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==History== ===Early history and civic boundaries=== [[File:1.23.10UnionCityBorderByLuigiNovi.jpg|thumb|Sign marking Union City's southern border with [[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]]]] The area of what is today Union City was originally inhabited by the [[Munsee language|Munsee-speaking]] branch of [[Lenape]] [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]],<ref name=History/><ref>Trigger, Bruce G. ''Delaware languages: Handbook of North American Indians'' Vol. 15: Northeast, page 215. [[Smithsonian Institution Press]], Washington D.C. 1978. {{ISBN|0-16-004575-4}}.</ref><ref>Day, Gordon M. "The Indian as an Ecological Factor in the Northeastern Forests." ''Ecology'', Vol. 34, No. 2 (April): 329-346. New England and New York areas 1580β1800. Notes that the Lenni Lenape (Delaware) tribe in New Jersey and the Massachuset tribe in Massachusetts used fire in ecosystems.1953</ref><ref>Russell, Emily W.B. "Vegetational Change in Northern New Jersey Since 1500 A.D.: A Palynological, Vegetational and Historical Synthesis." PhD dissertation. New Brunswick, PA: Rutgers University. Author notes on page 8 that Indians often augmented lightning fires. 1979</ref><ref>Russell, Emily W.B. "Indian Set Fires in the Forests of the Northeastern United States." ''Ecology'', Vol. 64, No. 1 (Feb): 78 88. 1983a Author found no strong evidence that Indians purposely burned large areas, but they did burn small areas near their habitation sites. Noted that the Lenna Lenape Tribe used fire.</ref><ref>''A Brief Description of New York, Formerly Called New Netherlands with the Places Thereunto Adjoining, Likewise a Brief Relation of the Customs of the Indians There.'' New York, NY: William Gowans. 1670. Reprinted in 1937 by the Facsimile Text Society, [[Columbia University Press]], New York. Notes that the Lenni Lenape (Delaware) tribe in New Jersey used fire in ecosystems.</ref> who wandered into the vast woodland area encountered by [[Henry Hudson]] during the voyages he conducted from 1609 to 1610 for the [[Dutch people|Dutch]], who later claimed the area (which included the future [[New York City]]) and named it [[New Netherland]]. The portion of that land that included the future Hudson County was purchased from members of the [[Hackensack tribe]] of the Lenni-Lenape and became part of [[Pavonia, New Netherland]].<ref>Karnoutsos, Carmela. [http://www.njcu.edu/programs/jchistory/Pages/P_Pages/Pavonia.htm Pavonia, Lower Jersey City] [[New Jersey City University]]. Accessed October 14, 2015.</ref> The relationship between the early Dutch settlers and Native Americans was marked by frequent armed conflict over land claims. In 1658 by New Netherland colony Director-General [[Peter Stuyvesant]] re-purchased the territory.<ref>Robinson, Walter F. (1964). ''New Jersey Tercentenary: 1664β1964''. Hudson County Tercentenary Committee for this information, p. 190</ref><ref name=UCPictures>[[Fernandez, Lucio]]; Karabin, Gerard (2010). ''Union City in Pictures''. Book Press NY. pp. 11β13.</ref> The boundaries of the purchase are described in the deed preserved in the New York State Archives, as well as the medium of exchange: "80 fathoms of [[wampum]], 20 fathoms of cloth, 12 brass kettles, 6 guns, one double brass kettle, 2 blankets, and one half barrel of strong beer."<ref>''50th Anniversary of the Incorporation of the Town of West Hoboken, N.J.'' (1911). Datz Co.</ref> In 1660, he ordered the building of a fortified village at [[Bergen Square|Bergen]] to protect the area.<ref>Karnoutsos, Carmela. [http://www.njcu.edu/programs/jchistory/Pages/D_Pages/Dutch_Settlement.htm 350th Anniversary of the Dutch Settlement of Bergen; Colonial Jersey City], [[New Jersey City University]]. Accessed August 28, 2017.</ref> It was the first permanent European settlement in New Jersey, located in what is now the [[Journal Square]] area of [[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]] near Academy Street.<ref name=UCPictures/><ref name=350Years>Kaulessar, Ricardo. [https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2010/10/03/350-years-of-history-2/ "350 years of history; Fair commemorates founding of Jersey City, will honor the oldest families in Hudson County"], ''[[The Hudson Reporter]]'', October 3, 2010. Accessed November 14, 2019. "Before there was a Jersey City or a Hudson County, the village of Bergen β the first European settlement in New Jersey, founded in 1660 by Dutch settler Peter Stuyvesant β had its origins in what is now the Journal Square area of Jersey City near Academy Street."