The Meadowbrook State Parkway (also known as the Meadowbrook, the Meadowbrook Parkway, Meadowbrook Causeway, or the MSP) is a controlled-access parkway in Nassau County, New York, in the United States. Its southern terminus is at a full cloverleaf interchange with the Bay and Ocean parkways in Jones Beach State Park. The parkway heads north, crossing South Oyster Bay and intersecting Loop Parkway before crossing onto the mainland and connecting to the Southern State Parkway in North Merrick. It continues north to the hamlet of Carle Place, where the Meadowbrook Parkway ends at exit 31A of the Northern State Parkway. The Meadowbrook Parkway is designated New York State Route 908E (NY 908E), an unsigned reference route. Most of the road is limited to non-commercial traffic, like most parkways in the state of New York; however, the portion south of Merrick Road is open to commercial traffic.

The Meadowbrook State Parkway was first envisioned in 1924 as part of the Long Island State Park Commission (LISPC) and Robert Moses's system to connect several parks in Nassau and Suffolk counties. One park included in the proposal was Jones Beach State Park, which opened along with the Ocean Parkway in 1929. Construction of the Meadowbrook and Loop causeways began in July 1933, and was slated for completion in January 1935. The Reconstruction Finance Corporation loaned $5,050,000 toward the project, which was completed in October 1934. Nassau County acquired the right-of-way for an extension to the Northern State Parkway in 1936, and the highway was originally intended to be finished for the 1939 World's Fair in Flushing Meadows, Queens. The start of construction was ultimately delayed until December 1953, and the $10 million (1953 USD) highway was completed in October 1956.

Reconstruction projects in the latter half of the 20th century have caused local protests by entities such as the Town of Hempstead and the Village of Westbury. The latter was concerned about construction affecting the way of life in Westbury, and the mayor and citizens wanted confirmation that the reconstruction of the Westbury Interchange—the Meadowbrook State Parkway's northern terminus—would not lead to environmental disruption.

The portions of the Meadowbrook Parkway south of the Southern State Parkway are part of a scenic byway and are designated on the National Register of Historic Places, within the historic district known as the Jones Beach State Park, Causeway and Parkway System.

In August 1998, the Meadowbrook was dedicated as the Senator Norman J. Levy Memorial Parkway in honor of Norman J. Levy, a state senator who helped sponsor the first seat belt law in the United States.

Route description

thumb|left|The Meadowbrook Parkway crossing [[South Oyster Bay, as seen from the south]]

The Meadowbrook State Parkway begins at a cloverleaf interchange with the Ocean Parkway and Bay Parkway on Jones Beach Island in the town of Hempstead. The parkway briefly proceeds northwest through Jones Beach before turning northward and crossing South Oyster Bay on a six-lane causeway. After crossing the bay, the Meadowbrook reaches exit M10, a trumpet interchange with Loop Parkway. After Loop Parkway, the Meadowbrook heads northwest across another water channel and becomes a divided highway with a large center median. A third bridge over a waterway soon follows, bringing the Meadowbrook Parkway onto the mainland part of Long Island, near what is today the Norman J. Levy Park and Preserve.

As the highway heads north from the channels surrounding the west end of South Oyster Bay, it runs along the west side of the Norman J. Levy Park and Preserve and the Merrick Road Park Golf Course, both of which are separated from the Meadowbrook by a small creek. The golf course leads to nearby exit M9, a cloverleaf interchange with Merrick Road (unsigned County Route 27 or CR 27) in the Freeport section of Hempstead. Not far to the north is exit M8, another cloverleaf serving NY 27 (East Sunrise Highway). After crossing the adjacent Babylon Branch of the Long Island Rail Road, the parkway continues north across East Meadow Park to reach exit M7, a cloverleaf interchange with the Babylon Turnpike (unsigned CR 7A). After exit M7, the Meadowbrook makes a slight turn to the northwest as it traverses Roosevelt Preserve County Park. The parkway was named after Meadow Brook, the stream that follows its route between East Meadow and Freeport.

thumb|left|The beach at Jones Beach State Park, for which the Meadowbrook was constructed to serve drivers from New York City

Construction of the Meadowbrook Causeway began in May 1933 with a $5,050,000 loan (1933 USD) given from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to the Long Island State Park Commission in April 1933. In order to repay this loan, the Long Island State Park Commission, working with the Jones Beach State Parkway Authority, would institute a 25-cent toll on the Meadowbrook and Jones Beach causeways. The 50-cent parking fee on Jones Beach would be reduced to 25 cents in order to keep the total charged to motorists at 50 cents. The Meadowbrook Causeway was designed as a road from the Southern State Parkway in Freeport to Jones Beach with six bridges across channels of South Oyster Bay. Three grade-separating structures would be designed as well by the State of New York Department of Public Works and the LISPC. A trumpet interchange with the Lido Beach Loop Causeway (current-day Loop Parkway) was constructed as well. Designs also included 10.1 million cubic yards of hydraulic fill, and a new water channel for boats.

On October 27, 1934, the Meadowbrook and Lido Beach Loop causeways were opened to vehicular traffic by LISPC. A motorcade of cars was led across the new roadways by Robert Moses, then a Republican Party candidate for Governor of New York. The event was preceded by parades in Freeport and Rockville Centre. During a speech Moses cited praises to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation for donating the money and letting the LISPC and Jones Beach State Parkway Authority do the work without interference. Other speakers that afternoon praised Moses and the LISPC, and New York City Mayor Fiorello La Guardia showed up late to give his congratulations. Despite the opening ceremony, two-way traffic was not permitted on the Meadowbrook between the Southern State and Merrick Road until June 1, 1935. Prior to that time, motorists had to use the renamed Wantagh Causeway to access Jones Beach.

