Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.


Messages - Edwin

Pages: 1 2 [3]
31
Hackensack Discussion / Re: A day in Hackensack
« on: June 02, 2012, 04:22:41 PM »

32
Hackensack Discussion / A day in Hackensack
« on: June 02, 2012, 04:21:20 PM »
So, I went to this soccer game at Johnson Park, played. Before I went, I had to pee, so I walked around to this area behind a block wall, and peed in some bushes. I didn't know what the hell this area was. It looked like some kind of shooting range. Maybe from back in the day when schools had rifle clubs/classes? Also, a couple of groundhogs live in the corner of the fence and the wall, because when I went back to take these pictures, they ran back into their holes. Anyway, this area was very pretty and nice and quiet on this gorgeous day. In the back there was trees and stuff, and some kind of tall wall built of large timbers or something. There was a nice tall willow tree.






33
Events & Calendar / Re: Pick-up Soccer Saturday's
« on: June 02, 2012, 02:11:29 PM »
Yup, it's going to be every Saturday through the Summer. Apparently one of the guys knows someone from the rec center, and got a permit for the whole summer.
So that's 9:30 AM Saturdays, Johnson Park. You want to drive in off river st where it says "Hackensack DPW", the field is in the back.

34
Events & Calendar / Pick-up Soccer Saturday's
« on: June 01, 2012, 12:44:29 PM »
9:30 AM at Johnson Park. Pick-up Soccer game. Got this from meetup.com, but I doubt actually using it to join in is a necessity (I might not even RSVP), maybe just need to pay a dollar.
I believe this may be a regular thing every Saturday. Otherwise they'll be using another field somewhere else in Bergen County.

35
OK, here's a kid who knows Hackensack pretty well, was born and raised in Bergen county, and lives in Hackensack:  we need more transit. There's no good reason hundreds of miles of rail in NJ alone should go unused for passenger service. I look forward to the line opening that will go to Hawthorne.
And I'm especially looking forwards to the Tenafly line opening up. As if sitting outside at that old quaint building in Tenafly eatling lunch with my big fluffball samoyed dog there isn't wonderful enough, eventually we'll have a train to watch as it goes by too, it'll only add to Tenafly's Americana/Norman Rockwell feel, and all the commuters will get the chance to see the cutest dog in the tri-state area.

36
Hackensack Discussion / Re: Hi everybody, moved to Hackensack
« on: February 24, 2012, 05:51:03 PM »
Try again. Actually read what I wrote.  I modified no wiring
I simply made lamps myself, rather than buying them, but with a specific shape (capable of being hung on the ceiling flush with it)

37
Hackensack Discussion / Re: Hi everybody, moved to Hackensack
« on: February 23, 2012, 02:59:50 PM »
if you were paying attention you'd notice that what I described I did because it WASN'T illegal or against my lease/modifying the property, since I made plug-in objects. I can own and plug in whatever electronics I want - its personal property, not real property. So I made myself plug-in lights that hang from the ceiling. Get it? You can already buy hanging lamps like this, but they're still lamps that aren't that bright and have the stupid lamp shade which further lowers the light. So I made my own out of light fixtures so they're more like light fixtures in a house.

The only thing the things I made are lacking, bureaucratically speaking, are any sort of product testing or checking to see if they match any standards. However I know my lease doesn't say anything about what I can and can't plug in, what the hell kind of lease would say something weird like that? And I know there are no laws written like that - there are laws governing the nature of the outlets and their wiring (building codes), and federal and state laws governing the standards and performance of the outlets that are sold (product safety and standards laws), and there are also product saftety and standard laws for products that plug into outlets, but those are for things that are sold, like most stuff that you own and is marketed on a national level, not personally made and used by the maker.
And since I know full well what I'm doing, since I work in the construction industry and understand electronics pretty well and have always been a bit of a nerd and so understood electricity/electronics for a good long time since high school, I think I'll be OK. I wired it appropriately (hot to hot, neutral to neutral), I know full well the wattage they're taking up and ccan easily see/guess which other outlets are on the same line, so I know what else I can plug in, and I know full well the fire-related risks with the heat and electricity, and mounted the lights to deal with that (they're mounted directly onto the drywall, but the cord going to them necessitates a little gap so they're not completely flush, creating a vent space for heat).

So, in short, I think I'll be OK. These have been used for months, and my big screen TV has been on at the same time with them AND the microwave too. No shorts, no power surges/flickering/temporary dimming, and not even any heat discoloration anywhere.

