Since this day after Memorial Day seems to be awash in waterfront news, renderings and updates, we'll add one more to the mix: New plans for Thor Equities $1 billion Coney Island mega-redevelopment are due in July, and the developer hopes to start building sometime in 2007. (Zoning changes and projects approvals are necessary first.) A nationally circulated AP story reported a July 1 target for a revised plan of the project, which will include a large hotel, some sort of water park, an indoor mall and housing.
For now, however, a Memorial Day visit to Coney found that all our favorite attractions like Shoot the Freak and Cha Cha's Bar have lived to see another season and a boardwalk replacement project appears to be far behind schedule. (Thor has promised its current tenants space in the new development, which will stretch for three blocks along the boardwalk.) In anticipation of the coming Coney renewal, however, there is more vacancy than last year, as numerous food shacks that had sprung up have been bulldozed, and the sites are fenced off. "For Lease" and "For Sale" signs abound.
· Coney Island's Billion Dollar Glam-Rock Makeover [New York]
· Coney Island to get $1 billion makeover [AP via CNN]
· Coney Island Photo Gallery [Gowanus Lounge]