</ref> In 1664, the [[United Kingdom|British]] captured New Netherland from the Dutch, at which point the boundaries of Bergen Township encompassed what is now known as Hudson County. North of this was the unpopulated Bergen Woods, which would later be claimed by settlers, after whom a number of Union City streets today are named,<ref name=UCPictures/> including Sipp Street,<ref name=1957Map>''Bergen: Town and Township Nov 1660-Sept 22, 1668'', 1957 Genealogical Society of New Jersey</ref><ref name=Harvey>Harvey, Cornelius Burnham. [https://books.google.com/books?id=EdoMAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA20 ''Genealogical History of Hudson and Bergen Counties, New Jersey''], p. 20. The New Jersey Genealogical Publishing Company, 1900. Accessed October 14, 2015.</ref><ref name=Winfield>Winfield, Charles H. [https://archive.org/details/historycountyhu00winfgoog/page/n553 <!-- pg=525 --> ''History of the County of Hudson, New Jersey''], p. 525. Kennard & Hay Stationary, 1874. Accessed October 14, 2015.</ref> Brown Street,<ref name=Harvey/><ref name=1873Map>''Northern Part of the Town of Union'', 1873, Gleason's Old Maps, [[East Templeton, Massachusetts]]</ref> Golden Lane,<ref name=1873Map/> Tournade Street and Kerrigan Avenue,<ref name=BusinessDirectory>''Business Directory Of North Hudson'', North Hudson Hospital Association, Town of Union, N.J. 1905, p. 331</ref> which is named after J. Kerrigan, the owner of Kerrigan Farm, who donated the land for [[Saint Michael's Monastery]].<ref name=BusinessDirectory/><ref name=Calendar>Union City 2000 Calendar, 2000, culled from ''History of West Hoboken and Union Hill'' by Ella-Mary Ryman, 1965 and "The Historical Background of Union City" by Daniel A. Primont, William G. Fiedler and Fred Zuccaro, 1964</ref> The area that would one day be Union City, however, remained sparsely populated until the early 19th century. The British granted Bergen a new town charter in 1668. In 1682 they created [[Bergen County, New Jersey|Bergen County]], which was named to honor their Dutch predecessors. That county included all of present-day Hudson, Bergen and [[Passaic County, New Jersey|Passaic]] counties. Sparsely inhabited during the 17th and 18th centuries, the southeast section of Bergen County had grown by the early 19th century to the point where it was deemed necessary to designate it a separate county. The New Jersey legislature created Hudson County in 1840, and in 1843, it was divided into two townships: Old Bergen Township (which eventually became Jersey City) and [[North Bergen, New Jersey|North Bergen Township]], which was gradually separated into Hudson County's present day municipalities: [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hoboken]] in 1849, [[Weehawken, New Jersey|Weehawken]] and [[Guttenberg, New Jersey|Guttenberg]] in 1859, and [[West Hoboken, New Jersey|West Hoboken]] and [[Union Hill, New Jersey|Union Township]].<ref name=Story/><ref name=UCPictures/> West Hoboken was incorporated as a [[township (New Jersey)|township]] by an act of the [[New Jersey Legislature]] on February 28, 1861, from portions of North Bergen Township. The township was reincorporated on April 6, 1871, and again on March 27, 1874. Portions of the township were ceded to Weehawken in 1879.<ref name=Story/> On June 28, 1884, West Hoboken was reincorporated as a [[town (New Jersey)|town]], based on an ordinance passed nine days earlier. The town was reincorporated on April 24, 1888, based on the results of a referendum passed 12 days earlier.<ref name=Story/> Union Township, or simply Union,<ref name=1873Map/><ref name=BusinessDirectory/><ref>''Rules and Regulations of the Police Department of the Town of Union, N.J.'' Adopted July 13, 1881. West Hoboken, A.E. Gregory, Printer, Palisade Avenue. 1881</ref> was formed in 1864<ref name=Story/> through the merger of a number of villages, such as Dalleytown, Buck's Corners and Cox's Corners. The largest of these villages, Union Hill, became the colloquial name for the merged town of Union itself.<ref>Van Winkle, Daniel (1924). ''History of the Municipalities of Hudson County, NJ'' 1630β1923, Lewis Historical Publishing Company Inc. New York & Chicago. pp. 463-464</ref> The northern section of Union Township was later incorporated as [[West New York, New Jersey|West New York]] in 1898.