Greenwich, Connecticut

Official name	Greenwich, Connecticut
Established title	Settled
Established date	1640
Established title2	Joined Connecticut
Established date2	1656
Settlement type	Town
Image seal	Greenwich Seal.jpg
Map caption	Location in Fairfield County, Connecticut
Government type	Representative town meeting
Coordinates display	inline,title
Coordinates region	US-CT
Subdivision type	Country
Subdivision name	United States
Subdivision type1	State
Subdivision name1	Connecticut
Subdivision type2	NECTA
Subdivision name2	Bridgeport - Stamford - Norwalk
Subdivision type3	Region
Subdivision name3	South Western Region
Leader title	First selectman
Leader name	Peter Tesei
Leader title1	Town administrator
Leader name1	John Crary
Leader title2	Town meeting moderator
Leader name2	Thomas J. Byrne
Unit pref	Imperial
Area land km2	123.8
Area land sq mi	47.8
Area total km2	174.0
Area water km2	50.3
Area total sq mi	67.2
Population as of	2009
Population total	62368
Population density km2	503
Population density sq mi	1302
Timezone	Eastern
Utc offset	-5
Timezone dst	Eastern
Utc offset dst	-4
Area water sq mi	19.4
Elevation m	17
Elevation ft	56
Postal code type	ZIP code
Postal code	06807, 06830,06831, 06870, 06878
Website	www.greenwichct.org
Area code	203
Blank name	FIPS code
Blank info	09-33620
Blank1 name	GNIS feature ID
Blank1 info	0213435

Greenwich is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 61,101. It is home to many hedge funds and other financial service companies. Greenwich is the southernmost and westernmost municipality in Connecticut and is 38+ minutes by train (express) from Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan. 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. Money magazine also ranked Greenwich #1 in the "Biggest Earner" category. The town is named after (and pronounced the same as) Greenwich, England, a borough of London in the United Kingdom.

Government

Greenwich has one local government but consists of several distinct sections, some of which have their own mailing addresses and ZIP codes: as Cos Cob 06807, Riverside 06878, Old Greenwich 06870, Glenville 06831 and Greenwich 06830 (sometimes referred to as Greenwich proper, central, or downtown Greenwich).

The town has three Selectmen and a Representative Town Meeting (RTM). The RTM must approve all budgets, and consists of 230 elected representatives. 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.

{| class=wikitable ! colspan = 6 | Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 28, 2008 |- ! colspan = 2 | Party ! Active Voters ! Inactive Voters ! Total Voters ! Percentage | Republican | align = center | 13,607 | align = center | 486 | align = center | 14,093 | align = center | 37.97% | Democratic | align = center | 9,084 | align = center | 323 | align = center | 9,407 | align = center | 25.34% | Unaffiliated | align = center | 12,678 | align = center | 646 | align = center | 13,324 | align = center | 35.9% | Minor Parties | align = center | 288 | align = center | 7 | align = center | 295 | align = center | 1% |- ! colspan = 2 | Total ! align = center | 35,657 ! align = center | 1,462 ! align = center | 37,119 ! align = center | 100% |}

History

from National Gallery of Art exhibit]] :For more information, see History of Greenwich, Connecticut.

The Town of Greenwich was settled in 1640. One of the founders was Elizabeth Fones Winthrop, daughter-in-law of John Winthrop, founder and Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. What is now called 'Greenwich Point' was known for much of the area's early history as 'Elizabeth's Neck' in recognition of Elizabeth Fones and their 1640 purchase of the Point and much of the area now known as Old Greenwich. The Town of Greenwich was declared a township by the General Assembly in Hartford, Connecticut, on May 11, 1665.

During the American Revolution, General Israel Putnam made a daring escape from the British on February 26, 1779. Although British forces pillaged the town, Putnam was able to warn Stamford.

For many years, Greenwich Point (locally termed "Tod's Point"), was open only to town residents and their guests. However, a lawyer 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.

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Greenwich's location as the first Connecticut town off Interstate 95 and the Merritt Parkway meant that when New York City-area residents wanted to buy Powerball lottery tickets as the jackpot rose above $100 million, they crowded into Greenwich stores to purchase them, creating traffic jams in the business areas. The Connecticut Lottery introduced special rules for such situations. This no longer was a problem after Pennsylvania joined Powerball in 2002; those living west of the Hudson River no longer cross it to buy Powerball tickets.

