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N.J. lawmakers join Christie call for Obama to OK disaster aid for snowstorm

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The state's entire 14-member congressional delegation endorsed Gov. Chris Christie's request for federal disaster aid. Watch video

WASHINGTON -- A day after Gov. Chris Christie sought federal disaster aid to help cover the costs of January's winter storm, the entire 14-member New Jersey congressional delegation asked President Barack Obama to approve his request.

The storm ravaged 17 of the state's 21 counties and caused an estimated $82.6 million in damage.

"The devastation endured by New Jersey residents, business owners, and local governments merits a disaster declaration and emergency assistance," the lawmakers wrote to the president.

"Recovery from this storm has been difficult for New Jerseyans, and we urge you to approve this request as soon as possible to ensure the people of New Jersey can begin to rebuild from this storm and mitigate against future disasters."

U.S. Sens. Robert Menendez and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-2nd Dist.) toured parts of the Jersey Shore after the storm, which caused coastal flooding in some of Cape May County's towns that exceeded the levels during Hurricane Sandy. 

A disaster declaration would make the state eligible for federal funds for the storm, which brought up to 30 inches of snow, plus high winds and flooding, and cut power to around 270,000 homes. Christie said the counties in question suffered around $82.6 million in damages.

Christie sought the disaster declaration for Atlantic, Bergen, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Somerset, Union, and Warren counties.

He also requested federal funds to help cover the costs of removing and dumping the snow and salting and sanding roads in Bergen, Burlington, Camden, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Somerset, Union, and Warren counties.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook

46-year-old killed in overnight Newark shooting

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The homicide occurred in the 100 block of Prince Street, authorities say.

NEWARK -- A 46-year-old East Orange man was killed Friday afternoon in Newark, authorities said.

Alvin B. Allen died in a fatal shooting in the 100 block of Prince Street, Essex County Prosecutor's Office spokeswoman Katherine Carter confirmed.

Additional details of the killing are not immediately available, Carter said.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2016/02/crips_kingpin_gang_members_hit_with_murder_and_oth.html

An investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force is ongoing.

The killing marks the city's fifteenth homicide of 2016.

Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

WATCH: How Robert De Niro turned 'A Bronx Tale' into a musical

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Robert De Niro and Jerry Zaks, a Broadway vet, co-directed the musical, based on Chazz Palminteri's one-man show and the 1993 film that was marked De Niro's film directing debut Watch video

Get your tickets fast, because the Paper Mill Playhouse's world premiere run of "A Bronx Tale: A Musical," based on Chazz Palminteri's one-man show and the 1993 film and co-directed by Robert De Niro and Jerry Zaks, is close to sold out.

The musical, with a book by Palminteri (it's based on his life) and music and lyrics by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater, is a nostalgic, pop-influenced coming-of-age tale about Calogero, torn between his by-the-book bus driver father Lorenzo and the glamour and power that the idolized local capo Sonny exudes. 

"It's about people making the right choices, about not wasting your talents,"  Palminteri says in a recent interview with NJ Advance Media. "I think everybody has these dreams and ambitions. That's why 'A Bronx Tale' just resonates."

Gallery preview 

The show, still in previews, officially opens Feb. 14 and runs through March 6. For tickets, click here or call 973-376-4343.

Vicki Hyman may be reached at vhyman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @vickihy or like her on Facebook. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook, and check out TV Hangover, the podcast from Vicki Hyman and co-host Erin Medley on iTunesStitcher or listen here.

Driver surrenders in hit-and-run that injured 3 children

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Authorities say the driver who allegedly struck three children on a Newark street has turned himself in.

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) -- Authorities say the driver who allegedly struck three children on a Newark street has turned himself in.

City police say 26-year-old Christopher Cortico faces three counts of endangering the welfare of an injured person. He surrendered Friday morning after learning a warrant had been issued for his arrest.

Cortico's bail was set at $50,000. A telephone number for him could not be located Saturday.

Authorities say Cortico was driving a truck that struck twin 12-year-old girls and a 9-year-old boy on Feb. 2.

The children were hit in the middle of the street when the light changed as they walked home from school. They were treated at a hospital for cuts and bruises.

Authorities say the driver fled the scene of the accident, which occurred on Ferry and Jefferson streets.

 

Water main break stalling traffic in Newark

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The break at the intersection of Elm Street and New Jersey Railroad Avenue occurred just after 1 p.m.

big stock siren.jpgA water main break is blocking an intersection near Newark's downtown Sunday, authorities said. (File photo)

NEWARK - Authorities are asking drivers to avoid an area of the city's Ironbound district where a water main break has been exacerbated by icy temperatures.

The break occurred just after 1 p.m. near the intersection of Elm Street and New Jersey Railroad Avenue, the city's Office of Public Safety said in a statement.

Police are on scene to assist with traffic while the city's water department repairs the break, though the cold has created dangerously icy conditions.

MORE: How cold did it get in N.J. Saturday night and where was it 14 below? (MAP)

The operation is not expected to be complete until at least Tuesday, officials said, and drivers are being asked to use alternate routes to access the Ironbound and central business district.

Temperatures also contributed to a water main break on Martin Luther King Boulevard between State Street and 7th Avenue Saturday, though that has since been repaired.

