Arverne | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 40°35′24″N73°47′42″W / 40.59°N 73.795°W | |
Country | United States |
State | New York |
City | New York City |
County/Borough | Queens |
Community District | Queens 14 [1] |
Named for | "R. Vernam", the signature of Remington Vernam |
Population (2019) [2] | |
• Total | 22,074 |
Race and Ethnicity | |
• Black | 56.8% |
• Hispanic [a] | 23.3% |
• White | 11.4% |
• Asian | 5.3% |
• other | 3.2% |
Economics [2] | |
• Median household income | $46,819 |
• Per capita income | $24,201 |
Time zone | UTC−5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
ZIP Code | 11692 |
Area codes | 718, 347, 929, and 917 |
Arverne is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, on the Rockaway Peninsula. It was initially developed by Remington Vernam, whose signature "R. Vernam" inspired the name of the neighborhood. [3] Arverne extends from Beach 54th Street to Beach 79th Street, along its main thoroughfare Beach Channel Drive, alternatively known as Rev. Joseph H. May Drive.
Arverne is located in Queens Community District 14 and its ZIP Code is 11692. [1] It is patrolled by the New York City Police Department's 100th Precinct.
Vernam's original plan was to name the neighborhood Arverne-by-the-Sea. One grandiose plan, influenced by his wife Florence, included a canal running through the neighborhood, reminiscent of the Amstel canal in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. When this plan fell through, the canal right-of-way was converted into a thoroughfare, Amstel Boulevard, which, except for a stub west of Beach 71st Street, was later incorporated into Beach Channel Drive.
Located on the Rockaway Boardwalk, Arverne became well known as a beachfront community with inexpensive summer bungalows, hotels of varying expense and luxury, and amusements and boardwalk concessions. It also attracted year-round residents. On January 3, 1914, a storm devastated the peninsula's neighborhoods and swept the 1,200-seat Arverne Pier Theater out to sea. [4] On June 15, 1922, a fire leveled a large part of Arverne, leaving about 10,000 people homeless, although the neighborhood was quick to rebuild. [5] In 1928, a project to build 5,000 bungalows in Arverne was announced. [6]
During the 1950s and 1960s, the advent of commercial jet air travel encouraged people to travel to distant destinations during the summer, rather than to local beaches and resorts. As a result, many of Arverne's summer bungalows became vacant. New York City's urban renewal projects of the 1960s leveled most of the summer resorts and some of the residences, many of which had been abandoned. [7] [8]
In 1964, the New York City Planning Commission approved the designation of a 302-acre (122 ha) Arverne renewal area. [9] Two years later, the renewal area was expanded by 19 blocks. [10] In expectation of the upcoming urban renewal, vacant bungalows were demolished. [11] However, the renewal project was delayed, and a grand jury was convened to find the causes of the delay. [12] A gap in funding from the U.S. federal government contributed to pressures to cancel the redevelopment. [13] In 1970, the city announced it would develop 970 apartments in Arverne by 1972. [14] By then, only about 100 of the original 900 bungalows remained. Controversy later arose when the city decided to place 100 mobile homes instead of permanent housing for low-income Puerto Ricans. [15] By 1973, Mayor John Lindsay was calling for 500 of 3,650 proposed housing units to be deleted from the Arverne redevelopment plan. As of yet, the 970 apartments in Arverne had not been developed. [16]
When the city re-opened Arverne to redevelopment in 1984, a 123-acre (50 ha) patch of Arverne only contained one structure: PS 106. [8] In 1988, the administration of mayor Ed Koch started asking private developers to build on the site. [17] The Dubos Point Wildlife Sanctuary was designated that year as part of the plans for redevelopment. [18] By 1991, the plans called for the construction of 7,500 apartments over 10 years at a cost of $1.5 billion. [19] Finally, the late 1990s saw construction begin on a 322-unit development of two-family houses, the first such development in the 35-year-old Arverne renewal area. [20] The rest of the area's redevelopment was canceled after an economic downturn in the 1990s. People started dumping garbage in Dubos Point, to the consternation of residents. [18] In 2003, The New York Times wrote:
For nearly four decades, grand plans were offered for the 52-block stretch from Beach 32nd to 84th Streets, between Rockaway Beach Boulevard and the boardwalk. [There was to be] a phalanx of mid- and high-rise condominium and rental apartment buildings, [as well as] more than $1 billion... enclosed amusement area on the Arverne site, to be called Destination Technodome, with rides, movie theaters, an indoor ski slope and a hotel. [21]
In the early 2000s, Mayor Michael Bloomberg started to revitalize Arverne with new housing and parks. [22] This built upon a movement started in 1999, when 40 houses were built in the portion of the Arverne renewal area between Beach 59th and 61st Streets. [21]
As of 2003 [update] , 97 acres (39 ha) of the "Edgemere Urban Renewal Area" was to have 400 houses built within it. [7] Of these, 47 acres (19 ha) would be houses, 35 acres (14 ha) would be a nature preserve, and 15 acres (6.1 ha) would be a segment of preserved dunes on the beach. [23]
Arverne and other parts of the Rockaways increasingly got attention and press as the redevelopment of the beachfront continued. [24] To improve pedestrian accessibility, a section of Rockaway Freeway beneath the station was closed to through traffic [25] and the Beach 67th Street–Gaston Avenue station was renamed Beach 67th Street–Arverne by the Sea as a symbolic recognition of the neighborhood's rebirth as a residential area and a summer waterfront destination.
