Edison

Edison is a township located in Middlesex County,in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870. In 1954, the township's name was changed to honor inventor Thomas A. Edison. In the 2000 United States Census, it was the fifth most-populated municipality in New Jersey, after Newark, Jersey City, Paterson and Elizabeth. Edison has a large middle-class community with more than 75 ethnic communities. In 2006, Edison was ranked the 28th most-livable city in the United States by CNN Money magazine. The township has sister city arrangements with India and China, and is home to a number of temples serving the religious needs of the community. It has a population of 107,588, making it the sixth-most populous municipality in the state after ranking fifth in 2010. It is a bedroom community of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. The earliest residents of the area were the Lenape Native Americans, who lived in the area and travelled through it to the shore in the 17th century. In 1646, Chief Matouchin led a group of 1,200 warriors. In 1876, Thomas Edison set up his home and research laboratory in New. Jersey on the site of an unsuccessful real estate development called "Menlo Park", (currently located in Edison State Park) While there he earned the nickname "the Wizard of Menlo Park".

History

Edison Township is a New Jersey municipality. It was named after Thomas A. Edison, the inventor of the phonograph and the incandescent light bulb. Edison has been one of the fastest-growing municipalities in New Jersey. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, it was the fifth most-populated municipality in the state, after the cities of Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, and Elizabeth. Edison is primarily a middle-class community with more than 75 ethnic communities represented. It has a large Jewish community next to Highland Park, with multiple synagogues located in Edison. Edison also has a growing Indian community and a number of temples serving the religious needs of the community. In the 2006 survey of America's Safest Cities, the township was ranked 23rd, out of 371 cities included nationwide, in the 13th annual Quitno survey. In 2009, Edison was ranked as one of "America's 10 Best Places to Grow Up" by Morgan Morgan & World Report. In 2014, Edison ranked as the safest city in America, with low crime, strong schools, green spaces, and abundance of recreational activities. The community was previously known as "Raritan Township", not to be confused with the current-day Raritan County in Hunterdon County. The earliest residents of the area were the Raritans of the Lenape Native Americans, who lived in the area and travelled through it to the shore. In 1646, Chief Matouchin led a group of 1,200 warriors. The Laing House of Plainfield Plantation (listed on the National Register in 1988), the Benjamin Shotwell House (listed 1987) and the Homestead Farm at Oak Ridge (liste 1995), are buildings from the colonial era included in National Register of Historic Places listings.

Geography

Edison is on the east side of Raritan Valley (a line of communities in central New Jersey), along with Plainfield. It completely surrounds the borough of Metuchen, New Jersey, making it part of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state. Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Bonhamtown, Camp Kilmer, Centerville, Clara Barton, Haven Homes, Lahiere, Lincoln Park, Lindenau, Martins Landing, Menlo Park, Millville, New Dover, New Durham, Nixon, North Edison, Oak Tree, Phoenix, Potters, Pumptown and Washington Park. The township is about halfway between Midtown Manhattan, and New Jersey's capitol, Trenton, being about 27 miles from both cities. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Edison has a Humid Subtropical climate (Cfa) with abundant rainfall throughout the year although the late summer months tend to have more rain. Summers tend to be hot and humid with a lot of rain and Winters tend tobe cool to cold with snow being an annual occurrence with snow falling multiple times every winter. The highest point in the township is on Grandview Avenue, which reaches a maximum elevation of about 220 feet. The lowest elevation in the Township is on sea level on the Raritans River. The Robinsons Branch of the Rahway River flows through Edison en route to the Robinson's Branch Reservoir.

Demographics

Edison hosts one of the region's main centers of Asian American cultural diversity. The growing Little India is a South Asian-focused commercial strip in Middlesex County, the U.S. county with the highest concentration of Asian Indians. As part of the 2010 Census, 28.3% of Edison residents identified themselves as being Indian American. Edison has the highest percentage of Indian-American people of any municipality in the United States with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry. The median household income was $86,725 (with a margin of error of +/ $3,000) in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars. The per capita income for the township was $36,464 (+/ $1,184). About 3.5% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.6% of those under age 18 and 6.3%) in the 2000 United States census. The racial makeup of the township is 29.27% Asian, 6.89% Native American, 2.02% Pacific Islander, and 2.37% of Hispanic or Latino of any race. In the 2000 Census, 17.75 per cent of Edison's residents identified their ancestry as Indian American, the highest in the country. The 2010 United States Census counted 99,967 people, 34,972 households, and 26,509 families in the township. The population density was 3,339.0 per square mile (1,289.2/km²).

