Rockaway Township, New Jersey


Rockaway Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 24,156, reflecting an increase of 1,226 from the 22,930 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 3,358 from the 19,572 counted in the 1990 Census.
Rockaway Township was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 8, 1844, from portions of Hanover Township and Pequannock Township. Portions of the township were taken to form Rockaway Borough, Port Oram and Denville Township. Portions of the township were annexed to Boonton Township in 1906 and to Rockaway Borough in 1908.
The township shares its name with the Rockaway River and the neighboring borough. The name is derived from a Native American term, variously said to mean "place of sands", "creek between two hills" or "bushy" / "difficult to cross".
A large part of the township consists of Picatinny Arsenal, a United States Army base that covers nearly of the township, used mainly for the development of new weapons technologies, especially concerning anti-terrorism.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 45.546 square miles, including 41.403 square miles of land and 4.143 square miles of water.
Rockaway Township and its sister community, Rockaway Borough, and the area around the two municipalities are home to some scenic areas. These areas include lakes, rivers, and expansive ranges of mountains, covered with trees and wildlife and hiking trails, including Farny State Park, Wildcat Ridge WMA, Mount Hope Historical Park and Splitrock Reservoir.
Portions of the township are owned by the City of Newark, Essex County, for their Pequannock River Watershed, which provides water to the city from an area of that also includes portions of Hardyston Township, Jefferson Township, Kinnelon, Vernon Township and West Milford. Newark's Pequannock Watershed is administered by the Newark Watershed Conservation and Development Corporation. The river keeper for the Pequannock River is the Pequannock River Coalition.
Two sites on the National Register of Historic Places can be found in Rockaway Township. Split Rock Furnace is a Civil War era iron ore furnace which is still intact. The Ford-Faesch Manor House, is a 1768 stone mansion that figured prominently during the Revolutionary War and in the 250-year history of Morris County iron industry.
Lake Telemark and White Meadow Lake are unincorporated communities and census-designated places located within Rockaway Township.
Other unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Beach Glen, Deer Pond, Denmark, Bowlbyville, Durham Pond, Foxs Pond, Green Pond, Hibernia, Hickory Hill, Hilltown, Lyonsville, Marcella, Meriden, Middle Forge, Middletown, Mount Hope, Picatinny, Spicertown and Split Rock.
Splitrock Reservoir is of wilderness in Rockaway Township that straddles the township's border with Kinnelon. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection spent $3 million in 2015 to acquire a buffer area around the reservoir, as part of an agreement under which Jersey City retains rights to use water from the reservoir and is responsible for maintenance of the dam at the site.
Rockaway Township borders the municipalities of Boonton Township, Denville Township, Dover, Jefferson Township, Kinnelon, Randolph Township, Rockaway and Wharton in Morris County; and West Milford in Passaic County.

Demographics

Census 2010

The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that median household income was $95,530 and the median family income was $111,053. Males had a median income of $75,475 versus $52,586 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $41,757. About 0.8% of families and 1.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.1% of those under age 18 and 2.0% of those age 65 or over.

Census 2000

As of the 2000 United States Census there were 22,930 people, 8,108 households, and 6,380 families residing in the township. The population density was 535.5 people per square mile. There were 8,506 housing units at an average density of 198.7 per square mile. The racial makeup of the township was 88.86% White, 2.46% African American, 0.10% Native American, 5.65% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.60% from other races, and 1.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.28% of the population.
There were 8,108 households out of which 40.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.5% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.3% were non-families. 17.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the township the population was spread out with 27.1% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 32.9% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $80,939, and the median income for a family was $89,281. Males had a median income of $58,027 versus $40,038 for females. The per capita income for the township was $33,184. About 1.4% of families and 2.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 3.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

is a super-regional mall anchored by Macy's, Lord & Taylor, J. C. Penney, & Sears with a gross leasable area of, placing it in the top ten among the largest shopping malls in New Jersey.
Picatinny Arsenal, a military research and manufacturing facility, dates back to 1880 when it was established as the Dover Powder Depot, before being renamed just days later as the Picatinny Powder Depot. With 5,000 employees and covering, Picatinny Arsenal is the Joint Center of Excellence for Armaments and Munitions for the United States Armed Forces.

Sports

In 2011, the North Jersey Lakers began play in the Eastern Basketball Alliance, a semi-professional men's winter basketball league.

