Fort Lee

As of the 2010 U.S. census, the borough's population was 35,345, reflecting a decline of 116 (0.3%) from the 35,461 counted in the 2000 census. Along with other communities in Bergen County, it is one of the largest and fastest-growing ethnic Korean enclaves outside of Korea. Fort Lee is named for the site of an American Revolutionary War military encampment. At the turn of the 20th century it became the birthplace of the American film industry. In 1931 the borough became the western terminus of the George Washington Bridge, which crosses the Hudson River and connects to the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The borough is situated atop the escarpment of the Hudson Palisades on the peninsula between the Hackensack and Hudson rivers. It is bisected by the confluence of roads at GWB Plaza leading to theGeorge Washington Bridge. Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include Coytesville, Linwood, Palisade and Taylorville. It was during Washington's retreat in November 1776 that Thomas Paine composed his pamphlet, The American Crisis, which began with the recognized phrase, "These are the times that try men's souls" Fort Lee was formed by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 29, 1904, from the remaining portions of Ridgefield Township. With the creation of Fort Lee, ridgefield Township became defunct and was dissolved as of March 29, 1904, and originally consisted of six marshals.

Geography

The borough is situated atop the escarpment of the Hudson Palisades on the peninsula between the Hackensack and Hudson rivers. The borough is bisected by the confluence of roads at GWB Plaza leading to the George Washington Bridge. Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include Coytesville, Linwood, Palisade and Taylorville. Given its evolving cosmopolitan ambiance and adjacent proximity to Manhattan, Fort Lee is one of Northern New Jersey's Hudson Waterfront communities that has been called New York City's Sixth Borough, as well as the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates the borough had a total area of 2.87 square miles (7.44 km²), including 2.52square miles (6.52 km²) of land and 0.35 square miles of water (12.33%). The borough borders Cliffside Park, Edgewater, Englewood, Engalwood Cliffs, Leonia, Pal isades Park, Ridgefield in Bergen County; and the Washington heights neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York city. It has a population of 1,816,000 (as of the 2010 Census) and a population density of 2,788 (as calculated by the Census Bureau) per square mile (7,44km²) per year. It is located on the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey, and is part of the New Jersey Bay Area.

History

Fort Lee was named for General Charles Lee after George Washington and his troops had camped at Mount Constitution overlooking Burdett's Landing, in defense of New York City. The industry got its start at the end of the 19th century with the construction of Thomas Edison's "Black Maria", the first motion picture studio, in West Orange, New Jersey. In the 1910s and 1920s, film companies such as Independent Moving Pictures Company, The Solax Company, Éclair Studios, Goldwyn Picture Corporation, American Méliès (Star Films), Biograph Studios, Fox Film Corporation, Pathé Frères, Metro Pictures Corporation, Victor Film Company, and Selznick Pictures Corporation were all making pictures in Fort Lee. In 1957, market researcher James Vicary claimed that quickly flashing messages on the screen had influenced people to purchase more food and drink. In 1962, Vicary admitted to lying about the results of the test. The Fort Lee Film Commission has been charged with celebrating the history of film in FortLee, as well as attracting film and television production companies. The Barrymore Film Center promotes films, film making and its history in the borough. Local film is being promoted, especially because of NJ Tax Credit Programs for Film and Television. The film industry in New Jersey remains an important industry, especially since the advent of television and film in the 1980s and 1990s. It is now the oldest existing company in Hollywood, now called the Hollywood Digital Laboratory, and is located in California.

