Council applies for Bergen County preservation grant for train‑station pedestrian tunnel; residents question cost

The Ridgewood Village Council voted on April 23 to authorize a matching grant application to the Bergen County Historic Preservation Trust Fund to rehabilitate the pedestrian tunnel under the Ridgewood train station.

Village staff requested $541,880 from the county trust as part of a larger preservation effort; the manager said the village has allocated $400,000 in capital toward the project and is seeking additional grant funding from the New Jersey Historic Trust as well. The council’s resolution authorizing the county application passed on a consent vote.

Manager Keith Kaczmark described visible structural problems in the tunnel, including temporary shoring and drainage issues, and said the passage is a "vital pedestrian passageway" used by commuters, students and families. "This is a major artery," he said, and argued that deferred maintenance and recurring water infiltration create a need for an engineering and preservation approach rather than a simple cosmetic fix.

Public questions and council concern focused on cost and scope. Resident Boyd A. Loving and others said the projected cost and earlier consultant estimates raised concern that total project spending could exceed $1 million once state grants and any proposed art or beautification elements were included. "This just seems like a lot of money to me," Loving said, asking whether earlier consultants had provided a consolidated total cost and whether insurance recoveries had been applied to prior repairs.

Council members said the village is prioritizing the structural repairs and that art or additional beautification elements would be funded separately through donations or arts grants, not from village capital. Deputy Mayor Pam Perrin, Council member Frank Winograd and others stressed the tunnel’s daily use and the safety risk of delaying repairs. "If the roof is leaking, we gotta fix it now," one council member said.

Why it matters: the tunnel connects parts of the downtown and carries regular pedestrian traffic; council members said accelerated work is necessary to avoid larger structural failures. The application to Bergen County is a matching grant; the village must provide its share if the county award is made.

Next steps: staff will finalize and file the county and state grant applications; the manager said he and the newly engaged historic architect were refining the scope and budget on a tight schedule to meet application deadlines.

Ending: the council approved the application by consent and will return to details of final scope and fundraising for any non‑structural elements as the grant process and design work proceed.