Continuous Outrage: Jackson Code Enforcement Goes After Prayer

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By Jackson Leaks

So what happens when Code Enforcement gets tired of spying?

A helpful reader has provided audio of a conversation where they were confronted at their front door by two Code Enforcement Officers over praying in their house, after being watched by them for weeks. Below are excerpts from this audio. It is worth noting that the two officers are professional throughout and the conversation is cordial, however we find the content disturbing.

Code Enforcement Head Ken Pieslak introduces himself, and tells the resident that prayer (shudder) has been reported in his house. Praying is somehow against the law, though Ken isn’t sure exactly which one; it has something to do with acreage and setback. From his description it’s almost certain he is referring to Jackson zoning code § 244-115, which sets the conditions for a building that is primarily an institutional church, including a 2 acre lot and 200 foot setbacks. Needless to say, this person’s house is primarily a private residence and thus not subject to these requirements.

 Ken Pieslak:  I’m Ken Pieslak, department of compliance supervisor.

Are you the owner? Okay.

We’re getting, we’ve received some complaints last week that on Friday, you’re conducting services in the house. And we don’t want to bother, we didn’t want to come Friday at sundown and bother you so we wanted to get a hold of you ahead of time, cause you may not be aware that we have a code that doesn’t allow it. It only allows it in certain zones and you need X amount of property and, be, 200 foot setbacks and so forth. And we can get you a copy of the code, I don’t have it on me right now, but we just wanted to make you aware that it isn’t allowed.

I mean, if you have something scheduled for tonight, we understand, we don’t wanna, it’s last minute, we’re okay with that. But anything in the future beyond that, you know, we’re going to have to give a notice of violation followed up by a summons and that sort of…

What was the actual complaint? Was it noise or parking violations that spurred this concerned citizen to action? Code Enforcement Officer Connie Sidor fills in the details: an anonymous tipster helpfully took a video of people praying in the house and reported it..

 Connie Sidor: The complaint came in, and we have a video of, they say, 30 people going into the garage and holding some kind of service or something. So, the ordinance says you can’t hold, on a continuous basis, any type of church or religious service.

 

Forget about any legal advice (or lack thereof) the officers may have been operating with, doesn’t this fail a basic smell test? Does it really bear saying that people are allowed to worship in groups in the privacy of their homes? Substitute in another type of gathering and imagine the absurdity: getting a notice of violation for hosting a weekly Boy Scout troop meeting or a summons because you have invited friends over on successive Sundays to watch the Giants lose. Imagine the township showing up because someone sent them videos of you having dinner parties (“We have decided that you are a restaurant” says Ken). What country is this anyways that people record their neighbors praying and run off to report them?

Let’s be reasonable here, one cannot do whatever they want in the name of religion. In Sexton v. Bates for example, the construction of a mikvah (Jewish ritual bath) was disallowed in a residential area in NJ. But our state constitution ensures that the right to gather and pray cannot be abridged by municipal zoning.


19 COMMENTS

  1. The neighbors are nervous of all the noise and garbage that will happen when this Shul keeps growing. Did you ever pass by the back of Bobov on 47th street? The horrible smell and garbage which is noticeable all around. All the neighbors are furious, Yiddishe and Goishe. Absolutely no concern for their neighbors.

    • No comparison whatsoever. All you did was show your hatred for fellow Yidden. Stay in Boro Park and don’t mix into business of which you know nothing about.

    • So Sarah, do you suggest that there should be no shuls at all, because of some garbage collection issues in Boropark?! What are you smoking?

  2. Study the Dinei
    of Beis Haknesses

    Jackson is trying (whatever the motive)to enforce what we should’ve been enforcing all along

  3. bring a personal suit against the individuals – only thing that works!
    suing the township waste of time – they use your taxpayer dollars to defend themselves.

  4. Liberal’s morals and ethics have descended to the lowest point, and their hatred towards religion, Holidays (even non-Jewish), G-d, national history, prayers is getting out of hand. They go berserk every time President Trump mentions G-d – and he says it quite often – and when he talks about an upcoming holiday. Thank you Obama for bringing America down to its lowest level of the abyss.

  5. Parties in people’s homes are very vey common in Jackson. The neighbors are scared of the tremendous change that’s coming to their neighborhood. I can’t say that i blame them. I would feel the same way. Perhaps there’s some way to let them know that we’re not sooooo scary.

    • Give It 10, can you comprehend a tremendous difference between a neighborhood going to religious Jews versus, let’s say, illegal Hispanics or Blacks. Religious Jews won’t burglarize your house, won’t mug you, won’t bring in MS 13, won’t bring in drugs, won’t hijack your car, won’t attack your women, won’t sucker punch you, won’t play loud music, won’t drive drunk, won’t bully you in the streets, etc. These white goyim stopped procreating, additionally they killed the economic engine by consistently voting for the socialists; so now the vacuum is filled with all kinds of other groups moving into their neighborhoods all over New Jersey. If anything, these white goyim should be grateful that it is Jews and not others moving into their town. At least with the Jews, the property values go up, and the crime statistics go down. Their hate of Jews is completely irrational and has no justification.

  6. How ironic. You are busy scouring and disseminating Jackson township emails and they you complain that they are spying on what happens in plain sight.

        • There is one sure way to make goyim approve of you – commit suicide. Your institution has no ropes and the windows are barred, besides you are wearing this peculiar shirt with extra long sleeves tied behind your back – guess a suicide is not an option for you.

  7. Here is what needs to be done my friends.
    Buy buy buy.
    And register to vote.
    Jackson is cheap and every yunger
    man should invest in a home in Jackson.
    The residents are an aging population. To get to ישיבה takes only a few minutes by car and most important there is no traffic in the mornings like other parts of Lakewood in morning traffic. There was a time boro park was dangerous to Jews. Every Friday night cars would drive around throwing eggs and rocks at Jews. Yes. This was back in 1970s. But things changed. More yidden moved in. Jackson is the 14 th most safest cities out of 100 in America. Safer than Lakewood and the five towns. Buy buy buy. I knew one belzer and one skverer and yeshivas guy who just bought there and love it.

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