As Coney moves forward it is very important for all to remember the CIDC mission statement.
Coney Island Development Corporation works to make Coney Island a year-round, world-class recreational oceanfront destination through business development, job creation, new housing and unique cultural events.
http://www.thecidc.org/About/Overview.html
I have every confidence with Domenic and the new CIDC President Nate Bliss working so persistently Coney will reach its year round potential.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Domenic talks year round Coney
Excerpt -
"We knew the Coney Island redevelopment plan was a success, and this report proves it," said Councilman Domenic M. Recchia, Jr. "Since the City Council passed the redevelopment plan in 2009, we've experienced amazing growth and development, bringing desperately-needed jobs and housing to the 50,000 people who call Coney Island home. And this is only the beginning. With record crowds visiting Coney Island and more exciting projects in the pipeline, we're coming closer to making Coney Island a year-round entertainment destination. I want to thank New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and his staff for the effort they put into developing this report, and for recognizing the amazing success we've experienced."
http://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/jul11/072611.htm
"We knew the Coney Island redevelopment plan was a success, and this report proves it," said Councilman Domenic M. Recchia, Jr. "Since the City Council passed the redevelopment plan in 2009, we've experienced amazing growth and development, bringing desperately-needed jobs and housing to the 50,000 people who call Coney Island home. And this is only the beginning. With record crowds visiting Coney Island and more exciting projects in the pipeline, we're coming closer to making Coney Island a year-round entertainment destination. I want to thank New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and his staff for the effort they put into developing this report, and for recognizing the amazing success we've experienced."
http://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/jul11/072611.htm
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Dice in Brooklyn Presale
Andrew Dice Clay will be performing at MCU Park (he calls it Cyclones Stadium) in Coney Island on October 1st. He just announced on the Howard Stern show tickets are on sale starting this morning at
http://www.diceinbrooklyn.com/
Enter code DICE. He is starting an arena tour after the Brooklyn show. Catch Dice on HBO's Entourage this season.
http://www.diceinbrooklyn.com/
Enter code DICE. He is starting an arena tour after the Brooklyn show. Catch Dice on HBO's Entourage this season.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Zamperla after Rye Playland too
Real Deal excerpt
Luna Park operator bids to "reinvent" Westchester's Rye Playland July 25, 2011 12:30PM
The company that recently opened Coney Island's new Luna Park and Scream Zone is one of 12 firms bidding to become the new operator of the Westchester County-owned Rye Playland, the New York Post reported. Zamperla subsidiary Central Amusement International's $30 million proposal would include many popular Luna Park rides such as the Air Race, the Electro Spin and aerial-swinging Lynn's Trapeze.
http://therealdeal.com/newyork/articles/central-amusement-international-bids-to-reinvent-rye-playland-in-westchester
Luna Park operator bids to "reinvent" Westchester's Rye Playland July 25, 2011 12:30PM
http://therealdeal.com/newyork/articles/central-amusement-international-bids-to-reinvent-rye-playland-in-westchester
Coney Investment impacting neighborhood
NY Post excerpt -
Report shows huge gains in jobs, population gains for Coney Island 7:15 PM, July 25, 2011 By RICH CALDER
Report shows huge gains in jobs, population gains for Coney Island
Coney Island is on some ride.
The city’s effort to revive the amusement district with new attractions is beginning to pay big dividends for the seaside community and neighboring Brighton Beach. Both have bounced back from the recent economic recession at far greater rates than the rest of the Big Apple, a report to be released Tuesday by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli shows.
The area gained 1,840 private sector jobs in 2010 – or 60 percent of 3,080 jobs lost over the previous two years during the recession. This includes 239 jobs – many filled locally – that were gained by the opening of Luna Park.
Meanwhile, the amusement district this summer has seen the arrival of another 400 jobs at the new “Scream Zone” and other boardwalk attractions.
The private sector in both beachfront hoods currently hold 27,530 jobs, up 7.1 percent from 2009 – which towers above the city’s increase of 0.9 percent over this period.
The new jobs are filling the needs of the growing neighborhoods, the report says. The area’s population – nearly half of which were born overseas -- has grown 7.1 percent since 2006, a strong contrast to slower population growth throughout Brooklyn (2.3 percent) and citywide (2.2 percent).
“From the boardwalk to the breakers, Coney Island and Brighton Beach are back as dynamic neighborhoods where New Yorkers can come to live, work and play,” DiNapoli said. “Businesses are growing, home prices are rebounding and beachgoers are on the rise.
“This area has benefited greatly from New York City’s investment in its economic growth, and you can see it all over these neighborhoods.”
