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Paramus () is a , 2005 . Despite this, Paramus is also noted for having some of the most restrictive Blue Law s in the United States, banning nearly all retail and white-collar businesses from opening on Sundays."SUNDAY SELLING PLAGUING JERSEY; Local Businesses Pushing Fight Against Activities of Stores on Highways - Other Group Active Local Option Opposed", The New York Times '', June 2 , 1957 . p. 165 Paramus was incorporated as a borough by an act of the , 2006 . Paramus was created from portions of Midland Township , which now exists as Rochelle Park ."Municipal Incorporations of the State of New Jersey (according to Counties)" prepared by the Division of Local Government, Department of the Treasury (New Jersey); December 1, 1958. p8. GEOGRAPHY Paramus is located at (40.947107, -74.070471). According to the United States Census Bureau , the borough has a total area of 27.1 Km&2 (10.5 Mi&2 ), all land. DEMOGRAPHICS
As of the Census of 2000, there were 25,737 people, 8,082 households, and 6,780 families residing in the borough. The Population Density was 949.1/km&2 (2,457.7/mi&2). There were 8,209 housing units at an average density of 302.7/km&2 (783.9/mi&2). The racial makeup of the borough was 79.19% White , 1.13% African American , 0.05% Native American , 17.23% Asian , 0.01% Pacific Islander , 0.89% from Other Races , and 1.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.87% of the population. There were 8,082 households out of which 37.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.3% were Married Couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.1% were non-families. 14.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.00 and the average family size was 3.32. In the borough the population was spread out with 23.2% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 24.7% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 21.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $76,918, and the median income for a family was $84,406. Males had a median income of $56,635 versus $37,450 for females. The Per Capita Income for the borough was $29,295. About 1.4% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the Poverty Line , including 3.4% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over. GOVERNMENT Local government Paramus has a mayor and six person council. The Mayor is James Tedesco , and the council members are Council President Frank A. Ciambrone, Richard Conte, Frederick Hayo, Richard LaBarbiera, Denis Niland and Connie Wagner. Borough of Paramus: Members of the Council , Borough of Paramus. Accessed February 21 , 2007 . On Election Day, , 2007 . Federal, state and county representation Paramus is part of New Jersey's 38th Legislative District and is in the Fifth Congressional District. 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government , New Jersey League Of Women Voters , p. 62. Accessed August 30 , 2006 . Politics As of , 2006 . On the national level, Paramus leans toward the Republican Party. In the , Division of Elections, dated December 13 , 2004 . EDUCATION The . Three of the district's schools have been formally designated as National Blue Ribbon Schools : Paramus High School, Parkway Elementary School and Ridge Ranch Elementary School. Befitting the diversity in the region, Paramus is home to many private religious schools. Paramus is the home of . Paramus is home to both the Yavneh Academy , a K-8 Jewish Day School , and the Frisch School , a large Modern Orthodox Jewish Yeshiva serving high-school age students in grades 9-12. Bergen Community College , the county college of Bergen County, is based in Paramus, with other satellite centers located elsewhere around the county. The Bergen campus of Berkeley College is located in Paramus. HISTORY The term ''Paramus'' comes from the '', April 15 , 2001 . That is why there is a giant metal statue of a turkey in the Paramus Park mall. Paramus, and the neighboring communities of Ridgewood and Hackensack , was the scene of a great deal of activity during the American Revolutionary War . A section of Paramus known as ''Dunkerhook'' (meaning ''dark corner'' in Dutch) was an African-American community dating back to the early 18th century. Although historical markers on the current site and local oral tradition maintain that this was a slave community, contemporary records document that this was actually a community of free blacks, not slaves. Dunkerhook: Slave Community? , accessed November 11 , 2006 . During World War II , Farview Avenue was closed off by the United States Army . The military had lined up anti-aircraft cannons along the street to prevent any attack on New York City. Farview Avenue is located