theater run by the Gateway Playhouse, currently operating in Bellport, New York. The land once occupied by it is now a Stop and Shop supermarket. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 18.32%, is water. New Fairfield borders Danbury to the south, Brookfield to the southeast, New Milford to the northeast, Sherman to the north, and Patterson, New York to the west. There are four lakes in New Fairfield: Candlewood Lake, Squantz Pond, Ball Pond, and Margerie Lake Reservoir. Candlewood Lake dominates the eastern side of the town and extends both north and south beyond the town borders. Once a summer resort destination, the lake shore within New Fairfield is now mostly populated with many year-round homes. Principal communities Ball Pond Candlewood Hills Candlewood Isle Candlewood Knolls Knollcrest New Fairfield center Other minor named locales in the town are Bigelow Corners, Bogus Hill, Candlewood Corner, Charcoal Ridge, Hollywyle Park, Inglenook, Joyce Hill, Kellogg Point, Locust Glen, Possum Ridge, Sail Harbor, and Taylor Corners. The newer communities with larger houses can be found in Sail Harbor. Many communities have large houses with direct waterfront access to Candlewood Lake, such as Sail Harbor, Candlewood Isle, and Bogus Hill. There have been many new subdivisions such as communities off Warwick Road, Route 39/37, Pine Hill, Beaver Bog, Dick Finn, and Shortwoods Road. ZIP code When ZIP codes were introduced in 1963, the original Danbury code, 06810, also covered the whole of New Fairfield. When Danbury received additional ZIP codes in 1984, a new code, 06812, was introduced for New Fairfield. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 13,953 people, 4,638 households, and 3,905 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 5,148 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.83% White, 0.39% African American, 0.04% Native American, 1.27% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.52% from other races, and 0.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.82% of the population. The 2000 census reported that New Fairfield was the most heavily Irish-American community in Connecticut, with about 32% of the residents claiming Irish ancestry. There were 4,638 households, out of which 44.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.3% were married couples living together, 6.5%