| Middletown Township, New Jersey | |
|---|---|
| — Township — | |
| Map of Middletown Township in Monmouth County. Inset (left): Monmouth County highlighted within New Jersey. | |
| Census Bureau map of Middletown Township, New Jersey | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Monmouth |
| Formed | October 31, 1693 |
| Incorporated | February 21, 1798 |
| Government[2] | |
| • Type | Special Charter |
| • Mayor[1] | Anthony Fiore[1] |
| Area[3] | |
| • Total | 59.35 sq mi (153.7 km2) |
| • Land | 41.12 sq mi (106.5 km2) |
| • Water | 18.23 sq mi (47.2 km2) 30.72% |
| Elevation[4] | 138 ft (42 m) |
| Population (2010 Census)[5] | |
| • Total | 66,522 |
| • Density | 1,120.8/sq mi (432.8/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 07748 |
| Area code(s) | 732/848 |
| FIPS code | 34-45990[6][7] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0882604[8] |
| Website | http://www.middletownnj.org |
Middletown Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township had a total population of 66,522.[5] Middletown is one of the oldest sites of European settlement in New Jersey.[9]
Middletown Township was originally formed on October 31, 1693, and was incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798. Portions of the township were taken to form Atlantic Township (February 8, 1847, now Colts Neck Township), Raritan Township (February 25, 1848, now Hazlet Township), Atlantic Highlands (February 28, 1887), Highlands (March 22, 1900) and Keansburg (March 22, 1917).[10]
In 2006, 2008, and 2010, Middletown was voted in the Top 100 in CNN Money's Best Places to Live.[11][12][13]
Middletown is part of the Bayshore Regional Strategic Plan, an effort by nine municipalities in northern Monmouth County to reinvigorate the area's economy by emphasizing the traditional downtowns, dense residential neighborhoods, maritime history, and the natural beauty of the Raritan Bayshore coastline.
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Though small communities of Lenape Native Americans were common throughout the area, the first known European landing in what would become Middletown Township occurred in 1609, when the English explorer Henry Hudson landed along the shores of the Sandy Hook Bay. Hudson was in search of the mythical Northwest Passage in the service of the Dutch West India Company. Middletown Township was established in 1664, after the English conquest of New Amsterdam, but there was unauthorized settlement before that. The long-standing tradition had Penelope Stout, one of the first settlers, hiding in a tree from hostile Native Americans.[14]
During the American Revolution, Middletown and much of the rest of Eastern Monmouth County was held by the British. After the Battle of Monmouth, the British retreat from Freehold Township, New Jersey carried them down King's Highway in Middletown to their embarkation points in the bay.
Upon the completion of a railroad junction in 1875, the town grew more rapidly, eventually changing from a group of small and loosely connected fishing and agricultural villages into a wealthy and alarmingly fast-growing suburb at the turn of the 20th century. If Middletown ever had a recognizable town center or town square, it was lost in that rapid growth soon after World War II.
In May 1958, several Nike Ajax missiles exploded at Battery NY-53 in Chapel Hill, killing ten Army and civilian personnel. The accident was one of the worst missile-related disasters of the Cold War.[15]
A popular landmark in the community is the "Evil Clown of Middletown", a towering sign along Route 35 painted to resemble a circus clown that currently advertises a liquor store. The sign is a remnant of an old supermarket that used to be at that location called "Food Circus". The clown and recent successful attempts from residents to save it from demolition have been featured in the pages of Weird NJ magazine, on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and in the Kevin Smith-directed film Clerks II.
