Check it Out: Little Rus' Went on Tour

Ok so we know you all brushed us off last weekend on the walking tour of Coney Island that was given by the Municipal Arts Society, since their were mostly old Coney Island groupies from the 1950s there (just kidding -- in case any of those people are/were readers). On a serious note though, Joe Svehlak led the tour and provided a wealth of information about the rise, plateau, and subsequent fall of Coney Island's role in American culture (along with many whimsical personal stories that were quite entertaining). We were able to take quite a few interesting photos and have uploaded them onto our Flickr page (see our Flickr link on the right side of the page).

From the start of the tour it was clear that the new development plans were a major topic as many of our fellow tourists were asking questions about what would stay versus what will be torn down. But as we were led around the historic neighborhood it became quite apparent to us that Coney Island is in drastic need of a face lift. The buildings are run down, the streets are littered with trash, and there are numerous empty plots of land that are itching to be snatched up once the City officially announces a re-development plan.

That said, a major theme of Mr. Svehlak's tour was that re-development would be good for the area, however placing higher-end and mass culture retailers in the neighborhood would destroy the abrasiveness that Coney Island is known for. This is quite true, although it seems that enough interest has formed and several organizations have come together to help preserve that aspect of the area. The key question left lingering is not a matter of "if", but more likely a matter of "when/how" will Coney Island be redeveloped and the follow-up to that is what type of places can be created to help preserve the originality of the landmark neighborhood.

On the lighter side, we were shocked to find out that Coney Island used to be the "Hollywood" of the East Coast with somewhere near one-million people visiting on a given summer day. One snippet of quirky information that we especially liked was that the area used to have a hotel in the shape of a REAL elephant! Anyhow: you missed a great tour, but we found these documentaries that might suffice: Coney Island short (discovered thanks to our friends at Gowanus Lounge).
Preview of NYU Documentary (Film's site).

Check it Out: This Sunday (8/10/2008)

Ok, we may be starting to sound like a broken record, but this is history in the making: This Sunday at 10AM sharp the Municipal Art Society of New York is leading a walking tour of Coney Island to witness a neighborhood "on the brink of transformation" (as the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported today). The tour will be led by Joe Svehlak (the man with the rowdy handle bars above). According to the MAS site Mr. Svehlak will be discussing a history of the neighborhood and will provide insight on the proposed development that has sparked controversy in Southern Brooklyn.

The tour will start at Stillwell Avenue and Surf Avenue, just outside the Stillwell stop on the subway (see hopstop map) and costs $15 (payable in cash at the start of the tour), or $12 for members. For those who are willing to venture out this way, you will likely be in company with the Little Rus' team as we will be in attendance. Email us in advance if you have any questions at: info@littlerus.com and bring your cameras because the view may not last.

Build it: Coney Island Controversy - Update

Once again we are back on the topic of the hour, Coney Island. And no, not because several people lost their lives this weekend due to strong rip currents (our hearts truly go out to those families), but because the city (via Thor Equities) feels that one way or another Joel Sitt is going to make a profit from his monopolized land grab in the neighborhood. The City and various interest groups recently re-released zoning plans and renderings with "updates" that will surely win over the hearts of those in the lowest social strata who stand to be out priced by all of this.

The "new" strategy of the city is to juxtapose current pictures from the crappiest day last winter with warm and summery renderings of a clean and safe Las Vegas-esq South Brooklyn waterfront with hopes that people will be overly stimulated and promptly change their opinion of the project. As can be seen in both the new renderings, the luxury condos and mall play a much less prominent roll, since they are now blocked by the rollercoaster (see the last rendering from the Build it: Development Pipeline post)....clever.

Regardless of the presentation, the same key issues are at the crux of this argument and these were accentuated in today's article in the Gotham Gazette. The undertone of the article seems to be, just give up and let it happen. Forget that as citizens you have a say in how your neighborhoods are designed and built, particularly in this snippet:

"The real threat to the amusement area, in [Lynn Kelly chairperson of the CIDC] Kelly's view, comes from people dead-set against long-term change in Coney Island. She cited the anti-development attitudes that led opponents to cheer when pictures of vacant lots were displayed during a city planning presentation. This could be Coney Island's best chance, Kelly said, with the Bloomberg administration, Sitt and much of the community all lined up to support development. If the plan falls apart or Thor, Coney Island's largest landowner, gets impatient with the opposition, she said, the developer could sell its property or lobby the city to allow housing in the core area."

