Bayswater Point State Park

History

The site of Bayswater Point State Park once contained Breezy Point, an expansive mansion built in 1907 by New York City banker Louis A. Heinsheimer. In 1925, the mansion was converted into a home for disabled children, and it was later used as a home for children with intellectual disabilities before being placed for sale in the late 1980s.

A 12 acre parcel that was to become Bayswater Point State Park was purchased by the Trust for Public Land in 1986. The mansion, which by that point had been damaged by fire, was demolished in 1987 prior to the land being given to New York State in 1988; only the conservatory was left standing.

New York State designated the land as a state park in 1991, and gave New York City Audubon administrative duties over the park. Between 1994 and 1996, the Audubon Society conducted a research and restoration project at Bayswater Point, seeking to engage the public with the land's conservation.

In early May 2010, the park was briefly closed to the public as a result of budget cuts, along with 57 additional state parks and historic sites. In 2015, an $80,000 improvement project to stabilize Sunset Lodge at the park was announced.

Usage

Bayswater Point State Park was established in order to preserve important habitat for migratory birds in Jamaica Bay. The park also protects habitat for butterflies such as the Delaware skipper, and its beach is used by horseshoe crabs during their annual mating season. As such, the park is largely undeveloped, and primarily offers space for passive recreation such as hiking, birdwatching, and fishing.

References

References

1. NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation. "Bayswater Point State Park - Getting There".
2. (2014). "2014 New York State Statistical Yearbook". The Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government.
3. "State Park Annual Attendance Figures by Facility: Beginning 2003".
4. Christopher Gray. (August 4, 1996). "Limestone Shell Evokes Far Rockaway's Gatsby Era". The New York Times.
5. {{cite enc-nyc2
6. (2001). "The New York City Audubon Society Guide to Finding Birds in the Metropolitan Area". Comstock Pub. Associates, a division of Cornell University Press.
7. Andy Newman. (May 27, 2010). "Deal Reached to Reopen Closed State Parks". The New York Times.
8. Joseph Spector. (April 21, 2015). "NY parks to get $72M in upgrades". The Journal News.
9. Newman, Andy. (May 17, 2010). "Farewell to Bayswater Point". [[The New York Times]].
10. NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation. "Bayswater Point State Park".