Will Atlantic Beach become the ‘new Hamptons’?

In the quiet Long Island town of Atlantic Beach, many locals find themselves content with its simplicity.

Twenty-five miles outside of Manhattan, a sign that reads “E-ZPASS coming soon” stands at the toll booths worth $3 in cash, which will then get drivers into the charming area.

Three restaurants, three delis, two bars, a newly opened cafe and boutique, a boardwalk and a post office make up the retro-themed area — surrounded by its residential community of about 1,800 people.

But, perhaps, its most prized possessions are the 10 waterfront beach clubs — whose presence isn’t a shock, especially when considering the name Atlantic Beach — which scatter across the island’s nearly 200 acres.

But does the small-town character of Atlantic Beach stand to change? Wall Street bros, who have been summoned back to their offices in the Big Apple for a full five-day work week, have recently been eyeing closer beach towns than those in the East End for their summery escapes — with industry chatter that Atlantic Beach is becoming their “new Hamptons.”

But locals are adamant to let them know this is nothing like the Hamptons.

For starters, residents have been opposed to any construction that isn’t in line with the character of the village.

Once described as a “Genuine ‘Old New York’ paradise,” residents don’t ask for much, but they do love their beach — and their beach clubs.

For locals and those in the neighboring towns, these beach clubs provide optimal convenience. Depending on the club, for a few thousand bucks, you’re granted full-time access to the town’s private beaches for the summer — offering cabanas or lockers, and chairs that are set up for you.

Stu Yachnowitz, owner of The Sands Beach Club, which was first opened by his father Joseph in 1976, says people don’t come to Atlantic Beach for anything else but the beach.

“What Atlantic Beach is missing is restaurants,” he said. “It has two, three restaurants in the whole town. People have to go into [the nearby] Five Towns if they want to go get food. But it’s a great beach town. It really is. And this is my jewel.”

For locals, driving 12 minutes down to Long Beach for all other services and entertainment is enough.

Yachnowitz, 73, motioned with his hands his entire area filled with chairs, umbrellas and cabanas, and explained how this was all created from scratch after Hurricane Sandy in 2012. He took all his retirement money to save the club, with about 2,800 members, and what he calls his father’s legacy.

“I had to re-pile the entire beach hub, re-deck it and redo everything, the cabanas, new everything,” he said. “And I was two weeks ahead of schedule. We had a 100 carpenters here seven days a week.”

Yachnowitz also stayed open during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We were open 100%,” he said.

Amenities there include an Olympic-sized heated swimming pool, volleyball and basketball courts — but what matters most is the vibe.

“It’s more of a family, It’s a community with the family,” he added. “Members make lifelong friends. I mean, I’ve watched kids become my lifeguards, my camp counselors, family.”

Lifelong resident Gerard Foster, proprietor of Boardwalk Bagel & Delicatessen at 105 Putnam Blvd., agreed that the waterfront is key.

“The beach — we love the beach. There is no beach like here,” Foster, 54, told The Post. “Everyone is neighborly. More people are staying here yearly than just seasonly. Everybody knows everybody here.”

Away from the water, Bay Boulevard has some of the town’s prime real estate. Shingle-style houses, which can be compared to the Hamptons aesthetic, adorn the street. Of course, there remain several old Mediterannean-esque builds.

“I think people are picking up on the opportunity that’s out here,” Jill Kaplan, who has been manager at New York Beach Club for the past four years, told The Post.

“My family is also out in the Hamptons, you know, and when I think about it, I love going out there and I love experiencing it,” she said. “But at the end of the day, this is 40 minutes, and I don’t have to sit on [Route] 27 for three hours.”

“We always knew that this was happening spot,” Kaplan added. “I look at the Hamptons, it has a million towns, right? East to west to Sagaponack to Bridgehampton. Atlantic Beach, we’re … a small town here.”

At the same time, Kaplan says unlike other beaches, Atlantic Beach flies in palm trees from the balmy south every season.

New York Beach Club, with a 1,200-person capacity, operates one of the few oceanfront restaurants in the town as well.

“I already have a wait list for next year,” Kaplan said.

Tom and Cass Justice just opened their coffee shop and vintage boutique at 2001 Park St. in Atlantic Beach, known as Sea City Vintage — and do see the potential for the area

“It definitely has the possibility of becoming the Hamptons,” Tom, 34, said.

“It has private beaches, beach clubs, there’s homes for sale, yacht slips,” added Tom, who was born and raised there, and recently moved back with his wife and two kids after leaving the corporate rat race in Manhattan.

When asked if he’s at all concerned about Wall Streeters invading his hometown, Tom added, “Well, I am a business owner, so business begets business — but as a local I can understand how people can get concerned.”

However, he admitted that “there are more boutiques and stores coming here, also — so it screams potential.”

The current real estate market certainly seems to agree with them. Sale prices have skyrocketed in the area in recent years.

A six-bedroom, six-bathroom listing at 139 Bayside Drive has hit the market for $11.5 million, marking a record price for a property in the community.

“I believe this house is way overpriced for the neighborhood. But if that house was in the Hamptons, it would be priced right,” a longtime resident of Atlantic Beach for more than 50 years told The Post. “But I will say the property values have doubled in the last three, four years since the pandemic.”

“The beach is exactly what it’s ever been. it is paradise,” the resident, who did not want to be identified for reasons of privacy, added. “But it’s very specific to the people that live here. It is a short commute to Manhattan, which is a great thing, which is why people have picked up homes here. But the majority of people that are here are locals.”

Stacey Hirschmann, who grew up in the town, living there for 20 years, now owns Pod Spa and Wellness in the next town over. But she comes back to Atlantic Beach to teach yoga at the Sands on Wednesdays. Hirschmann, 54, says Wall Street pouring in is somewhat of a concern for when she decides to come back to look for a property, after recently sending her kids off to college.

“It’s already happening,” Hirschmann said. “I’m a yogi. I’m like the kind of person that just lives for the day. I think that it’s actually great for businesses.”

But are there drawbacks?

“A little bit for me personally, because I want to get an apartment here … I’m looking at everything, all the prices are high, and I’m trying to get something equivalent to where I live,” Hirschmann added. “And it’s very hard to because the prices are really high. And I think they’re just going up.”

“The houses are much bigger. And so more people are coming in with money to be able to do those things, you know, and it’s just a different. It’s not seedy anymore.”

For Hirschmann, whose kids attended summer camp at the Atlantic Beach Club, says despite the town’s appeal and rising real-estate values, this is still no Hamptons.

“I do like the nature and the natural and the environment to be a little bit less crowded,” she said. “And that’s what I like about here compared to the Hamptons.”