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Newark man, 31, found shot to death in city's South Ward

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Omar Faines is the city's 16th homicide victim of 2016

police-tape.jpgA Newark man was found shot to death in the city's South Ward Sunday morning, according to authorities. (Ed Murray/The Star-Ledger)

NEWARK - A city man was found shot to death in the city's South Ward Sunday morning, according to authorities.

Omar S. Faines, 31, was discovered in the area of 99 Rose Terrace, alongside Woodland Cemetery, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray and Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said in a joint statement.

No arrests have been made in the slaying, though an investigation by the prosecutor's office's Homicide and Major Crimes Task Force remains active, they said.

Faines' death marks the 16th homicide of the year in Newark, and the second since Friday, when an East Orange man was gunned down in the city's Central Ward.

Anyone with information should contact task force detectives at (877) TIPS-4EC or (877) 847-7432.

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Man wounded by gunfire in Newark Sunday

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NEWARK - A Newark man was wounded as multiple gun shots were fired on the 300 block of Clinton Avenue Sunday around 5:30 p.m. Newark police worked the scene looking for evidence. Aristide Economopoulos can be reached at aeconomopoulos@njadvancemedia.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @AristideEco and Instagram Find NJ.com on Facebook

NEWARK - A Newark man was wounded as multiple gun shots were fired on the 300 block of Clinton Avenue Sunday around 5:30 p.m.
Newark police worked the scene looking for evidence.

Aristide Economopoulos can be reached at aeconomopoulos@njadvancemedia.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @AristideEco and Instagram Find NJ.com on Facebook

N.J. pets in need: Feb. 15, 2016

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A soothing petting session with your dog while watching your favorite television program is an excellent relaxation routine.

As people and their pets start a new year, there are a number of ways to make resolutions beneficial for both.

According to a 2016 Milk-Bone Canine Resolutions Survey, the top pledge for the new year is "I will spend more time with my dog." Other pledges range from both humans and dogs eating more nutritiously to personal care including weight loss and dental hygiene.

Milk-Bone pet insights expert Jesse Vasquez has some suggestions.

"Have a resolutions buddy." Because dogs follow through with rituals even better than humans, you can better stick to your personal health and wellness goals by including your pet. The survey noted that 55 percent of dog parents say their dog helps them exercise more.

"Create nighttime rituals." Because such rituals help calm and relax people and pets, try to stick with a regular routine that focuses on stress-reducing activities like a soothing petting session with your dog while watching your favorite television program.

"Give Yourself a reward." Just as dogs love treats when they exhibit good behavior, make sure you regularly reward yourself and your dog for following through on resolutions.

Here's a gallery of adoptable pets from northern and central New Jersey. Other galleries of pets in need can be seen here and here.

Greg Hatala may be reached at ghatala@starledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregHatala. Find The Star-Ledger on Facebook.


Here's how much damage winter storm did to counties, towns across N.J.

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Officials estimate $82.6 million in damage in 17 New Jersey counties from January's weekend winter storm. Watch video

New Jersey lawmakers are working together to bring $82 million in disaster aid to the state in response to January's devastating winter storm.

Gov. Chris Christie made a request Thursday to President Barack Obama for a disaster declaration for the state. If a disaster declaration is made, New Jersey will be eligible for federal funds that will cover the cost of the storm response.

A day after Christie's request, the 14-member New Jersey congressional delegation joined in asking Obama for the approval.

According to the request, officials estimate $82.6 million in damage in 17 of New Jersey's 21 counties.

The following are estimations per county included in the request of how much damage the storm caused:

- Atlantic County: $2,294,483

- Bergen County: $7,456,765

- Burlington County: $4,745,251

- Camden County: $2,971,946

- Cape May County: $4,207,200

- Cumberland County: $913,00

- Essex County: $7,975,382

- Hudson County: $10,886,929

- Hunterdon County: $2,736,849

- Mercer County: $4,732,611

- Middlesex County: $7,293,870

- Monmouth County: $9,271,521

- Morris County: $4,281,244

- Ocean County: $6,419,301

- Somerset County: $1,435,551

- Union County: $4,621,985

- Warren County: $419,709

These figures were sent to Obama as part of Christie's request for a disaster declaration.

The effect of the storm runs from Jan. 22 to Jan. 29. The highest reported snowfall during the winter storm was in Bernards Township in Somerset County. In addition to snow, high winds and flooding caused damage to property and cut power to 270,000 homes.

Coastal flooding was caused by record high tides and winds that reached 60 miles per hour offshore.

Officials compiled the estimates during a preliminary damage assessment between Feb. 2 and Feb. 5. Assisting in the estimate was the state Office of Emergency Management, state Department of Environmental Protection and Bureau of Coastal Engineering. 

