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Thor’s Coney Island: Demolition Under the Radar?

Posted in News, Real Estate, Redevelopment, tagged balloon dart, demolition, Department of Buildings, DOB, New York City, Surf Avenue, Thor Equities on July 1, 2010| 2 Comments »

RIP Win Win Win Big! Big! Prizes, September 12, 2009. Demolished on June 18, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i

In New York City, especially in Thor’s Coney Island, if you see a building being demolished without a posted permit, say something. Call 311 right away. Don’t dawdle. There appears to be a loophole in the law that allows property owners to get away with demolishing structures whether or not they have a permit, as long as the DOB doesn’t actually catch anyone in the act of demolition. At least that’s what appears to have happened at Thor Equities-owned property at 1124 Surf Avenue and 12th Street in Coney Island on June 18. “NO VIOLATION WARRANTED FOR COMPLAINT AT TIME OF INSPECTION. NO DEMOLITION WORK NOTED AT TIME OF INSPECTION, NO WORK NOTED,” wrote Badge #2425 in his report. What about the fact the buildings were there on June 17? Show us the permit, please.

Demolition in Progress: Surf Ave & 12th Street, Coney Island. June 18, 2010

On Friday, June 18th, around 1 pm, ATZ learned of the demolition of Thor Equities-owned buildings at the corner of Surf and 12th Street, which took place in the early morning hours. By the time a tipster arrived on the scene and sent us the above photo, the former balloon dart game, Pina Colada stand and tattoo parlor were in the dumpster. The DOB inspector turned up later in response to a Coney Island resident’s complaint. But the inspector, who said he was not allowed to give his name, told a bystander that he had to catch them in the act of demolition to issue a violation. The report which is now online on the DOB website corroborates this point.

The inspector also mentioned the building was “not on the map.” What’s that supposed to mean? No demo permit required? The buildings have been there for years! The balloon dart game and pina colada stand hadn’t operated this season since the business owners had gotten the boot from Thor last year. If you have any photos of the operating businesses such as the one posted below, please send along and ATZ will post them under “RIP Win Big! Big! Prizes for the Family!!!”

Photo of the now-demolished Surf Ave balloon dart titled goodnight astroland. September 7, 2008. Photo © brainware3000 via flickr

The demolition was carried out by crews working the graveyard shift at a time when everyone else in Coney Island was getting ready for the big weekend–the first Friday Night Fireworks, Mermaid Parade, Brooklyn Cyclones season opener. A fence went up to secure Thor’s property. Now it’s an empty lot to add to Thor’s collection of empty lots. On the Coney Island Message Board, Capt Nemo called it “Sitt-struction begins, there yesterday gone today” and posted before and after photos.

Before the Demolition: Win Big! Big! June 12, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i

Six Days Before the Demolition: Win Big! Big! It looked like a Rehab! June 12, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i

Some of you may look at the photos and agree with the poster on the CIUSA board thread who wrote sarcastically, “Maybe that gorgeous structure should have been landmarked. It looked like a dump I always thought. Looks better as a lot frankly, c’mon seriously?” Our response would be you’re missing the point. Letting a property owner get away with demolishing a structure without a permit sets a bad precedent. What’s next on Thor’s hit list? The doomed Bank of Coney Island adjacent to the newly empty lot, where pre-demolition asbestos abatement is in progress? In fact the early morning demolition of the concession stands reminds us of Rudy Giuliani’s early morning bulldozing of Horace Bullard’s Thunderbolt roller coaster in 2000, which ended up in court.

No one has suggested these concession stands should be landmarked. We’re sad to see another vestige of Coney Island’s vernacular signage and old school carnival games bite the dust. As someone who grew up working behind the counter of our family’s carnival games, we see a stand that was a fellow concessionaire’s business. Today he is driving a cab. One of our favorite photos of his vanished balloon dart is titled “goodbye astroland” (posted above) because the photographer shot it on Astroland’s last day in 2008. But for the operator of this game and other individual operators in Coney Island evicted by Thor Equities, a more apt title would be “Goodbye Amusement Business.” While Coney Island’s revitalized amusement area is booming, Thor Equities property is kept vacant. Last July, the Surf Avenue site owned by Thor Equities was rezoned for a 30-story hotel.

