Map of Woodland Park in Passaic County (shown under its former name West Paterson). Inset: Location of Passaic County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Detailed Census Bureau map of West Paterson in 2000
What is now Woodland Park was formed as a borough under the name West Paterson, by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 25, 1914, from portions of Little Falls Township, based on the results of a referendum held on May 1, 1914.[23]
On November 4, 2008, the citizens of West Paterson voted to change the official name of the borough from West Paterson to Woodland Park.[24] The new name retains the initials "W.P." and is a reference to the community's wooded areas. At a November 10, 2008 community meeting attended by 200 residents, a number of residents demanded that a recount be held if the official results showed that the measure had passed. In case the recount demand was unsuccessful, the group discussed filing a petition to change the name back to West Paterson, including discussion of how to raise the $33,000 needed to cover the cost of a special election in spring 2009 for voters to reconsider the name.[25] By November 25, 2008, the provisional vote counts had been tallied, and the name change won by 25 votes. The mayor and Council approved a resolution in December 2008, officially changing the borough's name to the Borough of Woodland Park, effective January 1, 2009. The name change is an attempt to "distance" itself from nearby urban Paterson, New Jersey, and all of the social ills associated with cities, including but not limited to urban blight, high crime, and drug addiction.[26][27] A referendum held on November 3, 2009, affirmed the name change.
^"The Borough's Name Change", Accessed September 4, 2015. "The Nov. 2008 referendum passed by a slim margin, with 2,136 voters in favor and 2,111 opposed. As a simple majority is all that is required for passage, the governing body did as required by state statute and approved Resolution R08-253 on Dec. 17, 2008 making the official name the Borough of Woodland Park, effective Jan. 1, 2009."
^Cite error: The named reference Census2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference LWD2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Appel, Heather. "West Paterson no more", The Record, November 5, 2008, backed up by the Internet Archive as of February 16, 2009. Accessed September 4, 2015. "Voters in West Paterson tonight approved a name change to Woodland Park. A referendum to change the borough's name to Woodland Park passed by a margin of just 33 votes, according to preliminary results Tuesday night."
^The Borough's Name Change, Borough of Woodland Park. Accessed August 14, 2011. "As a simple majority is all that is required for passage, the governing body did as required by state statute and approved Resolution R08-253 on Dec. 17, 2008 making the official name the Borough of Woodland Park, effective Jan. 1, 2009."