Davis Park, Ocean Ridge, and Leja Beach are all part of the Fire Island National Seashore; together, they make up the eastern-most private community on Fire Island. For those traveling to Davis Park, the closest major airport is ISP-MacArthur in Islip which is approximately 10 miles from downtown Davis Park.
The origins of Davis Park can be traced back to the 1940s. It all started with Mr. Davis of Blue Point who owned a tract of land of Fire Island. When he passed away he left some of the lands to his sons. One of those sons sold his share of the land to four friends (Lee Coffin, Ed Shembler, Joe Gerard, and Al Brown) who would later go on to build the Davis Park Casino.
The beachfront would go on to be named Leja, which was composed of the first initials of each of the founders. In 2009, the National Park Service and other collaborating organizations had initiated a beach re-nourishment project that included the Davis Park area. The project cost approximately $25 million and would have added nearly 2 million cubic yards of new sand on the beachfront. The success of the beach improvements would later be recognized by the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association when they awarded Fire Island with Best Resorted Beach in 2009. Unfortunately, in November of 2009, Hurricane Ida obliterated the beachfront in Davis Park. Almost all of the work accomplished by the re-nourishment project in the spring was lost. The New York governor went as far as to ask the President (Barack Obama at the time) to declare a major federal disaster for the damages done to the barrier beaches.
Davis Park is comprised of one of the largest marinas on Fire Island, capable of holding up to 250 boats. Next to the marina is the Casino Café, one of the few restaurants on the island with an ocean-side view. Around the marina, you will find the Harbor store, a snack bar, bathroom facilities, and Casino Bar.