Sea Cliff

On the edge of Hempstead Harbor, Sea Cliff is a village surrounded by beauty—not just natural and architectural beauty, but beauty born of the creative, artsy and tight-knit community that calls it home. “It’s a little bit of magic in this one square mile,” says Vivian Parisi, a licensed real estate salesperson at Compass Real Estate. “Once you get out of the square mile, things change, but when you’re in it, you’re almost in a movie set. If you go down one block, there’s a haiku hut where somebody does a haiku and it stays there for a month, and you can walk by and pick one up. Then there’s various houses that have little libraries on the property for book exchanges, and you’ll see a stop sign that’s been wrapped in yarn where somebody has done something decorative. It’s just got a really nice way about it.” The creative people in this tight-knit little community stick out just as much as the beautiful views. “There’s a real variety of personality too,” Parisi says. “There are certain characters there. You know who these people are. I would literally sit in my office and just watch people go by, the most interesting people, and I always thought, ‘Oh my God, this could be a great TV show.’” Sea Cliff’s natural beauty and access to waterfront activities are also a vital part of life in the village. “The water is one thing that really attracts people to Sea Cliff. A lot of people are within walking distance of it,” Parisi says. “When you get to the top of the cliff, there’s the Sea Cliff Yacht Club and another yacht club across the water, and you see all these little sailboats in the water. It’s just magnificent with the sun going down. It’s a little like being on vacation all year round.”

Sea Cliff’s beauty extends to its homes, especially its collection of historical Victorian homes, which are often painted in cheerful colors and adorned with architectural quirks like turrets and scalloped siding. Lot sizes are relatively small, especially in the northern area known as The Flats, where lots were once camping sites. Sea Cliff’s biggest lots generally top out at half an acre. Home prices are higher than in neighboring Glen Cove, starting at around $600,000 and climbing well over $2 million. “The prices in Sea Cliff are a little bit spicier, but people want to be here,” Parisi says. “Right now, there’s 14 homes on the market. Out of those, there are 5 homes under $1 million and the remainder are over $1 million.” For the past few decades, many people have renovated Sea Cliff’s old Victorian homes, a trend that has only added to its beauty. “There’s been such a revitalization of Sea Cliff since I was a kid,” Parisi says. “It was this quiet, run-down Victorian town and I thought it was like magic, and now people have come here and the homes are getting taken care of. It’s lovely to see them getting a second life for their next hundred years.” Thanks to this trend, prospective homeowners can choose between historical homes that are already renovated or that they can renovate and personalize themselves. For those who don’t want a historical house, there are plenty of newer homes to choose from, too. The demand to live in Sea Cliff, however, has paired with low inventory to create a competitive housing market. “The market is so tight right now,” Parisi says. “Everybody wants to get in here and it’s just hard to get them in.” As a result, prospective buyers can expect to face competition for their new homes. “A good agent is your best bet,” Parisi says. “Your job is to guide them through. We’re the eyes and ears on the ground.”

Sea Cliff is served by the North Shore School District, which Nice gives an A-plus rating and lists among the top 25 districts in New York. Most children in the village attend Sea Cliff Elementary School, North Shore Middle School and North Shore High School. At the high school, which is a Blue Ribbon School, students can graduate with a New York Seal of Biliteracy.

Residents spend a lot of time in and around the water, pastimes that are made easier thanks to the village’s beaches, Sea Cliff Beach and Tappen Beach These are the perfect spots to relax in the sand, go for a swim or launch small boats. At Sea Cliff Beach, you can also walk along the boardwalk or use the grills for a picnic. Residents often join the Sea Cliff Yacht Club, which was established in 1892, to take advantage of sailing classes and community events. On land, Central Park provides a tree-shaded playground for local children with plenty of places to sit and read a book, while Clifton Park hosts practices and games for sports like baseball. During the summer, Clifton Park also hosts summer concerts, events that draw the creative community like moths to a flame. “You have all these local musicians and families that just gather to hear music,” Parisi says.

Because Sea Cliff covers only a single square mile, the collection of stores and restaurants along Sea Cliff Avenue are within walking distance for most residents. You’ll often see residents of all ages walking or biking down the street instead of driving. “It’s wonderful to be able to have your kids just get on their bicycle and go up and have the autonomy to go grab a pizza or an ice,” Parisi says. Pick up groceries at North Shore Farms, enjoy shopping at boutiques like Moonshot Emporium or take a ceramics class at Frost Ceramics and Mercantile. Once you’ve worked up an appetite, stop for dinner at one of the village’s many restaurants like Foster, which is particularly popular for its fried chicken, or meet friends and neighbors at Sea Cliff Bistro, a local hangout spot with freshly made muffins that Parisi says is run by two of the village’s notable characters, Lily and Walter. They’re so recognizable, in fact, that locals often call the café Lily and Walter’s instead of its official name. “It’s our little, tiny, funky coffee shop,” Parisi says. “It’s a place where you go just to hang out and say hello. There’s just a lot of love in that village.” Despite its small size and relaxed, almost sleepy pace, you’ll never run out of things to do in Sea Cliff. “There’s beauty all over the island, but the thing that keeps me there, why I’ve been in love with it since I was a kid, is really that I can have everything I want,” Parisi says. New York City isn’t far, either. From Sea Cliff Station, the train reaches the city in about an hour. Spending even a bit of time in Sea Cliff makes it clear that its beauty comes not just from the views of the harbor or restored Victorian homes, but from the creative and loving community that comes together to call it home. “I’ve been living there since 2003 and I’m on my second smaller house, and the one thing I can tell you is I know that if I need anything, I just go through town and I can ask anybody,” Parisi says. “There’s always somebody to say hello to, that’s what this place is. It’s just a good feeling, and to know that it still exists is really important. It’s worth every penny of it.”

Photography Contributed By

Franklin Abreu

Video By

Jonathan Bradley