Arverne is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, on the Rockaway Peninsula. It was initially developed by Remington Vernam, whose signature "R. Vernam" inspired the name of the neighborhood. Arverne extends from Beach 56th Street to Beach 73rd Street, along its main thoroughfare Beach Channel Drive, alternatively known as Rev. Joseph H. May Drive. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 14.

Vernam's original plan was to name the neighborhood Arverne-by-the-Sea, and one grandiose plan, influenced by his wife, Florence, included a canal running through the neighborhood, reminiscent of the Amstel canal in Amsterdam, Holland. When this plan fell through, the canal right-of-way was converted into a thoroughfare, Amstel Boulevard, which, except for a stub west of Beach 71st Street, was later incorporated into Beach Channel Drive.

While Arverne became well-known as a beachfront community with inexpensive summer bungalows, and hotels of varying levels of expense and luxury as well as amusements and boardwalk concessions, it also attracted a year-round residential community. On January 3, 1914, a violent storm devastated the neighborhood as well as other neighborhoods on the peninsula, and completely swept the Arverne Pier Theater, which was capable of seating 1,200 people, away to sea. On June 15, 1922, a large part of Arverne was leveled by a disastrous fire which left about 10,000 people homeless, although the neighborhood was quick to rebuild.

During the 1950s and 1960s, the advent of commercial jet air travel encouraged people to travel to distant destinations during the summer, rather than to utilize local beaches and resorts. As a result, many of Arverne's summer bungalows became vacant.[citation needed]

New York City's urban renewal projects of the 1960s leveled to the ground most of the summer resorts and some of the residences, many of which had been abandoned. The process eventually transformed most of Arverne, from Rockaway Beach Boulevard southward to the beachfront, into vacant land used as a dumping ground. Since the 1980s, but particularly since the Bloomberg administration, New York City has tried, albeit with only partial success, to improve the area, most notably via Arverne East Development's "Arverne-by-the-Sea".

The New York City Department of Education operates Arverne's public schools.

The Queens Borough Public Library operates the Arverne Branch.

NYCHA

Mitchell-Lama

DHCR

Arverne  Astoria  Astoria Heights  Auburndale  Bayside  Bayswater  Bay Terrace  Beechhurst  Bellaire  Belle Harbor  Bellerose  Blissville  Boulevard Gardens  Breezy Point  Briarwood  Broad Channel  Broadway-Flushing  Cambria Heights  College Point  Corona  Ditmars  Douglaston  Dutch Kills  East Elmhurst  Edgemere  Electchester  Elmhurst  Far Rockaway  Floral Park  Flushing  Forest Hills  Forest Hills Gardens  Fresh Meadows  Fresh Pond  Glendale  Glen Oaks  Hamilton Beach  Hammels  Hillcrest  Hollis  Hollis Hills  Holliswood  Howard Beach  Howard Park  Hunters Point  Jackson Heights  Jamaica  Jamaica Estates  Jamaica Hills  Kew Gardens  Kew Gardens Hills  Laurelton  LeFrak City  Linden Hill  Lindenwood  Little Neck  Locust Manor  Long Island City  Malba  Maspeth  Meadowmere  Middle Village  Murray Hill  Neponsit  North Corona  North Shore Towers  Oakland Gardens  Old Howard Beach  Ozone Park  Pomonok  Queensboro Hill  Queensbridge  Queens Village  Ramblersville  Ravenswood  Rego Park  Richmond Hill  Ridgewood  Rochdale  Rockaway  Rockaway Beach  Rockaway Park  Rockwood Park  Rosedale  Roxbury  St. Albans  Seaside  South Jamaica  South Ozone Park  Springfield Gardens  Sunnyside  Sunnyside Gardens  Tudor Village  Utopia  Warnerville  Whitestone  Willets Point  Woodhaven  Woodside

Arverne - Astoria - Astoria Heights - Auburndale - Bayside - Bayswater - Bay Terrace - Beechhurst - Bellaire - Belle Harbor - Bellerose - Blissville - Breezy Point - Briarwood - Broad Channel - Cambria Heights - College Point - Corona - Ditmars - Douglaston - Dutch Kills - East Elmhurst - Edgemere - Electchester - Elmhurst - Far Rockaway - Floral Park - Flushing - Forest Hills - Forest Hills Gardens - Fresh Meadows - Fresh Pond - Glendale - Glen Oaks - Hamilton Beach - Hammels - Hillcrest - Hollis - Hollis Hills - Holliswood - Howard Beach - Howard Park - Hunters Point - Jackson Heights - Jamaica - Jamaica Estates - Jamaica Hills - Kew Gardens - Kew Gardens Hills - Laurelton - Lefrak City - Linden Hill - Lindenwood - Little Neck - Long Island City - Malba - Maspeth - Meadowmere - Middle Village - Murray Hill - Neponsit - New Hyde Park - North Corona - North Shore Towers - Oakland Gardens - Old Howard Beach - Ozone Park - Pomonok - Queensboro Hill - Queensbridge - Queens Village - Ramblersville - Ravenswood - Rego Park - Richmond Hill - Ridgewood - Rochdale Village - Rockaway Beach - Rockaway Park - Rockwood Park - Rosedale - Roxbury - Saint Albans - Seaside - South Jamaica - South Ozone Park - Springfield Gardens - Sunnyside - Sunnyside Gardens - Tudor Village - Utopia - Whitestone - Willets Point - Woodhaven - Woodside -