Editing Edgewater, New Jersey (section)

==Arts and culture==
[[File:Edgewater Library.JPG|thumb|Edgewater Free Library]][[Edgewater Borough Hall|Borough Hall]], the [[Binghamton (ferryboat)|Binghamton Ferry]] and the [[Edgewater Public Library]] are listed on both the [[National Register of Historic Places]] and the [[New Jersey Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="register" /> Constructed in 1904, Borough Hall was granted $406,000 by Senate and General Assembly of New Jersey in August 2009 for restoration of the building.<ref>[http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2008/Bills/AL09/99_.PDF Approp. P.L. 2009, CHAPTER 99] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606121657/http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2008/Bills/AL09/99_.PDF |date=June 6, 2011 }}, [[New Jersey Legislature]], August 6, 2009. Accessed August 30, 2015.</ref> Among other renovations, the missing gargoyles were returned to the 1902 edifice.<ref>Staff. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160310124030/http://www.northjersey.com/news/new-presence-at-borough-hall-1.977486 "New presence at Edgewater Borough Hall"], ''Edgewater View'', January 1, 2010, backed up by the [[Internet Archive]] as of March 10, 2016. Accessed September 13, 2017.</ref><ref>Hall, ''Edgewater'', p. 50</ref>

[[File:Binghamton plaque.JPG|thumb|left|upright|Plaque at site of Binghamton Ferry]]The Binghamton Ferry, permanently anchored at the Binghamton Shopping Plaza, was built in 1904–1905 by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Newport News, Virginia.<ref name="westergaard"/> The only double-ended steam-powered ferry boat still on the Hudson River, the Binghamton ferried passengers from New Jersey to Barclay Street in Manhattan for many years<ref>Hall, ''Edgewater'', p. 76</ref> and was retired in 1967.<ref name=Thinking1995/>

One of the remaining [[List of Carnegie libraries in New Jersey|Carnegie libraries in New Jersey]],<ref>Hall, ''Edgewater'', p. 112</ref> built with $15,000 in funds from the Carnegie Foundation,<ref name=View2010>Almenas, Maxim. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160306144027/http://www.northjersey.com/news/as-centennial-nears-restoration-is-planned-1.916139 "Edgewater plans restoration for its library as centennial nears"], ''Edgewater View'', December 17, 2010, backed up by the [[Internet Archive]] as of March 6, 2016. Accessed September 13, 2017. "As the public library gets closer to its 100th anniversary on Jan 1, it has initiated an ambitious restoration project to return the building to its original luster.... Linda Corona, the library director, said the building is the only Carnegie library currently operating as such in Bergen County."</ref> the Edgewater Free Library was dedicated on February 8, 1916.<ref name=View2010/><ref name="newsletter">[http://www.07020.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=32&d=1126236341 "95 Years of Library Service"], Edgewater Free Public Library. Accessed August 30, 2015.</ref> Edgewater opened its library in 1910, prior to the donation from the Carnegie Foundation, with 817 books on its shelves.<ref name="newsletter"/>

In addition to these sites, the Eleanor Van Gelder School is listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places.<ref name="register">[http://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/Bergen.pdf#page=3 New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places: Bergen County], [[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection]], updated July 21, 2015. Accessed August 30, 2015.</ref>

===The River Walk===
[[File:ParkatEdgewater.JPG|thumb|River Walk near Edgewater Commons shopping center]]The promenade along the Hudson is part of the [[Hudson River Waterfront Walkway]]. In 1988, construction of a waterfront walkway was mandated by state law that would allow walkers a path along the Hudson River from [[Bayonne, New Jersey|Bayonne]] up to the George Washington Bridge.<ref>Almenas, Maxim. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160307022208/http://www.northjersey.com/news/meeting-to-discuss-walkway-project-1.330326 "Meeting to discuss walkway project"], ''Edgewater View'', June 4, 2010, backed up by the [[Internet Archive]] as of March 7, 2016. Accessed September 13, 2017. "Bergen County's Department of Planning and Economic Development, who hosted the meeting, presented a PowerPoint presentation highlighting the recommendations of local residents from the first meeting as to how the walkway, which would run from Fort Lee Historic Park to Bayonne in Hudson County, could benefit the entire community from an esthetic and economic point of view."</ref> Although property owners were required to build and maintain it, many gaps remain.<ref>Hevesi, Dennis. [https://www.nytimes.com/1999/08/15/realestate/a-river-walk-s-piecemeal-birth.html "A River Walk's Piecemeal Birth"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', August 15, 1999. Accessed January 6, 2015.</ref> Of the {{convert|18.5|mi|km}} called for, only {{convert|11|mi}} are complete, and many of the gaps occur in Edgewater.<ref>Shortell, Tom. [http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2009/06/officials_welcome_opening_of_1.html "Officials welcome opening of half-mile stretch of Hudson River Walkway"], ''[[The Jersey Journal]]'', June 15, 2009. Accessed September 12, 2011. "About seven miles of the walkway's 18.5-linear length, mostly in Bayonne and Edgewater, still have to be completed, said Helen Manogue, president of the president of the Hudson River Waterfront Conservancy."</ref> The completed stretches offer paths for walking along the Hudson River with views of Manhattan.

===Edgewater parrots===
[[File:Edgewater parrots1.JPG|thumb|left|Monk parakeets near Memorial Park]]
Edgewater is the home of a free-flying colony of [[monk parakeet]]s, also known as Quaker parrots, which are native to South America. These small, green parrots have lived in Edgewater since at least 1980 and were numbered at 200 to 230 in a 2008 article in ''[[The New York Times]]''<ref name="nyt">Holmberg, David. [https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/07/nyregion/new-jersey/07parrotsnj.html "Defending the Parrots of Edgewater"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', December 5, 2008. Accessed August 30, 2015.</ref> and about 200 in 2019.<ref name=Record2019/> They are easily seen in Memorial Park and its vicinity at River Road and Route 5. The parrots build large nests of twigs and down which become permanent residences.<ref>Hayes, Melissa. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110216/http://www.northjersey.com/news/parrots-nests-cleared-from-power-sources-1.167943?page=all "Parrots' nests cleared from power sources"], ''[[The Record (North Jersey)|The Record]]'', April 7, 2012, backed up by the [[Internet Archive]] as of March 4, 2016. Accessed September 13, 2017.</ref> Nests four-feet long can be seen near the intersection. How the birds came to Edgewater is unknown, though a widely accepted story traces their origin to an escape from a damaged crate at [[John F. Kennedy Airport]] in the 1960s,<ref name="nyt"/> or alternatively they had been pets that escaped from their owners.<ref name=Record2019/>

The birds have built nests against transformers on utility poles. Citing the risk of fire, the utility PSE&G has destroyed such nests. This has brought the utility into conflict with parrot advocates. In 2008, PSE&G agreed not to take down nests during breeding season.<ref name="nyt"/><ref name=Record2019>Pries, Allison. [https://www.nj.com/bergen/2019/12/wild-parrots-escaped-into-this-nj-town-30-years-ago-and-they-never-left.html "Wild parrots escaped into this N.J. town 30 years ago and they never left"], NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], December 1, 2019. Accessed December 1, 2019. "The Quaker, or Monk, parrots took up residence in Edgewater more 30 years ago. Just how they got there is up for debate. Some say it was through an accidental release in a New York City shipping yard. Others think they were escaped pets.... There are now about 200 Quaker parrots living in Edgewater and over the decades they have spread to Leonia, Palisades Park, Ridgefield, Englewood and other nearby towns, Schotanus said."</ref>