 The main impetus behind the change in name was to avoid confusion with the nearby community of Midland Park.The township was named for the port city of La Rochelle, France.According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 1.063 square miles (2.751 km2), including 1.041 square miles (2.695 km2) of land and 0.022 square miles (0.056 km2) of water (2.03%).