38
Hackensack Discussion / Hi everybody, moved to Hackensack
« on: February 22, 2012, 05:43:51 PM »
Hi everyone, I guess I should have posted a while ago I moved to Hackensack recently. I was living with my parents (more out of choice than necessity, I mean, they live in Alpine, my brothers are still there, and we have the cutest dog in the world, a big fluff samoyed), and this is my first place. I picked Hackensack because it's closer to the city on the train line (I like to do stuff in the city, especially produce/fruit/food shopping in the city, esp Chinatown), and I could get a 1BR cheap here, and there's a lot of stuff here, and I'm close to everything/the highways, and I like living in an urban where I can walk to places, and where everything is close. Not the greatest building, a bit dilapidated, had to fix some things, but it's cheap. I'm in the New Bridge Landing area.

It's turned out nice, there really is everything here, Battista dance studio, Bergen PAL for boxing (going to try), and the ice house. I've been thinking of joining the adult hockey league for the Spring season, very amateur, Division 8, I don't want to take anything too seriously, I've got a 9-5, just want to enjoy myself, and I've always liked Hockey, my cousins and I used to play roller hockey all the time. Anybody know people on the league?
How about a field, and soccer? Only big open field I know is Johnson Park, or FDU's facilities if that's even an option. I feel like finding a soccer league for the summer would be harder. Anybody know anyone that just plays games regular? I just moved here so I don't know a lot of people.

Some questions about the coming redevelopment - the Main Street thing. Will White Manna be torn down for that? Am I going to have to rebuild that? :-P Seriously though, I'd hate to see one of our quaint pieces of NJ history go, and I work in land development. Where does the "rehabilitation" or whatever zone stretch? I remember reading here someone wrote from Passaic st down to "The mazda dealership", but there is no Mazda Dealership AFAIK. There's a Toyota dealership on river st. Anyone have any links for this forum? Can't seem to find your guys' relevant posts on the topic

And what's going on with The Record property? What's it going to be turned into?

And since we're on an NJ-town forum, let me share a little Bergen County dream/idea I've had, maybe it could be done in one of these towns with all the urban redevelopment going on, like Hackensack, or Edgewater or Weehawken. Growing up here, enjoying the wonderful small town/ small city vibe, trying all the restaurants, the only thing better than sit-outside restaurants, where I can bring my big white teddy bear of a dog, like Angelique's in Tenafly or the restaurants in Piermont, that I would so enjoy when I eventually get married and start a family (see? I am a Jersey Boy), would be some sort of roof-top restaurant, preferably with a water view. How great would that be? Quiet (since it's on a roof), and with a view. I'd build that at cost/non-profit if I knew it could be approved.

Other than that, I guess I could share some info with you guys. I know that somewhere near Kansas street, near the large office building with the dull yellow fiberglass curtain wall (you'll see dull yellow "siding" with the spaghetti-looking fibers in it), there's a house where some guy raises chickens. I always hear chickens just over the wall of the parking lot when I go to that building, which I need to do for work sometimes.
And something else to chew on, my apartment didn't have many lights when I moved in, just the plugs for lamps, and a switch in one room controlling an outlet, with the idea being, like I said, for you to put lamps. Well I don't like lamps. Crappy low light where shadow is always an issue because the point source is low on the side of the room (ever tried to read a book like that?), plus they take up floor space and get knocked over all the time. So what I did was buy ceiling fixtures, like for a house, and sautered plugs to the wiring (don't do this obviously if you don't know this stuff well), and installed them on the ceiling with screws in the drywall, and taped extension cords going up from the plugs to plug into them, and used those plug-in dimmer switches for lamps. So now I have house-quality lighting, with dimming capability, and switches convenient at my front door. Not so aesthetic, but the quality of light and convenince is great.

39
Hackensack Discussion / Re: Ode to Hackensack (Seriously)
« on: October 06, 2011, 01:59:00 PM »
Quote
Hackensack may not have much outward aesthetique, much visible local color

Disagreed. While it may not have more modern construction, and that pristine, pretty look, like redevloped, expensive, yuppie areas like in Hoboken or Jersey City, it has that older, historic, Norman-Rockwell-painting look. Older buildings of actual brick construction, with the ornate masonry decorations attached at the tops of the buildings or over the doorways. The former is TOO pretty, and comes across as "fake" and/or cloying somehow. I mean, I like it too, but I kind of prefer the latter look. Westwood and Tenafly also have it (the latter), and Bergen county in general has that look in all the downtown areas. Has more character.

