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Neighborhood Guides > Jersey City > Neighborhoods
Neighborhoods
Van Vorst Park Central Fountain
Jersey City consists of Six Districts or Wards; Greenville, West Side, Journal Square, The Heights, Downtown, and Bergen/Lafayette. Each of these Districts is comprised of smaller neighborhoods, for example the Paulus Hook Neighborhood of the Downtown District and the Western Slope Neighborhood of The Heights District. Jersey City is a city of neighborhoods, each with a different aesthetic and architectural style, to some degree.
Downtown Jersey City includes the Waterfront (including Newport, Paulus Hook, and Exchange Place), Hamilton Park, Grove Street, Harsimus Cove, Van Vorst Park, and Liberty State Park. Jersey City Heights (or, simply, "The Heights") includes the Western Slope and the Central Avenue Shopping area. Journal Square, site of the Jersey Journal and PATH Transportation Center, West Side features West Bergen/Lincoln Park and Hudson Mall, Bergen/Lafayette where Communipaw Avenue connects the West Side with Liberty State Park, Greenville featuring Port Liberte and residential neighborhoods.
Harborside Financial Center from the Hudson River
Downtown Jersey City
A view of the Jersey City Skyline, the buildings toward the left are part of the Harborside Complex, NOTE: NJ'S Tallest Building in the center, 30 Hudson Street.
Downtown Jersey City is the area from the Hudson River westward to the Newark Bay Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 78) and the New Jersey Palisades; it is also bounded by Hoboken to the north and Liberty State Park to the south.
Newport and Exchange Place are redeveloped waterfront areas comprised mostly of residential towers, hotels and office buildings. Newport is a planned mixed-use community, built on the old Erie Lackawanna Railway yards, made up of residential rental towers, condominiums, office buildings, a marina, schools, restaurants, hotels, Newport Centre Mall, a waterfront walkway, transportation facilities, and on-site parking for more than 15,000 vehicles. Newport had a hand in the renaissance of Jersey City although, before ground was broken, much of the downtown area had already begun a steady climb (much like Hoboken). Some critics have derided the Newport development for its isolation because it is cut off from the rest of the city by the Newport Centre Mall and other big box retail.
Exchange Place, the first part of Jersey City to redevelop, was built on the grounds of the old Jersey City Penn Station, ferry and shipping terminals. It is now a bustling business and financial district.
To the west lay three brownstone neighborhoods with "historic" protected districts — Hamilton Park, Van Vorst Park, and Harsimus Cove — separated from the waterfront by a legacy of older infrastructure, big-box development, and old warehouses still awaiting re-use.
Paulus Hook is another neighborhood with a historic designated zone. It borders Exchange Place and Liberty State Park on the waterfront, and blends older brownstone-lined streets with newer luxury developments. The Essex Street stop on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail cuts through the southern portion of the neighborhood. The area has become increasingly active with development to the east and the construction of the light rail; many of its streets are lined with shops, and restaurants with outdoor seating.
The Jersey City Medical Center operated in the 20th century on Baldwin Avenue south of Journal Square. Now JCMC is located on Grand Street downtown.
Journal Square
Once the commercial heart of Jersey City, Journal Square has become rather derelict in recent years, but is in the process of rehabilitation, in part because of the efforts of the Journal Square Restoration Corporation (JSRC) and the Jersey City Economic Development Corporation (JCEDC). Here, Kennedy Boulevard and Bergen Avenue, main thoroughfares in the city, are at their widest, lined on both sides by brick houses and medium-density apartment complexes. The Stanley Theater and Loew's Jersey Theater on Kennedy Boulevard are among the city's most noted landmarks, and are two of the best preserved movie palaces in the Tri-State area. Directly across Kennedy Boulevard from the Loews is the Journal Square Transportation Center (JSTC), which houses the Journal Square PATH station and the city's largest bus terminal. Buses from the JSTC connect Jersey City to communities throughout Hudson County, as well as to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan. Saint Peter's College is located about 10 blocks south of Journal Square. To the north of the square on Newark
Avenue lies India Square, one of the larger and livelier Indian neighborhoods in New Jersey.
West Side
Jersey City's West Side is very ethnically diverse. Many ethnic grocery shops (Filipino, Indian, West Indian) line West Side Avenue. West Side runs from Broadway near U.S. Route 1/9 Truck along Route 440 to the Bayonne city line. This neighborhood is served by the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail at Claremont Avenue. West Side also features Hudson Mall, Jersey City Incinerator Authority, Lincoln County Park and Society Hill running along Route 440 and U.S. 1/9 Truck. In this district, at the old Roosevelt Stadium, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Minor League Baseball before his Major League Baseball debut.
Greenville
The Greenville section runs from about 10 blocks south of Communipaw Avenue to the Bayonne city line. This area of the city is mainly residential. With the gentrification of the downtown area, many of the city's low income tenants have moved into Greenville.
The Heights
Jersey City Heights is a neighborhood atop the New Jersey Palisades overlooking Hoboken to its east. It is comprised mostly of two- and three-family houses, and remains traditionally middle-class. The primary commercial strip is Central Avenue, with residential districts flanking it on both sides. Six blocks to the east, and parallel to it, are Palisade and Ogden Avenues, both of which offer breathtaking views of the Manhattan skyline. Many stately Victorian and Edwardian homes contribute to the attractiveness of the Heights, particularly along Summit Avenue and Sherman Place. Pershing Field is a park near the center of this district, offering green space, baseball fields, a swimming pool and an ice skating rink. Adjacent to Pershing Field Park is an abandoned reservoir which constitutes one of the largest patches of green space in Jersey City Heights. The future of the reservoir is hotly contested as business interests, city government, and environmentalist groups have each proposed a different use for the land, ranging from new baseball fields to housing or a nature preserve.
Bergen/Lafayette
Bergen/Lafayette lies between Greenville on the south and Journal Square on the north. It also borders with West Side and Liberty State Park. Communipaw Avenue and Bergen Avenue (approaching Journal Square) both have many small shops.
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