Gyro Corner on the Boardwalk in Coney Island. October 31, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i
We’re still in shock and will have more to say in the coming days. It’s like a mass wake on the Coney Island Boardwalk at the moment. The funeral will be this weekend…It’s goodbye Ruby’s, Cha Cha’s, Paul’s Daughter, Grill House, Gyro Corner, Shoot the Freak, Beer Island, Pio Pio Riko and Coney Island Souvenir Shop. After hearing the news from folks on the Boardwalk that the venerable Ruby’s and several others were out, ATZ phoned Zamperla USA/CAI CEO Valerio Ferrari for confirmation. It’s shocking but true: the only two existing Boardwalk businesses invited back are Nathan’s and Lola Star Boutique. These lucky survivors will be offered a 9-year lease. The other nine businesses will become part of Coney Island history, unless the City helps them relocate in the neighborhood.
Ruby's, Coney Island. October 31, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i
“They didn’t have the vision that we have for the Boardwalk,” Ferrari told ATZ. “It’s a business decision.” He says Zamperla/CAI’s vision is to revitalize the Boardwalk by making it a lively place open 365 days a year. But it’s also a matter of investment dollars. Luna Park is investing $1.4 million in a new restaurant at the corner of Surf and 10th Street, formerly occupied by Gregory & Paul’s. A Boardwalk restaurant/bar hoping to get a lease renewal would have had to make a million dollar investment as well, Ferrari said.
Made with Love: Signage at Paul's Daughter, Coney Island. October 31, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i
Where Cha Cha’s is located there will be a year-round restaurant, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, with upscale food. Ruby’s and the Souvenir Shop will be replaced by a huge sports bar. Ferrari says they have letters of intent from the companies that will bring in the bar and restaurant, but was not ready to reveal the names of the restaurateurs.
Last night, ATZ was on the Boardwalk taking photos of the vernacular signage and gritty authenticity of Ruby’s, Cha Cha’s, Paul’s Daughter, Shoot the Freak, and the other Boardwalk businesses. It was the last day of the 2010 season. As it turns out, it’s the last day period. The businesses have two weeks to vacate the premises they’ve occupied for 7, 20 and in one case 40 years.
It seems to us that Seth Pinsky of the NYCEDC has some explaining to do. As ATZ reported last year in “Ciao Coney Island! Will Ruby’s, Shoot the Freak, Astrotower & Other Oldies Survive?” (December 18, 2009)…
Before the RFP release, Shoot the Freak’s Anthony Berlingieri made headlines when he appeared at the City’s press conference on the land buy and posed the question directly to Mayor Bloomberg: “Is there a place for us?” NYCEDC President Seth Pinsky gave a diplomatic reply: “Our intention is for the foreseeable future to keep all the tenants in place, certainly through next summer. And we’re going to be looking to work with each of you to figure out where it makes sense for the various tenants to remain as we build out the amusement park.”
UPDATE… November 3, 2010: Friends of Ruby’s Bar Launch Petition, Plan Nov 6 Rally
Last Drink at Ruby's Bar, Coney Island. October 31, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita
Related posts on ATZ…
Last Drink at Ruby's Bar, Coney Island. October 31, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita
May 10, 2012: Paul’s Daughter & Ruby’s Bar Reopen on Saturday, Restored Signs to Return!
November 4, 2010: Exclusive: Surrender the Premises Letter Sent to Coney Island Boardwalk Veterans
September 17, 2010: On Coney Island Boardwalk, Ruby’s & Cha Cha’s Rock This Fall
April 23, 2010: Photo Album: Coney Island Boardwalk Businesses Open for 2010
Amusing the Zillion 
This is incredibly heartbreaking news. The boardwalk won’t be the same without these businesses. I hope they do things “correctly” but after what we’ve witnessed in Coney Island recently, I doubt that will happen. All of the best to the business owners and to those who have poured their heart and soul into these establishments. The demos, the concrete boardwalk and now this. As Jeremiah coined it: Coney Burnout.
