{"id":25,"date":"2009-02-27T14:06:28","date_gmt":"2009-02-27T19:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mindfulwalker.com\/?p=25"},"modified":"2010-03-09T22:58:45","modified_gmt":"2010-03-10T03:58:45","slug":"whose-dreams-will-revive-coney-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mindfulwalker.com\/wordpress\/explore-new-york\/whose-dreams-will-revive-coney-island","title":{"rendered":"Whose Dreams Will Revive Coney Island?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Say the words \u201cConey Island\u201d to New Yorkers, especially of a certain age, and you may well get a dreamy kind of pause and a vivid memory: feeling the sensation of a drop on the Cyclone roller coaster<\/a>, seeing the steel top on the gigantic Parachute Jump<\/a> from the distance, riding the fast Steeplechase horses<\/a>, eating a corn dog for the first time. At one time, it seemed, everybody went there, if at least once.<\/p>\n

Coney Island isn\u2019t just a place of yesteryear, of Astroland and Luna Park. As anyone can attest who goes to the Mermaid Parade<\/a>, the Fourth of July hot dog eating contest<\/a>, or a Brooklyn Cyclones<\/a> baseball game, sees the sideshow, or rides the bumper cars, Coney Island is alive today. It remains not only a legend but a draw for many tourists and local beach lovers. (Also check out “Coney Island’s Off-Season Vibe<\/a>” on Mindfulwalker.com.)<\/p>\n

No one would argue, however, that this is the Coney Island of its heyday in the early 20th<\/sup> century and before World War II. It has vacant spaces on the waterfront and parking lots where amusement rides used to be. Many New Yorkers never venture out on the subway to it today. The owners of Astroland recently took down and packed up Dante\u2019s Inferno and other rides, with their lease expiring at the end of January. They packed up the stuff but apparently hope they\u2019ll be back, as part of a resurrected Coney Island, according to NY1<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s where the fun and the dreams are taking shape right now, albeit with some tough, hard-to-sort-out battles that are becoming their own Coney Island sideshow: What might arise near the boardwalk and sand along the Atlantic Ocean? This is the question that the Municipal Art Society of New York (MAS) has asked the public and is considering itself as part of its ImagineConey<\/em><\/a> initiative. Hundreds of ideas have poured in to the MAS. If Coney Island\u2019s future were a Nathan\u2019s Famous hot dog, it\u2019d come with everything.<\/p>\n

Luna<\/span><\/strong> Park<\/span><\/strong>: Coming Around Again?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

A bit of background: New York City, in the face of the Bloomberg Administration, wants to rezone and revitalize Coney Island into a year-round destination with amusement rides, indoor and outdoor entertainment, and new housing. A developer has his own ideas. Plus, the Municipal Art Society is advocating its own bigger plan and gathering the public\u2019s creative ideas and input through ImagineConey<\/em>.<\/p>\n

To get an idea of just how much this place lives on in the hearts of many people and stokes their imaginations, check out the ImagineConey<\/em> exhibit, on view through March 11 at the MAS Urban Center galleries, at 457 Madison Ave., at East 51st<\/sup> Street.<\/p>\n

The Municipal Art Society received more than 350 ideas, and the exhibit spotlights these as well as the ideas of two public sessions and an intensive design workshop where experts imagined a future Coney Island. This isn\u2019t the most visually compelling exhibit, but the sheer number and types of ideas, from wacky to inspiring \u2013 some of them shown in images or models \u2013 stir the imagination.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a sampling of the public\u2019s ideas for structures: a surreal cityscape, an underwater theme park, a new Luna Park, a giant art installation, the world\u2019s largest lollipop, a Bread & Puppet Theater<\/a>, Moorish castles, an underwater swimming pool, and a new world\u2019s tallest tower. One suggested rebuilding the Victorian-style buildings. Another proposed creating a new Elephant Hotel<\/a>, after the old one built in the shape of an elephant and opened in the late 19th century. (The old hotel reportedly developed a reputation for prostitution and illegal activity, sparking the use of the phrase \u201cseeing the elephant\u201d locally.\u201d)<\/p>\n

The zany, on-the-edge spirit of Coney Island lives on within many who proposed rides and programs. Some want a new Tornado, after the steeply whipping roller coaster, and new Astro Tower<\/a>, which allowed riders to go up, up, up, and catch a 360-degree view of the environs. Another idea: Build an Inverted Wooden Roller Coaster; Kenneth Vogel constructed a model of this stomach churner, which can be seen at the MAS exhibit. One person would like to see a transit roller coaster (sounds like the MTA\u2019s finances to me).<\/p>\n

The public recommendations for programs sound very much like the sometimes-anarchic amalgam of New York, with 64 proposals listed at the exhibit. They include: a yuppie zoo, an image of which showed characters behind bars sipping Starbucks-like refreshments; a vegan boardwalk caf\u00e9; a \u201cparade of disasters\u201d (cable news has shown how popular this programming can be); invention contests; a New York transit graffiti museum; ice queen contests; cutest baby contests; a \u201csushi skate park\u201d; an international ethnic foods market; a zoo of cloned animals; and an Italian theme park. There were also tamer ideas such as bird and nature tours, movies on the boardwalk, jazz festivals; and hot air balloon rides.<\/p>\n

Coney Conflicts<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>It wasn\u2019t apparent from the exhibit exactly how the Municipal Art Society will make use of the ideas the public has submitted. As part of ImagineConey<\/em>, the MAS is advocating for its own ideas. It convened a team of amusement, design, and real estate experts in the intensive design workshop. The team recommends that Coney Island become \u201cthe world\u2019s greatest seaside stage\u201d with four key elements:<\/p>\n