Demographics

Fort Lee is a borough of Bergen County, New Jersey. It is home to a large Korean population. The Korean population has led to the decline of many other immigrant communities once centered in Fort Lee. A sizable Russian immigrant community has also sprung up in recent years. In March 2011 about 2,500 Japanese-Americans were living in Edgewater and Fort Lee, the largest concentration of Japanese- Americans in New Jersey, the most from any ZIP code. There were 1,119 Fort Lee residents who filed claims to recover lost money from the Madoff investment scandal. In 2010, there were 35,345 people, 16,371 households, and 9,364 families in the borough. The per capita Korean American population of Ber gen county, 6.3% by the 2020 U.S. census, is the highest of any county in the United States. There are 56,773 Korean Americans (increasing to 63,247 by the 2011 American Community Survey) living in the county. Along with Koreatowns in New York City and Long Island, the Bergen county Koreatown's serve as the nexus for an overall Korean population of 218,764 individuals in the Greater New York Combined Statistical Area, the second largest population of ethnic Koreans outside of Korea. The population of Palisades Park is 52% of the population, enumerating 10,115 residents of Korean ancestry; while Fort Lee has nearly as many Koreans by absolute numbers, at 8,318, representing 23.5% of its 2010 population.

Economy

Companies based in Fort Lee include Bank of New Jersey, the American Bank Note Company and Cross River Bank. The city is home to the New Jersey State Bank and Trust Company, which was founded in 1881. Fort Lee is also home to New Jersey's oldest bank, the First National Bank of Fort Lee. The town is also the site of one of the oldest banks in the United States, dating back to 18th-century New Jersey. It is located on the shore of the N.J. Turnpike, which runs through Fort Lee, New Jersey and into New Jersey Bay, New York City, and the Delaware River, which also runs through the city. It was the birthplace of U.S. President George H.W. Bush, who was born and raised in the town in 1841. The Fort Lee area was once known as the "birthplace of the American banking system" and is now known as "the birthplace of the modern banking industry" and "the heart of the state's financial industry" The city's economy is based on the banking industry, which began in the early 19th century and is still based in the city's downtown area. It has a population of 1.5 million. It also has a history of being a center for business and finance. The state's first bank, First National, was established in 1851. It opened its doors in 1883. It became the first bank in New Jersey in 1882. It later became the largest bank in the state, followed by American Banknote Company in 1894.

Arts and culture

Since the mid-1980s, Fort Lee Koreatown has become a Korean dining destination. The Hudson Shakespeare Company has brought their Shakespeare in the Park touring shows to Fort Lee in "Shakespeare Tuesdays" Korean cafés have become a major cultural element within Fort Lee's Koreatown, not only for the coffee, bingsu (shaved ice), and pastries, but also as communal gathering places. Korean food has been described by local food writers as being better than in Koretown, Manhattan. Korean Chinese cuisine is now also available in Koreatown. The Fort Lee Museum is located at 1588 Palisade Avenue, next to the Fort Lee museum. The museum is open seven days a week from 9am to 5pm, with the exception of Monday and Tuesday, when the museum is closed for maintenance. It is located on the second floor of Monument Park (1588 Pal isade Avenue) with a view of the Hudson River.

Government

Fort Lee is located in the 5th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 37th state legislative district. The Borough form of government used by Fort Lee is a "weak mayor / strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. Bergen County is governed by a directly elected County Executive, with legislative functions performed by a Board of County Commissioners. As of March 23, 2011, there were a total of 18,382 registered voters in Fort Lee, of which 741 were Democrats, 31% vs. 31% of countywide. Among those ages 18 and over, 52% (vs. 57% of those ages over) were registered to vote in the borough's 2010 Census. There were 52,037 registered voters registered to other parties, including 8,637 registered as Republicans and 8,350 registered as Unaffiliated. The borough's mayor is Democrat Mark Sokolich, whose term of office ends December 31, 2023. New Jersey is represented in the U.S. Senate by Democrats Cory Booker (Newark, term ends 2027) and Bob Menendez (Harrison, term end 2025). For the 2022-2023 session, the 37th Legislative District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented by Gordon M. Johnson (D, Englewood) and in the General Assembly by Shama Haider (D) and Ellen Park (D), all of whom serve three-year terms.

