Davis Park, New York
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Davis Park is a
hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located on
Fire Island Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York. Occasionally, the name is used to refer collectively to not only the central island, but also Lo ...
, a
barrier island Barrier islands are coastal landforms and a type of Dune, dune system that are exceptionally flat or lumpy areas of sand that form by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything fro ...
separated from the southern side of
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
by the
Great South Bay The Great South Bay is a lagoon situated between Long Island and Fire Island, in the State of New York. It is about long and has an average depth of 4 feet 3 inches and is 20 feet at its deepest. It is protected from the Atlantic Ocean by Fire ...
off the South Shore village of Patchogue. It lies within the
Fire Island National Seashore Fire Island National Seashore (FINS) is a United States National Seashore that protects a section of Fire Island, an approximately long and wide barrier island separated from Long Island by the Great South Bay. The island is part of New York S ...
. Davis Park is a Fire Island beach community which acts as a destination for families and singles alike, who are home owners, renters, boaters, and ferry goers. Davis Park is commonly used to refer to three contiguous areas in the hamlet of Davis Park, namely, Davis Park, Leja Beach, and Ocean Ridge. The three areas share services and social life, and are separated from other communities on Fire Island. Technically, Davis Park refers to the business and public part of the community on both sides of Trustees' Walk, in contrast to the sections known as Leja Beach (to the west of Trustees Walk bounding Center Walk to the North and South) and Ocean Ridge (to the east). Davis Park is the easternmost private community on Fire Island (formerly, there were other communities to the east that were removed by the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
after the creation of
Fire Island National Seashore Fire Island National Seashore (FINS) is a United States National Seashore that protects a section of Fire Island, an approximately long and wide barrier island separated from Long Island by the Great South Bay. The island is part of New York S ...
in 1964, they included Bayberry Dunes, Whalehouse Point and Long Cove). The community extends along approximately of beachfront, and is approximately wide at its widest and wide at its narrowest point (dune to bay, excluding ocean beach width). Davis Park is bordered by extensive wilderness areas to both east and west. The Watch Hill facility of the National Park Service (with a small marina, restaurant, campground, nature trail and seasonal tours and activities) is approximately east, and Water Island (a community, not a separate island) is approximately to the west. Davis Park lies approximately from the eastern end of Fire Island at Moriches Inlet and from the western end of Fire Island at Democrat Point (in Robert Moses State Park). The United States Post Office at Davis Park (open July and August only) lies at approximately . To reach Davis Park, one must travel by boat. A ferry (seasonal, mid-March to end of November) is available which departs from Sandspit Park in Patchogue on the mainland of Long Island and travels approximately for 15–20 minutes across the Great South Bay. Davis Park has approximately 350 homes (130 in Ocean Ridge and 220 in Davis Park), one general store and grill, one restaurant and one bar. The restaurant and bar are the only ones on Fire Island with a clear view of the bay and the ocean. There is one unpaved road, commonly called the Burma Road, and wooden boardwalks. There are no cars (except for emergency, utility and construction vehicles and a very limited number of private vehicles, which are only allowed through a strict permit process regulated by the National Park Service). There are no street lights except in the marina area, resulting in fine night time star-gazing. There are, a Brookhaven town public marina, a (seasonally) lifeguarded section of beach and public restrooms and showers. Davis Park is protected by the all-volunteer Davis Park Fire Department and by Suffolk County Police. The non-for-profit Davis Park Medical Association owns a house, "Bedside Manor," on the dune in Ocean Ridge, which is rented in season to doctors and nurse practitioners at a below-market rate in exchange for their agreement to provide basic medical services through scheduled office hours and on-call availability. Bedside Manor is equipped with basic medical equipment and supplies. A helipad provides emergency evacuation capability.


History

The origins of Davis Park can be tracked back to the 1940s. It all started with Mr. Davis of Blue Point who owned a tract of land of Fire Island. When he passed away he left some of the land to his sons. One of those sons sold his share of the land to four friends (Lee Coffin, Ed Shembler, Joe Gerard, and Al Brown) who would later go on to build the Davis Park Casino.


2009 Beach Renourishment

In the winter and spring of 2009, a beach renourishment project was undertaken on Fire Island, with the cooperation of the National Park Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the towns of Brookhaven and Islip and Fire Island residents. The renourishment program involved dredging sand from an offshore borrow area, pumping it onto the beach and shaping the sand into an approved beach face and dune template in front of the communities of Davis Park, Corneille Estates, Dunewood, Fair Harbor, Fire Island Pines, Fire Island Summer Club, Lonelyville, Ocean Bay Park, Ocean Beach, Saltaire, and Seaview. Fire Islanders agreed to a significant property tax increase to help pay for the project, which was estimated to cost between $23 and $25 million, including the cost of environmental monitoring, and was expected to add 1.8 million cubic yards of sand in front of the participating communities. The towns of Brookhaven and Islip, in which the communities are located, issued bonds to pay for the project, backed by the new taxes levied by community Erosion Control Taxing Districts. Fire Island has been named by the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association a winner of its 2009 Best Restored Beach award. In November 2009, the remnants of Hurricane Ida, by then nicknamed the "nor' Ida," did substantial damage to the beachfront in Davis Park, carrying away much of the sand of the previous spring's beach renourishment project. New York Governor David A. Paterson asked President Barack Obama to declare a major federal disaster for the counties of Nassau, Queens and Suffolk (including Fire Island) for the severe erosion and damage to the protective barrier beaches.


Tourism

* Like all Fire Island hamlets, Davis Park's main draw is its beautiful, soft sand ocean beach, and the idyllic nature of a boardwalk based waterfront community which is surrounded by vegetation and wildlife, and undisturbed by cars. *There is a single store named “The Harbor Store” near the Davis Park marina. It consists of a general market, a grill and ice cream stand, as well as a wine store. *On the oceanside of Davis Park there is a restaurant known as the "Casino Cafe" which is one of the few oceanfront restaurants on the entire island. It has two distinctly separate areas, one area provides sit down dining, and a second area which serves as a bar with food services and music entertainment. *There are public bathrooms and showers available near the marina and ferry dock. * There used to be a baseball field, but a helipad was built on top of it a few years ago. * Davis Park has one of the largest marinas on Fire Island; it can hold up to 250 boats.


See also

*
Outer Barrier The Outer Barrier, also known as the Long Island and New York City barrier islands, refers to the string of barrier islands that divide the lagoons south of Long Island, New York from the Atlantic Ocean. These islands include Long Beach Barrier I ...
* Robert Moses State Park * Watch Hill *
Patchogue Bay Patchogue Bay is a lagoon on the south-central shores of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. Part of the Great South Bay, Patchogue Bay is a cove between the points of land known as Blue Point and Howells Point, and across which ferrie ...


Photo gallery

Image:Davis Park Ferry.JPG, Image:DavisParkChurch.JPG, Image:D-P-ferry-Patch.jpg, Image:D-P-Dock Master Pier.jpg, Image:D-P-More-Shore.JPG, Image:D-P-Umbrellas.JPG, Image:Davis-Park-Thirstday.JPG, File:DavisParkMarinaPier.jpg,


References


External links


Davis Park Association

Davis Park Ferry Co., Inc.

The Fire Island Website: News and Travel Guide: Davis Park

{{authority control Brookhaven, New York Fire Island, New York Hamlets in New York (state) Hamlets in Suffolk County, New York Populated coastal places in New York (state)