Paul’s Daughter is going as well? Oh man…
I’m afraid the Boardwalk will lose its personality without these old school stands and their signage, as you well know having photographed them often. It is indeed out with the old in with the new
Looks like I won’t be going back to coney island. Fuck you Luna Park, I hope you choke on a dick.
Very eloquently said (no sarcasm)
I am beside my self with anger and sadness right now with this news. To ask a business that has been there for over 70 years to leave in 2 weeks time is heartless. I am sure their huge sports bar will have vintage photos of Coney lining the walls just like Ruby’s has *FOR REAL*.
And again, let’s be real here. Coney Island is not exactly located in a convenient place for the *upscale* to visit in the winter when it is 5 degress and frigid outside. These new businesses are not enough to draw people from what I presume will be from Manhattan to take the 90 minute subway ride out.
Although I go to Coney in the off season, Coney Island is a summer place. Always has been, always will be.
I believe the development of Coney into a year round destination with restaurants, bars etc is for the future residents of the hi rise condos planned for parcels west of MCU Park.
See how everything is falling in place the new cement for the boardwalk all this time.
I will always remember Ruby’s as one of the greatest bars in the city. It’s sad that it’s going to be replaced with a soulless “sports bar”, but I am not surprised.
Thank you for your comment. I agree sports bars are soulless. But many of us were surprised about Ruby’s or maybe we were just in denial
Cannot believe it came down this way.
I’m still in shock, 8 hours after hearing the news. And not a peep from the City!
I really had a faint hope that this was not to be, but I should have known better.
It’s now Coney Island for the rich. The people’s playground is now dead. We have been screwed, period.
This is the ultimate insult to everything that Coney Island is supposed to be.
Now wonder they’re putting down concrete sidewalks.
Think I’ll call my next post Redevelopment is Hell…
i am stunned and angry. not surprised, but is it really happening? this kills the Coney boardwalk as it’s been known for decades. i held out a faint hope, too, that it would be safe thanks to the recession. i guess nowhere is safe from Bloomberg’s “vision.”
I’m still in shock, though I knew change was coming. I thought “some” businesses coming back meant half of them. If there is no reprieve from this decision, the Boardwalk is indeed going to be a completely different place next year. Surf Avenue, too– thanks to Thor.
Fie upon uninterrupted PG, PC and vanilladom. Do we have to throw out all our Tina Turner albums, too?
This is incredibly upsetting. I want to know what I can do as someone who appreciates what Coney Island has been. I love living here and I want to do something, anything, to make our voices heard.
I tweeted to the @NYCEDC Save Ruby’s!
You might contact the Mayor’s office or phone 311 with a message for the Mayor.
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg
City Hall
New York, NY 10007
PHONE 311 (or 212-NEW-YORK outside NYC)
FAX (212) 312-0700
E-MAIL:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/mail/html/mayor.html
[…] escape me but please refer to the informative post by Amusing the Zillion for more […]
The egalitarian/common man’s/hard-working/non-corporate/mom-and-pop/eminently human/playground: 0
free wifi!/upscale/flip-flop/flatscreen/frathouse/corporate mega profit: 100.
Disgusting.
That rumble is Ruby rolling over and over in his grave.
Places like Ruby’s & others on the boardwalk are where people came to Escape gentrification….I can’t help but have memories of when South Street seaport’s history was mowed down.
As the famous line goes in the film, “Poltergeist”…
“They’re Here”
Truthfully, it really surprises me that some of the most precious and rare coastline has stayed the way this has for so long. As far as real estate goes, it is phenomenal property, and the way it has had super junky (not judging because I totally love SHOOT THE FREAK, Ruby’s, Cha Cha’s etc) businesses on it… is sortof weird. I think like most things, people are really waking up to reality… this property is genuinely valuable unusual property.
Luckily some of us had the chance to appreciate it while it was the way WE liked. I will always cherish my pictures of this particular stretch of land in NYC.