Here is a copy of the DOB’s complaint report for your reading displeasure…

NYC Department of Buildings
Overview for Complaint #:3345602 = RESOLVED
Complaint at: 1124 SURF AVENUE BIN: 3245151 Borough: BROOKLYN ZIP: 11224
Re: DANGEROUS DEMO CONST W/O PERMIT POSTED;

Category Code: 12 DEMOLITION-UNSAFE/ILLEGAL/MECHANICAL DEMO

DOB District: N/A
Special District: CI – CONEY ISLAND

Assigned To: BEST SQUAD Priority: A
Received: 06/18/2010 14:36 Block: 8696 Lot: 37 Community Board: 313
Owner: WEISS SURF AVENUE,LL

Last Inspection: 06/18/2010 – – BY BADGE # 2425
Disposition: 06/18/2010 – – I2 – NO VIOLATION WARRANTED FOR COMPLAINT AT TIME OF INSPECTION
Job Number:
Comments: NO DEMOLITION WORK NOTED AT TIME OF INSPECTION, NO WORK NOTED

What the block looked like before demolition: Thor Equities property on Surf Avenue between Jones Walk & 12th Street. Photo © Jim McDonnell

Fence Wrap Advertising Comes to Coney Island’s Stillwell Avenue

Posted in News, Real Estate, tagged advertising, CIDC, Coney Island Development Corporation, fence wraps, Stillwell Avenue, Thor Equities on June 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »

AFTER: Advertising on Fence Wraps, Stillwell Ave East, Coney Island. May 28, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Thanks to some fence wrap magic, tourists who walk down Stillwell Ave on their way to the Beach and Boardwalk will no longer be confronted by abandoned flea market tents and empty lots. In April, the Coney Island Development Corporation initiated the fence wrap project for the City’s parcels on the Boardwalk side of Stillwell, where CAI/Zamperla will build Scream Zone after finishing work on Luna Park.

Thor Equities abandoned flea market, Coney Island. April 16, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita//me-myself-i via flickr

BEFORE: Thor Equities abandoned flea market tents on Stillwell Ave East, Coney Island. April 16, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita//me-myself-i via flickr

Since Thor Equities Stillwell lots have remained vacant, the CIDC got permission to install the wraps on Thor’s property as well. The advertising campaign does a good job of hiding what remains of Thor’s tent structures from last summer’s failed flea market. The structures are on Thor’s land only, since the city cleared their section of Stillwell after the property was purchased from Thor in November. The mesh banners advertise the Brooklyn Cyclones, Ringling’s Coney Island Illuscination, the Cyclone Roller Coaster, Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, Luna Park and the Coney Island Fun Guide’s “More Ooohs. New Aaahs” campaign. Kudos to the CIDC’s Lynn Kelly and Nathan Bliss, who were seen installing the fence wraps themselves without any help from Joe Sitt.

Advertising on Fence Wraps, Thor Equities Stillwell West lot. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

AFTER: Advertising on Fence Wraps, Thor Equities Stillwell West lot. May 28, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Not exactly news: Thor Equities’ flashy ad in IAAPA Funworld amounts to a charade because Sitt failed to lease his property to any of the amusement operators who came to New York to negotiate a deal. While the City can’t force Sitt to rent his property, it appears that he was made to clean up his mess. The tent sidewalls and tops have come down since we reported that bedraggled tents were the first sight visitors see when they stroll down Stillwell Avenue (“Thor’s Coney Island: Tattered Tents, Deathwatch for Vacant Buildings,” April 21).

But the framework remains standing since Sitt was reportedly asking prospective tenants to pay the cost. “They won’t take it down. It costs 10 grand to take it down,” Mark Lovell of Universal Fairs told ATZ last month (“Scoop: Deal to Rent Thor’s Coney Island Lots a No-Go for Fair Producer, May 13). Rumor has it that yet another potential tenant is waiting to sign a lease. Sorry, we’ll believe it when they’re set up and selling tickets! Let’s not forget what Stillwell looked like before Joe Sitt bought the property and got rid of the amusements.

