Ridgewood, New Jersey

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Ridgewood, New Jersey
Map highlighting Ridgewood's location within Bergen County. Inset: Bergen County's location within New Jersey.
Map highlighting Ridgewood's location within Bergen County. Inset: Bergen County's location within New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Ridgewood, New Jersey
Census Bureau map of Ridgewood, New Jersey
Coordinates: 40°59′2″N 74°6′52″W / 40.98389, -74.11444
Country United States
State New Jersey
County Bergen
Incorporated November 20, 1894
Government
 - Type Faulkner Act (Council-Manager)
 - Mayor David T. Pfund (2010)
 - Village Manager James M. Ten Hoeve[1]
Area
 - Total 5.8 sq mi (15.1 km²)
 - Land 5.8 sq mi (15.0 km²)
 - Water 0.0 sq mi (0.1 km²)
Elevation [2] 98 ft (30 m)
Population (2006)[3]
 - Total 24,639
 - Density 4,308.9/sq mi (1,663.7/km²)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes 07450-07452
Area code(s) 201
FIPS code 34-63000[4]
GNIS feature ID 0885369[5]
Website: http://www.ridgewoodnj.net/

Ridgewood is a village in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the village population was 24,936.

The Village of Ridgewood was created on November 20, 1894, with the same boundaries as Ridgewood Township. The Village became the municipal government while the Township remained as a school district.[6] In 1902, the village added portions of Orvil Township, which were returned to Orvil Township in 1915. In 1925, Ridgewood Village acquired area from Franklin Township (now Wyckoff). On February 9, 1971, Ridgewood Village acquired area from Washington Township. On May 28, 1974, it acquired area from Ho-Ho-Kus.[7]

In 1700, Johannes Van Emburgh built the first home in Ridgewood.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Ridgewood is located at 40°59′2″N, 74°6′52″W (40.983997, -74.114386)[8].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 5.8 square miles (15.1 km²), of which, 5.8 square miles (15.0 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.86%) is water.

Ridgewood is adjacent to eight municipalities, seven in Bergen County — Paramus, Washington Township, Ho-Ho-Kus, Waldwick, Midland Park, Wyckoff and Glen Rock — and Hawthorne in Passaic County.

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.  %±
1900 2,685
—
1910 5,416 101.7%
1920 7,580 40%
1930 12,188 60.8%
1940 14,948 22.6%
1950 17,481 16.9%
1960 25,391 45.2%
1970 27,547 8.5%
1980 25,208 −8.5%
1990 24,152 −4.2%
2000 24,936 3.2%
Est. 2006 24,639 [3] −1.2%
Population 1900 - 1990.[9][10]

As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 24,936 people, 8,603 households, and 6,779 families residing in the village. The population density was 4,308.9 people per square mile (1,662.8/km²). There were 8,802 housing units at an average density of 1,521.0/sq mi (587.0/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 87.82% White, 1.64% African American, 0.04% Native American, 8.67% Asian, 0.59% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.78% of the population.

There were 8,603 households out of which 44.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.4% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.2% were non-families. 18.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 3.30.

In the village, the population was spread out with 30.0% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.5 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $104,286, and the median income for a family was $121,848. Males had a median income of $90,422 versus $50,248 for females. The per capita income for the village was $51,658. About 1.8% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.5% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Government

[edit] Local government

In 1970, Ridgewood adopted the Council-Manager plan under the Faulkner Act. Under this form, the public elects five Council Members who act as a Board of Directors. Their principal responsibility is to hire and oversee a professional Village Manager who has full executive power for all departments.

The Village Council is the governing body of the Village of Ridgewood. The government consists five council members, with all positions elected at large in nonpartisan elections to serve four-year terms on a staggered basis, with two or three seats coming up for election every other year.[11]

The Municipal Election for Village Council takes place on the second Tuesday in May, in even numbered years. The Mayor is chosen by the Village Council every two years, after a Municipal Election. The Reorganization meeting, which is when the new Council members take office, is held on July 1st, and is when the Council selects a mayor and deputy mayor from among its members. The Mayor presides over Council meetings, but has no executive authority.

