New York State Route 347
Encyclopedia
New York State Route 347 (NY 347) is an east–west state highway
located in Suffolk County, New York
, in the United States
. It connects the Northern State Parkway
in Hauppauge
to NY 25A
in Mount Sinai
. The route serves as a southern bypass of Smithtown
and as a direct link between Nesconset
and Port Jefferson
. Along the way, NY 347 intersects NY 25
in Nesconset and Nicoll's Road (County Route 97
) in Lake Grove
. The westernmost 2 miles (3.2 km) of NY 347 is concurrent
with NY 454
while the portion northeast of NY 25 parallels NY 25A, which follows a more northerly alignment through the town of Brookhaven
than NY 347.
The highway was built by Suffolk County
in the 1950s and designated as part of two county routes. It gained a single designation in 1966 when the state of New York assumed ownership and maintenance of the highway and designated it as NY 347. Several proposals to extend or improve the highway have been developed in the years since; however, none have been implemented, mostly due to community opposition.
in the 1950s as two separate highways. Southwest of NY 25
, it was known as the Smithtown Bypass and designated as County Route 85 (CR 85). Northeast of NY 25, it was named the Nesconset – Port Jefferson Highway and designated as CR 80. Although the road acts as an eastward extension of the Northern State Parkway
(with a 2 miles or 3.2 km section of Veterans Memorial Highway, now NY 454
, connecting the two), Robert Moses
planned an altogether different right-of-way for an extension of the Northern State. In fact, the Parkway was planned to have an interchange with the Smithtown Bypass west of CR 16
(Terry Road).
In 1966, the state of New York acquired both CR 80 and CR 85 and designated the new, unified route as NY 347. Suffolk County hoped that by transferring jurisdiction to the state, it would be easier to upgrade the road into the limited-access highway as was originally intended. The CR 80 and CR 85 designations were later reused for portions of Montauk Highway
, then part of NY 27A
, that were transferred from the state to the county. CR 80 was reassigned to the portion of Montauk Highway between Patchogue
and Hampton Bays
on October 6, 1966, while CR 85 was given to the section between Oakdale
and Patchogue on March 29, 1972.
) and the Smithtown Bypass. The location of the terminus was intended to be between exits 55 and 56, although some maps have indicated that the terminus was to be at or just west of exit 55. The southern half of Simeon Woods Road (unsigned NY 901A) follows part of the spur's proposed path. The plan was cancelled in 1977, at which time the NY 347 designation was extended westward along NY 454 to the interchange with the Northern State Parkway.
Another extension was planned by the Suffolk County Department of Public Works in the early 1980s. The highway, known as the North Brookhaven Expressway and proposed as CR 26, would have begun west of Pipe-Stave Hollow Road and ended at the intersection of NY 25A
and William Floyd Parkway (CR 46
). This idea was never carried out due to community opposition. A very faint vestige lives on, however, in the Rocky Point
Bypass section of NY 25A
, which was constructed in the late 1990s.
was built in 1969, it became a major retail attraction for those Long Islanders living east of Huntington. The success of the mall spurred further commercial and residential development along NY 347, effectively killing the proposed upgrade to the highway. The two townships through which the newly redesignated NY 347 traversed initially enforced setback requirements on new developments. For example, developers of the Billy Blake Department Store shopping center in Port Jefferson Station
between Old Town Road and Arrowhead Lane built a service road to access that retail outlet. The Hess
gas station and McDonald's
restaurant in Stony Brook
were built several hundred feet away from the roadway.
By the late 1980s, however, the town of Brookhaven
allowed development along the artery if the developer received a letter from the New York State Department of Transportation
(NYSDOT) indicating that such development would not interfere with any transportation improvements contemplated for completion within the next five years. Owing to meager highway construction budgets during the 1970s and 1980s and the lack of strong political support for widening NY 347, NYSDOT budgeted and spent its funds elsewhere. The combination of Brookhaven's policies and NYSDOT's budget woes lead to the construction of many buildings that would had to have been razed in order to improve the highway. These new "facts on the ground
" sowed the seeds of political opposition to making major improvements in later decades.