Of course one of the biggest things is livability. You've got the train*. And Costco, and international food warehouse over the hill in Lodi, Anderson Street market and Giant Farmer's market also have some ethnic foods, the restaurants, a few gyms, riverside square mall, at least one furniture store, etc. Half these things are walking distance from one of the train stations*, which is great because you can avoid driving

*the train really is far better than any other public transportation. The buses or NYC's subways are no comparison. They're all on old freight lines, so the tracks and thus the travel path are very smooth, and it isn't rapid-transit so it doesn't stop/start hard. The ride is EXTREMELY smooth. Plus it's roomy since there are so many cars and so many seats, you can sit peacefully and privately. Plus the huge engines provide great climate control inside. Plus the sheer size combined with the gravel-bed track (also the lack of a need to go fast and change tracks since again it's not like the subway, it's not rapid transit), makes it also a really quiet ride. Plus, you're above ground, so you get a great view with the gentle rolling motion of the train. And moreover, it isn't driving. I hate driving.

Driving the is most convenient form of travel, but by far the least fun/most annoying.

40
I can second Bangkok Garden. It's probably one of the best/most authentic in the tri-state area, unless there is some other one run by Thais sticking to the original taste. Most other places I've been too rely too much on peanuts and sweetness to cater to American tastes.

I also like Sayat Nova for Armenian/Middle Eastern/Mediterranean. It's just south of Atlantic street

41
Hackensack Discussion / Re: good/bad areas of hackensack?
« on: September 16, 2011, 08:41:59 PM »
I've picked up dinner at night (around 9:00ish) to take home from Bangkok Garden at least once 5+ years ago, Main didn't seem that bad - no worse than any other street at night

You know what, here's my two cents after looking more for an apartment; I doubt Anderson can be that bad, because even though it sort of looked "ghetto" to me, the rents are more expensive there! I'm picking more the New Bridge Landing/Kinderkamack Bend area because I get more apartment for the same money

I know there are some homeless people in Hackensack, but are there really ex-cons wandering around? That can't be good


42
Hackensack Discussion / Re: 24-story tower for Summit Avenue
« on: September 16, 2011, 08:18:51 PM »
why don't they pay taxes? Hackensack has a medical building exemption or something, for its realty taxes?

43
Hackensack Discussion / good/bad areas of hackensack?
« on: August 11, 2011, 10:24:25 AM »
Hi,
might be renting in Hackensack soon. Want to be within walking distance of one of the train stations. What I was wondering is what areas are "bad" or higher-crime. I know that Hackensack, being in Bergen County, doesn't have much crime to worry about at all, but I may come back by myself or with a date from NYC some night later at night like 11:00 or later from the train station. How is the Anderson Street area? Do homeless people sleep in Anderson Park? The whole area has a bit of a seedy feel to it, and there were plenty of people just loitering, then again it was like 5:00 pm, so everbody would be back from work at that time. And I thought I saw some homeless guys in Anderson Park. Would the area on Main street around New Bridge Landing be better? I don't know why, but it "looks" better? Is that even meaningful?  I mean on the one hand it's a busier street, so in theory criminals wouldn't do as much stuff there because they don't want so many eyes on them. Then again why wouldn't a residential area like Anderson st be better in that regard? Makes me wonder about the whole issue of which areas of towns actually experience more crime and don't. I don't know if I can believe the whole "look" thing. I know Prospect ave. is the nice area of town, but is it really going to have less crime when it's only a block or two away from a seedy-looking area like Anderson Street?
How about the Essex street are, up on the hill. Again, somehow because it's a busy, open street it looks less "bad".

How about the downtown Main street? Would it be dangerous one night to just walk to a restaurant and eat there and walk back, let's say 9:00-10:00 with a date?

Or have I overall just gotten too used to Northern Bergen County?

44
Hackensack Discussion / Re: North Hackensack Pathmark to close
« on: August 08, 2011, 01:28:47 PM »
may buy a multi-family in Hackensack some time in the next few years (and may start renting out there even sooner)

One "area" I have looked at is the Kinderkamack/Johnson area with all the condos (and the more house-filled area as you go West towards Fairmount) - so the Pathmark would have been in walking distance. That's what I like to do, I like to walk to get around and do stuff.
The Pathmark is closed now. Anybody got any idea if another supermarket is going to open up in the building? Anybody know when?

And how about the new bridge landing re-development? Will that include some sort of market/produce place? It seems all this transit-oriented-development been happening in the past 10-20 years always neglects a supermarket/grocerie of some sort. Yeah, make the neighborhood "liveable", but a grocerie is one of the most basic day-to-day necessities of a neighborhood. I don't need another Starbucks or Panera Bread. Anoying...

Pages: 1 2 [3]