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"Coney Island comeback skipping us": Scarce services rile residents as iconic amusements reopens


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They may have a Wonder Wheel, but they don’t have a library or a bank.

    Coney Island residents say Superstorm Sandy wiped out neighborhood basics — and five months later they’re still doing without.

“We’re the forgotten Coney Island,” said W. 17th St. resident business owner Edwin Cosme, 52. “There’s more to our neighborhood than the glamor of the rides and the beach and the ocean breeze.

“We wake up every day and deal with stress and the conditions that linger after Sandy.”

Cosme and other residents are riled about two dozen closures of community centers, social-service agencies and a major clinic.

    Also, 25% of Mermaid Ave.’s stores are still shut — from bodegas to the McDonald’s and Coney’s only Citibank branch.

    Cosme closed a Mermaid Ave. electronics store after $60,000 in storm damage; he’s trying to build a bakery in its place.

    He’s part of a group planning a protest Sunday during the opening of Coney’s iconic amusement area.

“We’re still longing for the things that make a community whole,” said neighborhood activist Todd Dobrin who will join the demonstration.

    As amusement park operators do final prep for their storm comeback celebration, some residents say they’re not ready to party.



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/coney-comeback-skipping-scarce-services-rile-residents-iconic-amusements-reopen-sandy-article-1.1295504#ixzz2ODjUma50

 

 

 

 

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As insensitive as this will sound: I just hope the rides there weren't too badly damaged.

WOW JUST WOW dude that was mean they actually have a point.

 

McDonald's should stay closed, though I see some work is being done inside as there are bright lights on inside even in the middle of the night.

they don't need those fatass burgers LOL

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You know, you'd think having people venture to CI would boost people's spirits up just a little.... Signs of liveliness; the feeling like CI is one more step closer to being back to normal.......

 

I understand Sandy was devastating, but to read something like this, it seems as if certain folks want to wallow in their own miseries too & project it onto others for the sake of victimhood..... "We're the forgotten Coney Island" ?, give me a break - As if the residents were ever in amusement park goers' minds before the devastation of the hurricane...... These people are coming across as if  they're re-opening the amusement park a couple days after the hurricane or something (now that would be rather insensitive)..........

 

As insensitive as this will sound: I just hope the rides there weren't too badly damaged.

T'hell with you or any of us non CI-residents, THEY (CI-residents) should be the ones hoping the rides aren't too badly damaged...

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You know, you'd think having people venture to CI would boost people's spirits up just a little.... Signs of liveliness; the feeling like CI is one more step closer to being back to normal.......

 

I understand Sandy was devastating, but to read something like this, it seems as if certain folks want to wallow in their own miseries too & project it onto others for the sake of victimhood..... "We're the forgotten Coney Island" ?, give me a break - As if the residents were ever in amusement park goers' minds before the devastation of the hurricane...... These people are coming across as if  they're re-opening the amusement park a couple days after the hurricane or something (now that would be rather insensitive)..........

 

T'hell with you or any of us non CI-residents, THEY (CI-residents) should be the ones hoping the rides aren't too badly damaged...

lol... They've always been the forgotten Coney Island... Nobody goes to Coney Island to go anywhere past the amusement park unless they live there. Hell if I wanted to see the projects, I can just head down the hill from Riverdale and go to the Marble Hill projects.  :lol:

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lol... They've always been the forgotten Coney Island... Nobody goes to Coney Island to go anywhere past the amusement park unless they live there....

Exactly.... and I'd go one further & say that people are scared venturing past the benches outside nathan's (past those benches was always the no-go zone [so to speak] anyway).... I can bet anyone that had family or w/e take them to the amusement park on the regular, that grew up in the early part of the 90's & beforehand, had that disclaimer (or w/e you wanna call it) put upon them.... Oh what's down there, oh don't worry about it, you don't need to know (the answer I got to that as a kid from family was "nothing")..... I know that disclaimer of sorts was told upon me & every single one of my friends growing up.... It was only until I started busfanning that I'd "so dare" pan west towards sea gate (of course, my elders didn't know about that but w/e.... I'd have likely been punished had they found out about that, on some *We told you not to go down there" BS).....

 

After I got off the last stop of the B36, I was like, man this aint shit but a bunch of apartment buildings....That's what this big fear/hoopla was about..... To tell the truth, as a young'n, I didn't think anyone actually lived in CI before I started venturing all throughout the city w/o the company of elders.....

