My relationship with Coney Island from playground to adopted community.

CONEY ISLAND: A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

Coney Island; once a magical place of fantasy, rides, games and summer fun; synonymous with amusement. The playground of my youth, once away from parents it was the go to place to blow our bankroll for the week throughout the season.  Out of season, Nathans was still the destination for a regular feast. As soon as legally old enough to work, the place was Coney Island; summers spent selling ice cream on the beach for Good Humor and managing one of their stands throughout college.

Coney Island remained in my blood, despite its rapid decline after the close of Steeplechase in 1964. Living within a few short miles my entire life, a trip to Nathans and walk on the boardwalk remained a regular thing for many years. But things change. One after another, attractions closed. The last of the great bathhouses, Ravenhall, with its huge pool, shuttered in 1968. The Tornado, one of Coney’s three great coasters burned in 1978, followed by the closing of the original Thunderbolt in 1982, leaving only the iconic Cyclone.

The final blow was the sale of Nathan’s Famous in 1987 by the Handwerker family who had lovingly maintained its quality and uniqueness. Nathans wasn’t just hot dogs and fries; one after another down the extensive counter were different fast food treats, all of which were relegated to history under corporate control. Adding to the devastation of the “Original” Nathans, whereas the family kept prices concurrent with other fast food, a hot dog rose to more than double as tourists and nostalgia seekers became primary targets.

Needless to say, visits to my old stomping grounds became fewer and fewer. Proximity prompted the occasional walk on the boardwalk or a stop at Kaiser Park on Coney Island Creek to admire the view of the Lower Bay and Verrazano Bridge and Nathan’s, now in name only, could occasionally lure me in with a really good coupon. But my visits were accompanied by melancholy viewing the remains of the legendary mecca of amusement.

In 2003, the project on which I was involved brought me back. I had been Downtown Brooklyn, primarily with Brooklyn Bridge Park, in an attempt to return Brooklyn’s legendary electric streetcars. Attending all meetings, I became familiar with the priorities and methods of the New York Economic Development Corporation. Not far was the turmoil surrounding the development of the Atlantic Yards (Barclay Center). This was the experience I brought with me as the Coney Island Development Corporation was getting underway with their plan to rezone Coney Island for development.

First stop was the Coney Island Chamber of Commerce. The opportunity to meet them and get to know most was a truly a treat. Once the power in the area, their role had been waning with the downhill slide. Most were of a carnival mindset. Graciously, invited to their meetings, I marveled at the informal, seemingly lackadaisical way they conducted their affairs. Although a few were more businesslike, the tone was of naiveté. They had been completely omitted from the loop for the “new “ Coney Island but had no idea how to deal with it. Sadly, it didn’t take too long for the once powerful Chamber to vanish with most members squeezed out in the years following.

But I was there on a mission with a project to put forth. Next stop was the community in the West End, west of and behind the remains of the amusement area, extending to the creek. Primarily a minority working class area with higher than average unemployment, it was a small isolated island surrounded on all sides by mostly white neighborhoods that ranged from working class to those of wealth. Although the basic elements of similarly ethnic parts of the city were similar, a small town atmosphere provided a unique charm.

 Attending a meeting to discuss the plan, I met a local pastor with whom I became friends and was invited to join a group of non-profits he was putting together in the area. These were dedicated people but, unfortunately, it did not prove to be effective dealing with the onslaught that had already overwhelmed much larger, wealthier parts of the city. What chance did they have?

For me, it was a beginning. I became part of the Coney Island community and took an active role. Although eagerly accepted by communities wherever we presented our proposals, there was resistance to streetcars by the city administration. Our non-profit, which had been using the arts as promotion, took it on as our primary mission and it was there that Brooklyn Streetcar Artists’ Group (BSAG) was born. Although activities have spread further afield, we maintain our presence in what has become my adopted community.

Throughout the years, I have made many friends in Coney among residents, old timers and those in businesses and institutions. BSAG has done events in the library and I am active in Coney Island Hospital on their behalf. It is a community with flaws and problems as are all. It is, however a community of people who know and care for each other. As I watch the luxury developments rise, I ponder the future of those who make it such a wonderful place; how long it will take them to join the old Chamber, disappearing into wistful reverie.

My relationship with the community compels me  to note the following.

Subsequent to the rezoning, the foundations that bound the neighborhood as a community had been eliminated; local independent non-profits specific to the area defunded and activists marginalized and removed from mailing lists. 

10/2020