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Thor’s Coney Island: Wanna Lease Stillwell? That’ll Be $500K Up Front!

Posted in Coney Island Redevelopment, Real Estate, tagged amusement park, amusement rides, Coney Island, flea market, go karts, Joe Sitt, Stillwell Avenue, Thor Equities on March 9, 2010| 1 Comment »

Thor Equities abandoned flea market on Stillwell Ave in Coney Island. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Thor Equities abandoned flea market on Stillwell Ave in Coney Island. October 30, 2009. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

One month ago, ATZ asked “What is Joe Sitt planning for Stillwell Avenue in Coney Island 2010?” Still no word on Stillwell from Thor Equities, though Coney Island’s 40-plus rides and diverse attractions will open in just 20 days. Palm Sunday– March 28th this year— is the traditional season opener in Coney Island.

The Cyclone roller coaster, Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park, McCullough’s Kiddie Park and the Eldorado Bumper Cars are busy getting ready for the big day. In fact, the Eldorado as well as Paul’s Daughter, the Grill House and Gyro Corner on the Boardwalk were already open last weekend! Yet Thor Equities property on Stillwell, the gateway to Coney Island’s beach and Boardwalk, still looks like the ghost town of last summer’s failed flea market.

Here’s why: The Coney Island Rumor Mill says that Sitt is asking $500,000 for both sides of Stillwell and he wants all of the money up front!

According to sources, Sitt is not willing to negotiate on the amount either. This lack of flexibility doesn’t surprise us. Half a million is actually a 75 per cent reduction from Sitt’s original asking price! As ATZ reported last month, sources said several carnival and amusement park operators balked at Thor’s initial asking price, a cool $2 million for the two 50,000 square foot parcels.

January 7, 2010: New Sign on Stillwell. Photo © Bruce Handy/Pablo 57 via flickr

Some of the interested parties were contenders in the City’s RFP for a Coney Island Amusement Operator, which was won by Zamperla. The Coney hopefuls who put in bids for Thor’s parcels were said to be balking at the slew of onerous lease terms such as a 30-day-vacate clause. (“Coney Island: Amusement Operators Balk, Money Talks at Stillwell,” Feb. 10, 2010).

Negotiations continue for carnival rides and a go kart track though rumor has it that one of the potential amusement operators told Sitt’s agent where to take his lease and shove it. Good negotiating strategy or goodbye Coney Island?

When all is said and the deal is done, we may see Geren Rides back on Thor’s property for the third year in a row. The Georgia-based carnival operator did after all buy a Schwarzkopf Wildcat roller coaster, Reverchon Himalaya and other rides last year with the intention of coming back to Coney.

UPDATE March 10…Sources say amusement operators from Wildwood, New Jersey, are close to signing a 5-year lease with Sitt for a go-kart track on one of his Stillwell parcels. If they ink the deal and if CAI/Zamperla goes ahead with their plan for go-karts on the City’s Stillwell parcels in 2011, Coney Island will have duelling go karts on the site of the much missed Coney Island Batting Range and Go Kart City. Why not bring back the Batting Range? As one of our friends says, “I still miss the batting cages. Without a doubt, they were the best in the entire city. Watching the balls fly off your bat with the Wonder Wheel in the distance was a thing of beauty.”

Thor’s Coney Island: What Stillwell Looked Like Before Joe Sitt

Posted in Coney Island Redevelopment, tagged batting range, blight, Coney Island, Coney Island Batting Range and Go Kart City, go karts, Joe Sitt, Norman Kaufman, Stillwell Avenue, Thor Equities on March 3, 2010| 2 Comments »

Are you ready for a time warp tour of Coney Island’s Stillwell Avenue before Joe Sitt bought the property in 2006 and promptly turned it into “Thor Equities Corridors of Blight”? Welcome back to Coney Island Batting Range and Go Kart City! The other day ATZ discovered that the website of this popular and much missed Stillwell Avenue attraction lives on!

