Cranford, New Jersey

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Map of Cranford Township in Union County.
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Map of Cranford Township in Union County.

Cranford is a township in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 22,578.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Cranford is located at 40°39′23″N, 74°18′13″W (40.656302, -74.303716)GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 12.5 km² (4.8 mi²). 12.5 km² (4.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.41%) is water.

There are eight municipalities bordering the township: Garwood and Westfield to the west, Springfield Township to the north, Kenilworth to the northeast, Roselle and Roselle Park to the east, Linden to the southeast, and Clark to the south.

[edit] Demographics

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 22,578 people, 8,397 households, and 6,222 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,808.6/km² (4,684.2/mi²). There were 8,560 housing units at an average density of 685.7/km² (1,775.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the township was 93.70% White, 2.58% Black or African American, 0.04% Native American, 2.15% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.67% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. 3.89% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 8,397 households out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.0% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.9% were non-families. 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.09.

In the township the population was spread out with 23.3% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $76,338, and the median income for a family was $86,624. Males had a median income of $60,757 versus $41,020 for females. The per capita income for the township was $33,283. About 1.0% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.5% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Life In Cranford

[edit] Commerce

Cranford has long been considered a center of commerce. The Cranford Business Park on the south side of town consists of a complex of office buildings housing a variety of major corporations and small businesses. Along North Avenue are a variety of buildings housing doctors and other businesses. Law offices predominate in small buildings around town. Banks are also extremely common throughout the town, which hosts at least half a dozen.

Downtown Cranford is a center of business and commerce, serving as a retail shopping district. On the south side of town, the Centennial Avenue Business District is a small shopping district with a mix of neighborhood stores. There is a push to redevelop this business district.

Downtown Cranford is the main retail business district for the township. Consisting of a variety of small family owned businesses on both sides of the railroad tracks, there has been a debate in town over the direction of the downtown. With neighboring communities seeing downtown development and a focus on either recruiting chain store or upscale small stores, Cranford has been debating the issue.

The recent focus of downtown Cranford has been to recruit more restaurants in to the downtown and allow for a nightlife to flourish. On the south side of the community, the Cranford Crossings redevelopment project is underway. When completed, this long awaited project, will feature retail space, apartments, and a new parking deck. The Riverfront redevelopment project is proposed on South Avenue to bring more business and housing into downtown Cranford.

In the 1980s the downtown was renovated to take on a Victorian feel. This included the installation of new light fixtures and cobblestone sidewalks, along with decorative planters and benches. A Victorian clock was installed in the center of town, allowing for the creation of a small pocket park in the center of the downtown. The clock park has become a hangout for teenagers who are walking to and from school.

In the 1980s, Cranford founded the first special improvement district in New Jersey. The SID allows for the downtown district to have a special tax on building and business owners for downtown development and marketing. The SID is managed by the Cranford Downtown Management Corporation. The DMC has used its budget for development projects, to recruit new businesses and to market shopping in Cranford. Various downtown sales and street fairs are administered by the DMC. The DMC is governed by a Board of Directors consisting of business owners and residents, which is appointed by the Township Committee. The DMC Board appoints a DMC Director, who runs the day-to-day operations of the corporation.

[edit] Education

The Cranford Township Public Schools are a comprehensive and successful public school system, which is governed by a nine-person elected Board of Education. The system's high school, Cranford High School is ranked as one of the top 75 high school in New Jersey and has won a series of national and statewide awards for its innovative curriculum. Cranford High School has a curriculum which has a strong push for technology in the schools, along with stressing service learning. The high school is recognized for its work in service learning and for being a national school of character. Cranford High School students are regularly admitted to some of the nation's top private and public universities, with over 90% of each graduating class going onto college.

Cranford has two public middle schools, Orange Avenue School (grades 3-8) and Hillside Avenue School(K-8), which are located on each end of the community and serve their local neighborhood. Both also are elementary schools as well. On the north side of town, along with Orange Avenue, are two other elementary schools, Bloomingdale Avenue School (K-2) and Brookside Place School (K-5). On the south side of town, along with Hillside Avenue, are two other elementary schools, Walnut Avenue School (K-2) and Livingston Avenue School (3-5).

Lincoln School, which is the home of the district's administrative offices, also houses the districts two alternative education programs, CAP and CAMP.

