ROCKAWAY — Sweet Peace Baking Contest and Tasting is coming to Rockaway on April 1. To celebrate peace, friendship and delicious desserts, Women in Unity is inviting amateur bakers, ages seven and up, to create a baked treat. All dessert items are welcome, including cakes, cupcakes, cookies, pies, ethnic desserts and dessert bars. The theme is kindness and creative expression is encouraged in the decoration and presentation of the dessert.
An equal-opportunity event — plenty of guys entered their baked goods in last years contest. Luke is always reading.
Prizes will be given to the top bakers in three divisions: Junior, Teen & Adult. Judges are local business owners. There will also be a people’s choice award. The grand prize winner will receive the title of Rockaway Sweet Peacemaker!
Don’t bake? Don’t worry! Dessert lovers are welcome to attend for tasting, prizes and the awards ceremony. Come out for a fun afternoon celebrating peace, friendship and of course, great desserts!Peace – how sweet it is!
The contest and tasting will take place on Saturday, April 1 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the American Legion Hall at 153 Chestnut Terrace, Rockaway (across from Parks Lake). For more information email by clicking here.
$5.00 entry fee for tasters. Proceeds to support The Jersey Battered Women’s Service.
Sweet Peace is sponsored by Women in Unity, a group of women from diverse backgrounds who have come together to build and support community through unity, friendship and service. On Facebook at Women in Unity Rockaway, NJ.
RANDOLPH – The Legacy Project, an interdisciplinary initiative at County College of Morris (CCM) that delivers engaging lectures for faculty, staff and the community, will present its third event of the 2016-17 academic year on Latin America. This event promises to be a treat for the senses, featuring a mini concert by Cubano Be Cubano Bop, a local seven-piece band, and a lecture by Ronaldo Linares, local chef and contestant on Food Network’s “Chopped.”
The event takes place Tuesday, March 21, 12:00 Noon to 2:00 p.m., in the Student Community Center, Davidson Rooms A-D, on CCM’s Randolph campus, 214 Center Grove Road. The event is free and open to the public.
From noon to 12:45 p.m., Cubano Be Cubano Bop will welcome attendees with a mini concert, playing Afro-Cuban music featuring two horns, keyboard, bass and three percussionists (timbales, bongos, congas).
At 12:45 p.m., Linares will deliver his lecture. He has been in the kitchen since he could walk and has thrived with his different ventures – from being a Marine, to graduating from culinary school, to performing mixed martial arts, to authoring a book – all while running his restaurant with his family, balancing fatherhood and being a husband.
Born in Colombia during the turbulent cartel wars of the 1980s, Linares turned to cooking as his main ingredient in his journey from young immigrant, to rebellious teen, to successful chef and media personality. His cuisine is rustic/refined, drawing inspiration from the traditional dishes of his Colombian mother, an accomplished home cook, and his Cuban father, a French-trained chef.
From 1:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., attendees can enjoy another performance by Cubano Be Cubano Bop, as Linares signs his new cookbook, “Sabores de Cuba,” which will be on sale at the event.
The Legacy Project launched at CCM in 2013 with a panel discussion on civil rights. Over the years, the lecture series has grown in size and regularly gathers crowds of more than 300 people. The committee of faculty and staff who choose speakers and topics have focused on important issues, including the genocide in Rwanda, the Holocaust, Hurricane Katrina, prison reform and Latin American culture.
Visitors must obtain a parking pass from the Public Safety office, which is located across from Parking Lot 10 (a campus map can be found by clicking here). To reserve a seat, send an email to legacy@ccm.edu.
MORRIS COUNTY — For three days in February every year, Habitat affiliates across the nation convene in Washington D.C. bringing one voice to increase support for safe, affordable homes throughout the U.S. with an emphasis on affordable homeownership opportunities, meeting with their local representatives and senators. This year nearly 300 people from around the country participated in the conference which chose the theme “One Vision-Many Voices!
