Brick Township, New Jersey videos and info

After hovering for years in the top five, in 2006, the township earned the title of "America's Safest City", out of 371 cities included nationwide in the 13th annual Morgan Quitno survey.^[8] Since the year 2000, Brick Township has been the safest "city" (population over 75,000) in New Jersey. In 2003 and 2004, Brick Township was ranked as the second safest city in the United States after Newton, Massachusetts.^[9] In 2005, Brick Township had dropped down to the fifth safest "city" (population over 75,000) in the United States, before it rebounded to the top in 2006.^[10]

Brick Township has also been in the news for a claimed autism epidemic, in which 40 children out of over 6,000 surveyed were found to be autistic, though Brick's autism rate is statistically not far removed from national average. Many of the children found to be autistic were born in Northern New Jersey and other parts of the country. There is no evidence that the levels of autism are linked to any specific environmental factor in Brick.^[11]

Geography

Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 76,119 people, 29,511 households, and 20,775 families residing in the township. The population density was 2,901.5 people per square mile (1,120.5/km²). There were 32,689 housing units at an average density of 1,246.0/sq mi (481.2/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 95.81% White, 0.99% African American, 0.10% Native American, 1.19% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.85% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.85% of the population.

Current projections, as of June 2005, estimate the population of Brick Township to be around 83,500 with a trend moving towards a more non-white population. This is influenced by a large emigration of residents from Northern New Jersey and New York City, who make up the majority of the township's population.

There were 29,511 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.6% were non-families. 25.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the township the population was spread out with 23.8% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 90.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $52,092, and the median income for a family was $61,446. Males had a median income of $44,981 versus $31,020 for females. The per capita income for the township was $24,462. About 3.1% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.8% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Laurelton Circle

The Laurelton Circle was located near the center of Brick Township. The traffic circle was at the junction of Route 70, Route 88, and Princeton Avenue. It was converted to a traffic light regulated intersection in 1986, due to an increase in traffic and accidents. To reduce the need for left turns, a short portion of eastbound Route 88 was re-routed onto Princeton Avenue. Some other movements are controlled by jughandles and a two-way connection in the northwest corner.

Government

Local government

The Township operates under a Mayor-Council form of government under the Faulkner Act.^[1] The Mayor is elected for a four year term without limitation as to the number of terms. In November 1988, the voters approved a referendum which returned the Township to the partisan system of government. As a result, Township elections, which had been held in May, are now held in November.

The Mayor is the chief executive and administrative officer in the Township and, as such, is responsible for administering local laws and policy development. The specific powers of the Mayor include various appointments, preparation of the Township's budget, and approval or veto (which may be overridden by a ⅔ vote of the Township Council) of the ordinances adopted by the Township Council. The Mayor appoints, with the advice and consent of the Township Council, the Business Administrator, the Township Attorney, and the Directors of the Departments of Public Safety, Engineering and Public Works.^[13]

Former Mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli resigned as of December 8, 2006 for personal reasons, amid a federal corruption probe into township government. On January 8, 2007, Scarpelli pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges for accepting money from developers in exchange for using his official position to obtain approval for development projects.^[14] Township Clerk Virginia Lampman was appointed to fill the role of mayor until the Township Council could select a replacement.^[15]^[16] On December 17, 2007, former Mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli was sentenced in Federal Court in Newark to serve 18 months in prison and was fined $5,000, after admitting that he had accepted bribes from 1998 to 2003.^[17]

On January 4, 2007, Daniel J. Kelly (D), the Township's Planning Board Chairman, was appointed the new mayor by a three-member township council subcommittee.^[18]

On November 6, 2007, Stephen C. Acropolis (R) defeated Kelly in a race to fill the remaining two years of Scarpelli's term.

Federal, state and county representation

Brick Township is in the Fourth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 10th Legislative District.^[21]

Education

Nonsectarian private schools, including Cuddle Care Early Childhood Center and Ocean Early Childhood Center, are also a part of the Brick Township educational service. In addition to these, St. Thomas Christian Academy is a Evangelical Lutheran Church in America private school. Finally, St. Dominic Elementary School, a Roman Catholic Private School, and St. Paul's Christian School, a Methodist Private School, serve as a part of the Brick Township educational service from Pre-Kindergarten to 8th grade.

Recently, Brick Township Memorial High School has received massive damage to the roof of the building due to a storm. It cost close to a million dollars to fix.

Media

WBGD, currently broadcasting from Brick Memorial High School, went on the air in the 1970s and was originally located at Brick Township High School.