Emergency services and public safety

The Fort Lee Volunteer Ambulance Corps provides emergency medical services to the Borough of Fort Lee, the George Washington Bridge, and the Palisades Interstate Parkway. The Fort Lee Fire Department operates a fire apparatus fleet of six engines (including spares), two ladders, one heavy rescue, one squad (light rescue), two support services units, a mobile air cascade unit, four command vehicles(battalion and deputy chiefs), and six fire prevention units. The borough council created the Fort Lee Police Department in 1904, although it was not until 1927 that the council authorized the appointment of a full-time paid police chief. As of 2019, the police department had about 100 members. With approximately 50 active members, the corps operates 24 hours a day on weekends and from 7 PM to 6 AM on weekdays. The corps is a member agency of the East Bergen Ambulances Association (EBAA) with a standing mutual aid agreement with surrounding East Bergan boroughs. The agency plans to purchase a second ambulance sometime in 2013. The fire department's volunteer fire companies respond to, on average, approximately 1,800 emergency calls annually. In 2011, the agency purchased a new state-of-the-art ambulance, designated FLA-1, in order to begin retiring some of its aging ambulances. It responds to approximately 3,400 emergency medical calls annually and has a fleet of four medium-duty ambulances, one first responder vehicle, and two command vehicles from its headquarters.

Education

The Fort Lee School District serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. As of the 2018-2019 school year, the district, comprised of six schools, had an enrollment of 4,103 students and 301.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a studentteacher ratio of 13.6:1. School #3 was awarded the National Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education in 2010. The Japanese Weekend School of New Jersey holds its classes at Paramus Catholic High School in Paramus while its offices are in Fort Lee. The school is one of the two weekend Japanese school systems operated by the Japanese Educational Institute of New York (JEI; Nyyku Nihonjin Kyiku Shingi Kai), a nonprofit organization which also operates two Japanese day schools in the New York City area. Public school students from the borough, and all of Bergen County, are eligible to attend the secondary education programs offered by the Ber gen County Technical Schools. In 1987 there were two juku (Japanese-style cram schools) in FortLee. One of the Fort Lee schools, Hinoki School, had 130 students. There were additionally two institutions trying to open juku in Fortlee. The district offers programs on a shared-time or full-time basis, with admission based on a selective application process and tuition covered by the student's home school district. It is also home to Christ the Teacher Interparochial School, a Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark school.

Transportation

Fort Lee is served by the Palisades Interstate Parkway, Route 4, Route 5, Route 67, Interstate 95 (the northern terminus of the New Jersey Turnpike), and U.S. Route 9W. The George Washington Bridge (signed as I-95/US 1-9/US 46), the world's busiest motor vehicle bridge, crosses the Hudson River from Fort Lee to the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan. As of 2016 two Taiwanese airlines, China Airlines and EVA Air, provide private bus services to and from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City for customers based in New Jersey. OurBus offers intercity bus service from the George Washington bridge bus stop to various locations such as Rochester and Buffalo, New York. The Fort Lee Parking Authority issues and controls parking passes, meter fees, and provides shuttles and non-emergency transportation. The borough has a total of 51.12 miles (82.27 km) of roadways, of which 35.44 miles (57.04 km) were maintained by the municipality, 6.20 miles (9.98 km) by Bergen County and 6.22 miles (10.01km) by New Jersey Department of Transportation. The town has a population of 3,816 (as of May 2010). The borough is located in the northern part of New Jersey's Hudson River Valley and is located on the eastern edge of the Passaic River Valley. It is the only borough in the state to have its own airport.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Fort Lee, Bergen County, New Jersey = 15.3. 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 40. 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 Fort Lee = 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 40,191 individuals with a median age of 44.7 age the population grows by 2.85% in Fort Lee, Bergen County, New Jersey population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 15,961.5 residents per square mile of area (6,162.8/km²). There are average 2.16 people per household in the 16,845 households with an average household income of $66,842 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 5.80% 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 25.00%. The number of physicians in Fort Lee per 100,000 population = 440.7.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Fort Lee = 44.3 inches and the annual snowfall = 26.6 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 120. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 208. 84 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 25.5 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 Fort Lee, Bergen County, New Jersey which are owned by the occupant = 51.94%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 39 years with median home cost = $442,330 and home appreciation of -15.70%. 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 $21.97 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 $8,422 per student. There are 13.9 students for each teacher in the school, 494 students for each Librarian and 346 students for each Counselor. 5.44% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 29.81% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 18.50% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).