The Village Council appoints a Village Manager to oversee the day to day operations of the Village, to handle personnel, citizen inquiries and complaints, and to handle the administrative duties of the Village. The Village Council passes local laws, makes appointments to various Boards and Committees, and awards various contracts for purchases of goods and services used by the Village. They also review, amend, and adopt the annual budget for the Village prepared by the Village Manager and Chief Financial Officer.

Members of the Ridgewood Village Council are Mayor David T. Pfund (2010), Deputy Mayor Betty G. Wiest (2008), Jacques Harlow (2008), Patrick A. Mancuso (2010) and Kim Ringler Shagin (2008).[12][13]

Of 566 municipalities statewide, Ridgewood is one of only four municipalities in New Jersey formed as villages, joining Loch Arbour, Ridgefield Park and South Orange.

[edit] Federal, state and county representation

Ridgewood is in the Fifth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 40th Legislative District.[14]

New Jersey's Fifth Congressional District, covering the northern portions of Bergen County, Passaic County and Sussex County and all of Warren County, is represented by Scott Garrett (R, Wantage Township). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

For the 2008-2009 Legislative Session, the 40th District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Kevin J. O'Toole (R, Cedar Grove) and in the Assembly by Scott Rumana (R, Wayne) and David C. Russo (R, Ridgewood).[15] The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).[16]

Bergen County's County Executive is Dennis McNerney (D).[17] The executive, along with the seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders administer all county business. As of 2008, Bergen County's Freeholders are Chairman Tomas J. Padilla (D, Park Ridge), Vice-Chairman Elizabeth Calabrese (D, Wallington), James M. Carroll (D, Demarest), David L. Ganz (D, Fair Lawn), Bernadette P. McPherson (D, Rutherford), Julie O'Brien (D, Ramsey) and Vernon Walton (D, Englewood).[18]

Other countywide elected officials are Sheriff Leo McGuire (D), Surrogate Court Judge Mike Dressler (D, Cresskill) County Clerk Kathleen Donovan (R, Rutherford).[19]

[edit] Politics

As of April 1, 2006, out of a 2004 Census estimated population of 24,916 in Ridgewood, there were 15,616 registered voters (62.7% of the population, vs. 55.4% in all of Bergen County). Of registered voters, 2,606 (16.7% vs. 20.7% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 3,584 (23.0% vs. 19.2% countywide) were registered as Republicans and 9,422 (60.3% vs. 60.1% countywide) were registered as Undeclared. There were four voters registered to other parties.[20]

On the national level, Ridgewood is almost evenly split. In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 51% of the vote here, defeating Republican George W. Bush, who received around 48%.[21]

[edit] Education

The Ridgewood Public Schools consist of nine public schools and two more additional school facilities, which house a BOE-run pre-school program and a private day care center. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[22]) are:

Pre-School

  • Glen School (Pre-School and Private Day Care Center, 39 students)
  • Green Twig Pre-School and Day-Care

Elementary Schools (Grades K-5)

Middle Schools (Grades 6-8)

High School (Grades 9-12)

  • Ridgewood High School (1,665). Ridgewood High School athletic teams are nicknamed the Ridgewood Maroons.

According to the New Jersey Department of Education, Ridgewood is a socioeconomic J district.

The village also houses The Holmstead School.

[edit] Transportation

The Ridgewood station is serviced by the New Jersey Transit Main Line as well as the Bergen County Line. The station features three platforms. The first is for Main Line trains headed towards Suffern and Port Jervis. The second is for Bergen County Line trains headed in the same direction, and the third is for all trains headed east (south) towards Hoboken Terminal. NJTransit trains on both Bergen and Main Lines go through the new Secaucus Junction, making it very convenient to get trains directly to Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan. However, there is very limited parking near the Ridgewood train station, so it is not very convenient for non-locals. There are usually taxicabs available right at the train station for those arriving in Ridgewood, as the taxi building is literally on the platform.