The following are the top 20 municipalities most affected by the Jan. 23 winter storm and the amount of estimated damage from the storm, according to Christie's report:

- Toms River Township, Ocean County: $2,225,000

- Avon-by-the-Sea, Monmouth County: $1,263,304

- Brigantine, Atlantic County: $1,013,500

- Sea Isle City, Cape May County: $975,000

- Middletown, Monmouth County: $695,042

- Brick Township, Ocean County: $676,000

- West Orange, Essex County: $666,120

- Marlboro, Monmouth County, $626,362

- Atlantic City, Atlantic County: $570,000

- Gloucester Township, Camden County: $570,000

- Union City, Hudson County: $551,890

- West Wildwood, Cape May County: $550,000

- Bayonne, Hudson County: $489,489

- Long Beach, Ocean County: $475,000

- North Wildwood, Cape May County: $459,000

- Avalon, Cape May County: $438,000

- Wildwood, Cape May County: $420,000

- Manalapan, Monmouth County: $413,196

- Parsippany, Morris County: $350,611

- North Arlington, Bergen County: $350,000

Don E. Woods may be reached at dwoods@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @donewoods1. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.

Booker explains mistakes he made running Newark, other lessons he has learned

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U.S. Sen. Cory Booker writes about his experiences and his lessons learned in a book out this week. Watch video

WASHINGTON -- Here's what makes U.S. Sen. Cory Booker tick.

Lone Rangers don't accomplish much.

Everyone deserves a second chance.

The current generation of black leaders owe a debt to the civil rights icons who paved the way, and need to try to pay it back.

Those are some of the lessons Booker learned in his career as a community activist, Newark mayor and now U.S. senator, the first black elected to that post in New Jersey.

He wrote about them in his first book, "United," which is being released this week. Booker has a 12-city tour planned beginning Tuesday to promote the tome.

Following a trend set by many presidential candidates, Booker's writings were released in the midst of a campaign. Booker, however, is not running for president, though he has been mentioned as a potential running mate for former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whose candidacy he has endorsed.

"I didn't write this to speak towards an election," Booker said in an interview to discuss the book. "I wrote this to talk about us as a country. The best of our culture has been seen when we as a nation recognize that we have more in common than divides us and do the very difficult work of reaching out, going beyond our comfort zone to work with other people."

Booker wrote that he learned that lesson when he first was elected to the Newark City Council and immediately criticized the taxpayer-financed perks that accrued to the lawmakers.

"Legislating demands that you have a working relationship with your colleagues," Booker wrote. "No matter how much you disagree with them, there must be common ground or you render yourself ineffective."

In the interview, Booker said he still believed he was right but his tactics were wrong.

"My city council days really prepped me for what I'm doing now because I got it so wrong on the city council," Booker said. "My posture in that legislative body did not serve my constituents as well as if I had approached it with an attitude of being a bridge-builder and not a barn-burner."

In the Senate, Booker has reached out to Tea Party-backed Republicans such as Rand Paul of Kentucky and Mike Lee of Utah as he sought bipartisan backing for legislation to provide alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent criminals and to make it easier for ex-prisoners to find work.

President Barack Obama, who Booker supported in 2008 when most prominent New Jersey Democrats were lining up behind Clinton, has embraced the cause of overhauling the criminal justice system, traveling to Newark in November to highlight the issue.

Booker explained in the book why criminal justice was such a passion of his. His parents integrated the Bergen County community of Harrington Park with the help of a fair housing lawyer, and kids in that community were offered "a wide margin for error, with second, third and fourth chances" when they had minor brushes with the law. "At their worst, our run-ins with police would mark not an end to our opportunity but the beginning of an intervention," he wrote.

He went to Stanford University and Yale Law School, where he said in the interview that "it was very jarring to me to see the widespread use of drugs in college" with "very little consequences."

When he lived in inner-city communities like New Haven, Conn., and then Newark, where he moved after law school, the "criminal justice system was coming down on these folks for the same crimes with a fury, incarcerating at rates never before seen in humanity."

After these nonviolent offenders were released, Booker said, "they were trying to compete for jobs with those same drug users who never went to jail and had no shot of competing in this economy because they were from communities where the criminal justice system operated in a much different way."

En route to Washington, Booker found mentors and allies such as Virginia Jones and Frank Hutchins as he won election to the Newark City Council, the mayor's office and the U.S. Senate.

He also never forgot those who made it possible for a black man to have those opportunities -- he was only the fourth black in U.S. history ever to be elected by the voters to the Senate, following Edward Brooke of Massachusetts, Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois and Obama -- and he said that his decision to go into public service was a way to pay them back.

"It would be almost offensive for me not to recognize that I stand on the shoulders of giants," Booker said. "Everything that I enjoy, everything that my generation enjoys, came through struggle and sacrifice and labor and often blood and death.

"The only way I know how to honor our history is not just by remembering it but by paying it forward is with our own sacrifice. Doing something to address poverty, doing something to address bigotry. That is an American obligation."

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook

Westminster 2016: N.J. dogs star as obedience enters the ring (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

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The Westminster Masters Obedience Championship is new for 2016 Watch video

Toby the golden retriever wags his tail as he jauntily walks alongside his owner, Barbara Heesemann. He must know when to heel, but also know when not to follow. When instructed to sit and stay, he remains planted to the ground, using his brown eyes to track her as she walks around him -- he cranes his neck and twists so he doesn't lose her. But when she says go, he runs full-speed to the other end of the room. When she shouts, he drops to the floor. 

But Toby is more than just well-behaved. Like 33 other dogs competing in a new part of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog show Monday, Toby is an obedience dog, an expert athlete in a sport that is worlds more intricate than simply being "a good dog."  