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Big Rumor - Andrew Dice Clay performing in Coney
Rumor has it that Sheepshead Bay's own Andrew Dice Clay will be playing MCU Park in Coney on Saturday October 1st! You can also catch Dice on several episodes of Entourage on HBO this season.
See followup news on presale http://coneyrocks.blogspot.com/2011/07/dice-in-brooklyn-presale.html
See followup news on presale http://coneyrocks.blogspot.com/2011/07/dice-in-brooklyn-presale.html
Free Movie - Top Gun tomorrow night in Coney
Daily News excerpt -
CRUISE OVER TO CONEY. Watch "Top Gun" at Coney Island Flicks on the Beach. Tom Cruise flew to superstardom in this 1986 blockbuster playing a naval aviator competing at a Top Gun school. Bring your own blankets and chairs. 8 p.m. Free. 1001 Boardwalk West, Brooklyn.
CRUISE OVER TO CONEY. Watch "Top Gun" at Coney Island Flicks on the Beach. Tom Cruise flew to superstardom in this 1986 blockbuster playing a naval aviator competing at a Top Gun school. Bring your own blankets and chairs. 8 p.m. Free. 1001 Boardwalk West, Brooklyn.
Video - Developers reveal interior plan for Barclays Center
NY 1 -
The Barclays Center has unveiled what the inside of the arena will look like when it is scheduled to open in September 2012.Inside the main entrance, visitors will find the team store, main concourse, the practice court viewing window and the box office.
The Barclays Center has unveiled what the inside of the arena will look like when it is scheduled to open in September 2012.Inside the main entrance, visitors will find the team store, main concourse, the practice court viewing window and the box office.
The main concourse includes a smooth floor that reflects the lights of a night sky.
There are also four bars and lounges, three clubs, a restaurant and suites.
The center will offer approximately 18,000 seats for basketball and up to 19,000 for concerts.
There will also be 100 luxury suites.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Rock Beach
Brooklyn Paper excerpt -
Hipsters, this summer’s Woodstock awaits — and it’s only a bus ride away in Brooklyn.
Starting this month, Floyd Bennett Field will be home to Jelly NYC’s next big outdoor summer concert series.
Called Rock Beach, the party promoter abandons its usual Williamsburg stomping grounds, where it hosted concerts at McCarren Park (the so-called Pool Parties), the Williamsburg Waterfront and, last summer, a gravel lot on Wythe Avenue, for the wilds of MIll Basin the Jamaica Bay-bordered national park.
“After five years of Pool Parties in Williamsburg, we are very excited to be moving out to the Aviator Sports Complex near one of our favorite summer destinations,” said the organizers in a statement announcing the series. “We are looking forward to leaving Bedford Avenue behind and offering an ultimate weekend destination and adventure for all ages.”
http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/34/27/24_rockbeach_2011_7_8_bk.html
Monday, July 18, 2011
Gateway - Walmart and JC Penny both in advanced talks
Go Brooklyn!
WSJ excerpts -
The Related Cos. is in advanced lease negotiations with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and J.C. Penney Co. about anchoring a mall in southeast Brooklyn, according to people familiar with the matter.
WSJ excerpts -
The Related Cos. is in advanced lease negotiations with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and J.C. Penney Co. about anchoring a mall in southeast Brooklyn, according to people familiar with the matter.
Wal-Mart has long been considering the site overlooking the Belt Parkway just west of Howard Beach. But talks have intensified in recent months as the company has expanded a publicity campaign and taken steps to mollify potential critics, the people said.
The outlook for the 630,000-square-foot development—which would accomplish Wal-Mart's longtime goal of opening a location in the city—was boosted by J.C. Penney's strong interest. The combination of the two large stores would likely give the project sufficient financial viability to move forward despite the uncertainties that continue to cloud the slowly recovering economy.
Wal-Mart and J.C. Penney would take around 150,000 square feet each in the planned Gateway Center II mall, according a person familiar with discussions. The project would sit just north of Related's Gateway Center mall, which was completed in 2002 and houses a Target and a Best Buy.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303661904576452293185100906.htmlSunday, July 17, 2011
Daily News editorial on Barclays Arena
Excerpt -
To look at it is, again, to rue the wrongheadedness of the anti-development forces that delayed builder Bruce Ratner's plans for the arena, plus thousands of units of housing, through unsuccessful lawsuit after unsuccessful lawsuit after unsuccessful lawsuit.
To look at it is, again, to rue the wrongheadedness of the anti-development forces that delayed builder Bruce Ratner's plans for the arena, plus thousands of units of housing, through unsuccessful lawsuit after unsuccessful lawsuit after unsuccessful lawsuit.
