Irwin did many things that I believe gave him pride. I think that one of things that he was most proud of was the role he played in the establishment of the New Milford Jewish Community Center in New Milford, New Jersey. As president for two terms and spokesman for the congregation he was instrumental in bringing the Synagogue into existence despite a good deal of resistance from the community.
The following articles a just a small handful from the many to choose from that provide an interesting chronology of the effort to establish the Community Center.
NEW MILFORD - At the meeting of the Tri-Borough Jewish Community
Center, held Monday evening in the Fellowship room of the Presbyterian Church, the
following officers were elected: Irwin Franzel, president; Sol Berman, vice-president;
Mrs. Sidney Saslow, recording secretary; Mrs. Phil Stempler, corresponding secretary; Mrs.
Samuel Weissberger, treasurer.
The Board of Directors comprises Morry Wanetik, Dr.Burt
Stavitsky, Dr.
Ed Shakin, Lawrence Solomon and Mrs. Paul Beer.
Installation will be held Oct. 15 at 8 p.m. at the Old Hook Inn,
Emerson. Mrs. Solomon may be reached at Oradell 8-3649-R for reservations.
NEW MILFORD - Mayor Mario LaBarbera was guest speaker and presided
at the first installation ceremonies of the new officers of the Tri-Borough Jewish
Community Center held Oct. 15 at Old Hook Inn, Emerson. Over 50 attended.
Installed were Irwin Franzel, president; Sol Berman, vice-president;
Mrs. Sidney Saslow, recording secretary, Mrs. Phillip Stempler, corresponding secretary;
and Mrs. Samuel Weissberger, treasurer.
The 1951-52 officers and board of directors presented a gift to the
retiring president, Morry Wanetik.
Dancing was enjoyed and music was provided by William
Hartmann, Jr., on
the accordion.
NEW MILFORD - A Triborough Jewish Community Center will be
constructed this fall on River Road and Myrtle Avenue to serve the spiritual needs of
Central Bergen's growing Jewish population.
The one-story building, to be patterned after colonial-style
architecture of surrounding homes, will be the focal point for services, Sunday School,
and community activities.
Irwin H. Franzel, president, said the congregation would be drawn from
New Milford, River Edge and Oradell.
He estimated there are upwards of 800 Jewish worshipers in the
Triborough area. At present, the nearest synagogue is the Bergenfield-Dumont Jewish
Community Center.
Plans are being completed by the New York architectural firm of Samuel
Kessler and Sons, designers of the Fort Lee Synagogue and other North Jersey temples.
On the basis of preliminary blueprints, Franzel said the brick building
would take shape with a Georgian-style facade, peaked roof, and an overall design matching
surrounding architecture.
It will be 40-feet wide, 50-feet deep, and 18-feet from floor to
ceiling. The single-room interior will be broken up with sliding panels to permit its
division into separate club and classrooms. At present, Sunday School classes are held in
Steuben School, New Milford.
The Ark housing the Holy Torah will face east as required by Hebrew law
and will be protected from the rest of the room by special curtains when non-religious
functions are scheduled.
The property on which the new temple will be built was purchased last
month for $3,700 from Henry L. Cordier, River Edge real estate dealer. A title search now
in progress is expected to continue until March 1.
Franzel said the completed building should cost about $20,000 and a
Triborough fund-raising drive to get pledges for that amount is currently underway.
"So far the response has been excellent," he said. "A
preliminary announcement at Friday night services to the effect we wanted to erect our own
synagogue inspired pledges of more than $1,700."
Franzel said a day or two later word had spread so rapidly pledges for
more than $3,000 had been received. It was then that the Community Center decided to
purchase the site on the northeast corner of Myrtle Avenue and River Road.
To keep costs down, members of the projected congregation have
volunteered to assist with carpentry, painting, and some of the interior workmanship.
Looking toward the day when it will outgrow its one-story quarters, the
congregation instructed Kessler to design the building with an eye to future expansion.
Additions - both outside and upward - are being incorporated into the preliminary design.
The building has been purposely set back 70 feet from the sidewalk to
permit an addition to the front if necessary. The peaked roof will be of plywood
composition so it can be easily removed for construction of a second story.
In case a second-story becomes necessary, said Franzel, the chapel will
be housed upstairs and Sunday School and club rooms will occupy the lower floor.
Space has been reserved in the rear for a parking lot. Kessler is
slated to complete his architectural drawings of the interior and exterior layout of the
structure in time for inspection by the Borough Council building committee "within a
month or two," Franzel predicted.
Jewish Center Plans Are Protested Here
NEW MILFORD - The portion of the regular meeting of the Mayor
Council on Monday evening opened for topics of public interest saw an active discussion
revolving about the proposed Jewish Community Center planned for Myrtle Avenue and River
Road.
The initial complaint was that it was being built in a residential area
and would detract from the quiet and residential character of the neighborhood. As was
stated by Mrs. Nassar, the Tri-Borough Center as its name implied, would draw from New
Milford, Oradell and River Edge as well as Paramus. As is usually the case in centers of
this kink, there are several activities during the week in addition to religious services,
all of which would combine to create a parking nuisance for the neighboring homes as well
as a traffic hazard on River Road. Mayor LaBarbera replied that as yet no application had
been made for a building permit and therefore the Borough was in no position to take any
action for or against the Center. On the suggestion that the Center be restricted for the
use of New Milford residents LaBarbera was emphatic that the American way of life does not
tell a person where or when he may attend religious services. He further observed that any
investment in a House of Worship that helped to get people to come to church more often
was an asset to any community.
