedding chapel. Construction is set to begin this year with an opening expected in 2025. "We are so excited to be able to make a longtime dream of mine a reality," Trout, a three-time American League Most Valuable Player for the Los Angeles Angels, said on social media. Trout promised this would not be your grandpare…

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by Sam Barron
News
$1.3M Owed By Contractors Of Jersey City High-Rise For Labor Violations: State Officials $1.3M Owed By Contractors Of Jersey City High-Rise For Labor Violations: State Officials
$1.3M Owed By Contractors Of Jersey City High-Rise For Labor Violations: State Officials A multi-agency New Jersey probe resulted in 20 contractors being fined more than $1.3 million in back wages and penalties, state officials said. The contractors were performing construction work at 88 Regent St. in Jersey City. More than 60 investigators, including those from the state Attorney General's Office and Labor Department, conducted an unannounced sweep in the summer of 2021 in response to allegations of workers being underpaid or paid off the books. Grand Street Construction, LLC of Jersey City,  the owner/ general contractor on the project, did not return requests for comment.…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Body Found By Demolition Crew In Jersey City Home Body Found By Demolition Crew In Jersey City Home
Body Found By Demolition Crew In Jersey City Home A demolition crew found a body on the second floor of a Jersey City home under construction last week, officials confirmed. The man's body was found around 12:15 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 29, at the home under construction on 10 Irving St., city spokesperson Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione said. The house had been vacant since suffering heavy damage in a fire in August 2021. Demolition stopped immediately upon the discovery and members of the Jersey City Fired Department used their equipment to safely gain access to the structure and to remove the body.  The cause of death does not appear sus…

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by Cecilia Levine
Business
This NJ Hospital Is Getting $2 Billion Expansion This NJ Hospital Is Getting $2 Billion Expansion
This NJ Hospital Is Getting $2 Billion Expansion A major $2 billion expansion to Cooper University Hospital was announced Monday, Sept. 19 in Camden.  Gov. Phil Murphy and former Gov. Chris Christie were among the prominent officials at a ceremony welcoming the new venture that will take a decade to complete, hospital officials said. The new investment – the largest in Camden County’s history – will dramatically expand the academic health system’s Camden campus to meet the current and future projected demand at Cooper University Hospital and MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper. The $2 billion expansion will add three new clinical to…

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by Jon Craig
Real Estate
Hoboken Hilton One Step Closer To Reality Hoboken Hilton One Step Closer To Reality
Hoboken Hilton One Step Closer To Reality The Hoboken Hilton is one step closer to becoming a reality. KMS Development Partners, the company behind the plan to build the 20-story hotel on the south end of Hoboken’s waterfront, closed on a subdivided US Postal Service (USPS) lot located on Sinatra Drive between Newark Street and First Street on Aug. 3. After 10 years of working with the USPS and pursuing local permitting approvals, the purchase of the property marks the latest in a long list of project development milestones and brings the project one step closer to becoming a reality. The hotel will be located on the subdivided lot…

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by Cecilia Levine