In addition to the public education system, Cranford houses several religious and private schools. Saint Michael's School, located in downtown Cranford, is a major Roman Catholic parochial school which offers Nursery through Grade 8. On the north side of town next to Orange Avenue School is Solomon Schechter Day School, a Jewish day school, with both an English and Judaic studies curriculum, serving grades Nursery through 5th. Cranford is a very respectable town.

[edit] Town Communications

Cranford has long been a newspaper community. The Cranford Chronicle (formerly the Cranford Citizen & Chronicle) is a longtime newspaper serving the community. Owned by the Ray Family and published in town, the Chronicle served as the center of community journalism. Stu Awbrey purchased the Chronicle and continued as the town's newspaperman. Awbrey sold the paper to Malcolm Forbes, whose publishing company would publish the paper for several years before the paper would change hands to other community newspaper publication companies. The Chronicle's office would leave Cranford for Somerville and later Clark. The Chronicle now also features coverage of Garwood and Kenilworth.

The Cranford Eagle started publishing in 1999 as another community newspaper. Owned by Worrall Community Newspapers, the Eagle focused solely on Cranford and other neighboring towns. Edited and reported by several people in its history, the Eagle quickly became a fixture in the community. The Eagle's sports page is shared with the Clark newspaper, published by the same company.

Cranford also has its own cable channel, TV-35. The channel is not available for Direct TV and other satellite subscribers.

[edit] Transportation

Cranford has an NJ Transit rail station on the Raritan Valley Line, formerly the mainline of the Central Railroad of New Jersey. NJ Transit also provides bus service along two different lines to New York City and Newark, New Jersey.

Newark Liberty International Airport is approximately 13 minutes away and Linden Airport, a general aviation facility is in nearby Linden, New Jersey.

The southern section of the township is bisected by Conrail's freight-only Lehigh Line along the tracks of the former Lehigh Valley Railroad. The former Staten Island Railway connects with the Raritan Valley Line in Cranford. That line has been rehabilitated but is still inactive.

[edit] Sports & Recreation

Cranford has a long history of competitive and award winning youth sports programs. The town's Department of Recreation and Parks hosts several youth sports programs a year, including basketball, cheerleading and flag football. The town's Police Athletic League has a variety of recreational programs including track, football and cheerleading. Little League baseball and softball is coordinated out of the Cranford baseball league, while soccer is run by the town's two private soccer clubs. Soccer has long been considered a dominant sport in Cranford, with many players playing on both local and traveling teams. Private clubs exist for hockey and lacrosse as well. Swimmers can swim with either the Jersey Gators team or the Cranford Swim Club team.

Cranford recently erected lights at the local football field and Friday night football games have become a staple of town nightlife.

Cranford has an active recreational program for residents. With many local parks and county parks, Nomahegan, Lenape, Unami, and Rahway River Parkway, Cranford residents are regular fixtures in walking, running, biking and playground usage. The Rahway River, which runs through the community, is a regular for fishing and the Cranford Canoe Club is an historic spot where residents rent canoes to use on the river. Many homes located on the river have canoes in the backyards and docks on the river.

A bike path runs through the township around Nomahegan Park. The path features exercise stations around its two mile course. Township officials are currently discussing plans to erect a skatepark in the township. The township also hosts a section of the East Coast Greenway which will run between Calais, Maine and Key West, Florida.

Cranford's Department of Recreation and Parks sponsors many recreational programs during the course of the year. These include classes, fairs, and sports. Senior citizens in Cranford have many programs for them provided through the Recreation Department. Many of these programs are housed in the Cranford Community Center. The Recreation Department sponsors a summer playground program for township youth.

Cranford has two public swimming pools, which residents can join for the summer. The Orange Avenue Pool, on the north side of town, is an outdoor only pool with a large pool with areas for children, general usage and diving. The pool also has a baby pool, a playground, beach volleyball court, and tennis courts, in addition to playing fields and extensive grounds. There are summer recreational programs for children and a popular snack stand.

Centennial Avenue Pool, on the south side of town, is both an outdoor and indoor pool. The outdoor pool has separate children, general, and diving pools. There are tennis courts, volleyball and fields, along with a playground and baby pool. There are summer recreational programs for children and a snack stand. The indoor pool is a lap pool, which is used by the high school swim team and the Jersey Gators Swim Team, along with use by the general membership. The indoor complex includes fitness rooms, basketball and a sauna.

The Cranford Swim Club is an outdoor private facility. Established as a private swim club, with a family focus, the club offers a pool with diving area and slide. There is a lap swimming area, popular grill and a popular tennis club.