This sounds more like a threat than any sort of attempt to win over residents. When discussing the primary concerns of affordable housing and improving the overall infrastructure of the neighborhood the response was:

"According to Kelly, the development corportation has attempted to address that issue by including parks, beach improvements, a community center and affordable housing in the redevelopment project. Kapoor said redevelopment will bring overdue improvements to the neighborhood. "It will bring a new park," she says. "Right now the area mapped for the park is a parking lot for the Cyclones' stadium."

Obviously this debate is far from over, particularly since Thor claims that in order to make the project financially feasible they will have to gear their new stores and hotels toward upscale consumers, which overtly means that the grittiness of Coney Island will be lost for certain. In response to all the this a new community action group has formed Coney Island United , and has an all-star line-up of advocates to pursue the battle. It appears that as Thor moves along through the permitting/re-zoning process there will be more than a few road blocks.

Get the Full Scoop:
NY Magazine Article
Gotham Gazette Article
Recent NYC Presentation

Check it Out: Coney Island

With the forecast looking grim for the upcoming holiday weekend (that is if you are sticking around the city), we suggest heading out to Coney Island to watch two really skinny dudes chow countless hotdogs as fast as possible! That's right, the world famous Nathan's Hotdog eating contest goes down on Coney Island every Fourth of July. This year it looks like some serious rivalry between the reigning champ Joey "Jaws" Chestnut and the Japanese sensation Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi (yes, these guys have their own websites -- but who doesn't these days?). Apparently, "Tsunami" holds the world record for hotdog eating as he downed 66 dogs in 12 minutes. However, he was defeated by "Jaws" last year at the Nathan's event. If that doesn't get you all fired up, then perhaps you can take your chances with the weather at Brighton Beach.

If the weather turns for the worse, you can always check out the New York Aquarium, and it just so happens that Fridays after 3pm are the "pay what you wish" day. They don't close until 6pm so that gives you plenty of time to check out the sea anemones and the sharks.














Just an FYI (see the last post on the re-zoning of Coney Island), this very well could be the last year to catch a glimpse of the historic amusement park before it is transformed into a tourist attraction so it may be worth the trip if you are around the city. Anyhow, enjoy the Fourth and just remember not to hold the bottle rockets in your hand.

Build it: Development Pipeline

By now, I am sure that every New Yorker has heard something about the Coney Island re-development plans and its never ending turmoil. Although it may be frightening for some and exciting for others, we have a news flash for those of us living in the surrounding areas: the Brighton neighborhood is a few steps ahead of these Coney Island guys. The Little Rus' team decided to run a little investigation of our own and chalk up the number of developments happening right in the backyard of the amusement park, and our results are astonishing! We found over 17, thats right 17, new condo/apartment projects that have either recently been finished or are in the process of going vertical (aka under construction). And you thought the west side of Manhattan was booming! Keep in mind, this is all within about a four block radius (See Map).



Our guess is that in anticipation of the major re-zoning of Coney Island, some developers have jumped the gun and already started projects. That being said, we shall see how these projects perform and their affect on the Brighton Beach community. Overall, we expect to see some major price drops in the next 6-12 months as these projects come to market which is partially due to the recent tightening up of the mortgage lending industry. However, the Oceana complex was a major hit among the Russian community and has gone through two to three series of price increases (starting range was $400k-1.5M, is now $600k-2.8M). The Oceana's success may be misleading though, as it is an enormous complex that has gyms, pools, clubhouses, and is enclosed by gates. Also, it was probably one of the first new condo projects to come to market in this area to replace the extremely old stock of housing.

Anyhow, we are committed to monitoring the housing situation as these new projects finish one by one and we will make our best effort to report on each development.