Brooklyn Nets Boutique to open in Coney

The Nets Shop by Adidas will feature beach balls, flip-flops, visors and the usual Nets gear, but the black-and-white bikinis for the ladies may be the biggest draw.

“We want to do everything we can to constantly better the Coney Island experience,” said Thor Equities CEO Joe Sitt, which owns the building where the store is situated. “Right away, this adds to the quality of the retail.”

A “towel-cutting” ceremony is scheduled for Thursday at 10 a.m.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/brooklyn-nets-boutique-open-coney-island-article-1.1347984#ixzz2ThxVIYux

 

 

 

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/brooklyn-nets-boutique-open-coney-island-article-1.1347984#ixzz2ThxLmqlP

Coney Applebee's

Brooklyn Eagle excerpt-

Apple-Metro, Inc., the company that owns Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar restaurants in the tri-state area, is opening a restaurant on June 17 on Surf Avenue between Stillwell Avenue and West 12th Street. It will be the company’s sixth Applebee’s restaurant in Brooklyn.

“We’re not opening just any Applebee’s. This one is going to be very special,” Zane Tankel, CEO of Apple-Metro Inc., told the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. “In honor of the fact that Coney Island is right off the Atlantic Ocean, we’re putting in a giant fish tank. It’s so huge, it serves as a room divider,” he said.

The fish tank is 20 feet long and 10 feet wide. It contains 4,300 gallons of water. To create the fish tank, Applebee’s teamed up with Wayde King from Long Island and Brett Raymer from Brooklyn, co-owners of Las Vegas-based Acrylic Tank Manufacturing the stars of Animal Planet’s hit series http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/tanked “TANKED.” The tank will house sharks and other exotic specimens, Tankel said.

The new Applebee’s will have 250 seats in the first floor dining room and an addition 50 seats on a second floor outdoor terrace. The outdoor terrace will have a fireplace.

“Imagine sitting above the excitement of Surf Avenue, watching the comings and goings on the infamous Coney Island Boardwalk while dining on Applebee’s signature favorites” Tankel said. 
 The restaurant will be hiring 200 workers, many of them from the neighborhood, Tankel said. “We are fully committed to Coney Island. We believe in this community and we believe in the resilience of this community,” he said.

http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/applebee%E2%80%99s-open-new-eatery-sandy-torn-coney-island-2013-05-16-201500

Stillwell Pedestrian Plaza

NY Post excerpt -

How do you make Coney Island more like Times Square? Put in a pedestrian plaza!
The city Department of Transportation on Wednesday will reveal its plan to Community Board 13 to replace the street with a plaza of tables, chairs and potted plants on the southern end of Stillwell Avenue.

The plaza — which would strip the neighborhood of 15 coveted metered parking spaces — would run for a block between the Boardwalk and Bowery. The dead-end street is currently flanked by the Scream Zone amusement park, go-kart tracks, a beach bar and a 110-foot-high Boardwalk Flyer thrill ride.

Valerio Ferrari, president of Zamperla USA, which runs the adjacent amusements, said he supports the plaza “100 percent” because “losing a few parking spaces” isn’t as important as “beautifying” the boardwalk’s main gateway and “making it more family-friendly.”

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/coney_foot_plaza_Layq2HddECEUQwPLAFoMNJ

Wow, this Applebees sounds great

  I am trying to find out more info on the Johnny Rockets coming to Coney as well -

Crains -

When Applebee's opens in Coney Island in May, it may not have much competition, at least initially. Surf Avenue, where restaurateur Zane Tankel is developing a $3 million Applebee's franchise, took a beating during Superstorm Sandy. Many retailers, including Nathan's Famous, the flagship of the iconic hot-dog chain at 1310 Surf Ave., remain closed. 

"There are only one or two stores that have reopened," said Mr. Tankel. 

He signed a lease for the 10,000-square-foot space about two months before the storm. Though the building, which had been empty for several years, did not flood, Mr. Tankel's design plans are now focused on ways to seal the entrance to avoid water damage in the future.

He is also considering several ideas to make the restaurant a destination in the neighborhood, including a huge fish tank that would separate the dining room from the bar area and a second-floor patio with a long fireplace "to keep you warm as you look out at the ocean during the colder months."

http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20130127/RETAIL_APPAREL/301279985

3 Locals 1 National tenant in Thor building

Not so fast folks. The chains are still coming! Why wouldn't they? Coney is hot!

Brooklyn Paper excerpt -

Thor Equities owner Joe Sitt says he will lease three of the four retail spaces in his building opposite the train station to mom-and-pops, promising unique shopping opportunities days after big name chains Johnny Rockets, Applebee’s, and Red Mango rented spaces owned by a different landlord just steps away.

Sitt says the fourth space in his building on Surf Avenue between Stillwell Avenue and W. 12th Street will go to an undisclosed national tenant, but he says it’s crucial to offer space to independent business owners.

http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/35/52/bn_sittgoessmall_2012_12_28_bk.html 

And thank goodness for that.  Chains are not fly by night operations. They come to an area and stay. Finally Coney has it's shot at year round! Thank you Applebees, Johnny Rockets, Red Mango, and Toms and Grimaldi's too! All of these businesses have proven their year round success elsewhere. And now they believe in Coney! Chains mean year round jobs and economic growth for the neighborhood.

Here is to hoping for a Coney Outback Steakhouse or Red Lobster one day......Go Coney Year Round!


 

Go Nets! Go Brooklyn!

Opponents of Atlantic Yards Are Exhausted by a Long, Losing Battle

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/26/nyregion/exhausted-from-an-angry-and-losing-battle-against-barclays-center.html?hpw&_r=0

 

Boardwalk

NY Daily News

A plan to replace the historic Coney Island boardwalk with fake wood can move forward, a Brooklyn judge has ruled.

Dismissing a legal challenge from environmental advocates, Supreme Court Justice Martin Solomon tossed a lawsuit challenging the plan, paving the way for construction.

"We are pleased the judge found that the Parks Department complied with the law, thus allowing this project to proceed," city lawyers said.

The first phase of reconstruction would replace a five-block portion of the boardwalk with concrete and recycled plastic. That could serve as a model to eventually rebuild the entire 42-block stretch, save for a small section near the Coney Island amusement area.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/plan-replace-coney-island-boardwalk-fake-wood-proceed-article-1.1222086#ixzz2Fn5Wmpnz