The schedule calls for the Nets to play the 2012-13 National Basketball Association season in the building, while college basketball, boxing, professional tennis, concerts, the circus and other users also take up residence.
Adding cultural luster, the Brooklyn Academy of Music plans to stage performances there for audiences far larger than can be accommodated in BAM's 2,000-seat home down the block.
Tell us again why anyone was against this - and while you're at it, explain to us why the die-hards insist on further legal attempts to hamstring Ratner as he pushes ahead with the housing, however slowly, in the face of national economic malaise.
High-mindedly, they say they want "transparency" and "accountability," when actually they are interested only in obstruction.
NY Times on the Boardwalk
Excerpt -
The company, which said it had invested over $25 million already, has been eager to upgrade the boardwalk to make it more family-oriented, said Valerio Ferrari, the president. So it has been moving away from earnest but unassuming beach bric-a-brac stores like the Suhs’ shop, legendary bar hangouts like Ruby’s, and food stands like Gyro Corner that sell cholesterol-laden pizza, gyros and funnel cake.
The company, which said it had invested over $25 million already, has been eager to upgrade the boardwalk to make it more family-oriented, said Valerio Ferrari, the president. So it has been moving away from earnest but unassuming beach bric-a-brac stores like the Suhs’ shop, legendary bar hangouts like Ruby’s, and food stands like Gyro Corner that sell cholesterol-laden pizza, gyros and funnel cake.
“We will never make Disney here,” Mr. Ferrari said. “But it will be something more ...” — he searched for the words — “refined, cleaner. A little more year-round, if it’s possible, with sit-down restaurants and sports bars.”
Mr. Ferrari was blunt about why he did not renew leases for the Suhs and six other longtime businesses. “We don’t have the same vision,” he said. “They like the way it is, and we don’t.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/18/nyregion/closings-and-an-expansion-as-coney-island-boardwalk-readies-for-an-overhaul.htmlFriday, July 15, 2011
CIDC adds Performance Measurements to Mission statement
We all know the mission statement says year round, now the new Performance measurements reflect it as well. Good job Nate!
Excerpt from the CIDC website-
List of Performance Goals (If additional space is needed, please attach):
Number of Coney Island community events and workforce development programs hosted, both for the core season (Memorial Day to Labor Day), and the off-season and shoulder season (Labor Day to Memorial Day)
Number of visitors to Coney Island per calendar year, both for the core season (Memorial Day to Labor Day), and the off-season and shoulder season (Labor Day to Memorial Day)
Annual progress on Coney Island redevelopment plan
http://www.thecidc.org/About/Documents/CIDC_Authority_Mission_Statement_and_Performance_Measurements.pdf
Excerpt from the CIDC website-
List of Performance Goals (If additional space is needed, please attach):
Number of Coney Island community events and workforce development programs hosted, both for the core season (Memorial Day to Labor Day), and the off-season and shoulder season (Labor Day to Memorial Day)
Number of visitors to Coney Island per calendar year, both for the core season (Memorial Day to Labor Day), and the off-season and shoulder season (Labor Day to Memorial Day)
Annual progress on Coney Island redevelopment plan
http://www.thecidc.org/About/Documents/CIDC_Authority_Mission_Statement_and_Performance_Measurements.pdf
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Bay News article on the Boardwalk
Excerpts -
A new ice cream parlor that just opened on the Coney Island Boardwalk could be the first phase of an Italian invasion that would transform the People’s Playground’s honky-tonk waterfront into a haven for espresso-loving brunchers — which is exactly how the guy who controls the area wants it.
An Italian restaurateur opened Coney’s Cones, a gelato cafe, on Saturday, and plans to open three more restaurants that will give the Boardwalk an Italian feel next summer. He is leasing the space from Boardwalk landlord Central Amusement International, the Italian company that runs Luna Park and took control of the strip last year.
“The Boardwalk should be a place where you can sit outside, relax and enjoy a cappuccino,” said co-owner Michele Merlo, who opened the shop with business partner Julio Gonzalez.
The duo plans to open an Italian seafood spot called Da Ponte (“by bridge” in English,) a yet-to-be named beer garden, and an international food court called Mundo (Spanish for “world”).
The Boardwalk makeover was first reported by NY1.
The transformation sets in motion the vision of Central Amusements CEO Valerio Ferrari who told us last year that he would like the Boardwalk to become more like an Italian piazza than a beachfront dive.