"Toby SIT!" Heesemann commands, as dog and owner get ready for Westminster in a practice space at Hal Wheeler's Pet Resort & School for Dogs in Cedar Grove. Toby, in the middle of a sprint, comes to a screeching halt then sits and turns to face Heesemann. 

The Westminster Masters Obedience Championship is having its inaugural run at the 140th Westminster dog show, becoming the freshest part of competition since the Westminster Masters Agility Championship was added in 2014. Of 2,752 dogs entered in the Westminster this year, 190 are from New Jersey. In an event traditionally prized for its celebration of breed standards -- the award for best in show is decided on Tuesday -- the agility contest holds the distinction of including mixed dogs. So does obedience, though no mixed dogs are in the obedience ring the first time out.

Long a part of the professional dog training world, obedience has made only fleeting appearances at Westminster, says Gail Miller, director of communications for Westminster Kennel Club. The first Westminster obedience demonstration was in 1936. There was another in the '40s, but never a competition, she says. 

Why not incorporate obedience earlier in the show's 140-year run?

"The biggest drawback was size," Miller says. In years past, the dog show was confined to Madison Square Garden. Now, judging takes place at Piers 92 and 94 in New York before moving to the Garden for evening competition. 

140th  Westminster Kennel Club dog show

Where: Piers 92/94, 711 12th Ave. at 55th St. and the West Side Highway in New York. Also at Madison Square Garden, West 33rd St. and Seventh Avenue.

When: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Feb. 15 and 16 at the piers; evening sessions 8 to 11 p.m. both days at the Garden.

How much: $15 to $110; visit westminsterkennelclub.org


On TV: Watch live from 8 to 11 p.m. Feb. 15 on CNBC. Competition ending with best in show airs from 8 to 11 p.m. Feb. 16 on the USA network.

Online: Stream daytime judging and evening competition live at wkclive.com

"Now that we have our daytime judging at the piers, now there's a lot more space," she says. Organizers were thrilled to open the competition up to mixed breeds, but Miller says that's all down to the American Kennel Club, which allows mixed breeds in companion events. The top 150 obedience dogs in the country, determined by an AKC ranking of dogs at obedience trials from Jan. 1 2015 to Oct. 31 2015, were invited to compete. 

While the agility competition, which wrapped on Saturday, is a high-flying demonstration of precision and speed that sees handlers running alongside their dogs as they bounce over hurdles and weave around poles, obedience is a far tamer sport, one where intensity is measured in inches, not seconds. 

"It's just like some people like watching golf and some watch tennis," Miller says. "With obedience, you're just walking and trotting." Still, she says, the slightest movements are weighed. A dog cannot hesitate before doing what's commanded, and it cannot sit crooked. 

Heesemann, who has been competing with Toby, 8, for six years, and with his mother in years prior, says obedience is all about verbal control and getting a dog to focus on the trainer. This is her first time at Westminster.

"I'm honored and excited," she says. "Nothing but positivity. He will not be nervous. I'll be a wreck." 

Obedience skills dogs must demonstrate include "scent discrimination," in which a dog has to discern which among a series of "articles" -- Heesemann uses miniature weight-like objects made of metal and leather -- have been touched by the trainer. 

There's also "directed jumping," in which the dog moves away from the trainer in a straight line, sits on command and jumps when told. Dogs additionally have to "retrieve over high jump," which means jumping over a hurdle and securing an object, then jumping over the hurdle again to bring it back. Toby has to jump 26 inches -- each dog's jumping height is determined by how tall it stands at the shoulder. 

Manager of a dental office in Saddle Brook, Heesemann co-owns Toby with veterinarian Allison Milne, owner of Mendham Animal Hospital. She says while the dog is totally attuned to his obedience exercises, when it's not "work" time, he's blissfully unfocused. 

"If I left him to his own devices, he would circle this room many times," she says. "He's definitely just a good-time Charlie." 

Only 10 dogs make the obedience final. If Toby does, his routine involves "scenting" rubber duckies -- that is, figuring out which duck in a group of ducks carries his owner's scent. 

"I don't want to risk contaminating them with my scent," Heesemann says, using tongs to place the rubber ducks on the floor. If he makes it to the end of the competition, Toby will also have to retrieve plush ducks on command -- and not mistake them for errant toys. 

"Toby's nearing retirement," Heesemann says. "It's all fun. Whatever happens happens." 

Linda Brennan, of Columbia in Warren County, has been training dogs in obedience for 25 years. She's competing at Westminster with Heart, her 3 1/2-year-old Labrador retriever, who appeared on "Saturday Night Live" last year. 

"I think it will bring a lot of public awareness to a competition that most people don't even know exists," she says. "I think people don't really have any idea of what it is that we do." Heart's father won the AKC National Obedience Championship twice. 

"She was really specifically bred to do this sport," Brennan says. Yet regardless of a dog's lineage, the interplay between trainer and trainee is the most important factor, she says. 

"In obedience, it's just you and the dog," Brennan says. "The only thing you bring in there is your relationship." This sets obedience apart from breed competition, for which it's customary to deploy separate handlers.

"You very rarely see anybody but the owner show the dogs," she says. 

Regina Steiner, a teacher at Princeton Dog Training Club, has been working with obedience since 1983. Although there just so happens to be no mixed breeds in the first Westminster Obedience Championship, she appreciates the inclusion. 

