Bellport

The quaint bayside community of Bellport offers a variety of recreational and cultural venues, but perhaps the village's most prized assets are its historic 19th century houses - more than 80 of them on the National Register of Historic Places.

While the village attracts a summer rental crowd, real estate agents are quick to add it's not a Hamptons social scene. The village is largely home to professionals with families, including a few celebrities who "enjoy the community and are involved in maintaining it," said Patricia Trainor, a sales agent at Marylou Swan Realty Corp.

The Gateway Playhouse, a 500-seat theater, stages live performances and operates an acting school. The Bellport marina offers more than 150 berths, and residents can hop the village- owned ferry to Ho-Hum Beach on Fire Island or head to Mother's Beach on the Great South Bay. There is an area for fishing and crabbing, and a playground, gazebo and bandshell for summer concerts. The Bellport Country Club is available to villagers either through membership or on a pay-as-you-play basis.

The community's old-fashioned-looking commercial center runs along South Country Road, which serves as an informal north-south dividing line for the village. "In either direction, you are a half mile from the town center," notes Eileen Green, owner of Eileen A. Green Realty Corp.

Architectural styles include Colonials, Victorians, post-modern, ranches, capes, contemporaries and bungalows.

-Lisa Doll Bruno (9/10/2004)