<ref name=UCPictures/> Union City was incorporated on June 1, 1925, by merging the two towns of West Hoboken and [[Union Hill, New Jersey|Union Hill]].<ref name=Story/><ref name=History>Karabin, Gerard. [http://www.ucnj.com/Departments/history/ "Brief History of Union City"]. Union City, New Jersey. Accessed August 28, 2017. "Eighty-five years ago on June 1, 1925, the Town of Union (colloquially known as Union Hill) and the Township of West Hoboken joined together and became one, the city of Union City."</ref> The name of one of the city's schools, [[Union Hill Middle School]], recalls the former town.<ref>[http://uhmiddleunioncity.sharpschool.com/ Union Hill Middle School] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919200929/http://uhmiddleunioncity.sharpschool.com/ |date=2016-09-19 }}. Accessed August 27, 2013.</ref> ===Immigration and industry=== [[File:1.22.10UCParkTheaterEmbroideryByLuigiNovi16.jpg|thumb|left|Embroidery and lace exhibit at Union City's [[Park Performing Arts Center]]]] In the 18th century, [[Dutch people|Dutch]] and [[British people|English]] merchants first settled the area. Later, [[German people|German]] immigrants immigrated from [[Manhattan]]. [[Irish people|Irish]], [[Polish people|Polish]], [[Armenians]], [[Syrian people|Syrians]], [[Eastern European Jews]] and [[Italians]] followed.<ref name=OtherCuban>{{cite web|author=Perez-Stable, Marifeli|url=http://www.cubaverdad.net/weblog/2009/12/that-other-cuban-community/|title=That other Cuban community|newspaper=[[The Miami Herald]]|date=December 3, 2009|access-date=August 22, 2019|archive-date=August 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829040223/http://www.cubaverdad.net/weblog/2009/12/that-other-cuban-community/}}</ref> In 1851, [[Germans]] moved across the [[Hudson River]] from [[New York City]] in search of affordable land and open space. During the [[American Civil War]] a military installation, Camp Yates, covered an area now bounded by [[Bergenline Avenue|Bergenline]] and Palisade Avenues from 22nd to [[Hackensack Plank Road|32nd Street]]. Germans began to settle what would become Union Hill in 1851,<ref name=UCPictures/> and some descendants of the immigrants of this period live in the city today.<ref name=350Years/> Although the area's diversity was represented by the more than 19 nationalities that made their home in the Dardanelles (a five-block area of Central Avenue from 23rd Street to 27th Street)<ref name=UCPictures/> from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century, [[German American]]s and [[Dutch people|Dutch]] dominated the area. Along with [[Switzerland|Swiss]] and [[Austria]]n immigrants, they founded the European-style [[lace]] making industries for which they were famous. The introduction of [[Schiffli lace]] [[Schiffli embroidery machine|machines]] in Hudson County<ref>[http://www.schiffli.org/history.htm "History"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719103136/http://www.schiffli.org/history.htm |date=July 19, 2011 }}. Schiffli Lace and Embroidery Manufacturers Association. Accessed February 18, 2011.</ref> made Union City the "embroidery capital of the United States". The trademark of that industry is on the Union City Seal,<ref name=Calendar/><ref name="Cunningham">{{cite book|last=Cunningham|first=John|title=This is New Jersey|edition=4|year=2004|publisher=Rutgers University Press/Hudson River Museum|location=[[Yonkers, New York]]|isbn=0-8135-2141-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/thisisnewjersey0000cunn/page/100 100]|url=https://archive.org/details/thisisnewjersey0000cunn/page/100}}</ref><ref name=PopikUnionCity>Popik, Barry. [http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/florida/entry/little_havana_miami_little_havana_on_the_hudson_union_city_new_jersey/ "Little Havana (Miami) & Little Havana on the Hudson (Union City, New Jersey)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707213306/http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/florida/entry/little_havana_miami_little_havana_on_the_hudson_union_city_new_jersey/ |date=July 7, 2011 }}. BarryPopkik.com, August 15, 2006. Accessed July 6, 2017.</ref> though foreign competition and austere prevailing fashions led to the decline of embroidery and other industries in the area by the late 1990s.