Per the article: “Residents with questions about the Downtown Streetscape Project can submit them to cranfordinfocus@cranfordnj.org by Sept. 1 for possible inclusion in the Cranford In Focus episodes.”

Ok so this is going to be a long rant about the Cranford Facebook community page and how I was treated because I was honestly shocked at how some of the older adults in this town act.

Backstory:

I’m super interested in urban planning so I thought I’d take it upon myself to relay some somewhat confusing information the town has collected about the Streetscape Project. Thought I was doing something nice for the community I’ve lived in my whole life but this turned out to be an eye opening experience.
I made 3 posts about the project
- Pros and cons
- Talks about the trial runs
- FAQ about the project
All of the posts were unbiased information simply to shed light on the study efforts done by the town. Also I commented anonymously under the name “Cranford.Lobster” lol and it was on the page Cranford NJ Area - Families.

Community response:

There were, of course, many supportive messages but the overwhelming majority of the messages were either hate or straight up misinformation. Here are the main comments I received.
- People claiming I worked for the town/project. Fair, I can see people thinking that. But then I received at least a dozen messages (from my 3 posts keep in mind) of the moderator telling me I was a part of the project. The moderator can see my real name and bio, realizing that her claim that I’m getting a kickback was obviously false. I encouraged her to look at my profile, just for her to ignore my comment and have her tell me over and over that I work for the town. Great. So even the moderators are here to spread fake information at fit their agenda.
- Saying the project will cause more traffic. At first the angry crowd of people commenting said they wanted a thorough traffic and parking study to be done, not knowing a few studies were actually done in 2024. So I provided the studies regarding how the town and state has found this project will help with traffic. After providing this information in plain language I was flooded with grown adults telling me how dumb I was because, I kid you not, they “can see it won’t work”. So these adults insist they want studies, then when given studies they choose to not believe the evidence coming from people who do this work for a living. Respectfully you have to be very brazen and ignorant to call me dumb and think you’re smarter than an expert in the field regardless of the topic.
- I also receive straight up false “facts” like “the study shows it will cause a football field of traffic” or “the people who work on Eastman don’t agree with the plan”. Both comments of which I responded with sources of how this blatant misinformation. I’ve asked at least a dozen people what source they’re getting their information from just to receive only 2 responses which either disproved their point or was from another Facebook post that was based off of literally nothing. Wow. Either people have a problem admitting they’re wrong or they can not read.

This is seriously concerning. Are these folks going to just harass and destroy every project developed to help this town continue thriving? The speed at which misinformation spreads on these pages is crazy. And the negativity of these groups is astonishing, why is hate spreading so fast, this is not the Cranford I remember.
And I hate to point fingers but every single person (without fail) who I received hate from was 65+. People who likely rarely use the downtown and statistically don’t stay in Cranford much longer. Disgusting how at their age they have the desire to harass people and how they can’t tell the difference between misinformation and reality. They really shouldn’t be on social media and I’m not saying this to be funny, I mean this could genuinely affect them and their family negatively in the future.

This page made me seriously doubt the literacy and critical thinking of the adult population of this town. It also made me concerned with how strongly worded some of these people can get. Why are people angrily telling me I’m dumb while literally just providing information from studies I didn’t do myself.

Anyways I’m glad people on this sub have common sense and if anyone would like to post support of the project on the Facebook page please do so, your voices are important. Have a lovely day Cranforidians.

Starfish, the logo for Orange Ave. Pool, has gone without a name for a long time. Manager Matt Zatorsky leads the push to get Starfish a name, and thanks to your entries, she now has a name! Thank you to the Bramwell family for submitting the winning entry.
#orangeavepool #cranfordrecreation

The footbridge at Baldwin and High streets will be undergoing repairs over the next few days but is expected to be open for the first day of school. Mayor Kathleen Miller Prunty and DPW Superintendent Ryan Elliot tell us that the bridge's boards will be replaced and the entire structure will be reinforced.

"Love the babka!" A class at the community center, hosted by the Cranford Public Library, didn't debate chocolate vs cinnamon babka. It taught residents both!
#cranfordnj #babka

Cranford Theater's first show was the 1926 movie Padlocked and was played 8pm November 29th. The theater has lived through the Depression and several wars, the 60s and the present, with films mirroring our lives. In celebration, its owner Doreen Sayegh has planned several activities for us to celebrate together:
Aug. 20 kickoff: children's activities, showing of Paddington 2, and the start of collecting of items for a time capsule, to be planted in November.
Nov. 7..the showing of the first Cranford Theater movie, a silent movie called Padlocked , complete with an accompanying organ playing in the theater! 1920s dress in encouraged.
Nov. 30..the time capsule will be closed.
For more information, go to cranfordtheater.com.
#cranfordnj #cranfordtheater #cranfordtheatercentennial #padlocked

He has multiple DUIs and it was a hit and run.

I really wish I could disagree.

Yesterday I was doing my morning 3k steps and I saw mountains of gravel in the little lot where the boy scout trailer is normally parked. People were raking them. Is the town just setting that up fo morer parking?

Corner of high st and Lincoln Ave E

I think it’s a welcome refresh

National Night Out moved to Union College this year and featured the ever popular Dunk-A-Cop, which raised money for Project Home. Cranford Police Chief Matthew Nazzaro and Superintendent Mark Cantagallo hit the water more times than a biscotto in coffee, but it was a thrill to the crowd. People also visited community agencies and were able to climb into county and local emergency services equipment.
#cranfordnj #unioncollege #nationalnightout #communitybuilding

Lifeguards at Orange Ave Pool compare their "walk" versions used when reminding patrons to walk on the cement! A take of the lifeguard walk memes. More fun with manager Matt Zatorsky and friends!
A TV35 and Cranford Recreation and Parks collab.

Highlights from this year's Tosho-Con, held at the Cranford Community Center.

A handful of Cranford teen students spend 10 days during the summer to visit Washington, DC and the South to meet its people and understand why we have different views. It's a voluntary trip through American Tributaries, a non-profit seeking to help teens learn about different Americans through face-to-face experiences.
Students' takeaway? We all may be different, but we have the same goals and share the same humanity. Also, they said they discovered that we are not as divided as the media says we are.
#cranfordnj #travel #teentravel #americantribuaries #experientialeducation

Imagine that?!

Hi all! My wife and I just moved to Cranford from Brooklyn. I'm (31M) looking for a men's pickup soccer group or rec league to join in the area. I played in high-school and club in college but that was 10+ years ago and I've only played rec/pick up here and there since. I'm not looking for anything high-level, but just looking to get a run-around to keep in shape. Does anyone know of any leagues or weekend pickup groups in the area?

If not, is there enough interest to organize a meet-up on weekend mornings or late-night weeknights?

Manager Matt Zatorsky befriends starfish, the mascot of Orange Ave. Pool. The problem is, starfish doesn't have a name! What would you call her? Send your answers to [pool@cranfordnj.org](mailto:pool@cranfordnj.org) by August 14. If the name you suggest is picked, you win fries from the Orange Ave Pool snackstand!
#cranfordnj #cranfordpools #orangeavenuepool

Kevin Deacon, former principal at Hillside Ave. School, became the district's assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction in January. TV35 host Donna Vaupel talks to him about what the job entails and his goals.
#cranfordnj #cranfordpublicschools #kevindeacon

South East Corner of Elizabeth's and union

Preferably not national chains but other than that I’m easy!

Are they doing work on the street or so they need the street for parking for construction equipment?