Sports

The Brick Pop Warner Little Scholars Mustangs finished the 2006 season with a perfect 9-0 record and won the Jersey Shore B Division .^[25]

Also in 2003 and 2006 the Pop Warner Brick Memorial Mustangs went to compete against other teams from across the nation in Disney World.^{[citation needed]}

Notable residents

References

^ ^a ^b 2005 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, April 2005, p. 53.
^ USGS GNIS: Township of Brick, Geographic Names Information System, accessed January 4, 2008.
^ ^a ^b Census data for Brick Township, United States Census Bureau. Accessed October 29, 2008.
^ ^a ^b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ A Cure for the Common Codes: New Jersey, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed July 14, 2008.
^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 201.
^ 13th Annual Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities: Top and Bottom 25 Cities Overall, accessed October 30, 2006.
^ 11th Annual Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities: Top and Bottom 25 Cities Overall, accessed June 4, 2006.
^ 12th Annual Safest (and Most Dangerous) Cities: Top and Bottom 25 Cities Overall, accessed June 4, 2006.
^ Prevalence of Autism in a United States Population: The Brick Township, New Jersey, Investigation Pediatrics Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, November 5, 2001.
^ New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
^ Mayor's Office, Brick Township. Accessed July 31, 2006.
^ Restoring trust in government challenge for Brick officials, Asbury Park Press, January 10, 2007.
^ Brick mayor resigns; township clerk to become new mayor, Asbury Park Press, December 6, 2006.
^ New Jersey: Brick Township: Mayor Resigns, The New York Times, December 8, 2006.
^ via The Associated Press. "Mayor sentenced for taking bribes", Courier-Post, December 17, 2007.
^ Kelly is appointed as mayor in Brick, The Asbury Park Press, January 5, 2007.
^ Brick Township Council, Brick Township. Accessed April 1, 2008.
^ 2007 Elected Officials of Ocean County, Ocean County, New Jersey. p. 3. Accessed August 14, 2007.
^ 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 55. Accessed August 30, 2006.
^ About the Governor, New Jersey. Accessed June 6, 2008.
^ Board of Chosen Freeholders, Ocean County, New Jersey. Accessed March 27, 2008.
^ Data for the Brick Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 1, 2008.
^ Brick Dragon Pee Wee team wins division title, Brick Township Bulletin, October 26, 2006.
^ Scrimenti, Amanda. "Some things never change: Robert Auriemma a steady presence at BTHS", Asbury Park Press, January 25, 2005. Accessed August 4, 2008.
^ Rich, Motoko. "Successful at 96, Writer Has More to Say", The New York Times, April 7, 2007. Accessed June 22, 2008.
^ Goldstein, Richard. "Hank Borowy, 88, Top Pitcher With Yankees and Cubs in 40's", The New York Times, August 26, 2004. Accessed April 1, 2008. "Hank Borowy, a right-handed pitcher who helped the Yankees capture pennants in 1942 and 1943, then starred for the last Chicago Cubs team to reach the World Series, died Monday at his home in Brick, N.J. He was 88.... Borowy, a native of Bloomfield, N.J., who pitched for Fordham University, was 15-4 as a rookie on the Yankees' 1942 pennant winners."
^ Chere, Rich. "Former New Jersey Devils center Jim Dowd cut by Flyers", The Star-Ledger, October 4, 2008. Accessed November 11, 2008. "Jim Dowd, the Brick native who attended the Philadelphia Flyers' training camp on a tryout contract, was cut by the team Saturday morning."
^ A waterfront haven named for iron works owner, Asbury Park Press, September 8, 2005.
^ Staff. "JACK MARTIN DEAD; OLDEST EX-YANKEE; Jerseyan, 93, Played at Shortstop for the Highlanders In 1912", The New York Times, July 6, 1980. Accessed December 2, 2008.
^ Tom McCarthy, WFAN. Accessed August 26, 2007. "A 1986 graduate of Brick Memorial High School and a 1990 graduate of TCNJ, Tom and his wife Meg have four children: Patrick (10), Tommy (8), Maggie (5) and Kerri (3), and live in Allentown, NJ."
^ Arritt, Dan. "Part-Timer Completes His Sweep of Series; Motor racing: Tustin's Dubach wins third in a row in Thunder Bikers at U.S. Off-Road Championship event in Anaheim.", Los Angeles Times, January 30, 2000.
^ Art Thoms player profile, database Football. Accessed August 11, 2007.
^ Art Thoms, Oakland Raiders. Accessed August 11, 2007. "I started playing football in high school. It was the freshman team at Wayne High School in Wayne, N.J. I played two years there and then my family moved to Brickjohn [sic], NJ. I played the last two years of high school ball there."
^ Wall, Karen E. "The gray ghost wishes he could be invisible", Asbury Park Press, November 18, 1999. "He also served as mayor of Brick from 1971-75, was an Ocean County freeholder from 1975-81, a state Assemblyman from 1981-83, and served on the Brick Township Council from 1982 until his defeat in the mayoral race in 1993."

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