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Greenwich is a town located in Fairfield County, Connecticut . As of the 2000 Census , the town had a total population of 61,101. The town is served by the Metro-North Railroad (the four stations, from west to east, are Greenwich, '''Cos Cob''', '''Riverside''' and '''Old Greenwich''') and is approximately a 50 minute Train ride to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan . It is home to many Hedge Fund s and other financial service companies that have left Manhattan. It is also the southernmost town in New England . The town is famous for its wealth: it is the second wealthiest place in the country with a population of 20,000 or more. In July 2005, CNN/Money and Money magazine ranked Greenwich 12th on its list of the 100 Best Places to Live in the United States. GENERAL INFORMATION The Town of Greenwich, settled in 1640 and incorporated in 1665, has one political body, but consists of several distinct sections with their own mailing addresses and Zip Code s, such as Cos Cob, Riverside, Old Greenwich and Greenwich (sometimes referred to as central or downtown Greenwich). Byram, Glenville, Pemberwick and Rock Ridge are other neighborhoods that use the Greenwich name and zip code for their mailing addresses. There are many other neighborhoods within Greenwich such as Belle Haven, Banksville, Chickahominy, Milbank, Milbrook and Mianus to name a few. The downtown area of Greenwich consists primarily of Greenwich Avenue, a one way street that has many restaurants, boutiques, and antique shops, all located on extraordinarily expensive retail space. The sections of the town each have smaller shopping areas, but these are much smaller than Greenwich Avenue. Greenwich Avenue is directed by 4 policemen, and a stop-light at the end, on Railroad Avenue. Real estate in Greenwich is very expensive when compared to the national average, and is about on par with some nearby communities such as Darien , Westport , and New Canaan . The high property values, however, cause property taxes to be very low, on a percentage basis. Greenwich is officially considered the wealthiest town in Connecticut. However, this reputation may not be justified, since the nearby smaller towns of New Canaan, Darien, Weston, Wilton and Westport had higher median household incomes, and higher median family incomes per the 2000 census. In addition, the towns of New Canaan, Darien, and Weston had higher per capita incomes per the 2000 census. The town has four beaches on the Long Island Sound which are Greenwich Point, Byram Beach, Island Beach (Little Captain's Island), and Great Captain's Island. Originally, Greenwich Point (locally termed "Tod's Point"), which is on a peninsula and so includes picnic areas, a beach and small marina, was open only to town residents and their guests. However, a lawyer from nearby Stamford, Connecticut sued, saying his rights to freedom of assembly were threatened because he was not allowed to go there. The lower courts disagreed, but the Supreme Court of Connecticut agreed, and Greenwich was forced to amend its beach access policy to all four beaches. The man was billed $120 for the visits he had made to the park before the policy was changed. However, he refused to pay, setting off another debate in the town as to whether it was right to charge him. Finally, and anonymous donor left $120 in cash in an envelope at Town Hall to cover the expense. A single-visit beach pass for non-residents is $10 per person and $20 per car and must be purchased at the town hall or the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center. There is also a sailing team and rental area located in the park. Bicycling and roller blading are popular sports on the trails and paths in the summer. GEOGRAPHY According to the United States Census Bureau , the town has a total area of 174.2 Km&2 (67.2 Mi&2 ). 123.9 km&2 (47.8 mi&2) of it is land and 50.3 km&2 (19.4 mi&2) of it is water. The total area is 28.88% water. Greenwich is twice the size of Manhattan in terms of area. Greenwich is bordered westerly and northerly by Westchester County, New York, easterly by the City of Stamford, and southerly by the waters of the Long Island Sound. DEMOGRAPHICS As of the Census 2 of 2000, there were 61,101 people, 23,230 households, and 16,237 families residing in the town. The Population Density was 493.2/km&2 (1,277.6/mi&2). There were 24,511 housing units at an average density of 197.9/km&2 (512.5/mi&2). The racial makeup of the town was 90.02% White , 1.66% African American , 0.09% Native American , 5.18% Asian , 0.03% Pacific Islander , 1.46% from Other Races , and 1.57% from two or more races. 6.29% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 23,230 households out of which 33.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were Married Couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.12. In the town the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 4.1% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $150,086, and the median income for a family was $172,719. Males had a median income of $105,085 versus $77,799 for females. The Per Capita Income for the town was $105,346. 4.0% of the population and 2.5% of families were below the Poverty Line . 4.1% of those under the age of 18 and 3.2% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. Greenwich was the Highest Income Place with a population of 60,000 or more in 2000. GOVERNMENT The town has three Selectmen and a Representative Town Meeting (RTM). The RTM must approve all budgets, and consists of 230 elected representatives, which is more than the State Senate and State House combined. RTM members are not paid. The three selectmen are elected on a town-wide basis, although each person can only vote for two members. This assures that there will almost always be one Democrat and two Republicans or two Democrats and one Republican. While voter registration is skewed in the Republican's favor, they do not have a lock on the First Selectman's chair, and Democrats have held the seat recently. Many of the other town committees have equal representation between Democrats and Republicans, regardless of the vote breakdown, since each individual can only vote for half as many seats as are available. TRANSPORTATION Interstate 95 goes through the southern end of town, and there are four exits from I-95 in Greenwich, exits 2 through 5. The Boston Post Road (also known as East or West Putnam Avenue or simply Route 1) also goes through town, as does the Merritt Parkway , although the Merritt Parkway is a considerable distance from the downtown area. In 1983, the Mianus River Bridge , which carries traffic on Interstate 95 over an estuary, collapsed, resulting in the death of three people. Highway traffic had to be diverted onto local streets. Later investigations revealed that two of the pin-and-hanger assemblies holding the support beams had failed. The safety of similarly constructed bridges such as the famous Harvard Bridge was brought into question and investigated. Greenwich is also accessible by Metro-North Railroad. Amtrak stops in the adjacent town of Stamford. FAMOUS CELEBS Famous people who live in the town of Greenwich include World Wrestling Entertainment founder and chairman Vince McMahon , his wife and WWE CEO Linda along with WWE wrestler Triple H and his wife Stephanie McMahon . Others include director Ron Howard , Frank Gifford, NFL star and his wife Kathy Lee Gifford, TV personality, Wanda Sykes the comedian, soul singer Diana Ross , designer and fashion guru Tommy Hilfiger and his family, Steve Young (NFL player), Regis Philbin , Judge Judy , and Peter Brant, a major hedgefund owner who works out of Manhattan. Glenn Close was born in Greenwich. Carolyn Bessette Kennedy lived in Greenwich before her tragic death. Montel Williams (talk-show host), NBA player Rolando Blackman , Donald J. Trump , and Mel Gibson are also some other celebrities who either lived or still reside in Greenwich, CT. SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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