MONTVALE, N.J.—The Borough Council on Dec. 29, 2020 approved a resolution on a $268,042 contract with DTS Trucking LLC of Hawthorne for construction services to maintain and repair Huff Pond.
The base bid was the best of 10 proposals received Dec. 1. Boswell Engineering, the borough’s consultant, made the recommendation and noted the sum was below the $300,000 it estimated for the job.
The three lowest responsible bids were received from DTS Trucking, Cipriano Construction, and T. R. Weniger Inc.
The contract includes the restoration of Huff Pond and the replacement of the existing inlet and outlet pipes at the Memorial Drive Municipal Complex. The work includes dredging 2,850 tons of sediment.
Boswell apprised the governing body, DTS Trucking, Montvale Environmental Commission Chairman Robert Hanrahan, and Borough Attorney Joseph Voytus, Esq.
In Environmental Commission minutes from Jan. 21, 2019, members noted Boswell was involved with dredging of Huff Pond in the 1980s, and said the rule of thumb is that such work should be done approximately every 30 years.
The pond had algae issues and needed engineering work to correct the recirculation of water from and to Pascack Brook.
“A question was posed to fill in Huff Pond vs. paying for the repairs and upkeep. Consensus was Huff Pond is used often by the community and scout troops for fishing, and has been a fixture in Montvale for many generations,” read the commission minutes.
Indeed. We reached out to Hanrahan for his views on keeping the pond at its best.
He said, “Huff Pond has a warm history and it continues to be a location used by residents of all ages. The pond was created and has been long maintained for fishing and outdoor enjoyment by our residents.”
He said, “For as long as I can remember we start the spring off with a fishing contest and most nice weekends you will find children and adults of all ages enjoying the pond. The pond is fed with fresh water fed from Pascack Brook.”
He added, “Even though we do stock the pond annually with small fish to help control algae and reduce mosquitoes it’s home for some large carp, catfish, and bass, as well as a fair assortment of frogs and turtles.”
Huff Park features a playground, constructed in 2017, and a bocce court.
Asked about the idea of doing away with the pond, he said, “Yes, the question of filling in Huff Pond to reduce maintenance cost has come up more than once, but from our research we find that a significant majority of residents love the pond and truly enjoy peaceful times around it, and simply knowing it’s there for them.”
He said after this year’s investment in the project the borough will have a nicer looking pond and surroundings.
“We hope to have the project completed so residents can enjoy it during the summer. The updated pond, along with the new trail being worked on, which runs along Pascack Brook, will provide a nice local outdoor destination for the many of us who are looking to get outdoors with nature once again,” he said.
Pond a venerable borough feature
Borough historian Maria Jean Pratt Hopper, writing in 2000 for the Borough of Montvale Newsletter, noted the oldest male resident of Montvale in 1900 was 89-year-old Fredrick J. Haring, “who was supported by and living with his son Gerrit F. Hering, a cider manufacturer and saw mill owner. Gerrit Hering lived in the Octagon House, built by his wife’s father. His mill and mill pond, known as Haring’s (later Huff’s) Pond, were on the nearby Pascack Brook.”
Writing in 1994 on the occasion of Montvale’s centennial, Hopper noted that Gerrit F. Hering on Aug. 11, 1894 was one of 31 landowners (“25 men and six women”) who signed a petition calling for a special election to establish the Borough of Montvale.
Montvale was incorporated as a borough on Aug. 31, 1894, from portions of Orvil Township and Washington Township.
Hopper wrote that on Aug. 15, 1925, John B. Haring and Evelena Blauvelt, executor of the estate of Amelia Haring, sold the land she had received from her father’s and her husband’s estates (including the mill pond and Octagon House) to Fredrick Huff.
At the site, a stone bears a plaque honoring George and Agnes Sylvia (née Emerick) Huff, who donated the land to the borough.
Agnes, 92, died in 2010. Born in Jersey City on June 19, 1918 the youngest child and only daughter of Fredrick and Catherine Ryan Emerick, in 1924 at the age of 6 she and her family moved to Montvale, where she attended Montvale Elementary School and Park Ridge High School.
After training as a secretary, Agnes worked in New York City. On Jan. 14, 1939, she married George Huff of Montvale, who later became mayor here.
“Agnes worked side by side with George in the Octagon House Restaurant and Huff’s Ice Cream Bar in Montvale and was active in Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church in Park Ridge and many civic organizations,” her obituary reads in part.
It adds, “Although Agnes and George spent many years living away from Montvale, the town remained very special to them. They returned often for special events, especially the Fire Department’s Christmas Eve in the Park.”
As well, it notes “Agnes constantly spoke of the very pleasant memories of Huff’s Ice Cream Parlor, the Octagon House, the Ice Plant, and, especially, all the dear and devoted relatives and friends from so many years.”
In June 2019, happy memories were made at the Rich Prado and Ray Woodward Memorial Fishing Tournament, held at Huff Pond. The event, which was one of the valley’s last such revelries before COVID struck, was presented to Montvale residents by the Special Events Committee and Montvale PBA.
In September 2019, Mayor Michael Ghassali posted before-and-after photos of work that improved the grounds.
“Incredible job by all to beautify the park. Although temporary until the inlets are fixed next year, it looks awesome. Thank you Scouts Troop 334, Montvale Volunteer Fire Department, and the Environmental Commission. More to come, stay tuned,” he said.