Kearny

As of the 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 40,684, reflecting an increase of 171 (+0.4%) from the 40,513 counted in the 2000 Census. Kearny is named after Civil War general Philip Kearny. It began as a township formed by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 8, 1867, from portions of Harrison Township. Portions of the township were taken on July 3, 1895, to form East Newark. The Arlington section of town was named for Arlington Station on the Erie Railroad at the Arlington Mill plant, owned by Arlington Mills of Lawrence, Massachusetts. The town's nickname, "Soccer Town," is derived from a soccer tradition that originated in the mid-1870s, when thousands of Scottish and Irish immigrants settled in the town. The first official seat of Government was three rooms in the old Lodi Hotel, on the northeast corner of Schuyler and Harrison Avenues. In the early 1870s, Kearny erected its first Town Hall on the corner of Knox Presbyterian Church and Woodland Avenues, the present site of the Town Hall. This, along with a Town Hall and Schoolhouse, served as the first step toward establishing Kearny's present public school system. The Highland Hose No. 4 firehouse, built in 1895, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and served as a Court House, Parish House, and Town Hall until the 1970s. It was built on the site of what is now known as the Kearny High School.

History

Kearny was part of the original Crown Grant of 30,000 acres (120 km²) obtained by Major William Sandford of Barbados on July 4, 1668. The first official seat of Government was three rooms in the old Lodi Hotel, on the northeast corner of Schuyler and Harrison Avenues. The town's nickname, "Soccer Town, U.S.A." is derived from a soccer tradition that originated in the mid-1870s, when thousands of Scottish and Irish immigrants settled in the town, after two Scottish companies, Clark Thread Company and Nairn Linoleum, opened two local mills and a factory. In 1883, the Marshall Spinning Company erected a large plant in Kearny known as the Linen Threaden Company. Many are buried at Arlington Memorial Park in the Kearny Uplands, the Mile End Mile, and the New Jersey Turnpike. The present Kearny Town Hall, built of Indiana limestone, was erected in 1909. In the early 1870s, Kearny erected its first Town Hall on the corner of Kearny and Woodland Avenues, the present site of the Knox Presbyterian Church Parish Hall. The Mansion stood until 1924, a period of 214 years, when it was torn-down by a land development company, despite the company's offers to transfer the land to an organization that would be able to pay to maintain the property. On April 8, 1867, the first election of town officers was held. General N. M. Halsted was elected Chairman.

Geography

The town is bordered by East Newark, Harrison, Lyndhurst, North Arlington (both located in Bergen County) and Secaucus. The Passaic River separates the town from Newark and Belleville, both located in Essex County. The Hackensack River separates it from Jersey City. Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the town include Arlington, New Jersey, Schuylers Corner and West Arlington. The largest park is West Hudson Park, shared with Harrison, which contains a variety of sports fields, recreational areas, and an artificial pond. The second largest recreational zone is the Kearny Playground at Gunnel Oval. The town is roughly divided into three parts: The Kearny Uplands, the KearNY Meadows and South Kearny. Main thoroughfares include the eponymous Kearny Avenue (the local segment of Ridge Road / Frank E. Rodgers Boulevard), Bergen Avenue, Midland Avenue, Schuyler Avenue and Passaic Avenue. A number of small parks running along the Passaic river are collectively called Riverbank Park. The biggest park is located on the colloquial "Bunnyland Hill", is a gift from Kearny's veterans. It is named after a small zoo named Bunnyland, which was maintained by the local Kiwanis Club, that occupied part of the present Bunnyland Hill in the 20th century. During KearNY's Fourth of July celebrations (which include a fireworks display), bunnyland Hill is the primary gathering spot for celebrants and observers.

Demographics

As of the 2000 United States Census there were 40,513 people, 13,539 households, and 9,802 families residing in the town. The racial makeup of the town was 75.75% White, 3.97% African American, 5.50% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 10.04% from other races, and 4.31% from two or more races. The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $58,698 (with a margin of error of ±$3,838) and the median family incomewas $66,272 (± $3,803) The per capita income for the borough was $24,977 (±$1,022). About 7.6% of families and 10.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.2% of those under age 18 and 8.1% ofThose age 65 or over. The town has a population of 40,684, with 14,180 housing units, and a population density of 4,636.5 per square mile (1,790.2/km²) The 2010 U.S. census counted 40,000 people, with 13,462 households. The average household size was 2.83 and the average family size was 3.28. The median age was 36.4 years. For every 100 females, the population had 106.0 males, and for every 100 Females ages 18 and older there were 105.7 males.

