10 Most-Read July Belleville-Nutley Patch Stories

ShopRite Coming To Belleville

Shoppers will no longer have to drive to Nutley or Bloomfield to get ShopRite specials, town officials announced.

Kevin Kennedy, a Belleville councilman, confirmed a ShopRite is expected to take the former Pathmark space at the end of the Washington Avenue business district.

Pathmark left in October 2010, and Kelly's Liquors moved into the space at 726 Washington Ave. The liquor store will now move across the hall to the left of the large shopping complex in favor of a new ShopRite, according to Kennedy.

Roche Employees Devastated by Closure News

Nutley Mayor Alphonse Petracco tried to put a bright face on the impending closure of pharmaceutical giant Roche, saying it could be a “good opportunity for Nutley to come out of this with more tax revenue.”  His optimism, however, was not shared by some families at the meeting, who said they were devastated by the news.

“To sum it all up, unless you work there, you don’t understand it.  The company was like a lifelong friend,” one Nutley resident, Laura, told Patch after the meeting.

After 80 years of being Nutley’s main employer, news of the closure shook the community to the core.  An estimated 1,000 workers were told on June 26 they would be laid off when the company ceases operations in December 2013.

Arrested Man Suspected in Nutley Burglaries

A Hackensack man has been arrested and accused of burglarizing a home in Nutley and authorities say he may be linked to several residential burglaries throughout Bergen County and Nutley.

Hakeem Chance, 22 of Hackensack, was arrested Thursday arrested and charged with one count of burglary, eight counts of aggravated assault on a police officer, and one count of weapons possession, according to Nutley Det. Anthony Montaneri.

Nutley Man Saved From Fire by Neighbors

Neighbors who saw the back room of a house on fire, knocked on the door to alert the homeowner, who escaped the blaze, said Nutley Deputy Fire Chief Paul Cafone.

The homeowner, who was not identified, got out of his home on Sattherthwaite Avenue after nearby residents saw flames coming from the back room of the house, fire officials said.

The fire broke out around 5:17 p.m. on Saturday and firefighters were on the scene within three minutes.

Ex-Nutley School Employee Faces More Charges

A former Nutley school district employee has been charged with two additional thefts after police found a monitor and iMac laptop that were also missing from the school district.

Michael Ritacco of Lyndhurst was originally charged with 10 counts of theft of moveable property, with the first computers valued at more than $1,000 each and the total loss to the town and school district could surpass $30,000, according to Det. Anthony Montaneri.

Ritacco, who was working at the school district since 2011, was first arrested on June 28 and now faces additional charges stemming from the July 11 recovery of the two additional pieces of computer equipment.