----

 

Anyway, there is still this heightened sense of security by folks going past the nathan's; the locale of MCU park doesn't ease fears at all with that either... Anyone that knows any better would know that during non-game days, that area surrounding the stadium is dead & is a known hang out spot for drunks at night..... The (street) lighting is very poor down there too.....

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Exactly.... and I'd go one further & say that people are scared venturing past the benches outside nathan's (past those benches was always the no-go zone [so to speak] anyway).... I can bet anyone that had family or w/e take them to the amusement park on the regular, that grew up in the early part of the 90's & beforehand, had that disclaimer (or w/e you wanna call it) put upon them.... Oh what's down there, oh don't worry about it, you don't need to know (the answer I got to that as a kid from family was "nothing")..... I know that disclaimer of sorts was told upon me & every single one of my friends growing up.... It was only until I started busfanning that I'd "so dare" pan west towards sea gate (of course, my elders didn't know about that but w/e.... I'd have likely been punished had they found out about that, on some *We told you not to go down there" BS).....

 

After I got off the last stop of the B36, I was like, man this aint shit but a bunch of apartment buildings....That's what this big fear/hoopla was about..... To tell the truth, as a young'n, I didn't think anyone actually lived in CI before I started venturing all throughout the city w/o the company of elders.....

----

 

Anyway, there is still this heightened sense of security by folks going past the nathan's; the locale of MCU park doesn't ease fears at all with that either... Anyone that knows any better would know that during non-game days, that area surrounding the stadium is dead & is a known hang out spot for drunks at night..... The (street) lighting is very poor down there too.....

LOL!! So very true... Every time I was taken to Coney Island as a kid, we'd never go past the area where Nathan's was... As you said the No-go zone and even as an adult when I lived in Midwood, sometimes I'd go for a stroll down there for Nathan's or just to get a nice breeze and hop on the  (Q), but I did not venture past Nathan's.  Only recently when I would take the X28 down there would I venture past Nathan's and that was only because the bus didn't stop closer to Stillwell. It was the choice of that stop by Mermaid which I don't like or the one by West 17th which is probably just as bad but cops would patrol over there so I felt somewhat safe when waiting for the X28 there, but there's nothing there but housing projects and they're uber ghetto to boot. Hell if it wasn't for that ballpark they built nearby and the tourists venturing around there that place would still be on the decline.

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The furthest my family ever went out was out to where the piers and parachute jump were, along the boardwalk. On Surf Avenue itself, the furthest we ever went (on foot) was Nathan's, and I remember asking my mom that, and she just said something like "there's nothing out there worth seeing". Then there were times when we went to Sea Gate (by car usually. I recall waiting by the B36 stop, though I'm not sure if I ever went by bus), and once we visited somebody who lived in a townhouse just outside of Sea Gate, and I'm like "those just look like regular apartment buildings, and these just look like regular houses". Of course, I was a little kid, so the concept of "good neighborhood/bad neighborhood" was pretty abstract, but I didn't really see what the big deal was.

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LOL!! So very true... Every time I was taken to Coney Island as a kid, we'd never go past the area where Nathan's was... As you said the No-go zone and even as an adult when I lived in Midwood, sometimes I'd go for a stroll down there for Nathan's or just to get a nice breeze and hop on the  (Q), but I did not venture past Nathan's.  Only recently when I would take the X28 down there would I venture past Nathan's and that was only because the bus didn't stop closer to Stillwell. It was the choice of that stop by Mermaid which I don't like or the one by West 17th which is probably just as bad but cops would patrol over there so I felt somewhat safe when waiting for the X28 there, but there's nothing there but housing projects and they're uber ghetto to boot. Hell if it wasn't for that ballpark they built nearby and the tourists venturing around there that place would still be on the decline.

Now that I think about it, I'm trying to think if that area had a crack or drug problem... I think that could be why Nathan's was kind of like the borderline and even now with the police presence, I would not walk around there past dark.

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Anyway, there is still this heightened sense of security by folks going past the nathan's; the locale of MCU park doesn't ease fears at all with that either... Anyone that knows any better would know that during non-game days, that area surrounding the stadium is dead & is a known hang out spot for drunks at night..... The (street) lighting is very poor down there too.....