The ESPN special The Decision was aired from the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich. In the special basketball player LeBron James declared he would sign with the Miami Heat for the 2010–11 NBA season.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 67.2 square miles (174.2 km²), of which, 47.8 square miles (123.9 km²) of it is land and 19.4 square miles (50.3 km²) of it (28.88%) is water. In terms of area, Greenwich is twice the size of Manhattan. The town is bordered to the west and north by Westchester County, New York, to the east by the city of Stamford, and to the south by Long Island Sound.

Neighborhoods and sections

Greenwich is unofficially divided into approximately 25 sections, or neighborhoods, among them:

Back Country

Belle Haven

Byram

Chickahominy

Cos Cob

Fourth Ward (Fourth Ward Historic District)

Glenville

Greenwich (Downtown Greenwich)

Greenwich Cove

Holly Hill

Mianus

Millbrook

Municipal Center District

North Mianus

North Street(refers to the neighborhood surrounding North Street)

Old Greenwich (Sound Beach)

Palmers Hill

Pemberwick

Pine Hill

Riverbank

Riverside

Riversville

Rockridge

Round Hill

Stanwich

ZIP codes

Greenwich is covered by five ZIP codes

06807 - Cos Cob, Mianus, eastern Mid-Country

06830 - Downtown, Byram, Belle Haven, central Mid-Country

06831 - Glenville, Pemberwick, Back Country, western Mid-Country, Round Hill, Rock Ridge, Riversville, Banksville, Stanwich, North Greenwich

06870 - Old Greenwich, Palmers Hill

06878 - Riverside, North Mianus

Notable points

Cos Cob, Greenwich, Old Greenwich, and Riverside each have their own ZIP Codes and Metro North stations.

American Lane (in the extreme western corner of Greenwich) is separated by Interstate 684 from the entire rest of Connecticut and can be reached only from New York State.

Round Hill, with an elevation of more than , was a lookout point for the Continental Army during the American Revolution. The Manhattan skyline is visible from the top of the hill.

Islands

, first high-ranking officer killed in World War I]]

Calf Island, a island about from the Byram shore in Greenwich, is open for visitors although as of the summer of 2006 it was getting relatively few of them.

More than half of the island (on the west side) is a bird sanctuary off-limits to members of the public without permission to visit. The island is available for overnight stays for those with permits, otherwise the east side is open from dawn till dusk.

Island Beach has changed over the decades. The bathhouse once on the island's eastern shore is gone, and erosion is slowly eating away at the beaches themselves. |date = August 2010}}

Emergency services

Greenwich EMS

Greenwich Emergency Medical Service, Inc. (or "GEMS", as it is often referred to) is contracted as the primary service area responder (PSAR) for the Town of Greenwich. GEMS operates out of four strategically located stations throughout the town, and has mutual aid agreements with Stamford and Port Chester/Rye/Rye Brook. Each GEMS unit is operated at the highest level of advanced prehospital care, utilizing highly trained and experienced paramedics. GEMS was the first service in New England to make use of 12-lead EKGs in the prehospital setting, and continues to lead the region with advanced life support tools and equipment.

Fire Department

The town of Greenwich is protected 24/7 by a combination fire department, made up of paid firefighters and a large volunteer staff. The 100 paid firefighters that make up the Greenwich Fire Department, or GFD operate 6 Engines(Including 2 Engine/Rescues), Tower 1, a Special Ops./Mobile Command Unit, a Haz-Mat. Unit, 2 Decon. Units, and cross-staff Rescue 5, the town's heavy rescue unit. The paid staff share quarters with the six volunteer fire companies in town, as well as one fire police force. The volunteers staff a total of 9 Engines(usuaully ending in the number "one", i.e. Engine 31), Ladder's 4 and 5, a Dive Rescue Unit, 3 Squads(Including an air cascade unit), 2 Utility Units, 2 Fireboats, and 1 Mini-Attack Unit. Each piece of volunteer fire apparatus can also be utilized by the paid fire department as reserve pieces of apparatus, or specially-called units. The paid Greenwich Fire Department is commanded by a town-wide Deputy Chief, as well as an Assistant Chief and Chief of Department. Each volunteer fire company has their own officers, including a Chief, who is considered a "district" chief, who commands each individual volunteer fire company. Neighboring Banksville, New York operates their own volunteer fire department. Although it is under the command of Westchester County, New York and utilizes it's fire department numbering system, the Banksville Fire Department responds to incidents in the northern-most sections of the Back Country. The In town, there is also a fire police force, known as the Cos Cob Fire Police Patrol, operating out of the Cos Cob Firehouse. The fire police operate a Patrol Unit and a Squad. The paid Greenwich Fire Department responds to, on average, around 5,000 emergency calls annually.

