Relocating to the south end of Bay Park, East Rockaway. Any suggestions? (Oceanside: renter, houses)
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Hi all, thank you so much for all your thoughts. Please know that I did not mean to cause any rumbles between some of you. Our primary interest is to rent a small single family house near a body of water, not to swim, but more for the peace and serenity that it brings by just being there nearby.
No problem! We are always squabbling amongst ourselves like a pack of rabid wolverines on here anyway about one thing or another.
The air and water in Bay Park will just be too smelly because of the sewage plant to recommend moving near. If you are interested in renting small home near water I would suggest West End of Long Beach on the Atlantic Ocean side (again, this area flooded during Hurricane Sandy). Babylon Village is very nice in Suffolk on the south shore but I don't know if they have very small houses for rent. On the north shore of Nassau there are small homes in Sea Cliff which is located on LI Sound and some may be for rent. Also on the north shore of Suffolk County there are small homes where some may be for rent near water located in places like Centerport and Sound Beach. Best of luck!
If you can find something remodeled to rent in the west end of long beach I'd say that would be your ideal spot. I'm not sure that the bay park plant is smelly as I don't live near it but, I am in th area quite often and haven't had the pleasure to embrace it. Perhaps residents of the area can chime in but, I wouldn't take advice from non residents to seriously.
The big problem with that part of East Rockaway, as previously stated, is flooding. It doesn't take a hurricane to make that happen. A heavy rain will do it. Even if you avoid having water come into your home, many roads in the area get flooded after a drenching rain and it makes getting into and out of the area difficult sometimes. Pearl Street, which is north of Atlantic Ave., comes to mind. I do think the park, at least pre-Sandy, is very nice. There are also two LIRR stations in East Rockaway, both on the Long Beach line. East Rockaway has become increasingly diverse over the past 10 years.
I have a brother who lives in East Rockaway (Bay Park), We grew up in Gibson section of Valley Stream. VS is, was and always has been far nicer than East Rockaway. Even the schools in VS rank higher than East Rockaway.
Major concern would be flooding. My brother has lived in his house in Bay Park for 10 years and the neighborhood floods even if its just a heavy rain. Sandy was the worst storm he experienced, but that was the third time in 5 years his house and all his neighbors had their homes flood from the basement to the first floor. Getting to East Rockaway is a pain with traffic and in general the area does have a lot of low class people.
My brother has regretted selling his home in Gibson and moving to East Rockaway. He was lured by a bigger home near the water, plus the fear of everyone telling him VS was going downhill due to the new racial diversity. He wishes he stayed in VS.
The big problem with that part of East Rockaway, as previously stated, is flooding. It doesn't take a hurricane to make that happen. A heavy rain will do it. Even if you avoid having water come into your home, many roads in the area get flooded after a drenching rain and it makes getting into and out of the area difficult sometimes. Pearl Street, which is north of Atlantic Ave., comes to mind. I do think the park, at least pre-Sandy, is very nice. There are also two LIRR stations in East Rockaway, both on the Long Beach line. East Rockaway has become increasingly diverse over the past 10 years.
I lived in ER over 20 years ago. Everything above is accurate. However, I do remember that the Bay Park area was smelly. You'd get used to the smell but if you left for a period of time and then came back... <<SMACK!>> you'd notice it again.
The population, as I remember it, tended to be white trash, as stated by a previous poster. But you won't find people freaking out about your orientation. I'd be surprised if they cared in the least.
Definitely consider Bay Park if you're looking for cheap housing.
If you're only looking to rent, Long Beach and Atlantic Beach are solid options. The West End of Long Beach gets a little "party central" in the summer (think loud drunks all over the streets at 2 a.m. every weekend), but if you stay out of the "state" streets (streets named after states) you should avoid most of that. My husband and I live in LB right now (east end) and I can say that it's a fairly tolerant place (by LI standards, obviously there are more LGBT-friendly places if you were to move into the city, but you certainly won't be out of place or be hassled or anything in LB).
LB does flood, so check the flood maps before you sign a lease - there are lots of maps online that can show you which areas flooded during Sandy and how bad the flooding was. Basically, there are 3 levels of flood zone in LB - the places that flood when it so much as rains (the canals, parts of the west end), there are areas that only flood in bad storms, and there are places that flood rarely, like only during Sandy (and possibly not even then - where I live we had no flooding during Sandy, although we were among a very fortunate few).
S. Erock was always blue collar mixed in with some white trash but it was still a decent/safe place to live.
I have heard it has taken a turn for the worse over the past 10 years or so.
I live in East Rockaway actually. Your biggest concerns should be flooding and the sewer plant. Crime has been an issue ever since Sandy in the Bay Park area. Lots of break-ins.
PM me if you have any specific questions.
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