Government

Local government

Rockaway Township is governed within the Faulkner Act under the Mayor-Council system of municipal government, implemented based on the recommendations of a Charter Study Commission as of January 1, 1968. The government consists of a mayor and a nine-member council consisting of one Council member elected from each of six wards and three elected on an at-large basis. The members of the governing body are elected to four-year terms of office on a staggered basis in odd-numbered years as part of the November general election, with the six ward seats up for vote together and then the three at-large and the mayoral seat all up for vote two years later.
, the Mayor of Rockaway Township is Republican Michael Puzio, whose term of office expires December 31, 2023. Members of the Township Council are Council President Joseph Jackson, Council Vice President Jonathan Sackett, Douglas Brookes, Emanuel "Manny" Friedlander, Tucker M. Kelley, Howard Kritz, Mary Noon, John J. Quinn Jr. and Adam Salberg.
In July 2019, Republican Mary Noon was appointed to fill the Ward 1 seat expiring in December 2021 that had been held by Victor Palumbo until he resigned from office the previous month in the face of a pending recall effort. In September 2019, the Borough Council appointed Douglas Brookes to fill the Ward 3 seat expiring in December 2021 that had been held by Phyllis I. Smith until she resigned from office earlier that month; at the same meeting, the council removed Jeremy Jedynak from office due to excessive absence, after he had missed attending a string of meetings over a two-month period.
Jedynak was designated as acting mayor after the death of Mayor Michael Dachisen of a cardiac arrest in August 2018, pending the selection of an interim successor. At the appointment deadline in September 2018, Paul Minenna, a former councilmember, was selected to serve as mayor on an interim basis; the meeting had been pushed off and rescheduled for 10:30 PM after the site that had been originally designated for the special meeting was no longer available. In October 2018, a Superior Court judge ruled that all of the actions taken at the late-night meeting in September at which Minenna had been appointed were null and void as they violated the terms of the state's Open Public Meetings Act; Adam Salberg was designated by the judge to fill the mayoral vacancy on an interim basis until the November 2018 general election, when voters will select a candidate to serve the balance of Dachisen's term of office.
Michael Dachisen was selected to serve as mayor in June 2012 after Louis S. Sceusi stepped down to take a position as judge in New Jersey Superior Court, and was sworn in as mayor in July 2012. In November 2012, Dachisen won a special election to serve the balance of Sceusi's term through 2015. Jeremy Jedynak took office in June 2013, filling the at-large seat held by John DiMaria, who left office to relocate outside of the state. The term expires in 2015 and the remaining two years of the seat were up for vote in the November 2013 general election.

Federal, state, and county representation

Rockaway Township is located in the 11th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 26th state legislative district. Prior to the 2011 reapportionment following the 2010 Census, Rockaway Township had been in the 25th state legislative district.

Politics

As of March 23, 2011, there were a total of 16,022 registered voters in Rockaway Township, of which 3,861 were registered as Democrats, 5,481 were registered as Republicans and 6,668 were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 12 voters registered to other parties.
In the 2012 presidential election, Republican Mitt Romney received 52.9% of the vote, ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 45.9%, and other candidates with 1.3%, among the 12,198 ballots cast by the township's 16,865 registered voters, for a turnout of 72.3%. In the 2008 presidential election, Republican John McCain received 52.2% of the vote, ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 46.3% and other candidates with 1.0%, among the 12,958 ballots cast by the township's 16,558 registered voters, for a turnout of 78.3%. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican George W. Bush received 55.9% of the vote, outpolling Democrat John Kerry with 43.3% and other candidates with 0.5%, among the 12,411 ballots cast by the township's 16,057 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 77.3.
In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 66.7% of the vote, ahead of Democrat Barbara Buono with 31.5%, and other candidates with 1.8%, among the 7,726 ballots cast by the township's 16,708 registered voters, for a turnout of 46.2%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 55.9% of the vote, ahead of Democrat Jon Corzine with 33.8%, Independent Chris Daggett with 8.6% and other candidates with 0.6%, among the 8,681 ballots cast by the township's 16,190 registered voters, yielding a 53.6% turnout.

Education

The Rockaway Township Public Schools serves students in kindergarten through eighth grade. As of the 2012–13 school year, the district, comprising six schools, had an enrollment of 2,426 students and 226.0 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 10.731. Schools in the district are
Birchwood Elementary School with 300 students in grades K-5,
Catherine A. Dwyer Elementary School with 305 students in grades K-5,
Katherine D. Malone Elementary School with 250 students in grades K-5,
Dennis B. O'Brien Elementary School with 336 students in grades PreK-5,
Stony Brook Elementary School with 305 students in grades K-5 and
Copeland Middle School with 305 students in grades 6-8.
Public school students in ninth through twelfth grades attend either Morris Hills High School or Morris Knolls High School. Morris Hills also serves students from Wharton and some from Rockaway Borough ; Morris Knolls serves all students from Denville and portions of Rockaway Borough. As of the 2017–18 school year, Morris Hills High School had an enrollment of 1,300 students and 120.4 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1 and Morris Knolls High School had an enrollment of 1,494 students and 130.6 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 11.4:1. The Academy for Mathematics, Science, and Engineering, a magnet high school program that is part of the Morris County Vocational School District is jointly operated on the Morris Hills campus. The two high schools are part of the Morris Hills Regional High School District.

Transportation

Roads and highways

, the township had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Morris County and by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
Interstate 80 passes through the township, including exits 35 and 37. U.S. Route 46 cuts through the southernmost area of the township, while Route 15 clips the southwestern portion of the township. County Route 513 traverses a total of north-south across the township.

Public transportation

NJ Transit train service does not stop in the township, but is accessible at the Denville station on both the Morristown Line and the Montclair-Boonton Line.
NJ Transit bus service is provided on the 880 local route, which replaced service that had been provided up to 2010 on the MCM10 route.
NJ Transit eliminated service on the MCM5 and MCM7 routes as part of budget cuts.
Lakeland Bus Lines offers bus service from the Rockaway Townsquare Mall to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.

Fire department

There are five companies of the Rockaway Township Fire Department. Each company is all-volunteer and provides emergency medical services in addition to fire protection. The five stations are:
People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Rockaway Township include: