Modernized original Levitt suburb off the Meadowbrook State Parkway
Those who recall the post-World War II chapters of their American history textbooks know 1947 as the birthyear of the original Levittown, a sprawling and enduring blueprint for midcentury suburbia. Fewer history buffs know about the 600-household trial of that assembly-line building process conducted by Levitt & Sons in the hamlet of Carle Place in 1946, marketed toward returning veterans and standing a few miles from its more well-known cousin. In the decades following this first subdivision, rapid suburbanization spread, filling the square-mile hamlet with enough starter homes and shopping centers to support the post-war baby boom. Despite plenty of nods to its history, including a jumpy public school mascot that recalls the land's former name of Frog Hollow, Carle Place is far from stuck in the past.
The hamlet’s 21st-century community enjoys next-street-over access to an outsized number of modernized commercial districts and Long Island commuter hubs while keeping its know-your-neighbor sensibility through an active civic association and the Carle Place Moms (And Dads) Facebook page. “If somebody asks for help, people volunteer. If you lose your dog and post it on the Facebook page, everybody looks out their windows and says, ‘I saw him running down this block,’ or ‘I took him into my house, come and get him!’ People look out for each other,” says Wendy Liotti, team leader of Compass Greater NY’s Rowan Team whose family has been active in community and real estate life in Carle Place for over 60 years. “Carle Place has a very small-town feeling. It’s very welcoming and not pretentious. People come from all walks of life, and we’re close to everything – the Long Island Rail Road, all the major parkways, shopping – we're just like a hidden gem.”
Carle Place has beautiful tree lined streets in the community.
Welcome to Carle Place.
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Original Levitt houses and midcentury single-family homes from $650,000
Carle Place’s stock of single-family homes still includes original no-basement, concrete slab Levitt houses, but even those that were built outside of the initial subdivision share the classic midcentury stylings that were popular in the 1940s through 1960s. Ranch-style homes, Cape Cods, Minimal Traditional homes and larger Colonial Revivals and split-levels are common, settled along blocked or gently winding streets that may or may not be lined with sidewalks. Tidy landscaping and pocket-sized lawns front most homes, and some houses across the design and size spectrums have seen significant full-wing expansions or extensive interior remodeling over the years. While homes needing significant renovation can go for less, most will sell for $650,000 to $1.2 million. Carle Place has a CAP Index crime score of 2 out of 10, lower than the national average of 4.
Carle Place has several different home styles.
Colonial Revival Style homes are an option for moving to Carle Place.
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Small classes and athletic programs at Carle Place schools
“Carle Place is a school town. There’s usually less than 100 kids in a grade, so they’re public schools but almost with a private school feeling – everybody knows each other, there’s a lot of personal attention,” Liotti says. “The schools are all on the peripheral of a big field. We have a lot of scholar athletes, if you go by after school or on a weekend, you see them out playing soccer and baseball. The soccer, softball, lacrosse and field hockey teams – for a small school, they’re very accomplished. They win conference titles.” Clustered on adjacent campuses, Carle Place’s public schools also share similarly positive reputations. Kids will attend Cherry Lane School for kindergarten through second grade, which earns an A-minus from Niche, before moving on to A-rated Rushmore Avenue School for third through sixth grades. Carle Place Middle/High School earns a B-plus, serving students from seventh grade through graduation.
Carle Place High School is ranked 161st within New York.
Cherry Lane School is a highly rated public school in Carle Place.
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Commuting on parkways and from the new Carle Place LIRR Station
The Northern State Parkway starts to hook even further north on the edge of Carle Place, one of Long Island’s busy east-to-west connectors. Many commuters will head up the Meadowbrook State Parkway, which cuts through the hamlet, to the Northern State Parkway, merging onto the Long Island Expressway on the roughly 25-mile drive to Manhattan. The Carle Place Long Island Station reopened in 2021, introducing a modernized look and expanded service as part of the much broader LIRR Expansion Project to the commuter hub that gave the hamlet its initial suburban boost. “Carle Place has little to no parking, but most people can walk to the station because we’re only one square mile. We’re right between Mineola and Westbury, and they have plenty of parking,” Liotti advises. From Carle Place, Penn Station is about a 40-minute ride away. NYU Langone Hospital Long Island is a couple of miles away in Mineola, and John F. Kennedy International Airport is nearly 20 miles away.
Carle Place Little League fields and Eisenhower Park
Similar to many suburbs on Long Island, Carle Place’s Little League season is a big deal, and teams can often be found playing at the 8th Street Field or the diamonds at Charles J. Fuschillo Park. The latter is the hamlet’s main park, one which finished up an extensive remodel in 2023 that introduced new elements like a spray park and the first fully accessible playground in the Town of North Hempstead. While Carle Place’s own community parks are popular, one of Nassau County’s most iconic destination parks is also nearby, sprawling along Merrick Avenue a few miles to the east. Eisenhower Park’s amenities are too many to list, but Liotti offers a few suggestions: “In the summer, they have concerts at the bandshell, you can pay a daily rate or become a member to swim in the indoor Olympic-sized pool, they have the Northwell Skating Rink and, of course, the picnic grounds and the golf courses. Sometimes, I just walk around the pond in the middle. It’s a pleasant place to go.”
Baseball and softball are available by permit at Charles J. Fuschillo Park in Carle Place.
Enjoy countless amenities throughout 930 acres of open space at East Meadow's Eisenhower Park.
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Shopping and dining on Old Country Road
Old Country Road is the hamlet’s southern border and a jam-packed commercial thoroughfare, so much so that locals know to avoid traveling that way during the holiday season. Roosevelt Field is at the center of the madness, the largest shopping mall on Long Island with an island-sized regional pull for retail shopping. Strip malls crowd the same road on either side of the mall, anchored by big box essentials like Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Costco and Target. Among plenty of national chain restaurants, Thomas’s Ham & Eggery Diner stands out for its retro neon sign-topped exterior and a vintage interior packed with regulars who aren’t afraid of a bit of a wait before browsing a book-like menu. Glen Cove Road cuts north from Old Country Road, branching busy strip malls and retail anchors like ALDI and REI up and through the hamlet. The business district on Westbury Avenue is much quieter, lining the sidewalks with the seasonal plant displays at Lily’s Carle Place Garden Center and a diverse collection of local businesses, ranging from Rialto’s white-tablecloth Italian restaurant ambiance to Doce Empanadas & Coffee, a newer addition that has already earned community-favorite status for its selection of 12 signature pastry fillings.
The Fritatas at Thomas's Ham & Eggery Diner in Carle Place are out of this world.
The REI store is a premier sporting goods store for outdoor enthusiasts in Carle Place.
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Fun runs and trunk or treat with the Carle Place Civic Association
Every April, the streets around the Carle Place Union Free Public School District close to traffic, ready for the racing participants of the annual Carle Place Civic Association Family Fun Run/Walk. The civic association also helps the community celebrate major holidays, including hosting a popular Trunk or Treat in the high school’s parking lot. While not required, going all out on matching costumes and themed trunk decor is a surefire way to be featured on the Carle Place Civic’s Facebook page and The Carle Place Frog Horn newsletter.
Written By
Tina Davis
Photography Contributed By
Perez Folds
Interested in learning more about homes in this area?
Reach out to
Richard Krug,
an experienced agent in this area.
GreatSchools:
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