In 1947, the LISPC approved $37,000 (1947 USD) to construct a stone ornate gasoline station along the Meadowbrook in Jones Beach State Park. The gas station, one of eight constructed by Robert Moses throughout Long Island, would serve drivers, when there were fewer stations throughout the area.

thumb|right|The Meadowbrook at the Southern State Parkway (exit M6W) in Barnum Woods

Moses announced during the opening of the Bethpage State Parkway in November 1936 that the land for extending the Meadowbrook from the Southern State Parkway to the Northern State Parkway had been acquired by Nassau County and plans for the road were being designed by the State Division of Highways. Moses stated that the funds would be requested at the next session of the New York State Legislature, with a completion date of 1939 to coincide with the opening of the 1939 World's Fair in Flushing, Queens. This would make it plausible for motorists to go from Flushing to Jones Beach State Park directly. The new extension would also alleviate congestion along several north–south highways in Nassau County and provide quicker access to Jones Beach. However, construction on the $10 million (1956 USD) highway was delayed until December 1953.

On October 13, 1956, Governor Averell Harriman officially opened the new extension of the Meadowbrook State Parkway with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11:30 a.m. near the Jerusalem Avenue overpass. Robert Moses, Hempstead Town Supervisor Edward Larkin, and Nassau County Executive Holly Patterson also attended the event. After the ceremony, a motorcade led by Moses traveled from the Northern State Parkway south to Roosevelt Field Shopping Center. At Roosevelt Field, the board chairman for Roosevelt Field, Inc., William Zeckendorf, honored Moses and Harriman with brand new tankards made of sterling silver. and the reconstruction and repaving was finished on November 18, 1964.

The Westbury Interchange was given minor improvements in 1968.

In the early 1970s, the Mitchel Field Interchange was reconfigured to better serve the Nassau Hub area, which was being developed on the site of the former airfield by Nassau County.

In 1975, NYSDOT, which took control of the parkways from the LISPC, began demolishing some of the stations – including the Meadowbrook plaza, which ended up being one of the first buildings to go. By 1997, over two decades after demolition, the station site became a problematic place for people parking and walking up the Meadowbrook and Loop to fish on the bridges. According to the New York State Police, the site is legal for use as a repair stop or for emergencies. However, not for use of dropping people off for fishing, which is also illegal to fish from atop the bridge, except it is around and under the bridges.

thumb|left|The Meadowbrook Parkway northbound, nearing the Westbury interchange.

In 1989, during a reconstruction project at the Westbury Interchange, a lawsuit was filed against NYSDOT by the Village of Westbury, regarding environmental impacts; the lawsuit claimed that NYSDOT did not follow proper environmental guidelines while designing the project because their environmental impact report failed to consider the impacts of a nearby future widening project on the Northern State Parkway. Construction began in May 1988, and the project was expected to be completed on October 31, 1991. It was proceeding on schedule until lawsuit was filed in February 1989. The Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court ruled on that NYSDOT had to provide a new environmental report by May 12 of that year or face having the reconstruction shut down. That December 19, the Court of Appeals announced their decision on the case of Village of Westbury v. Department of Transportation of the State of New York, et al., ruling in favor of Westbury. In its decision, the court stated NYSDOT should have issued a joint report for the interchange and widening projects because both projects improved the flow of traffic on the Northern State Parkway and were therefore related – although the widening portion of the project did not have a projected start date at the time the lawsuit was filed. The previous court's ruling was affirmed, and NYSDOT was advised to consider the environmental impacts of projects in the future on other, nearby projects. A settlement was eventually reached between NYSDOT and the Village of Westbury, allowing construction on the interchange to restart in February 1990; the reconstruction project was ultimately completed in 1991. and had also been part of the negotiations that helped work resume on the Meadowbrook–Northern State interchange. The new signs were unveiled in a ceremony in the median of the parkway just south of Merrick Road. Dignitaries at the honoring ceremony included then-Governor George Pataki, Senator Charles Fuschillo and Levy's widow, Joy Levy. Signs were erected at both ends of the Meadowbrook Parkway and at a point near the Babylon Turnpike interchange.

In 2005, the portions of the Meadowbrook south of the Southern State Parkway – along with several other Long Island parkways – were listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as part of a historic district, known as the Jones Beach State Park, Causeway and Parkway System.

In October 2008, Nassau County Legislator David Denenberg demonstrated with ten civic leaders in front of the NYSDOT building in East Meadow about the slow progress of construction on the NY 102 (Front Street) overpass. Construction was causing rush hour traffic to back up for miles near the Hempstead Turnpike (NY 24) exit, and evidence showed no work had been done for several months. After residents and commuters started demanding answers, NYSDOT stated that a project that began as just basic bridge repair had become a larger-scale project that required a redesign due to the fact that the bridge had more damage than initially realized.

In 2022, it was announced that a modernization project would be undertaken on the Westbury Interchage. The $3.8 million project would mitigate bottlenecks on Glen Cove Road and Jericho Turnpike. One such feature added as part of this project was a raised median barrier on Glen Cove Road to prevent illegal turns from being made.

Exit list

References

  • Meadowbrook State Parkway at Alps Roads
  • Interchange of the Week Monday, December 15, 2003 (Empire State Roads)
  • Meadowbrook Parkway (East Coast Roads)