Breezy Point is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, located on the westward end of the Rockaway Peninsula, between Rockaway Inlet / Jamaica Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 14.

The community is run by the Breezy Point Cooperative, in which all residents pay the maintenance, security and community-oriented costs involved with keeping the community private. The cooperative owns the entire 500-acre community; residents own their homes and hold shares in the cooperative.

Demographics

According to the United States Census Bureau, the community's ZIP code (11697) has the nation's highest concentration of Irish-Americans, at 60.3% as of the United States Census, 2000. It functions mainly as a summer get-away for many residents of New York. Estimates put summer residency at 12,000, while year-round residency was 4337 in the most recent Census.

Due to its large concentration of Irish-Americans, Breezy Point has been called the "Irish Riviera.

Others within the community often refer to it as being "Cois Farraige", Gaelic for "By The Sea."

History

Breezy Point was sold to the Atlantic Improvement State Corporation for $17 million dollars in 1960. The residents of the community purchased half of the land for approximately $12 million and formed the Breezy Point Cooperative. Today, it consists of about 2,800 homes.

Breezy Point is patrolled by its own private security force that restricts access to owners, renters and their guests. It also features three of New York City's ten remaining volunteer fire departments.

Ecology

According the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, beaches on the Breezy Point peninsula are home to one of the most diverse breeding shorebird areas in the Metropolitan area. Shorebirds that breed here include:

• The federally threatened Piping Plover
• The New York State threatened Common Tern
• The New York State threatened Least Tern
• The NY State Species of Special Concern Black Skimmer
• The Migratory Bird Treaty Act-protected American Oystercatcher

The Beaches are owned by the cooperative and are federally and state-protected areas in which development is extremely limited.

Education

Breezy Point residents are zoned for schools in the New York City Department of Education.

Residents are zoned to P.S. 114 Belle Harbor for grades Kindergarten through 8.

Shopping

Breezy Point has one small shopping center, located on the north side of Rockaway Point Boulevard. It has a grocery store, hardware store, gift shop, liquor store, tavern, pharmacy, coffee shop, and a bank. Breezy also has a surf shop, travel agent, two year-round restaurants, and a summer-only bar and grill.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Breezy Point include:

• Charles J. Hynes. Kings County District Attorney.
• Brian McNamee, former strength and conditioning coach for the New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays.

Organizations

Breezy Point Catholic Club Pipes and Drums Band - www.breezypointpipesanddrums.org

References

Links

[www.breezypointpipesanddrums.org]