A representative of the proposed Center said that the Committee had
volunteered to meet with any of the signers of the petition objecting to the new building
and to discuss with them any of their objections.. This position was supported by
President Irwin Franzel who announced he had just come from a meeting during which the
name had been officially changed to the New Milford Jewish Community Center. He read a
prepared statement about the conference with the originator and signers of the petition
and he asked any resident who had a question or objection to communicate with him. On the
most discussed issue of parking, Franzel said that they have some ground available and
were endeavoring to add to their holding in order to provide as much off-street parking as
was possible.
Jewish Center OK'd
Special to News-Graphic
NEW MILFORD - The props were pulled out from under opponents of the
proposed Jewish Community Center today by Mayor Mario R. LaBarbera.
In a carefully worded statement designed to pave the way for
construction of the new temple if it jives with legal restrictions, LaBarbera said:
"If the building plans comply with building ordinances of the
borough of New Milford, by all means a building permit will be issued."
Speaking for himself, and inferentially for the Borough Council, the
borough chief executive told the News-Graphic n an exclusive interview:
"I fail to see the difference between the proposed synagogue and
any other proposed structure for this area.
"The synagogue founders will be treated like any other petitioner.
There will be no difference. We put no stock in anything but the law."
LaBarbera's statement was seen as an indirect reference to a group of
20 home-owners who filed a protest against the temple to be built at the corner of River
Road and Myrtle Ave.
Without coming out in direct opposition to their petition of last
month, the Mayor indicated their protests would be put aside once preliminary building
plans show the construction code will be complied with.
"That applies to zoning, foundation strength, design, and the rest
that goes with it," he said. "That will be our only criteria for approval or
otherwise."
LaBarbera's announcement marks the end of a see-saw battle that has
been raging in and out of Council for the past two months.
It ends the hopes of petitioners that official opposition to the center
could be spurred on the basis of parking and zoning "complications."
The announcement, dovetailing with a disclosure that the Center had
acquired the necessary land, paves the way for the first Jewish worship center in the
Triborough area.
Fund-raising activities, in anticipation of an official okay, have been
underway for months. Preliminary plans have been prepared by the firm of Samuel J. Kessler
and Sons, architects.
Designed to harmonize with buildings of the surrounding area, the
center will be a one-story structure of colonial style. It will be 40-feet wide, 50-feet
deep, and 18-feet from floor to ceiling.
Preliminary Estimates Expected For Jewish Community Center
Construction Costs Will Be Ready In 10 Days
New Milford - Preliminary estimates of construction costs for a Jewish Community Center to serve almost 1,000 Jewish residents of the Borough are expected to be made within the next 10 days according to a statement today by Irwin H. Franzel, president of the local Center.
SPACE FOR TEMPLE
The new building to be erected on River Road should enter its first
phase of construction in the near future, Franzel said it will be a general purpose
building to provide for the immediate needs of the unit.
Architectural drawings and prints made for the center by Samuel J.
Kessler and Sons of New York, will stress space for a temple, a Sunday School, and a
general purpose room for activities of various civic and religious organizations in the
Community, Franzel said.
The two-story building will house a kitchen, classrooms, and storage
room on the lower floor. The upper floor will house the temple. A wing will provide a
recreational room for Borough youths, and for adult members of the Community.
The entire membership is engaged in fund-raising activities for the
erection of the building. To date, the group has sponsored a square dance and a dinner
dance, both bringing favorable response from the town's citizens, Franzel stated.
The Center's president announced the unit would hold another fund
campaign during the week of May 31. A bazaar will be held adjacent to the Brookchester
Shopping Center on River Road.
Franzel said every member of the Jewish Center is working now to
arrange the affair. He thanked residents of the Borough for their support of the unit's
projects.
Services for Jewish High Holy Days Will Start Sept. 25
in New Milford
NEW MILFORD - High Holy Days services will be held
again under the auspices of the Jewish Community Center here, it was announced at the
first meeting of the season this week held in the Fellowship Room of the Presbyterian
Church.
Services will be held at the new Bridge Inn, starting Monday evening,
Sept. 27 at 7 o'clock. The Inn has a completely separate and large room with a private
entrance which have been made available to the local Jewish families at this time.
Families are invited to worship with the group and tickets for the services will be sent
through the mail this week.
Plans for the building which will house the Temple of the Jewish
Community Center were unanimously approved and accepted by the membership Monday evening
and it is everyone's goal that next year High Holy Day services will be held within the
Center's own building.
Edwin Barnett, as president of the Center introduced the new officers
and members of the Board of Directors. He described the diligent work done throughout the
summer by the various committees which will make this coming season one of great
advancement of Jewish activities within the Borough.
Religious school, under the direction of Rabbi Jacob
Leiter, will hold
registration Sept. 12 and be from 10 a.m. to noon at the Steuben School. The grades this
year are designed as Kindergarten, age 5, Primary age 6 and 7, Intermediate, age 8 and 9,
and Advanced age 10 and up. The first three grades will meet as previously set, Sunday
morning, 10 a.m. to noon at the Steuben School, however, the advanced class will have two
additional sessions each week in addition to Sunday classes.
Irwin Franzel, as out-going president, was presented with a beautiful
wrist watch as a small token for his untiring and unceasing efforts on behalf of the
Center during his two years in office.
Religious articles for use in your home will be on sale in the near
future for the building fund.
Many new Jewish residents attended Monday's meeting and during the
social hour new acquaintances were made and old friendships renewed.