Central Amusement is attempting to complete the city’s Coney Island revitalization. The company opened two new amusement areas, Scream Zone and Luna Park, which feature 23 rides, and plans to renovate the 83-year-old Cyclone roller coaster. The goal is to create a sprawling 24-hour-a-day hub of hotels, restaurants, shopping and indoor attractions that will stretch half-a-mile from the Cyclone near W. Eighth Street to the Cyclones’ MCU Park near W. 19th Street.
http://www.yournabe.com/articles/2011/07/12/brooklyn_heights_courier/news/courier-yn_brooklyn_heights-bn_coneyrestauranteur_2011_07_15_bk.txt
A new ice cream parlor that just opened on the Coney Island Boardwalk could be the first phase of an Italian invasion that would transform the People’s Playground’s honky-tonk waterfront into a haven for espresso-loving brunchers — which is exactly how the guy who controls the area wants it.
An Italian restaurateur opened Coney’s Cones, a gelato cafe, on Saturday, and plans to open three more restaurants that will give the Boardwalk an Italian feel next summer. He is leasing the space from Boardwalk landlord Central Amusement International, the Italian company that runs Luna Park and took control of the strip last year.
“The Boardwalk should be a place where you can sit outside, relax and enjoy a cappuccino,” said co-owner Michele Merlo, who opened the shop with business partner Julio Gonzalez.
The duo plans to open an Italian seafood spot called Da Ponte (“by bridge” in English,) a yet-to-be named beer garden, and an international food court called Mundo (Spanish for “world”).
The Boardwalk makeover was first reported by NY1.
The transformation sets in motion the vision of Central Amusements CEO Valerio Ferrari who told us last year that he would like the Boardwalk to become more like an Italian piazza than a beachfront dive.
Central Amusement is attempting to complete the city’s Coney Island revitalization. The company opened two new amusement areas, Scream Zone and Luna Park, which feature 23 rides, and plans to renovate the 83-year-old Cyclone roller coaster. The goal is to create a sprawling 24-hour-a-day hub of hotels, restaurants, shopping and indoor attractions that will stretch half-a-mile from the Cyclone near W. Eighth Street to the Cyclones’ MCU Park near W. 19th Street.
http://www.yournabe.com/articles/2011/07/12/brooklyn_heights_courier/news/courier-yn_brooklyn_heights-bn_coneyrestauranteur_2011_07_15_bk.txt
Friday, July 8, 2011
The Real Deal
Excerpt -
By the end of its transformation, Coney Island will be full of expensive pied-a-terres owned by well-heeled Europeans and South Americans. The present carnivalesque vulgarity of the place will give way to a post-modern approximation of the same, which will be family-friendly and safe for the middle and upper middle classes. In some sense what we are seeing here -- as in Times Square -- is coming full circle.
Coney Island, like Times Square, had once been the stomping grounds of all sectors of the public, only to become decidedly more working-class in the years following WWII.
http://therealdeal.com/newyork/articles/grieving-the-demise-of-the-coney-island-boardwalk-s-temples-of-high-caloric-american-capitalism
By the end of its transformation, Coney Island will be full of expensive pied-a-terres owned by well-heeled Europeans and South Americans. The present carnivalesque vulgarity of the place will give way to a post-modern approximation of the same, which will be family-friendly and safe for the middle and upper middle classes. In some sense what we are seeing here -- as in Times Square -- is coming full circle.
Coney Island, like Times Square, had once been the stomping grounds of all sectors of the public, only to become decidedly more working-class in the years following WWII.
http://therealdeal.com/newyork/articles/grieving-the-demise-of-the-coney-island-boardwalk-s-temples-of-high-caloric-american-capitalism
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Step by Step Year Round Coney
First came the year round zoning. Now we hear news of the year round Boardwalk business plan coming this upcoming winter. Next Coney needs the infrastructure spend in order to get the Surf Avenue Hotels and Stillwell year round business plan moving. Curious that nobody has heard of Taconic's condo and retail plans, for the north side of Surf and west of MCU Park, in a long while. Perhaps they are waiting for the City infrastructure spending as well.
The boardwalk is key here. The face of Coney is its boardwalk businesses, and in order for the rest of Coney to go year round the boardwalk likely goes year round first. Zamperla seems quite aggressive with their Coney plans. They built out their amusements quickly. I expect the same with the boardwalk.
The boardwalk is key here. The face of Coney is its boardwalk businesses, and in order for the rest of Coney to go year round the boardwalk likely goes year round first. Zamperla seems quite aggressive with their Coney plans. They built out their amusements quickly. I expect the same with the boardwalk.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
"It's Real -- and it'll be Spectacular"
Nets' future home is taking shape in Brooklyn; seeing will make you a believer
http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nba/columns/story?columnist=parker_rob&id=6695259
http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nba/columns/story?columnist=parker_rob&id=6695259
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