Wikis
| City of Jersey City | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — City — | |||
 |
|||
|
|||
| Nickname(s): "Chilltown"[1] "Wall Street West"[2] |
|||
| Motto: “Let Jersey Prosper” | |||
 |
|||
 |
|||
| Coordinates: 40°42′41″N 74°03′53″W / 40.71139°N 74.06472°WCoordinates: 40°42′41″N 74°03′53″W / 40.71139°N 74.06472°W | |||
| Country | United States | ||
| State | New Jersey | ||
| County | Hudson | ||
| Government | |||
| - Type | Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) | ||
| - Mayor | Jerramiah T. Healy | ||
| - Business Administrator | Brian P. O'Reilly[3] | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 21.1 sq mi (54.7 km2) | ||
| - Land | 14.9 sq mi (38.6 km2) | ||
| - Water | 6.2 sq mi (16.1 km2) | ||
| Elevation [4] | 20 ft (9 m) | ||
| Population (2007)[5] | |||
| - Total | 242,389 | ||
| - Density | 16,045.5/sq mi (6,195.2/km2) | ||
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | ||
| ZIP codes | 07300, et al. | ||
| Area code(s) | 201, 551 | ||
| FIPS code | 34-36000[6][7] | ||
| GNIS feature ID | 0885264[8] | ||
| Website | http://www.cityofjerseycity.com | ||
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the population of Jersey City was 240,055, making it New Jersey's second-largest city after Newark. As of the Census Bureau's 2007 estimate, the population had grown to 242,389.[5][9]
Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between of the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay. A commercial and industrial center, it is a port of entry and a manufacturing center. With 11 miles (17.7 km) of waterfront and significant rail connections, Jersey City is an important transportation terminus and distribution center. Service industries have play a prominent role in the redevelopment of its waterfront and the creation of one of the nation's largest office-space real estate markets.
Contents |
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 54.7 km2 (21.1 mi2). 38.6 km2 (14.9 mi2) of it is land and 16.1 km2 (6.2 mi2) of it is water. It has the smallest land area of the 100 largest cities in America. The total area is 29.37% water. Jersey City is bordered to the east by the Hudson River, to the north by Secaucus, North Bergen, Union City and Hoboken, to the west by Kearny and Newark, and to the south by Bayonne.
Given its proximity to Manhattan, Jersey City and Hudson County are sometimes referred to as New York City's sixth borough.[10]
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record high °F (°C) | 70 (21) |
72 (22) |
80 (27) |
87 (31) |
97 (36) |
100 (38) |
102 (39) |
100 (38) |
99 (37) |
85 (29) |
81 (27) |
70 (21) |
102 (39) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 36 (2.2) |
40 (4.4) |
48 (8.9) |
58 (14.4) |
68 (20) |
77 (25) |
83 (28.3) |
81 (27.2) |
74 (23.3) |
63 (17.2) |
52 (11.1) |
42 (5.6) |
60 (15.6) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 23 (-5) |
24 (-4.4) |
32 (0) |
42 (5.6) |
53 (11.7) |
63 (17.2) |
68 (20) |
66 (18.9) |
58 (14.4) |
47 (8.3) |
38 (3.3) |
28 (-2.2) |
45 (7.2) |
| Record low °F (°C) | -4 (-20) |
-3 (-19) |
5 (-15) |
18 (-8) |
34 (1) |
44 (7) |
49 (9) |
47 (8) |
38 (3) |
27 (-3) |
14 (-10) |
-2 (-19) |
-4 (-20) |
| Precipitation inches (mm) | 3.7 (94) |
2.9 (73.7) |
4.1 (104.1) |
4.1 (104.1) |
4.5 (114.3) |
3.5 (88.9) |
4.2 (106.7) |
4.1 (104.1) |
4.5 (114.3) |
3.5 (88.9) |
4.0 (101.6) |
3.9 (99.1) |
47.0 (1,193.8) |
| Source:[citation needed] | |||||||||||||
The land comprising what is now Jersey City was wilderness inhabited by the Lenape, a collection of tribes (later called Delaware Indian). In 1609, Henry Hudson, seeking an alternate route to East Asia, anchored his small vessel Halve Maen (English: Half Moon) at Sandy Hook, Harsimus Cove and Weehawken Cove, and elsewhere along what was later named the North River. After spending nine days surveying the area and meeting its inhabitants, he sailed as far north as Albany. After he returned to the Netherlands, the Dutch organized the United New Netherlands Company. The Company was to manage this new territory and in June 1623, The New Netherlands became a Dutch province, with headquarters in New Amsterdam. Michael Reyniersz Pauw, Lord of Achttienhoven, a burgermeester of Amsterdam and a director of the West India Company, received a land grant as patroon on the condition that he would establish a settlement of not fewer than fifty persons within four years. He chose the west bank of the Hudson River and purchased the land from the Lenape. This grant is dated November 22, 1630 and is the earliest known conveyance for what are now Hoboken and Jersey City. Pauw, however was an absentee landlord who neglected to populate the area and was obliged to sell his holdings back to the Company in 1633.[11] That year, a house was built at Communipaw for Jan Evertsen Bout, superintendent of the colony, which had been named Pavonia (the Latinized form of Pauw's name, which means peacock).[12] Shortly after, another house was built at Harsimus Cove (near the present-day corner of Fourth Street and Marín Boulevard) and became the home of Cornelius Van Vorst, who had succeeded Bout as superintendent, and whose family would become influential in the development of the city. Relations with the Lenape deteriorated, in part because of the colonialist's mismanagement and misunderstanding of the indigenous people, and led to series of raids and reprisals and the virtual destruction of the settlement on the west bank. During Kieft's War, approximately eighty Lenapes were killed by the Dutch in a massacre at Pavonia on the night of February 25, 1643.[13]