During the conference, Habitat launched their first network-wide National Advocacy Agenda which will create a network of nearly 1,400 local affiliates in the U.S. pursuing a common advocacy agenda.
Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen
This year Blair Schleicher Bravo, Morris Habitat CEO and Liz Decoursey, the COO were joined by Karen Allen, a recent Morris Habitat homeowner, who brought our program to life by sharing her story of the positive impact affordable homeownership has had on her life and that of her family. They were glad to have a chance to meet with Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen at his office. Frelinghuysen has been a longtime supporter of Morris Habitat’s work.
According to Blair Schleicher Bravo, “It was an exhilarating week to meet with our legislators and join with other Habitat affiliates to advance better housing policies to ensure everyone in Morris County as well as in every community across the nation have a safe and affordable place to live. It was especially poignant to hear Karen tell our government leaders what our program has meant to her and her family.”
Habitat enables families to have access to affordable homes in a county where rents and home prices are high and continue to escalate. Living in Morris County, one of the nation’s wealthiest counties, is an unreachable goal for most low and moderate income families. Therefore, individuals who work in Morris County supporting our businesses, hospitals, and retail stores are unable to live in the area. Through Morris Habitat, some of these families are able to realize their aspirations of owning an affordable home in the county where they work.
“It made our job to advocate for support of HUD funding requests; increases in the HOME, SHOP and National Service (Americorps and Vista) programs, as well as to ensure tax reform, does not undermine access to adequate, affordable housing or non – profits’ abilities to meet critical needs.”
Karen, reflecting on the conference added “My weekend in DC, attending Habitat on the Hill 2017, was an eye-opening experience. I did not know the full extent of the passion that this group has for people with a story similar to mine. I learned a lot on the various needs being advocated for by them, for us.”
PARSIPPANY — Mike Naughton’s Yankee Doodle Circus will be held at Parsippany Hills High School on Sunday, March 12. There will be three performances, 12:45 p.m., 3:15 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. The event is sponsored by the Intervale PTA.
You can order exclusive pre-sale Tickets. Adults $18.00, and get two free children or teen tickets. Additional children tickets are only $7.00 Get your pre-sale tickets now before they go on sale to the general public. Click here to purchase tickets or you can download the form by clicking here. Tickets day of show are Adult $18.00; Child or Teen $7.00
The performance will be at Parsippany Hills High School Gym, 20 Rita Drive.
Voted #1 Contemporary Circus and Variety Show for Families World Class Revue of 18 All-Star Features Highlighted by Comedy, Marvels and Glittering Costumes Astounding Acrobats, Terrific Jugglers, Circus Olympic Champions, Unicycle Experts, Las Vegas Magic Stars of The Moscow State Circus, The Toy Palace and Old Fashioned Kettle Pop Corn. Always Family Friendly Join The Celebration of the 32nd Anniversary Tour.
PARSIPPANY — The Parsippany ShopRite located at 808 Route 46 is hosting Parsippany-Troy Hills Police Department 3rd Coffee with a Cop event on Wednesday, March 1 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Coffee With A Cop is a national program which has been widely successful. The program is a very informal one, the hope is to bridge the gap between police and community in an open forum to talk about anything.
PARSIPPANY — In a recent article published on Parsippany Focus, regarding repurposing of office buildings in the Mack-Cali Office Complex, we have been told by a representative of Mack-Cali, “Apparently, 1633 Littleton is being repurposed. Nothing on the other property.” (Editors note: The other property in question is Two Campus Drive, which is vacant and directly behind 1633 Littleton Road.) Roseland Residential Trust, Mack-Cali’s multi-family subsidiary, acquired Two Campus Drive in Mack-Cali’s Business Campus for approximately $5.5 million. The strategic acquisition will pave the way for the execution of the mixed-use master plan for the Campus in Parsippany.