Fire station locations and apparatus {| class=wikitable |- valign=bottom ! Engine Company ! Truck Company ! Special Unit ! Command Unit ! Address ! Neighborhood |- | Engine 1, Engine 31 || Tower 1 || Special Ops. 1, Squad 1, Haz-Mat. 1, Decon. 1 || Car 5(Deputy Chief) || 15 Havemeyer Pl. || Greenwich |- | Engine 2, Engine 21 || || Patrol 2, Squad 2, Utility 2, Marine 2 || Car 201(District Chief) || 200 Post Rd. || Cos Cob |- | Engine/Rescue 3 || || Rescue 3, Utility 3 || || Delvan Ave. & Mead Ave. || Byram |- | Engine 4, Engine 41 || Ladder 4 || Squad 4, Utility 4 || || 266 Glenville Rd. || Glenville |- | Engine/Rescue 5, Engine 51 || Ladder 5 || Rescue 5, Rescue 51(Dive Unit) Squad 5, Marine 5 || Car 501(District Chief) || 207 Sound Beach Ave. || Old Greenwich/Sound Beach |- | Engine 61, Engine 62 || || Tanker 6, Squad 6 || || 166 W. Old Mill Rd. || Round Hill |- | Engine 71, Engine 72, Engine 73 || || Rescue 7, Tanker 7, Mini-Attack 11 || Banksville Chief || 33 Bedford-Greenwich Rd. || Banksville, New York |- | Engine 8 || || Decon. 2 || || 669 North St. || Back Country |}

Police department

Located at 11 Bruce Place, GPD has 87 Police Officers, 19 Sergeants and 4 Lieutenants, with 12 Civilian Dispatchers and includes a K-9 unit. The current Chief of Police is David C. Ridberg while the First Selectman is Police Commissioner.

Education

Public schools

Greenwich Public Schools operates public schools. Greenwich High School is the district's sole high school.

Private schools

Brunswick School A non-sectarian boys' school (the brother school to Greenwich Academy) (preK-12)

Greenwich Academy A non-sectarian girls' school (the sister school to Brunswick) (K-12)

Eagle Hill School (K-10)

Convent of the Sacred Heart A girls' school with Catholic affiliation (preK-12)

Greenwich Catholic School (preK-8), 471 North Street

Greenwich Country Day School (K-9)

The Greenwich Japanese School a.k.a. New York Nihonjin gakko, a Japanese expatriate school (K-9) (Acquired Daycroft School/Rosemary Hall Campus)

Rosemary Hall (moved to Wallingford, Connecticut) (Sold campus to Daycroft School)

The Stanwich School (K-9, adding one grade each year until twelfth grade.) Located at 257 Stanwich Road

Westchester Fairfield Hebrew Academy (K-8) — the school, founded in 1996 and opened in 1997 with 24 students in rented space in Port Chester, New York, later rented space from Temple Shalom in Greenwich before buying a campus at 270 Lake Avenue from the Greenwich Japanese School in August 2006, after which the campus would be shared for 8 years. Enrollment was 160 at the start of the 2007-2008 school year. In 2006 the school started the PALS program for children with learning disabilities.

Whitby School (Nursery-8), a nationally - recognized Montessori and International Baccalaureate World School (IB), Located on Lake Avenue.

Recreation

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 Island.

A single-visit beach pass for non-residents to Greenwich Point (locally termed "Tod's Point" after the previous private owners), which is on a peninsula and so includes picnic areas, a beach and small marina, is $5 per person and $20 per car. Tickets must be purchased at the town hall or the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center. However, anyone can go to the point for free between November and April. The point has views of Manhattan, the bridges connecting the Bronx and Queens and newly-built hi-rises in New Rochelle, New York.

There is also a community sailing center and rental area located in the park. Bicycling and rollerblading are popular sports on the trails and paths in the summer.

The town owns the Griffith E. Harris golf course. The 18-link course is named after "Griff" Harris, first selectman from 1952 to 1958. There are also eight country clubs in town with golf courses. The Dorothy Hamill Rink is also in town.

Arts and culture

Greenwich Symphony Orchestra. Begun in 1958 as the Greenwich Philharmonia, it became fully professional by 1967. The orchestra's 90 members perform at the Dickerman Hollister Auditorium at Greenwich High School. It also performs a pops concert in the summer. David Gilbert has been music director and conductor since 1975 and is also the director of the Bergen (NJ) Philharmonic and the Senior Concert Orchestra of New York.