Scattered communities of farmsteads characterized the Dutch settlements at Pavonia: Communipaw, Harsimus, Paulus Hook, Hoebuck, Awiehaken, and other lands "behind Kil van Kull". The first village (located inside a palisaded garrison) established on what is now Bergen Square in 1660, and is considered to be the oldest town in what would become the state of New Jersey.[14]
Among the oldest surviving houses in Jersey City is the stone Van Wagenen House of 1742. During the American Revolutionary War the area was in the hands of the British who controlled New York. Paulus Hook was attacked by Major Light Horse Harry Lee on August 19, 1779. After the war Alexander Hamilton and other prominent New Yorkers and New Jerseyeans attempted to develop the area that would become historic downtown Jersey City and laid out the city squares and streets that still characterize the neighborhood, giving them names also seen in Lower Manhattan or after war heroes (Grove, Varick, Mercer, Wayne, Monmouth, and Montgomery among them). During the 19th century, Jersey City played an integral role in the Underground Railroad. Four routes through New Jersey converged in the city.[15]
The City of Jersey was incorporated by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on January 28, 1820, from portions of North Bergen Township, while the area was still a part of Bergen County. The city was reincorporated on January 23, 1829, and again on February 22, 1838, at which time it became completely independent of North Bergen and was given its present name. On February 22, 1840, it became part of the newly-created Hudson County.[16]
Soon after the Civil War, the idea of uniting all of the towns of Hudson County east of the Hackensack River into one municipality. A bill was approved by the State legislature on April 2, 1869, a special held October 5, 1869. An element of the bill provide that only contiguous towns could be consolidated. While a majority of the voters approved the merger, only Jersey City, Hudson City and Bergen City could be consolidated, which they did on March 17, 1870. Three years later the present outline of Jersey City was completed when Greenville agreed to merge into the Greater Jersey City.[16][16][17]
Jersey City was a dock and manufacturing town for much of the 19th and 20th centuries. Much like New York City, Jersey City has always been a landing pad for new immigrants to the United States. In its heyday before World War II, German, Irish, and Italian immigrants found work at Colgate, Chloro, or Dixon Ticonderoga. However, the largest employers at the time were the railroads, whose national networks dead-ended on the Hudson River. The most significant railroad for Jersey City was the Pennsylvania Railroad Company whose eastern terminus was in the Downtown area until 1911, when the company built the first tunnel under the river to Penn Station, New York. Before that time, Pennsylvania rail passengers transferred in Jersey City to ferries headed to Manhattan or to trolleys that fanned out through Hudson County and beyond. The Black Tom explosion occurred on July 30, 1916 as an act of sabotage on American ammunition supplies by German agents to prevent the materials from being used by the Allies in World War I.[18]
From 1917 to 1947, Jersey City was governed by Mayor Frank Hague. Originally elected as a reform candidate, the Jersey City History Web Site says his name is "synonymous with the early twentieth century urban American blend of political favoritism and social welfare known as bossism." Hague ran the city with an iron fist while, at the same time, molding governors, United States senators, and judges to his whims. Boss Hague was known to be loud and vulgar, but dressed in a stylish manner earning him the nickname "King Hanky-Panky".[19] In his later years in office, Hague would often dismiss his enemies as "reds" or "commies". Hague lived like a millionaire, despite having an annual salary that never exceeded $8,500.[20] He was able to maintain a fourteen-room duplex apartment in Jersey City, a suite at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan, and a palatial summer home in Deal, New Jersey, and he traveled to Europe yearly in the royal suites of the best liners.[20]
After Hague's retirement from politics, a series of mayors including John V. Kenny, Thomas J. Whelan, and Thomas F.X. Smith attempted to take control of Hague's organization, usually under the mantle of political reform. None was able to duplicate the level of power held by Hague.[21]
The Jersey City Giants of the International League played in Roosevelt Stadium from 1937 to 1950. On April 18, 1946 Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color line when he became the first African-American to play organized baseball outside of the Negro Leagues since 1916. Robinson appeared for the visiting Montreal Royals, going 4-for-5 with a home run.
Roosevelt Stadium was briefly home to the Brooklyn Dodgers of the National League for seven home games in both 1956 and 1957.
In 2009, Jersey City hosted The Barclays at Liberty National Golf Club. It is part of the PGA Tours' Fed Ex Cup Playoff Tournament.
