Avalon

Avalon, New Jersey
—  Borough  —
Logo
Motto: "Cooler by a Mile"
Avalon Borough highlighted in Cape May County. Inset map: Cape May County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Avalon, New Jersey
Coordinates: 39°05′30″N 74°44′12″W / 39.09167°N 74.73667°W / 39.09167; -74.73667Coordinates: 39°05′30″N 74°44′12″W / 39.09167°N 74.73667°W / 39.09167; -74.73667
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Cape May
Incorporated	April 18, 1892
Government[1]
• Type	Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council)
• Mayor	Martin L. Pagliughi (R)
• Administrator	Andrew J. Bednarek[2]
Area[3]
• Total	4.89 sq mi (12.7 km2)
• Land	4.21 sq mi (10.9 km2)
• Water	0.67 sq mi (1.7 km2)  13.70%
Elevation[4]	10 ft (3 m)
Population (2010 Census)[5][6]
• Total	1,334
• Density	270/sq mi (110/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	08202[7]
Area code(s)	609
FIPS code	34-02320[8][9]
GNIS feature ID	0885146[10]
Website	http://www.avalonboro.org

Avalon has many beaches on the New Jersey shore.

Avalon is a borough in Cape May County, New Jersey, on Seven Mile Island. As of the 2010 United States Census, the full-time borough population was 1,334,^[5] although it swells during the summer months.

The community is one of the most affluent communities along the Jersey Shore and is home to some of the most expensive real estate on the East Coast. In 2007, Forbes listed Avalon as the 65th most expensive zip code in the United States.^[11] Washingtonian even "named Avalon the 'chicest beach' in the mid-Atlantic, the place to see women in diamonds and designer swimwear."^[12] A small portion of Avalon is not on Seven Mile Island. The borough is part of the Ocean City Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Avalon was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 18, 1892, from portions of Middle Township, based on the results of a referendum held two days earlier. The borough was reincorporated on March 6, 1896, and again on May 4, 1897. Another portion of Middle Township was annexed in 1910. On December 27, 1941, portions of Avalon were ceded to Stone Harbor.^[13]

Avalon, famous for being a South Jersey seashore resort, has the motto "Cooler by a Mile", since it juts out into the Atlantic Ocean about a mile farther than other barrier island resorts. The motto also refers to the fact that Avalon occupies 5 miles of Seven Mile Island whereas neighbor Stone Harbor was ranked second. It was ranked the seventh best beach in New Jersey in the 2008 Top 10 Beaches Contest sponsored by the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium.^[14]

Geography

Avalon is located at 39°05′35″N 74°43′37″W / 39.092928°N 74.726880°W / 39.092928; -74.726880 (39.092928, -74.726880).^[15]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 4.89 square miles (12.7 km²), of which 4.21 square miles (10.9 km²) is land and 0.67 square miles (1.7 km²) (13.70%) is water.^[3]

Avalon borders Sea Isle City, Stone Harbor Borough, Middle Township, and the Atlantic Ocean.

Demographics

The 2010 United States Census reported that there were 1,334 people, 692 households and 416 families residing in the borough. The racial makeup of Avalon was 98.1% (1,308) White, 0.3% (4) African American, 0.3% (4) Native American, 0.2% (3) Asian, 0.0% (0) Pacific Islander, 0.1% (2) from other races, and 1.0% (13) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.2% (29).^[5][19]

As of the census^[8] of 2000, there were 2,143 people, 1,045 households, and 668 families residing in the borough. The population density was 508.4 people per square mile (196.5/km²). There were 5,281 housing units at an average density of 1,252.9 per square mile (484.3/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.69% White, 0.14% African American, 0.56% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.05% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.56% of the population.^[18]

There were 1,045 households out of which 12.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were married couples living together, 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.05 and the average family size was 2.56.^[18]

In the borough the population was spread out with 14.1% under the age of 18, 2.9% from 18 to 24, 16.3% from 25 to 44, 33.9% from 45 to 64, and 32.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 56 years. For every 100 females there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.0 males.^[18]

The median income for a household in the borough was $59,196, and the median income for a family was $72,750. Males had a median income of $60,227 versus $39,886 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $50,016. About 2.2% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.6% of those under age 18 and 0.1% of those age 65 or over.^[18]