Greenwich Choral Society, founded in 1925, has performs locally and elsewhere, including in New York City and Europe. It has also performed several times with the Greenwich Symphony, New Haven Symphony, New Haven Chorale, and Stamford Symphony, as well as at the Ives Festival in Danbury. The chorus previewed Dave Brubeck's La Fiesta de la Posada, and has commissioned works by James Furman, Stephen Paulus, Rob Mathes, and Michael Schelle. In 2000 the chorus premiered a work by Adolphus Hailstork, Songs of Innocence, commissioned especially for the 75th anniversary season. The current music director and conductor is Paul F. Mueller. Notable past conductors include Lowell Beveridge, Jack Ossewaarde, Vernon de Tar, Louie L. White and Richard Vogt.

The Bruce Museum is a town-owned institution with sections devoted to art and natural history.

Greenwich Arts Council

Putnam's Cottage (Knapp's Tavern) Historic House Museum

Business

Antares Investment Partners headquarters. 333 Ludlow St. AQR Capital headquarters. 2 Greenwich Plaza. Arch Capital Group, Ltd. headquarters Belray Asset Management a wealth management firm Blue Sky Studios 1 American Ln. Academy Award winning animation studio, creators of the popular animated films: Ice Age, Robots, Ice Age: The Meltdown, Horton Hears a Who!, and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. Blyth, Inc. (BTH) headquarters, 1 East Weaver St.; the nation's largest candlemaker, the company designs and markets home fragrance products, seasonal decorations, home décor and household convenience items internationally; 5,500 employees company-wide, 45 in Connecticut; $1.6 billion in annual revenues (2005); CEO Robert B. Goergen Cambridge Solutions headquarters, 340 Pemberwick Road; is a strategic global outsourcing firm, one of the largest BPO companies worldwide; 4,400 employees companywide; CEO Christopher A. Sinclair. First Reserve Corporation headquarters, a private equity firm with $12.5 billion under management that buys energy-related companies, founded by CEO William Macaulay. Nestle Waters North America, division of the "world's biggest water bottler" (headquartered in Switzerland; Nestle Waters world division headquartered in Paris) accounting for 48 percent of its water sales and 10 percent of its revenue; with "Poland Spring, Deer Park, Perrier, S. Pellegrino and other brands it has 43 percent of the U.S. single-serve market. (All figures as of August 2006.) United Rentals Inc. (URI) headquarters, 5 Greenwich Office Park; the largest equipment rental company in the world, with more than 750 rental locations in 48 states, Canada and Mexico; 13,400 employees companywide, 400 in Connecticut; $3.6 billion in annual revenues (2005); CEO Wayland R. Hicks Urstadt Biddle Properties, Inc. headquarters, 1 East Weaver St. W.R. Berkeley Corp. (BER) headquarters, 475 Steamboat Road; a holding company for subsidiaries that sell property-casualty insurance; 4,961 employees company-wide, 319 in Connecticut; $5 billion in annual revenues; CEO William R. Berkley

Transportation

The town is served by the Metro-North Railroad's New Haven Line (the four stations, from west to east, are Greenwich, Cos Cob, Riverside, and Old Greenwich) and is approximately a 40 minute train ride to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan on the express train and a 50 minute ride on the local. Amtrak stops in the adjacent city of Stamford.

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. Interstate 684 passes through Greenwich, but cannot be entered or exited there, and the nearest interchange is at the Westchester County Airport in New York State.

Two bridges in Greenwich were among 12 in the state listed in "critical" condition by state safety inspectors as of August 2007. The Riversville Road bridge, built in the 1950s, now has a weight limit of 3 tons, but as of August 5, 2007, the bridge had not been inspected in over two years (in March 2005), according to state records obtained by The Hartford Courant, although a state official said the bridge was inspected in August 2005 and would be inspected again in August 2007. In the March 2005 inspection, the bridge's above-ground structure was deemed to be in critical condition, with other components in poor condition. The Bailiwick Road bridge in town was closed in April 2007 and remained closed as of August 2007 due to storm damage. The ratings for the two bridges were worse than the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, which collapsed during rush hour on August 1, 2007.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 61,101 people, 23,230 households, and 16,237 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,277.6 people per square mile (493.2/km²). There were 24,511 housing units at an average density of 512.5 per square mile (197.9/km²). 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. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 6.29% of the population.

