The Last of the Bungalows
[nggallery id=”33327″ template=galleryview] How far Far Rockaway has fallen. (The Rockaways are technically in Queens but we’re making a rare geographic exception in this case.) In the 1920s, the seaside community was a popular summer spot for the New York elite. Now, as these recent photos from the intrepid photographer Nathan Kensinger show, the beachside…
[nggallery id=”33327″ template=galleryview]
How far Far Rockaway has fallen. (The Rockaways are technically in Queens but we’re making a rare geographic exception in this case.) In the 1920s, the seaside community was a popular summer spot for the New York elite. Now, as these recent photos from the intrepid photographer Nathan Kensinger show, the beachside bungalows that define the Rockaways in the public’s mind are largely abandoned, though some are occupied by squatters and others are being used for illicit activities like dog-fighting. Sad, indeed. Check out the Kensinger website for more interior and exterior photos.
Far Rockaway: Abandoned Bungalows [Kensinger]
What a shame. What happened in East Rockaway is a prime example of misplaced priorities and poor judgement calls among an urban planning elite with limited forsite. Of course, good old Robert Moses played a role in the demise of the bungalows, too. The decision to put in large scale, high rise housing in East Rockaway ultimately killed the community. There are locations sprinkled around the city where bungalows still exist and have not fallen into neglect like this. But the Rockaways probably had the largest concentration of them. It’s unfortunate. Someone with the right skill and promotion skills could have possibly seen the charm in these bungalows decades ago, renovated them and marketed them as an alternative for city residents to expensive summer weekend places in the Hamptons and the Jersey shore. Just try to imagine upper West Siders getting on the A train on summer weekends to head to their rentals at the shore. Hey, one can dream. Go ahead and laugh. No one ever imagined the High Line would one day be a beautiful park.
is that story online anywhere lisa, id love to read it.?
*rob*
I wrote a story about these bungalows in 2003 for Preservation–a whole bunch were torn down to put that big building up behind them, even though it was illegal (because the path to the beach was supposed to be protected). They were so lovely, and could really be fantastic beach getaways if they were treated properly. It’s a certifiable shame.
Groucho Marx owned several of these as an investment in the 1930’s. The Poor Man’s Riviera, it was once called.
This is very sad but Far Rockaway has been a tough neighborhood since the projects have been put in. A while back there was some revitalization but it didn’t last.
There is a stretch of Bungalows up on 109th Street in Rockaway that are still in mint condition. Even a few that are lived in year round. There is a nice community there but they don’t go for sale often.
Belle Harbor is a beautiful beachfront neighborhood where more and more people are buying houses as summertime properties. It allows people to escape Brooklyn without the traffic of the Hamptons, Jersey Shore, etc. However those houses come with hefty price tags.
Thanks for including this although it is technically Queens…I would like most people on the Brooklyn side of the Rockaway’s Peninsula consider themselves Brooklynites…
u have any info on where dog fighting is going on exactly? i will personally go over there and kick all their asses.
i wish these bungalows could be restored and rented/sold for cheap. it always boggles my mind that there could be ghetto on a beachfront area.
*rob*
wow – what a shame!
I am not sure the tidbit about the Rockaways being set up for the NY elite is entirely accurate, I thought it was set up for working class folks. I remember Breezy point as a kid being exclusively Irish
Ick.
This is terrific. What a bummer.