Robert Moses State Park on Fire Island’s western tip is reopening Thursday, a week shy of the seven-month anniversary of Superstorm Sandy, which seriously damaged stretches of the beach.
Rose Harvey, commissioner of New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, is holding a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Robert Moses Traffic Circle to officially reopen the park a day before for Memorial Day weekend starts.
More than 500,000 cubic yards of sand dredged from Captree Marina was used to replenish Fields 4 and 5 and repair the south side of the traffic circle, which partly collapsed when sand beneath it was washed away.
The boardwalks at Robert Moses and Jones Beach State Park were partly rebuilt with Brazilian hardwood certified with a higher durability rating to withstand harsh oceanfront exposure.
The Fire Island Lighthouse will also reopen to the public with Robert Moses’ return.
The biggest change at Robert Moses this year will be that the nude beach has been shut down, as the Press has previously reported.
All New York State Parks will be reopened this weekend.
