I just went through the completely nutty process of a town meeting involving the proposal of putting up condominiums next to mine and my grandmother’s homes (she lives on the block just behind ours). Our main complaint concerns parking, yet the developers claim that 26 spaces will be sufficient for 12 condos. While I’m not looking forward to having streets that will make Fort Lee and Edgewater look tame, I still tried to level with the contractor while debating, saying that perhaps a dozen was overstretching both the land and the surrounding resources.

I’m not trying to play stupid to the fact that this is Bergen County, and people are constantly looking to move in here. I know that there will continue to be an increase of building in all towns. The greater problem is overencroachment; the infrastructure is not being updated fast enough to keep up with the incoming populace. Our roads are constantly in gridlock, not just because of traffic, but also many narrower streets are lined constantly with cars. Our hospitals balloon up from low census to overwhelmed in a matter of days. Crime continues to increase in a rapid rate as more low-income housing becomes ratified.

If it is the fate of many Bergen county towns to become city-like, in both population and residential zoning, certain programs need to be enacted here and now. While Hackensack and Trenton obviously welcome the additional income, property, and domestic taxes, it doesn’t seem like those funds are being bent towards preserving the quality of life for both current and new residents. Instead, they are poured into healing existing deficits, wasteful spending, and garish public displays, such as a new fleet of SUVs for the law enforcement. While perhaps up near West Milford, or down in the Pine Barrens, these might be good assets, here in Bergen our average elevation makes it barely above sea level. These vehicles’ only worth is for showing off on page 2 of the local newspapers.

These monies should instead be put towards improving the growing flooding situation (caused by Xanadu and other exuberant construction plans), hiring and properly equipping skilled police and firepersons, developing permanent answers to the traffic problems, and creating incentive programs for educational and medical staff, like teachers and nurses, both of which the state is very short on.

The boroughs and townships can pretend a small plot of land developed here and there every so often will not become burdensome, but it is already evident that accelerated growth in the last 10 years has had staggering consequences. This influx of people is showing no signs of slowing any time soon. At present, my grandmother will be complaining about how noisy these people are and how choked up her street is, but in the future, it will be all of us, wondering just when exactly a giant city got crammed into our tiny suburbia.