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Photos of the Day: Mayor Bloomberg at Tom’s Coney Island

Posted in Food & Drink, News, Photography, tagged Alliance for Coney Island, Bruce Handy, Coney Island, Mayor Bloomberg, Tom's Coney Island, Tom's Restaurant on November 18, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Mayor Mike Bloomberg and City Councilman Domenic Recchia Jr on the Coney Island Boardwalk. November 18, 2012. Photo © Bruce Handy/Coney Island Photo Diary via flickr

Tom’s Restaurant, which “soft-opened” in late September on the Coney Island Boardwalk, miraculously escaped damage from Hurricane Sandy and is one of the few restaurants open in the neighborhood. This morning, owner Jimmy Kokotas welcomed Mayor Bloomberg and Coney Island City Councilman Domenic Recchia for a breakfast meeting with the Alliance for Coney Island and Community Board 13. Coney Island photographer Bruce Handy was there and shared his set of photos via flickr. Seen in the photo below to the right of the Mayor are Dennis Vourderis, Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park; Jimmy Kokotas, Tom’s Coney Island; Jon Dohlin, New York Aquarium and Judi Orlando, Astella Development. Nicole Robinson-Etienne, New York Aquarium and Valerio Ferrari and Alberto Zamperla, Luna Park, have their backs to the camera. The Mayor’s Office later tweeted: “Today the Mayor met with Coney Island small business owners to talk about rebuilding…”

Breakfast Meeting at Tom’s Coney Island: Mayor Mike Bloomberg, City Councilman Domenic Recchia Jr with members of Alliance for Coney Island and Community Board 13, November 18, 2012. Photo © Bruce Handy/Coney Island Photo Diary via flickr

In the days after the storm, the newly formed Alliance launched the #ConeyRecovers initiative which has brought in hundreds of volunteers and dozens of partners to help with relief efforts in the community. Tom’s has been a hub of activity, serving as a command center for volunteers and a host for breakfast meetings about storm relief for local business owners. While the Boardwalk businesses were untouched by the storm and a few have managed to reopen, Ruby’s Bar does not have electricity and Paul’s Daughter and Lola Star Boutique lack meeting space. Though Tom’s opened near the end of the amusement park season, the restaurant is expected to initially remain open at least nine months of the year. If Tom’s hadn’t been here, the meetings of the past few weeks would have had to be held in another neighborhood since most of the other restaurants, from the original Nathan’s and Gargiulo’s to Dunkin Donuts and McDonald’s, remain closed due to flood damage.

Breakfast Meeting at Tom’s Coney Island with Alliance for Coney Island and Community Board 13, November 18, 2012. Photo © Bruce Handy/Coney Island Photo Diary via flickr

Nov 18: Coney Island Hysterical Society Artists Slide Talk

Posted in art, Events, tagged 1980s, Coney Island, Coney Island Hysterical Society, Philomena Marano, Richard, slide talk on November 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Artists Richard Eagan and Philomena on empty Steeplechase Park site, circa 1982 Photo © Coney Island Hysterical Society

On Sunday, November 18th, artists Richard Eagan and Philomena Marano, who have been collaborating for over 30 years as the Coney Island Hysterical Society, will give a slide talk about their “Hysterical/Historical” work. The above photo from 1982 documents “Souvenir Views of Coney Island,” a “traveling show” that they brought to the then-empty Steeplechase Park site. The free event is at 4:40pm at 440 Gallery, 440 Sixth Avenue, in Park Slope. Eagan and Marano’s exhibit “Art of the Coney Island Hysterical Society,” is on view at the gallery through November 25.

Related posts on ATZ...

October 4, 2012: Art of the Day: Coney Island Hysterical Society

August 21, 2012: Art of the Day: Out of Disorder (Coney Island) by Takahiro Iwasaki

October 26, 2010: Studio Visit: Philomena Marano of the Coney Island Hysterical Society

October 26, 2010: Studio Visit: Richard Eagan of the Coney Island Hysterical Society

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Wanna MegaWhirl? New Ride To Be Demoed If Not Moved

Posted in Amusement ride, tagged Coney Island, Gordon Rides, Hurrican Sandy, Jonathan Gordon, MegaWhirl, prototype ride, Sandy on November 14, 2012| 2 Comments »

The MegaWhirl, a prototype that came all the way from a Texas ride factory to debut in Coney Island, will be scrapped if a new home is not found for it soon. MegaWhirl inventor Jonathan Gordon of Gordon Rides contacted ATZ with the sad news: “Just thought you should know, I’ve been working on trying to relocate the MegaWhirl, but the damage from the storm surge has made it almost impossible. If I can’t find anyone to take the ride by the end of next week, the MegaWhirl will be demolished as per the demands of Thor Equities.” For Gordon, who signed his email, “(former) CEO/Lead Designer, GordonRides LLC,” Hurricane Sandy capped off a Coney Island season that had already been a financial disaster and bankrupted his business.

If you’d like the ride, which is said to combine the thrill of the Whip and the Tilt-A-Whirl, you’ll need a crane to disassemble it and four trucks to take it away. The MegaWhirl is on Thor Equities’ Stillwell Avenue lot leased to the BK Festival promoters for Cha Cha’s Steeplechase Park. There were problems at the new park from the get-go. Originally set to open on Memorial Day Weekend, the park was not able to open till four weeks later. Filing of paperwork with City agencies and bureaucratic red tape was blamed for the delay. City permitting issues relating to fencing closed the park intermittently and irregular hours had some visitors asking if and when it was open.

When the park closed after Labor Day, the rest of the rides and equipment were moved from the property. Only the MegaWhirl, Ray’s Basketball trailer and the Zipline still remain on the BK Festival lots, which are now being used by insurance companies as a temporary parking lot for the many cars from the neighborhood totaled by Hurricane Sandy. Tow trucks come in and out all day.

“Thank you for all of your help and support,” Gordon writes. “I’m looking forward to closing this awful chapter of my life and moving on to other things.” Here’s a promo video made in happier days of a group of American Coaster Enthusiasts going for a test spin at ride manufacturer Larson International’s factory in Texas.

Gordon grew up in Westchester County and went to Playland Park as a boy, where he rode the Whip and other classics. “That influenced me quite a bit,” he told ATZ last year, when we first wrote about the ride (“New Ride: The Whip + Tilt-A-Whirl = MegaWhirl,” ATZ, June 28, 2011). “The rides were beloved and they’re just not around anymore.” Gordon also worked in the superintendent’s office at Playland before going to engineering school and blazing his own trail as an independent ride designer. He holds numerous patents in roller coaster and ride design, including one on a “multi-track multi-vehicle interactive roller coaster.”