Bergen County approves Eruv after 5 years of legal battles
NY Times:
After five years of legal battles, the leaders of this Bergen County borough approved an agreement on Tuesday night that enables an eruv, a symbolic boundary for Orthodox Jews that allows them to do some work on the Sabbath, to remain in place.
The agreement, which the Borough Council approved by a vote of 5 to 0, with one abstention, reimburses the Tenafly Eruv Association for $325,000 in court costs. The association set up the eruv in 2000 by placing plastic strips on utility poles, incorporating most of the borough's 4.4 square miles, but ran into opposition.
The Borough Council voted to ban the eruv, citing an ordinance against putting posters or other objects on utility poles, and made plans to dismantle it. Council members feared that by allowing the association to put up the eruv, they would be seen as giving preferential treatment to a religious group, said William McClure, the borough attorney.
Moreover, although the eruv association had the permission of the county and the utilities, the borough had not given its approval, which is required by state law, Mr. McClure said. And Mayor Peter S. Rustin said residents were concerned that the eruv would cause an influx of Orthodox Jews into the community, which has a population of 13,806, including about 40 Orthodox families. Some residents have expressed concerns that Orthodox Jews would use private schools and change the character of the borough.
But the association sued in federal court, claiming discrimination, and obtained a restraining order to keep the eruv in place.
After a federal judge agreed with the borough in 2001, the association successfully appealed that decision, with three judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruling in 2002 that the eruv should remain. The appellate judges noted that the borough often ignored its own law about posting things on utility poles, and that it would be unfair to enforce the law selectively against Orthodox Jews. The United States Supreme Court declined to hear the town's appeal in 2003.
No one from the association was at Tuesday night's meeting, and the deal was approved with no discussion. Several calls to the eruv association earlier Tuesday were not returned.
For Orthodox Jews, the eruv extends the realm of the home, allowing them to do some work on the Sabbath within its boundaries, like pushing a stroller or carrying keys. Eruvin have been placed in other communities with Orthodox populations, including Englewood, Teaneck, Paramus, Fair Lawn and Fort Lee in New Jersey; Park Slope and Williamsburg in Brooklyn; and even in the neighborhood that includes the White House in Washington. Many are next to impossible to spot, and have been set up without protest.
In the settlement, neither side admits liability. It requires the eruv association to advise the borough of any proposed extension of the eruv and "to safeguard the public in connection with the installation and future maintenance of the eruv." The borough's insurance will pay for a third of the court costs, Mr. McClure said.
Etzion Neuer, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League's New Jersey office, said his group had always considered an eruv a religious accommodation. "We didn't agree with the claim that it was any type of violation of the separation between church and state," he said. "We hope that this will be the last chapter in this painful and divisive fight."
He said some residents objected on the ground that they were being made to live in someone else's religious domain because most of the borough is enclosed by the eruv.
But, Mr. Neuer said, "the only people this really affects are the people that follow the religious tenets."
Several residents were glad to see the battle coming to an end, although they were angry that it had ever been fought. "It's caused a lot of faction in this town and it's so unfortunate," said Barbara Rooney, carrying laundry from her car on Tuesday. "I'm glad it will be finished, one way or the other. The money spent has been spent in the worst way possible for both sides."
Sandra Divack Moss, walking with her son on Washington Avenue, said, "I think it's appalling that Tenafly, for all this time, has been fighting the eruv, and I felt that way from Day 1."
"The multiethnic tapestry of America is one we should celebrate, and as neighborhoods ebb and flow, that's part of the way it is," she said. "It's time for reconciliation."
After five years of legal battles, the leaders of this Bergen County borough approved an agreement on Tuesday night that enables an eruv, a symbolic boundary for Orthodox Jews that allows them to do some work on the Sabbath, to remain in place.
The agreement, which the Borough Council approved by a vote of 5 to 0, with one abstention, reimburses the Tenafly Eruv Association for $325,000 in court costs. The association set up the eruv in 2000 by placing plastic strips on utility poles, incorporating most of the borough's 4.4 square miles, but ran into opposition.
The Borough Council voted to ban the eruv, citing an ordinance against putting posters or other objects on utility poles, and made plans to dismantle it. Council members feared that by allowing the association to put up the eruv, they would be seen as giving preferential treatment to a religious group, said William McClure, the borough attorney.
Moreover, although the eruv association had the permission of the county and the utilities, the borough had not given its approval, which is required by state law, Mr. McClure said. And Mayor Peter S. Rustin said residents were concerned that the eruv would cause an influx of Orthodox Jews into the community, which has a population of 13,806, including about 40 Orthodox families. Some residents have expressed concerns that Orthodox Jews would use private schools and change the character of the borough.
But the association sued in federal court, claiming discrimination, and obtained a restraining order to keep the eruv in place.
After a federal judge agreed with the borough in 2001, the association successfully appealed that decision, with three judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruling in 2002 that the eruv should remain. The appellate judges noted that the borough often ignored its own law about posting things on utility poles, and that it would be unfair to enforce the law selectively against Orthodox Jews. The United States Supreme Court declined to hear the town's appeal in 2003.
No one from the association was at Tuesday night's meeting, and the deal was approved with no discussion. Several calls to the eruv association earlier Tuesday were not returned.
For Orthodox Jews, the eruv extends the realm of the home, allowing them to do some work on the Sabbath within its boundaries, like pushing a stroller or carrying keys. Eruvin have been placed in other communities with Orthodox populations, including Englewood, Teaneck, Paramus, Fair Lawn and Fort Lee in New Jersey; Park Slope and Williamsburg in Brooklyn; and even in the neighborhood that includes the White House in Washington. Many are next to impossible to spot, and have been set up without protest.
In the settlement, neither side admits liability. It requires the eruv association to advise the borough of any proposed extension of the eruv and "to safeguard the public in connection with the installation and future maintenance of the eruv." The borough's insurance will pay for a third of the court costs, Mr. McClure said.
Etzion Neuer, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League's New Jersey office, said his group had always considered an eruv a religious accommodation. "We didn't agree with the claim that it was any type of violation of the separation between church and state," he said. "We hope that this will be the last chapter in this painful and divisive fight."
He said some residents objected on the ground that they were being made to live in someone else's religious domain because most of the borough is enclosed by the eruv.
But, Mr. Neuer said, "the only people this really affects are the people that follow the religious tenets."
Several residents were glad to see the battle coming to an end, although they were angry that it had ever been fought. "It's caused a lot of faction in this town and it's so unfortunate," said Barbara Rooney, carrying laundry from her car on Tuesday. "I'm glad it will be finished, one way or the other. The money spent has been spent in the worst way possible for both sides."
Sandra Divack Moss, walking with her son on Washington Avenue, said, "I think it's appalling that Tenafly, for all this time, has been fighting the eruv, and I felt that way from Day 1."
"The multiethnic tapestry of America is one we should celebrate, and as neighborhoods ebb and flow, that's part of the way it is," she said. "It's time for reconciliation."
posted by at 9:17 AM
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