"Now I don't have to say to people, 'Now you could compete if you had a purebred,'" says Steiner, of Somerset. She's competing at Westminster with her dog, Bunny, a 5 1/2-year-old German shepherd who tackled 30 obedience trials last year. She says while many may prefer the adrenaline rush of agility competition, the oneness between dog and owner that obedience requires is different. 

 "Nothing builds the bond the way obedience does," she says. "It's special." 

 

Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AmyKup. Find NJ.com Entertainment on Facebook.

 

Here's what happened to those 100 lots Newark gave away last Valentine's Day

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Of 100 couples to lay claim to a $1,000 vacant lot last February, only five have officially closed on the properties

NEWARK -- This time last year, John Errico and Shannon Guy took what they believed would be the first step toward their shared dream.

Newly engaged, the two attorneys spotted news clippings detailing vacant lots in Newark being offered for just $1,000 each as part of a couples-only Valentine's Day sale. They were among the first to arrive at City Hall that morning, and jumped at the chance to build on a small plot on Garside Street in the city's North Ward.

"It was an emotional decision," Errico said. "We wanted our forever home."

A year later, the purchase that seemed too good to be true has been just that.

Not long after claiming the property, Errico's father was diagnosed with cancer, raising the possibility he and Guy might need to relocate to Florida. They soldiered on, but by December, it had become clear that building on the lot made little financial sense.

While construction for the three-family home they envisioned would have required a loan of at least $250,000, properties just up the road from their tract were selling in the high five figures.

Land for $1,000: Homeowner hopefuls flock to Newark Valentines Day Sale

"We didn't really drill down into what are the actual financials of it (at first)," Errico said. "It was kind of hard to swallow spending $300,000 or even $350,000 to build a new home, when you can get an older home for $90,000."

Errico and Guy's story is not unique.

They are among 21 couples (or former couples) who have walked away from the Valentine's Day properties. Dozens of others have found their own hopes delayed by difficulties securing construction loans.

As of Sunday, only five couples who forked over an initial $500 last Feb. 14 have officially closed, though city officials say another seven are in the pipeline. Eleven others have received approvals to begin construction, but are still pursuing loans.

Allowing for two other properties that had to be pulled back after city officials realized they were zoned for commercial use, that leaves 54 lots.

The owners of those 54 total lots have struggled, officials say, to navigate the financial and governmental channels needed to start building.

The city did not require proof of financing until home designs and site plans were approved, and despite the immediate equity gained through the cheap purchase, most buyers found themselves unable to secure financing to put shovels in the ground.

"We're still in an economy that's post-recession, and it's really hard for the average Joe to get a construction loan," said Baye Adofo-Wilson, Newark's deputy mayor for housing and economic development.

The city, however, is not prepared to cut bait on what it considers a vital part of its plan to attract new residents and encourage growth outside of downtown.

On Sunday, officials announced a second phase of the sale, which will enlist the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation to guide many buyers as they look to obtain architectural renderings, construction documents and approvals from city boards.

In many cases, the lots will be sold to a handful of developers, who will build one and two-family homes for sale back to owners at $179,000-$249,000. The 21 lots already returned to the city will also be sold to a local developer for sale back to the public.

Initial agreements signed with buyers require construction to begin within 18 months of closing on the vacant lots, and owners must live in the property for a minimum of five years once the home is built. Adofo-Wilson said that while a handful of lots are on track to meet the requirements, the city has shifted its focus to encourage construction regardless of pace.

"Our goal is to sell all the city-owned lots that we can sell. We believe that's true economic development. It doesn't really make sense for the city to hold these lots," he said. "We learned from the experience."

Some experts, however, say whatever lessons were learned in the past year were there all along.

Alan Mallach, a senior fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Community Progress and one of the country's most prominent experts on blight, said it came as little surprise that couples attracted to a one-time shot at a cheap vacant lot might lack the resources or wherewithal to navigate the complex process of building a home from scratch.

"That requires a fair amount of time and a fair amount of expertise, and if you don't have the expertise yourself, you have to go out and buy it," he said.

Mallach added that banks were likely to be skeptical about providing large loans to build homes in Newark, where the median price of a home stood at about $115,000 in 2014.

"Why would they want to go through all this trouble when they can take that money and buy a house that already exists?" he said.

"The city really comes out okay. The question is a lot of the people who got sort of drawn into this, may not be coming out that well."

The city, however, maintained that the sale was a success, and would not rule out holding similar events in the future. The offering attracted coverage from media outlets around the country, and Adofo-Wilson said the newest phase served as proof that interest in revitalizing long-neglected Newark neighborhoods is running high.

"We have banks that are lined up," he said. "We've really been able to enhance interest in the market."

While officials admit the process has not gone precisely as planned, they are able to point to a number of success stories they hope will ultimately grow as the months pass.

On a long-barren patch of land on 18th Street, a pair of Kean University students are building a home they hope to donate to a homeless family.

On North 13th Street, Leonardo Gomez stops by regularly to help build the foundation to a two-family home he believes he'll one day share with his wife and two children. The co-owner of a development company, 3 Brothers Construction, he is currently working without a loan, though he said he does not believe any of it would be possible without the opportunity to acquire the land at such a low price.