The parcels alongside most of NY 347 were strip zoned for commercial properties, allowing the rapid development to take place. Considered state of the art planning at the time it was implemented, today it is considered a poor practice that leads to suburban sprawl and blight. This combination of factors gave a green light to developers to encroach development on the roadway. One person who exemplified the development frenzy was John M. McNamara
, a local automotive dealer and developer. McNamara, and many other politically connected developers, cluttered the road with new developments. The Billy Blake shopping center which had a service road in front of it, had fallen on hard times. McNamara took over the reconstruction of the shopping center in the late 1980s as part of an effort to revitalize it, dismantling of the service road in the proecess. His project failed, but eventually it was discovered that he was bribing various government officials in the town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, village of Port Jefferson
, and even NYSDOT. However, this revelation had no impact on either facilitating improvements to the highway or curbing development.
west of NY 347 and the addition of frontage roads along NY 25. This too, was cancelled by community opposition, as were revived plans to upgrade the road again between 1987 and 1988. In 1991, after an extensive study considering numerous alternative plans for rebuilding Nesconset Highway, NYSDOT selected "Alternative 12a" as its preferred option. This option retained the limited-access features of a freeway while limiting the use of frontage roads to those areas which truly needed them. The footprint of this option was kept to a minimum through the use of single-point urban interchange
s rather than complex and expansive cloverleaf
-type interchanges. Inexplicably, plans for building this option were shelved.
Ten years later, NYSDOT announced a new proposal for a community friendly alternative. This alternative retained only three interchanges, retained most other grade crossings, and widened the highway to three lanes in each direction. Notably, few residential homes and a handful of business were targeted for public taking in this variation from Alternative 12a. Nonetheless, many civic associations opposed the new plan. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign
, ABCO, and others opposed the proposed improvements. Other organizations, like the Long Island Association, derided NYSDOT's decision to not make NY 347 a limited access highway after nearly 35 years of planning to make it so.
In 2001, a local civic organization called the Committee for a New 347 was formed, advocating turning NY 347 into the "Nesconset Greenway", a six-lane highway with the functionality of a limited-access highway and the aesthetic designs of a Long Island parkway. Design elements included stone arch and stone-faced overpasses, earthen berms as soundwall
protection, and separate, dedicated space for a bike path. Nick Klissas, a founding member of the group, later made "End 347 Gridlock!" as a major theme in his 2002 campaign for State Assembly in New York's Fourth Assembly District.
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
located in Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It connects the Northern State Parkway
Northern State Parkway
The Northern State Parkway is a long limited-access state parkway on Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. The western terminus is at the Queens-Nassau County line, where the parkway continues westward into New York City as the Grand Central Parkway...
in Hauppauge
Hauppauge, New York
Hauppauge is a hamlet and CDP in the Town of Islip and the Town of Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population of the CDP was 20,100 at the time of the 2000 census....
to NY 25A
New York State Route 25A
New York State Route 25A is a state highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. It serves as the main east–west route for most of the North Shore of Long Island, running from the Queens Midtown Tunnel in the New York City borough of Queens at its western terminus to...
in Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai, New York
Mount Sinai is a hamlet and census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, USA. The population was 8,734 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
. The route serves as a southern bypass of Smithtown
Smithtown, New York
As of the census of 2000, there were 115,715 people, 38,487 households, and 31,482 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,159.9 people per square mile . There were 39,357 housing units at an average density of 734.6 per square mile...
and as a direct link between Nesconset
Nesconset, New York
Nesconset is a census-designated place in Suffolk County, Long Island, New York, United States. The population was 11,992 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Nesconset is located at ....
and Port Jefferson
Port Jefferson, New York
The Incorporated Village of Port Jefferson is located in the town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the 2000 United States Census, the village population was 7,837...
. Along the way, NY 347 intersects NY 25
New York State Route 25
New York State Route 25 is an east–west state highway in downstate New York in the United States. The route extends for just over from east midtown Manhattan in New York City to the Cross Sound Ferry terminal at Orient Point on the end of Long Island's North Fork...
in Nesconset and Nicoll's Road (County Route 97
County Route 97 (Suffolk County, New York)
Suffolk County Road 97, also known as Nicolls Road , is a major county road in Suffolk County, New York...
) in Lake Grove
Lake Grove, New York
Lake Grove is a village in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 10,250 at the 2000 census.The Village of Lake Grove is located in the Town of Brookhaven....