The Indian Trails 15K road race is held each year in April. The race benefits the Monmouth Conservation Foundation. There is also a 5K walk/run event for fun.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 59.35 square miles (153.7 km2), of which, 41.12 square miles (106.5 km2) is land and 18.23 square miles (47.2 km2) of it (30.72%) is water.[3]
Belford (2000 Census population of 1,340), Fairview (3,942), Leonardo (2,823), Lincroft (6,255), Navesink (1,962), North Middletown (3,165) and Port Monmouth (3,742) are all Census-designated places and unincorporated areas located within Middletown Township. Other areas that are part of the township are New Monmouth and Sandy Hook.[16] The Sandy Hook peninsula is not connected to the rest of the Township, rendering it geographically not contiguous. However, as the entirety of the non-contiguous section of the Township is occupied by the Gateway National Recreation Area (a national park), where there are no residents, this lack of contiguity is essentially inconsequential.
| Keansburg and Hazlet Twp | Sandy Hook Bay/Raritan Bay/Atlantic Ocean and Staten Island, NY | Atlantic Highlands and Highlands | ||
| Holmdel Twp | Rumson and Sea Bright | |||
| Middletown Township | ||||
| Colts Neck Twp | Tinton Falls, Red Bank and Fair Haven |
Poricy Creek (Poricy Park, Oak Hill Road) is locally well-known for its deposits of Cretaceous marine fossils, including belemnites.
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1930 | 9,209 |
|
|
| 1940 | 11,018 | 19.6% | |
| 1950 | 16,203 | 47.1% | |
| 1960 | 39,675 | 144.9% | |
| 1970 | 54,623 | 37.7% | |
| 1980 | 62,574 | 14.6% | |
| 1990 | 68,183 | 9.0% | |
| 2000 | 66,327 | −2.7% | |
| 2010 | 66,522 | 0.3% | |
| Population sources: 1930-1990[17] 2000[18] 2010[5][19] |
|||
As of the census[6] of 2000, there were 66,327 people, 23,236 households, and 18,100 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,613.0 people per square mile (622.8/km²). There were 23,841 housing units at an average density of 579.8 per square mile (223.9/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 94.71% White, 1.21% African American, 0.07% Native American, 2.59% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.53% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.41% of the population.[18]
There were 23,236 households out of which 37.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.3% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.1% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.27.[18]
In the township the population was spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.0 males.[18]
The median income for a household in the township was $75,566, and the median income for a family was $86,124 (which had risen to $85,049 and $99,862 respectively as of the 2007 estimate.[20]) Males had a median income of $60,755 versus $36,229 for females. The per capita income for the township was $34,196. About 1.9% of families and 3.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.2% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 105 or over.[18]
The Township Committee operates under a special charter approved on June 23, 1971, by the New Jersey Legislature. Middletown Township is governed by a five-member Township Committee, who are elected in partisan elections to three-year terms on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year.[2] At an annual reorganization meeting, the Committee selects one of its members to serve as Mayor and another as Deputy Mayor, each for a one-year term. The Township Committee establishes municipal policies and programs and appropriates funds.[1]
As of 2011[update], members of the Middletown Township Committee are Mayor Anthony Fiore, Deputy Mayor Pamela Brightbill, Steve Massell, Gerard Scharfenberger and Kevin Settembrino.[1]
Middletown Township is split between the 6th and 12th Congressional districts and is part of New Jersey's 13th state legislative district.[21] The legislative district was kept unchanged by the New Jersey Apportionment Commission based on the results of the 2010 Census.[5]
New Jersey's Sixth Congressional District is represented by Frank Pallone (D, Long Branch). New Jersey's Twelfth Congressional District is represented by Rush D. Holt, Jr. (D, Hopewell Township).[22] New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).