One of the largest developments, the 2,300-unit Arverne by the Sea, first opened to residents in 2006. [26] Despite an economic downturn in 2008, the $1 billion development was mostly successful, and units sold at prices of up to $1 million. [27] By 2012, Arverne by the Sea was largely developed. [28] New restaurants and retail establishments arrived as part of an effort to make shopping available to local residents at a hub near the Beach 67th Street station. [29] [30] Phase I was completed in 2011; Phase II was begun in 2006. [23]
In October 2018, construction began on the Tides development. By mid-2019, Arverne was undergoing gentrification as new businesses were opening in the area, which was still over 60% black and 20% Hispanic/Latino. [31] According to census data from the 2019 American Community Survey, black declined as a percentage of the population to 56.8%.
The New York City Department of Education operates Arverne's public schools. These schools include PS/MS 42 Robert Vernam School and PS 183 Dr. Richard R. Green.
The Queens Public Library operates the Arverne branch at 312 Beach 54th Street. [32]
The New York City Subway's Beach 67th Street and Beach 60th Street stations, served by the A train, are located in Arverne. [33] The Q22 , Q52 SBS , QM17 MTA Bus routes also serve the neighborhood. [34]
The 8.6-acre (3.5 ha) Kohlreiter Square is located on the north side of Rockaway Freeway between Beach 67th and Beach 69th Streets.
There are three wildlife sanctuaries in Arverne, all part of the Gateway National Recreation Area. The Dubos Point Wildlife Sanctuary is northeast of the intersection of Da Costa Avenue and Beach 65th Street, fronting Jamaica Bay. It was acquired in 1988 and named for microbiologist Dr. René Dubos. [35] [18] At the northwest corner of Arverne is Brant Point Wildlife Sanctuary, located west of Beach 72nd Street and north of Hillmeyer Avenue on Jamaica Bay. It was transferred to the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation in 1992. [36] A third sanctuary, Vernam Barbadoes Preserve, is on Terrapeninsula, a peninsula between two inlets of Jamaica Bay west of Beach 75th Street and north of Amstel Boulevard. It was designated as the "Terrapeninsula Preserve" in 1997, but is commonly referred to as Vernam. [37]
The Rockaway Peninsula, commonly referred to as The Rockaways or Rockaway, is a peninsula at the southern edge of the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, New York. Relatively isolated from Manhattan and other more urban parts of the city, Rockaway became a popular summer retreat in the 1830s. It has since become a mixture of lower, middle, and upper-class neighborhoods. In the 2010s, it became one of the city's most quickly gentrifying areas.
Canarsie is a mostly residential neighborhood in the southeastern portion of Brooklyn, New York City. Canarsie is bordered on the east by Fresh Creek Basin, East 108th Street, and Louisiana Avenue; on the north by Linden Boulevard; on the west by Ralph Avenue; on the southwest by Paerdegat Basin; and on the south by Jamaica Bay. It is adjacent to the neighborhoods of East Flatbush to the west, Flatlands and Bergen Beach to the southwest, Starrett City to the east, East New York to the northeast, and Brownsville to the north.
Broad Channel is a neighborhood in the southern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It occupies the southern portion of Rulers Bar Hassock, the only inhabited island in Jamaica Bay.
Rockaway Beach is a neighborhood on the Rockaway Peninsula in the New York City borough of Queens. The neighborhood is bounded by Arverne to the east and Rockaway Park to the west. It is named for the Rockaway Beach and Boardwalk, which is the largest urban beach in the United States, stretching from Beach 3rd to Beach 153rd Streets on the Atlantic Ocean. The neighborhood, with 13,000 residents as of 2010, is also known as the "Irish Riviera" because of its large Irish American population.
The Far Rockaway Branch is an electrified rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch begins at Valley Interlocking, just east of Valley Stream station. From Valley Stream, the line heads south and southwest through southwestern Nassau County, ending at Far Rockaway in Queens, thus reentering New York City. LIRR maps and schedules indicate that the Far Rockaway Branch service continues west along the Atlantic Branch to Jamaica. This two-track branch provides all day service in both directions to Grand Central Madison and Penn Station, both in Midtown Manhattan.
Edgemere is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, extending from Beach 32nd to Beach 52nd Street on the Rockaway Peninsula. It contains Rockaway Community Park. Arverne is to the west, and Far Rockaway to the east. Edgemere was founded in 1892 by Frederick J. Lancaster, who originally called it New Venice.
