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A city may be putting the kibosh on Thor Equities' ambitious plan to transform Coney Island. The Daily News has an exclusive: A "high-ranking city officials" says the plan is "dead in the water." Apparently the city is bothered on a few counts: The fact that Thor wants $100 million in subsidies (there's no guarantee Thor won't sell the land after getting the zoning it wants) and its plan for time-share hotel space. From the News:
"[Thor's plan] was clearly designed merely to try to get a lucrative zoning change and massive city funding without genuine regard to Coney Island's future," the city official said. "It's atrocious."The city is upset that Thor sold Albee Square in Brooklyn, after failing to make good on promises to turn the area into an upscale shopping area (the city is investing $18 million into making Albee Square nicer). And given the trip that NYC Economic Development Corporation officials made to Denmark to chat with representatives of Tivoli Gardens, we can only imagine the city is trying to come up with a back-up plan.The official said Thor must toss its current plan and come up with a more acceptable plan before the city will even meet with the developer. "Thor's proposal is dead in the water," the official said...
"The company has a history of promising grand development projects that will create jobs, getting a zoning change and then flipping the property," said the city official.
Thor's spokesman Lee Silberstein says, "Thor shares the common view that Coney Island must be redeveloped as a year-round amusement and entertainment district. Thor continues to work with the community to refine its vision and looks forward to being a part of the rebirth of one of the world's most recognized neighborhoods. Coney Island has suffered long enough."
How would you feel if Thor's grand plans for Coney Island fall through? And speaking of falling through, Coney Island's boardwalk needs some work.
Photograph by Rob Hoey on Flickr
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Where are they going to get the money for this now that Wall Street Excess has fucked up the economy once again?
Maybe it's time the rest of the US seceded from New York.
A city may be putting the kibosh on Thor Equities' ambitious plan ...
A city? Which one? Hoboken?
Hasn't EDC president Bob Lieber been saying the current plan doesn't have support since Joe Sitt came back the time share plan a bunch of weeks back? It was in the other papers a lot of times. The big news is how will Sitt react. Stay tuned.
The city doesn't know what it's doing, being responsible for the war zone/crack den that is there now they want to stop the only developer in the world that wants anything to do with the area from carrying out his plan.
As usual the city knows best....how to $#@k up a situation completely and condemn a neighborhood for many more years of third world conditions.
Finally the City is facing the truth about this deal ! It was never about improvement at all . Just money . Posted by; "Still Not Amused"
Combining both stories, I hope that Joe Sitt falls through the broken boardwalk and is never seen from again. How dare he tear down what was left of the coney island amusement parks and then say he won't rebuild anything unless the city lets him build time share condos? What kind of scam is that? And this is the same guy who turned the fulton street mall into a dump and now is going to tear it down and build a time share condo building after the city gave him $18 millon to fix it up? I am ashamed that a person like this claims to be Brooklyn born. He is probably lying about that too. If someone checks him out they will probably find out he was born and raised in Queens where people dont give a crap about anything.
Elanor
"in Queens where people dont give a crap about anything."
Said the Crooklynite. Psssst. Old-suddenly-new Crooklyn might be covered and paved over. But it is still a contaminated shithole.
Living in an old factory. What a novel idea!
Hey, Queens is okay! Don't hate, we're all in the same boat.
I'm overjoyed this plan is looking dead. I like my "crack infested den of iniquity" or whatever that jackass above said just the way it is, thank you.
AT least a whole good varied cross section of the city comes out to hang the way it is now.
Oh but that's right, if it's not all white people its 'crack infested'.
My bad.
I swear, I wonder about some of you fuckers sometimes.
I am dumbfounded when people say they like Coney the way it is. Unemployment rates that are more than double the New York City rate, severe crime problems, a pitiful excuse for a boardwalk, an aquarium that barely rivals a sea-monkey habitat, lots that have been empty since long before any developers came in, and graffiti-covered everything...and you want to keep that just the way it is?
There is really something wrong with you people. Let's just ignore all of Coney's problems so you can still enjoy its "charm" and "attitude." It is shameful and disgusting how selfish you are.
I'm sure the unemployed folks living in the housing projects out there who have to worry about getting shot when they go out at night will be ecstatic ten years from now when the area is a bigger dump than it is now because people felt it was more important to preserve Coney's character than actually doing something to improve the area.
We're all in the same boat. More or less. I agree.
The Queens comment was really not necessary. I like your own description of a crack infestation that is Brooklyn. It is very retro-1990's. I guess if a whole lot of dumbasses go to hang out somewhere, it must be al-right.
Me too. I really wonder about you fuckers sometimes.
I would like to comment on'GUEST' who left a comment at 11:34 today.
If Thor Equities is so concerned about unemployment then when are they going to do something about the 359 jobs lost at the Albee Square Gallery Mall when he decided to sell us all out. They are walking away with $125Million and we are getting nothing but the loss of our businesses and deep in dept. Why has Thor not come up with a jobs program for us?
That Joseph Sit who runs Thor Equities came down and promised us everything if we all backed him putting a skyscraper over the mall. He promised us a great future and promised no one would get kicked out. So Thor gets what they want and now we all have to go and Thor refuses to answer our calls. They say in the papers they owe us nothing.
If Joseph Shitstorm got his way down at Coney Island then NO ONE there would get a job. The man would forget everything he promised and say he owes no one nothing! They probably do have unemployment down there at the Coney Island, but all the people there who do have jobs work at the amusement park. Shitstorm will take their jobs away too and NO ONE at Coney Island will have a job left. He was planning to build those condums and nothing else. The man is a liar and has already hurt 320 families over here who now have to go on food stamps.
I think anyone from Brooklyn has a nerve to accuse anyone from Queens of Coney Island's current perdicament. As someone born and raised in Queens I can tell everyone here WE GIVE A DAMN!!
1)) Joe Sitt was indeed born and raised in Brooklyn. Every newspaper says so. Thats right Brooklyn, one of your own is responsible for tearing down Coney Island, the Rever Sugar Refinary, and the Albee Square Mall. One of your own.
2)) It was residents of Brooklyn who chose to turn Coney Island into a trash heap. It was residents of Brooklyn who set fire to the rides and boardwalk all through the 70's and 80's. It was Brooklyn residents responsible for the crime. And it was Brooklyn residents who owned those rides and allowed them to fall apart.Our own Rockaway Playland was in imaculate condition for it's entire existance. So was Adventure Inn and Howard beach Park. No broken rides and no crime in their neighborhoods and no garbage and rats on the ground. We kept our amusement parks clean and safe, Brooklyn residents turned Coney Island to crap.
3)) Queens dosn't give a damn? We still have the Mets. You people drove away the Dogers by not allowing them to build a new stadium. We have aqueduct Racetrack, you people closed down all your race tracks. We have a modern safe zoo, you people had an ancient zoo until some childern were killed by the polar bears and the city forced you to upgrade it. We have JFK International Airport, your Floyd Bennett Field has been unused since the 1920's. We have Queens Center, you all allowed your mall to be torn down by Joe Sitt. Queens is and always will be better than Brooklyn because we all give a damn.
Dan Granger
Rego Park, Queens
Stop trashing Brooklyn. Rockaway is a worse shithole than Coney will ever be. At least we still have Coney Island and Nelley Bly. And if you ever step one foot into Brooklyn Dan Granger I will be waiting for you with a fist sandwich. Queens is better my ass. We have Prospect Park. You have that swamp called Flushing Meadow Park with its abandoned rotting words fair exibits.
Queens will allways be the little bitch next door to Brooklyn and dont forget it!!!!!!!!
joe shit sucks, flip this, get out of coney you greedy bastard