The city developed a reputation for corruption, even after Hague left office. By the 1970s, it was caught up in a wave of urban decline that saw many of its wealthy residents fleeing to the suburbs, and led to an influx of working class scarred by rising crime, civil unrest, political corruption, and economic hardship. From 1950 to 1980, Jersey City lost 75,000 residents, and from 1975 to 1982, it lost 5,000 jobs, or 9% of its workforce.[22] The city experienced a surge of violent crime during this period. New immigrants sought refuge in Jersey City because of low housing costs, despite decay, abandonment, or neglect in its neighborhoods.[citation needed]
Beginning in the 1980s, development of the waterfront in an area previously occupied by rail yards and factories helped to stir the beginnings of a renaissance for Jersey City. The rapid construction of numerous high-rise buildings increased the population and led to the development of the Exchange Place financial district, also known as 'Wall Street West', one of the largest banking centers in the United States. Large financial institutions such as UBS, Goldman Sachs, Chase Bank, Citibank and Merrill Lynch occupy prominent buildings on the Jersey City waterfront, some of which are among the tallest buildings in New Jersey. Amid this building boom, a light-rail network brought articulated streetcars to downtown Jersey City.[citation needed]
The West Side of Jersey City has also benefited from a large group of Filipino immigrants who, even when they can barely afford it, send their children to private Catholic schools like St. Aloysius or St. Dominic, but the biggest of them all is the William L. Dickinson High School on Bergen Hill. There's also Saint Peter's, NJCU and the Hudson Community College that has its own culinary arts building in the Journal Square area.
Wide-scale gentrification of the downtown neighborhood coincided with the growth of Jersey City as an arts center, particularly the visual arts. Beginning in the late 1970s, many artists moved the short distance across the river from Manhattan in search of affordable studio space. One structure of note, the massive Civil War-era building located at 111 First Street, became a haven for hundreds of artists in the area and was considered by many as the heart of the Jersey City arts community. Nonetheless, the building was demolished in 2005 to make way for future development, including a high-rise building designed by world-famous architect Rem Koolhaas. The art scene has continued to grow with a proliferation of galleries and other organizations such as Rock Soup Studios, 58 Gallery, Arthouse Productions, Lex Leonard Gallery,[23], and LITM, among others. The recent addition of the Jersey City Museum, a venue for contemporary art, has also raised the profiles of local artists.[citation needed]
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1840 | 3,072 |
|
|
| 1850 | 6,856 | 123.2% | |
| 1860 | 29,226 | 326.3% | |
| 1870 | 82,546 | 182.4% | |
| 1880 | 120,722 | 46.2% | |
| 1890 | 163,003 | 35.0% | |
| 1900 | 206,433 | 26.6% | |
| 1910 | 267,779 | 29.7% | |
| 1920 | 298,103 | 11.3% | |
| 1930 | 316,715 | 6.2% | |
| 1940 | 301,173 | −4.9% | |
| 1950 | 299,017 | −0.7% | |
| 1960 | 276,101 | −7.7% | |
| 1970 | 260,350 | −5.7% | |
| 1980 | 223,532 | −14.1% | |
| 1990 | 228,537 | 2.2% | |
| 2000 | 240,055 | 5.0% | |
| Est. 2007 | 242,389 | [5] | 1.0% |
| historical data sources:[24][25][26] | |||
As of the census[6] of 2000, there were 240,055 people, 88,632 households, and 55,660 families residing in the city. The United States Census Bureau has estimated the 2004 population at 239,079. The population density was 6195.2/km2 (16,045.6/mi2). There were 93,648 housing units at an average density of 2,423.4/km2 (6,278.3/mi2). The racial makeup of the city was 34.01% White, 28.32% African American, 0.45% Native American, 16.20% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 15.11% from other races, and 5.84% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 28.31% of the population. Largest ancestries include: Italian (6.6%), Irish (5.6%), Polish (3.0%), Arab (2.8%), and German (2.7%).[27]
The city is genuinely diverse, with relatively large representations from many ethnicities. However, relations between ethnic groups have not always amicable, as evidenced by incidents such as the infamous Dotbusters gang attacks of 1987 against residents of South Asian descent,[28] and, more recently, the March 2007 defacing of a local sports field with Nazi slogans and racial slurs.[citation needed]
Of all households, 31.1% have children under the age of 18 living there, 36.4% were married couples living together, 20.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.2% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.37.
The age distribution is spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 35.1% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.
The median income of its households is $37,862, and the median income of its families is $41,639. Males had a median income of $35,119 versus $30,494 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,410. About 16.4% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.0% of those under age 18 and 17.5% of those age 65 or over.
Jersey City is currently governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) form of municipal government by a mayor and a nine-member city council. The city council consists of six members elected from wards and three elected at large, all elected to four-year terms on a concurrent basis in non-partisan elections.[29]
The current Mayor of Jersey City is Jerramiah Healy, who won the Jersey City mayoral special election, 2004. The current Business Administrator of Jersey City is Brian O'Reilly.
Members of the City Council are:[30]
Peter Brennan is the temporary council president following Mariano Vega's resignation from that post on October 6, 2009. (Vega is under indictment for federal corruption charges.) The council may reorganize and elect a new president.[31]
Jersey City Municipal Court gets a fairly heavy load of criminal cases along with some traffic violations. Mayor Healy is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[32] a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Jersey City is in the Ninth, Tenth and Thirteenth Congressional Districts, and is part of New Jersey's 31st, 32nd and 33rd Legislative Districts.[33]
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Jersey City (and most of Hudson County) is located on the penisula known a Bergen Neck, with a waterfront on the east at the Hudson River and New York Bay and on the west at the Hackensack River and Newark Bay. Its north-south axis corresponds with the ridge of Bergen Hill, the emergence of the Hudson Palisades.[34] The city is the site of some of the earliest European settlements in North America, which grew into each other rather expanding from central point. This growth and the topograghy greatly influenced the development of the sections of the city and the neighborhoods within them.[21]
Downtown Jersey City is the area from the Hudson River westward to the Newark Bay Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 78) and the New Jersey Palisades; it is also bounded by Hoboken to the north and Liberty State Park to the south.
