Clarkstown is a town in Rockland County, New York, United States. The town is on the eastern border of the county, located north of the town of Orangetown, east of the town of Ramapo, south of the town of Haverstraw, and west of the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 86,855.[2] The hamlet of New City, the county seat of Rockland County, is also the seat of town government and of the Clarkstown Police Department, the county sheriff's office, and the county correctional facility. New City makes up about 41.47% of the town's population.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 46.9 square miles (121 km2), of which 38.5 square miles (100 km2) is land and 8.4 square miles (22 km2) (17.87%) is water.
As of the 2010 Census, there were 84,187 people, 29,234 households, and 22,186 families residing in the Town of Clarkstown. The population density was 1,800 per square mile. There were 30,314 housing units at an average density of 646.35 per square mile. There were 29,234 households, out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.1% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.1% were non-families. 36.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 31.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age of older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.28. The median age was 42.8 years.
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As of the census[6] of 2000, there were 82,082 people, 27,697 households, and 21,991 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,129.7 inhabitants per square mile (822.3/km2). There were 28,220 housing units at an average density of 732.2 per square mile (282.7/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 79.97% White, 7.87% African American, 0.13% Native American, 7.90% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 1.99% from other races, and 2.03% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.92% of the population.
There were 27,697 households, out of which 36.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.4% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.6% were non-families. 16.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.90 and the average family size was 3.27.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 28.3% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males.
According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the town was $92,121, and the median income for a family was $104,909.[7] Males had a median income of $57,773 versus $40,805 for females. The per capita income for the town was $34,430. About 2.5% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.5% of those under age 18 and 3.4% of those age 65 or over.
As of the 2020 Census, there were 86,855 people residing in the Town of Clarkstown.[8]
Clarkstown is the most densely populated town in Rockland County and is home to New City, which is the county seat. Clarkstown has more business districts in it than any other town in Rockland County, including the Palisades Center, which is among the largest malls in the world.
Clarkstown has taken steps towards "going green" by conducting energy audits, purchasing Energy Star office equipment and using green cleaning products in town facilities. Other steps included:
2005 – Purchasing 10% of the energy used by town government from wind and solar sources.
2008 – Installing energy-efficient lighting (LED) at its parks and recreation building with sensors that automatically turn off lights when no motion is detected.
2012- Solar Field installed on capped Town Landfill (Dedicated in 2014). It is the first Solar Field on a capped landfill in New York State. Proposed by then Councilman, George Hoehmann.[19]
2013- Town participated in the NYSDEC Climate Smart Communities program in developing resiliency and climate action plans.[20]
2016- Town purchases street lights from Orange and Rockland Utilities and begins converting to LED (Conversion completed in 2018).
Climate Action and Sustainability Planning - Training and Outreach
Beginning in 2014, Town Planners, along with representatives from other Town Departments, attended an initial training workshop held by the consulting firm of Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB), who is being funded by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation specifically to help communities attain their goals as Climate Smart Communities. Town Planners participated in a series of workshops with VHB through February 2015 to begin the process of identifying ways to reduce the Town's greenhouse gas emissions.
In addition, the Clarkstown Planning Department, along with other Town Departments, participated in the New York Rising Community Reconstruction Program.[21] This is a separate initiative funded by the New York State Department of State to aid in the development of resilient and sustainable communities. As part of this New York Rising Program the consulting firm AKRF, Inc. worked with the Town to identify areas of the Town which are vulnerable to storm damage and to formulate a plan and provide funding to address these issues.
Participation in these initiatives and the products generated will serve as the foundations of the Climate Action and Sustainability Plan, which will be incorporated into the first update of the Town's Comprehensive Plan, Clarkstown 2020. Additionally, workshops were held throughout the Town's hamlets to begin gathering input and formulate direction for the Clarkstown 2020 update.
U.S. Supreme Court case
In 1994, Clarkstown was involved in litigation that challenged a town ordinance, that required all waste picked up in the town to be sorted for recyclables at a specific privately operated facility. The case made it to the United States Supreme Court in C&A Carbone, Inc. v. Town of Clarkstown, in which the ordinance was held unconstitutional.