. The westernmost 2 miles (3.2 km) of NY 347 is concurrent
Concurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
with NY 454
New York State Route 454
New York State Route 454 , also known as the Suffolk County Veterans' Memorial Highway, is a east–west divided highway in western and central Suffolk County on Long Island in New York. It spans from NY 25 in Commack to NY 27 north of Patchogue...
while the portion northeast of NY 25 parallels NY 25A, which follows a more northerly alignment through the town of Brookhaven
Brookhaven, New York
The Town of Brookhaven is one of the ten towns into which Suffolk County, New York, United States, has been divided. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is located in central Suffolk County and is the only town in the county that stretches from the North Shore to the South Shore of Long...
than NY 347.
The highway was built by Suffolk County
Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
in the 1950s and designated as part of two county routes. It gained a single designation in 1966 when the state of New York assumed ownership and maintenance of the highway and designated it as NY 347. Several proposals to extend or improve the highway have been developed in the years since; however, none have been implemented, mostly due to community opposition.
Construction and designation
What is now NY 347 was originally built by Suffolk CountySuffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
in the 1950s as two separate highways. Southwest of NY 25
New York State Route 25
New York State Route 25 is an east–west state highway in downstate New York in the United States. The route extends for just over from east midtown Manhattan in New York City to the Cross Sound Ferry terminal at Orient Point on the end of Long Island's North Fork...
, it was known as the Smithtown Bypass and designated as County Route 85 (CR 85). Northeast of NY 25, it was named the Nesconset – Port Jefferson Highway and designated as CR 80. Although the road acts as an eastward extension of the Northern State Parkway
Northern State Parkway
The Northern State Parkway is a long limited-access state parkway on Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. The western terminus is at the Queens-Nassau County line, where the parkway continues westward into New York City as the Grand Central Parkway...
(with a 2 miles or 3.2 km section of Veterans Memorial Highway, now NY 454
New York State Route 454
New York State Route 454 , also known as the Suffolk County Veterans' Memorial Highway, is a east–west divided highway in western and central Suffolk County on Long Island in New York. It spans from NY 25 in Commack to NY 27 north of Patchogue...
, connecting the two), Robert Moses
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
planned an altogether different right-of-way for an extension of the Northern State. In fact, the Parkway was planned to have an interchange with the Smithtown Bypass west of CR 16
County Route 16 (Suffolk County, New York)
Suffolk County Route 16 is a main thoroughfare through central Suffolk County, New York. Its western terminus is at Middle Country Road in Smithtown, on the eastern border of the Village of the Branch, and its eastern terminus is at Montauk Highway in Brookhaven near Southhaven...
(Terry Road).
In 1966, the state of New York acquired both CR 80 and CR 85 and designated the new, unified route as NY 347. Suffolk County hoped that by transferring jurisdiction to the state, it would be easier to upgrade the road into the limited-access highway as was originally intended. The CR 80 and CR 85 designations were later reused for portions of Montauk Highway
Montauk Highway
Montauk Highway is one of the original through highways of Long Island, New York, extending from Jamaica, in the New York City borough of Queens to Montauk Point in Suffolk County, a distance of approximately 100 miles ....
, then part of NY 27A
New York State Route 27A
New York State Route 27A is a state highway extending from Massapequa in Nassau County to Oakdale in Suffolk County on Long Island, New York in the United States...
, that were transferred from the state to the county. CR 80 was reassigned to the portion of Montauk Highway between Patchogue
Patchogue, New York
-Notable citizens:* Franc D'Ambrosio, Broadway Actor, best known for being the longest running Phantom in Phantom of the Opera. Graduated Pat-Med HS 1981* Michael Fagan, professional bowler...
and Hampton Bays
Hampton Bays, New York
Hampton Bays is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 12,236 at the 2000 census.Hampton Bays is in the Town of Southampton.-Geography:...
on October 6, 1966, while CR 85 was given to the section between Oakdale
Oakdale, New York
Oakdale is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 8,075 at the 2000 census. Oakdale is in the Town of Islip.- History :...
and Patchogue on March 29, 1972.