New Jersey Transit buses in Ridgewood include 144, 145, 148, 162, 163 and 164 to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan, the 175 the George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal, and local service offered on the 722, 746, 748 and 752 routes.[23]

The southern terminus of Franklin Turnpike is in Ridgewood. Other roads that go through Ridgewood are New Jersey Route 17 and County Route 507.

[edit] Notable residents

[edit] References

  1. ^ Village Phone List, Village of Ridgewood. Accessed January 1, 2008.
  2. ^ USGS GNIS: Village of Ridgewood, Geographic Names Information System, accessed November 21, 2007.
  3. ^ a b Census data for Ridgewood village, United States Census Bureau. Accessed July 25, 2007.
  4. ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  5. ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  6. ^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 85.
  7. ^ Bergen County New Jersey Municipalities, Dutch Door Genealogy. Accessed March 14, 2006.
  8. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  9. ^ Historical Population Trends in Bergen County (1900 - 2000), Bergen County, New Jersey. Accessed December 23, 2007.
  10. ^ New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
  11. ^ 2005 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, April 2005, p. 169.
  12. ^ Ridgewood Village Council, Village of Ridgewood. Accessed September 10, 2006.
  13. ^ "County of Bergen: 2007 County and Municipal Directory", Bergen County, New Jersey, p. 60.
  14. ^ 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 63. Accessed August 30, 2006.
  15. ^ Legislative Roster: 2008-2009 Session, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed June 6, 2008.
  16. ^ About the Governor, New Jersey. Accessed June 6, 2008.
  17. ^ Bergen County Executive, Bergen County, New Jersey. Accessed March 25, 2008.
  18. ^ Freeholder Home Page, Bergen County, New Jersey. Accessed March 25, 2008.
  19. ^ Constitutional Officers, Bergen County, New Jersey. Accessed March 25, 2008.
  20. ^ "County of Bergen: Voter Statistics by Municipality, Ward & District," Bergen County, dated April 1, 2006.
  21. ^ 2004 Presidential Election results: Bergen County New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety: Division of Elections, dated December 13, 2004.
  22. ^ Data for the Ridgewood Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed May 10, 2008.
  23. ^ New Jersey Transit Bus Schedules, New Jersey Transit. Accessed August 30, 2007.
  24. ^ Maslow, Jonathan. "An Iraqi-American's homecoming in Baghdad", Herald News, June 9, 2003. Accessed July 30, 2007. "An Iraqi-American architect from Ridgewood, Nassir had traveled halfway around the globe at great personal risk to reach his elderly mother, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews in the wake of war."
  25. ^ Peter B. Carlisle, National District Attorneys Association. Accessed December 3, 2007. "It’s a long, long way from Ridgewood, New Jersey, to Honolulu, Hawaii—geographically, demographically and meteorologically—but Peter B. Carlisle has made the journey and transition with ease."
  26. ^ "Book looks at what drives teens JERSEY INK", The Star-Ledger, May 25, 2006. "Coben, who was born in Newark and grew up in Livingston, graduating from Livingston High School, has relatives in Livingston and often goes there. He has lived in Ridgewood since 1992."
  27. ^ Assembly Member Christopher J. Connors, Project Vote Smart. Accessed August 9, 2007.
  28. ^ The 50 Greatest New Jersey Sports Figures, Sports Illustrated, December 27, 1999.
  29. ^ Wertheim, Margaret. " SCIENTIST AT WORK -- Niles Eldredge; Bursts of Cornets and Evolution Bring Harmony to Night and Day", The New York Times, March 9, 2004. Accessed November 20, 2007. "By his own admission, Dr. Niles Eldredge is a pretty mediocre horn player. Tootling on a cornet in his living room in Ridgewood, N.J., he pumps out a few bars of Bach, then puts down the instrument with a good-natured sigh."
