Robert Moses State Park - Long Island is a state park in southern Suffolk County, New York. The park lies on the western end of Fire Island, one of the central barrier islands off the southern coast of Long Island, and is known for its stretch of beaches on the Atlantic Ocean. The park is accessible from Long Island by the Robert Moses Causeway across Great South Bay.
Established as Fire Island State Park in 1908, the park is the oldest state park on Long Island. Its current name was given to honor Robert Moses, the influential mid-20th century urban planner and former president of the Long Island State Park Commission. Recently, lawmakers have suggested the park should revert to its previous name or to something that better reflects its location.
Park description
Robert Moses State Park includes of beach, which visitors can use for swimming, surfing, or fishing. Anglers may fish from either the beach or the piers. A day use boat basin that can accommodate up to 40 boats is also available. Guests can also use the four bathhouses on the property. The park also contains four concession stands (one at each field), volleyball courts, first aid stations, picnic areas, and a playground at Field 5.
On the west end of the park is an 18-hole pitch and putt golf course. The secluded course is set among native trees and beach vegetation. It is typically open April through November and equipment rental is available.
Robert Moses State Park also facilitates access to the Fire Island National Seashore, immediately east of the park. Since there is no parking at the Seashore itself, many visitors park at Field 5 in order to walk to Lighthouse Beach, the Fire Island Lighthouse and Museum, or the nearby community of Kismet. In 2010, New York State officials estimated about 30% of the users of Field 5 park there to access Lighthouse Beach and the Lighthouse itself. Lighthouse Beach was historically a clothing optional beach; however, the National Park Service has enforced a ban on public nudity at Lighthouse Beach since 2013, citing concerns over increases in lewd behavior prior to the ban. Violators face a maximum penalty of a $5,000 fine and six months in prison.
Access and hours
The park is accessible by automobile from the Robert Moses Causeway, which connects Fire Island with mainland Long Island. Parking is available in four separate fields. Parking fields 2, 4 and 5 have a capacity of roughly 1,000 vehicles while the capacity at Field 3 is 500. Suffolk Transit's S47 route also serves the beach seasonally connecting it with the Babylon Long Island Rail Road station on the Babylon Branch.
The park is open year-round from sunrise to sunset, although hours for activities such as swimming and golfing vary by season. Portions of the park are open 24 hours a day to fishermen with the appropriate permit.
Starting in early April, visitors are charged a fee for parking at the park. As of 2015, vehicle fees are $8 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends from mid-April until Memorial Day, after which a $10 fee is charged from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends and holidays, and a $10 fee is charged on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. After Labor Day weekend, vehicle fees are once again $8 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends only, until mid-November when fees are no longer charged.
History
The west end of Fire Island was part of a colonial grant to William "Tangier" Smith. In 1825 the federal government acquired the westerly tip to build a lighthouse and David Sammis bought about to the east in 1855 and built the Surf Hotel.
In 1892, fears of a cholera epidemic spread by passengers on ships arriving in New York prompted the state to acquire the hotel property to establish a quarantine station. Irate local citizens obtained an injunction blocking the quarantine station and occupied the site despite the arrival of troops.
In 1908, Governor Charles Evans Hughes signed legislation designating the former Surf Hotel property as Long Island's first state park, known then as Fire Island State Park. The island and the park have grown since that time; for decades, sand has accumulated along Fire Island's western tip at a rate of per year, increasing the island's length by since 1825. At the time of the park's establishment, the island's western tip was near where the park's water tower stands today.