Clark

Clark is a township in southern Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population was 15,544 reflecting an increase of 788 (+5.07%) from the 14,756 counted in the 2010 United States census. In 1858, after the City of Rahway was incorporated, the area of present-day Clark was designated as the 5th Ward of Rahways. Clark was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 23, 1864. The township was named for Abraham Clark, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Portions of the township were taken to form Cranford Township (March 14, 1871) and Winfield Township (August 6, 1941). New Jersey Monthly magazine ranked Clark as its 33rd best place to live in its 2008 rankings of the "Best Places To Live" in New Jersey. The Robinson's Branch Reservoir is the largest body of water in Union County and bisects the township diagonally. Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Ashbrook, Florence Mills, Lenox, Madison Hill and Picton. An abandoned rail spur, the Bloodgood Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, runs through Clark. In July 2020, the Union County Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation into the Clark township police department and put the police chief and a captain on administrative leave after allegations of misconduct. In March 2022, a local newspaper revealed a recording of Mayor Sal Bonaccorso using racial slurs when talking to members of the police department.

History

The territory that would become Clark was originally a part of several early settlements. Clark was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 23, 1864, from portions of Rahway. The township was named for Abraham Clark, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Portions of the township were taken to form Cranford Township (March 14, 1871) and Winfield Township (August 6, 1941) New Jersey Monthly magazine ranked Clark as its 33rd best place to live in its 2008 rankings of the "Best Places To Live" in New Jersey. In 2013, Clark was ranked 174th in its rankings of "Best places to live" in the state. In July 2020, the Union County Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation into the Clark township police department and put the police chief and a captain on administrative leave after allegations of misconduct. In March 2022, NJ Advance Media, a local newspaper, revealed a recording of Mayor Sal Bonaccorso using racial slurs when talking to members of the police department, despite him having previously denied doing so, and also saying women police officers were "disasters". The newspaper also reported that in January 2020, Clark Township had paid Clark police lieutenant Antonio Manata $400,000 to not reveal racist and sexist comments made by the Mayor and Chief of Police and to turn over the tapes he had recorded. On April 5, Bon Accorso admitted to using "hurtful and insensitive language" and apologized. The New Jersey Office of Public Integrity and Accountability subsequently took control of the union County investigation.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 4.45 square miles (11.53 km²) The Rahway River Parkway runs through the township. The Robinson's Branch Reservoir is the largest body of water in Union County and bisects the township diagonally. The township borders Scotch Plains and Westfield on the west, Cranford and Winfield Park on the north, Linden and Rahway on the east, and Edison and Woodbridge Township in Middlesex County on the south. Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Ashbrook, Florence Mills, Lenox, Madison Hill and Picton. An abandoned rail spur, the Bloodgood Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, runs through Clark. It is located on the New Jersey Turnpike, which runs from New Jersey to New Jersey. It was once part of the Pennsylvania Railroad, but was abandoned in the early 1900s. The Pennsylvania Turnpikes were built in the late 1800s, and are now part of New Jersey's New Jersey Pennsylvania Routes 1 and 2. They connect to the New York and New York City Connecticut railroads, which run from New York to Pennsylvania. The New York Turnpike is one of the busiest railroads in the United States, carrying more than 100,000 passengers a day. It also provides a link between New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Demographics

As of the 2000 U.S. census there were 14,597 people, 5,637 households, and 4,126 families residing in the township. The racial makeup of the township was 95.61% White, 0.30% African American, 0.01% Native American, 2.75% Asian, 0,63% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.50% (1,107) of the population. The median household income was $80,959 (with a margin of error of +/ $7,674) and the median family Income was $99,839 (+/ $ 7,789) in 2010. About 2.3% of families and 3.3%. of the residents were below the poverty line. The largest ancestry groups were: French, German, English, Irish, Italian, Polish, and Slovak. The township has a population of 14,756, with 5,751 people living in 5,562 households. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.15. The population was spread out, with 20.8% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 29.6%. from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 88.8 males. In the township the median age was 43.8 years.

Government

Clark Township is governed under the Mayor-Council system of municipal government. As of 2022, the Mayor of Clark is Republican Salvatore F. "Sal" Bonaccorso, whose term of office ends December 31, 2024. The Clark Township Committee is comprised of seven members, who are all chosen on a partisan basis in even-numbered years as part of the November general election. Union County is governed by a Board of County Commissioners, whose nine members are elected at-large to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis. In the 2016 Presidential election, Donald Trump received 5,182 votes (61.7% vs 30.5% countywide) versus 2,967 for Hillary Clinton (35.3% vs 65.9% countywise). In 2020, Trump won 5,872 (60.8% vs. 31.8%) vs. 3,659 (37.9%) for Biden. In 2011, there were 10190 registered voters in Clark Township, 41.8 percent of which were registered as Democrats, 2.3 percent as Republicans and 5,036 (49.4%) as Unaffiliated. Among the township's 2010 Census population, 69.1% (vs. 70.6%) of those ages 18 and over were registered to vote. Clark is located in New Jersey's 7th Congressional District, and is part of New. Jersey's 22nd state legislative district. New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Democrats Cory Booker (Newark, term ends 2027) and Bob Menendez (Harrison, term end 2025).

