- NUMBER1EXPERT™ 
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Request my Free Short Hills/Millburn, Livingston and Maplewood Relocation Package. It's packed full of useful and important information about the Short Hills/Millburn, Livingston and Maplewood, New Jersey area. Don't move here without it! Remember: I'll send it to you for free and without obligation. Just fill out the form and I will send it right out...  It's my job to know EVERYTHING about Short Hills/Millburn, Livingston and Maplewood! Ask me any question. Or request a FREE information package. There's no obligation, and I promise to get back to you quickly...Livingston, New Jersey
Livingston is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 27,391. Livingston was incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 5, 1813, from portions of Caldwell Township (now Fairfield Township) and Springfield Township (now in Union County, New Jersey). Portions of the township were taken to form Fairmount (March 11, 1862, now part of West Orange) and Roseland (March 10, 1908). The township was given its name in honor of William Livingston, the first Governor of New Jersey with his family coat of arms as its seal.
HistoryLivingston's history dates back in 1699 when 101 Newark settlers wanted to expand westward. They set up a committee to negotiate the purchase from Lenni Lenape for the Horseneck Tract which today includes Livingston and eight other towns to the north. Between 1698 and 1702, the rules for property ownership were unclear. There were many disputes between settlers and the British proprietors. For some unknown reasons, the Newark settlers did not obtain a grant from the proprietors before negotiating with the natives. They finally obtained the deed directly from Lenni Lenape in 1702 for £130. The settlements began until around 1740s as the dispute between the proprietors and the settlers continued. The dispute came to a breaking point when the proprietors demanded immediate payment around the same time that a house fire in Newark completely destroyed the original deed, which was the only evidence of the purchase. This event caused the settlers, led by Timothy Meeker, to form a group to riot against the British government. The Horseneck Riots lasted for 10 years from 1745 to 1755. The group was also one of the first colonial militia which had periodic battles for 32 years leading up to the Revolutionary War as the group joined the Continental Army in 1776. After the American Revolution, more permanent settlements took place with the first school built in 1783. In 1811, a petition was filed to incorporate the township from about 100 people who lived in seven distinct areas: Centerville (separated to become Roseland, in 1908), Cheapside (now Livingston Mall), Morehousetown (now Livingston Circle), Northfield (now Northfield Center), Squiretown (now the Cerebral Palsy Institute of New Jersey on Old Road), Teedtown (now Livingston Center), and Washington Place (now near the border with Millburn). On February 5, 1813, the township was officially incorporated. The first town meeting was held on the same day and they decided to run the township by a Township Committee system. During 1800s, lumber and farming were major industries in the town. The shoemaking and dairy became major industries during and after the Civil War respectively. However, the population grew slowly as Mt. Pleasant Avenue – which was one of the first turnpikes in New Jersey – was the only primary access to the town through stagecoachs. The population grew quickly after 1920s when automobile became more accessible. As a suburb of Newark, the town experienced many housing developments especially after World War II with its peak in 1970 of more than thirty thousand residents. During this growth period, many services were organized including volunteer Fire Department in 1922, first regular police chief in 1929, a Planning Commission in 1930, two hospitals opened in 1959 and 1960, new public library in 1961, and new municipal complex in 1963. Today, some 28,000 people enjoys suburban lifestyle with the proximity to New York City. Its school system and other programs have been drawing new residents to the town. Its population has become increasingly diverse while the residents maintain the tradition of community volunteerism. GeographyLivingston is located at 40°47′19″N 74°19′17″W / 40.788733°N 74.321340°W / 40.788733; -74.321340 (40.788733, -74.321340).[13] According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 14.1 square miles (36.4 km2), of which, 13.9 square miles (35.9 km2) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km2) of it (1.35%) is water. The Township of Livingston is located in Essex County, in the Gateway Region. In the vicinity are the Passaic River, West Orange, Millburn, and the Grover Cleveland State Historic Site in West Caldwell. Livingston is part of the New York metropolitan area. Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,391 people, 9,300 households, and 7,932 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,973.1 people per square mile (761.9/km2). There were 9,457 housing units at an average density of 681.2/sq mi (263.1/km2). The racial makeup of the township was 82.64% White, 14.54% Asian, 1.20% African American, 0.05% Native American, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.69% from other races, and 0.