<ref>{{cite web|author=Pristin, Terry|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/01/03/nyregion/in-new-jersey-a-delicate-industry-unravels.html|title=In New Jersey, a Delicate Industry Unravels|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=January 3, 1998|access-date=July 6, 2020|archive-date=November 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111200151/https://www.nytimes.com/1998/01/03/nyregion/in-new-jersey-a-delicate-industry-unravels.html}}</ref> In May 2014 the city dedicated "Embroidery Square" at New York Avenue to commemorate that history.<ref>Conte, Michaelangelo. [http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2014/05/embroidery_square_dedicated_in_union_city.html#incart_river_default "Union City dedicates plaza that honors history as 'Embroidery Capital of the World'"], ''[[The Jersey Journal]]'', May 31, 2014. Accessed October 14, 2015. "Union City named a portion of New York Avenue 'Embroidery Plaza' last night to commemorate the city's once-thriving embroidery industry."</ref> As immigration to the area progressed throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, [[Belgians]], [[Armenians]], [[Greeks]], [[Chinese people|Chinese]], [[Jewish people|Jews]] and [[Russians]] found a home in the area,<ref name=UCPictures/> though its domination by Germans by the turn of the 20th century was reflected in the fact that the minutes of town meetings were recorded in [[German language|German]].<ref>Keller, Susan Jo. [https://www.nytimes.com/1996/10/06/nyregion/at-schuetzen-park-a-bit-of-germany-and-a-tradition-of-charity.html "At Schuetzen Park, a Bit of Germany and a Tradition of Charity"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', October 6, 1996. Accessed November 14, 2019. "Around the turn of the century in Union Hill, a town later absorbed into Union City, the minutes of town meetings were written in German, a reflection of the number of German immigrants in Hudson County. Today little of that German influence remains, with the exception of Schuetzen Park, a three-acre enclave in North Bergen where polka music sometimes still sets feet tapping."</ref> By this time, the area was witnessing a period of urbanization, as an extensive [[tram|trolley]] system was developed by the [[North Hudson County Railway]], spurred by both electrification in 1890 and the arrival of [[Irish people|Irish]] and [[Italians|Italian]] immigrants, which dominated the city until the late 1960s. Successive waves of immigrants from [[Eastern Europe]], the Near East and [[Latin America]] contributed to the embroidery industry in subsequent years. "The Cultural Thread"/"El Hilo", an exhibit highlighting this industry, is on display at Union City's Park Performing Arts Center.<ref>[http://www.parkpac.org/pp_exh.html The Cultural Thread/El Hilo Cultural] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727163429/http://www.parkpac.org/pp_exh.html |date=2011-07-27 }}, Park Performing Art Center. Accessed June 25, 2007.</ref> The town was famous for being the home of the rowdy Hudson [[American burlesque|Burlesque]].<ref name=GoogleNews/><ref name=TimesPassion>Romano, Jay. [https://www.nytimes.com/1989/03/05/nyregion/union-city-journal-2-passion-plays-thrive-on-a-friendly-rivalry.html "Union City Journal: 2 Passion Plays Thrive On a 'Friendly Rivalry'"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', March 5, 1989. Accessed October 14, 2015.</ref> Theaters in Union City featured [[vaudeville]] and burlesque and acts including [[Fred Astaire]] and [[Harry Houdini]].<ref name=History/><ref>Fernandez, 2010, p. 15.</ref> It was at a vaudeville theater in Union City that comedian [[George Burns]] would meet his longtime partner and wife, [[Gracie Allen]].<ref>[https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/gracie-allen/bio/152480 "Grace Allen Biography"]. ''[[TV Guide]]''. Accessed April 14, 2014.</ref> Union City was also for a time the home to the headquarters of sports publisher [[Joe Weider]].<ref>[[Joe Weider|Weider, Joe]]; Weider, Ben; and Steere, Mike. [https://books.google.com/books?id=RHFRX2spCvMC&pg=PA115 ''Brothers of Iron''], p. 115. Sports Publishing LLC, 2006. {{ISBN|9781596701243}}. Accessed August 28, 2017. "In January 1957, the guys loaded one last moving van and then I locked the doors forever on Hopkins Avenue. About a mile of there we celebrated the opening of a brand-new headquarters at 801 Palisade Avenue, Union City, New Jersey."