By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
The signs remain accurate for yet another year. Hillsborough Township has again been named to Money Magazine’s “Best Places to Live in America,” the fourth time Hillsborough has been named to the list in recent years.
For 2015, Hillsborough, the only town in New Jersey named to the list, ranked 30th among towns in a population range of 10,000 to 50,000.
Money Magazine considers various criteria, including community spirit, culture, diversity, education, health, outdoor activities, parks, quality of life and safety, in its annual ranking.
Statistically, the magazine says:
– Hillsborough’s median household income of $110,435 is more than double the national average of $44,749. Its median home price of $310,000 is far above the national average of $207,995, but so are the median property taxes of $8,453 (national: $2,673).
— Hillsborough residents pay about the same in average state and local income taxes ($4,551 to $4,496), and has about the same projected 5-year job growth (8 percent, compared to 7 percent nationally).
— The crime rate per 1,000 people is only five, compared to the national mark of 44. The level of education is high; 95 percent of adults have graduated high school, compared to 86 percent in the rest of the U.S.
Writer Donna Rosato’s blurb that accompanies the ranking list says that “in crowded New Jersey . . . Hillsborough is a bucolic haven.
“In large part, that’s because the residents have worked very hard to keep it that way,” she writes. “Laws have protected one-third of town land from development, and much of what’s been preserved is stunning. There’s the 4,000-acre Sourland Mountains Preserve, with its challenging trails for hiking and off-road biking as well as horseback riding and bouldering.
“At the 2,700-acre Duke Farms, once the estate of tobacco heiress Doris Duke, outdoor enthusiasts can hike, bike, cross-country ski, and bird watch. Duke Farms also has a community garden where county residents can plant their own flowers and vegetables (after taking a mandatory organic gardening course) and an educational center where visitors learn about conservation practices for their homes.”
The magazine notes that Philadelphia and New York City are each about an hour away (by car or train) and less than 30 minutes from Princeton, home to the Princeton University Art Museum, the Princeton Symphony Orchestra and Opera New Jersey.
Residents will be surprised to learn the magazine says “a bypass for highway U.S. 206 that runs through Hillsborough will be completed in 2017. The town will turn old Route 206 into a pedestrian-friendly town center that will bring shops, restaurants and housing to its Main Street.” That may be the long-term vision, but the reality is decades off.
Hillsborough schools are also cited as part of the reason for the high ranking. “Its middle school has an engineering design program, part of the school’s effort to enhance its science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curriculum,” the magazine says. “Every student from 5th grade through 12th receives a laptop, and the high school offer 20 AP courses.”