Two Campus Drive is located directly behind 1633 Littleton Road and is totally vacant. The building was previously occupied by Securitas Security Services USA. The building contains 128,045 square feet of office space and was recently purchased.
Recently, it has been rumored that Mack-Cali will repurpose office buildings off of Route 202 and Route 10. The plan, according to some, is to turn one of the Campus Drive buildings into 97 apartment units and store-fronts at the main level. There was also talk about bringing a upscale restaurant within the complex.
Parsippany officials won’t say if any empty Mack-Cali office buildings are being considered for housing complex. 1633 Littleton Road, built in 1978, formerly occupied by Skanska has been vacant since 2014 and 2 Campus Drive, which is directly behind 1633 is also vacant. Both properties, have a for-lease sign posted, but a review of the Mack-Cali website, shows no information for these two buildings. Loopnet.com indicates both properties are off the market. 1633 Littleton Road is directly across from the entrance to Sedgefield Civic Association (Sherwood Road).
The Highlands at Hilltop is similar to a development they are constructing in Morris Plains
In neighboring Morris Plains, Mack-Cali held a ceremonial ground breaking, in August 2016, for its newest luxury residential community, Signature Place at Morris Plains. This new complex is located approximately one-half mile from 1633 Littleton Road.
Signature Place on Littleton Road, Morris Plains
The new multi-family community will feature 197 luxury apartment homes and is scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2017.
This site was previously a vacant Mack-Cali office building that is being repurposed into a multi-family residential community. (Click here for article).
Council Vice President Robert Peluso
On February 7, 2017, The Parsippany-Troy Hills Township Council approved a liquor license transfer to Hanover Hospitality Corp, a subsidy of Mack-Cali. The vote passed 3-2. Councilman Paul Carifi, Jr., and Council Vice President Robert Peluso voted against the transfer.
At the time of the hearing, Council Vice President Robert Peluso said “The request to transfer a plenary retail consumption license to the premises raises a concern for me without knowing the plans for the premises. The location where they request to move the license is approved as an office complex, a use that has one of the lowest impacts on surrounding properties. Without knowing the purpose of the transfer, I am concerned that this is a precursor to conversion to a use with greater impact on our community. I would like to see the full plan for the use of this license, and the property, before being asked to approve this application. The community has a right to know what is being proposed at the premises. I will not be a rubber stamp on an application without full disclosure to our community.”
The application indicates it will be used for a restaurant, and will be issued in the name of Hanover Hospitality Corp, and will remain a pocket license until such time a physical location is secured to transfer the license. A license which becomes inactive and is no longer sited at a business premises becomes a “pocket” license. At the time a pocket license is reactivated, the licensee must file an application for a place-to-place transfer of the license so that it may be sited at the new active business address. A spokesman for Mack-Cali stated “Nothing we can report. No leases signed.”
Mack-Cali, the state’s largest office landlord, is pushing ahead with plans to re-energize its 2.2 million square feet of space in Parsippany-Troy Hills.
Doing so means investing in new amenities such as cafeterias, fitness rooms and conference centers across roughly a dozen buildings, but also enhancing the area with new uses such as a hotel, a supermarket and new apartments, according to an article published in Real Estate New Jersey.
In recent years, Mack-Cali has bolstered its portfolio in Parsippany through both addition and subtraction. In January 2016 they acquired 3 Sylvan Way (click here for article), a 150,000-square-foot property, while selling four others on Century Drive and 600 Parsippany Road. (Click here for article).
In neighboring Morris Plains, Mack-Cali held a ceremonial ground breaking, in August 2016, for its newest luxury residential community, Signature Place at Morris Plains. The new multi-family community will feature 197 luxury apartment homes and is scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2017. This site was previously a vacant Mack-Cali office building that is being repurposed into a multi-family residential community. (Click here for article).
Parsippany has 140 properties with 16,241,867 square feet of office space averaging rentals of $25.70 per square foot.
