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Coney Island Fireworks 2013: Fridays, 6 Saturdays and July 4th

Posted in amusement park, Events, Visitor Info, tagged Alliance for Coney Island, Brooklyn, Brooklyn Cyclones, Bruce Handy, Coney Island 2013, fireworks, Fireworks Fridays, free event on June 4, 2013| 18 Comments »

Friday Night Fireworks with Wonder Wheel in Coney Island. Photo © Bruce Handy

UPDATE May 10, 2014: Readers are already starting to ask about this year’s fireworks, so here you go: The first Friday night fireworks show of Coney Island’s 2014 season will be on June 20, the eve of both the first day of summer and the Mermaid Parade. Schedule for 2014 fireworks is here.

The first Friday night fireworks show of Coney Island’s 2013 season will be on June 21, the first day of summer and the eve of the Mermaid Parade. This free weekly event continues every Friday through August 30. Sponsored by the Alliance for Coney Island, the pyrotechnic extravaganza starts at 9:30 pm. Best viewing is on the Boardwalk from West 10th to West 12th Streets or from the Wonder Wheel. Another popular viewing spot, Steeplechase Pier, is currently under renovation after damage from Superstorm Sandy and expected to reopen in July.

The Brooklyn Cyclones have also scheduled fireworks on the following six Saturdays after their home games as well as on one Tuesday – the team’s opening day, June 18th –and one Wednesday, which falls on July 3rd. This year every Saturday night fireworks show will have a special musical theme, including Jimmy Buffett, Bruce Springsteen and the Beatles. Ebbets Field 100th Anniversary, an old-time baseball exhibition, Scout sleepovers and other special events as well as the starting times for the games are listed on the Cyclones promo schedule.

Tuesday June 18 – BROOKLYN CYCLONES OPENING DAY – vs. Staten Island Yankees – Homecoming Fireworks
Saturday, June 22 – vs. Aberdeen IronBirds – Jimmy Buffett Fireworks
Saturday, June 29 – vs. Hudson Valley Renegades – Girl Power Fireworks
Wednesday, July 3 – vs. Staten Island Yankees – Patriotic Fireworks
Saturday, July 20 – vs. Batavia Muckdogs – Springsteen Fireworks
Saturday, Aug 10 – vs. State College Spikes – Billy Joel Fireworks
Saturday, August 17 – vs. Vermont Lake Monsters – Disney Fireworks
Saturday, August 31 – vs. Aberdeen IronBirds – Beatles Fireworks

The fireworks after the home games are shot off from MCU Stadium located between West 16th and West 19th Streets and are best viewed inside the ballpark or from the Boardwalk or adjacent streets.

UPDATE: A special Fourth of July Celebration and Fireworks Show was announced this week. The Brooklyn Cyclones and the Alliance for Coney Island are hosting the event at MCU Park. This means that Coney Island will have fireworks three days in a row — on July 3, 4 and 5! According to the news release for the July 4 event:

Admission is free, however donations will be accepted to benefit the Brooklyn Public Library and #ConeyRecovers, an initiative of local organizations working in partnership to assist with the recovery of the Coney Island community.

The gates will be open at 4:30 p.m. and all ballpark concessions and restrooms will be available to the public.

During the event, attendees can enjoy:
• A pig roast presented by Thomas Joseph Catering
• “Beers of New York” Beer Garden
• A special performance by the String Orchestra of Brooklyn
• Live music from oldies and Top 40 cover bands
• Family activities including the “Fastest Arm in Brooklyn Competition” on the Brooklyn Cyclones speed pitch

The event will culminate with a tremendous Fourth of July fireworks extravaganza at 9 p.m., preceded by a performance from the Brooklyn String Orchestra.

Fourth of July in Coney Island kicks off with the world-renowned Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest beginning with the women contestants at 11:30AM and the men at 12 noon at the Original Nathan’s of Coney Island located on Stillwell Avenue. Pre-show entertainment begins at 10:30AM

For more information, please call 718.37.BKLYN

When the weather is iffy on a day that fireworks are scheduled, check the Coney Island tweeters on Coney Island Fun’s list for updates. Thanks to People’s Playground photographer Bruce Handy for his splendid photo of one of last summer’s fireworks shows.