BEFORE: Thor Equities abandoned flea market tent, Stillwell West. April 16, 2010. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Scoop: Deal to Rent Thor’s Coney Island Lots a No-Go for Fair Producer

Posted in Coney Island Redevelopment, Real Estate, tagged Coney Island, Joe Sitt, John Strong, Mark Lovell, Stillwell Avenue, Thor Equities, Universal Fairs on May 13, 2010| 4 Comments »

Will Thor’s lots be devoid of amusements again in 2010? Thor Equities lot at Bowery & Stillwell in Coney Island. August 22, 2008. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Will Thor’s lots be devoid of amusements again in 2010? Thor Equities lot at Bowery & Stillwell behind the Henderson Building in Coney Island. August 22, 2008. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Mark Lovell of Tennessee-based Universal Fairs flew to New York on Monday to sign a lease for Thor Equities’ lot on Stillwell behind the Henderson Building in Coney Island. But the deal turned out to be a no-go, just as it had for the parade of carnival and park operators who’d preceded him. The deal breaker was the fact that he was offered only a one-year lease, according to Lovell. Since it’s so late in the season, Lovell needed two years to recoup the $150K rent plus the $250K investment.

“I passed on the deal,” Lovell told ATZ in an interview. “The reason no one is renting is a termination clause without cause. If Thor thinks it’s too sunny, if they think the operator has bad breath. They don’t need a reason. They can kick you out. They said if someone comes in and wants to buy our property we don’t want to have our hands tied. We want to have total control of our property.”

It’s a loss for Coney Island and New York City because Universal Fairs is a successful promoter and producer of a variety of shows and expos across the country. Among their events are the Delta Fair and Music Festival, Austin Fair and Music Festival, Arizona’s Chandler Ostrich Festival and Louisiana’s Bossier City State Fair. The company whose motto is “World Class Fairs, World Class Results” was ready to invest $250K in capital improvements for sewers, restrooms, electrical, stadium lighting, and a go-kart track. Carnival rides, a petting zoo and John Strong’s sideshow and freak museum were also part of Universal Fairs’ proposal for Coney Island 2010.

Giantess Banner Painted for John Strongs Sideshow in Dreamland Park, Coney Island. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Giantess Banner Painted for John Strong's Sideshow in Dreamland Park, Coney Island. July 25, 2009. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

This piece of news means that the on-again, off-again, on-again saga of John Strong’s Five-Legged Puppy, Tripod the Three legged Duck and his dozens of other freaks returning to Coney Island in 2010 is off again. The deal-in-progress had been a rumor on various message boards for the past few weeks. Whether you’re a fan or foe of Strong’s freak show, the sorry fact is Thor’s Stillwell lots are looking to be dark and deserted come Memorial Day weekend.

John Strong, who lost his much publicized bid to lease Thor’s Grashorn Building, which is now slated for demolition, was resigned to the fact that his second try at a Coney Island comeback had fallen through. “I have a deal with Rob Zombie with my show for a month or more. I’m very excited with it, but we will miss you and Coney Island,” he wrote in an email.

Lovell told ATZ that with only two weeks left till Memorial Day Weekend, his discussions with Thor’s agent Sam Sabin at first centered on whether it would be possible to get all the permits in time. City officials said it wouldn’t due to the very tight time frame. Thor’s people introduced him to a permit expediter but “the guy didn’t know how to get a permit,” said Lovell. “Then I said, before we go any further, are you gonna give me a long term lease? No. Well give me a multi-year lease. Thor won’t give multi-year leases.”

Thor Equities ad in February's Funworld Magazine

The fact that it would cost $10K to take down the framework of Thor’s tents from last year’s failed flea market was seen as yet another obstacle by the promoter. Although the sidewall and tops have been taken down since we wrote about the tattered tents, the framework remains standing. “They won’t take it down. It costs 10 grand to take it down,” Lovell said. “I don’t understand why they have signs up and advertise the property for rent, then they put obstacles in the way of renting it for $150,000—that’s chump change to them.”

Despite all that, Lovell says he would like to come next year and that the people he met in New York City and in Coney Island were super nice. Mark Lovell struck us as a nice guy, too. Hey, come back anytime! Preferably after Joe Sitt flips the property to the City. As ATZ reported last month, with the grand opening of Luna Park and the return of Ringling Brothers Circus, Coney Island’s stakeholders are busy planning an exciting summer season. Thor Equities has yet to announce any tenants or plans for Sitt’s remaining Stillwell parcels, though plans to demolish four historic buildings were released to the media. What kind of game is Joe Sitt playing in his Coney Island sandbox this season? We’ve been mulling it over, so stay tuned. Or if you have a clue, please let us know!