Newport and Exchange Place are redeveloped waterfront areas consisting mostly of residential towers, hotels and office buildings. Newport is a planned mixed-use community, built on the old Erie Lackawanna Railway yards, made up of residential rental towers, condominiums, office buildings, a marina, schools, restaurants, hotels, Newport Centre Mall, a waterfront walkway, transportation facilities, and on-site parking for more than 15,000 vehicles. Newport had a hand in the renaissance of Jersey City although, before ground was broken, much of the downtown area had already begun a steady climb (much like Hoboken). Some critics have derided the Newport development for its isolation because it is cut off from the rest of the city by the Newport Centre Mall and other big box retail.[35]
Exchange Place, the first part of Jersey City to redevelop, was built on the grounds of the old Jersey City Penn Station, ferry and shipping terminals. It is now a bustling business and financial district.
To the west lie three brownstone neighborhoods with protected historic districts — Hamilton Park, Van Vorst Park, and Harsimus Cove — separated from the waterfront by a legacy of older infrastructure, big-box development, and old warehouses still awaiting re-use.
Paulus Hook is another neighborhood with a historic designated zone. It borders Exchange Place and Liberty State Park on the waterfront, and blends older brownstone-lined streets with newer luxury developments. The Essex Street stop on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail cuts through the southern portion of the neighborhood. The area has become increasingly active with development to the east and the construction of the light rail; many of its streets are lined with shops, and restaurants with outdoor seating.
Once the commercial heart of Jersey City, Journal Square is in the process of rehabilitation, in part because of the efforts of the Journal Square Restoration Corporation (JSRC) and the Jersey City Economic Development Corporation (JCEDC). Here, Kennedy Boulevard and Bergen Avenue, main thoroughfares in the city, are at their widest, lined on both sides by brick houses and medium-density apartment complexes. The Stanley Theater, currently a Jehovah's Witness meeting hall, and Loew's Jersey Theater on Kennedy Boulevard are among the city's most noted landmarks, and are two of the best preserved movie palaces in the Tri-State area. Directly across Kennedy Boulevard from the Loews is the Journal Square Transportation Center (JSTC), which houses the Journal Square PATH station and the city's largest bus terminal. Saint Peter's College is located about 10 blocks south of Journal Square in the McGinley Square section of Jersey City. To the north of the square on Newark Avenue lies India Square, home to over 100 Indian businesses, and one of the largest Indian neighborhoods in New Jersey. To the south of the square near Five Corners lies the Hudson County Courthouse, St Joseph's Church, Dickinson High School, and the island area.
Jersey City's West Side is very diverse and includes the neighborhoods of the Marion Section, Lincoln Park/West Bergen, the Hackensack Waterfront, Society Hill, and New Jersey City University. Many ethnic grocery shops (Filipino, Indian, West Indian) line West Side Avenue, which runs from Broadway to Danforth Avenue. U.S. Route 1/9 Truck bisects Lincoln Park. West of New Jersey Route 440 is the Hackensack Riverfront including Hudson Mall, Jersey City Incinerator Authority, and Droyer's Point, former site of the old Roosevelt Stadium where Jackie Robinson broke the Baseball color line before his Major League Baseball debut.
Greenville lies between the Bayonne city line to the south and the Hudson Bergen Light Rail lines to the north. It is primarily residential with a principal commercial corridor at Danforth Avenue. The Greenville Yards (a former Conrail rail yard now being used as a distribution center), Port Jersey, Port Liberté (high-end gated residential community) and Caven Point on the Upper New York Bay are separated from the older neighborhoods by the New Jersey Turnpike Newark Bay Extension. Greenville has some of the most depressed areas in the city, but is slowly being revitalized, particularly along the light rail line. The crime rate is higher here than in any other part of Jersey City and many streets are lined with abandoned homes, but municipal aid over the past few years has helped in rebuilding many of them and in bringing life back to many of Greenville's neglected streets. With the gentrification of the downtown area, many of the city's working-class tenants have moved into this area.
Jersey City Heights (aka "The Heights") is a neighborhood atop the New Jersey Palisades overlooking Hoboken and the Hudson River to its east and the New Jersey Meadowlands to the west. It consists mostly of two- and three-family houses, and remains traditionally middle-class. The primary commercial strip is Central Avenue. Six blocks to the east, and parallel to it, are Palisade and Ogden Avenues, both of which offer views of the Manhattan skyline from Riverside Park. The light rail station at Congress and Ninth Streets connects this area of the Heights to the Hoboken PATH train and New Jersey Transit trains. Many stately Victorian and Edwardian homes contribute to the attractiveness of the Heights, particularly along Summit Avenue and Sherman Place as well as areas to the east of Central Avenue. Pershing Field is a park near the center of this district, offering green space, a running track, several trap houses, basketball and tennis courts, a semi-Olympic size swimming pool and an ice skating rink. Adjacent to Pershing Field Park is an abandoned reservoir which constitutes one of the largest patches of green space in the city. The future of the reservoir has been hotly contested as business interests, city government, and environmentalist groups have each proposed a different use for the land though it has announced that the city has decided to move forward with plans to develop the reservoir into a nature preserve open to the public.
