North Bergen, New Jersey

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North Bergen is a township in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township had a total population of 58,092.

North Bergen was incorporated as a township on April 10, 1843, by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature, from Bergen Township. Portions of the township have been taken to form Hoboken Township (April 9, 1849, now the City of Hoboken), Hudson Town (April 12, 1852, later part of Hudson City), Hudson City (April 11, 1855, later annexed by Jersey City), Guttenberg (formed within the township on March 9, 1859, and set off as an independent municipality on April 1, 1878), Weehawken (March 15, 1859), Union Township and West Hoboken Township (both created on February 28, 1861), Union Hill town (March 29, 1864) and Secaucus (March 12, 1900).^[1]

Contents 1 Geography 2 Demographics 3 Commerce 4 Government 4.1 Local government 4.2 Federal, state and county representation 5 Transportation 6 Noteworthy residents 7 Education 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 14.6 km² (5.6 mi²). 13.5 km² (5.2 mi²) of it is land and 1.1 km² (0.4 mi²) of it (7.47%) is water. North Bergen meets with Union City and Jersey City at a single point.

Shaped like an "L", North Bergen has a large section stretching from north to south, and a smaller section stretching from east to west. That small north-east portion of North Bergen is considered the Woodcliff section. This area is directly juxtaposed to the Braddock North Hudson Park, along Woodcliff Avenue & JFK Boulevard East. Since this small stretch of land has river exposure to the east, the park to the west, and is sandwiched between the two towns of Cliffside Park (Bergen County) to the north, and Guttenberg (Hudson county) to the south, it is in high demand. This area is considered geographically and demographically separated from the rest of North Bergen.

North Bergen also has an diverse amount of geological features. For example, a rock formation in western North Bergen (located at 40°48′27″N, 74°01′05″W) is composed of unusual serpentine rock and made up of small rock cliffs. Because of this, it is unusable by developers, and is one of the few undeveloped parts of North Bergen.

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1930	40,714		–
1940	39,714		-2.5%
1950	41,560		4.6%
1960	42,387		2.0%
1970	47,751		12.7%
1980	47,019		-1.5%
1990	48,414		3.0%
2000	58,092		20.0%
Est. 2005	57,691	[2]	-0.7%
Population 1930 - 1990.[3]

}} As of the census² of 2000, there were 58,092 people, 21,236 households, and 14,249 families residing in the township. The population density was 4,313.4/km² (11,179.6/mi²). There were 22,009 housing units at an average density of 1,634.2/km² (4,235.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the township was 67.36% White, 2.72% African American, 0.40% Native American, 6.47% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 15.53% from other races, and 7.47% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 57.25% of the population.

There were 21,236 households out of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.33.

In the township the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.7 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $40,844, and the median income for a family was $46,172. Males had a median income of $35,626 versus $29,067 for females. The per capita income for the township was $20,058. About 9.6% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.0% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Commerce

North Bergen is in a state-established "Urban Enterprise Zone," which was implemented through a program designed to assist businesses in communities across New Jersey. Businesses within the zone apply for a variety of incentives, including a sales tax reduction to customers of 3½% from the mandated 7% statewide sales tax, with no tax on clothing or on purchases made by merchants related to running their businesses. Revenue generated from the reduced sales tax is maintained in a special fund dedicated for use within the zone for specific economic development and physical improvement projects. The zone was established in February 1995 through the efforts of Senator Sacco. He was a sponsor of the state's Urban Enterprise Zone legislation, which has helped produce substantial private business investment in urban centers and generates millions of dollars in revenue for North Bergen and other cities.

