Marina Pointe residents will attend East Rockaway schools

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Representatives from the East Rockaway and Oceanside school districts and from Marina Pointe condominiums developer Beechwood Homes have cleared up some confusion concerning where residents of the complex — which is on the border of East Rockaway and Oceanside — would attend school. They confirmed that students would belong to the East Rockaway School District.

Lou Nicosia, a sales manager for Marina Pointe, told the Herald earlier this month that students who lived at Marina Pointe would attend the Oceanside School District. He said at the time that having all the students go to one district rather than splitting them made the most sense. “You’d have two different buses coming in and out,” Nicosia said. “It would be silly.”

However, Oceanside School District Superintendent Dr. Phyllis Harrington and East Rockaway Superintendent Lisa Ruiz said that they were both told that any students who live at Marina Pointe would belong to the East Rockaway School District.

Ruiz said the district contacted the county assessor’s office last October when they began to develop the property, which is currently under construction on Mill River at the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Ocean Avenue. Ruiz said district officials were informed that the building would be zoned for the East Rockaway district.

“We feel our school district has a lot to offer to our residents,” Ruiz said. “We are certainly excited about the prospect of having a new property in our school area.”

Ruiz said she has reached out to Nicosia to invite him to come and learn more about the district, but she had not heard back from him as of press time. She added that district officials hosted a realtors breakfast last year to welcome realtors and inform them about the district.

Though Nicosia originally said that students would attend Oceanside schools and it was even listed on Marinapointehomes.com, representatives of Beechwood Homes confirmed it was an error.

"The school district information noted in the original article was an error and has since been revised on the online version. representatives of Beechwood wrote on Facebook. "We relied on our hired professionals and Hagstrom map which was also incorrect. We are in the process of modifying the Marina Pointe offering plan to note East Rockaway School District and we are contacting all purchasers."

Residents are expected to be able to start moving into select Marina Pointe condominiums in January and construction is scheduled for completion by next June. There are 84 condominiums in the complex, which is in front of the East Rockaway Long Island Railroad station and across the street from Best Market.

According to Nicosia, about one-third of Marina Pointe’s condominiums have already been purchased. The complex is being built where Davison’s Boat Yard stood before it was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy.

To make sure the buildings could survive another storm, the developers elevated the property by 3 feet and raised the residences by another 10 feet. They also built a new walkable bulkhead and installed a new drainage system.

The complex will offer 54 suites and 30 villas, each with open floor plans. They have hardwood flooring and plush carpets in the bedrooms. There are options for a balcony and an elevator.

The suites that are currently available have two bedrooms and two bathrooms. They have an average living area of about 1,200 square feet and range from $460,000 to $640,000. The villas are two-story condominiums that have an average living space of about 1,550 square feet. The villas also have underground parking, and cost between $535,000 and $665,000.