Extensions
For six years, the western terminus of NY 347 was at the then-county-maintained Veterans Memorial Highway. The state acquired the Veterans Memorial Highway on March 29, 1972, placing both termini of NY 347 at state highways. Originally, the state of New York had planned on building a spur between the Long Island Expressway (Interstate 495Interstate 495 (New York)
Interstate 495 is an auxiliary Interstate Highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. The route extends for from the western portal of the Queens-Midtown Tunnel in the New York City borough of Manhattan to County Route 58 in Riverhead, Suffolk County...
) and the Smithtown Bypass. The location of the terminus was intended to be between exits 55 and 56, although some maps have indicated that the terminus was to be at or just west of exit 55. The southern half of Simeon Woods Road (unsigned NY 901A) follows part of the spur's proposed path. The plan was cancelled in 1977, at which time the NY 347 designation was extended westward along NY 454 to the interchange with the Northern State Parkway.
Another extension was planned by the Suffolk County Department of Public Works in the early 1980s. The highway, known as the North Brookhaven Expressway and proposed as CR 26, would have begun west of Pipe-Stave Hollow Road and ended at the intersection of NY 25A
New York State Route 25A
New York State Route 25A is a state highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. It serves as the main east–west route for most of the North Shore of Long Island, running from the Queens Midtown Tunnel in the New York City borough of Queens at its western terminus to...
and William Floyd Parkway (CR 46
County Route 46 (Suffolk County, New York)
Suffolk County Road 46 is a major county road in eastern Suffolk County, New York. It runs north and south from County Route 75 in Smith Point County Park to New York State Route 25A near the border of Shoreham and Wading River...
). This idea was never carried out due to community opposition. A very faint vestige lives on, however, in the Rocky Point
Rocky Point, New York
Rocky Point is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 10,185.Rocky Point is a community in the town of Brookhaven.-Geography:...
Bypass section of NY 25A
New York State Route 25A
New York State Route 25A is a state highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. It serves as the main east–west route for most of the North Shore of Long Island, running from the Queens Midtown Tunnel in the New York City borough of Queens at its western terminus to...
, which was constructed in the late 1990s.
Impact of sprawl
Soon after the state of New York assumed ownership of the roadway in 1966, plans were immediately developed to improve it to a limited-access highway flanked by service roads. The new plans required doubling the right-of-way of the roadway from the original 116 feet (35 m) width. When the Smith Haven MallSmith Haven Mall
Smith Haven Mall is a shopping mall located in Lake Grove, New York and is the main mall for the "Mid Island" area of Long Island. It is also the eastern most enclosed mall on Long Island, and thus draws shoppers from the towns that make up...
was built in 1969, it became a major retail attraction for those Long Islanders living east of Huntington. The success of the mall spurred further commercial and residential development along NY 347, effectively killing the proposed upgrade to the highway. The two townships through which the newly redesignated NY 347 traversed initially enforced setback requirements on new developments. For example, developers of the Billy Blake Department Store shopping center in Port Jefferson Station
Port Jefferson Station, New York
Port Jefferson Station is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 7,527 at the 2000 census.-History:...
between Old Town Road and Arrowhead Lane built a service road to access that retail outlet. The Hess
Hess Corporation
The Hess Corporation is an integrated oil company based in New York City. The company explores, produces, transports, and refines crude oil and natural gas. Vertically completing the logistical chain, about 1,360 Hess branded filling stations market gasoline to consumers in 16 states along the...
gas station and McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
restaurant in Stony Brook
Stony Brook, New York
Stony Brook is a hamlet located in the Town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, New York, which is on the North Shore of Long Island...
were built several hundred feet away from the roadway.
By the late 1980s, however, the town of Brookhaven
Brookhaven, New York
The Town of Brookhaven is one of the ten towns into which Suffolk County, New York, United States, has been divided. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is located in central Suffolk County and is the only town in the county that stretches from the North Shore to the South Shore of Long...
allowed development along the artery if the developer received a letter from the New York State Department of Transportation
New York State Department of Transportation
The New York State Department of Transportation is responsible for the development and operation of highways, railroads, mass transit systems, ports, waterways and aviation facilities in the U.S...
