Buying in Sea Cliff: Victorian homes, beach access are draws
Madelyn Lauder, Yousef Help, Joni Painter and Sam Sturge, seated, are lifeguards at Sea Cliff Beach. Credit: Dawn McCormick
The village of 5,000 residents, which expands during the summer months, is part of the North Shore School District, and most elementary children attend its Sea Cliff Elementary School. It is a little more than 1 square mile.
"We have so many perks in that one square mile," said Kathy Wallach, real estate agent with Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty "There is always something going on."
Among those things, said Wallach, are annual tours of gardens and houses, some of which are Victorians listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
"There is a music tour, with either a band or a singer or player performing on their porches," she said.
The community also has nine public parks. Among those is the Veteran's Memorial Park, at the intersection of Prospect and Sea Cliff avenues, which gives views of Hempstead Harbor and Long Island Sound, a preferred place to catch a sunset. Sea Cliff Municipal Beach, for residents, has lifeguards and fine sand (not rocks, like other North Shore beaches) and a pavilion with restrooms and shower facilities.
Life on the water is integrated into life in the community. Among the beaches and water views, the Sea Cliff Yacht Club is a nautical center with its regattas and Junior Sailing Program held each summer.
The village received a $320,000 grant last year from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as part of a clean-up of excess nitrogen from the Long Island Sound. Sea Cliff is also in the process of updating the village master plan, which hasn't been updated since 1970. It will focus on the environment, zoning, traffic concerns and other long-term issues.
Businesses along Main Street in Sea Cliff. Credit: Dawn McCormick
The Village of Sea Cliff had its start in the late 1800s, when the Metropolitan Campground Association chose the idyllic community for its annual religious summer camps. The association later built a steamboat pier, boardwalk and tabernacle. The community incorporated in 1883, with F. W. Geissenhainer as its first president. Many of the homes were once summer cottages for people living and working in Brooklyn.
Today, home costs span from $409,000 for a one-bedroom, one-bath to $2 million for a four-bedroom, 4½-bath Tudor.
Victorian homes line Prospect Avenue in Sea Cliff, where many houses are also on the National Register of Historic Places. Credit: Dawn McCormick
This $1.495 million Sea Cliff home was once a bookstore. Credit: Heidi Hunt Photography
Built in 1888 and once a bookstore, this five-bed, 2½-bath home with modern upgrades has large windows, pine floors, high ceilings and an updated open-flow kitchen. Features include a wood burning cast-iron stove on a brick wall, peek-a-boo water view, one-car garage and central air conditioning. Annual taxes are $24,000. Vivan Parisi, Compass Greater NY LLC, 516-236-0537.
This $999,000 Sea Cliff home was built in 1925. Credit: Heidi Hunt Photography
Situated on a landscaped plot, this four-bedroom, 2½-bathroom Tudor has intricate ceiling beam work with rounded doorways and doors, an eat-in kitchen and formal dining room. Built in 1925, it has a wood-burning stove and a first-floor primary bedroom. Annual taxes are $12,900. Terry Sciubba, Signature Premier Properties, 516-671-1717.
This $669,000 Sea Cliff home is close to shops and beach. Credit: Susan Auriemma
This three-bedroom, one-bath Dutch Colonial is close to the downtown and beach. Built in 1924, the home has a large front porch, entry hall, hardwood floors and, in some rooms, ceilings, wood-burning stove, formal dining room with French doors, fenced-in yard with garden, central air and new hot water heater. Annual taxes $24,000. Kathy Wallach, Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty, 516-759-6822.
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