Economy

A number of production facilities in and around the area, included Edison Assembly, Ford Motor Company's production plant for Rangers, Mustangs, Pintos, Mercurys, and Lincolns. The Ford plant was demolished by 2008 and was replaced by Sam's Club, Topgolf and Starbucks. The U.S. headquarters of the international company Zylog Systems is located in Edison, as is the headquarters of e-commerce companies Boxed and Bare Necessities. Other companies include the Italian food producer and importer Colavita, an Amazon fulfillment center, as well as the regional hubs for FedEx, UPS, and Newegg. In addition Edison is home to the state's largest private convention center, the New Jersey Convention and Exposition Center, located within the Raritan Center Business Park. Raritans Center itself is the largest industrial park on the east side of the Mississippi River. The New Jersey State Fair is held every year in the town of Edison, which is located on the shore of the Hackensack River. It is one of the largest state fairs in the United States, with more than 100,000 attendees each year. It also hosts the annual New Jersey International Auto Show, the largest auto show in the world. It was founded by Ford in 1903 and is the world's second-largest auto show after the Indianapolis Motor Show. The state fair runs until the end of September each year, with the exception of September, when it is shut down for the winter.

Sports

Plainfield Country Club is a private country club that has hosted the 1987 U.S. Women's Open and The Barclays golf tournament. The Barclays is the first PGA Tour FedEx Cup playoff event, in both 2011 and 2015. The club is located near the town of Plainfield, New Jersey. It is home to the Plainfield Golf Club and Country Club, which was founded in 1881. The country club is also home to a number of other golf courses, such as the Country Club at Plainfield and The Country Club in Plainfield Township, North Carolina. It has a membership of about 1,000 people, including many professional golfers. The golf course is located on a golf course that was built in the early 20th century. It was named after the founder of the country club, William Plainfield. The course was also the site of the American Open golf tournament in 1883 and 1884. It also hosted the U.N. Open in 1887 and the Women's Championship in 1891 and 1894. It hosted The Barclays tournament in 2011 and 2013, the first FedEx Cup playoffs event, as well as The Masters tournament in 2013 and 2014, and The Masters again in 2014 and 2015, and the PGA Championship in 2014. It's located on the banks of the New Jersey Turnpike, which runs through the city's downtown area. The town has a population of about 2,000. The Country club is near Plainfield Town, which is located in the north of New Jersey and north of the town's suburbs.

Parks

Roosevelt Park, located between Parsonage Road and Route 1, west of the Mall, covers 196 acres (79 ha), including the 8-acre (3.2 ha) Roosevelt Park Lake. The park was established in 1917, making it the oldest county park in Middlesex County. Edison State Park and Dismal Swamp are also located in the township. Oak Tree Pond is the site of the Battle of Short Hills, a minor battle of the American Revolutionary War and whose conversion into a park ended a real estate development controversy. The township is home to the New Jersey State Museum, which opened in 1903. The New Jersey Turnpike, which runs from New Jersey to New Jersey, was built in the early 1900s. It was named after the town's first postmaster, who was killed in the First World War. The town's name is derived from the town of Roosevelt, which was once known as Roosevelt Township, and is now the name of a town in New Jersey. It is also known as the Township of Oak Tree, after the location of the battle of short Hills, which took place in the 17th century. The name Oak Tree is also used to refer to a small pond in the area, which is now part of Roosevelt Park, and to a lake in Roosevelt Park. The Town of Roosevelt is also home to a number of other parks, including Edison State Park, Dismal swamp, and Oak Tree Lake. In the township, there are also several golf courses, including Roosevelt Park Golf Course and Roosevelt Lake.