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 is $99,086, and the median income for a family is $122,719 (these figures had risen to $117,857 and $168,779 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males have a median income of $95,085 versus $47,806 for females. The per capita income for the town is $74,346. About 2.5% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.

Wealth

Both the Official AENGLC Wealth Value and the CPR AENGLC Wealth Value show Greenwich as having the highest wealth value in Connecticut at over $430,000 per person. The AENGLC is based on the value of residential and commercial real estate and measures the town's tax base available to pay for public education(see Conn. Dep of Ed). It is not a measure of the personal wealth of individual residents. New Canaan is the wealthiest town in Connecticut, with a per capita income of $82,049, second is Darien at $77,519 and Greenwich third at $74,346 per the 2000 Census. Greenwich was the highest income place with a population of 50,000 or more in 2000. However, using the list of the 100 richest places in the United States with at least 1,000 households yields a different result. This is the most common list used for referring to the richest communities in the country, as it eliminates any places with unsubstantial populations. On this list Greenwich ranks 56th after New Canaan at 32nd, Darien at 44th, and Weston at 55th.

The median price for a single-family home in town was $1.7 million in 2006, when about 140 properties sold for $5 million or more, according to Prudential Connecticut Realty. In 2007, the highest asking prices for residential property in town were $39.5 million for the estate of actor Mel Gibson on Old Mill Road, $19.7 million for a mansion on with a private lake, and $38 million for an estate with formal gardens and a greenhouse the size of a cottage.

Notable people, past and present

Due to its affluence and convenient location near New York City, Greenwich has long been associated with or has been home or birthplace to well-known people in various fields.

Sister cities

Greenwich currently has three sister cities: Kitzbühel, Tyrol (Austria) (Since 1961) Vienne, Isère (France) Nacka Municipality (Sweden)

Media

Radio

WGCH-AM 1490 radio station; 1,000 watts

Newspapers and print

Greenwich Time - daily newspaper based in Greenwich; published by Hearst Corporation, which also owns The Advocate of Stamford. Some sections are identical to the same sections in The Advocate, including the arts and business sections.

Greenwich Citizen - the older weekly in town, tabloid-sized and a part of the Brooks Community Newspapers chain, now owned by Media News Group Inc., which also owns the daily Connecticut Post in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Greenwich Post - weekly broadsheet, part of the Hersam Acorn chain of local weeklies.

Greenwich Magazine, owned by Moffly Publications, which publishes other local magazines, including *New Canaan-Darien Magazine and Westport Magazine.

Vivapop Publishes local news, charitable events and calendars.

Greenwich Kids News Greenwich Kids News A kids newspaper by and for kids.

Another Financial Publishing Company

Films shot in Greenwich

, 1890s, a painting of his Greenwich farm]] List is in reverse chronological order of movies filmed (or partially filmed) in Greenwich:

All Good Things (2010)

The Best Laid Plans (2009)

Listen to Your Heart (2009)

Old Dogs (2009)

A Smirk of Satisfaction (2009)

Revolutionary Road (2008)

The Accidental Husband (2008)

The Life Before Her Eyes (2007)

Person of Interest (2007)

Borrowing Rebecca (2006)

The Good Shepherd (2006)

Holes in My Shoes (2006)

The Path of Most Resistance (2006)

After Roberto (2005)

Domino One (2005)

The Family Stone (2005)

Figment (2005/II)

Filmic Achievement (2005)

R.I.P. (2005/I)

The Stepford Wives (2004)

Chubby Kid, A (2002)

Fabled (2002)

The Ice Storm (1997)

Ransom (1996)

Deadtime Stories (1986)

Danny (1977)

Time Piece (1965)

Open the Door and See All the People (1964)

The American Venus (1926)

Via Wireless (1915)

Two Little Waifs (1910)

The Golden Supper (1910)

The Cardinal's Conspiracy (1909)

A Change of Heart (1909)

The Country Doctor (1909)

Sweet and Twenty (1909)

Tender Hearts (1909)

The Message (1909)

The Little Teacher (1909)

Television filmed in Greenwich

Teachers (2008) - TV movie

"The Apprentice" (2004)

"Wickedly Perfect" (2004)

"Made in America" (2003)

"Rich Girls" (2003)

"TV Nation" (1995)

See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Greenwich, Connecticut

References

External links

Town of Greenwich, CT - town government official site

Greenwich Public Schools

Greenwich Chamber of Commerce

Local Guide to Greenwich

Living in Chickahominy - slideshow by The New York Times

Category:Towns in Fairfield County, Connecticut Category:Populated places established in 1640