MANHATTAN BEACH, LONG ISLAND

Manhattan Beach, Long Island

Manhattan Beach is a residential neighborhood located in the borough of Brooklyn, Long Island, New York. It is part of Brooklyn Community Board 15. The neighborhood is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the south and east, by Sheepshead Bay on the north, and Brighton Beach to the west. Most of the residents are professionals who have retired from medical practice and other vocations, who look forward to tranquil autumns of their lives. Some families in such homes have inherited them from earlier generations and are deeply attached to the gentle traditions of Manhattan Beach. Just a train or bus ride from downtown Manhattan, Manhattan Beach is an affordable, appealing, and convenient escape from New York City's concrete throng. As of the 2000 census, there were 8000 people residing in the area. The median income for a household in the neighborhood is $75,000, and the median house price is $400,000.

In the 19th century, it was founded as an urban resort by Austin Corbin, president of the Long Island Railroad. Today, the neighborhood is a perfect place for summer vacations. The tennis courts on Manhattan Beach are popping with pick-up matches, barbecues fired up for hot dogs, and picnics spread across burly wooden tables. But it's not just the family-beach atmosphere that makes Manhattan Beach so appealing. Its somewhat remote boardwalk affords beautiful views of Breezy Point, the tip of Rockaway Peninsula, and a collection of stately million-dollar mansions. Aside from it, Manhattan Beach is also a horseshoe crab mating ground. Every May and June, female horseshoe crabs crawl out of the Atlantic Ocean and onto Manhattan Beach with their male suitors literally hanging onto their hard-shelled tails. Once on the solid shores, the female crabs burrow into the sands and bury close to 20,000 tiny green eggs, then stand aside to watch the male horseshoes compete to fertilize them.

Well-known people living in Manhattan Beach include Samuel Leibowitz (late New York State Supreme Court Justice), Donald M. Halperin (Senator), and Stephen J. Solarz (Congressman). The Russians tend to live in large joint families and are a relatively gregarious people. They are not the only ones attracted to Manhattan Beach, though they are more conspicuous because of their love for glamour and active nightlife. Other ethnic communities are also attracted to the area, though they may not afford the $ 1 million homes that are now increasingly common in Manhattan Beach. The Coleridge School-Byron Campus is a private school on Shore Boulevard between Ocean Avenue and Falmouth Street. Its front porch, adorned with gargoyles and lions, overlooks Sheepshead Bay. It has about 90 children in nursery school through fourth grade. There are also nearby public schools which include Reynolds Junior High School in Sheepshead Bay and Mark Twain for the Gifted and Talented in Coney Island. Manhattan Beach is also considered one of the safest areas in the borough. Maybe the area's biggest problem is its popularity with outsiders in the summer. There are about eight extra patrolmen and some mounted officers go on duty during peak season to maintain peace and order in Manhattan Beach.