at the highest peak of Paramus and has a clear view of the New York City skyline. TRANSPORTATION Public Transportation . Accessed August 30 , 2007 . Road Route 17 , Route 4 , and the Garden State Parkway passes through Paramus. COMMERCE Paramus is known for its multitude of stores and malls. It has five major indoor shopping centers, due to its easy access for residents in the areas of Bergen County and Passaic County in New Jersey and Rockland County in New York . New Jersey also does not levy a Sales Tax on clothes, which makes it an attractive shopping destination for people even further away in New York City . On Route 4 , are the Bergen Town Center (known as the Bergen Mall until 2006) and the Mall At IV . On Route 17 , are Paramus Park and the Fashion Center . At the intersection of Routes 4 and 17 is Paramus's biggest and most famous mall, the Westfield Garden State Plaza . Across from the Westfield Garden State Plaza is the world's third-largest IKEA , one of three IKEAs in the New York City metro area. The Westfield Garden State Plaza is the largest mall in the Westfield Groups' global portfolio with a Gross Leasable Area of 1,993,182sqf1.Westfield is the largest retail property group globally2. Paramus, along with the rest of Bergen County, has strict Blue Law s preventing stores selling non-food items from opening on Sundays. Although it started as a religious observance, it is kept on the books due to a desire of the residents of Paramus to have one day a week when traffic is tolerable in the town. Furthermore, both Paramus and the surrounding county have significant Jew ish and Muslim populations who do not observe their Sabbath on Sunday. This law was called into question most recently when a BJ's Wholesale Club opened at the 4/17 junction. BJ's was allowed to open on Sundays, but is only allowed to sell food and basic necessities. The store has been structured to deny access for shoppers to purchase items that cannot be purchased on Sunday. Paramus has its own blue laws that are significantly more restrictive than those in effect in other communities in Bergen County. It is one of the last places in the entire United States to have such an extensive Blue Law . Local blue laws in Paramus were first proposed in 1957, while the Bergen Mall and Garden State Plaza were under construction. The legislation was motivated by fears that the two new malls would aggravate the already-severe highway congestion caused by local retail businesses along the borough's highways."SUNDAY SELLING PLAGUING JERSEY; Local Businesses Pushing Fight Against Activities of Stores on Highways - Other Group Active Local Option Opposed", The New York Times '', June 2 , 1957 . p. 165 The Paramus Borough Code forbids the performance of any "worldly employment" on Sunday, with exceptions for charity, and the sale of newspapers, drugs, meals, prepared food and cigarettes, among a limited number of exceptions. Even work performed inside one's own home is prohibited, unless one can "prove to the satisfaction of the Judge that he uniformly keeps the seventh day of the week commonly known as the 'Sabbath'...". Paramus Borough Code: Chapter 391: SUNDAY ACTIVITIES , Borough of Paramus. Accessed December 18 , 2006 . In spite of its six-day shopping week, Paramus consistently has the most retail sales of any ZIP Code in the United States. Many national chain stores boast Paramus as their most prominent locations, including which had outlets in three malls for a short period of time. Some retail analysts view Paramus as being two markets, centered on the two major highways. Lord & Taylor has two locations in Paramus, giving Paramus the distinction of the only town with more than one Lord & Taylor location. Shoppers are often reluctant to switch from one highway to another, so having one outlet on each makes sense. When Paramus residents go shopping on Sundays, they often visit Willowbrook Mall , a short distance down Interstate 80 in Wayne, New Jersey , or Palisades Center in West Nyack, New York . Mall history
ENTERTAINMENT In 1931, one of the earliest Drive-in Theater s opened in Paramus, and boasted the world's largest and brightest screen, located behind what is now the Garden State Plaza Shopping Mall. The Paramus Drive-In closed sometime around 1983. Paramus' lone movie theater complex is a 16-screen '', May 19 , 2007 . Accessed May 19 , 2007 . The Cinema 35 was also closed when the Plaza 35 Shopping Center was renovated in 2005. The Van Saun County Park is located in Paramus. It has Bergen County's only zoo, home to a wide variety of wild and domestic animals living in recreated habitats natural to each species. POPULAR CULTURE
NOTABLE RESIDENTS
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