Bergen-Lafayette, formerly Bergen City, New Jersey, lies between Greenville to the south and McGinley Square to the north. It also borders Liberty State Park and Downtown to the east and the West Side. Communipaw Avenue and Bergen Avenue are main thoroughfares. The former Jersey City Medical Center complex, a cluster of Art Deco buildings on a rise in the center of the city, are being converted into residential complexes called The Beacon.[36]
Of all Jersey City commuters, 8.17% walk to work, and 46.62% take public transit. This is the second highest percentage of public transit riders of any city with a population of 100,000+ in the United States, behind only New York City and ahead of Washington, D.C. A significant portion of Jersey City households do not own an automobile.[citation needed]
The Journal Square Transportation Center, Exchange Place, and Hoboken Terminal (just over the city line's northeast corner) are major origination/destination points for buses. Service is available to numerous points within Jersey City, Hudson County, and some suburban areas as well as to Newark on the 1, 2, 6, 22, 43, 64, 67, 68, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 123, 125, 305, 319 and 981 lines. Also serving Jersey City are various private lines operated by the Bergen Avenue and Montgomery & Westside IBOAs, and by Red & Tan in Hudson County.[38]
A part of the East Coast Greenway, a planned unbroken bike route from Maine to the Florida Keys, will travel through the city. Both the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway and Hackensack RiverWalk are bicycle friendly. [39]
Jersey City is home to the New Jersey City University (NJCU) and Saint Peter's College, both of which are located in the city's West Side district. It is also home to Hudson County Community College, which is located in Journal Square. The University of Phoenix has a small location at Newport, and Rutgers University offers MBA classes at Harborside Center.
The Jersey City Public Schools serve students 3 years and older from Pre-K 3 through twelfth grade. The district is one of 31 Abbott Districts statewide.[40]
Dr. Ronald E. McNair Academic High School was the top-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 316 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2006 cover story on the state's Top Public High Schools[41] and was selected as 15th best high school in the United States in Newsweek magazine's national 2005 survey.[42] In contrast, William L. Dickinson High School, located near Jersey City's downtown area, is the oldest high school in the city. It is also one of the largest schools in Hudson County, in terms of student population. Opened in 1906 as the Jersey City High School, it is one of the oldest sites in Jersey City. It is a four-story Beaux-Arts structure located on a hilltop facing the Hudson River. Other public high schools in Jersey City are James J. Ferris High School, Lincoln High School, and Henry Snyder High School. The Hudson County Schools of Technology (which also has campuses in North Bergen and Secaucus) has a campus in Jersey City.
Among Jersey City's elementary and middle schools is Academy I Middle School, which is part of the Academic Enrichment Program for Gifted Students. Another school is Alexander D. Sullivan P.S. #30, an ESL magnet school in the Greenville district, which services nearly 800 Pre-k through 5th grade students.[43]
Jersey City also has a number of charter schools which are run under a special charter granted by the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Education. There are six charter schools that serve elementary and middle school students. Jersey City Community Charter School, Jersey City Golden Door Charter School, Learning Community Charter School, Liberty Academy Charter School and Soaring Heights Charter School all accept students in grades K-8 while Schomburg Charter School accepts grades K-5. The two charter schools for high school students are CREATE Charter High School and University Academy Charter High School.[44]
Private high schools in Jersey City include:
Catholic grade schools include the Resurrection School a Peaceable School,[46] St. Aloysius School[47] and Sacred Heart School.[48] Catholic schools serve every area of the city and a number of other charter and private schools are also available. Genesis Educational Center[49] is a private Christian school located in downtown Jersey City for ages newborn through 8th grade.
see also: Exhibitions in Hudson County
Liberty State Park is home to Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal, the Interpretive Center, and Liberty Science Center, an interactive science and learning center. The center, which first opened in 1993 as New Jersey's first major state science museum, has science exhibits, the world's largest IMAX Dome theater, numerous educational resources, and the original Hoberman sphere.[50] From the park ferries travel to both Ellis Island and the Immigration Museum and Liberty Island, site of The Statue of Liberty.[51]
The Jersey City Free Public Library has five regional branches, some of which have permanent colllections and host exhibitions. At the Main Library, the New Jersey Room contains historical archives and photos. The Miller Branch is home to the Afro-American Historical and Cultural Society Museum. The Five Corners Branch specializes in works related to music and the fine arts, and is a gallery space.[52]
The Jersey City Museum shows contemporary work and sponsors community-oriented projects.
Some stations of the Hudson Bergen Light Rail, notably the Martin Luther King Drive station,[53] have educational public art exhibitions.