As of April 2009, the average home sales price in Avalon was $1,567,662 (According to Cape May County Multiple listing service).^{[citation needed]}

Government

Local government

The Borough of Avalon is governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) system of municipal government by a mayor and a five-member Borough Council. Members of the Borough Council are elected in nonpartisan elections to four-year terms on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year.^[1]

As of 2011^[update], Avalon's mayor is Martin L. Pagliughi. Members of the Borough Council are Council President Nancy M. Hudanich, Council Vice President Joseph Tipping, Charles P. Covington, Richard E. Dean and David Ellenberg.^[20]

Mayor Pagliughi and Councilmembers Covington and Dean ran unopposed in the May 2011 municipal election.^[21][22] With 245 of 1,330 registered voters participating (turnout of 18.42%) all three candidates were re-elected.^[23]

Federal, state, and county representation

Avalon is in the 2nd Congressional district and is part of New Jersey's 1st state legislative district.^[6]

New Jersey's Second Congressional District is represented by Frank LoBiondo (R, Ventnor City). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 1st legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Jeff Van Drew (D, Dennis Township) and in the General Assembly by Nelson Albano (D, Vineland) and Matthew W. Milam (D, Vineland).^[24] The Governor of New Jersey is Chris Christie (R, Mendham).^[25] The Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey is Kim Guadagno (R, Monmouth Beach).^[26]

Cape May County is governed by a Board of Chosen Freeholders consisting of five members, elected at-large in partisan elections to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year. As of 2012^[update], Cape May County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Gerald M. Thornton (Middle Township, term ends December 31, 2013),^[27] Freeholder Vice-Director M. Susan Sheppard (Ocean City, 2013),^[28] Leonard C. Desiderio (Sea Isle City, 2012),^[29] Kristine Gabor (Upper Township, 2014)^[30] and Will Morey (Wildwood Crest, 2014).^[31][32] The county's constutional officers are Sheriff Gary Schafer (R-Ocean City),^[33] Surrogate Robert Hentges (R-Middle Township)^[34] and County Clerk Rita Fulginiti (R-Ocean City).^[35]

Education

Avalon School District is a public school district that serves students in public school for first through eighth grade. Avalon Elementary School had an enrollment of 75 students in the 2009-10 school year.^[36]

Students in public school for grades 9–12 attend Middle Township High School in Cape May Court House, as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Middle Township Public Schools.^[37]

Transportation

Avalon Boulevard connects the Garden State Parkway and U.S. 9 to the oceanfront.

There is also a seasonal trolley service that runs through the seven-mile-long island. Avalon also has multiple New Jersey Transit bus stops, and is served by the 315 to Philadelphia and the 319 to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.^[38]

History

Early history

Originally a thriving juniper forest, reportedly occupied by Lenni Lenape Native Americans, the area was purchased by Aaron Leaming in December 1722 for 79 pounds. Known as Seven Mile Beach (present day Avalon and Stone Harbor), it was owned and retained by the Leamings for approximately 100 years. Legends say that pirates buried their bounty on Seven Mile Island, and that Henry Hudson may have dropped anchor somewhere offshore but these legends are not historically confirmed. The island served as a cattle range and was also used for its plentiful timber. The Leamings eventually sold the land, and the island exchanged hands in a number of transactions afterwards. In April 1887, the Seven Mile Beach company was formed. As early as 1893, Avalon was advertised as a resort town. With this rapid development, homes and businesses were erected. The native juniper forest was graded and cut, and the sandy hills were leveled off, making the island mostly flat. Today it is extremely rare to see hills or native juniper in Avalon.

By the early 1900s, the Leaming Railroad bridge was constructed, allowing train connections into the town. This increased the traffic from nearby Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Around 1944 the West Jersey and Seashore railroad lines merged with the Reading Railroad. This effectively ended the era of travel by train to the island. A hurricane took several streets and Avalon now has a north end beginning at 7th street. In the mid-1950s the Wolfington Family of Philadelphia purchased and operated the Puritan Hotel later enlarged and renamed the Whitebriar Hotel on the beach block at 21st Street. The Whitebriar was managed for a few seasons in the mid-1950s by one of the future 'great hosts' of Philadelphia hotels, Robert C. Bennett. Currently the most widely used method of transportation to and from Avalon is by car or boat; however, buses run on a regular schedule all over the shore towns.