</ref> Weider's empire included a Weider Barbell store in Union City, whose patrons included body builder [[Dave Draper]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/24/sports/dave-draper-dead.html|title=Dave Draper, Bodybuilding's 'Blond Bomber,' Dies at 79|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|language=en-US|url-status=live|author=Sandomir, Richard|date=December 24, 2021|access-date=August 30, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2022|archive-url=https://archive.today/20220208171037/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/24/sports/dave-draper-dead.html}}</ref> The first [[Cubans]] immigrated to Union City from New York City in the late 1940s, having been attracted to the city in search of work after hearing of its famed embroidery factories.<ref name=OtherCuban/><ref name=TechPlans/><ref name=NewYorkTimes2.5.06>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/05/nyregion/on-politics-a-cuban-revolution-only-its-in-new-jersey.html|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|title=ON POLITICS; A Cuban Revolution, Only It's in New Jersey|author=Gettleman, Jeffrey|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=February 5, 2006|access-date=January 12, 2023|archive-date=February 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210223174541/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/05/nyregion/on-politics-a-cuban-revolution-only-its-in-new-jersey.html}}</ref> A majority of these Cubans hailed from small towns or cities, particularly [[Villa Clara Province]] in central Cuba.<ref name=OtherCuban/><ref name=TechPlans/> After [[World War II]], veterans relocated to [[Bergen County, New Jersey|Bergen County]], causing a short-lived decline in the population.<ref name=NewYorkSun>Hope, Bradley. [http://www.nysun.com/new-york/havana-on-hudson-reverberates-after-castros/37178/ "Havana on Hudson Reverberates After Castro's Operation"], ''[[The New York Sun]]'', August 2, 2006. Accessed July 6, 2017. "Several of the group's leaders sat in chairs around the union hall on a quiet street in Union City, N.J., a town minutes away from Manhattan that was once known as 'Havana on the Hudson'."</ref> By the 1960s the city was predominantly an old-line Italian enclave.<ref name=GoogleNews/><ref>[[Jeffrey Gettleman|Gettleman, Jeffrey]]. [https://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/01/nyregion/william-musto-88-a-mayor-reelected-on-his-way-to-jail-is-dead.html "William Musto, 88, a Mayor Re-elected on His Way to Jail, Is Dead"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', March 1, 2006. Accessed November 14, 2019. "Mr. Musto, a Democrat, was a pioneer in affirmative action, flinging open the doors to City Hall to his growing Cuban-American constituency. He was mayor from 1962 to 1970 and 1974 to 1982, an era when the city, perched on the sandstone palisades across the Hudson from New York City, dramatically changed, from an old-line Italian enclave to a little Little Havana."</ref> This began to change when [[Cuban exile|large numbers of Cubans emigrated]] to the city after [[Fidel Castro]] took power in 1962. This made Union City for many years the city with the largest Cuban population in the U.S. after Miami, hence its nickname, "Little [[Havana on the Hudson]]."<ref name=GoogleNews/><ref name=NewYorkSun/><ref>Grenier, Guillermo J. [https://books.google.com/books?id=3XBcqhL_pKEC&pg=PA84 ''Miami Now!: Immigration, Ethnicity, and Social Change'']. Archived at [[Google Books]]. Accessed March 31, 2011.</ref> Following the [[Mariel boatlift]] in 1980, 10,000 Cubans settled in New Jersey, leading to a second wave of Cubans to Union City, which totaled 15,000 by 1994.<ref name=PopikUnionCity/><ref name=HR20070625/><ref>Evelyn Nieves (August 29, 1994). [https://www.nytimes.com/1994/08/29/nyregion/cubans-kin-are-anxious-in-union-city.html "Cubans' Kin Are Anxious In Union City"]. ''The New York Times''. Accessed December 15, 2016.</ref> The city, as well as neighboring towns such as [[West New York, New Jersey|West New York]], experienced a profound cultural impact as a result of this, as seen in such aspects of local culture as its cuisine,<ref>Sietsema, Robert (December 13, 2016). [https://ny.eater.com/2016/12/13/13868522/havana-on-the-hudson-new-jersey-best-cubano-sandwiches "A Food Crawl Through Havana on the Hudson"]. Eater. Accessed July 6, 2017.</ref> fashion, music, entertainment and [[cigar]]-making.