Michael Valente Memorial Bridge

The Michael Valente Memorial Bridge is a twin-span bascule bridge crossing Reynolds Channel, between the City of Long Beach and the Village of Island Park, in Nassau County, New York, United States.

Description

The bridge starts in Long Beach as Long Beach Boulevard. At Barnum Island, the main road continues northeast as Austin Boulevard, while Long Beach Road branches to the north. Each span carries traffic in one direction.

History

The twin bridges were built in 1953 to replace an earlier bridge built in 1922. The replacement spans were constructed after it was realized that the original, 1922 span was both functionally and structurally obsolete.
In 2011, the Long Beach Bridge was renamed the Michael Valente Memorial Bridge, in honor of Michael Valente – a World War I veteran and longtime resident of Long Beach. The name change was made official following a vote by the Nassau County Legislature, and the renaming ceremony – which took place at Long Beach City Hall – was attended by hundreds of people.

In popular culture

In 2013, the bridge was used as a filming location by NBC, for scenes in "The Blacklist". The scenes were used for the show's pilot episode and employed several special effects – including the use of fire & smoke, collisions, gunshots, and actors repelling themselves off the bridge. The City of Long Beach, the Village of Island Park, and the County of Nassau all consented to the filming.