B250B50 SCH INVENTORY OF TPf lARRIER ISLAND CHAIN OF THE STATES OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY PREPARED UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE OPEN SPACE INSTITUTE FUNDED BY THE MC INTOSH FOUNDATION Pr OCL 13;.2 B5D 5ch INVENTORY OF THE BARRIER ISLAND CHAIN OF THE STATES OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY JAMES J, SCHEINKMANJ RESEARCHER PETER M. BYRNEJ CARTOGRAPHER ,, I PREPARED UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE J OPEN SPACE INSTITUTE 45 Rockefeller Plaza Room 2350 New York, N.Y. 10020 FUNDED BY THE MC INTOSH FOUNDATION October, 1977 I r- I,,' N.J~...; OCZ[VJ dbrary We wish to thank John R. Robinson, 150 Purchase Street, Rye, New York 10580, for his help and guidance and for the use of his office facilities in the prepara­ tion of this report. Copyright © The Mcintosh Foundation 1977 All rights reserved. Except for use in a review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in any form or by any electronic, mech­ anical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying, and recording, and in any information stor­ age and retrieval system is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher. TABLE OE' CONTENTS Page Number Preface iv New York Barrier Island Chain: Introduction to the New York Barrier Island Chain NY- 2 Barrier Island (Unnamed) NY- 5 Fire Island NY-10 Jones Beach Island NY-16 Long Beach Island NY-20 Background Information for Nassau County NY-24 Background Information for Suffolk County NY-25 New Jersey Barrier Island Chain: Introduction to the New Jersey Barrier Island Chain NJ- 2 Sandy Hook Peninsula NJ- 5 Barnegat Bay Peninsula NJ-10 Long Beach Island NJ-14 Little Beach Island NJ-18 Brigantine Island NJ-22 Absecon Island NJ-26 Peck Beach Island NJ-31 Ludlam Beach Island NJ-35 Seven Mile Beach Island NJ-39 Five Mile Beach Island NJ-43 or­ Background Information for Monmouth County NJ-47 on Background Information for Ocean County NJ-48 Background Information for Atlantic County NJ-49 Background Information for Cape May County NJ-50 For the purposes of this report, the Table of Contents was not arranged in alphabetical order, but was arranged as the islands appear on the maps in a north-south direction. iv P R E F A C E During the summer of 1977, information was obtained on twelve barrier islands and two barrier island-type peninsulas which form the barrier island chain in the States of New York and New Jersey. This information was obtained through extensive interviews and tele- phone conversations with many various governmental and private agen- cies. In addition, all publications provided by these agencies rele- vant to the protection of the islands were examined and organized into a file system for quick and easy reference. Often, information given by one agency conflicted directly with that obtained from another agency. After careful examination, the seemingly accurate data was used, or a new estimate was made. For example, in the case of Ludlam Beach Island in New Jersey, three different figures were obtained from three separate governmental . agencies for the total acreage. Information given by the Office of Shore Protection of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection listed total acreage as 6,292. In a 1967 u.s. Island Inventory, prepared by the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation of the U.S. Department of Interior, the island's acreage was listed as 2,000. The figure used in this report is 2,116 acres which was derived from information given by the Cape May County Planning Board. While this figure may include offshore property, it is considered the most accurate after viewing United States Geological Survey Maps and consulting other agencies. This report is intended only to be a general inventory of the status of the barrier island chain in New York and New Jersey. Add- itional specific investigations of individual factors affecting these v Preface (Continued) barrier islands would be most worthwhile. Such investigations might include an analysis of the effects on barrier islands by such pro- grams as Flood Plain Management, Beach Erosion Control, Sewage Treatment, Outer Continental Shelf Oil Development, Tidal Wetlands Protection and other projects. Please note that in many of the general descriptions for each island, reference is made to the 1974 Atlantic Coastal Plain Theme Study prepared for the National Park Service and a number indicating the priority rating given is shown. For clarification purposes, a number one priority rating means that the property is "highly recommended as a potential natural landmark". A property given a number two priority rating is "recommended" as a potential landmark and a number three priority rating is given when there is insufficient information to make a determination. Finally, a number four priority rating is given to property "not