Jersey City has several shopping districts, some of which are traditional main streets for their respective neighborhoods, such as Central, Danforth, and West Side avenues. Journal Square is a major commercial district. Newport Mall is a regional shopping area.[54] Portions of the city are part of an Urban Enterprise Zone. In addition to other benefits to encourage employment within the Zone, shoppers can take advantage of a reduced 3½% sales tax rate (versus the 7% rate charged statewide).[55]
Jersey City is located within the New York media market, most of it daily papers available for sale or delivery. The daily newspaper The Jersey Journal, located at its namesake Journal Square, covers Hudson County, its morning daily, Hudson Dispatch now defunct.[56] The Jersey City Reporter is part of the Hudson Reporter group of local weeklies. The Jersey City Independent is a web-only news outlet that covers politics and culture in the city. The River View Observer is another weekly published in the city and distributed thoroughout the county. Another county wide weekly, El Especialito, also serves the city.[57]The New York Daily News maintains extensive publishing and distribution facilities at Liberty Industrial Park.[58]
WFMU 91.1FM (WXHD 90.1FM in the Hudson Valley), the longest running freeform radio station in the US, moved to Jersey City in 1998.[59] Z-100 WHTZ 100.3 The top-rated New York City radio station broadcasts from the 101 Hudson Street.
Jersey City has some sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:
Lisbon, Portugal
Weehawken, New Jersey, United States
Cusco, Peru
Oviedo, Spain Cherry Hill, New Jersey, United States
Sant'Arsenio, Italy
Ellis Island is inside Jersey City's borders, and is managed jointly by the states of New Jersey and New York, though it is owned by the federal government. In 1983, the State of New York went to the Supreme Court to sue the State of New Jersey over the ownership of the island, but in 1998, New York lost; New York retains title only to the original 3-acre (12,000 m2) portion of the Island, while New Jersey owns the 24 acres (97,000 m2) that were added as landfill.[60][61] The Statue of Liberty is 2,000 feet (610 m) from Liberty State Park on Liberty Island which also lies completely within Jersey City borders, and is under the jurisdiction of New York City. In 1987 Representative Frank J. Guarini, a Democrat from New Jersey, and Gerald McCann, who was Mayor of Jersey City, sued New York City, contending that New Jersey had ownership over the Liberty Island because they are on New Jersey side of the Hudson River. The federally owned islands are over two miles (3 km) from New York City.[62]
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||
Jersey City is New Jersey's second-largest city. Situated in the northeastern section of the state, Jersey City sits across the Hudson from its older and bigger cousin, New York City.
Once a humming center of industry, Jersey City housed the booming factories of Colgate and Dixon-Ticonderoga. Once a railroad hub, the rail lines of the country's great railroads, including the famed Pennsylvania Railroad, criss-crossed the city, bringing new immigrants into the American hinterland. Today, Jersey City is neither of these things. Decades of government mismanagement and disappointments had a profound effect on this once booming town. A fear of urban areas caused significant "white flight" to the suburbs in the middle of the 20th century; once affluent areas became centers of poverty and crime. Jersey City was a mirror of what was happening in New York City itself, although perhaps to a more significant and depressing degree.
During the 1970s, immigrants began moving to Jersey City in droves, attracted by cheap real estate and a chance at experiencing the storied American dream. Today, these immigrants have helped to shape the city into a melting pot of the world's cultures and ethnicities. Nowhere in the state is there a city as diverse and as interesting as Jersey City in this respect.
Later, the growing popularity of New York City in the 1990s had a significant impact on Jersey City, too. Old railyards along the waterfront became the sites of gleaming new office towers and high-rise condominiums. Brownstones further inland were fixed up by people moving back into the city. Jersey City's renaissance quickly began.
The city has gone through significant transformations over the course of its lifetime. And it's not over yet. High-rises continue to sprout up along the waterfront like weeds, attracting Manhattanites priced out of the real estate market there, while offering quick commutes to jobs in Downtown Manhattan and Midtown. Office towers continue to fill up with new tenants, including the backoffice functions of many New York City-based companies, earning it the moniker "Wall Street West." (In fact, Jersey City has more Class "A" office space than downtown Pittsburgh or Atlanta.) New stores catering to Jersey City's new gentry continue to pop up almost weekly. It's a city in transition, and it's both exciting and frightening at the same time.
Jersey City is about a 10-minute ride from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), which is a major hub for Continental Airlines, and is one of the three airports serving the New York metropolitan area. A taxi to Jersey City from EWR will set you back about $40. If you don't have a lot of bags, consider taking the train. Catch AirTrain from your terminal to the Newark Airport train station. Take a New York-bound New Jersey Transit train one stop to Newark Penn Station, then cross the platform to catch the PATH to Jersey City. The AirTrain/NJ Transit train is $7.75; PATH is $1.75. The ride takes about 45 minutes.
The two other airports in the region are LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), both in the borough of Queens in New York City. A cab from LGA or JFK to Jersey City will be about $100.
Getting into Jersey City by car is not difficult, although finding parking once you are there may be. (Street parking is very difficult to find, and many streets -- particularly in downtown Jersey City -- require parking permits to park for longer than a couple of hours. If you park in a permit zone, your car may be booted by the Parking Authority, especially if you have out-of-state plates.)
Since Jersey City is located at the western end of the Holland Tunnel, your best bet is to take any highway that leads directly to it. On the New Jersey side, this includes Interstate 78 (the Hudson County Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike), US 1-9, and Interstate 280. On the New York side, take the West Side Highway or Canal Street.
The PATH [1] runs to Journal Square, Grove Street, Exchange Place, and Pavonia/Newport in Jersey City with connections to Newark, Lower Manhattan, Midtown Manhattan, and Hoboken. It costs $1.75 one-way. You can purchase a single-ride MetroCard from the vending machines near the turnstiles; they accept cash or credit/debit cards. Pay-Per-Ride MetroCards can be used on the PATH, however the Unlimited MetroCards (i.e., the 7-day and 30-day unlimited ride cards for the subway) cannot.