Government

Edison Township operates under the Mayor-Council form of government. As of 2022, the Mayor of Edison is Democrat Samip "Sam" Joshi, whose term of office ends December 31, 2025. Members of the Township Council are elected at-large in partisan elections held as part of the November general election to four-year terms of office on a staggered basis. The Township Council selected Joseph Coyle from a list of three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the seat expiring in December 2019 that had been held by Robert Karabinchak, until he stepped down from office to take a vacant seat in the New Jersey General Assembly. Edison is located in the 6th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 18th state legislative district. Prior to the 2010 state Census, Edison had been split between 6th and 7th congressional districts. The town is served by the full-time Edison Division of Police, led by Chief Thomas Bryan and employing 168 officers as of 2012. The Edison Police Department is striving to overcome a history of widespread officer misconduct. The township is one of 71 municipalities (of the 564) statewide governed under this form. The first (and to-date, only) female mayor of Edison was Antonia "Toni" Ricigliano, who took office January 1, 2010, and is the only person to have served as mayor in the township's history. The current mayor is Democrat Jun Choi, who was sworn in as the youngest Mayor in Edison history at age 34.

Education

The Edison Township Public Schools serve students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. The district's two high schools separate the south and north ends of Edison. As of the 2017-2018 school year, the district, comprised of 19 schools, had an enrollment of 16,203 students and 1,029.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a studentteacher ratio of 15.7:1. The community is also served by the Greater Brunswick Charter School, a K8 charter school serving students from Edison, Highland Park, Milltown and New Brunswick. About 160 students, 40 per grade from around the county attend the Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Technologies, an engineering-based high school. The high school is covered by tax dollars and so there is no additional cost for all Middlesex County residents, but admission is based on a test, past grades, and other academic and extracurricular activities. According to U.S. News & World Report in 2016, J.P. Stevens ranked 41st within New Jersey and 905th nationally, while Edison H.S., ranked 59th and 2,015th. In 1998, the Huaxia Chinese Middle School, which teaches Chinese, was established in Edison, after Thomas Jefferson Middle School in Jefferson, which was subsequently established in Thomas Jefferson, Jefferson, and Our Lady of Peace Middle School. The school was founded in 1882, and later became the Thomas Jefferson Chinese School.

Infrastructure

As of May 2010, the township had a total of 307.05 miles (494.15 km) of roadways. Interstate 287 passes through Edison, where it houses its southern end at I-95. The municipality also houses about a 5-mile (8.0 km) section of the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 95). Exit 10 is located in Edison, featuring a 13-lane toll gate and a unique interchange design. Edison was one of the first communities to have a red light camera enforcement system. The program was ended by the state in December 2014, despite a more than 30% drop in accidents at the three camera-controlled intersections in the township. The township is served by area codes 732 and 848 and Area Code 848. Edison has five Verizon Central offices serving the Rahway, Metuchen, Iselin and Plainfield areas. It is also served by the Raritan Valley Regional EMS, which consists of approximately 50 volunteer EMTs. The Edison area code is an overlay of an area code that was created so that a split area code was not needed. It was created to better provide residents of Edison with more comprehensive care. The area code for the Edison area is 732, 848, and 908, which is serving the north and south sides of the town. It also serves the east and west sides of Plainfield on both sides of Inman Avenue heading north into the Metropark area. Edison is located near New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Trenton, New Jersey.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Edison, Middlesex County, New Jersey = 26.8. 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 20. 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 Edison = 3.9 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 1,397 individuals with a median age of 38.5 age the population grows by 2.79% in Edison, Middlesex County, New Jersey population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,578.2 residents per square mile of area (1,381.6/km²). There are average 2.73 people per household in the 36,006 households with an average household income of $85,752 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 7.30% of the available work force and has dropped -3.55% 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 24.20%. The number of physicians in Edison per 100,000 population = 254.3.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Edison = 48.2 inches and the annual snowfall = 27.5 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 122. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 206. 85 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 21 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 47, 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 Edison, Middlesex County, New Jersey which are owned by the occupant = 62.44%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 35 years with median home cost = $803,980 and home appreciation of -19.90%. 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 $23.65 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 $8,363 per student. There are 13.1 students for each teacher in the school, 851 students for each Librarian and 593 students for each Counselor. 5.75% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 25.03% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 17.19% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).