Photo Album: Coney Island May 2013 Construction Update

Posted in Amusement Game, amusement park, Real Estate, tagged Coney Island, Jones Walk, Lola Star, Luna Park, Nathan's Famous, Surf Avenue on May 20, 2013| 1 Comment »

Post-Sandy Renovation of Booths on Jones Walk, Coney Island. Coney Island. May 15, 2013. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Coney Island’s rides and Boardwalk businesses opened for the season on Palm Sunday, but new construction and post-Sandy renovations are still underway. In April’s photo album we focused on Steeplechase Pier, Steeplechase Plaza and the Boardwalk, and the Applebee’s on the north side of Surf Avenue. This month we’re looking at the south side of Surf Avenue and Jones Walk.

Last spring, the City leased the east side of Jones Walk to Luna Park, which installed a kid friendly Laser Maze and an interactive video booth. The corner stand, which used to house a water race game, was transformed into a face-painting concession. All were destroyed by Sandy. Last week the renovated booths were painted bright colors and prepped for new games to be run by Luna Park. Sources told ATZ that three adjacent booths were leased to food concessionaires including Italian, Mexican and ice cream.

On the section of Jones Walk operated by Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, the new game seen below was being built by Jimmy Balloons and friends next to his new dart game in time for Memorial Day Weekend.

Construction of New Game on Jones Walk adjacent to Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, Coney Island. May 15, 2013. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

There couldn’t be a greater contrast with Thor Equities property on the west side of Jones Walk, which has been shuttered since 2009. Back then, a business owner who had leased a small stand on the Walk from Thor in 2008 told us the rent had tripled from $8,000 to $24,000. He declined the space and left Coney Island. Known as the Grashorn Building after Henry Grashorn’s Hardware store, which was in business in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the building is Coney Island’s oldest though you’d never guess from its ugly siding. A few booths on the west side of the Walk adjacent to the Bowery are in a building owned by Jeff Persily and are expected to be leased this season.

Nathan's Original Location on Surf Avenue

Meanwhile on Surf Avenue, construction is underway at Coney Island USA’s first-floor theater, Freak Bar, and gift shop, which will officially reopen on Memorial Day Weekend while funds to put on the June 22nd Mermaid Parade are being raised on Kickstarter. Next door at the former Denny’s Ice Cream, also owned by CIUSA, a 1940s Mangels shooting gallery is being restored with the expectation of opening sometime in July.

Last week, Workers continued the gut rehab at Nathan’s Famous original location at Surf and Stillwell Avenues which officially reopens in time for Memorial Day Weekend after a soft opening on Monday. The interior as well as electrical and plumbing were ruined by the flood water and sewage that surged into the store during Superstorm Sandy. Nathan’s Boardwalk store has been open daily since March 23rd.

The original Lola Star Boutique on the Boardwalk is already open for business but her satellite shop in Stillwell Terminal was wrecked by Sandy. Renovations are underway at the tiny shop, which looks airy and festive in this photo. The store is being readied for a Memorial Day Weekend reopening.

Renovation at Lola Star Boutique in Stillwell Terminal. Boardwalk Shop Already Open Coney Island. May 15, 2013. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Traveler: The Cats of Rimini’s Italia in Miniatura Park

Posted in amusement park, Animals, Travel, video, tagged cats, Italia in Miniatura on May 8, 2013| 2 Comments »

The departure of Target the Coney Island Cat from Jimmy’s Balloon Dart on the Bowery for a new life in Las Vegas has left the People’s Playground without a cat mascot. It got us thinking about Italia in Miniatura, a theme park in Rimini, Italy, where a colony of cats have made themselves at home amid the tourist attraction’s 273 miniature reproductions of Italy’s monuments, churches, piazzas and landscapes.

Fed and cared for by the Rambaldi family, who own the park, the cats have appeared on calendars and starred in this 2008 film. This is not trick photography — the park’s scale models are the playground of the cats, whose names are Premuroso, Zuccherina, Pastrichio, Vittorio Emanuele, Oxford and Stu. “A thoroughly weird tour of Italy from a giant cat´s perspective,” writes Russell Bekins, who shot and edited “Italian Holiday” over a three-year period.

Several years ago, after meeting Bekins at the IAAPA convention, we first learned about Italia in Miniatura and its cats and did a story on Europe’s miniature parks for IAAPA’s Funworld Magazine. In addition to the scale models and landscaping, the park also features an interactive driving school for children, a water cannon ride featuring a replica of Rimini’s medieval castle, and other novel attractions.