From the Pavonia/Newport PATH station, Lower Manhattan is about seven minutes away, Midtown Manhattan (33rd Street) is about 15 minutes away, and Newark Penn Station is about 25 minutes away. From Newark Penn Station, you can connect to regional New Jersey Transit and interstate Amtrak trains.
The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail [2], operated by NJ Transit [3], connects the Jersey City waterfront to Hoboken, Weehawken, Union City, North Bergen and Bayonne.
NJ Transit and other operators run buses to the Journal Square Transportation Center bus terminal. Greyhound buses stop at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan and the bus terminal at Newark Penn Station. From Port Authority, take NJ Transit Bus 125 which goes directly to Journal Square (the fare is $3.10; trip takes about 30 minutes).
NY Waterway [4] operates four ferry routes connecting Jersey City to Manhattan. The routes from Port Liberte and Liberty Harbor connect to Pier 11 in Lower Manhattan. The other two ferry routes leave from Exchange Place, and connect to World Financial Center and West 39th Street in Midtown. Check the NY Waterway website for schedules.
|
'Dollar vans' Intrepid wanderers might find the "dollar" vans a quick and cheap way to travel around town. These vans, which are operated largely by Hispanic immigrants to serve that community, arose in response to the lack of frequent and reliable bus service in the area. Although no longer a dollar (the fare is now $1.25), these small buses travel from Newport Mall up Newark Avenue, brush past Journal Square, and travel up Palisade Avenue towards the Heights (similar vans run up Kennedy Boulevard from Journal Square). These vans don't travel on a fixed schedule, but operate relatively frequently during the day (they come by every five minutes or so). To get on board, flag the driver down. To get off the bus, say "next stop" to the driver about a block or so before your desired stop. Pay the driver as you leave the bus. |
The best way to navigate within Jersey City, as a tourist, is likely by PATH or light rail. Most of the major sections of town are serviced by these forms of transport. The bus system is arcane, and even locals have difficulty understanding where buses go or how often they run.
Unlike in Manhattan, taxis can be difficult to come by in Jersey City. You often have to call ahead to have one pick you up, although taxis are stationed at the Exchange Place, Grove Street and Journal Square PATH stations. Taxis in Jersey City can run either metered or unmetered (flat rate); the price is generally the same either way. If you are going unmetered, ask the price before getting into the taxi (or ask the dispatcher when you call ahead). Taxis are not cheap; a cab from Grove Street to Journal Square is about $10.
Zipcar is available in downtown Jersey City. Cars can be found at numerous locations within walking distance of both the Grove Street and Pavonia/Newport PATH stattions, as well as light rail stops between Newport and Liberty State Park. Zipcar locations can also be found in neighboring Hoboken. Generally, cars are readily available on weekdays. Availability is not as certain on weekends, although some cars should be available if one is flexible and only needs the car for a few hours.
Although Jersey City isn't known for its extensive shopping options, the City's new gentry have begun to bring with it classier and pricier shops. Nevertheless, some "old school" shops and bodegas (delis) continue to be mainstays, particularly for locals. Parts of Jersey City are in the Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ) program, which allows retailers to charge half the state's sales tax (currently 3.5 percent) rather than the full sales tax rate, and clothing is not taxed at all. Retailers often have stickers on their doors showing that they participate in the UEZ program.
One of the great things about Jersey City is the diversity of its restaurant options. From wonderfully affordable Indian and Cuban restaurants to uber-trendy hotspots to elegant dining options offering stunning views of Manhattan with dinner, Jersey City has a little something for everyone.
Many budget-minded New York City tourists decide to stay in moderately-priced Jersey City hotels because of its proximity to Manhattan. Hotels along or near the waterfront are quite safe and very well-appointed. Avoid the strip of motels along US 1-9 (Tonnelle Avenue) north of Journal Square. The area is industrial, unsafe, and is a haven for prostitution and other illicit activities.
Jersey City is served by two area codes - 201 and the overlay area code, 551. This means that 10-digit dialing is required. When dialing locally (within the 201 and 551 area codes), do not dial +1 before the number. For calls to other area codes, you must dial +1 before the number you're calling. Even though New York City is just across the Hudson, it's considered to be a long-distance call. Of course, with the advent of cellphones, long-distance calling is quickly becoming a thing of the past.
As in Manhattan, internet cafes are fairly uncommon in Jersey City as Wi-Fi is becoming more readily available. Notably, Janam Indian Tea on Grove Street and the Daily Grind Coffee Lounge on Morris Street offer free Wi-Fi connections.
Although most areas in Jersey City are generally safe during the day, exercise caution when walking alone at night. Streets are virtually deserted after midnight, making those walking alone easy targets. If possible, walk in large groups, or take a taxi. If you must walk alone, stick to well-lit, major streets and don't flash your wallet, cellphone or iPod.
Try to avoid the southern section of the city, bordering Bayonne, particularly the neighborhood of Greenville. In particular, Martin Luther King Drive and Ocean Avenue should be avoided. Muggings are not entirely uncommon in this primarily low-income area, and drug and gang violence are rampant.
