Editing Colts Neck Township, New Jersey (section)

== Community ==
[[File:Bucks Mill, NJ.jpg|thumb|left|Remains of the original [[Bucks Mill, New Jersey|Bucks Mill]]]]
Colts Neck is a wealthy [[bedroom suburb|bedroom community]] in [[Central Jersey|Central New Jersey]], located within the [[New York metropolitan area]]. Many people choose to move to Colts Neck due to its open space and proximity to the [[Jersey Shore]], while still being within commuting distance of [[New York City]].<ref>Tarabour, Brooke. [https://www.nytimes.com/1993/01/10/nyregion/new-jersey-bound-the-staten-island-migration.html "New Jersey-Bound: The Staten Island Migration"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', January 10, 1993. Accessed June 10, 2022.</ref><ref>Scancarella, Doug [https://www.nytimes.com/1995/09/17/realestate/if-you-re-thinkingh-living-colts-neck-60-miles-broadway-rural-feel-price.html "If You're Thinkingh of Living In: Colts Neck; 60 Miles From Broadway, A Rural Feel - At a Price"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', September 17, 1995. Accessed June 7, 2022.</ref><ref>Cheslow, Jerry [https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/12/realestate/wide-open-spaces-and-a-place-to-park-your-horse.html "Living In/Colts Neck, N.J.: Wide Open Spaces, and a Place to Park Your Horse"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', September 12, 2004. Accessed June 7, 2022.</ref> The township's strict zoning ordinances have long kept out urban development and [[chain store]]s, allowing for locally owned businesses, while still being close to malls, movie theaters, and other amenities in neighboring communities.

The township has a Farmland Preservation Committee which to date has preserved nearly {{convert|1000|acre}} of land, providing one way in which Colts Neck has been able to prevent large-scale development. The township has strict zoning regulations, and because there is no public water or sewage service, most homes must be built on lots covering a minimum of 2, 5 and {{convert|10|acre}}.<ref name=Thinking/>

Originally a farming community, Colts Neck has long been known for its large number of equestrian farms. From the 1950s into the 1970s many of Colts Neck's heavily wooded areas were developed with large colonial and ranch-style houses on acre-sized lots. In the 1980s and continuing into the 2000s much of the town's farm land has been replaced with large houses, mansions and sprawling estates, although a large number of equestrian farms remain. During this time period increasing home prices in northern New Jersey and New York City resulted in large numbers of people moving to central New Jersey, causing real estate prices in Colts Neck and surrounding towns to rise considerably over the course of the two decades. Colts Neck real estate prices remain high despite the economic downturn: as of November 2012, the average listing price of a house was $1,433,112 and the number of home sales is down 41.4% from the previous year.<ref name=Trulia>[http://www.trulia.com/real_estate/07722-Colts_Neck/ Colts Neck, 07722 Real Estate Overview], [[Trulia]]. Accessed December 3, 2012.</ref>

Many of Colts Neck's residents are professional business people who commute into New York City's [[Financial District, Manhattan|financial district]], as could be seen in the unusual proportion of the small community who were lost in the [[September 11 terrorist attacks]] on the [[World Trade Center (1973-2001)|World Trade Center]]. A memorial garden dedicated to the five members of the community who were lost was created at the municipal center by sculptor [[Jim Gary]], a member of the community who was raised in Colts Neck. The central feature of the memorial garden is his sculpture of metal and [[stained glass]].<ref>Via [[Associated Press]]. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/18/AR2006011802465.html "Jim Gary; Created Art From Castoff Auto Parts"], ''[[The Washington Post]]'', January 19, 2006. Accessed September 15, 2011. "Mr. Gary's work also included more serious pieces, such as a bouquet of six roses he completed last year for a Jewish temple to commemorate the Holocaust, and a Sept. 11 memorial he created for the community of Colts Neck, N.J. "</ref><ref>Erminio, Vinessa. [https://www.nj.com/news/2021/09/faces-of-the-new-jersey-victims-of-sept-11.html "Faces of the New Jersey victims of Sept. 11: A tribute in photos to 734 victims with ties to the Garden State"], ''[[nj.com]]'', September 11, 2021. Accessed July 2, 2023.</ref>

In 2018, Colts Neck made national headlines when [[2018 Colts Neck mansion killings|a man set his brother's mansion on fire]], killing his brother, sister in law and their two children.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Paul |first1=Deanna |title=A N.J. family is dead, a mansion is burned — and a sibling is charged with murder |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/11/29/man-faces-murder-charges-nj-mansion-fire-that-killed-his-brothers-family/?noredirect=on |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=December 3, 2018}}</ref>