Plentiful multi-family, senior and affordable housing options. Multiple transportation options. Walkable neighborhoods. Close vicinity to parks, libraries and cultural institutions. Ample opportunities for civic engagement.
These are some of the high grades that Cliffside Park received in the AARP’s annual ranking of the Top 100 Places for Older Adults to Live.
In 2025, for the second year in a row, this Bergen County town that sits atop the Hudson River Palisades was ranked as the #1 Livable Community among mid-sized towns in the U.S. – those with populations between 25,000 and 999,999.
The accolade came as borough leaders embarked on new steps to address the rapid aging of its population. More than 1 in 5 of Cliffside Park’s 26,000 residents is now over 65.
Demand for its senior center is so high that the borough recently completed a 4,000 square-foot expansion, while at the same time becoming a New Jersey Age-Friendly Grants Program awardee.
In the fall of 2025, borough leaders used those state grant funds to launch a survey to gauge older residents’ views on subjects such as housing, transportation, communication and access to resources. A print version of the survey was circulated at the Cliffside Park Senior Activity Center, located on the Housing Authority Campus at the Gerald A. Calabrese Complex, which is regularly visited by between 200 and 400 older residents each day. That senior complex has 356 units and the borough also has a Section 8 program of affordable housing.
Postcards with a QR code to the survey were mailed to more than 1,800 older residents who are registered members of the center and to residents of the borough’s senior housing, said Linda Phillips Perez, program coordinator for the Cliffside Park Senior Activity Center.
One finding that surprised Perez was how many survey respondents said they weren’t aware of senior center offerings and other key resources in the municipalities.
Perez said her programs are experiencing rapidly growing demand. The center hosts 12 weekly fitness classes, multiple art classes, social games such as bingo, bridge, mahjong, bocce, bowling) as well as intergenerational programs with local high schools and special needs youth. The center also provides congregate meals to between 90 to 110 people daily, as well transportation, health screenings and assistance to those who need help securing state and county benefits or want to renew their passports and driver’s licenses on site.
“We’re really booming, that’s why we had to expand,” Perez said. “It’s good to see that we’re recognized as a good place to live by the AARP. We try to do as much as we can for our seniors.”
The AARP’s livability rankings assign scores across seven categories: housing, neighborhood, transportation, environment, health, engagement and opportunity.
Known for its panoramic views of the Manhattan skyline across the Hudson River, Cliffside Park received a livability score of 68 out of 100. It scored among the top third of U.S. cities on 26 of the 36 metrics used to evaluate livability, particularly getting good marks for the having a good mix of multi-family and subsidized housing as well as walkable neighborhoods close to shops, parks and other amenities.
In its application for state grant funds, borough leaders said the community assessment would be an initial step to joining the AARP Network of States and Communities. According to that application, “Becoming more age-friendly aligns with Cliffside Park’s commitment to supporting its growing senior population.”