Alpine, New Jersey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alpine is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 2,183. According to Forbes, Alpine was ranked 8th on its list of "Most Expensive ZIP Codes 2005", with a 2004 median home sale price of $1,773,880.[1]
Alpine was formed by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 8, 1903 from portions of Harrington Township. The borough gained a portion of Cresskill in 1904.[2][3]
Contents |
[edit] Geography
Alpine is located at (40.954346, -73.930472)GR1 less than 9 miles from Manhattan.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 23.8 km² (9.2 mi²). 16.5 km² (6.4 mi²) of it is land and 7.3 km² (2.8 mi²) of it (30.75%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1930 | 521 |
|
|
| 1940 | 626 | 20.2% | |
| 1950 | 644 | 2.9% | |
| 1960 | 921 | 43.0% | |
| 1970 | 1,344 | 45.9% | |
| 1980 | 1,549 | 15.3% | |
| 1990 | 1,716 | 10.8% | |
| 2000 | 2,183 | 27.2% | |
| Est. 2005 | 2,368 | [4] | 8.5% |
| Population 1930 - 1990[5] | |||
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 2,183 people, 708 households, and 623 families residing in the borough. The population density was 132.5/km² (343.5/mi²). There were 730 housing units at an average density of 44.3/km² (114.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 77.37% White, 1.51% African American, 0.23% Native American, 19.10% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 1.42% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.52% of the population.
There were 708 households out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 79.8% were married couples living together, 4.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 12.0% were non-families. 9.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.08 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the borough the population was spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 20.9% from 25 to 44, 34.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 102.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $130,740, and the median income for a family was $134,068. Males had a median income of $87,544 versus $45,536 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $76,995. About 5.4% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
The current mayor of Alpine is Paul H. Tomasko.
On Election Day, November 7, 2006, Democrats swept all three open seats unopposed, with Paul H. Tomasko (443 votes) reelected as Mayor, and Michael Cacouris (412) and Vicki Frankel (399) winning additional terms on the Borough Council.[6][7]
[edit] Federal, state and county representation
Alpine is in the Fifth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 39th Legislative District.[8]
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).
The 39th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Gerald Cardinale (R, Cresskill) and in the Assembly by John E. Rooney (R, Emerson) and Charlotte Vandervalk (R, Westwood). 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 Chairman Tomas J. Padilla (D, Park Ridge), Vice-Chairman Elizabeth Calabrese (D, Wallington), David L. Ganz (D, Fair Lawn), James M. Carroll (D, Demarest), Bernadette P. McPherson (D, Rutherford), Julie O'Brien (D) and Connie Wagner (D).
Other countywide elected officials are Sheriff Leo McGuire (D), Surrogate Court Judge Mike Dressler (D, Cresskill) County Clerk Kathleen Donovan (R).
[edit] Politics
As of April 1, 2006, out of a 2004 Census estimated population of 2,340, there were 1,359 registered voters (58.1% of the population, vs. 55.4% in all of Bergen County). Of registered voters, 184 (13.5% vs. 20.7% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 380 (28.0% vs. 19.2% countywide) were registered as Republicans and 794 (58.4% vs. 60.1% countywide) were registered as Undeclared. There was one voter registered to another party.[9]
On the national level, Alpine leans toward the Republican Party. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican George W. Bush received 56% of the vote here, defeating Democrat John Kerry, who received around 43%.[10]
[edit] Education
The Alpine Public School, is a K-8 community school district serving a total of 142 students at the Alpine School. The district's students attend Tenafly High School in Tenafly for grades 9 - 12, as part of a sending/receiving relationship.
[edit] Media
Alpine is home to the tower and laboratory built by Edwin Howard Armstrong after RCA evicted him from the Empire State Building. Armstrong's experimental FM station, W2XMN, broadcast from various locations on the tower, first on 42.8 MHz; later on 44.1 MHz; and finally on 93.1 MHz in the modern FM band. The laboratory building and the tower still stand; the 400-foot (122-m) tower is home to many two-way radio users, one modern FM station (Fairleigh Dickinson University's WFDU), and backup transmitters for several of New York's television stations. The tower served as a primary tower for the stations after September 11th when the World Trade Center was destroyed. There was some local opposition to this scheme, but the move was temporary, as the stations affected moved their primary broadcast facilities to the Empire State Building. The original lab building is home to a static display of historic communications equipment and offices; the USA Network cable channel operated from this building in the late 1970s.
[edit] Points of interest
Rio Vista is an upscale neighborhood in the southern section of Alpine. Rio Vista is also home to Devil's Tower, a stone clock tower that many locals claim is haunted. The tower was originally built by a wealthy man in order to allow his wife to see New York from the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. However, when his wife saw him with another woman, she committed suicide by jumping off the tower. After becoming upset over his wife's death, the husband ceased all work on the tower.[11] The Rio Vista estate, where Devil's Tower was located, was later subdivided during the 1970s.
[edit] Noted residents
- Damon Dash, hip-hop entrepreneur.[12]
- Chingy, rap artist
- Patrick Ewing, former center for the New York Knicks.[12]
- Fabolous, rap artist.[12]
- Andre Harrell, founder of Uptown Records.[12]
- Jay-Z, rap artist.[13]
- Lil' Kim, rap artist, who rapped about her new hometown in her song Aunt Dot ("Come on Shanice, I'm takin' you to my house in Alpine")[14]
- Mitchell Modell, CEO of Modell's Sporting Goods
- P. Diddy, rap artist.[14]
- Chris Rock, comedian, movie star.[12]
- Dr. Joseph Dello Russo, LASIK pioneer
- Gary Sheffield, baseball player.[12]
- Russell Simmons, hip-hop entrepreneur.[13]
- Wesley Snipes, actor.[12]
- Joseph A. Unanue, President of Goya Foods from 1976-2004
- Brian "Baby" Williams of the Cash Money Millionaires
- Stevie Wonder, musician.[15]
[edit] Sources
- "History of Bergen County, New Jersey, 1630-1923;" by "Westervelt, Frances A. (Frances Augusta), 1858-1942."
- "Municipal Incorporations of the State of New Jersey (according to Counties)" prepared by the Division of Local Government, Department of the Treasury (New Jersey); December 1, 1958.
[edit] References
- ^ Most Expensive ZIP Codes 2005, accessed September 26, 2006
- ^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 194.
- ^ "History of Bergen County" p. 336 shows April 13, 1903, as date of formation.
- ^ Census data for Alpine, United States Census Bureau, accessed March 1, 2007
- ^ Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, accessed March 1, 2007
- ^ "Election 2006: Municipal Results", The Record (Bergen County), November 8, 2006, p. L-2.
- ^ Bergen County 2006 General Election Results, accessed February 1, 2007
- ^ League of Women Voters: 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, p. 54, 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
- ^ Riovista Land Corporation certificate, accessed January 30, 2007
- ^ a b c d e f g Alpine, N.J., Home of Hip-Hop Royalty, The New York Times by Douglas Century, February 11, 2007
- ^ a b In Pictures: Star-Studded Neighborhoods, Forbes, February 19, 2007. "Celebrity Residents: P. Diddy, Jay-Z, Russell Simmons."
- ^ a b Rappers making the move to Bergen County, The Record (Bergen County), October 10, 2005
- ^ IF YOU'RE THINKING OF LIVING IN ALPINE, The New York Times, October 27, 1985
[edit] External links
- Alpine Elementary School
- Alpine Elementary School's 2005-06 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- National Center for Education Statistics data for the Alpine Elementary School
- Tenafly High School
- 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