13th district of the New Jersey Legislature, which is represented in the New Jersey Senate by Joseph M. Kyrillos (R, Middletown Township) and in the New Jersey General Assembly by Amy Handlin (R, Middletown Township) and Samuel D. Thompson (R, Old Bridge Township).[23] The Governor of New Jersey is Chris Christie (R, Mendham).[24] The Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey is Kim Guadagno (R, Monmouth Beach).[25]
Monmouth County is governed by a Board of Chosen Freeholders consisting of five members who are elected at-large to serve three year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats up for election each year. [26] As of 2011, Monmouth County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Robert D. Clifton (R, Matawan; term ends December 31, 2013)[27], Freeholder Deputy Director John P. Curley (R, Red Bank; 2012)[28], Thomas A. Arnone (R, Neptune City; 2013), Lillian G. Burry (R, Colts Neck Township; 2011)[29] and Amy A. Mallet (D, Fair Haven, 2011).[30][31][32]
In recent years, on the national and state levels, Middletown Township leans strongly toward the Republican Party. In the 2008 Presidential Election, Republican John McCain received 56.9% of the vote, outpolling Democrat Barack Obama, who received around 40.8%.[33] In the 2009 Gubernatorial Election, Republican Chris Christie received 67.3% of the vote, outpolling Democrat Jon Corzine, who received around 25.8%.[34]
Being a large township, Middletown has some of the largest emergency service departments in the area. The police and fire departments celebrated a joint 75th Anniversary in 2003.
The Middletown Township Police Department is one of the largest police forces in Monmouth County, with approximately 105 sworn officers.[35] The Middletown Township Police Department was formed on May 15, 1928 with the hiring of its first full time police officer, Earl N. Hoyer. His appointment read Patrolman/Chief of Police, at an annual salary of $125.00.[36]
The Rude Awakening Program educates the youth and their parents about alcohol abuse and its position as a gateway drug to further and harsher drugs and substance abuse. The program is specifically designed to educate the student in the life altering ramifications of drinking and driving.[37] The program is mainly backed by the police department and has later encompassed EMS and fire into the program for vehicle extrication demonstrations.
The Middletown Township Fire Department (referred to as MTFD, Monmouth County agency prefix 31 and 71) consists of 11 fire companies plus additional specialized units spread throughout the town and is completely made of volunteers; approximately 600 of them. It is commonly stated that the Middletown Township Fire Department is "The World's Largest All Volunteer Fire Department".
The companies, in order of creation, are as follows:
For a time these companies acted separately until August 28, 1928, when all the individual companies were brought together to form the current fire department. Since then, two more companies have been formed:
Later, the individual companies took on station numbers with regard to their creation date. Navesink becoming Station #1 and Old Village becoming Station #11.
There are other special units besides the main fire companies. The MTFD has its own Fire Police Unit, Air Unit, and Special Services Unit (SSU).
The Middletown Township Fire Academy was established in 1974 to provide basic firefighter training to the township's volunteers. A tract of land was donated off of Normandy Road for the cause and the volunteer firefighters built its beginnings themselves. Classes began in trailers until a suitable classroom building was constructed. A small wooden multi-floor building sitting on buried telephone poles was the earliest training structure. Later a proper "smokehouse" made of cinder block served firefighters until 2007 when it was closed. The classroom building and smokehouse are featured in the academy's logo.
A four-story corrugated steel "ladder tower" building was constructed as the academy's high rise prop. There are internal and external stairways with a standpipe and sprinkler system throughout, only fed with water by an engine during training. It also features trapdoors creating an internal column for rope rescue training. For a period of time there was a SCBA maze located in a lower room of the building until it was converted into a live burn room after the smokehouse was closed. Vehicle extrication as well as car and fuel fires are fought on the "burn pad" which is an open concrete area next to the smokehouse. Donated vehicles are brought in from various sources. Typically they are used first for extrication by a first aid or fire company and then later get burned for car fire training by another. Fuels fires are contained in drums or tanks that have been cut open.
A confined space prop was located next to the main parking lot which was a large pipe with access ways buried under dirt. Trench rescue simulations were also held near this prop. One of the more recent additions to the academy is the flashover chamber. A peaked roof prop sits in the middle of the academy which utilizes replaceable 4x8 plywood sheets for firefighters to practice cutting roofs. There was at one time a flat roof prop as well.
The Fire Academy's motto is "Training the Best, for the Worst". Firefighter I (aka "basic") classes are held in the spring and fall. Topics and graduation requirements surpass that of Monmouth County Fire Academy. Other courses from firefighting to Incident Command and more are offered by the academy. Other agencies also sponsor courses that use the facilities.
