Montclair, New Jersey, United States

🇺🇸 Montclair is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It was the 60th most-populous municipality in New Jersey.

Montclair was first formed as a township on April 15, 1868, from portions of Bloomfield Township, so that a second railroad could be built to Montclair. After a referendum held on February 21, 1894, Montclair was reincorporated as a town, effective February 24, 1894. It derives its name from the French mont clair, meaning "clear mountain" or "bright mountain". In 1980, after multiple protests filed by Montclair officials regarding the inequities built into the federal revenue sharing system, Montclair passed a referendum changing its name to the "Township of Montclair", becoming the third of more than a dozen Essex County municipalities to reclassify themselves as townships to take advantage of federal revenue sharing policies that allocated townships a greater share of government aid to municipalities on a per capita basis.

Montclair, which opened the state's first dispensary in December 2012, joins Bellmawr, Cranbury, Egg Harbor Township and Woodbridge Township as one of the five municipalities (of 565 in the state) that have authorised dispensaries for the sale of medical marijuana.

Economy Montclair has six distinct commercial zones:

• Montclair Center, centered on the intersection of Bloomfield Avenue, South Fullerton Avenue, Glenridge Avenue and Church Street, is the township's main commercial zone. This intersection is also known as Six Corners. It is home to some of Montclair's largest stores and restaurants, and features many upscale restaurants and boutiques near the centre of this commercial district. Near the eastern end of this district is Lackawanna Plaza, which once housed the Lackawanna railway station. There is a post office one block to the north of this area. In 2015, Montclair Center won the Great American Main Street Award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

• Upper Montclair, in the north of the town, is the second-largest commercial zone. The centre is the intersection of Valley Road and Bellevue Avenue, and incorporates the surrounding areas. The Upper Montclair Business District is home to several restaurants and shops. This commercial zone is home to several chain stores such as Starbucks, Talbots, Williams Sonoma, Athleta, Cold Stone Creamery, Supercuts and CVS. Despite the recession, the area in 2009–2010 saw the opening of several new national and local merchants. Upper Montclair also has both a park, Anderson Park, and a railway station, Upper Montclair, nearby. There is a post office here.

• Watchung Plaza is located around the intersection of Watchung Avenue and Park Street, and is on the divide between two Montclair ZIP Codes, 07042 and 07043. It is home to many "Mom and Pop Stores" and other small businesses. Watchung Plaza has its own post office. It is served by the Watchung Avenue station.

• Walnut Street, built around the Walnut Street train station. In the spring, summer, and fall it is home to the Montclair Farmer's Market. This commercial zone is home to many restaurants and cafes as well home to Montclair Brewery, New Jersey's first black-owned microbrewery and Montclair's only operating brewery.

• South End, in the south of town, at the intersection of Cedar Avenue and Orange Road.

• Valley Road, between Chestnut Street and Claremont Avenue, is known locally as "Frog Hollow". This area has some strip-mall style shops on one side of Valley Road, and on the other side window shops with residential apartments on top of them.