Community Profile

Pledge Status

Complete

Pledge Date

Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Program Year

2024

Achievement

Signatories

2024

Links and Uploads

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Action Item Report

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Village of Ridgefield Park

Ridgefield Park, NJ

Adam MacNeill

Mayor

Pledge Summary

The Village of Ridgefield Park, Bergen County, New Jersey, Settled in 1685, proudly boasts one of the longest continuous Fourth of July parades in the USA. Like this grand country, Ridgefield Park is a rich source of good old American history. Ridgefield Park has a population of approximately 13,300 (5,800 households) and has 1.71 square miles of land. We have a newly constructed nature preserve, two beautiful community gardens and six pollinator gardens. Mayor Anlian committed to saving the monarch butterfly and other pollinators during his tenure with his signing of the Mayors' Monarch Pledge and looks forward to engaging residents in building more pollinator habitats throughout the village. Mayor MacNeill, elected in 2024, continues to support the pledge.

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Community Spotlight

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The Village of Ridgefield Park's Nature Preserve

The Official Opening and Dedication Ceremony for Ridgefield Park’s Nature Preserve complete with nature trails, a floating boardwalk, and educational exhibit panels was held on June 3, 2023.

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Nature Walk

Nature Walks are held regularly with visitors from many different towns in the tri-state area. Volunteers are activity solicited.

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Nature Preserve Cleanup

Our Nature Preserve gives our community access to learn about the environment and to be good stewards of it.

Action Items Committed for 2024

Communications and Convening

  • Issue a proclamation to raise awareness about the decline of the monarch butterfly and the species’ need for habitat. This proclamation must incorporate a focus on monarch conservation.
  • Launch or maintain a public communication effort to encourage residents to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighborhoods. (If you have community members who speak a language other than English, we encourage you to also communicate in that language; Champion Pledges must communicate in that language.)
  • Engage with city parks and recreation, public works, sustainability, and other relevant staff to identify opportunities to revise and maintain mowing programs and milkweed / native nectar plant planting programs.

Program and Demonstration Gardens

  • Add or maintain native milkweed and nectar-producing plants in gardens in the community.
  • Display educational signage at monarch gardens and pollinator habitat.

Systems Change

  • Increase the percentage of native plants, shrubs and trees that must be used in city landscaping ordinances and encourage use of milkweed, where appropriate.