The Sun Shines On Coney Island, Brighton, Howard Beaches
Read more articles on Games and Real Estate.June 11, 2008
Posted by neillevine
June 11, 2008
Posted by neillevine
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Warm weather is here. The local beaches are open. The lifeguards are on patrol. It is summer even if it is not officially summer yet.
By his count, Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe runs seven beaches. But where I am I can count five and that does not include the beaches in the Rockaways or on Staten Island or Orchard Beach in the Bronx. So I assume the Parks Commissioner is referring to beaches that are protected by lifeguards.
The three main beaches where I live are Coney Island Beach, Brighton Beach and Howard Beach. In reality, this is just one long stretch of sand on the ocean backed up by a long boardwalk that stretches from Thirty Seventh Street on the west side through to Kingsborough Community College, the east end’s anchor. The City keeps the sand clean. People stroll on the boardwalk and there are plenty of benches for enjoying the view. Public rest rooms are usually open in the summer.
While it may be one continuous stretch of beach and ocean, the neighborhoods that are the backbone behind the sand are quite different. Coney Island is mostly mixed residential with some local shopping interspersed by empty lots along the way. Brighton Beach also has a lot of homes and apartment buildings but much more active shopping along Brighton Beach Avenue flavored by Russian food, flower shops and pharmacies. Howard Beach is mostly homes and a stretch of parks.
However, Coney Island Creek Park and Plum Beach also have sand, water and a lot of trees, bushes, grass and the like. Coney Island Creek Park has an entrance on West Thirty-Seventh Street, near Sea Gate, the last neighborhood in that neck of the woods and Plum Beach is past Knapp Street, at the end of Sheepshead Bay where the big United Artist Multiplex Movie Theatre is and where there are tourist friendly fishing boats and even a gambling boat going out on a regularly scheduled basis. As a matter of fact, Sheepshead Bay is the nicest of the sea side communities with lots of American style clubs, dining and even some nice shopping available.
Of course, it is the redevelopmnent of Coney Island that has received the most interesting coverage in the local newspapers. There was a resignation of a man named Dick Zigun, a neighborhood spokesman, from the Coney Island Development Board because he favors open air amusements, the existing real estate arrangement as opposed to the mall, an enclosed space, that the big developer, Thor, wants to build.
I personally believe a building like the Albee Square Mall in downtown Brooklyn or Kings Plaza on the opposite end of the borough near Marine Park would be an improvement. The food court at Albee Square has appeal. Kings Plaza is even bigger and in my opinion is nicer, perhaps due to the influence of the two big anchor tenants, Macy’s and Sears. I see viewing the kiddie rides from an upper level as a plus for a Coney Island Mall akin to watching acrobats perform as Circus Circus in Las Vegas. Perhaps the Cyclone, Parachute Jump and Wonder Wheel are too big to fit into even a large building but watching them from upper levels could be considered a plus. Perhaps the Aquarium can install some intriguing maritime displays as a come on and possibly a link for a pet store chain willing to set up shop. Beach furniture such as umbrellas and chairs could also probably be rented out.
I am sure that Thor is good at finding quality tenants but I would like to suggest Chuck E. Cheese and Stew Leonard as suitable. CEC once had an outlet in Caesars Bay that closed a long time ago. There is a successful kiddie type place on Knapp Street and another on McDonald Avenue near Avenue I. Unfortunately, a related facility between Sixth and Eighth Streets about two blocks from the Aquarium closed a couple of years ago, replaced by a Russian grocery, but that may not be meaningful.
There were once movie theatres in Coney Island as evidenced by the Loews Shore. There was once a second motion picture house about two blocks away that was torn down only to be replaced by a fast food emporium that was also torn down. But the nearest multiplexes are all about an hour away. Once thing to be leery of is that salt water has a distinct smell that can be persistent.
If the City really wants to increase park use, it can open up the beaches for ball playing in the morning or evening when the neighborhood is empty and add lighting for safety. Ball playing could also be allowed in the off season from October to May, especially if the sand is combed for sharp objects. There is also probably nothing wrong with more playground equipment on the beach.
I am sure that if the redevelopment plan allows for housing room can be found, especially if some of the parking lots are relocated to the rail yards side of Coney Island Creek. It might also be possible to build platforms over the tracks that lead to Coney Island to recover even more space for housing. Hopefully, the City will look to encourage tax paying enterprises to relocate, but political thinking tends to put a heavy emphasis on patronage over all else.
From the upper floors on the twenty-three story building I live in, there is a scenic view of Coney Island Creek and I am contemplating continuing my coverage of this saga from that perspective.
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