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.54% of the population. According to the 2002 results of the National Jewish Population Survey, there are 12,600 Jews in Livingston, approximately 46% of the population. This is one of the higher percentages of Jews in any American municipality. There were 9,300 households out of which 41.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.0% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.7% were non-families. 13.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.93 and the average family size was 3.21. In the township the population was spread out with 26.6% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males. According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the township was $119,877, and the median income for a family was $139,522. Male full-time workers had a median income of more than $100,000 versus $65,309 for females. The per capita income for the town was $56,040. About 1.7% of families and 3.4% of individuals were below the poverty line. From the total population, 1.1% of those under age 18 and 0.9% of those age 65 or over were below the poverty line. GovernmentLocal governmentLivingston operates under the Faulkner Act (Council-Manager) form of municipal government. Livingston's Township Council consists of five members. A Mayor and Deputy Mayor are selected by the Council from among its members at a reorganization meeting held after each election. Members of the Township Council are Mayor Charles "Buddy" August, Deputy Mayor Arlene Johnson, Councilman Gary Schneiderman, Councilman Rudy Fernandez,and Councilman Stephen A. Santola. The Township Manager is Michele Meade.She is the third Township Manager, preceded by Robert H. Harp (1954-1985) and Charles J. Tahaney (1985-2005). Township volunteer organizationsThere are more than forty volunteer Committees and Boards run through the Township. A few samples are:
Volunteer-based public safety organizations are Livingston Auxiliary Police, Livingston Fire Department and Livingston First Aid Squad. Federal, state and county representationLivingston is split between the Eighth and Eleventh Congressional Districts and is part of New Jersey's 27th Legislative District. New Jersey's Eighth Congressional District, covering the southern portion of Passaic County and northern sections of Essex County, is represented by Bill Pascrell Jr. (D, Paterson). New Jersey's Eleventh Congressional District, covering western portions of Essex County, all of Morris County, and sections of Passaic County, Somerset County and Sussex County, is represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen (R, Harding 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 27th District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Richard Codey (D, Roseland) and in the Assembly by Mila Jasey (D, South Orange) and John F. McKeon (D, West Orange). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken). Essex County's County Executive is Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. The executive, along with the Board of Chosen Freeholders administer all county business. Essex County's Freeholders are Freeholder President Blonnie R. Watson (at large), Freeholder Vice President Ralph R. Caputo (District 5), Johnny Jones (at large), Donald M. Payne, Jr. (at large), Patricia Sebold (at large) Samuel Gonzalez (District 1), D. Bilal Beasley (District 2), Carol Y. Clark (District 3) and Linda Lordi Cavanaugh (District 4). PoliticsOn the national level, Livingston leans toward the Democratic Party. In 2008, Democrat Barack Obama received 53% of the vote, defeating Republican John McCain. Livingston has not elected a Republican on the local level since 1994. Livingston was the home of one of New Jersey's most prominent political families, the Keans. Robert Kean served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1939 to 1958, when he ran for U.S. Senator; his son, Thomas Kean, who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1968 to 1978 (and as Assembly Speaker in 1972-73, and Minority Leader 1974-77), as Governor of New Jersey from 1982 to 1990, and as President of Drew University from 1990 to 2004. Thomas Kean Jr., elected to the State Assembly in 2001 and the State Senate in 2003, is the Republican nominee for United States Senator in 2006. When Robert Kean ran for the Senate, losing to Harrison A. Williams in 1958, Livingtson's Congressman became George M. Wallhauser, a Republican. After the 1960 census, Livingston was moved into the district of Republican Congresswoman Florence P. Dwyer. After the 1970 census, Livingston went into Congressman Peter Frelinghuysen, Jr.'s district. He was the father of Livingston's current Congressman, Rodney P. Frelinghuysen. When Peter Frelinghuysen retired in 1974, he was succeeded by Millicent Fenwick, who beat Tom Kean in a Republican primary by about 80 votes. After the 1980 census, Livingston was moved to Congressman Joseph G. Minish's district. Minish was defeated by Dean Gallo in 1984 and served until his death in 1994. Rodney Frelinghuysen took his seat. The 2000 Census split the town, and now Congressman Bill Pascrell represents a portion of the community. Some Essex County Freeholders from Livingston have included Reita Greenstone, James Cavanaugh, Patricia Sebold, and William Clark. EducationLivingston