Peconic County () is a proposed new county on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18th ...

in the U.S. state of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...

that would secede the five easternmost

towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of Suffolk County: East Hampton, Riverhead, Shelter Island,

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and Southold, plus the Shinnecock Indian Reservation. It derives its name from

Peconic Bay The Peconic Bay is the parent name for two bays between the North Fork and South Fork of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. It is separated from Gardiners Bay by Shelter Island. Peconic Bay is divided by Robins Island into the Grea ...

which is the dividing body of water separating the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

and

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

forks of Long Island. Peconic County has been discussed for more than 50 years – ever since Suffolk County moved its offices from the official county seat in Riverhead 32 miles west to

Hauppauge, New York Hauppauge ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the towns of Islip and Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island. The population was 20,882 at the time of the 2010 census. Geography Hauppauge is located at (40.818205, ...

, in more densely populated western Suffolk County. The big drive for the county was a difference in character between western Suffolk County which is predominantly a New York City bedroom community while the east end (or "

East End The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

") is dominated by home owners who want to preserve the area's more rural and upscale character. In 1997, 71 percent of the east end voters approved a nonbinding resolution to secede. However, the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assemb ...

has never approved the enabling legislation. East End newspapers speculated that the Assembly was afraid that it would encourage a wave of secessions in the state including

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull a ...

seceding from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

and perhaps even causing the division of upstate and downstate New York. The secession movement has not been active in recent years.

Area and population

At the 2020 census, the five towns and the Shinnecock Reservation had a land area of 900.581 km² (347.72 mi²), or about 38.12 percent of Suffolk County's land area. Its total population was 161,127 inhabitants, or about 10.56 percent of the county's population. Its average

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPop ...

was 178.91/km² (463.38/mi²). If the proposed secession were to occur, the surviving Suffolk County would have a land area of 1,462.001 km² (564.482 mi²) and an adjusted 2020 census population of 1,356,575 inhabitants. It would be left with a population density of 933.51/km² (2,417.78/mi²). As can be seen, the western part of Suffolk has more than five times the population density of its eastern neighbor.

Places within the proposed county

References

{{coord, 40.9655331, -72.4598745, display=title Politics of New York (state) Proposed counties of the United States ~Proposed Suffolk County, New York

Area and population

Places within the proposed county

See also

References