Geoffrey Bansen, 22, has grown up in Lindenhurst and says of his hometown: “We’re right in the middle, not too far West or East, so you can easily get to the city or the Hamptons.” Bansen, who recently received his meteorology/atmospheric science degree, works at a bagel shop on Wellwood Avenue, the main North-South thoroughfare of Lindenhurst.
The town and nearby beach offer lots of activities, including live music every night during the summer, “so there’s always something to do,” says long-time resident Sydney Baxter, 50. “It’s very family-oriented here; the school system is good, and there are plenty of restaurants,” she says.
At Barber Shop on West Hoffman Avenue, owner Peter DiFatta, 48, describes Lindenhurst as “a nice, quiet town.” DiFatta, who has worked here for 30 years, remembers a large dairy distributor that used to be located down the road where a Waldbaum’s now stands. The town, he says, drew a lot more shoppers from around the South Shore then.
Lindenhurst could use a “facelift,” however, to bring back some of the stores that went out of businesses during the recession, say some residents.
