Lakewood Township, New Jersey

For the census-designated place within the township, see Lakewood (CDP), New Jersey.

Lakewood Township, New Jersey
Township
Beth Medrash Govoha, the largest yeshiva outside of Israel[1][2]
Beth Medrash Govoha, the largest yeshiva outside of Israel[1][2]
Official seal of Lakewood Township, New Jersey
Seal
Location of Lakewood Township in Ocean County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Ocean County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (left).
Location of Lakewood Township in Ocean County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Ocean County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (left).
Census Bureau map of Lakewood Township, New Jersey Interactive map of Lakewood Township, New Jersey
Census Bureau map of Lakewood Township, New Jersey
Map
Interactive map of Lakewood Township, New Jersey
Lakewood is located in Ocean County, New Jersey
Lakewood
Lakewood
Location in Ocean County
Lakewood is located in New Jersey
Lakewood
Lakewood
Location in New Jersey
Lakewood is located in the United States
Lakewood
Lakewood
Location in the United States
Coordinates: 40°04′37″N 74°11′55″W / 40.077069°N 74.19851°W / 40.077069; -74.19851[3][4]
Country United States
State New Jersey
CountyOcean
IncorporatedMarch 23, 1892
Government
[9]
 • TypeTownship
 • BodyTownship Committee
 • MayorRaymond G. Coles (D) (term ends December 31, 2024)[5][6]
 • ManagerPatrick Donnelly[7]
 • Municipal clerkLauren Kirkman[8]
Area
[3]
 • Total
25.08 sq mi (64.95 km2)
 • Land24.68 sq mi (63.92 km2)
 • Water0.40 sq mi (1.03 km2)  1.59%
 • Rank108th of 565 in state
12th of 33 in county[3]
Elevation
[10]
49 ft (15 m)
Population
 (2020)[11][12]
 • Total
135,158
 • Estimate 
(2023)[11][13]
139,866
 • Rank4th of 565 in state (2023)
1st of 33 in county[14]
 • Density5,476.2/sq mi (2,114.4/km2)
  • Rank100th of 565 in state
1st of 33 in county[14]
199th in U.S. (2021)[citation needed]
Time zoneUTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code
08701[15][16]
Area code732, 848[17]
FIPS code[3][18][19]34-38550
GNIS ID[3][18][19][20]882076
Websitewww.lakewoodnj.gov

Lakewood Township is the most populous township in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A rapidly growing community, as of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 135,158,[11][12] its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 42,315 (+45.6%) from the 2010 census count of 92,843,[21][22] which in turn reflected an increase of 32,491 (+53.8%) from the 60,352 counted in the 2000 census.[23] The township ranked as the fifth-most-populous municipality in the state in 2020,[24] after ranking seventh in 2010, and 22nd in 2000, placing the township only behind the state's four biggest cities (Newark; Jersey City; Paterson; Elizabeth).[25] The sharp increase in population from 2000 to 2010 was led largely by increases in the township's Orthodox Jewish and Latino communities.[26] Further growth in the Orthodox community led to a sharp increase in population in the 2020 census, with a large number of births leading to a significant drop in the township's median age.[27] The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the township's population was 139,506 in 2022,[11] helping the fast-growing town surpass Elizabeth as the fourth-most-populous municipality in the state.[12]

As a major hub of Orthodox Judaism, Lakewood is home to Beth Medrash Govoha (BMG), the largest yeshiva outside of Israel.[28] The large Orthodox population, which comprises more than half the township's population, strongly influences the township's culture[28][29] and wields considerable political clout in the township as a voting bloc.[30][31][32]