Before Thor: Batting Range at Coney Island Batting Range and Go Kart City on Stillwell East. Photo via coneyislandbattingrange.com

Largest Batting Range in NYC (9 Cages)

$2.00 for 14 Pitches
Open 11 am 7 days
Discount for Leagues
Gloves and Bats Sold at Discount Prices
See Your Balls Hit out into the Open Field
100% Accurate
Speeds from Underhand to 95mph

Voted #1 by New York Magazine

Never mind that Thor Equities evicted amusement operator Norman Kaufman and bulldozed the property to make way for “redevelopment” years ahead of the City’s rezoning. You can view photos of the batting range, go karts, bumper boats, mini golf course and climbing wall on the web and see what we’ve been missing! You’ll catch a glimpse of the Jumbo Jet, which was sold to China, and can print out discount coupons as a souvenir.

We want to stress that the ghostly Coney Island Batting Cage and Go Kart City website was not reached via the wayback machine. It is a live site despite the poignant farewell message: “Sad to announce we will not be open for the 2007 season!! Please look for us in the near future.Thank you for your support and business.”

Before Thor: Miniature Golf Course on Stillwell West. Photo via coneyislandbattingrange.com

This attractive mini-golf course was located on the west side of Stillwell behind the Grill House.

Miniature Golf
Challenging and fun for all ages.
2 Courses in 1.

The course design is very creative – with lots of mounding and varying elevations accented by rippling streams, waterfalls and colorful landscaping.
Sand traps and water hazards come into play on many of the holes to add a whole new element of excitement.

Before Thor: Bumper Boats on Stillwell East at Bowery. Photo via coneyislandbattingrange.com

We miss the bumper boats and the games on the Bowery most of all. Tubs of Fun, the Balloon Dart and the other games in the Thor-owned Henderson Building were shuttered last summer.

Bump your butt off in the water!

Boats Hold up to 3 People

Each Boat Has an Automatic Water Gun so You Can Wet Your Friends on Hot Days And Explosions Just Make This Ride More Fun

No Age Limit

Before Thor: International Speedway on Stillwell. Photo via coneyislandbattingrange.com

When the International Speedway Go-Kart track was bulldozed by Sitt in March 2007, it was widely viewed as a tactic to pressure the City to rezone for high rise condos in the amusement area. The New York Times said it “harked back to the bad old days of empty lots,” the Brooklyn Paper said “Coney Island looks like a bomb hit it,” and Amos Wengler wrote his protest anthem “Save Coney Island.”

Largest Go-Kart Track in NYC.
Represent different countries as you race around NY’s largest Go-Kart track.
54″ to ride. Too small? The speedway has 2 seaters for those young-ins’.

$6.00 for 10 laps
Race Each Other Around Turns and Bends
Age Limit 12 and up
2-Seat Passenger – 6 and up

Slick Track

$5 MON-FRI
$6 SAT-SUN
Fastest Karts in NYC.
Race on a Circular Track at High Speed and
Slide Around the Turns.
Age Limit – 15 and up.

On Stillwell Avenue, where the Tornado Roller coaster (1927-1977), the Bobsled (1941-1974), and Stauch’s Baths and Dance Hall (1930-1998) once stood, where Norman Kaufman’s Batting Range and Go Kart City amused the zillion until Joe Sitt emptied out the amusements, a question mark remains. As ATZ wrote last month, Sitt appears to be playing a high stakes game with amusement operators to lease what’s left of his Stillwell lots to the highest bidder. But sources say several carnival and amusement park operators have balked at Thor’s initial asking price, a cool $2 million for the two 50,000 square foot parcels. (“Thor’s Coney Island: Amusement Operators Balk, Money Talks at Stillwell,” Feb 10,2010)

The great news is the rest of Coney Island–more than 40 rides including the Cyclone and the Wonder Wheel, plus 19 new rides from Zamperla in the brand-new Luna Park–will open this season on March 28 and May 29, respectively. CAI will bring Go-Karts, roller coasters and thrill rides to a new Scream Zone on the City’s recently purchased Stillwell parcels in 2011. This is cause for celebration.

Last Trace of Coney Island Batting Range and Go Kart City. April 16, 2009. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

But what’s left of Sitt’s sandbox on Stillwell Avenue is a desecration of the amusement district. After four years of ownership, Thor Equities has erased all trace of amusements from the landscape with the exception of the Batting Range mural on the back wall of a Boardwalk building sold to the City. With Coney Island’s opening day just 27 days away, Thor Equities has yet to reveal plans for the 2010 season. ATZ recommends that Joey Coney Island get with the new program of “interim amusements” and bring in some rides including a Zipper ride to replace the one he evicted back in 2007!