public schoolsLivingston has a strong commitment to its public education system. This may partly attribute to the population markup with 26.7% of population 25 years and older who attain professional, Masters or Doctorate degree. Roughly 60% of local property tax goes toward Livingston Board of Education. Additionally, a separate budget of just over 7% of all municipal services goes toward the operation of public library and supplemental education programs run by recreation department. According to library statistics collected by Institute of Museum and Library Services, Livingston public library was ranked 22 out of 232 municipal libraries in New Jersey based on total circulation in 2006. On the contrary, these budget allocations may be overburden to residents who wish to have other services in high priorities as well. The Livingston Public Schools serves students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are six K-5 elementary schools — Burnet Hill School (417 students), Collins (419), Harrison (486), Hillside (442), Mount Pleasant (385) and Riker Hill (440) — Mount Pleasant Middle School for grade 6 (364), Heritage Middle School for grades 7 and 8 (826) and Livingston High School for grades 9-12 (1,588). For the 1997-98 school year, Livingston High School received the Blue Ribbon Award from the United States Department of Education, the highest honor that an American school can achieve. Livingston High School was the 14th-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. Livingston's schools participate in many county, interschool, state, and national competitions. Some of these include the popular "Cognetics" program, MathCounts, various national, state, and county math contests, debate contests, Academically Speaking (a county competition to test broad knowledge), Knowledge Master Open (KMO, a national computer-based contest to test broad knowledge), and many more. Additionally, students formed teams, for instance, Livingston Robotics Club, to compete in extracurricular competitions. Highlights of the accomplishments are:
Other schoolsAquinas Academy is a private coeducational Roman Catholic school that serves students from preschool through eighth grade. Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy is a private coeducational Jewish day school that serves preschool through eighth grade. Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School is a four-year yeshiva high school for grades 9-12. Newark Academy is a private coeducational day school for grades 6-12. Livingston Chinese School and Livingston Huaxia Chinese School are two weekend Chinese-language schools in Livingston which use facilities of Heritage Middle School and Mount Pleasant school. CulturePerforming artsLivingston is home of a few performing arts organizations from local to international:
ArtLivingston has many local artists in many forms. Local artists have support from Livingston Arts Association which is an organization formed in 1959 to promote art in the community including large scale exhibitions, demonstrations, and workshops. The organization is also a member of Art Council of Livingston which has a gallery at Livingston Town Center. Atop the Riker Hill is also another set of artists. There are many studios at Riker Hill Art Park with more than 40 working artists in various medias including pottery, fine metalwork, glass, jewelry, paintings, fine arts, sculpture and photography. Many studios offer art classes for adults and children. Historic sitesWard-Force House and Condit Family Cook House are two building structures located at 366 South Livingston Avenue. These structures were jointly registered in the National Register of Historic Places in 1981, commonly known as the Old Force Homestead. Originally, Ward-Force House and Condit Family Cook House were built in separate properties. Ward-Force House was built as early as 1745 by Theophilus Ward. It was later purchased by Samuel Force for his son, Thomas Force. During the Revolutionary War, Thomas served as a patriot and was captured by the British. Thomas came back to live with his wife and children after the war and expanded the house. It was sold to the township in 1962. Condit Family Cook House was built as a stand-alone summer kitchen of a farm home near the current location of Livingston Mall. When the mall was built during 1970s, the cook house was donated to the township and was moved to the current location at the rear of Ward-Force House. Currently, the Old Force Homestead is the headquarters of Livingston Historical Society and the Force Homestead Museum. Dickinson House and Washington Place Schoolhouse are two other sites in the township that are registered in the New Jersey State Historic Site Program. Dickinson House is located at 84 Dickinson Lane. It was once visited by President Theodore Roosevelt for a hunting trip. Washington Place Schoolhouse is located at 122 Passaic Avenue. It was a school house that was built around 1800. TransportationLivingston is located about 21.9 miles from New York City about 40 minutes away. There is a Coach USA (Community Coach) bus to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan and a New Jersey Transit bus service to Newark Penn Station running through the center of Livingston. New Jersey Transit train service and PATH can be reached by car or taxi. In and near