<ref name=GoogleNews/><ref>[http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2005/09/04/2003270336 "Cuban cigar tradition fades"]. ''[[Taipei Times]]''. September 4, 2005</ref><ref>Martin, Lydia. "Cuban cool", ''[[The Star-Ledger]]'', August 9, 1995. pp. 41 and 54.</ref><ref>Juri, Carmen. "Jersey's Cuban flavors", ''[[The Star-Ledger]]'', August 9, 1995. pp. 41 and 54.</ref><ref name=NYTimes2.21.08>[[Peter Applebome|Applebome, Peter]]. [https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/21/nyregion/21towns.html "In Little Little Havana, Not Quite as Much of a Cuban Feel"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', February 21, 2008. Accessed October 14, 2015.</ref> Amid a redevelopment boom in the early 1960s, The Troy Towers, a 22-story twin tower luxury apartment complex, was completed in 1966 on the edge of the Palisades cliffs<ref name=NYTimes5.9.18>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/09/realestate/living-in-union-city-new-jersey.html|title=Union City, N.J.: Close to the City, but Still Affordable|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|author=Capuzzo, Jill P.|date=May 9, 2018|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-date=May 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180509131244/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/09/realestate/living-in-union-city-new-jersey.html}}</ref> on Mountain Road<ref name=JJ12.9.65>{{cite news|title=Troy Towers Going Up: New Look for Mountain Road|newspaper=[[The Jersey Journal]]|date=December 9, 1965|page=26}}</ref> at 19th Street, at the former site of the Abbey Inn, just north of where a motorized vehicle elevator and a staircase called the Lossburg Steps were located. The former was an angled ramp originally built for horse-drawn carriages, which along with the steps, connected to [[Hackensack Plank Road]] beneath the cliffs,<ref name=JJ12.9.65/> in the Shades section of Weehawken.<ref>{{cite news|title=Kids Still Use Perilous Lossberg Steps|newspaper=[[The Jersey Journal]]|date=November 13, 1963|page=16}}</ref> According to the Hudson County Multiple Listing service, between 2016 and 2018 the median list price of residential properties on the market in Union City fluctuated between $345,000 and $509,000. The most expensive home on the market in May 2018 was a four-family building on sale for $1.6 million, while the lowest was a studio apartment in Troy Towers for $148,000. A typical residential property was a six-bedroom, three-family house in need of updating, listed at $568,000.<ref name=NYTimes5.9.18/> ===Development in the 21st century=== [[File:4.25.11ThreadByLuigiNovi.jpg|thumb|The name of the city's first high-rise condominium tower, the Thread, invokes its historical association with the embroidery industry.]] Since its inception in 2000, the Cuban Day Parade of New Jersey became a major annual event in [[North Hudson, New Jersey|North Hudson]], beginning in North Bergen and traveling south to its end in Union City.<ref>Rosero, Jessica. [https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2004/06/11/celebrating-cuban-pride-fifth-annual-cuban-day-parade-draws-residents-and-honored-guests-2/ "Celebrating Cuban Pride Fifth annual Cuban Day Parade draws residents and honored guests"], ''[[The Hudson Reporter]]'', June 11, 2004. Accessed November 14, 2019.</ref><ref>Miller, Jonathan. [https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/31/nyregion/31parade.html "Judge Decides Against a Mayor Who Banned Cuban Parade"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', May 31, 2007. Accessed July 7, 2016.</ref><ref>Rosero, Jessica. [https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2007/06/17/the-parade-marches-on-eighth-annual-cuban-day-parade-of-new-jersey-keeps-traditional-route/ "The parade marches on Eighth annual Cuban Day Parade of New Jersey keeps traditional route"], ''[[The Hudson Reporter]]'', June 17, 2007. Accessed November 14, 2019. "Superior Court Judge Maurice Gallapoli ruled in favor of the committee and allowed the parade to run its traditional course along Bergenline Avenue, last Sunday, from 79th Street in North Bergen to 31st Street in Union City. In addition, since Union City Mayor Brian Stack had granted an extension through 22nd Street, as an alternate route to the parade, the committee let the parade run nine additional blocks. West New York Mayor Silverio 'Sal' Vega refused to sign the permit for the parade to go through the township, saying that people needed to remember the plight of the Cuban people."