LONG BEACH, LONG ISLAND

Long Beach, Long Island

Long Beach is a city located in Nassau County, is on a barrier island off the South Shore of Long Island, New York. It is surrounded by the Town of Hempstead. The city is less than a mile wide from ocean to bay and about three and a half miles long. Long Beach is politically independent and self-governing. The governing body consists of a five member City Council elected every two years in which they appoint a City Manager. As of the 2000 census, there were 35,462 people, 14,923 households, and 8,103 families residing in the city. The median income for a household in the city was $56,289, and the median income for a family was $68,222. Males had a median income of $50,995 and only $40,739 for females. The latitude of Long Beach is 40.588N. The longitude is -73.658W. It is in the Eastern Standard time zone. Elevation is 0 feet.

In 1643, the Rockaway Indians were the first inhabitants who sold the area to colonists. The former and merged names include Long Neck and Long Neck Beach. Long Beach was founded in 1880 at which point it was partially submerged in water. Some areas of the city, most notably, "the canals", are built above water. There is also a neighborhood known as "The Walks" consisting of tremendously narrow sidewalks in between houses. Each "Walk" is named after a month. This area is located near the West End. Beginning in the 1980s Long Beach has begun its development with new housings, new businesses, and other improvements. Today, the city is attracted by the quiet beach atmosphere and the easy, 55-minute train commutes.

Well-known residents have included Billy Crystal (comedian and actor), Humphrey Bogart (actor), and Cab Calloway (singer and bandleader). The blockbuster 1972 movie, "The Godfather" was shot and filmed in Long Beach and nearby Atlantic Beach. Also the 2002 movie “City by the Sea” starring Robert de Niro and co-actor James Franco was based on a true story about a murderer from Long Beach. The community has one 2-lane street, Park. When this ceases to be a major street, West Beech starts to be one. Park/West Beech has got some stores but is isolated at night. The city has its own playground, pool, ice skating rink, industrial zone, city hall, garbage dump, and water treatment plant. The library has many books, music and movies to check it out.

Long Beach City School District serves the entire city of Long Beach. The beach here has about the highest waves compared to other famous beaches like Bar Beach and Jones Beach; it is advisable to be extra careful when doing a swimming because everybody knows at least one person dies here each summer in the immense waves and the life guards are correspondingly strict about letting people swim out far into the ocean. The Long Beach Memorial Hospital has been very helpful to the residents which recently opened a new 12,000 square foot state-of-the-art Emergency Room with cardiac care unit, trauma room, pediatric room, and private observation rooms. In terms of housing, Long Beach offers one of the widest ranges of living styles on Long Island. House styles include bungalows, Colonials, ranches, high-ranches, contemporaries, and Tudors.