"It's good for us, to get it for this price. For closing, you need to spend a lot of money," he said. "We hope to have our own property. Our own house."

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

N.J. jazz vet Christian McBride wins 5th Grammy

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McBride, a renowned jazz bassist, has performed alongside both jazz and pop icons

MONTCLAIR -- Christian McBride, a renowned jazz bassist and Montclair resident, scored a Grammy Award Monday night, for Best Improvised Jazz Solo. 

The genre veteran's win is tied to a tune called "Cherokee," off his 2015 album "Live at the Village Vanguard," released under the Christian McBride Trio.  

The golden trophy is the fifth for McBride, 43, who has since attending Juilliard, has performed with numerous notable jazz ensembles, and industry icons including Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea and Wynton Marsalis. 

McBride, a regular performer at the annual Montclair Jazz Festival, has also played alongside pop nobles Paul McCartney, Celine Dion and James Brown.

Bobby Olivier may be reached at bolivier@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobbyOlivier. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

Maxwell and Nas go back to back in Newark (PHOTOS)

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Valentines day arrived a day late in Newark as throwback R&B sensation, Maxwell, performed a show at Prudential Center to a packed house.

NEWARK--Valentines day arrived a day late in Newark as throwback R&B sensation, Maxwell, performed a show at Prudential Center to a packed house. Dresses to the nines and backed by an impressive live band, the singer smiled as he walked up and down the stage, crooning and flirting with the audience.

Supporting, but none the less explosive, was rapper Nas. Though he walked on stage wearing sunglasses and a fur coat carrying a glass of liquor, his performance was far from cocky. Eventually stripping down to a more casual look, Nas delivered an intimate show to a receptive audience, concluding with an emotional rendition of his song, "One Mic."

Also performing was singer, Emeli Sande, who's rich voice filled the arena as the audience filed in.

Alex Remnick may be reached at aremnick@njadvancemedia.com or on Twitter @AlexRemnick. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Musical 'A Bronx Tale' review: Charming, but as gritty as a plastic comb

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The Paper Mill Playhouse's adaptation of Chazz Palminteri's story was co-directed by Robert De Niro and Jerry Zaks Watch video

A bevy of marquee names comprise the artistic team of "A Bronx Tale: The Musical," which opened Sunday night at Millburn's Paper Mill Playhouse. Chaz Palminteri wrote the book, Robert De Niro co-directs with stage powerhouse Jerry Zaks. The songs are by Alan Menken (music) and Glenn Slater (lyrics), each with a seemingly interminable list of honors with names like Tony, Grammy and Olivier. The cast includes veterans of Broadway at every turn.

And for all this formidable star power, the name that leaves the most lasting impact is 13-year-old Joshua Colley in the role of young Calogero. Rarely are child actors as talented as Colley, whose act-one showstopper "I Like It" is the musical's best number, resting entirely on his young shoulders. A rousing song with lively choreography, it's an important transitional moment for the character, and Colley nails it with impressive aplomb.

It won't be long before the story abandons young Calogero for his teenage counterpart, but Colley's brief stage time is instrumental in infusing the show with much of its energy.

The musical's story follows closely the lead of the 1993 film staring De Niro and Palminteri, which itself is an adaptation of Palminteri's semi-autobiographical one-man show.

Our narrator, the teenaged Calogero (Jason Gotay), grows up in an Italian-Ameircan neighborhood of the 1960s Bronx with his bus driver father at home and the mob boss Sonny holding court on the street corner. His father Lorenzo (Richard H. Blake) preaches the straight-and-narrow path of hard work and determination, but Calogero soon falls under the wing of Sonny (Nick Cordero), who tells him the working man is a sucker.

As he matures, Calogero finds himself torn between two fathers and two worlds, and as he drifts more and more into Sonny's orbit, we wonder whether the precocious kid with the good heart will escape the neighborhood or evolve into another hardened wise guy.

This story is powerful and endearing, and so the lasting success of the film and Palminteri's play (it opened to wide praise in 1989, and had a successful 2007 Broadway run directed by Zaks) are no surprise. Palminteri's tale captures the essence of Calogero's waning innocence without drifting into sentimentality.

The same cannot be said about this musical version, whose songs suffer from a peculiar mawkishness. When Lorenzo uses his son's adoration of the Yankees to teach him about utilizing talent, for example, we get a lilting ballad about Joe DiMaggio, and Sonny's tutorial on the hard truth of the street -- it is better to be feared than loved -- comes in a jaunty tune about Niccolo Machiavelli, aka "Nicky M." The impact of this powerful moment in Calogero's life dissipates into a bouncy rhythm.

Certainly music enters successfully in places. "I Like It" is wonderful; the crap-game anthem "Roll 'Em" makes for great fun (Luck for these singing gangsters is young Calogero, not a Lady); and the funky "Hurt Someone" nicely underscores the show's most tense act-two moments while advancing the drama apace.

On the whole, however, the musical additions sap the drama of its grit. The switchblade comb being sold at the Paper Mill's gift shop is an apt metaphor for "A Bronx Tale: The Musical": power surrendered in favor of charm.  

