Spring Valley, New York

Spring Valley is a village in Rockland County, New York, United States. The population was 25,464 at the 2000 census.

The Village of Spring Valley is on the border of two towns and spans the east town line of the Town of Ramapo, which is the west town line of the Town of Clarkstown. The village is next to the New York State Thruway (Interstate 87) and is served by a Metro-North commuter rail station.

Home to Rockland Community College - Spring Valley Extension

History

For over 50 years, Spring Valley was the site of a military parts distributor, Sarafan Auto Supply, which supplied military parts all around the world. This third generation business became part of the community; as business expanded, it grew to take up a large portion of the industrial section of the downtown area. Recently the business moved out of Spring Valley, but the lot which it occupied still has many of the original buildings built by Jacob Sarafan in the early 1900’s.

Efforts are currently underway to revitalize the downtown sector and surrounding areas.

In 2007, Spring Valley Mayor George Darden was elected vice president of the World Conference of Mayors during the organizations' 23rd annual mayors’ conference held in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The organization includes mayors from the National Conference of Black Mayors and the Union of African Villages whose goal is to foster constructive relationships among mayors around the world.

Famous Residents

• Danger Mouse, hip hop producer and member of the group Gnarls Barkley
• Seth Joyner, former football player.
• Julianna Margulies, actress.
• Saigon (rapper).
• Al Cole, professional boxer.
• Steve Feinberg, American businessman and founder/head of Cerberus Capital Management
• Dusty Kay, producer of "Roseanne" and "Entourage".
• Stacey Dash, American film and television actress of African American and Aztec descent.

Geography

Location of village within the Town of Ramapo, Town of Clarkstown, and Rockland County, New York.

Spring Valley is located at 41°6′52″N 74°2′52″W (41.114445, -74.047771)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 2.1 square miles (5.5 km²), of which, 2.1 square miles (5.4 km²) of it is land and 0.47% is water.

The village is about five miles north of the New Jersey border.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 25,464 people, 7,566 households, and 5,523 families residing in the village. The population density was 12,122.7 people per square mile (4,681.8/km²). There were 7,812 housing units at an average density of 3,719.1/sq mi (1,436.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 38.23% White, 43.98% African American, 0.40% Native American, 5.56% Asian, 0.25% Pacific Islander, 5.33% from other races, and 6.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.40% of the population.

There were 7,566 households out of which 42.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were married couples living together, 21.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.33 and the average family size was 3.79.

In the village the population was spread out with 32.1% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 6.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 98.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.0 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $41,311, and the median income for a family was $42,097. Males had a median income of $31,182 versus $26,350 for females. The per capita income for the village was $14,861. 18.7% of the population and 15.2% of families were below the poverty line., 24.2% of those under the age of 18 and 16.5% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Spring Valley has the largest African-American and Caribbean population in Rockland County. Spring Valley has a large Haitian population along with a growing Hispanic population. Also, many Hasidic Jews live in Spring Valley, which is adjacent to the hamlet of Monsey, a primarily Orthodox Jewish community.

Tourism

Historical Markers

• United States Post Office - 7 North Madison Avenue

Landmarks and places of Interest

• Finkelstein Memorial Library - 24 Chestnut Street - Books, maps and news-clipping files on Rockland County history and local newsworthy events.
• Holocaust Museum & Study Center - 17 South Madison Avenue - Permanent exhibit combines graphics, montages, artifacts, and audiovisual displays to detail every phase of the Holocaust. Changing art exhibits.

External links

• The local public library in Spring Valley.