Discover the Absolute Hottest Place in New York

While New York State is in the northern part of the United States, they still receive some very warm temperatures. The hottest temperature ever recorded in the state was 108°F in Troy on July 22, 1926. However, the hottest part of the state consistently is Breezy Point, a neighborhood in Queens. It remains at least 0.1 degrees hotter on average than any other part of the state. In July, the average high is 83°F and the average low is 70°F. 

It’s kind of ironic that a place called “Breezy Point” whips up the hottest average temperatures across the state. But why is Breezy Point so hot? Well, it could have something to do with the amount of asphalt and sand, as well as a lack of vegetation.

• Breezy Point has average highs of around 83°F in the summer.

• Buying a house in Breezy Point is incredibly difficult due to regulations set by the cooperative.

Where Is Breezy Point?

Breezy Point is a small neighborhood in Queens County. It’s on the western end of the Rockaway peninsula and includes three small neighborhoods: Rockaway Point, Roxbury, and Breezy Point. It is considered a part of New York City, and it has a total area of 0.78 square miles. 

Breezy Point has three neighborhoods that span the peninsula. Breezy Point is closest to the tip of the peninsula, Rockaway Point is between Ocean Avenue and Beach 201st Street, and Roxbury is farthest east, near the Marine Parkway Bridge. The furthest tip of the peninsula is called Breezy Point Tip and it’s a part of Gateway National Recreation Area.

The area is 200 acres in total and includes a beach, sand dunes, and marshes. It provides opportunities for swimming in the ocean, boating, and bird watching. It’s a popular attraction, garnering over ten million visitors yearly. It has been managed by the National Park Service since its creation in 1972.

Breezy Point Culture and Demographics

Breezy Point gained some fame in 2020 when the New York Times published an article about the massive number of Trump supporters in the area. Since the state and city are primarily Democratic, the many Trump flags and banners in Breezy Point caught attention. 

The area is home to many first responders like firefighters and police officers. While homes in the area sell for millions of dollars, many residents are middle-class citizens who inherited the houses they live in. Only about a third of the community’s residents live there year-round, so the area functions more as a getaway for New Yorkers who live in the city. 

The area is often referred to as the “Irish Riviera” because of its high population of Irish Americans. Over 60% of the population identified as Irish Americans on the 2000 U.S. Census. The population demographics were 98.2% white for that zip code, which is 11697. 

The Breezy Point Cooperative

There is a rule that prevents just any person from purchasing a home in the community. The area is managed and owned by the Breezy Point Cooperative. Residents pay the cooperative for maintenance, security, and other unspecified community costs. The cooperative owns the entire community, which is 500 acres or 0.78 square miles in total. Residents hold shares in the cooperative and own their homes.

However, owning a home in the Breezy Point Cooperative isn’t available to everyone, and it isn’t an easy process. To own a home in the community, a person must be recommended by three members of the cooperative. The purchase must also be approved by the cooperative’s board of directors. 

Buying a Home

If you happen to know the right people and earn the board’s approval, there are still a few other complications to owning a home in the community. For one, there aren’t many homes for sale in the area. At the time of this article’s release, there was only one home listed on Zillow for purchase. Also, the homes in the area aren’t very cheap. They average around $800K to $1.2M. If you happen to find a home that’s available, get the recommendations, and earn the board of directors’ approval, you better have at least half the payment upfront. Homes in Breezy Point need to be purchased with at least a 50% down payment.

Since the area is owned by a private company, the Breezy Point Cooperative, it has different rules than other communities. For example, the cooperative has a private security force that restricts access to the community to owners, renters, and their guests. So if you were hoping to check out New York’s hottest community, you’d better make some friends there first.

History

The Breezy Point community began as a bunch of beach bungalows in the early 1900s. It was sold in 1960 to the Atlantic Improvement State Corporation. Then, half of the land was sold to residents who formed the Breezy Point Cooperative. 

Since the area was sold and the cooperative was formed, it became increasingly difficult to purchase homes. It’s estimated that a little under a hundred homes are sold each year, with most of them being sold or traded amongst family members. The rest rarely change ownership or are passed down from one generation to the next. Rentals are allowed for homes in the community, but only during the summer. When the summer crowd of renters and seasonal residents is gone, the community is much smaller and tight-knit. They have community activities that are mainly funded by the cooperative.

The Natural Disasters of 2012

In 2012 the community experienced a few difficulties. First, a tornado struck the area on September 8th. It began as a waterspout but came ashore at the Breezy Point Surf Club. Roofs were stripped from the cabanas and there was flooding across the community. It took down cable lines and caused minor damage to cars and homes. However, there were no injuries reported from the cyclone.

Just a little over a month later, the community was hit hard again. This time it was by Hurricane Sandy. Hurricane Sandy caused flooding and damage to basements and vehicles. It also affected the electrical wires and started a fire at 173 Ocean Avenue. Once that first fire started, it just kept spreading. By the time it was controlled, a day later, over 100 homes had burned to the ground. Many more homes were damaged by fire or water but were able to be repaired.

It took a few years to rebuild, but about five years later the Breezy Point community looked more like it did before the storm hit. During that time, community residents decided to take the initiative and prevent future storms from wreaking such havoc. They spent around $130,000 of their own money to build a sand dune in the hope that future storms would not cause such a large storm surge. 

Animals in Breezy Point

Beaches in Breezy Point are home to some very unique bird populations. Populations of waterbirds like black skimmers, piping plovers, and American oystercatchers have their breeding grounds on the beaches. The common and least terns, which are designated as threatened in New York State, also breed in the area. 

The beaches where the birds have their breeding grounds are owned by the cooperative. Just a few miles down, at the Breezy Point Tip, the land is owned by the federal government. The area is protected and development is very limited to allow for the animals to breed and live peacefully there.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © Felix Lipov/Shutterstock.com