Economy

Portions of Kearny are part of an Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ), one of 32 zones covering 37 municipalities statewide. Shoppers can take advantage of a reduced 3.3125% sales tax rate (half of the 6+58% rate charged statewide) at eligible merchants. Kearny was selected in 1983 as one of the initial group of 10 zones chosen to participate in the program. Since its inception, there has been $27 million in tax revenue that has been invested based on revenue from the Urban Enterprise zone. The town's Urban Enterprisezone status expires in November 2023. The UEZ was established in November 1992, and Kearny has been a part of the program since its inception. It is one of 37 zones in New Jersey that are considered Urban Enterprise Zones (UZs) to encourage employment and investment within the Zone.

Government

Kearny is governed under the Town form of New Jersey municipal government. It is one of nine municipalities (of the 565) statewide that use this form of government. The governing body is comprised of the Mayor and Town Council, who are elected on a partisan basis as part of the November general election. The Mayor and Council operate on a legislative basis, with the Mayor having veto power. The town is protected by the Kearny Fire Department, which operates out of four fire stations. For the 117th United States Congress, New Jersey's Eighth Congressional District is represented by Albio Sires (D, West New York) New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Democrats Cory Booker (Newark, term ends 20) and Bob Menendez (Harrison), and in the New Jersey General Assembly by Angelica M. Sacco and Pedro Mejia. Hudson County is governed by a directly elected County Executive and a Board of Chosen Freeholders, which serves as the county's legislative body. As of 2017, Hudson County's Executive is Democrat Thomas A. DeGise, whose term of office expires December 31, 2018. The current Chief of Department is Steve Dyl, who has been in the position since 2008.

Education

The Kearny School District serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. As of the 202021 school year, the district, comprised of seven schools, had an enrollment of 5,251 students and 446.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a studentteacher ratio of 11.8:1. In the face of declining enrollment, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark closed Mater Dei Academy at the conclusion of the 2011-2012 school year. The Kearny Public Library is one of New Jersey's remaining Carnegie libraries, and houses a museum on its third floor which mounts exhibitions related to the history and culture of the town. Private schools in Kearny include:Kearny Christian Academy, a Christian school founded in 1981 by the City of Hope International Church that serves students in kindergarten through twighth grade. The Little Neighborhood Learning Center is a day care center that serves pre-school through 12th grade in the Kearny area. The town has a public library that houses a collection of artifacts related to its namesake, the town's namesake, as well as other artifacts from Kearny's history. The city also has a private library that serves Pre-K-12th grade students, and a private day care that serves preschool to grade 12. The school district has seven schools: Franklin Elementary, Garfield Elementary, Schuyler Elementary, Washington Elementary, Roosevelt Elementary, and Lincoln Middle and High School. The district's high school is Kearny High School, which has 1,750 students in grades 912.

Transportation

As of May 2010, the town had a total of 70.89 miles (114.09 km) of roadways, of which 50.75 miles (81.67 km) were maintained by the municipality. Kearny Avenue passes through the town and continues north as Ridge Road, the beginning of Route 17. U.S. Route 1/9 (Pulaski Skyway) and US 1-9 Truck pass through. The closest airport with scheduled passenger service is Newark Liberty International Airport, located 6.5 miles (10.5 km) away in Newark and Elizabeth. NJ Transit offers bus service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan and to other New Jersey communities. The town is also the location of the Meadows Maintenance Complex, the primary maintenance facility for NJ Transit rail operations. New Jersey Transit discontinued Boonton Line service in 2002 when the Montclair Connection was opened. In the final years of this service a pair of rush hour trains ran in each direction between South Kearny, and the CNJ's Broad Street Station in downtown Newark. The last remaining shipper, Spar-Tech PolyCom, shut down in 2005, but freight service on the Newark side is still active. Prior to April 30, 1967, a station in South Kearney, was served by the Central Railroad of New Jersey's Newark and New York Railroad via the PD Draw over the Passaic River. This station was popular with employees of the giant Western Electric plant, and other industries in the area.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Kearny, Hudson County, New Jersey = 14.1. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 27. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 10. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Kearny = 3.7 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 41,999 individuals with a median age of 37.7 age the population dropped by -9.60% in Kearny, Hudson County, New Jersey population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 4,748.9 residents per square mile of area (1,833.6/km²). There are average 2.83 people per household in the 12,051 households with an average household income of $60,347 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 12.00% of the available work force and has dropped -4.60% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 18.80%. The number of physicians in Kearny per 100,000 population = 138.6.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Kearny = 43.4 inches and the annual snowfall = 26.8 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 121. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 222. 86 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 24.7 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 46, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Kearny, Hudson County, New Jersey which are owned by the occupant = 45.52%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 65 years with median home cost = $273,340 and home appreciation of -15.22%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $29.69 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $8,333 per student. There are 14.1 students for each teacher in the school, 687 students for each Librarian and 343 students for each Counselor. 3.89% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 10.73% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 6.62% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).