(NYSDOT) indicating that such development would not interfere with any transportation improvements contemplated for completion within the next five years. Owing to meager highway construction budgets during the 1970s and 1980s and the lack of strong political support for widening NY 347, NYSDOT budgeted and spent its funds elsewhere. The combination of Brookhaven's policies and NYSDOT's budget woes lead to the construction of many buildings that would had to have been razed in order to improve the highway. These new "facts on the ground
Facts on the ground
Facts on the ground is a diplomatic term that means the situation in reality as opposed to in the abstract. It originated in discussions of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, where it was used to refer to Israeli settlements built in the occupied West Bank, which were intended to establish permanent...
" sowed the seeds of political opposition to making major improvements in later decades.
The parcels alongside most of NY 347 were strip zoned for commercial properties, allowing the rapid development to take place. Considered state of the art planning at the time it was implemented, today it is considered a poor practice that leads to suburban sprawl and blight. This combination of factors gave a green light to developers to encroach development on the roadway. One person who exemplified the development frenzy was John M. McNamara
John McNamara (fraudster)
John McNamara is a former United States businessman, who was convicted of a Ponzi scheme fraud through gaining loans to a value of $6Bn from General Motors financing arm GMAC, to develop a $400M car sales and property development business.-Background:...
, a local automotive dealer and developer. McNamara, and many other politically connected developers, cluttered the road with new developments. The Billy Blake shopping center which had a service road in front of it, had fallen on hard times. McNamara took over the reconstruction of the shopping center in the late 1980s as part of an effort to revitalize it, dismantling of the service road in the proecess. His project failed, but eventually it was discovered that he was bribing various government officials in the town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, village of Port Jefferson
Port Jefferson, New York
The Incorporated Village of Port Jefferson is located in the town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the 2000 United States Census, the village population was 7,837...
, and even NYSDOT. However, this revelation had no impact on either facilitating improvements to the highway or curbing development.
Conversion to limited-access
In 1973, NYSDOT tried once again to transform NY 347 into an expressway; however, this proposal included the widening of NY 25New York State Route 25
New York State Route 25 is an east–west state highway in downstate New York in the United States. The route extends for just over from east midtown Manhattan in New York City to the Cross Sound Ferry terminal at Orient Point on the end of Long Island's North Fork...
west of NY 347 and the addition of frontage roads along NY 25. This too, was cancelled by community opposition, as were revived plans to upgrade the road again between 1987 and 1988. In 1991, after an extensive study considering numerous alternative plans for rebuilding Nesconset Highway, NYSDOT selected "Alternative 12a" as its preferred option. This option retained the limited-access features of a freeway while limiting the use of frontage roads to those areas which truly needed them. The footprint of this option was kept to a minimum through the use of single-point urban interchange
Single-point urban interchange
A single-point urban interchange , also called a single-point interchange or single-point diamond interchange , is a type of highway interchange...
s rather than complex and expansive cloverleaf
Cloverleaf interchange
A cloverleaf interchange is a two-level interchange in which left turns, reverse direction in left-driving regions, are handled by ramp roads...
-type interchanges. Inexplicably, plans for building this option were shelved.
Ten years later, NYSDOT announced a new proposal for a community friendly alternative. This alternative retained only three interchanges, retained most other grade crossings, and widened the highway to three lanes in each direction. Notably, few residential homes and a handful of business were targeted for public taking in this variation from Alternative 12a. Nonetheless, many civic associations opposed the new plan. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign
Tri-State Transportation Campaign
The Tri-State Transportation Campaign is a non-profit advocacy and policy organization dedicated to reducing car and truck dependency and promoting a "more balanced, environmentally sound and equitable transportation network" in downstate New York, New Jersey and Connecticut...
, ABCO, and others opposed the proposed improvements. Other organizations, like the Long Island Association, derided NYSDOT's decision to not make NY 347 a limited access highway after nearly 35 years of planning to make it so.
In 2001, a local civic organization called the Committee for a New 347 was formed, advocating turning NY 347 into the "Nesconset Greenway", a six-lane highway with the functionality of a limited-access highway and the aesthetic designs of a Long Island parkway. Design elements included stone arch and stone-faced overpasses, earthen berms as soundwall
Noise barrier
A noise barrier is an exterior structure designed to protect sensitive land uses from noise pollution...
protection, and separate, dedicated space for a bike path. Nick Klissas, a founding member of the group, later made "End 347 Gridlock!" as a major theme in his 2002 campaign for State Assembly in New York's Fourth Assembly District.