Fairly amazing even if the writing was on the wall. I grew up in the neighborhood, and live on the other side of Brooklyn now. And what’s amazing about stuff like this is how ultimately folks who “held the line” and put in fairly thankless work for decades are given the boot.
Maybe the places weren’t perfect, but many of the folks being kicked out toughed it out during the 1980s and 1990s. And now, wave goodbye!
Might I say that the walls of Ruby’s and the signage from Paul’s Daughter need to be saved and preserved.
Save something so folks know what they missed.
[…] Vita, of Amuzing the Zillion, went straight to the source and got this response from Valerio Ferrari, CEO of Zamperla: “They […]
Zamperla Inc. has a long-term strategic business vision for it’s Luna Park and upcoming Scream Zone properties. The adjacent boardwalk storefronts are directly tied to this vision.
They would like the LP and SZ captive audience to patronize these adjacent boardwalk businesses with their food, drink and souveneir dollars. Thus, they have to create a boardwalk with safe, middle of the road businesses. The existing businesses are too much of a “wild-card” to them being mom & pop owned vs. corporate, and honky-tonk vs. middle-of-the-road.
It seemed like Zamperla first appeared as a white knight, bringing an exciting new amusements to the vacant Astroland space. Now it is obvious that they are more of a corporate Trojan horse.
The CEO of Zamperla, Valerio Ferrari, was quoted as saying, “It’s a business decision”. The only real way to send a message to them is also with a business decision.
That would be to start a grass-roots Boycott movement of Zamperla owned businesses which include Luna Park and Victoria Gardens in Central Park. FaceBook and other social media is the best to start because they really pay attention to that stuff and spend time and $ creating/monitoring and managing it. PR and image are what they live on much more so than Thor and Sitt.
It’s really a shame to drastically change the vibe of the boardwalk in this way. They are missing the whole point of why people from all corners of the globe value and visit Coney Island
Thank you for your well thought out comment. Re boycotts related to this fiasco, one almost got started yesterday! L Magazine reported that after the NY Times blog posted that “The Brooklyn Brewery” was one of the new businesses coming to the Boardwalk, someone started a boycott of the brewery. But it turned out the reporting was erroneous. The Brooklyn Brewery got so many inquiries they posted on their blog.
“We are not in talks with anyone about Coney Island. The New York Times and other media outlets have since corrected their online articles.
“We can only assume the source of this confusion is a source that mentioned a Brooklyn brewery, not The Brooklyn Brewery. There may be another Brooklyn-based brewery planning to open a beer garden but it certainly isn’t us.
We’re sad to hear the news of these long-time businesses coming to an end.
– Stephen Hindy, co-founder and president
http://www.brooklynbrewery.com/blog/2010/11/02/erroneous-reporting-on-coney-island-closings/
“Brooklyn Brewery Targeted by Boycotters After Times Gaffe”
http://www.thelmagazine.com/TheMeasure/archives/2010/11/02/brooklyn-brewery-targeted-by-boycotters-after-times-gaffe
Will be interesting to see how Zamperla and the businesses that are planning to come in handle this. I think they expect all of this to blow over in a few weeks
[…] Out With the Old in Coney Island: Only 2 of 11 Boardwalk Businesses Invited Back « Amusing the Zill… “They didn’t have the vision that we have for the Boardwalk,” Ferrari told ATZ. “It’s a business decision.” He says Zamperla/CAI’s vision is to revitalize the Boardwalk by making it a lively place open 365 days a year. But it’s also a matter of investment dollars. Luna Park is investing $1.4 million in a new restaurant at the corner of Surf and 10th Street, formerly occupied by Gregory & Paul’s. A Boardwalk restaurant/bar hoping to get a lease renewal would have had to make a million dollar investment as well, Ferrari said. […]
[…] probably already heard about the odious decision to show the door to all but two of Coney Island’s boardwalk businesses. Zamperla, the Italian company that leases city properly and runs Luna Park, is single-handedly […]
[…] a brief reprieve with some nineties bubblegum hip-hop, and reminisce about Coney Island while it disappears before our […]