Thor’s Coney Island: Amusement Operators Balk, Money Talks at Stillwell

Posted in Coney Island Redevelopment, Real Estate, tagged advertising, amusement park, amusement rides, Coney Island, Stillwell Avenue, Thor Equities on February 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »

What is Joe Sitt planning for Stillwell Avenue in Coney Island 2010? Last month, ATZ said “Good Riddance to Thor Equities Flopped Flea Market, Hello Rides?” In the February print edition of the amusement trade publication Funworld, Thor Equities has a full page ad seeking amusement operators for two large open air lots at Bowery and Stillwell: “Are you ready to count cash this summer in Coney Island?”

After selling the Boardwalk half of the property to the City, Sitt appears to be playing a high stakes game with amusement operators to lease what’s left of his Stillwell lots to the highest bidder.

Thor Equities ad in this month’s Funworld Magazine seeks amusement operators to lease the Stillwell property. The photo shows an overflow crowd at Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on the 4th of July.

But sources say several carnival and amusement park operators have balked at Thor’s initial asking price, a cool $2 million for the two 50,000 square foot parcels. Some of the interested parties were contenders in the City’s RFP for a Coney Island Amusement Operator, which was won by Zamperla. The Coney hopefuls who put in bids for Thor’s parcels are said to be balking at the slew of onerous lease terms such as a 30-day-vacate clause.

Sideshow operator John Strong, who made a deal to lease the Thor-owned Grashorn Building for his freak museum, managed to get the 30 day clause removed. Perhaps Sitt will play let’s make a deal with one of the balking operators as we get closer to Coney Island’s opening day—March 28, 2010. At the moment, the Coney Island Rumor Mill says all bets are off for the City’s RFP winner Zamperla and runner-up Amusements of America to lease Thor’s Coney parcels.

Or maybe not…. Jane Baxter Vivona, an independent ride operator who is married to A of A’s Phil Vivona, is said to be eager to park her Space Roller in Coney Island for the season. Here’s a vid of what we’ll be missing if A of A has indeed dropped out of the picture…

Glenn Geren of Geren Rides, whose carnival has supplied the rides for Sitt’s Dreamland for two consecutive seasons is still in the running. Last summer, Geren purchased a Schwarzkopf Wildcat Coaster, Reverchon Himalaya, Watkins Swinger and Tempest in anticipation of a third season in Coney Island (“Coney Island 2010? Carnival Gambles on Roller Coaster,” Aug 8, 2009). Perhaps his gamble will pay off.

Geren Rides Trabant in Coney Island, Labor Day 2009. Photo © Tricia Vita/me-myself-i via flickr

Funworld is a trade magazine published by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), the largest amusement industry association in the world. Sitt’s ad appears to be trying to take a page from the CIDC’ s playbook. In November, the CIDC successfully pitched the City’s Coney Island Amusement Operator RFP to attendees at IAAPA’s trade show in Las Vegas.
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But Thor Equities advertisement touts visitor stats for Coney Island’s season that are as over-inflated as Sitt’s rents and cites five million more visitors than the City’s estimate for an entire year. According to the ad copy, “Coney Island, Brooklyn’s famous entertainment destination, expects 10 million thrill seeking visitors this summer and your business can be right smack in the middle of them!” The Coney Island Development Corporation’s RFP Fact Sheet says, “Currently, approximately five million visitors come to Coney Island every year. With its signature events and its iconic attractions, Coney Island ranks among the must-see destinations for both the more than 8 million New York City residents and the estimated 46 million visitors who come to New York City each year.”

The City’s five million figure includes the New York Aquarium’s 750,000 year round visitorship. The majority of amusement rides and attractions are currently open from Palm Sunday through Columbus Day, with daily operations from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend.

The best estimate of what an individual amusement operator can expect in Coney Island this summer is provided courtesy of Alberto Zamperla, the CEO of Zamperla, in a recent article about their new Luna Park: “For the first season we have estimated the presence of 400 thousand visitors and we are confident it will grow in the future,” Zamperla told the the Italian newspaper Il Giornale di Vicenza.