  1. ^ Steve Strunsky (April 16, 2019). "Lakewood yeshiva looks to use old golf course for new campus". New Jersey On-Line LLC. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019. Beth Medrash Gohova is said to be the world's largest Jewish-affiliated university outside of Israel.
  2. ^ Stephen Stirling (August 3, 2017). "10 ways Lakewood is unlike anywhere else in N.J." NJ Advance Media. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019. The sea change can be pinned to one event: The founding of the Beth Medrash Govoha yeshiva in the mid-20th century. The Orthodox Jewish community has set down roots en masse around the religious school, which is now the largest yeshiva in North America.
  3. ^ a b c d e 2019 Census Gazetteer Files: New Jersey Places Archived March 21, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, United States Census Bureau. Accessed July 1, 2020.
  4. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990 Archived August 24, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, United States Census Bureau. Accessed September 4, 2014.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Government was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ 2023 New Jersey Mayors Directory Archived March 11, 2023(Date mismatch), at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, updated April 6, 2024. Accessed April 6, 2024.
  7. ^ Municipal Manager, Township of Lakewood. Accessed March 16, 2024.
  8. ^ Township Clerk, Township of Lakewood. Accessed March 16, 2024.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference DataBook was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "Township of Lakewood". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved September 15, 2014.
  11. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference Census2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference LWD2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference PopEst was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ a b Population Density by County and Municipality: New Jersey, 2020 and 2021 Archived March 7, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Accessed March 1, 2023.
  15. ^ Look Up a ZIP Code for Lakewood, NJ Archived November 6, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, United States Postal Service. Accessed September 5, 2011.
  16. ^ Zip Codes Archived June 17, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, State of New Jersey. Accessed September 14, 2013.
  17. ^ Area Code Lookup - NPA NXX for Lakewood, NJ Archived May 17, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, Area-Codes.com. Accessed September 14, 2013.
  18. ^ a b "Township of Lakewood (Ocean County, New Jersey)". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  19. ^ a b "FIPS55 Data: New Jersey". FIPS55 Data. United States Geological Survey. February 23, 2006. Archived from the original on June 18, 2006. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  20. ^ Geographic Codes Lookup for New Jersey Archived November 19, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed April 1, 2022.
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference Census2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ Cite error: The named reference LWD2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  23. ^ Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010 Archived June 2, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023.
  24. ^ Table 1. New Jersey Counties and Most Populous Cities and Townships: 2020 and 2010 Censuses Archived March 28, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Accessed March 19, 2022.
  25. ^ The Counties and Most Populous Cities and Townships in 2010 in New Jersey: 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Accessed May 12, 2017.
  26. ^ Rundquist, Jeanette. "Lakewood, N.J.'s fastest-growing town, is defined by its diversity" Archived February 9, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, The Star-Ledger, February 6, 2011. Accessed September 5, 2011. "The 54 percent population increase, according to residents and community leaders in Lakewood, was fueled by growth in the Jewish community, the Latino community, and a third group, senior citizens. The town's African-American population, meanwhile, dropped slightly."
  27. ^ Cervenka, Susanne. "Ocean no longer among state's oldest counties; Affordable housing, access to Parkway behind population shift" Archived January 27, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, Home News Tribune, August 5, 2022. Accessed June 27, 2023, via Newspapers.com. "Lakewood leads Ocean County's youth movement. The township, which is New Jersey's fastest growing community, saw its median age drop from 24.6 years in 2010 to 18.5 years last year, the most recent year for which data is available. Much of its growth, and the decline in median age is a result of the burgeoning Orthodox Jewish community.... Families are also typically large in the Orthodox community, and state data shows Lakewood has been experiencing a baby boom for much of the last 20 years."
  28. ^ a b Di Ionno, Mark. "How Lakewood became a worldwide destination for Orthodox Jews" Archived May 7, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, The Star-Ledger, May 7, 2017. Accessed May 12, 2017. "It is Friday in Lakewood. A few thousand young men in black suits and wide-brimmed black hats are rushing toward Beth Medrash Govoha (BMG), the world's largest yeshiva outside of Israel... The yeshiva has about 6,500 students, equal in enrollment to the College of New Jersey."
  29. ^ Goldberg, Rabbi Meir. "NJ Orthodox: Lots of variation in Lakewood's Jewish community" Archived September 30, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, Asbury Park Press, June 27, 2019. Accessed February 6, 2022. "Lakewood's Orthodox Jews have created an economic engine that employs tens of thousands of Jews and non-Jews alike, including construction, tech, health care, real estate, law, medicine, finance, service and home repair industries and more."
  30. ^ Peterson, Iver. "Tragedy Forces Town To Face Its Divisions; Breaching Barriers of Creed and Culture" Archived February 7, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, August 19, 1995. Accessed June 20, 2016. "The community is not withdrawn in politics, however. The Orthodox vote as a nearly solid bloc, making them the dominant political power in Lakewood, and a power that can only grow: Leaders of the yeshiva community, which had about 400 members in 1968, expect their numbers to top 27,000 by the turn of the century."
  31. ^ Weiss, Steven I. "U.S. gets another Orthodox mayor" Archived February 7, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, July 12, 2006. Accessed February 6, 2022. "That's certainly the case in Lakewood, where Meir Lichtenstein was inaugurated as mayor in January. Orthodox Jews make up nearly half of the village's 70,000 residents, and they often vote as a bloc, with a council of leaders determining whom they should support."
  32. ^ Stilton, Phil. Jack Ciattarelli visits Lakewood, making a pitch for the Lakewood bloc vote Archived February 7, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, Shore News Network, May 31, 2021. Accessed February 6, 2022. "New Jersey candidate for Governor Ciattarelli this week visited Lakewood to lobby for that town's large and highly coveted 'bloc vote'. In politics, the Lakewood Orthodox Jewish community often votes as a bloc, but not always, guided by a council of rabbis and business owners in the growing city called 'the VAAD'. The Lakewood vote can often make or break a candidate's campaign and Ciattarelli knows that."