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RIDGE VIEW ECHO WRITER

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer

471 ARTICLES
Joe brings decades of journalism experience to the Ridge View Echo, covering everything from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former National Law Journal editor and Columbia Law School press officer, he now enjoys telling community stories in Blairstown, where he lives with his wife, Rose, and their two dachshunds.
Phalon's File

The Real Memorial Day

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Let’s not forget that next Saturday is Memorial Day. “Saturday is Memorial Day?” you might ask. “How is that? Saturday is when I’ll finally have...
Elections

Budget Referendum Goes Down in Flames

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Nearly 1,200 Blairstown residents went to the polls Tuesday, and almost all of them voted to reject a proposed referendum to allow the Township...
Municipal Actions

Blairstown Voters to Decide Budget Question April 21 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
The polls will open in Blairstown April 21 for voters to decide on a levy cap referendum that would allow the township to exceed...
Phalon's File

A Bell From the Past 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
I had one of those strange flashbacks triggered by an unusual source. I was making my world-famous macaroni salad one fine afternoon. Ordinarily I...
Utilities

Frelinghuysen Getting Updated Power Connections 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Residents of Frelinghuysen received some positive news about the township’s electric grid along with a few answers about their negative power experiences. Amy Overman, an...
Politics

Newton No Kings March Attracts More Than a Thousand 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
More than 1,200 people gathered on the Newton Green Saturday for the third No Kings Rally, and their message was it’s not too late...
Municipal Actions

Frelinghuysen Committee Meeting Turns Chaotic

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Tempers boiled over last week in Frelinghuysen as a current township committeeman and a former township committeeman traded barbs over the fire department, leading...
Hardwick Fire

Hardwick Earns Grant as a Firewise Community

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Hardwick Township is one of 22 New Jersey municipalities—and the only one in Warren County—to receive a state grant to help reduce wildfire risks...
Sports

North Warren Girls Take League Championship

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
The North Warren girls’ basketball team finished the 2025-26 season atop the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference Colonial League. The league championship was their ticket to...
Utilities

No Short Fuses at This Year’s JCP&L Update in Knowlton

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Long-suffering electric utility customers in Knowlton had an opportunity this week to bring their concerns about frequent power outages directly to Jersey Central Power...
Phalon's File

How Cold Was It? 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
It was cold last week. The kind of cold that provokes you to invent compound words, usually consisting of an adverb and an adjective,...
Land Use

Blairstown Warehouse Application Gets Two-Year Extension

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
The application for a 70,000-square-foot warehouse on Route 94 on the Blairstown side of the border with Knowlton was granted a two-year extension last...
Sports

North Warren Basketball Boys Close Winning Season

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
While they fell just short of a place in the postseason, the North Warren boys’ basketball team still finished with a winning record that...
Sports

North Warren Girls’ Hoops Headed to Postseason

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
The Patriots’ basketball girls squad is headed to the post-season Wednesday, after closing out a 14-12 regular season. While the team finished just two games...
Transportation

Amtrak Service Takes (Baby) Steps Forward

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Amtrak passenger train service between Scranton and New York City by way of Blairstown took a couple baby steps this week, but the only...
Historic Preservation

Fashionista-Turned-Farmer Describes Journey to Blair Students 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
You don’t have to decide what you want to do with your life when you are still in your teens. That’s the message Ruthie...
Animals

North Warren Community Rallies for Animal Shelter Devastated by Fire 

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
North Warren residents are stepping up to assist the One Step Closer Animal Rescue after a devastating fire Wednesday at its shelter in Andover. The...
Land Use

Knowlton Short-Term Rental Rules Eyed for February

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
An ordinance that would regulate short-term rentals in Knowlton that was on the agenda in January but tabled is expected to check in for...
Sports

North Warren Girls Basketball Heads to Tournament Round 2

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
North Warren girls basketball prevailed on Saturday with a 49-41 win over Lenape Valley in the first round of the Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex Tournament. They’ll face Hunterdon...
Municipal Actions

Frelinghuysen Committee to Fine Tune Meeting Minutes

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer -
Minutes could seem like hours in Frelinghuysen, where the township committee will be looking into ways to tweak how the written records of its...
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Ridge View Echo is your local independent, nonprofit and nonpartisan news source. We provide local news serving the Blairstown, Frelinghuysen, Hardwick, Knowlton and surrounding communities in northern Warren County, New Jersey.

Ridge View Echo is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit news organization.

Articles

The latest

Knowlton Elementary School Sees Strong ELA Scores; For Math, It’s Complicated

Knowlton
It’s test score presentation season, that time of year...

Beech Blight Aphids: The Bugs That “Boogie Woogie”

Notes From the Fallen Tree
Beech blight aphids are a type of woolly aphid...

After Second ICE Operation in Hackettstown, Local Groups Unite in Protest

Community Issues
About 50 protesters marched through downtown Hackettstown on Sunday,...
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