A Bronx Tale: The Musical

Paper Mill Playhouse, 22 Brookside Drive, Millburn, through March 6

Tickets: $32 and up. Available online or by phone, 973-376-4343. The theater has added an additional show on March 1 to meet demand. 

Patrick Maley may be reached at patrickjmaley@gmail.com. Find him on Twitter@PatrickJMaley. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook.

 

Condo wants dog DNA to ensure poop is scooped

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West Orange complex would fine owners who don't comply if the rule is adopted next month

 

WEST ORANGE -- The dog droppings that have reportedly become a problem around a West Orange condominium complex have prompted the board to take action.

Eagle Ridge's condo association will decide next month whether to require residents who own dogs to submit a DNA sample for their pet, according to WCBS-2. Owners who don't comply by a deadline face a $100 fine and then an additional penalty of $250 per week, the report said.

Residents opposed to the idea are circulating a petition. The proposal will be discussed at a meeting on Thursday.

Board member Howard Matalon says that the DNA testing is being done solely to identify who is not cleaning up after their dogs.

Resident Barbara Mintz said the proposal seems a little extreme and that all pet owners will have to suffer because of the people leaving messes behind.

The gated community opened in 1979, according to a NYTimes.com story. It has a pool, tennis courts and an indoor clubhouse with a fitness room and sauna.

Communities in Colorado and Seattle are among those to enact similar testing because owners were walking their dogs and leaving behind the results, according to reports.

In England, every dog in the country will be required to be microchipped by April, according to BBC.com. Though it's designed to cut down on strays, it will also help local officials track down owners who don't clean up after their pets.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Reputed gang leader convicted under tough new gun law, faces life in prison

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Authorities believe Alexis Canadas may be the first convicted under a new, stiffer illegal gun possession law.

Alexis CanadasAlexis Canadas (Courtesy of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office)

NEWARK -- A reputed Newark gang member is facing life in prison after he was convicted in state Superior Court Tuesday for possession of an illegal weapon, authorities said in a news release.

Alexis Canadas, 36, was found guilty of first degree unlawful possession of weapon by a convicted felon following a trial before state Superior Court Judge John I. Gizzo, said Essex County Prosecutor's Office spokeswoman Katherine Carter in the release.

Passed in August of 2013, the law imposes stiffer penalties on repeat offenders, and Canadas could receive a term of life in New Jersey State Prison when he is sentenced on April 8, Carter said.

In addition to the first degree offense, Canadas, who authorities say is a ranking member of the Sex, Money, Murder faction of the Bloods street gang, was also convicted of second degree unlawful possession of a weapon, second degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and the fourth degree offense of defacing a firearm, Carter said.

Authorities believe the conviction may be the first of its type since the law was enacted, she added.

"This is what the Legislature intended when the law was changed," said Assistant Prosecutor Timothy Lanni. "The purpose was to keep repeat, violent offenders off the streets."

Canadas has 16 prior felony convictions, including three for aggravated assault, shootings and drug-related offenses, Carter said.

Canadas' most recent conviction stemmed from an Aug. 2014 incident, Carter said. While driving on Park Avenue in Newark, Canadas was stopped by police officer, who observed a silver handgun on the floor of the driver's seat as she approached the vehicle.

Canadas was later arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a weapon and related offenses, Carter said. He is currently being held in the Essex County Correctional Facility.

Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Booker calls Supreme Court rumors 'flattering', says he wants to remain senator

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The freshman senator also called Republican calls to block a nomination to the high court "naked partisanship"

NEWARK -- Despite being mentioned as a possible nominee for a fresh vacancy on the country's highest court, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker said Tuesday that he has no plans to leave his current post.

During a signing for his newly released book "United", at American History High School in Newark, Booker said he was honored by the suggestion he might be picked to succeed the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia but denied that any such wheels were in motion.

"It's incredibly flattering to be a U.S. senator, which I want to stay at for a long time," he said. "It's flattering to be talked about for anything, but I've got the best job. The best job I can dream of."

Booker explains mistakes he made running Newark, other lessons he has learned

After Scalia's unexpected death Saturday, Booker's name was immediately floated as a potential pick for the vacant seat. Booker, who served as Newark's mayor from 2006 to 2013, holds a law degree from Yale University.

While never completely ruling out accepting the nod, he has since repeated several times that he is focused on his duties in the Senate. His current term runs through 2020.

President Barack Obama has said he will move ahead with the nomination to the high court, though Republicans have vowed to fight any such effort until a new president has taken office in January 2017.

On Tuesday, Booker voiced his support for the president, and called any efforts to block a well-qualified nominee "naked partisanship."

"That's not following our traditions. To leave a vacancy for over a year is something that, besides a war-time situation, we have never seen," he said. "We shouldn't leave a branch of the government in that situation."

The senator's name has often been floated as a potential vice presidential choice for candidates such as Hillary Clinton.

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Orange woman charged in killing of 90-year-old

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The suspect and the deceased knew each other personally, authorities say. Watch video

Jocelyn DahtaJocelyn Dahta (Courtesy of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office)

EAST ORANGE-- Authorities have arrested a 32-year-old Orange woman for the killing of an elderly man found dead at his home earlier this month, officials confirmed Wednesday.

Jocelyn Dahta was brought into police custody Tuesday, said Essex County Prosecutor's Office spokeswoman Katherine Carter. She now stands charged with one count of homicide for the killing of Henry Boyd, Carter said.