recommended" for landmark status. NEW YORK BARRIER ISLAND CHAIN NY-2 INTRODUCTION to the NEW YORK BARRIER ISLAND CHAIN The New York State barrier island chain consists of four is- lands located off the south shore of Long Island. Two of the islands, the Unnamed Island and Long Beach Island have undergone extensive development. The Unnamed Island is used as a popular resort .area consisting of mostly expensive single-family summer houses and some commercial establishments. Long Beach Island is quite urbanized and along with nearby offshore property, supports a year-round population of approximately 53,000 persons. The two remaining barrier islands -- Fire Island and Jones Beach Island -- have remained relatively free from private development and are used for recreational and natural purposes. Fire Island contains the well-used Fire Island National Seashore, Robert Moses State Park, Smith Point County Park and several town parks. As of February, 1976, of 5,350 acres of land on Fire Island, 1,153 acres were pri- vately owned. Jones Beach Island, on the other hand, is publicly owned and contains three State parks and several Town parks. Ex- tensive recreational facilities are provided on both islands. Access is available to all four barrier islands by road and other means. Much of the land located on the bayside and behind the barrier islands are protected under the 1973 New York State Tidal Wetlands Act. However, the law has been slow to be implemented due to the disputes with the aerial photograph contractor which finally ended this past summer. The photographs and public hearings conducted by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, are for all purposes completed and final regulations will be in effect Introduction to the New York Barrier Island Chain (Continued) in the near future. These regulations will allow "only those uses of tidal wetlands and a 300-foot buffer strip that are compatible with the preservation, protection and enhancement of the present and potential values of the tidal wetlands". No other State law is known to effectively check future development on the barrier islands. Additional information was obtained on other areas of environ- mental significance in New York State. These areas are Robbins Island, Shelter Island, Gardiner's Island, Plum Island, The· Gull Islands, Fisher Island, Mount Sinai Harbor and The Orient Beach State Park-Long Beach Peninsula (no connection with Long Beach Island). However, these areas are not included in this inventory. A detailed profile of each barrier island in the chain, including maps and statistical data follows. / -- ·- ~ ~- ~~--- a ., R.I. CONN. A"V fJt ·I " I, I) • •Qo• • N.~~ ~ \ ,,> 3~ ' 50uND 4\/ :rst-AND \ I .. FISHERS ISLAND t- BIG a LlTTL£ GULL ISLAND 1-BLOCK ISLAND 4 •PLUM' ISLAND IS .. GARDNERS ISLAND 8 .. ORIENT BEACH STATE PARK- LONG BEACH PEN. 1- SHELTER ISLAND 8-ROBINS ISLAND 1-MT. SINAl HARBOR to-MANHATTAN 11-0NNAMED BARRIER 15 ATLANTIC OCEAN a.LANO 12-f'IRE ISLA NO tl-JON£9 8nCtt !BLAND 14-LONG BEACH 18LANO • US- SANOY HOOK LONG ISLAND NOT TO SCALE NY-5 BARRIER ISLAND (UNNAMED) * Suffolk County, New York 5,000 acres (estimated) General Information: This unnamed Barrier Island is the furthermost eastern island in the New York State Barrier Island Chain. The island runs from the Shinnecock Inlet to Moriches Inlet and protects approximately half of Shinnecock Bay, Quantuck Bay and half of Moriches Bay. The remainder of the Shinriecock Bay is protected by a peninsula jutting out from the Village of Southampton to Shinnecock Inlet. Since this land does function as a typical barrier island, it is included as a part of the Unnamed Barrier Island. Actually the Unnamed Island and the peninsula were con- nected until the severe 1938 hurricane opened the present Shinne- cock Inlet. Total length of oceanfront for the entire strip of land from Moriches Inlet to the Village of Southampton is 19 3/4 miles. Maximum elevation is 20 feet and an estimated 1,500 acres of marsh are located on the bayside. As an important feeding ground for shorebirds of Eastern New England, the Moriches Flats, given a number one priority rating in the 1974 Atlantic Coastal Plain Theme Study, is located just north of Moriches Inlet, between this island and Fire Island. It is also interesting to note that the two large barrier islands were con- nected from 1838 to 1931, when the present Moriches Inlet was formed. * This barrier island is not considered to be an actual island due to its proximity to Long Island. However, to suit the purposes of this inventory, it shall be classified as an existing island as it is separated from Long Island by a body of water. NY-6 Barrier Island (Unnamed) {Continued) Development: • The entire strip of land has undergone considerable residen- tial development. It is more highly developed near the Villages of Westhampton Beach and Quogue, as compared to Southampton Beach.