Westfield, New Jersey
Westfield is a town in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located 16 miles (26 km) southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 31,032,[10][11] an increase of 716 (+2.4%) from the 2010 census count of 30,316,[19][20] which in turn reflected an increase of 672 (+2.3%) from the 29,644 counted in the 2000 census.[21]
Westfield, New Jersey
January 27, 1794
February 21, 1798 (as township)
March 4, 1903 (as town)
Town Council
James H. Gildea[5]
Maureen Lawshe[6]
6.74 sq mi (17.46 km2)
6.72 sq mi (17.42 km2)
0.02 sq mi (0.05 km2) 0.28%
246th of 565 in state
5th of 21 in county[1]
118 ft (36 m)
31,032
30,539
77th of 565 in state
5th of 21 in county[13]
4,615.1/sq mi (1,781.9/km2)
126th of 565 in state
12th of 21 in county[13]
In March 2018, Bloomberg ranked Westfield as the 99th highest-income place in the United States, and the 18th highest-income location in New Jersey.[22] According to a 2014 nationwide survey, Westfield was ranked as the 30th-safest city to live in the United States.[23]
The town has been one of the state's highest-income communities. Based on data from the American Community Survey for 2013–2017, Westfield residents had a median household income of $159,923, ranked 8th in the state among municipalities with more than 10,000 residents, more than double the statewide median of $76,475.[24]
Geography[edit]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town had a total area of 6.74 square miles (17.46 km2), including 6.72 square miles (17.42 km2) of land and 0.02 square miles (0.05 km2) of water (0.28%).[1][2]
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Germantown and Tamaques Reservation Mill.[30]
Six municipalities border the town of Westfield: Mountainside to the north, Springfield Township to the northeast, Garwood and Cranford to the east, Clark to the southeast, and Scotch Plains to the west and southwest.[31][32][33]
The upper reaches of the Rahway River Parkway run through the township along tributaries of the Rahway River.[34]
The Robinson's Branch of the Rahway River additionally flows through the southern portion of Westfield en route to the Robinson's Branch Reservoir, also known as the Clark Reservoir.
It is located about one hour from Manhattan.
Community[edit]
Library[edit]
The Westfield Memorial Library was founded in 1873 as the "Every Saturday Book Club" and has evolved over the past century into the Westfield Memorial Library of today. The Library is located in a large, modern, Williamsburg-style building at 550 East Broad Street. The library's collection consists of over 250,000 books, two dozen public computers, a wide array of multimedia options, a large youth services area with a vivid mural depicting Westfield history, and multiple tables and carrels for studying. The library offers classes for adults and children, storytimes for children, and computer instruction.[35]
Parks in the town include:[44]
Government[edit]
Local government[edit]
Westfield is governed under a special charter granted by an act of the New Jersey Legislature. The town is one of 11 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that operate under special charters.[60][61] The governing body is comprised of a Mayor and an eight-member Town Council, with all positions filled in partisan elections. The Mayor is elected directly by the voters at-large to a four-year term of office. The Town Council consists of eight members, with two members elected from each of four wards. Town Council members are elected to serve four-year terms on a staggered basis, with one seat in each ward coming up for election every other year.[7] The Town Council holds meetings every two weeks where it discusses legislation under consideration, and which are open to the public.
As of 2023, the Mayor of Westfield is Democrat Michelle W. "Shelley" Brindle, whose term of office ends on December 31, 2025.[62] Members of the Westfield Town Council are David M. Contract (Ward 3; D, 2025), Michael J. Dardia (Ward 2; D, 2025), Linda S. Habgood (Ward 1; D, 2025), Scott A. Katz (Ward 4; D, 2023), Mark LoGrippo (Ward 3; Republican, 2023), Dawn Mackey (Ward 4; D, 2025), Mark Parmelee (Ward 2; D, 2023) and Emily Root (Ward 1; D, 2023 - elected to serve an unexpired term).[3][63][64][65][66][67]
In April 2022, the Town Council selected Emily Root from a list of three alternatives submitted by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the Ward 1 seat expiring in December 2023 that had been held by James Boyes until he resigned from office earlier that month. Root served on an interim basis until the November 2022 general election, when voters then selected her to serve the balance of the original term of office.[68]
Education[edit]
Public school students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grades attend the Westfield Public Schools.[111] As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprising 10 schools, had an enrollment of 6,304 students and 500.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.6:1.[112] The district has a central kindergarten, six neighborhood elementary schools (grades 1–5), two middle schools (grades 6–8) divided by a "North Side / South Side" boundary, and one high school (grades 9–12).[113] The schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[114]) are
Lincoln Early Childhood Center[115] (with 310 students; in grades Pre-K–K),
Franklin Elementary School[116] (580; 1–5 – North),
Jefferson Elementary School[117] (442; 1–5 – South),
McKinley Elementary School[118] (341; 1–5 – South),
Tamaques Elementary School[119] (401; 1–5 – South),
Washington Elementary School[120] (309; 1–5 – North),
Wilson Elementary School[121] (355; 1–5 – North),
Roosevelt Intermediate School[122] (777; 6–8 – North),
Thomas Alva Edison Intermediate School[123] (844; 6–8 – South) and
Westfield High School[124] (1,865; 9–12).[125][126]
For high school, public school students from Westfield and all of Union County are eligible to apply to attend the Union County Vocational Technical Schools, which include Union County Magnet High School, Union County Academy for Information Technology, Union County Academy for Allied Health Sciences, Union County Vocational Technical High School and Union County Academy for Performing Arts.[127]
Holy Trinity School is a Middle States-accredited Catholic school run by the three parishes of Holy Trinity and St. Helen's in Westfield along with Our Lady of Lourdes in Mountainside, which offers education from pre-kindergarten to 8th grade and operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark.[128][129]
Services[edit]
Residential telephone service is provided by Verizon Communications. Westfield cable television is supplied by Comcast [1], which also delivers Westfield Community Television (channel 36),[134] News 12 New Jersey (channel 62), and Scotch Plains Local Access Channel (channel 34)[135] Verizon FiOS is also offered in Westfield, which gives the option of digital cable, high-speed internet and telephone service. Power is supplied through the Public Service Electric and Gas Company. Gas is supplied by Elizabethtown Gas and water by American Water of New Jersey. Recycling is collected curbside by private haulers contracted by the Department of Public Works on a biweekly basis, while trash is collected by private haulers hired by residents.
Culture[edit]
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Metropolis of New Jersey is headquartered in Westfield.[140]
Trivia[edit]
As recently as 2017, the Broaddus family living in Westfield received letters from a supposed stalker who referred to himself as "The Watcher," causing a national sensation.[261] The Broaddus family's experience, along with the 1971 John List family murders that also occurred in Westfield, were later adapted into the 2022 Netflix series The Watcher.[262]