  30. ^ Homesick Punter Rejoins Giants, The New York Times, August 23, 2006.
  31. ^ VARIAN FRY: the artists’ Schindler, Jewish Standard, June 8, 2006.
  32. ^ "A Neighborhood Mourns: Commentary By CBS News Correspondent Bill Geist", CBS News. Accessed October 1, 2007. "Ridgewood, New Jersey, is a small community of old homes, old trees, old values. It’s where I live."
  33. ^ "Don't Panic: The case against fleeing Iraq. Plus New Jersey's Senate race and more.", The Wall Street Journal OpinionJournal.com, October 30, 2006. Accessed September 26, 2007. "Henninger: ... I used to live in Ridgewood, N.J., a town of about 35,000 people."
  34. ^ "New Voice - Opera announcer with a New Jersey accent", The Record (Bergen County), October 5, 2004. Accessed August 2, 2007. "In the world of opera, Margaret Juntwait, born and raised in Ridgewood and Upper Saddle River, has certainly achieved an enviable position. The Metropolitan Opera announced that the WNYC-FM classical music host with the seductively smooth voice will announce Saturday afternoon radio broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera."
  35. ^ Wakin, Daniel J. "Met Picks New Voice For Opera Broadcasts", The New York Times, September 29, 2004. Accessed August 2, 2007. "Ms. Juntwait, 47, was brought up in Ridgewood and Upper Saddle River, N.J., and went to work at WNYC in 1991. She lives in the Inwood section of Manhattan."
  36. ^ Blum, Ronald. "Former MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn dead at 80", USA Today, March 16, 2007. Accessed March 10, 2008. "He sold his house in Ridgewood, N.J., and moved to Ponte Vedra Beach, where his home was shielded from bankruptcy proceedings."
  37. ^ Buckley, Michael. "STAGE TO SCREENS: Robert Sean Leonard, David Javerbaum, Plus a Look at Fall TV", Playbill, June 1, 2008. Accessed June 2, 2008. "He grew up in Ridgewood, NJ, and attended Ridgewood High. Later on, he took classes at Columbia and Fordham Universities."
  38. ^ Rohan, Virginia. "Professional juggler", The Record (Bergen County), November 13, 2005. Accessed June 8, 2007. ""I'm sort of half in one world, half in the other at this point of the day, says MacCallum, a Wyckoff native who has lived in Ridgewood since her elder son was 2 weeks old."
  39. ^ Madden '03 wins big on 'Jeopardy', The Daily Princetonian, September 20, 2005.
  40. ^ Paul Mara player profile, ESPN.com, accessed March 5, 2007.
  41. ^ U.S. Air Force Fact Sheet: Maj. Thomas B. McGuire Jr., accessed January 6, 2007.
  42. ^ Teen actor earns his 'Stripes', Arizona Republic, January 6, 2005.
  43. ^ Tom Nolan: PressCenter: golfdigest.com
  44. ^ Rohan, Virginia. "Bergen County native’s ‘Dirt’ character reaps what he sows", The Record (Bergen County), January 1, 2007. Accessed September 22, 2007. "Nordling was born 3,000 miles from the craziness, at Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, and grew up mostly in Washington Township (in the only house on the town's Times Square)."
  45. ^ "REMINGTON DENIED LINK TO RED SPIES; Former Federal Economist Was Serving 3-Year Term on Perjury Charges", The New York Times, November 25, 1954.
  46. ^ Levinson, Peter J. "September in the Rain: The Life of Nelson Riddle", via Google Books, p. 19. "Ridgewood is another of the upper-middle-class bedroom communities of New York.... Nelson and Leonard lived on the east side of town."
  47. ^ a b Leonard, Tom. "Ridgewood teens knew Sparks before her fame ignited", The Record (Bergen County), May 21, 2007. Accessed May 21, 2007. "Her family lived in Ridgewood during the eight seasons her father, Phillipi [sic], played with the Giants. The family moved to Arizona when Phillipi retired."
  48. ^ Casper Van Dien Official Website, accessed January 30, 2007.
  49. ^ Senator Bill P. Wielechowski, Project Vote Smart. Accessed March 8, 2008.

[edit] External links

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Municipalities and communities of
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County seat: Hackensack
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Ridgefield Park | Ridgewood