The only safe time at night is summertime when tourists pack the area even late at night. Expect more crowd before, during, and after fireworks. They usually disperse around 11pm on those days. Other times, the place just feels unsafe. I've gone out jogging all the time at night during the spring and autumn, and never run into problems. I can't vouch for the area past West 19 Street though as I always keep to the east.

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Exactly.... and I'd go one further & say that people are scared venturing past the benches outside nathan's (past those benches was always the no-go zone [so to speak] anyway).... I can bet anyone that had family or w/e take them to the amusement park on the regular, that grew up in the early part of the 90's & beforehand, had that disclaimer (or w/e you wanna call it) put upon them.... Oh what's down there, oh don't worry about it, you don't need to know (the answer I got to that as a kid from family was "nothing")..... I know that disclaimer of sorts was told upon me & every single one of my friends growing up.... It was only until I started busfanning that I'd "so dare" pan west towards sea gate (of course, my elders didn't know about that but w/e.... I'd have likely been punished had they found out about that, on some *We told you not to go down there" BS).....

 

After I got off the last stop of the B36, I was like, man this aint shit but a bunch of apartment buildings....That's what this big fear/hoopla was about..... To tell the truth, as a young'n, I didn't think anyone actually lived in CI before I started venturing all throughout the city w/o the company of elders.....

----

 

Anyway, there is still this heightened sense of security by folks going past the nathan's; the locale of MCU park doesn't ease fears at all with that either... Anyone that knows any better would know that during non-game days, that area surrounding the stadium is dead & is a known hang out spot for drunks at night..... The (street) lighting is very poor down there too.....

 

What was pass those benches anyways? I rarely ever go down to CI so I have no clue...

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The only place I deem safe is the boardwalk area from the aquarium to the parks. I only get off from the w4th stop when it's broad daylight out. Otherwise I'm walking on the boardwalk, from the stillwell stop, to the aquarium. I never drop my guard even in the parks because as much 'security' they have there, its still too open. I too have not walked past the Nathan's 'border'.

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Lol @ the agreeance with the replies.....

 

VG8: When I would go to nathan's after work via the x28, I'd get off at the mermaid/w 17th stop.... There would always be this one homeless guy sleeping across the street from the stop.... Not out of any fear or anything, but I didn't bother getting off at the next stop after the turn onto surf (which is W 21st IINM), since I figure I may as well walk it out from mermaid/17th; it's closer.....

 

As far as there having been a drug problem back then down there, that I'm not too sure of (although I wouldn't doubt it)....

 

CenSin: Even within those night time summertime crowds, I can tell you that that uneasiness/fear still exists amongst folks (well, not counting the ones that are too damn drunk to know their elbow from their a$$hole, that is)... You can see it in their body language.....

 

NYCTrainfan: Checkmate & I already answered that for ya.... it's just a bunch of apartment bldg's basically along that part of surf (west of the nathans).... Before the propping up of MCU park (where the Brooklyn Cyclones play), I always remembered that as one huge vacant area.... If there was something that used to be there before the early 80's, I wouldn't know.....

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As someone who grew up in CI (the homes on West 37th across from sea rise apt. towers and sea gate) the area that always was the "hood" was 1)Carey Gardens the PJ"s on West 23rd between Surf and Mermaid and 2)those pj's (forgot name)on Neptune between Bayview/West 31rd and West 33rd St.

 

And yes at one point in early 1980's (like much of NYC) there was a drug/crime problem in CI especially in those forementioned projects.

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What was pass those benches anyways? I rarely ever go down to CI so I have no clue...

About 2 projects, a co-op (if that's what you wanna call it lol), some row houses on the side streets, a senor citizen center down on 37th, then Sea Gate

 

That's literally all that's down there

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Lol @ the agreeance with the replies.....

 

VG8: When I would go to nathan's after work via the x28, I'd get off at the mermaid/w 17th stop.... There would always be this one homeless guy sleeping across the street from the stop.... Not out of any fear or anything, but I didn't bother getting off at the next stop after the turn onto surf (which is W 21st IINM), since I figure I may as well walk it out from mermaid/17th; it's closer.....

 

As far as there having been a drug problem back then down there, that I'm not too sure of (although I wouldn't doubt it)....

 

CenSin: Even within those night time summertime crowds, I can tell you that that uneasiness/fear still exists amongst folks (well, not counting the ones that are too damn drunk to know their elbow from their a$$hole, that is)... You can see it in their body language.....