There are baseball fields throughout the community, along with soccer fields and other playing grounds. Many of these fields are located on school grounds. Memorial Field, which is located behind Centennial Avenue Pool, contains the township football field, running track, and baseball fields. The track, named after longtime Cranford High School Cross Country and Track Coach Ray White, was renovated recently in order to allow for a new state of the art facility, which can host regional and statewide track contests.

Cranford is host to a series of annual community events. These include:

  • Memorial Day Parade
  • Fourth of July Firecraker Four Miler Road Race
  • Crafts Fairs in Nomahegan Park
  • Street Fairs in Downtown Cranford
  • Christmas Tree Lighting and Santa's Arrival
  • Pancake Breakfasts
  • Friday Night High School Football Games
  • Pride in Cranford Awards

Cranford's 125th Anniversary Celebration, in 1996 was a year-long community celebration. With a series of events to tie the town together, Cranford residents learned about the town's first 125 years. Celebrations included a parade, street fairs, and a celebratory banquet. Banquet attendees were encouraged to wear clothes from 1871.

1997 marked the 100th anniversary of the Cranford Police Department. This anniversary was marked by special events, including a parade and the publication of an anniversary book. A store in downtown Cranford was used to sell memorabilia from the Police Department anniversary. Commerative bricks were sold around the gazebo in Mayor's Park for township residents to leave a mark on the township. Governor of New Jersey Christine Todd Whitman marched in the anniversary parade.

For those interested in the arts, the CDC (Cranford Dramatic Club) Community Theatre is a 300-seat community theater that sponsors award-winning musicals and plays year-round. More information, including subscriptions, can be found at the Theatre's website.

[edit] Government

[edit] Local government

Cranford is governed by a five-member executive-legislative Township Committee which is elected at-large for three year terms. The commissioners elect a chairman of the committee who assumes the title of Mayor. Similarly, a Deputy Mayor is elected. Both positions carry one-year terms. Four of the commissioners take on departmental oversight assignments as Commissioner of Finance, Commissioner of Public Safety, Commissioner of Public Works and Engineering, and Commissioner of Public Affairs. The Mayor of Cranford does not take on a departmental assignment. The commissioners are part time officials and the township government is run day to day by the Township Administrator and various department heads.

Members of the 2006 Cranford Township Committee are:[1]

  • Mayor Daniel J. Aschenbach (Democrat, term ends December 31, 2006)
  • Deputy Mayor George T. McDonough - Commissioner of Public Safety (Democrat, 2007)
  • Commissioner George J. Jorn - Commissioner of Public Works and Engineering (Democrat, 2007)
  • Commissioner Michael A. Plick - Commissioner of Finance (Republican, 2008)
  • Commissioner Robert I. Puhak - Commissioner of Public Affairs (Republican, 2008)
  • Commissioner-elect David W. Robinson (Republican, 2009)

Mayor Aschenbach's has announced that he will not be a candidate for reelection when his term expires at the end of 2006. Aschenbach was mayor in 1993, 2003, and 2006 and deputy mayor in 1994, 1995, and 2005.

[edit] Federal, state and county representation

Cranford Township is in the Seventh Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 21st Legislative District.[2]

New Jersey's Seventh Congressional District, covering portions of Hunterdon County, Middlesex County, Somerset County and Union County, is represented by Mike Ferguson (R). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Robert Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 21st legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Thomas Kean Jr. (R, Westfield) and in the Assembly by Jon Bramnick (R, Westfield) and Eric Munoz (R, Summit). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).

Union County is governed by a nine-member Board of Chosen Freeholders. As of the January 2006 reorganization, Union County's Freeholders are: Freeholder Chairman Alexander Mirabella, Freeholder Vice Chairman Bette Jane Kowalski, Angel G. Estrada, Chester Holmes, Adrian O. Mapp, Rick Proctor, Deborah P. Scanlon, Daniel P. Sullivan and Nancy Ward.

Freeholder Vice Chairwoman Bette Jane Kowalski is a Cranford resident.

[edit] Cranford in film and television

  • Several episodes in the third season of the popular 1990's television show, The Adventures of Pete & Pete were filmed in Cranford. One episode was shot at Cranford's Orange Avenue Pool.

[edit] Famous Cranford Residents

[edit] References

  1. ^ Township Committee, accessed July 11, 2006
  2. ^ League of Women Voters: 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, p. 56, accessed August 30, 2006

[edit] External links

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