The history of Audubon Park goes back to the beginning of the second World War. The town was called Audubon Village and was part of the Borough of Audubon. Workers for the New York Shipbuilding Corp, located in Camden, NJ needed housing for their families.
The Mutual Ownership Defense Housing Division of the Federal Works Agency, operating from about 1940 to 1942 and under the leadership of Colonel Lawrence Westbrook, was an attempt late in the New Deal by the United States Government to capitalize on the housing needs facing defense workers and develop housing projects for middle-income families utilizing the cooperative/mutual housing ownership concept. Under pressure by entrenched real estate interests and intense and competing resource needs caused by World War II, the Division only lasted for two years. Although only eight projects were ever built by the Division, all but one were eventually purchased by their residents from the government and continue to operate as mutual home corporations in 2009. The Mutual Ownership Defense Housing Division projects can be considered a rare but important example of successful public housing within the United States. Village of Audubon was one of the first built. There are 499 units.
The Government was going to sell the property and the residents here at that time decided it would be to their best interest to purchase it themselves. As a result, Audubon Park was incorporated as a Borough on July 3, 1947, from that portion of Audubon Borough, based on the results of a referendum held on October 28, 1947, making it the most recently created municipality in Camden County.
There is a Mayor and a Borough Council type of government. Our Mayor is Lawrence Pennock, a long time resident of Audubon Park.
There is a Board of Trustees who have a Secretary-Manager and staff who run the daily operations of the town. We have a top notch Maintenance Dept, who take care of the electric and water in our town and major and some minor problems the dwellings may incur. They also maintain all the land that is not part of the dwellings. The contract holder is responsible for maintaining the property where they live.
We had a police department until 2004 when it was decided to do shared services with the town of Audubon. Audubon Police Department protected our town until Sept 2009. Starting September 2009 we joined shared service with Haddon Township Police Department. They now Protect our town. Our library - Dorathea Zeoli Public Library, which is part of the Camden County library system is refurbished and has two librarians. We have an all volunteer Fire Department. Our children in the early years of Audubon Village went to the grade schools in Audubon. As the number of children grew, we built a school for K to 8th grade. Teachers were hired. Then the child population dwindled and it was not feasible to keep the school open. Most of our children now go to the Audubon school system again. The old school building is now leased to Tippie Toes Day Care Center. See their page listed on the Menu.
To see photos of Reimers field and the school being built..click
HERE
These pictures were found and were donated to our site. These pictures are from sometime in the fifties. They include the Reimer house and barn...people would actually skate in the field in the winter when it flooded and froze. The pictures are from a view on Pelican going toward The Riviera when it was Reimers farm. There are also pictures of the Audubon Park Grade School being built and a picture of the old Bingo Truck.
For More information on history of Mutual Housing corporations, check:
Wikipedia Mutual Ownership Defense Housing Division
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual_Ownership_Defense_Housing_Division/
If anyone has more information about our history, please let us know at audubonparknj@comcast.net