River Road District Dollars Gift Certificates a Hit Business Owners and Consumers Give RRIC Program a Thumbs Up 

Vince Baglivo,
CDS Collaborative: Special to The Community News 

July 7, 2009, Fair Lawn, NJ - In a classic win-win situation, business owners and consumers in Fair Lawn's River Road District agree that the recent District Dollars Gift Certificate Program, sponsored by the River Road Improvement Corporation (RRIC), was much appreciated by all during these tough economic times. The $5500 in gift certificates, funded by business and commercial property owners in the River Road District, was shared by hundreds of winners from Fair Lawn and towns located throughout Bergen County and beyond. The winners have been spending their gift certificates on everything from dining out and haircuts, to dry cleaning and jewelry, spreading the impact of the program to numerous businesses located in the district. The gift certificates had to be redeemed by June 30 th , ensuring that the program would provide immediate stimulus.

John Melissas (standing) of the Empress Restaurant on River Road agrees with Brian Graziano and his mother Janet Graziano that the District Dollars Gift Certificate program was much appreciated by businesses and consumers.

"Our goal was to make a difference for River Road District businesses and consumers in the quickest way possible," says RRIC President Bob Landzettel. "While everyone continues to wait and see if the billions of dollars in federal stimulus spending will find its way to Fair Lawn and communities across the country, we have already demonstrated results on the local level and are planning new ways to benefit our business owners as well as the people who live, work or visit the River Road District to shop and dine."

John Melissas, who owns the Empress Restaurant on River Road with his father Nick, has had more than 25 customers redeem gift certificates from the program. During tough times, programs like the RRIC's District Dollars Gift Certificates provide incentive for people to get out and shop and dine, he points out. "Every customer who has redeemed a gift certificate at our restaurant was excited and happy to have won," Melissas notes. "Customers who used to come in several times a week may only come once a week now. The gift certificates have made it possible for them to get out more and enjoy life," he adds.

One of those happy winners was Janet Graziano of Fair Lawn. She saw a story about the program in The Community News and banks at TD Bank North on River Road where entry boxes were displayed along with Columbia Bank and Community Bank of Bergen County branch offices in the district. Graziano filled out an entry form along with her 22 year old son and feels lucky to have won. "The gift certificates were very helpful, because it helped me feed my kids a few meals, since money is tight because I am a single divorced mom," says Graziano.

Graziano won five $10 certificates, and gave one to her eldest son for a haircut at Fabulous Haircuts, used one at the Empress Restaurant and redeemed the other three certificates at Gina's Trattoria for lunch and dinner for her family. "I really enjoyed the food there and so did my children," notes Graziano. Her 11 year old son Brian wished that he was old enough to win gift certificates himself, she adds.

Diane Steiniger of Saddle Brook also won gift certificates to use in the River Road District, where she shops several times a month. Her top reasons for shopping and dining in the district? "Convenience and safety," states Steiniger, who enjoys taking her grandkids to Friendly's on River Road. She points to Bella Vita as another River Road District favorite for Italian food, and considers the Shop Rite her favorite supermarket. Her husband is a fan of The Joker's Child on River Road as well.

Lenore & Natalie Madrachimov of Elmwood Park say they shop and dine more often in Fair Lawn's River Road District than they do in their home town because of its convenience and accessibility, noting that main streets of town are nice and give the community a sense of belonging. " We used our gift certificates immediately on Mother's Day," say the Madrachimovs. "We were looking for a place to eat and decided on Diva's on Fairlawn Avenue. It was the first time the owner had seen the gift certificate, but one of her employees recognized it because of reading the article in The Community News and sat us down for dinner."

For more information about River Road Improvement Corporation programs and services, including upcoming promotions, visit www.FairLawnRiverRoad.com .