Aside from the Middletown Township fire companies and first aid squads, outside departments such as those from Jersey City, Bayonne, Fort Monmouth, and others have come to Middletown Township for training at the academy. The classrooms are also used by the Board of Education and for police training. The township's shooting range is located on the same property adjacent to the fire academy.
There are five squads that make up Middletown Township Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and provide Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulances to the township. They are:
They are all volunteer as well.[38] All except Port Monmouth have EMS rescue trucks with equipment to handle vehicle extrications and rope rescue. These squads also have boats and dive teams to perform rescue and recovery operations involving water which have been called out of town to assist with large area searches. Port Monmouth provides a bariatric unit, a converted ambulance, for severely overweight patients. It has been requested outside of Middletown Township as a back-up for MONOC's unit.
During the day, a MONOC (Monmouth Ocean Hospital Service Corp) BLS ambulance is on call to handle EMS emergencies the volunteer squads are unable to attend to.
Advanced Life Support (ALS) or paramedics for the township and surrounding towns are provided by MONOC. The two primary paramedic units for Middletown Township are Medic 206 located at MTFD Station 8 (Middletown Fire Company No. 1) covering a majority of the town and Medic 201 located at Bayshore Community Hospital in Holmdel covering the Northwestern end of town. Other medic units from farther distances are dispatched when these are not available.
The Middletown Township Public School District consists of seventeen public schools, with a student population of almost 9,000. Schools in the district (with 2009-10 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[39]) are twelve K-5 elementary schools (except as indicated) — Bayview (PreK-5; 476 students), Fairview (342), Harmony (455), Leonardo (271), Lincroft (503), Middletown Village (461), Navesink (292), New Monmouth (PreK-5; 542), Nut Swamp (PreK-5; 581), Ocean Avenue (299), Port Monmouth (252) and River Plaza (325) — three grade 6-8 middle schools — Bayshore (717), Thompson (931) and Thorne (794) — and two high schools for grades 9-12, Middletown High School North (1,698) and Middletown High School South (1,445). Four elementary schools feed into each of the three middle schools.
Middletown also hosts a public magnet school, High Technology High School, on the property of Brookdale Community College, located in the Lincroft section of town, which is part of the Monmouth County Vocational School District.[40]
Along with public education, Middletown Township is home to two private high schools. Christian Brothers Academy is an all boys College preparatory school with a focus on Christian education run by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, located in Lincroft. Mater Dei High School is a four-year Catholic coeducational high school located in the New Monmouth section and operates under the supervision of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton.[41]
There are also three private grammar schools, Saint Mary in New Monmouth and Saint Leo the Great School in Lincroft (both of which are part of the Diocese of Trenton), as well as Oak Hill Academy in Lincroft.
Exits 109 and 114 of the Garden State Parkway are located in Middletown Township. Four toll gates on the Parkway are located in Middletown. Two of them are at Exit 109 (northbound entry, southbound exit), and two at Exit 114 (northbound entry, southbound exit). Routes 35 and 36 pass through Middletown.
CR 516 travels through the northern part of the township and its eastern end is at Route 36 near Leonardo. County Route 520 passes through the southern portion of Middletown. Route 520 eventually turns into CR 612 further west, which makes the county route a connector between Shore Points/Garden State Parkway (Exit 109 in Middletown Township) and the New Jersey Turnpike at Exit 8A in Monroe Township.
New Jersey Transit's North Jersey Coast Line, which runs from New York City's Pennsylvania Station to Bay Head, New Jersey, provides service at the Middletown rail station. New Jersey Transit is a major commuter rail system, with track-sharing agreements with Amtrak, Metro-North Railroad, Norfolk Southern, CSX Transportation, and Conrail Shared Assets. NJ Transit also offers bus service, which stops many places throughout Middletown.
New Jersey Transit offers local bus service on the 817, 833 and 834 routes.[42]
Notable current and former residents of Middletown Township include: