GREAT NECK PLAZA, LONG ISLAND

Great Neck Plaza, Long Island

Great Neck Plaza is an incorporated village on the Great Neck Peninsula located in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, New York. It is within the Town of North Hempstead. The neighborhood has unique, varied, upscale shops, and restaurants found on main street, the "Middle Neck Road". As of the 2000 census, there were 6,433 people, 3,603 households, and 1,581 families residing in the area. The median income for a household in the village was $54,591, and the median income for a family was $70,781. Males had a median income of $51,863 and only $46,703 for females. Great Neck Plaza FIPS Code is 36-30213. The latitude of Great Neck Plaza is 40.786N. The longitude is -73.726W. It is in the Eastern Standard time zone. Elevation is 92 feet.

The area once flourished as a farming community. The former and merged names of Great Neck Plaza include Brookdale. The neighborhood is close proximity to Manhattan which enabled commercial transactions via steamships, followed by the railroad, which arrived here in 1866. Known as the Gold Coast in its heyday, Great Neck was soon discovered by wealthy New Yorkers. Among of them was W.R. Grace, a millionaire who served as mayor of New York City in 1881. He constructed large estates in Great Neck and was soon joined by wealthy colleagues such as the Vanderbilt, Hewlett, Chrysler, and King families. The estates were eventually sold off as subdivisions. The Village of Great Neck Plaza became incorporated on May 3, 1930.

Notable people who once lived in the Great Neck villages include Groucho Marx, Eugene O'Neill, W.C. Fields, Fanny Brice, P.G. Wodehouse, Sid Caesar, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The racial-makeup of Great Neck Plaza comprises of 91.11% White, 1.66% African American, 0.05% Native American, 3.02% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.04% from other races, and 2.10% from two or more races. Most of its resident’s ancestries were Russian, Iranian, Polish, Italian, German, Austrian, Irish, and Eastern European. The village is protected by the Nassau County Police Department Sixth Precinct located in Manhasset, and fire protection is provided by two volunteer departments. Great Neck Plaza is served by Great Neck School District which has a total of 6,000 students. The district has four elementary schools, two middle schools, and three high schools. There are three parks in the area, as well as a residential section comprised of many multiple dwellings and private homes. Great Neck Plaza has more than 90 multiple-family apartment buildings and 148 single family homes. The downtown area also has 250 retail stores and service establishments including 2 four star hotels and approximately 40 office buildings.