Wood-Ridge, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wood-Ridge, New Jersey
Borough
Wood-Ridge municipal building
Seal
Location of Wood-Ridge in Bergen County highlighted in red (left). Inset map: Location of Bergen County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (right).
Census Bureau map of Wood-Ridge, New Jersey
Wood-Ridge, New Jersey Location in Bergen County, New Jersey Show map of Bergen County, New Jersey Wood-Ridge, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Wood-Ridge, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Bergen
Incorporated	December 6, 1894
Government
• Type	Borough
• Body	Borough Council
Area
• Total	1.11 sq mi (2.89 km2)
• Land	1.11 sq mi (2.88 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)  0.09%
Area rank	492nd of 565 in state 62nd of 70 in county
Elevation	167 ft (51 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	10,137
• Estimate  (2023)	10,197
• Rank	241st of 565 in state 37th of 70 in county
• Density	9,099.6/sq mi (3,513.4/km2)
• Density rank	42nd of 565 in state 13th of 70 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	07075
Area code(s)	201
FIPS code	3400382570
GNIS feature ID	0885451

Wood-Ridge is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 10,137, an increase of 2,511 (+32.9%) from the 2010 census count of 7,626, which in turn reflected a decline of 18 (-0.2%) from the 7,644 counted in the 2000 census.

Wood-Ridge was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on December 6, 1894, from portions of Bergen Township, based on the results of a referendum held the previous day. The borough was formed during the "Boroughitis" phenomenon then sweeping through Bergen County, in which 26 boroughs were formed in the county in 1894 alone.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 1.12 square miles (2.89 km²), including 1.11 square miles (2.88 km²) of land and <0.01 square miles (<0.01 km²) of water (0.09%).

The borough is bordered by the Bergen County municipalities of Hasbrouck Heights and Lodi to the north, Wallington to the west, Carlstadt to the south, and Moonachie to the east, along with South Hackensack.

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 7,626 people, 2,939 households, and 2,072 families in the borough. The population density was 6,951.6 per square mile (2,684.0/km²). There were 3,051 housing units at an average density of 2,781.2 per square mile (1,073.8/km²). The racial makeup was 87.23% (6,652) White, 1.43% (109) Black or African American, 0.21% (16) Native American, 7.13% (544) Asian, 0.01% (1) Pacific Islander, 2.32% (177) from other races, and 1.67% (127) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13.11% (1,000) of the population.

Of the 2,939 households, 30.1% had children under the age of 18; 57.6% were married couples living together; 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present and 29.5% were non-families. Of all households, 25.4% were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.16.

21.5% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 31.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.4 years. For every 100 females, the population had 93.3 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 89.3 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $90,411 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,617) and the median family income was $95,972 (+/− $7,148). Males had a median income of $64,658 (+/− $7,287) versus $46,402 (+/− $6,549) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $35,360 (+/− $2,759). About 3.9% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.

Same-sex couples headed 20 households in 2010, an increase from the 10 counted in 2000.

Education

Wood-Ridge High School in February, 2019.

Students in public school for pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade attend the schools of the Wood-Ridge School District. As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 1,282 students and 98.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.1:1. Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Catherine E. Doyle Elementary School with 396 students in Pre-K through 3rd grade, Wood-Ridge Intermediate School with 249 students in grades 4–6 and Wood-Ridge High School with 583 students in grades 7–12.

With the opening of Wood-Ridge Intermediate School in September 2013 for grades 4–6, Doyle Elementary School was realigned to serve students through third grade, while the students in grades 7 and 8 who had attended Gretta R. Ostrovsky Middle School began attending Wood-Ridge Junior / Senior High School.

For ninth through twelfth grades, students from Moonachie attend Wood-Ridge High School, as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Moonachie School District. Public school students from the borough, and all of Bergen County, are eligible to attend the secondary education programs offered by the Bergen County Technical Schools, which include the Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, and the Bergen Tech campus in Teterboro or Paramus. 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.

Our Lady of Assumption School, a Catholic school that served students in Kindergarten through 8th grade, was closed as of June 2010 by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark in the face of enrollment that had declined to 134 students in the school's final year.

Emergency services

Police

The Wood-Ridge Police Department (WRPD) provides emergency and protective services to the borough of Wood-Ridge, augmented in times of emergency by the Police Auxiliary. The WRPD consists of 24 officers, led by Chief John Korin.

Fire

The Wood-Ridge Fire Department (WRFD) is an all-volunteer fire department. The WRFD was organized in 1897 and consists of one Chief and two assistant chiefs. The department is staffed by 40 fully trained firefighters. The WRFD utilizes three fire engines, a ladder truck, and a heavy rescue vehicle.

EMS

The Wood-Ridge Emergency Squad was split off of the Wood-Ridge Fire Department and established as an independent entity in April 2021.

Transportation

Route 17 northbound in Wood-Ridge

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the borough had a total of 19.20 miles (30.90 km) of roadways, of which 16.25 miles (26.15 km) were maintained by the municipality, 2.30 miles (3.70 km) by Bergen County and 0.65 miles (1.05 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

Route 17 passes through Wood-Ridge.

Public transportation

The New Jersey Transit Wood-Ridge station, facing southbound from the lone platform

Wood-Ridge is served by NJ Transit at the Wood-Ridge train station, located at Park Place East near the intersection with Route 17. The Pascack Valley Line offers service throughout the day in both directions, with service available seven days a week, operating north–south to Hoboken Terminal with connections via the Secaucus Junction transfer station to New Jersey Transit one-stop service to New York Penn Station and to other NJ Transit rail service. Connections are available at the Hoboken Terminal to other New Jersey Transit rail lines, the PATH train at the Hoboken PATH station, New York Waterways ferry service to the World Financial Center and other destinations and Hudson-Bergen Light Rail service.

The Wesmont station provides train service on the Bergen County Line. The station was approved in 2008 to be constructed in Wood-Ridge. The station serves a new residential development and was opened to the public in May 2016, after years of delays.

Wood-Ridge is also served by several NJ Transit bus routes. The 76 bus runs from Hackensack along Terrace Avenue through Wood-Ridge to Newark Penn Station. The 144, 145, 148, 163 and 164 buses run from various New Jersey terminals such as Midland Park and Hackensack along Valley Boulevard through Wood-Ridge to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.

Notable people

The Wood-Ridge Public Library is in the Brinkerhoff House, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Wood-Ridge include:

• Emanuel Ayvas (born 1983), musician best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of symphonic rock band Emanuel and the Fear
• Alex Boniello (born 1990), actor best known for his portrayal of the Voice of Moritz in the 2015 Broadway revival of Spring Awakening
• David Brock (born 1962), Neo-Liberal political operative, author and commentator who founded the media watchdog group Media Matters for America
• Matt Brown, collegiate ice hockey left winger at Boston University
• Guy W. Calissi (1909–1980), New Jersey Superior Court judge who served as mayor of Wood-Ridge from 1947 to 1954
• Dennis Diken (born 1957), co-founder and drummer for the rock band The Smithereens
• John Delaney (born 1963), U.S. Representative from Maryland's 6th congressional district from 2013 to 2019
• Bob DeMarco (born 1938), football center who played 15 seasons in the National Football League for four teams
• Frankie Muniz (born 1985), actor and professional racer, spent most of his childhood to early teen years growing up on North Avenue and being a student within the Wood-Ridge School District
• Paul Sarlo (born 1968), State Senator and Mayor of Wood-Ridge
• Bob Sullivan (born 1968), financial journalist and author

See also

In Spanish: Wood-Ridge para niños