The Beach 67th Street station is a station on the IND Rockaway Line of the New York City Subway. Located at Beach 67th Street and Rockaway Freeway in Arverne, Queens, it is served by the A train at all times. The station is adjacent to Kohlreiter Square, a public green space on the north side of the station.
The Beach 60th Street station is a station on the IND Rockaway Line of the New York City Subway. Located in Queens on the Rockaway Freeway at Beach 60th Street, it is served by the A train at all times. The station opened in 1892, and was rebuilt in 1942 as an elevated station.
Rockaway Park is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. The area is on the Rockaway Peninsula, nestled between Jamaica Bay to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. The neighborhood of Rockaway Beach lies on its eastern border while the community of Belle Harbor is situated on its western side. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 14.
Remington Vernam was an American lawyer and real-estate developer from New York, best known for founding and developing the community of Arverne, which became part of New York City in 1898, from land he had purchased in 1882.
Shore Front Parkway is a 2.5-mile (4.0 km) beachfront road paralleling the Rockaway Beach and Boardwalk in the New York City borough of Queens, running between Beach 73rd Street and Beach 108th Street.
Rockaway Beach Boulevard, opened in 1886, was the first major east-west thoroughfare on the Rockaway Peninsula in the Borough of Queens in New York City. Much of its route parallels the Rockaway Freeway and the IND Rockaway Line above the Freeway. The boulevard first forks off at its eastern end from Beach Channel Drive at Beach 35th Street in Edgemere and merges once again with Beach Channel Drive by Jacob Riis Park shortly before the Marine Parkway–Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge.
The Rockaway Beach Branch was a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in Queens, New York City, United States. The line left the Main Line at Whitepot Junction in Rego Park heading south via Ozone Park and across Jamaica Bay to Hammels in the Rockaways, turning west there to a terminal at Rockaway Park. Along the way it connected with the Montauk Branch near Glendale, the Atlantic Branch near Woodhaven, and the Far Rockaway Branch at Hammels.
The Brooklyn Manor station was a station on the Long Island Rail Road's Rockaway Beach Branch located on the south side of Jamaica Avenue at 100th Street, straddling the border between Richmond Hill and Woodhaven in Queens, New York City. The station name referred to the nearby Brooklyn Manor section of Woodhaven, originally a 603-lot development bounded by Woodhaven Boulevard to the west, 96th/98th Streets to the east, Forest Park to the north, and Jamaica Avenue to the south. The station opened in January 1911, and was constructed as a replacement for the Brooklyn Hills station, which was located 3,000 feet (910 m) to the north. This station closed along with the rest of the Rockaway Beach Branch in 1962, and was subsequently demolished.
Spring Creek, previously called Spring Creek Basin, is a neighborhood within the East New York section of Brooklyn in New York City. It roughly comprises the southern portions of East New York between Flatlands Avenue to the north, and Jamaica Bay and the Gateway National Recreation Area to the south, with the Brooklyn neighborhood of Canarsie to the west and the Queens neighborhood of Howard Beach to the east. It is named after Spring Creek, one of several creeks that formerly ran through the area and drained into Jamaica Bay.
The Riegelmann Boardwalk is a 2.7-mile-long (4.3 km) boardwalk on the southern shore of the Coney Island peninsula in Brooklyn, New York City, United States. Opened in 1923, the boardwalk runs along the Atlantic Ocean between West 37th Street to the west, at the edge of the Sea Gate neighborhood, and Brighton 15th Street to the east, in Brighton Beach. It is operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
Parkside is a former elevated Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) station on the north side of Metropolitan Avenue on the border of the Rego Park, Forest Hills, and Glendale neighborhoods in Queens, New York City. Opened in 1927, the wooden station was part of the Rockaway Beach Branch and was the northernmost station on the branch before the junction with the Main Line at Rego Park Station and the terminus of the line at Grand Street station in Elmhurst. It also had a connecting spur to the Montauk Branch east towards Richmond Hill station. The station was closed in 1962, twelve years after the LIRR had abandoned the Rockaway portions of the line.
Kohlreiter Square is an 8.6-acre public green space located in the Arverne neighborhood on Rockaway Peninsula in Queens, New York. It located along the north side of Rockaway Freeway between Beach 67th and Beach 69th Streets. The park honors two generations of civic activists, Nathan A. Kohlreiter (1880–1961) and his son Fred Kohlreiter (1913–1990) who contributed to the political and social fabric of the neighborhood.
The Rockaway Beach and Boardwalk is a public park in Rockaway, Queens, New York, composed of the 170-acre (69 ha) Rockaway Beach and the adjacent 5.5-mile (8.9 km) Rockaway Boardwalk. The beach runs from Beach 9th Street in Far Rockaway to Beach 149th Street in Neponsit, a distance of 7 miles (11 km). The boardwalk, a concrete deck, runs from Beach 9th Street to Beach 126th Street in Rockaway Park, at the edge of Belle Harbor. There are also numerous recreational facilities within the park, parallel to the beach and boardwalk.
His wife names the area Arverne because he signs his checks R. Vernam