PARSIPPANY — Patrol Sergeant Sean Jasiecki, Detective M. Czajka and Patrol Officer J. Lubeck respond to a residence on Tabor Road for a reported burglary on February 4.
Upon their arrival the victim advised the Officers that numerous pieces of jewelry and electronics were stolen from the residence.
Officers located a garage door that was pried open by the suspect to gain entry.
After a brief investigation the suspected burglar was identified as Denzel Johnson.
Det. M. Czajka charged Mr. Johnson on a Complaint-Warrant with the following charges:
1 count in the 3rd Degree Burglary
1 count in the 3rd Degree Theft of Movable Property
1 count in the 4th Degree Hindering
Mr. Johnson subsequently turned himself in to the Morris County Correctional Facility on February 20, where he is still incarcerated.
PARSIPPANY — Ithaca College congratulates students named to Dean’s List for the fall 2016 semester.
Lauren Astor, a 2015 Parsippany Hills High School graduate and Emerging Media major, was named to the Dean’s List in Ithaca College’s School of Communications for the fall 2016 semester. Lauren is an Social Media Marketing Intern at New York Minute Magazine.
Annemarie Lillis, also a 2015 Parsippany Hills High School graduate and Television-Radio major, was named to the Dean’s List in Ithaca College’s School of Communications for the fall 2016 semester.
From day one, Ithaca College prepares students for success through hands-on experience with internships, research and study abroad. Its integrative curriculum builds bridges across disciplines and uniquely blends liberal arts and professional study. Located in New York’s Finger Lakes region, the College is home to 6,100 undergraduate and 460 graduate students.
PARSIPPANY — While patrolling the area of South Beverwyck Road and Route 46 at 6:55 p.m. on Tuesday, February 21, Patrol Officer Ryan Taylor observed a 2010 Chevrolet Colorado drive through a parking lot to avoid a traffic signal.
Patrol Officer Ryan Taylor conducted a motor vehicle stop on the vehicle in the parking lot of 855 Route 46 and made contact with Kevin Bishop, 49, Amsterdam, New York.
After a brief investigation, Mr. Bishop was placed under arrest for Driving While Intoxicated and Possession of 50 grams or less of Marijuana. He was then transported from the scene for processing.
While being processed, Bishop was charged with Possession of 50 grams or less of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Driving While Intoxicated, CDS in a Motor Vehicle, Reckless Driving, Avoidance of a Traffic Control Signal.
He was released on his own recognizance into the custody of a sober adult pending his court date.
Editors Note: A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Despite this accusation, the defendant is presumed innocent until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
PARSIPPANY — Lisa Tubbs recently opened her own business, The Cleaning Authority of Parsippany, after a career working in corporate communications for Solix, Inc. The daughter and granddaughter of entrepreneurs and small business owners, Tubbs was interested in creating something she could call her own while providing the people of Parsippany a residential cleaning service they could use.
To reach Lisa, call (973) 435-4374.
The Cleaning Authority founded in 1989 has been franchising for almost 20 years and has more than 200 locations in the United States and Canada. Completing more than 1.7 million cleans last year, the company is responsible for the proprietary “Detail-Clean Rotation System” designed to guarantee a thorough clean. The Cleaning Authority is an environmentally responsible residential cleaning franchise committed to using eco-friendly cleaning products. For more information, please click here or follow on Twitter @LiveLifeWeClean.
Mack-Cali, the state’s largest office landlord, is pushing ahead with plans to re-energize its 2.2 million square feet of space in Parsippany-Troy Hills.
PARSIPPANY — 
The Cleaning Authority founded in 1989 has been franchising for almost 20 years and has more than 200 locations in the United States and Canada. Completing more than 1.7 million cleans last year, the company is responsible for the proprietary “Detail-Clean Rotation System” designed to guarantee a thorough clean. The Cleaning Authority is an environmentally responsible residential cleaning franchise committed to using eco-friendly cleaning products. For more information, please