The Lindenhurst maritime center is in the incorporated Village of Lindenhurst in Suffolk County.
Substantial marine commercial uses have been established along Neguntatogue Creek which enters
Great South Bay at Lindenhurst. (See photo 8.) Along with Amityville and the Village of Babylon,
Lindenhurst is one of three incorporated villages within the boundaries of the Town of Babylon. The
Village was incorporated in 1923 and does not have a continuous long term history of marine
commercial uses; much of the development along the shoreline occurred in the 1950s and '60s.
Lindenhurst is considered a secondary center of water dependent facilities in the South Shore Estuary
Reserve, but the marine commercial facilities in the Village are much more substantial than the water
dependent facilities in the Amityville maritime center to the west and West Babylon maritime center
to the east. The Lindenhurst maritime center supports the highest concentration of boats in the Town
of Babylon (including the Village of Babylon).
Neguntatogue Creek is considered an urban stream/river corridor lacking natural shoreline features. According to a 1990 report by the Long Island Regional Planning Board (Evaluation of Land Use Impacts on Environmental Quality in Urban and Semi-rural Streams Tributary to Great South Bay Long Island New York 1990), the Creek had the worst freshwater quality ranking of the 22 streams entering Great South Bay as determined by a 1980 Suffolk County study. The Regional Planning Board's report also referred to a 1987 survey by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation that detected very high concentrations of the toxic substance TBT (Tributyltin) in bottom sediments of the Creek.
The shorelines of the Creek are intensively developed and bulkheaded, and the Creek is navigable upstream to Montauk Highway. Areas of marine commercial development are found in three distinct locations on the west side of the Creek: 1) along Roosevelt Avenue south of Montauk Highway; 2) between Gulf and Brook streets; and 3) in the area between River Street and South Wellwood Avenue near the mouth of the Creek and the Village dock. On the east side of the Creek a substantial marina facility adjoins the Town of Babylon's Venetian Shores Park. (See map 9.) The rest of the waterfront is developed for high and medium density residential use.
Photo 8 : Lindenhurst Maritime Center
The Regional Planning Board's 1990 report describes waterfront land uses along the waterfront. Ten marina facilities providing an estimated 1277 boat slips were identified, including transient slips provided by a waterfront restaurant and a small marina for a local homeowners association. Marine commercial uses covered about 57 acres. The largest marina facility, a yacht club on the east side of the Creek near Venetian Shores Park, provided over 500 boat slips; a commercial marina on the west side provided 400 slips. There are also many private docks along both sides of the Creek.
Waterfront development is controlled by the Village of Lindenhurst zoning regulations. Business and residential zoning districts have been applied along Neguntatogue Creek. The four marine commercial areas are zoned for business use; the remainder of the waterfront is zoned for residential use. Virtually all of the land on and near the waterfront is either developed or in public ownership. Only a few parcels of vacant properties were identified by the Long Island Regional Planning Board in 1990.
From Neguntatogue Creek boaters have access to South Oyster Bay to the west and Great South Bay. The Neguntatogue Creek Channel connects Lindenhurst with the East-West Channel that follows the Town of Babylon shoreline to the Village of Babylon. Boaters also have easy access to the north-south East Fox Channel that connects with the New York State Boat Channel. Dredging of the Neguntatogue Creek Channel is the responsibility of Suffolk County. The channel is described in a 1985 report (19) by the Suffolk County Planning Department as a high priority dredging project in the public interest; the last County dredging project took place in 1977.