'TOWN TOURS': MADISON AT A GLANCE

Editor's note: Today the Daily Record begins a week-long tour of the Borough of Madison. For seven days, we will have extra coverage of the borough, its people, its culture and its history

Here's everything you need to know about the Borough of Madison:

Population: 16,530. Area: 4 square miles.

ETHNIC MAKEUP: 81 percent white; 8.9 percent Hispanic; 5.5 percent Asian; 3 percent black.

DOWNTOWN: Picturesque Main Street (also Route 124 ) has been featured in several movies and TV shows, including "The World According to Garp" and "The Sopranos," in addition to numerous commercials. "It's like a New England village was dropped in the middle of Madison," says Raymond Codey, the borough administrator, referring to town center's statue of the town's namesake, James Madison, and ceremonial clock. The educational Museum of Early Trades and Crafts, in a 1899 Richardsonian Romanesque Revival building, is also on Main Street. Street parking is free for one or two hours.

SHOPPING AND RESTAURANTS: Downtown Madison has a vibrant restaurant scene, with a range of eateries, from the high-end Italian il Mondo Vecchio, to a street hot-dog vendor. The sports bar and pub 54 Main Street is a popular hangout as is the Madison Bar and Grill, which has been run by the same owner for 60 years and offers a traditional Thanksgiving dinner every Thursday year-round. There's a high end wine shop, Gary's Wine & Marketplace; an old-time pharmacy; a Starbucks; a music venue (Shanghai Jazz and Restaurant), and a Stop and Shop supermarket on Main Street. A famer's market is open from 1 pm to 7 pm every Thursday from spring through early fall.

ANNUAL EVENTS: Along with Little League and Memorial Day parades, the borough holds a Christmas Parade the day after Thanksgiving that draws up to 10,000 people, with a tree lighting and visits with Santa at the train station. The first Saturday in October, Madison residents celebrate Bottle Hill Day, a street festival honoring Madison's 125 years of history, named after an old tavern for which the borough was first named. Every year, the first Saturday of May is clean-up day, and about 1,000 volunteers spread mulch and plant flowers to beautify downtown.

THE COMMUTE: Madison's 98-year-old stone train station, which is on The National and State Registers of Historic Places, was donated by Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge in 1934 and renovated three years ago. NJ Transit's Midtown Direct Service to Penn Station New York, on the Morris & Essex Morristown line, takes about 45 minutes (express) or an hour (local). A monthly pass is $308. Most residents bike or walk to the train station, two blocks from downtown. Yearly parking passes are $425 in any of the three nearby lots and $5 daily. Waiting lists for passes can be as long as a year. Lots are free after 4 p.m.

COLLEGES: Drew University and Farleigh Dickinson University's College at Florham is on Madison's western border.

SCHOOL DISTRICT: approximately 2,530 students

Elementary Schools (kindergarten through grade six): Central Avenue (480 students); Torey J. Sabatini (343 students) and Kings Road (287 students). Average class size is 20 students.

Madison Junior School: 589 students in seventh and eighth grades

Madison High School: 838 students; senior class has 201 students. Mean SAT Scores, Class of 2014: Critical Reading: 480-630 (State Mean: 420-580); Mean SAT Math: 490-630 (State Mean: 440-610); Writing 490-640 (State Mean: 420-580). ACT Composite Score, Class of 2014: 25 (State 23.1) Percent of the class of 2014 who planned to go to four-year colleges: 83%. Two-year college: 12%

REAL ESTATE: "Madison has a diverse housing stock, which includes colonials, cape cods, ranches and split-level homes," says Carmela Vitale, a real estate agent with ReMax in Madison who also is a borough councilwoman. Madison has recovered strongly from the 2008 housing crisis; many houses sell quickly and have multiple bidders. The median sale price for a home in Madison is $705,662. According to the website Zillow.com, Madison home values have gone up 15.9% over the past year; the website predicts they will rise 5.4% within the next year. Taxes average $11,000, with trash and sewer service included. On the Garden State Multiple Listing Service (www.gsmls.com) recently, homes ranged from $275,000 for a 1900s 3-bedrooom colonial "fixer-upper" a block from the train station, to an eight-bedroom, 8 1/2-bath colonial on East Lane for $2,899,000.

COMMUNITY POOL: Season pass: $460; $410 before April 15.

TOWN GOVERNMENT: A mayor is elected to a four-year term and six at-large council members are elected to serve staggered, three-year terms; all are volunteers.

CULTURE: The F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre on the Drew campus is the location of the The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, which serves 100,000 people annually, is the state's only professional theater company dedicated to Shakespeare's works and other classic plays. "Henry VIII" is on the fall schedule; "Something Wicked This Way Comes" is on tap for Halloween.

TOWN TRIVIA: Madison's is nicknamed the Rose City after its 19th-century rose-growing industry.

WEBSITE: www.rosenet.org.

Julia Martin: 973-428-6653; jmartin@dailyrecord.com