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8 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
Ted Wright
New resident is the director of the Bicycle and Greenway Program in New York City
WRITTEN BY JULIA MARTIN
L
18
SPRING 2019 MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE
SPACE FOR A GROWING FAMILY Kay Sarlin Wright and Sammy, Maddie, Lily and Ted Wright at their
home in Montclair
HE GOT HIS PASSION FOR CITY
STREETS GROWING UP IN SAN
FRANCISCO.
“I had the rare baby boom parents
who decided to stay in the city,” says
Wright. “I loved growing up in San
Francisco; I still have a lot of love for it
and urban places in general. I love their
quirkiness. I always had an interest in
streets and good public open space.
These places really make a city —
you’re meeting your neighbors, seeing
all kinds of people.
“Growing up in San Francisco, I
realized how important it is to a child’s
development to see homeless people, to
feel empathy and see the world outside
their own existence. We should be
giving and sharing what we can.
Streets are the basic element of that.”
HIS DAILY COMMUTE TO NYC MIGHT
INCLUDE A BIKE, A TRAIN AND A FERRY
— BUT NO CAR.
Wright has always biked to and from
work. “I see it as a relaxing way to get
to work and get exercise. Parking’s a lot
easier; ultimately, you save time. Since
my wife and I both work, it’s all about
efficiency.”
To get to his downtown office,
Wright typically bikes or walks to catch
PHOTOGRAPHY
ike many in town,
Ted Wright and his
family moved here
from New York City
for the schools and
the lower cost of liv-
ing. But Montclair won out over
other suburbs, like Maplewood
and Pelham, because of its walk-
ability and diverse transportation
options, he says. That’s not too
surprising given his role as direc-
tor of the Bicycle and Greenway
Program for the New York City
Department of Transportation.
“Six NJ Transit train stops;
that’s an amazing statistic,” says
Wright, who 10 years ago began
overseeing the Greenway program
along the Brooklyn waterfront,
which now connects all 14 miles
with protected bike lanes, and
running and pedestrian paths.
Last summer Wright and his
wife, Kay Sarlin Wright, director
of corporate affairs and commu-
nications at Audible, moved from
midtown to a Montclair colonial
with a view of Edgemont Park.
Children Lily, 5, and Maddie, 2,
were joined shortly afterward by
Sammy, who is now 6 months
old.
Another draw was Kay’s par-
ents, Susan MacLaury and Albie
Hecht, who live in Montclair.
Hecht used to run Nickelodeon,
and now heads up pocket.watch,
an online provider of kids’ enter-
tainment (“Eighteen to 34? Try
12 and Younger,” Holiday 2018).