Observations
Staying true to its roots, Coney Island is always redeveloping to make sure people are still visiting and fueling the economy of the neighborhood. From the stained glass windows in the subway station to the scattered construction sites next to the boardwalk, Coney Island’s efforts to revive itself are very evident. A trip to the neighborhood really helped give a sense of the kind of place Coney Island was – a place for all kinds of economic opportunity.
Upon stepping out of the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue station, the first thing the eye sees is a big sign with big bold colorful letters with the words, “ Thor Equities and Brooklyn Welcomes You to Coney Island” on top a relatively new candy shop called It’s Sugar. Right across from this new building is Coney Island’s long standing hot-dog restaurant, Nathan’s Famous.
There are almost many small businesses and most of them arcades and family owned restaurants that are slowly being bought out for rezoning and turned into “formula” businesses. Thor Equities, in 2011, bought most of the land on the corner of Stillwell and Surf to open up a few shops. Turning what used to be a corner of arcades into a chain candy shop called IT’SUGAR and right next to it a Rainbow clothing store. According to Thor Equities’s CEO Joe Sitts, this is a way to revitalize Coney Island, and many other national franchises such as Applebees, Red Mango, and Johnny Rockets have followed suit and signed leases on Surf Avenue. Based on the Brooklyn Paper Article, “Last Bump: Coney’s auto skooter may shut down by summer’s end”, showing no signs of stopping, Sitt has already bought the property of El Dorado, one of the oldest arcades in Coney Island. With his goal of revitalizing Coney Island as a more modern area with condominiums and hotels, Joe Sitt’s vision is very different from that of the city.
Overhead these small businesses are the many rollercoasters and soon-to-be attractions of Luna Park. On the left of the park is the famous wooden rollercoaster, The Cyclone. Right across from that on the other side was the construction site of the new roller coaster, The Thunderbolt. Unlike Sitt’s vision, the city’s idea of rezoning and redevelopment was to utilize the amusement park as its main attraction and business. Based on the Coney Island Development Corporation, its first goal is to, “Maintain Coney Island’s Character and culture by protecting amusement area in perpetuity.” The Thunderbolt, a once wooden rollercoaster that stopped running in 1982, is being revived and is expected to reopen as a steel rollercoaster in May of 2014.
A few blocks down to the left from the overwhelming colors of steel roller coasters and shiny glass windows of Thor Equities estates, is the New York Aquarium. This aquarium serves as a “safety net” and helps to balance out the loss of business during the offseason. It is opened year-round unlike many of the businesses surrounding the boardwalk. Because of this, it is a major draw for the area and keeps helps with incoming revenue.
Given its history, Coney Island’s constant redevelopment, in a larger sense, can only be seen as normal. From closing down old businesses to make way for new ones is its way of making sure it stays relevant. By centralizing development and rezoning plans around its valuable boardwalk, the city and developers like CEO Joe Sitts are all aiming to do one thing and that is to optimize the number of people coming each summer, to increase economic activity, and to overall place Coney Island on the map as a go-to getaway spot during the summer.
