HILLSDALE—The Cornerstone Restaurant & Bar, at 84 Broadway, won a reprieve to keep its outdoor dining area, with large white canopy, open until Aug. 23.
Beyond that, the quest continues. Local officials and state Sen. Holly Schepisi (D-39) are urging the county to reconsider its directive to the police department to immediately re-open Washington Avenue, where The Cornerstone has been operating its prominent outdoor seating area since May.
In February, the borough passed a resolution to temporarily modify and suspend the application of portions of ordinance Chapter 212 as regards outdoor cafes “and otherwise assist in promoting outdoor dining.”
The resolution designated that portion of Washington Avenue between Broadway and the borough’s east parking lot as appropriate for outdoor dining “provided it is secured and made safe under the direction of the Hillsdale Police Department with the consent of the County of Bergen, if necessary.”
Sections of Chapter 212 were suspended and not to be enforced “through the conclusion of this year’s outdoor dining season, herein defined as Nov. 30, 2021, or otherwise extended by statute,” the borough resolved.
The restaurant’s canopy, festooned with lights, straddles Washington Avenue’s double-
yellow lines.
Borough officials and Schepisi admitted it was unlikely that The Cornerstone’s unique street dining set-up will continue beyond Aug. 23.
A county official told Pascack Press that generally the county does not approve road closings for specific businesses, except for road work, utilities, or necessary construction or upgrades.
The official said it was not clear whether the approval received by Hillsdale was valid, as the county’s DPW director did not approve it.
On July 27, the county’s director of planning and engineering, Joe Femia, wrote police Lt. Daniel McLaughlin to “please advise the county when the road will be restored to normal condition.”
Femia said, “The county administration has advised of the following with respect to the closure of Washington Avenue for dining purposes. Now that capacity limitations for restaurants no longer apply, the roadway needs to be re-opened to vehicular traffic.”
He said, “Sidewalks and parking areas can be used for dining with municipal approval but vehicular traffic must be restored to its normal condition within the travel lanes.”
Pascack Press reached out to Femia and a county spokesman to find out what other closed county roads were recently ordered to be re-opened but did not hear back from either by press time.
Meanwhile, Council President Abby Lundy, Mayor John Ruocco, Schepisi, and Borough Administrator Chris Tietjen are expressing their views.
Ruocco urged the council to consider making “permanent adjustments” to zoning laws to encourage greater access to outdoor dining.
“I, along with the rest of the governing body, as well as our local state legislative leaders, had hoped for more flexibility from the county to let the closure and tent remain until sometime later in early fall when it generally gets too cold to enjoy outdoor dining,” Ruocco told Pascack Press on Aug. 3.
He said Tietjen “expressed these views to the county at the highest levels.”
He acknowledged “The county officials who have responsibility for county road closures and traffic safety/access matters were dealing with applying the same safety/traffic flow requirements across all the towns in the county.”
Ruocco said, “Cornerstone management put up the tent in the early spring after we successfully asked the county to close the street. Very shortly thereafter, they gained access to full indoor dining. So all in all, I think they will come out of this as well as, if not better than, their local competitors who could not expand outdoors in a similar fashion because we could not close any roads for them.”
Lundy told Pascack Press that it was “ludicrous” that the county provided little advance notice to The Cornerstone of its decision.
She said the restaurant has “expended funds on the tent, booked parties, etc. A majority of council does not agree with the county and wants to keep the road closed to continue to help out local business.”
She added, “Especially with rising Covid cases, people don’t want to eat inside.”
For much of 2020, only curbside pick-ups were allowed at area restaurants. Starting in mid-2020, many towns, including Hillsdale and Westwood, passed ordinances to loosen restrictions on outdoor dining and allow tables on sidewalks, parking lots, and parts of some streets.
Westwood Mayor Ray Aroryo told Pascack Press on Aug. 4 that his council — which in 2020 quickly led on accommodations for such venues — was interested in making some changes permanent by right, if those measures are proved successful. He said none involve county roads.
Schepisi said with Covid-19 Delta variant cases rising, perhaps the county would revisit the road reopening, as many patrons prefer outdoor tables and the tent is not causing a problem.
Health officials have noted the safety inherent in better air circulation and social distancing, which helps minimize the transmission of Covid-19.
Schepisi pointed out that Red Bank, in Monmouth County, has closed off several blocks of its downtown for diners, strollers and shoppers to help spur local business during the pandemic.
“We have to provide flexibility for all of our businesses. This [pandemic] is an ever-changing scenario and we have to be able to help out businesses to adjust to it,” she said.
Ruocco told Pascack Press, “If the state decides to reimpose restrictions due to panic over the Delta variant and failure to get more residents to vaccinate, the governing body will reassess what steps it can take to insulate our businesses from the harmful effects. That might include going back to the county.”
Hillsale police Capt. Sean Smith told Pascack Press on Aug. 4 that a slight detour to accommodate The Cornerstone was not perceived by local responders as a big inconvenience.
“The traffic pattern now, local traffic can come through — emergency services, let’s say there’s an ambulance call — the ambulance can either make a left, then go up Washington Avenue, get around the cones, or it can go through the east lot, which can give it access to Hillsdale Avenue,” he said.
Asked if this presented a delay in transit, he said, “Not in my opinion. A couple of residents might have had a problem with it. I’m not sure it was a problem because of traffic or it just was thought to look unsightly but the intention of it was to help a local business during the pandemic because the restaurant business obviously took a hit during the Covid crisis.”
He said of the dining shelter, “It’s more or less a permanent tent in place. It’s not something you can roll up at the end of the night.”
And, he said of the county, “I know that they’re looking to reopen it. We don’t have control over county roads, only municipal roads. So certain approvals need to be obtained before a county road can be shut down.”
Smith told Pascack Press there were no other local businesses diverting traffic on county roads. He described The Cornerstone, established in 2006, as a good neighbor that responds promptly to any complaints, such as one or two noise complaints fielded in 2020.
We reached out to The Cornerstone for comment on this story and did not hear back by press time. On its website’s splash page, there are two large photos, both promoting outdoor dining.
— With John Snyder