[edit] Government

[edit] Local government

North Bergen is governed under the Walsh Act by a five-member commission. Members of the North Bergen Township Committee are^[4]:

• Nicholas Sacco - Mayor and Commissioner of Public Affairs (Sacco also represents North Bergen, and the entire 32nd District, in the New Jersey Senate)
• Hugo D. Cabrera - Commissioner of Revenue and Finance
• Theresa V. Ferraro - Commissioner of Public Safety
• Frank J. Gargiulo - Commissioner of Public Works
• Allen Pascual - Commissioner of Parks and Public Property

[edit] Federal, state and county representation

North Bergen is split between the Ninth and Thirteenth Congressional Districts and is part of New Jersey's 32nd Legislative District.^[5]

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's Thirteenth Congressional District, covering portions of Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, and Union Counties, is now represented by Albio Sires (D, West New York), who won a special election held on November 7, 2006 to fill the vacancy the had existed since January 16, 2006. The seat had been represented by Bob Menendez (D), who was appointed to the United States Senate to fill the seat vacated by Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine. New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 32nd legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Nicholas Sacco (D, North Bergen) and in the Assembly by Vincent Prieto (D, Secaucus) and Joan M. Quigley (D, Jersey City). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).

Hudson County's County Executive is Thomas A. DeGise. The executive, together with the Board of Chosen Freeholders in a legislative role, administer all county business. Hudson County's nine Freeholders (as of 2006) are: District 1: Doreen McAndrew DiDomenico; District 2: William O'Dea; District 3: Jeffrey Dublin; District 4: Eliu Rivera; District 5: Maurice Fitzgibbons; District 6: Tilo Rivas; District 7: Gerald Lange Jr.; District 8: Thomas Liggio; and District 9: Albert Cifelli.

[edit] Transportation

Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) service is available at the Tonnelle Avenue station. HBLR is a light rail system, owned by New Jersey Transit and operated by the 21st Century Rail Corporation, that connects the Hudson County communities of Bayonne, Jersey City, Hoboken, Weehawken, Union City and North Bergen. Service is available to Hoboken Terminal and two stations at West Side Avenue in Jersey City and 22nd Street in Bayonne.

Route 495, Route 3 and U.S. Route 1/9 are major highways within the township's borders, and the New Jersey Turnpike is easily accessible.

New Jersey Transit bus service is available to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan and to other New Jersey communities. Several buses, both New Jersey Transit and private companies, operate north-south routes through North Bergen.

The closest airport in New Jersey with scheduled passenger service is Newark Liberty International Airport, located 13.7 miles away straddling the border between Newark and Elizabeth. New York City's LaGuardia Airport is 16.0 miles away in Flushing, Queens, via the George Washington Bridge.

[edit] Noteworthy residents

• James J. Braddock, heavyweight boxing champion from 1935 to 1937.
• James L. Brooks, Television and movie director.^[6]
• Jason Collins, NBA New Jersey Nets Basketball player
• Bill Raisch, actor, "one-armed man" on the TV show The Fugitive.^[7]
• Frederick Reines, the Nobel Prize-winning physicist who co-discovered the neutrino.^[8]
• John Scarne, author, expert on gambling, card games and magic tricks.^[9]
• Hal Turner, white supremacist shortwave / internet radio host.
• Ice-T Rap music pioneer and actor.

[edit] Education

The North Bergen School District serves students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district are six elementary schools — Franklin School (K-8), Horace Mann School (K-8), John F. Kennedy School (K-8), Lincoln School (PreK-8), McKinley School (PreK-8) and Robert Fulton School — and North Bergen High School for grades 9-12.

[edit] See also

• North Bergen Reporter

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• North Bergen website
• North Bergen School District
• North Bergen School District's 2005-06 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
• National Center for Education Statistics data for the North Bergen School District

This box: view • talk • edit Municipalities of Hudson County, New Jersey (County seat: Jersey City)
Cities	Bayonne | Hoboken | Jersey City | Union City
Townships	North Bergen | Weehawken
Towns	Guttenberg | Harrison | Kearny | Secaucus | West New York
Borough	East Newark
Communities	Exchange Place | Greenville | Liberty State Park | Newport | Paulus Hook

Coordinates: 40°48′15″N, 74°00′44″W