Education

The Clark Public School District serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. As of the 201920 school year, the district, comprised of five schools, had an enrollment of 2,299 students and 184.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a studentteacher ratio of 12.4:1. Schools in the district (with 201920 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) areClark Preschool with 20 students in Pre-K,Frank K. Hehnly Elementary School with 551 students in grades K5, Valley Road Elementary School.Carl H. Kumpf Middle School.Arthur L. Johnson High School with 708 students ingrades 912. St. John the Apostle School School School is a co-ed K12 school, also operated under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark. Mother Seton Regional High School is an all-girls, private, Roman Catholic high school. It was dedicated as a National Blue Ribbon school in 2011.The Clark Scholarship Fund is a not-for-profit organization that has provided need-based scholarships to college-bound Clark residents since 1955, funded entirely by contributions from individuals and businesses. Students from Garwood attend the district's high school as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Garwood Public Schools. Students who excel in middle school have the opportunity to attend the Union County Magnet High School and the other programs of the Union county Vocational Technical Schools.

Transportation

As of May 2010, the township had a total of 58.95 miles (94.87 km) of roadways, of which 48.34 miles (77.80 km) were maintained by the municipality. The Lehigh Valley Railroad served Clark with a passenger station in the Picton section. The closest NJ Transit rail station is in Rahway, located approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) from the center of Clark. NJ Transit also provides bus service to New York City and points in-between. The 112 route provides service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan, as well as stops throughout downtown Elizabeth. New Jersey Turnpike Authority maintains 2.58 miles (4.15 km) on the Garden State Parkway. The Clark Circle connects Central Avenue, Brant Avenue, Valley Road, and at Exit 135 of the Parkway. Interchange 135 on the Parkway is signed for Clark / Westfield. Newark Liberty International Airport is approximately 11 miles (18 km) away from Clark. The township is located in the New Jersey Bay Area, which is home to the New York Yankees, New York Mets, and New York Knicks. The New Jersey Devils are a New Jersey-based professional football team that plays for the East Coast Conference (NJFC) and the New England Football League (NFC). The N.J. Mets play their home games at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The NJFC also has a team that competes in the Super Bowl, which takes place in New Jersey each year.

Arts and culture

The Deutscher Club of Clark was founded in 1935 and is one of the largest German clubs in the US. The Clark chapter of Unico National, known as Clark Unico, is an Italian American service organization and social club. The Polish Cultural Foundation is a nonprofit organization that hosts the Skulski Art Gallery and Polish cultural classes.The Clark Recreation Department hosts a summer concert series. It is also the home of the Clark High School Band, which has been around since the 1950s. It has been in the same building since the 1960s, when it was founded. It was the first high school band in the United States, and has been there ever since. It's also the site of a number of community events, such as the annual high school football game. It also hosts a Polish cultural group, which offers classes in the arts, music and dance. The town also has its own museum, the Clark Museum, which is open to the public. It opened in the 1970s and is located on the corner of Clark Avenue and Main Street. The museum is open through the end of the year and is open year-round. It offers a wide range of art and culture classes, as well as a museum for the public to view and learn about the history and culture of the Polish people. The city also has a library, which was founded by the Polish community in the 1930s and continues to be open. The library is also home to the Clark School of Music, which teaches classes in English and German.

Parks and recreation

The Rahway River Parkway includes Bloodgoods Pond, Jackson Pond, and the northernmost portion of Rahways River Park. The proposed Clark Reservoir Recreation Area is an area of natural land surrounding the decommissioned Robinson's Branch Reservoir, which is currently being rehabilitated for recreation. The Clark Recreation Department offers a variety of recreational opportunities in town, including the Clark Community Pool. The county-operated Oak Ridge Park is a former golf course that has been turned into a public park. It is located near St. Mary's Cemetery and is a popular destination for families traveling from New Jersey to New York City and New England. The town of Clark is home to the New Jersey Children's Museum, which offers a wide range of activities for children and their families to enjoy. It also offers a number of other outdoor activities, such as a playground, a swimming pool, and a nature center. The city also has a large number of public parks, many of which are open to the public. The most popular of these is the Clark River Park, which runs through the center of the town and includes a pond, a lake, and several other small ponds. It was named a destination park by New Jersey Family magazine in 2009. The New Jersey State Department of Parks and Recreation is responsible for many of the parks in the town, and has a program that provides grants for the development of new parks and recreation facilities. The state's parks are also responsible for much of the infrastructure in the city, including roads, bridges, and culverts.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Clark, Union County, New Jersey = 2.8. 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 13. 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 20. 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 Clark = 3.8 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 1,257 individuals with a median age of 45.3 age the population dropped by -1.80% in Clark, Union County, New Jersey population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,637.7 residents per square mile of area (1,404.5/km²). There are average 2.55 people per household in the 5,571 households with an average household income of $79,799 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 9.50% of the available work force and has dropped -3.41% 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 23.68%. The number of physicians in Clark per 100,000 population = 225.4.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Clark = 50.6 inches and the annual snowfall = 22.7 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 118. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 205. 87 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 21.2 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 Clark, Union County, New Jersey which are owned by the occupant = 79.39%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 49 years with median home cost = $375,800 and home appreciation of -2.76%. 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 $25.06 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 $8,657 per student. There are 12.5 students for each teacher in the school, 754 students for each Librarian and 457 students for each Counselor. 5.49% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 19.28% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 8.75% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).