'Nightmare on Bailey Ave.' Back in Bloomingdale

"Nightmare on Bailey Ave." will rise from the dead this year as the Bloomingdale Council voted to allow the road to be blocked off and approve funding from the Bloomingdale Recreation Commission to reimburse organizers for supplies Monday.

"'[Nightmare on] Baile Ave.' is a great thing for this town," resident John Darcey said during public discussion.

The vote was taken during a special meeting Monday after Councilwoman Linda Shortman, who had questions about insurance liability answered. All council members voted in favor of the event, with the exception of Councilman Ray Yazdi, who recused himself as he is an organizer.

Shortman questioned whether the borough's insurance would cover any incidents that may occur on the private property where the Halloween event is held in the neighborhood of Bailey Avenue. Borough Administrator Ted Ehrenburg and Mayor Jonathan Dunleavy assured her that the borough would be covered.

"Nightmare on Bailey Ave." has brought at least 1,000 area residents to the neighborhood for a spooky haunted hause, an "egg haunt" for younger kids, trick-or-treating and more. Last year, the event was canceled and this year, organizers feared it may not be possible again since the council had not taken action on it at the beginning of the month and typically, a month is needed to set up and build structures.

Ehrenburg said the cost of the event is roughly $2,000, including for police presence for safety and the reimbursement for supplies needed. Yazdi said since the event was approved, it will begin at dark and end around 9:30 p.m. More than 20 people will volunteer their time to assist with setting up and activities on Halloween day. He was happy the borough would be able to bring the event back for the children.

Not everyone was in favor of the event though.

"I think it's an outrage to expect Bloomingdale citizens to pay for what is essentially a private party," resident Lorraine Weinbrock said.

Weinbrock said she had never heard of the event until this year and that she had no idea it was public. Dunleavy told Weinbrock the event had been advertised as a public event for the past eight years, with the exception of last year, and in the schools, recreation center and in Borough Hall. He also told her that other borough events are held on private property annually, such as the Christmas Stroll, held on a church property.

Vreeland Avenue resident Nancy Hammaker said knowledge of the event has spread among residents over the years.

"When '[Nightmare on] Bailey Ave.' first started, it was just a word-of-mouth thing," she said.

Hammaker said the event has now grown and that her family has fond memories of attending with her two sons.

"It was a wonderful, wonderful experience," she said. "This is what a community needs."

Resident Frank O'Reilly commented that the event is not only public but open to residents from other communities to enjoy as well.

"It's so much a public event that people actually come here for it," he said.

Before the vote was taken, Councilwoman Jo-Ann Pituch commented that she was displeased with decorations on Yazdi's lawn last year that had council candidates' names on tombstones. She asked for an assurance the candidates' names would not appear on tombstone decorations this year.

"This shouldn't turn into a political event," Shortman said.

Councilman John D'Amato, who lives in the Bailey Avenue neighborhood, promised the council members that there would not be political signage as part of the decorations.

"If it does happen, I will take them down," he said.

After the vote, Yazdi thanked the council members for "supporting the kids," but responded to Pituch's initial comment about the tombstone lawn signs.

"What I put on a sign on my property is my business, end of business," he said.