The Commonwealth (shipwreck)

On January 4, 1890, the Commonwealth, piloted by Captain W.S. Willets, sank. This 197-ton ship was en route from New York City to Philadelphia with a cargo of molasses, coffee, tobacco, tea, coconut oil, and camphor. Straying from its course in rough weather, the Commonwealth ran aground in Townsend's Inlet. The crew was rescued and most of the cargo was salvaged. However, after a week trapped in the sandy bottom of the inlet, the ship began to come apart in the waves. Some of the remaining cargo washed ashore and most of it was taken by the early residents of Avalon. The wreck, unable to be recovered, was sold to John Townshend on February 2.

The Nor'easter of 1962

In March 1962, a major Nor'easter, the Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962, tore through the U.S. East Coast causing massive ocean swells. Much of Avalon suffered very serious flooding and major coastline loss.^[39][40] Much of the island was under water for 4 to 5 days. Damage to homes was dependant on the foundation construction of the home, and location on the island. For example, a home built on the ground on 33rd street had 46" of water in their house, while a raised foundation home had only 6" of water on a nearby street.^[41]

Rocks were erected where 8th Street meets Townsend's Inlet to hold back the ocean.

Protection efforts against storms

While there have been many strong storms since 1962, extensive rock jetty construction on Townsends Inlet (as recent as Summer 2006) has mostly succeeded in protecting the inlet-side homes. However, beaches and property facing the ocean at 8th through 12th Streets have struggled to prevent further loss of this barrier island through various anti-erosion schemes, including extending the 8th Street rock jetty, the installation of an artificial reef and the beach replenishment. So far, there has been no more "shrinkage" of the island at this location, but at a very high monetary cost.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Avalon include:

• David Akers (born 1974), kicker for the Philadelphia Eagles.^{[citation needed]}
• Geno Auriemma, head coach of the University of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team^[42][43]
• Trent Cole (born 1982), Defensive End for the Philadelphia Eagles.
• Neil Hartman, Comcast Sportsnet personality.^{[citation needed]}
• Paul Holmgren, General Manager of the Philadelphia Flyers.^{[citation needed]}
• Ron Jaworski (born 1951), former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback, Monday Night Football broadcaster, owner of the Philadelphia Soul.^{[citation needed]}
• Tim Kerr (born 1960), formerly played for the Philadelphia Flyers.^[44][45]
• Ed McMahon (1923–2009), television show host.^[46]
• Sal Paolantonio (born 1956), ESPN analyst for the Philadelphia Eagles.^{[citation needed]}
• Joe Paterno (1926–2011), Penn State football head coach ^[47]
• Michael W. Rice (born 1945), CEO/Chairman of UTZ Quality Foods, Inc.^{[citation needed]}
• Ed Stefanski, General Manager of the Philadelphia 76ers.^{[citation needed]}

References

External links

• Avalon Borough website
• Avalon Elementary School
• Avalon Elementary School's 2009–10 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
• Data for the Avalon Elementary School, National Center for Education Statistics
• Avalon History
• Avalon Residents Recall 1962 Storm
• Sand Barrens Golf Club, Swainton, NJ
• Avalon Community Guide
• The Cape May County Gazette Local community newspaper
• The Beachcomber
• Avalon New Jersey Information, Directions and History
• Seven Mile Times

v t e Municipalities and communities of Cape May County, New Jersey, United States County seat: Cape May Court House Cities Cape May North Wildwood Ocean City Sea Isle City Wildwood Boroughs Avalon Cape May Point Stone Harbor West Cape May West Wildwood Wildwood Crest Woodbine Townships Dennis Township Lower Township Middle Township Upper Township CDPs Cape May Court House Diamond Beach Erma North Cape May Strathmere Rio Grande Villas Whitesboro-Burleigh Communities Beesley's Point Dennisville Goshen Green Creek Marmora Ocean View South Dennis Swainton Tuckahoe