fourth section because of the then-ongoing litigation over the property compensation. Finally, the section of beach between Beach 16th and 20th Streets was the privately owned Roche's Beach; the owners opposed the construction of the boardwalk and successfully lobbied to stop it. The westernmost section was not built either, because the president of the real estate board covering Rockaway Park, Neponsit, and Belle Harbor did not wish to start construction until the Far Rockaway section was built. 1930s to 1960s The extended boardwalk experienced several major fires after its completion, including during 1931 and 1937. In 1938, the responsibility of maintaining the boardwalk, and the beach between Beach 9th and 149th Streets, was transferred to the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks). This jurisdiction extended to the beach at Jacob Riis Park, which was operated by NYC Parks until 1974. Parks commissioner Robert Moses had previously criticized the condition of the Coney Island, Rockaway, and South Beach boardwalks, saying, "These beaches and boardwalks were never properly planned, and cannot under present conditions be properly maintained and operated." To improve the condition of the Rockaway Beach and Boardwalk, Moses cleared a strip of land north of the boardwalk for Shore Front Parkway, which opened in 1939. Moses demolished more than 700 buildings in the parkway's path and destroyed what he described as "catch-penny enterprises" along the boardwalk, replacing them with recreational fields. The beach was also extended toward the sea. By 1941, jukeboxes were banned from the boardwalk, as was bicycling during the summer. Four municipal parking lots at Beach 32nd, 52nd, 64th, and 69th Streets were opened within the park in 1948. During that time, the boardwalk between Beach 73rd and 85th Streets, and east of Beach 33rd Street, was reconstructed for $200,000. Moses announced the construction of another three parking lots in the park in 1950, at Beach 55th–59th, 62nd–63rd, and 67th–68th Streets, as well as landscaping along the boardwalk. These seven parking lots were intended to serve as children's play areas outside of the summer season, and Moses rejected attempts to install parking meters in these parking lots. During the mid-20th century, Rockaway Beach was seen as one of the best surfing places in the New York metropolitan area. In the 1950s, the beach employed a lifeguard force of 258, among the world's largest. The beach suffered from considerable erosion, despite the presence of