Property crimes are becoming increasingly common across all of Jersey City. Do not leave any valuables in your car.
| This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow! |
Category: Usable articles
JERSEY CITY, a city and the county-seat of Hudson county, New Jersey, U.S.A., on a peninsula between the Hudson and Hackensack rivers at the N. and between New York and Newark bays at the S., opposite lower Manhattan Island. Pop. (1890), 163,003; (1900), 206,433, of whom 58,424 were foreign-born (19,314 Irish, 17,375 German, 4642 English, 3832 Italian, 1694 Russian, 1690 Scottish, 1643 Russian Poles, 1445 Austrian) and 3704 were negroes; (1910 census) 267,779. It is the eastern terminus of the Pennsylvania, the Lehigh Valley, the West Shore, the Central of New Jersey, the Baltimore & Ohio, the Northern of New Jersey (operated by the Erie), the Erie, the New York, Susquehanna & Western, and the New Jersey & New York (controlled by the Erie) railways, the first three using the Pennsylvania station; and of the little-used Morris canal. Jersey City is served by several inter-urban electric railways and by the tunnels of the Hudson & Manhattan railroad company to Dey St. and to 33rd St. and 6th Ave., New York City, and it also has docks of several lines of Transatlantic and coast steamers. The city occupies a land area of 14.3 sq. m. and has a water-front of about 12 m. Bergen Hill, a southerly extension of the Palisades, extends longitudinally through it from north to south. At the north end this hill rises on the east side precipitously to a height of nearly zoo ft.; on the west and south sides the slope is gradual. On the crest of the hill is the fine Hudson County Boulevard, about 19 m. long and 100 ft. wide, extending through the city and county from north to south and passing through West Side Park, a splendid county park containing lakes and a 70-acre playground. The water-front, especially on the east side, is given up to manufacturing and shipping establishments. In the hill section are the better residences, most of which are wooden and detached.
The principal buildings are the city hall and the court house. There are nine small city parks with an aggregate area of 39.1 acres. The city has a public library containing (1907) 107,600 volumes and an historical museum. At the corner of Bergen Ave. and Forrest St. is the People's Palace, given in 1904 by Joseph Milbank to the First Congregational church and containing a library and readingroom, a gymnasium, bowling alleys, a billiard-room, a rifle-range, a roof-garden, and an auditorium and theatre; kindergarten classes are held and an employment bureau is maintained. Among the educational institutions are the German American school, Hasbrouck institute, St Aloysius academy (Roman Catholic) and St Peter's college (Roman Catholic); and there are good public schools. Grain is shipped to and from Jersey City in large quantities, and in general the city is an important shipping port; being included, however, in the port of New York, no separate statistics are available. There are large slaughtering establishments, and factories for the refining of sugar and for the manufacture of tobacco goods, soap and perfumery, lead pencils, iron and steel, railway cars, chemicals, rubber goods, silk goods, dressed lumber, and malt liquors. The value of the city's manufactured products increased from $37,376,322 in 1890 to $77,225,116 in 1900, or 106.6%; in 1905 the factory product alone was valued at $75,740,934, an increase of only 3.9% over the factory product in 1900, this small rate of increase being due very largely to a decline in the value of the products of the sugar and molasses refining industry. The value of the wholesale slaughtering and meat-packing product decreased from $18,551,783 in 1880 and $11,356,511 in 1890 to $6,243,217 in 190o - of this 85,708,763 represented wholesale slaughtering alone; in 1905 the wholesale slaughtering product was valued at $7,568,739.
In 1908 the assessed valuation of the city was $267,039,754. The city is governed by a board of aldermen and a mayor (elected biennially), who appoints most of the officials, the street and water board being the principal exception.
Jersey City when first incorporated was a small sandy peninsula (an island at high tide) known as Paulus Hook, directly opposite the lower end of Manhattan Island. It had been a part of the Dutch patroonship of Pavonia granted to Michael Pauw in 1630. In 1633 the first buildings were erected, and for more than a century the Hook was occupied by a small agricultural and trading community. In 1764 a new post route between New York and Philadelphia passed through what is now the city, and direct ferry communication began with New York. Early in the War of Independence Paulus Hook was fortified by the Americans, but soon after the battle of Long Island they abandoned it, and on the 23rd of September 1776 it was occupied by the British. On the morning of the 19th of August 1779 the British garrison was surprised by Major Henry Lee ("Light Horse Harry"), who with about 50o men took 159 prisoners and lost only 2 killed and 3 wounded, one of the most brilliant exploits during the War of Independence. In 1804 Paulus Hook, containing 117 acres and having about 15 inhabitants, passed into the possession of three enterprising New York lawyers, who laid it out as a town and formed an association for its government, which was incorporated as the "associates of the Jersey company." In 1820 the town was incorporated as the City of Jersey, but it remained a part of the township of Bergen until 1838, when it was reincorporated as a distinct municipality. In 1851 the township of Van Vorst, founded in 1804 between Paulus Hook and Hoboken, was annexed. In 1870 there were two annexations: to the south, the town of Bergen, the county-seat, which was founded in 1660; to the north-west, Hudson City, which had been separated from the township of North Bergen in 1852 and incorporated as a city in 1855. The town of Greenville, to the south, was annexed in 1873.
|
<< Jersey |
Jerusalem >> |
Categories: JAS-JIN | New Jersey and Maryland | New York
|
|
Search
