Who says there’s no good news today – Jan. 21, 2019

2019_01_westsiderbooks.jpg

Ben Yakas reports for Gothamist:

Last week, the independent bookstore Westsider Rare & Used Books announced it would be closing after 35 years on the Upper West Side. There was an immediate outpouring of support from locals and longtime customers, and owner Dorian Thornley noted that if they could crowdfund $50K, he would keep it open. And on Sunday, the GoFundMe effort passed that mark, ensuring that the bookstore will live to sell more used books another day.
“We reached our goal yesterday, the gentleman who started it is coming to take down the ‘going out of business’ sign later,” Thornley told us. “We have a lot of press here today, it’s gonna be pretty busy I think. I’ve only been open 10 minutes and already have half a dozen calls from different outlets. It’s pretty nuts. So yeah, we’re going to stay open as long as we can now.”
As for how he is going to use the money, he reiterated that part would go toward paying off back rent, part would go toward buying better books “New Yorkers didn’t know they wanted,” and part would go toward new advertising and marketing campaigns.
“I’m so excited that we’re still here and the community will live on,” employee Olivia Lucas told West Side Rag.
“Thank you to everyone involved,” said UWS resident Bobby Panza, who started the GoFundMe, and who previously told Gothamist he launched the campaign to show Thornley how important the store was to locals. “We all did it together. The donors, those who shared the GoFundMe page and the press who helped get the word out. We got this campaign viral! I’m in the afterglow sharing in the joy of a job well done. Pleasure working with you all. What’s next I wonder…”
Last Thursday, Thornley had told Gothamist that his crowdfunding comment “was an off-the-cuff remark, but it was also quite accurate. Someone started a GoFundMe page. If we get to $50K, then we’ll definitely stay open.”
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Westsider Books fundraiser hits $50,000! Owner texts “PARTY!!!”http://www.westsiderag.com/2019/01/20/saved-westsider-books-fundraiser-hits-the-crucial-50000-mark …


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Westsider, which was originally known as Gryphon Books, began as “a wheelbarrow full of used books for sale” before moving to the tiny storefront on Broadway between West 80th and West 81st Streets (Thornley took over as manager in 2002). The store has the feel of a classic, pre-Internet NYC bookstore, the kind where people have to carefully walk over piles of seemingly random dusty used books just to navigate the aisles, or to get access to the narrow staircase to the second floor.
Thornley added that the response from customers was truly gratifying: “We’re really amazed, we thought we were closing down, so everyone here is really bowled over. It’s just an amazing thing that these NYers and UWSers have done…the people have spoken, so to speak. Maybe it’ll be a turning point for the UWS.”

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BPU extending solar savings to lower-income residents

Also available to schools, local governments and nonprofits, the program is a scaled-down version of what solar advocates originally wanted

solar array

Tom Johnson reports
for NJ Spotlight:

The state yesterday approved a pilot program aimed at making solar energy available to low- and moderate-income households, a policy that could lower their energy bills.
The state Board of Public Utilities unanimously approved a three-year pilot program that’s modeled, in part, after programs already in place in at least 17 other states. If successful, the pilot could bring solar power to between 20,000 and 30,000 homes, according to proponents.
The concept, known as community solar, has been pushed by solar advocates for years as a way of making the technology accessible to those who have yet to benefit from the solar boom in New Jersey during the past decade.
The concept, known as community solar, has been pushed by solar advocates for years as a way of making the technology accessible to those who have yet to benefit from the solar boom in New Jersey during the past decade.
For a variety of factors, much of the population has been unable to use solar power to lower electric bills. Either they rent, or have shaded rooftops, or simply cannot afford the initial outlay to put solar on their property.
The program aims to solve that problem by allowing customers to sign up for a community solar subscription — either by purchasing an ownership share of a community solar system somewhere else in the locality or signing up for a monthly subscription. Subscribers will receive a credit on their monthly bill.

BPU head: It ‘has not been accessible to everyone’

“Solar has been extremely successful in New Jersey — with the state having passed 100,000 installations in 2018 — but has not been accessible to everyone,’’ said BPU president Joseph Fiordaliso. “The point of this pilot program is to take the first step toward ensuring we change this dynamic.’’
A mandate to create a community solar program was part of a comprehensive clean-energy bill signed into law by Gov. Phil Murphy last May. “Environmental justice for those who have been left behind is one of the cornerstones of my administration,’’ the governor said in a statement after the BPU approved the pilot at its monthly meeting.
But the program is a scaled-down version of what solar advocates originally had sought. The pilot has an annual capacity limit of 75 megawatts for the first year and at least 75 MW for the second and third years, although the BPU can expand the program.
Advocates had sought 150 MW a year, arguing the bigger the program, the more benefits it could generate for both developers and subscribers. At least 40 percent of the program is targeted toward low- and moderate-income families, a provision mostly endorsed by advocates.

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NJ Senate enviro committee to turn to resource damages


The Senate Environment and Energy Committee is scheduled to receive an update on the progress of the task force investigating natural resource damage issues when it meets on Thursday, January 24, 2019. 