</ref> Union City has historically been a family-oriented city predominantly made up of [[brownstone]]s, two-family homes and locally owned businesses.<ref name=NYTimes10.2.05>{{cite web|author=Martin, Antoinette|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/02/realestate/residential-upandcomer-union-city.html|title=Residential Up-and-Comer: Union City|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=October 2, 2005|access-date=February 4, 2020|archive-date=August 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829042038/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/02/realestate/residential-upandcomer-union-city.html}}</ref> Another wave of modestly sized residences began development approximately in 2003, spurred by similar development in neighboring [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hoboken]], and the city's attempt to attract developers to what had historically been a town unfriendly to them, according to Mayor [[Brian P. Stack]]. Through approval of varied construction projects to address the needs of residents of different incomes, improved [[rent control]] laws and community input on such issues,<ref name=NYTimes10.2.05/> this "Hobokenization" resulted in positive comparisons with the redeveloped Hoboken of the mid-to-late 1990s, with new restaurants, bars, and art galleries cited as evidence of renewal. The city recorded $192 million in new construction in 2007, and 600 [[Certificate of occupancy|certificates of occupancy]], with 500β700 projected for 2008β2009, compared with previous years, in which 50 certificates was considered a high amount.<ref>Amoroso, Mary. [http://corenyc.com/files/04.20.08-northjersey.com-now-it-27s-union-city-27s-turn.pdf "Now it's Union City's Turn"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103234952/http://corenyc.com/files/04.20.08-northjersey.com-now-it-27s-union-city-27s-turn.pdf |date=2012-11-03 }}, ''[[The Record (North Jersey)|The Record]]'', April 20, 2008. Accessed July 6, 2017.</ref> This development continued for several years, reaching a milestone in 2008 with the completion of Union City's first high-rise [[condominium]] tower, The Thread, whose name evokes the city's historical association with the embroidery industry.<ref>''The Union City Reporter''. March 28, 2008. p. 9</ref><ref>Carroll, Timothy J. [https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2009/03/01/housing-in-hudsonin-slow-economy-smaller-better-spaces-lure-buyers-from-across-the-river/ "Housing in Hudson; In slow economy, smaller, better spaces lure buyers from across the river"], ''The Hudson Reporter'', March 1, 2009. Accessed November 14, 2019.</ref><ref name=HobokenComes>Martin, Antoinette. [https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/realestate/09njzo.html "Hoboken Comes to Union City"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', March 9, 2008. Accessed July 6, 2017.</ref><ref>Martin, Antoinette. [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/realestate/08njzo.html "Defining the Buyer of the Future"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', February 6, 2009. Accessed July 6, 2017.</ref> Other such buildings followed, such as the Altessa,<ref name=HobokenComes/> Park City Grand,<ref>{{cite web|author=Wright, E. Assata|url=https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2010/03/07/ups-and-downs-in-residential-real-estate/|title=Ups and downs in residential real estate; Thrifty buyers return to slowly improving housing market|newspaper=The Hudson Reporter|date=March 7, 2010|access-date=February 17, 2020|archive-date=February 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217010941/https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2010/03/07/ups-and-downs-in-residential-real-estate/}}</ref> and Hoboken Heights.<ref>{{cite web|author=West, Teri|url=https://www.nj.com/hudson/2020/02/site-work-begins-for-cliffside-luxury-condo-complex-in-union-city.html|title=Site work begins for cliffside luxury condo complex in Union City|newspaper=The Jersey Journal|via=NJ.com|location=Jersey City|language=en|date=February 14, 2020|access-date=February 17, 2020|archive-date=February 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217010941/https://archive.hudsonreporter.com/2010/03/07/ups-and-downs-in-residential-real-estate/}}</ref>
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