 

NYCTrainfan: Checkmate & I already answered that for ya.... it's just a bunch of apartment bldg's basically along that part of surf (west of the nathans).... Before the propping up of MCU park (where the Brooklyn Cyclones play), I always remembered that as one huge vacant area.... If there was something that used to be there before the early 80's, I wouldn't know.....

Yeah, what I would do is if the B/O asks where I'm going I'd say Stillwell because in reality I'd usually take the X28 down to Stillwell then walk over the amusement area if I'm hanging out over there or transfer to the (Q) to take it to Sheepshead Bay on Sundays when there's no BM3. Hell I'm not schlepping on the subway with an Unlimited Express Bus card if I don't have to or at least I try to limit my usage of it, so some of them would actually drop me right near Stillwell.  I always get off around Mermaid over there now that I think about it because I can run down to Surf and walk to Stillwell from there or move with the quickness down Mermaid and over to Stillwell.  I really don't like Mermaid in that spot right there.  There's just a vibe that I get from being growing up in Brooklyn and being around (lol) that does not sit with me so I would get off there if going to the Stillwell or to hangout down by the boardwalk and then coming back get on by those projects only because like I said there was a police presence there, but quite frankly I wish the bus stopped closer to Stillwell or right on Stillwell across from the station, but express buses rarely do that since they're supposed to serve areas away from the subway.

 

We'd also go down for the fireworks when I lived in Sheepshead Bay but never past a certain point.  It was ooooohhh ahhhhh wowww (at the fireworks) and then back in the car and back to the neighborhood. lol I've been right by the Sea Gate border and that was "ok" I guess but have never toiled around for long and never used the B36 or B74 down there.

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As someone who grew up in CI (the homes on West 37th across from sea rise apt. towers and sea gate) the area that always was the "hood" was 1)Carey Gardens the PJ"s on West 23rd between Surf and Mermaid and 2)those pj's (forgot name)on Neptune between Bayview/West 31rd and West 33rd St.

 

And yes at one point in early 1980's (like much of NYC) there was a drug/crime problem in CI especially in those forementioned projects.

 

The other projects on Neptune by West 31st are called Gravesend Houses.

 

As for my feelings on this topic, I have a bad feeling that the "lack of attention" to residential Coney Island is another step towards gentrification. Landlords, however, should be very cautious in developing here thanks to vulnerability to big storms.

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What the people of Coney are crying about is not having the post office, bank, shopping etc back since Sandy. Think if you had to drive 20 mins just to go get milk?

I believe the latter is called living in rural midwest U.S. Those people literally drive for miles just to reach the only shithole even remotely near to them, usually Walmart.

 

Back on topic, I feel that there should be attention placed on all neighborhoods affected, and not just C.I.

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What the people of Coney are crying about is not having the post office, bank, shopping etc back since Sandy. Think if you had to drive 20 mins just to go get milk?

The point is the place has generally been a dump and they're acting like they had this that and the other BEFORE Sandy... Pfff... Please... <_<  No one goes over there past Nathan's and not much has changed either.  Just more cops now and took the drugs and crack under control.  Aside from those little bodegas, I can't think of one supermarket or bank ANYWHERE over there, even when I was passing by in a car, and this was well before Sandy.

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The point is the place has generally been a dump and they're acting like they had this that and the other BEFORE Sandy... Pfff... Please... <_<  No one goes over there past Nathan's and not much has changed either.  Just more cops now and took the drugs and crack under control.  Aside from those little bodegas, I can't think of one supermarket or bank ANYWHERE over there, even when I was passing by in a car, and this was well before Sandy.

I'm not sure if too many people are willing to invest in the area after the hurricane. Not only is it a dump because of the people, but the entire island is practically a whipping post for Mother Nature as shown by the flood damage. Those failed businesses in my area… if anyone had any plans to buy the property on the cheap, they're scrapped now.

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The point is the place has generally been a dump and they're acting like they had this that and the other BEFORE Sandy... Pfff... Please... <_<  No one goes over there past Nathan's and not much has changed either.  Just more cops now and took the drugs and crack under control.  Aside from those little bodegas, I can't think of one supermarket or bank ANYWHERE over there, even when I was passing by in a car, and this was well before Sandy.

 

 

VG8 sounding like archer bunker. Yes CI had problems but there goes your riff raff comment again. I was raised there. Not everyone from CI was a gang member. Insulting me. And yes some ppl did visit the neighborhood pass the asument park

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