Boyd, 90, was found unresponsive inside his South Harrison Street apartment by a family member on February 9. Medical personnel later pronounced him dead at the scene.

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2016/02/authorities_investigate_killing_of_90-year-old_eas.html

A preliminary investigation by the prosecutor's office Homicide Task Force indicates that Dahta was known to the victim, Carter said. The exact nature of their relationship remains unclear.

Autopsy results indicate that Boyd died of compression of the throat and a fracture of the larynx, Carter said.

Additional details of the killing, including a possible motive for the killing, were not immediately made available.

Dahta is currently being held at the Essex County Correctional Facility on $750,000 bail.

The investigation into Boyd's killing is ongoing, Carter said. 

Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

'The Brothers Size' a can't-miss at Luna Stage

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'The Brothers Size' from Tarell Alvin McCraney feels like a folktale, and its three characters are based on Yoruban deities

Tarell Alvin McCraney's "The Brothers Size" at West Orange's Luna Stage, shows the playwright to be at once a powerful successor to August Wilson and a formidable voice in his own right.

Like Wilson's best work, the play is lyrical and rhythmic, existing for the most part just on the precipice of song, and occasionally spilling over into music, while also looking with a keen and unromantic gaze at challenges plaguing black America.

But McCraney wanders more willingly than his great predecessor into the realm of folk tale, marrying the ancient with the contemporary in order to articulate a long genealogy of suffering. It is a wonderful and complex play that hums with life in the hands of an excellent cast under the direction of Christopher Burris.

Ogun Size (Brandon Carter) is a mechanic who owns a garage and tries to instill a work ethic in his younger brother Oshoosi (Shamsuddin Abdul-Hamid), freshly released from jail. The younger Size would rather sleep in and hangout with Elegba (Clinton Lowe), whom he befriended in prison. Ogun worries about his younger brother and is skeptical of any friend made in jail, but Oshoosi is confident he can turn his life to the positive, mollifying his brother's fears while also maintaining his friendship with Elegba. The play dwells with Oshoosi as he finds himself pulled in opposite directions, struggling to maintain balance.

The peculiar character names are not McCraney's whimsical inventions, but rather allusions to deities of the Yoruba, a West African people who were a major source of the Atlantic slave trade. As a result, remnants of Yoruban practices and cosmology remain scattered throughout the southern United States, where McCraney sets his play. Ogun is a Yoruban deity of iron work; Elegba is a trickster deity of the crossroads; and Oshoosi a hunter, associated with jail.

brothers-sizeBrandon Carter, back, Clinton Lowe, front left, and Shamsuddin Abdul-Hamid in 'The Brothers Size," a play whose characters are inspired by Yoruban deities. 

Together they form a powerful trio of hard work, creative maneuvering that is often tied to malevolence, and persecution. McCraney's Ogun works hard to pull his brother into the realm of honest labor, but Elegba's natural malice threatens constantly to trick this Oshoosi back into a life of torment.

Much of this play's power comes from accentuating its dimension as folk tale. Characters regularly speak directly to the audience, in monologue and even in stage directions, telling us their location or mood. Burris's direction impressively captures this important aspect of the play. At times his task seems more like choreography, as characters move smoothly and purposefully around Luna's evocatively rendered black box (sets by Christopher and Justin Swader, lights by Daisy Long), using props such as rags and stools to suggest shovels and cars.

Like August Wilson does when he sends his characters to the City of Bones or invokes the Ghosts of the Yellow Dog, McCraney invites his audience to another world conjured by the forces of the play. But rather than an interlude in an otherwise realist play, McCraney's voyage occupies the entirety of his drama. "The Brothers Size" is less about these three characters than it is about the generations of African-Americans who have faced similar struggles.

The task facing the actors is therefore daunting, but all three impress. Ogun is sure that he holds the moral high ground, but Carter shows clearly that such a position does not assuage uncertainty and fear. We see similar forces at work on Oshoosi, as Abdul-Hamid fills his character with a showy and defiant confidence shot through at all times with deeply seated anxieties. Lowe captures wonderfully Elegba's slyness, as he saunters and slithers around the stage. The simple act of putting his hat on backwards signals an entirely new dimension of Elegba emerging, one which Lowe allows to emerge fully.

The play's best moments are when Ogun and Oshoosi argue, both putting on their best masks of confidence, while Elegba lingers in a darkened corner, not involved in the argument, but never too far from the strife and the opportunities it might afford him.

"How come you ain't never liked me?" asks Elegba of Ogun. Many will recognize this as McCraney borrowing one of the most famous lines of Wilson, with whom he worked while at Yale. It is a telling and appropriate nod. "The Brothers Size," the middle installment of McCraney's celebrated trilogy "The Brother/Sister Plays," shows this playwright deeply invested in taking the influence of Wilson into exciting new terrain.

The intimate space of Luna Stage seems an excellent venue in which to experience that journey. This is not a production that should be missed.

The Brothers Size

Luna Stage, 555 Valley Road, West Orange, through March 6

Tickets: 973-395-5551

Patrick Maley may be reached at patrickjmaley@gmail.com. Find him on Twitter@PatrickJMaley. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook.

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