News

Livingston volunteer firefighters quickly extinguished a smoky fire at Turano’s Pizza Kitchen, 69 East Northfield Road, on Thursday, November 18.

Firefighters arrived to find a smoke condition in the restaurant and fire on top of the pizza oven. Firefighters extinguished the flames using a portable extinguisher. A booster line was then used to wet down items that were still smoldering. In addition, they opened the area above the ovens to check if the fire had spread. Fire extension was minor and the area was wet down.

The fire damaged the wiring on the pizzeria’s alarm system. No injuries were reported.

Turano’s announced that the pizzeria will be closed for renovation until further notice.

In other calls, a natural gas leak was reported that same day at 2 Bushkill Drive, and a natural gas odor reported on Sunday, November 21, at a West McClellan Avenue residence.

Gas Leak

As of Tuesday morning, November 23, the Livingston Health Department has reported that a total of 2,601 Livingston residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since the first case was recorded in mid-March of 2020. 89 of those residents have died as a result of the virus. Compared to the same time last week, there are 37 new cases, with no additional deaths. In the past month, there have been 86 cases.

Mayor Shawn Klein noted that the number of COVID cases is starting to rise, and cautioned residents to be careful while gathering with family and friends over the Thanksgiving holiday.

The state currently lists four active cases within the township’s long term care (LTC) facilities. Those cases are three residents and one staff member at Spring Hills Livingston (formerly Atrium Post Acute Care of Livingston).

County and State

BROWNIES GIVE BACK: Brownie Girl Scout Troop #22932 of Livingston, composed of Burnet Hill second graders, worked hard to earn their “give back” patch by participating in community service. The girls stuffed 12 reusable bags with ingredients to create a Thanksgiving meal. They were filled with mashed potatoes, corn, stuffing, condensed milk, rice, yams, gravy, cranberry sauce, and other Thanksgiving favorites. They decorated special cards to put in each bag as well. Troop Leaders Aislinn Shansky and Sarah Weinstein noted that “the girls couldn’t be more excited to help other families. They shared that it makes them feel good knowing they are helping those in need.” The bags were dropped off at the Interfaith Food Pantry of the Oranges. Shown here filling the bags are Brownies Pacey Arons, Sloane Blue, Liv Braverman, Lena Guskin, Elle Hammer, Jolie Hochberg, Isabella Lebersfeld, Eden Lederman, Mabel Moss, Harlow Shansky, Charlie Weinstein, and Zoe Weisselberg.

The Livingston Township Council discussed the sale and purchase of small pieces of land surrounding recently-purchased Open Space properties and carried several ordinances at its Monday, November 22, meeting. The Council also took time to honor the Livingston Fire Department and the Livingston High School varsity girls’ soccer team. The meeting was held virtually and may be viewed on the Livingston Township, NJ Facebook page.

CDBG Hearing

At the start of the meeting, the first of two hearings were held for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), which allows the township to apply for a portion of Essex County’s HUD funding.

The program is designed to benefit those with moderate to low incomes and Livingston is limited in what it can apply for as a result. A recent grant from the program allowed the township to install automatic doors at the Livingston Police Department to make it ADA accessible.

Members of the “Indian Moms in Livingston (IMIL)” Facebook group participated in an intuitive art workshop with Shraddha Pundeer, an abstract figurative artist and Livingston resident, last Friday, November 19, at the Twisted Tulip.

“Intuitive art is about awakening the spontaneous intelligence that everyone has, we had it as kids, and recognizing that we have access to it,” said Pundeer. “It’s still alive and can actually support us and function in our lives.”

“Abstract work that moms did got an artist out of them; some ladies said that they felt like an artist for a day!” said Monica Gupta, who founded the IMIL Facebook group.

“Through this event, moms were able to relax and unwind in an upbeat atmosphere,” she added.

“One of the goals of IMIL is to support local mom entrepreneurs,” she said. “and to also help new ladies in the town to get to know each other and build a community bond”

Livingston Philanthropies, Inc. (LPI) founder Jeff Friedman, along with LPI volunteers Alan Wishengrad and Rick Levin, delivered some 3,700 pounds of fresh produce to long-time distribution partner Newark Emergency Services For Families (NESF). “Purchased with Livingston’s continued support and just in time for NESF’s Free Grocery Giveaway event, hundreds of families living below the poverty line received their share of the healthy bounty,” said Friedman. He invites Livingston neighbors to purchase diapers, baby wipes, baby food, men’s socks, men’s gloves, and/or toiletries to help those in extreme need. He can be reached at njhomeless@aol.com. For those who prefer empowering LPI volunteers to do the shopping and continue purchasing fresh produce, contributions may be made at paypal.me/njhomeless or by mail to LPI, 8 Country Club Road, Livingston, NJ 07039. More information and photos are available at njhomeless.org.

The Livingston Planning Board, at its conference meeting on Tuesday evening, November 16, discussed two zoning-related matters referred to the Board by the Township Council.

Inclusionary Zone

The Council requested a review of an ordinance to establish a new inclusionary development zone, designated as the “R-5L Residence Overlay District,” to determine whether it is consistent with the township’s master plan. The ordinance, which concerns lots located on more than three acres of land along Passaic Avenue and Volker Lane, has been discussed during Council meetings for several months. It has been amended several times, and the latest iteration was re-introduced at the Council’s November 8 meeting.

Livingston Public School administrators described the district’s general plans for utilizing $1,560,000 in American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds at the November 9 Board of Education meeting.

The Board will be asked to approve submission of the plan to the state when it meets on Tuesday, November 23, at 7 p.m.

The COVID relief funds are aimed at helping schools open safely, operate safely, and address learning loss resulting from COVID-19. The monies may be spent over the next three years, until 2024.

A condition of the grant, noted

Board president Samantha Messer, is community outreach and how the plan involves stakeholders.

The “general tenets of what we’ve come up with” are posted on the district website, said superintendent of schools Matthew Block, along with a link for viewers to provide feedback. The plan may be viewed at www. livingston.org.

Technology and HVAC

RUNNERS-UP IN STATE CHAMPIONSHIP: The Livingston High School girls’ varsity soccer team defeated West Orange, 3-0, in the semi-finals of the state play-offs, played Tuesday, November 9, at home on the LHS turf. The Lancers then traveled to Ridgewood on Friday, November 12, only to be defeated by the Maroons in the finals, 1-0. The Lancers finished their season with a record of 13 wins, nine losses, and two ties. The season was highlighted by runner-up finishes in the Essex County Tournament and the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 1 Group 4 State Play-offs. Shown here, clockwise from top left, Lancers Jadyn Liebman, Kelly Lyons, Katherine Riccardi, Ceci Freschi and Kylie Prendergast celebrate Emma Rosenberg’s goal; Lancer left wing Isabella DiIanni beats the West Orange defender to the ball during a Lancer scoring charge; Lancer Avery Reiman works the ball through two West Orange defenders during the state play-off game on the turf. Don Schwartz Photos

The Livingston High School theater department’s production of “The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood” will open this Thursday and run through Sunday. Performance dates are Thursday and Friday, November 18 and 19, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, November 20, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.; and Sunday, November 21, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. The show will be simultaneously livestreamed during the 7 p.m. performances on both November 19 and 20.

Directing the play will be theater arts teacher Scott Patteson. The play is being produced by special arrangement with the Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois. The show, written by Middletown,