Livingston are Eisenhower Parkway, County Route 508, County Route 527, Interstate 280, Route 10 and the Morristown and Erie Railway. EconomyShopping and diningAlthough largely a bedroom community, there are numerous stores and restaurants located in Livingston. There are three main shopping areas. The first area is located in the center of the town. It stretches along Livingston Avenue from Route 10 to Northfield Avenue. Historically, the area had been dominated by small local shops and restaurants. With recent addition of Livingston Town Center – a mixed-use development, more well-known stores have been opened in the area. Those include Nicole Miller & Nicole Miller Bridal Salon, and Destination Maternity superstore which combines many of its brands in one location. The second area is the Livingston Mall located at the south-western corner of the town. Macy's, Lord & Taylor and Sears department stores are located in the original three wings of the mall. The fourth wing was added in 2008 as a new home of Barnes & Noble. The third shopping area is located at the outer skirt of the town on the western side. It is the starting point of Route 10 shopping corridor that extends to East Hanover. The corridor is home of many major big-box stores such as Toys R Us, Best Buy, Home Depot, Costco, and Target. Most of those stores are located within East Hanover’s border. There are many chain restaurants in the town such as Applebee's, Olive Garden, Così and The Original Soup Man. However, there are only a couple of high-end restaurants such as Strip House. There are three supermarkets in the town. Additional specialty food stores such as Kam Man Food – Asian food supermarket, and Whole Foods Market are located in neighboring towns. Offices and other servicesMany office parks are located along Eisenhower Parkway on the western side of the town. Major tenants include CIT Group corporate headquarters, and customer service and support center of Verizon New Jersey (to be opened in 2009). There are varieties of other services in the town. A Little Taste of Purple – a personalized winemaking school, and Westminster– a four diamond luxury hotel – are located in the western side of the town. Saint Barnabas Medical Center – a 597-bed hospital – is located in the southern side of the town near West Orange and Millburn. Saint Barnabas Medical Center was ranked the 13th best hospital in the United States by AARP Modern Maturity Magazine for quality of care for adults at acute care hospitals in major metropolitan areas. It also received high scores for its specialties from U.S. News & World Report: the 2nd highest score in New Jersey for Neurology and Neurosurgery; the 3rd highest score in New Jersey for Kidney disease; and the 4th highest score in New Jersey for Cancer, Gynecology, and Urology.[55] Livingston has a few well-known fitness facilities including West Essex YMCA, New York Sports Club, and Curves for Women. Livingston also has a local cable television station (Livingston TV on Comcast TV-34 and Verizon FiOS 26), which is maintained by Livingston High School Students as well as the LPBC (Livingston Public Broadcasting Committee). Parks and recreationThere are numerous parks in Livingston. The parks are integrated with recreational and municipal sport facilities including two swimming pools, eight baseball diamonds, three basket ball courts, ten tennis courts, and a fishing/ice skating pond. Livingston school district also permits usages of school fields including lacrosse, soccer, and football fields for local teams after school hours. Other sport facilities for Livingston residents include mixed-used municipal athlete fields on the western side of the town and Millburn Municipal Golf Course in Millburn Township.[56] Livingston has an active open space trust fund that continues to acquire more lands for preservation and recreation. Roughly about 15% of total land in Livingston is zoned to be preserved in its natural state without public access. The township is in the planning stage to build inter-connected mixed-used paths, biking and hiking trails throughout the town. Riker Hill ComplexRiker Hill Complex (also referred to as Riker Hill Park) is a 204.68-acre parkland located along the border of Livingston and Roseland, New Jersey. The complex is managed by Department of Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Affairs of Essex County. It comprises three parks, Riker Hill Art Park – a former Nike Missile control area site, Walter Kidde Dinosaur Park – a National Natural Landmark, and Becker Park which were acquired between 1969 to 1977. Although a large portion of the complex is located within Roseland, but the county designated Livingston as the host community as the Riker Hill Art Park is the only functional and publicly accessible park at the present time. The art park located atop of the hill is home of many studios in multiple disciplines of art and craft. Noted residentsBelow is a list of notable individuals who are or were at some point residents of Livingston. The list is organized by occupations and chronological order of the birth dates. Academic
Business and politics
Entertainment
Military
Literature
Sports
Others
NUMBER1EXPERT® © Homes Media Solutions™, a division of Dominion Enterprises and/or its clients. All rights reserved. All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