 The meeting will be held at 10:00 AM in Committee Room 6, 1st Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ.

In addition, the committee will consider the following bills:

S1700 (Singleton / Weinberg) – Concerns environmental permits in burdened communities.

S2920 (Smith / Bateman / Greenstein) – Establishes funding allocations for constitutionally dedicated CBT revenues for State’s open space, farmland, and historic preservation programs for Fiscal Year 2020 and thereafter.

S3130 (Pou) – Prohibits the sale of paint or coating removal products that contain methylene chloride unless purchaser meets certain safety standards for use.

S3262 / A4416 (Kean / Greenstein / Swain / Karabinchak / Timberlake) – Prohibits sale or distribution of products containing asbestos.

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Great Adventure neighbor: $500M mega sports complex


An artist’s rendering of the main entrance to Adventure Crossing in Jackson, that developer Vito Cardinale says will eventually include a 3-acre sports bubble and other athletic facilities, two hotels, restaurants, retail and other uses, built at a total cost of $500 million and spread over 300 acres next to the Six Flags Great Adventure and Hurricane Harbor amusement and water parks. (Adventure Crossing)

Steve Strunsky reports for NJ.com

Construction is on at the vast Adventure Crossing mixed-use complex next to Great Adventure in Jackson, where the developer says a 120,000-square-foot sports dome and two hotels are on track for completion in 2020. Potential future additions to the complex include an outdoor stadium for cricket and a brain research center inspired by his late wife.

Cardinale Enterprises founder Vito Cardinale said work on the dome began about three months ago, after a June groundbreaking on water and sewer lines that will serve the development.

When the entire complex, including additional phases, is completed in an estimated 10 years time at a projected cost of $500 million, Cardinale said Adventure Crossing will cover 300 acres.

Cardinale said he had acquired additional property since last summer that doubled the size of the site, which is located along Route 537 in a northern corner of Ocean County.

In the more immediate future, Cardinale said work on the first phase will be completed by “the end of 2020,” including the reinforced inflatable dome, which will measure 300 feet wide by 400 feet long and 89 feet tall, as well as an extended-stay 140-room Hilton Garden hotel and a 134-room Spring Hill Suites by Marriot hotel.


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Awooo! Ready for tonight’s ‘blood moon’ lunar eclipse?

Frank Kummer reports for Philly.com

The earth will start to pass directly between the moon and sun late Sunday, eventually entering a total eclipse that will make the lunar surface look rusty red, or what’s called a Super Blood Moon.

And this astronomical event is completely safe to watch. No special glasses needed, unlike the last total eclipse of the sun, visible in North America in August 2017.

“When the moon goes total eclipse, it gets a burnt orange or reddish, depending on a number of factors,” said Paul Oswald, president of the South Jersey Astronomy Club. “It’s a little bit different each time. But it’s pretty cool.”

Further, it will be a super moon, meaning the moon’s orbit will bring it as close to the Earth as possible. So, the event melds two somewhat rare astronomical phenomenons into one.

The total eclipse will last from about 11:40 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 20, to 12:45 a.m. Monday, Jan. 21, making it perfect for night owls. However, if you fall asleep, you’ll have to wait until May 26, 2021, for the next total lunar eclipse visible in North America. That’s why many eclipse fans are planning their viewing carefully.

Where to watch

Oswald’s group had planned to gather in an event open to the public at Belleplain State Forest in Woodbine, N.J., which is over an hour’s drive from Philadelphia but, because it is so remote, is a prime place for viewing.

Although, more than 1,400 had expressed interest in the South Jersey Astronomy Club’sviewing event at Belleplain, the event was cancelled due to weather, according to a post on Facebook.

But the eclipse should be viewable. The rain is expected to clear and the National Weather Service is forecasting a mostly clear, but bitterly cold night, with a low around 8 and wind chills as low as -8 given wind gusts from 21 to 32 mph.

Other groups had also planned viewing parties, so it’s best to check their websites or social media accounts if you had planned to attend.

The eclipse will be visible in Philadelphia, though it may not be as vivid due to city lights or obstructions. You don’t have to see the eclipse with an astronomy group, but they usually have experts and amateurs on hand to answer questions and offer viewers glimpses through telescopes.

What is a lunar eclipse?

Just before midnight Sunday, the moon will start to pass through Earth’s shadow. The outer shadow is known as the penumbral zone, which blocks part of the sun’s rays from reaching the moon. Later, the inner shadow, or umbral, enters a zone that blocks all direct sunlight from reaching the moon.

If the Earth had no atmosphere, the moon would simply appear black.

“Because the Earth has an atmosphere, sunlight going through the atmosphere bends to refract a little bit,” said Oswald, 64, a longtime amateur astronomer.

That light will give the moon a reddish color, thus the term blood moon. The exact colorwill depend on various things that can alter the clarity of the atmosphere, such as volcanic activity, storms, fires, or pollution. But, once the moon is fully in eclipse, surrounding stars should pop.
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