Ridgefield Park, New Jersey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ridgefield Park is a village in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. The population was 12,873 at the 2000 census.
Out of 566 municipalities statewide, Ridgefield Park is only one of four villages in New Jersey, joining Loch Arbour, Ridgewood and South Orange.
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[edit] Geography
Ridgefield Park is located at (40.857119, -74.024272)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 5.0 km² (1.9 mi²). 4.5 km² (1.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.5 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (9.90%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 12,873 people, 5,012 households, and 3,242 families residing in the village. The population density was 2,873.0/km² (7,435.7/mi²). There were 5,134 housing units at an average density of 1,145.8/km² (2,965.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 78.20% White, 4.10% African American, 0.22% Native American, 7.85% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 6.50% from other races, and 3.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 22.24% of the population.
There were 5,012 households out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.7% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.3% were non-families. 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the village the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 34.4% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.6 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $51,825, and the median income for a family was $62,414. Males had a median income of $44,507 versus $35,217 for females. The per capita income for the village was $24,290. About 4.7% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.9% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
[edit] Local government
Ridgefield Park is governed under the Walsh Act by a Board of Commissioners consisting of five members, elected on a non-partisan basis to serve four-year terms on a concurrent basis. The commissioners elect one commissioner as mayor, however the mayor is only responsible for his or her departments and serves as the chair of the commission.
The members of the Ridgefield Park Board of Commissioners are:[1]
- George D. Fosdick - Mayor and Commissioner of Public Safety
- John H. Anlian - Commissioner of Public Affairs
- Maggie Boyd - Commissioner of Revenue and Finance
- Hugo R. Poli - Commissioner of Parks and Public Property
- Joseph Storer - Commissioner of Public Works
[edit] Federal, state and county representation
Ridgefield Park is in the Ninth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 37th Legislative District.[2]
New Jersey's Ninth Congressional District, covering the southern portion of Bergen County and sections of Hudson County and Passaic County, is represented by Steve Rothman (D, Fair Lawn). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Robert Menendez (D, Hoboken).
The 37th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Loretta Weinberg (D, Teaneck) and in the Assembly by Valerie Huttle (D, Englewood) and Gordon M. Johnson (D, Englewood). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).
Bergen County's County Executive is Dennis McNerney (D). The executive, along with the Board of Chosen Freeholders administer all county business. Bergen County's Freeholders are Chairwoman Bernadette P. McPherson (D, Rutherford), Vice-Chairman David L. Ganz (D, Fair Lawn), Elizabeth Calabrese (D, Wallington), James M. Carroll (D, Demarest), Tomas J. Padilla (D, Park Ridge), Elizabeth Randall (R), Westwood) and Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D, Englewood).
Other countywide elected officials are Sheriff Leo McGuire (D), Surrogate Court Judge Mike Dressler (D, Cresskill) County Clerk Kathleen Donovan (R).
[edit] Politics
Out of a 2004 Census estimated population of 11,005 in Ridgefield Park, there were 5,434 registered voters (49.4% of the population, vs. 55.4% in all of Bergen County). Of registered voters, 1,364 (25.1% vs. 20.7% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 1,142 (21.0% vs. 19.2% countywide) were registered as Republicans and 2,927 (53.9% vs. 60.1% countywide) were registered as Undeclared. There was one voter registered to another party.[3]
On the national level, Ridgefield Park leans toward the Democratic Party. In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 55% of the vote here, defeating Republican George W. Bush, who received around 44%.[4]
[edit] Education
The Ridgefield Park Public Schools serve students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district are three K-6 elementary schools (Grant School, Lincoln School and Roosevelt School) and Ridgefield Park High School for grades 7-12.
[edit] References
- ^ Ridgefield Park Board of Commissioners, accessed June 14, 2006
- ^ League of Women Voters: 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, p. 63, accessed August 30, 2006
- ^ "County of Bergen: Voter Statistics by Municipality, Ward & District," dated April 1, 2006
- ^ 2004 Presidential Election results: Bergen County New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety: Division of Elections, dated December 13, 2004
[edit] External links
- Ridgefield Park official website
- Ridgefield Park Public Schools
- Ridgefield Park Public Schools's 2004-2005 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- National Center for Education Statistics data for the Ridgefield Park Public Schools
- Rialto Theater
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
