Could it be that Reverend Billy prematurely administered last rites to Astroland, that highly romanticized jumble of third-rate county fair rides? After yesterday's report that unnamed officials were trying to broker a deal between Astroland owner Carol Albert and developer Joe Sitt (to whom she sold her 3 acres of property for $30 million in 2006), Mayor Bloomberg has now publicly entered the fray. Hizzoner told reporters yesterday that it "would be a shame if......

Well, forget about getting any closure; less than 48 hours after Coney Island amusement park Astroland supposedly shut down forever, city officials are working behind the scenes to try and keep it alive. The Daily News hears buzz from an unnamed official that if property owner Joe Sitt can be convinced to temporarily extend Astroland's lease, the city will agree to lease land to Astroland owner Carol Albert if and when a controversial plan for......

Photograph by brainware3000 on Flickr Astroland closed its doors yesterday, and its owner, Carol Albert, says it's for good. She told the Daily News, "I want to make it clear that despite rumors to the contrary, there are absolutely no negotiations going on." The fate of Astroland has been on a Cyclone-like roller coaster ride over the past few years ever since Thor Equities bought the Coney Island amusement park, with an eye on......

Today will be the last ride for Coney Island's Astroland. That will leave park owner Carol Albert with two dozen rides and 16 trailers worth of items accumulated over 46 years to clear out by next January in order to avoid fines from land owners Thor Equities. In order to clear out ASAP, Albert has already put several of the rides up for sale online from a firm called "Rides-4-U." Rides such as Dante's Inferno......

Photograph by jorgeq on Flickr Astroland, the Coney Island amusement park that seems constantly on the brink of extinction in recent years, appears to be shutting down Astro-fast and will close down for good this Thursday. Owner Carol Albert, in a letter published by today's NY Daily News, wrote that property owner Thor Management "has left Astroland no choice but to notify its employees that the amusement park will be closing permanently at the......

Photograph by vermilionink on Flickr It's that time of year again, when, with a regularity that rivals the swallows' return to Capistrano, the operator of the Astroland amusement area on Coney Island stares into her future and beholds a murky void. The tradition, which dates all the way back to 2007, is deeply troubling for Carol Albert, who has no idea whether developer Joe Sitt will renew her lease on the land that Astroland......

Photograph by Tien Mao Get ready to ride the Cyclone again - Astroland is opening up for the 2008 season this Sunday! There were worries, due to ambitious plans to redevelop Coney Island, that 2007 was Astroland's last season, but Astroland owners, the Albert family, and Thor Equities were able to come to an agreement last October. As for the future beyond 2008, Carol Albert told amNew York, "There are a lot of unknowns...It's......

Another over-the-top Coney Island development proposal is in the works. Mayor Bloomberg unveiled a plan today to build the nation's biggest urban amusement park there, including 4,500 residential units (20 percent are set-asides for low- and middle-income housing) and some retail establishments. The proposal basically spells doom for Thor Equities' $1.5 million Vegas-style entertainment complex that can only get built if the city provides zoning for it. Don't worry, the Cyclone isn't going anywhere.......

These photographs were garnered from the Brooklyn Museum's holdings to create an exhibit titled: Goodbye Coney Island? The collection "traces the evolution of this fabled part of New York over the past 125 years," over which time it has undergone many transformations. The most prominent of which is still in the future -- with Thor Equities redeveloping the area. The above ride looks terrifying! If you'd like to revisit the glory days, head over......

Need a last minute costume idea and in a New York state of mind? Here are a few NYC-themed ideas for your Halloween fête... R.I.P.ped from the Headlines • Thor Equities Need: Winged Thor helmet and hammer, brochures or maps (which can be printed out) of Coney Island -- and something to destroy them with. • The Staten Island Ninja Burglar Need: Ninja outfit, complete with nunchucks. Fake stab wound to the chest. Map......

Wow: The Daily News reports that Astroland will "open for one last season" thanks to a deal between Astroland owner, the Albert family, and Thor Equities. Thor bought the Astroland property for $30 million in 2006, as part of its billion-dollar redevelopment plants, and it was suggested earlier this summer that Thor would let Astroland open for the 2008 season. However, last month had reports about extreme differences between what Thor wanted for rent......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a home invasion robbery on 11th St. in Brooklyn, an unusual rescue on Selwyn Ave. in the Bronx, and a shooting on Rugby Rd. and Foster Ave. in Brooklyn. The 30-year-old homeless man charged with raping and torturing a Columbia student in her apartment in April was found mentally fit to stand trial. Negotiations between Thor Equities and several Coney Island boardwalk tenants are nearly settled, allowing many attractions......

The Post gets confirmation that the city is no longer looking for new sites for Astroland, the Coney Island amusement park. The Coney Island Development Corporation's president Lynn Kelly said, "We just couldn't find the right fit" in time. Astroland's last day in business for the 2007 was Sunday. Now, Astroland will only open next year if Astroland owner Carol Albert and Thor Equities, the company that bought Astroland last year (for an unspecified......

Time for everyone to say good-bye to Coney Island, as the 2007 season for Astroland's "Big Park" and Cyclone ends today (the kiddie park will be open through mid-October). And with real estate developer Thor Equities and the city battling it out over Coney Island's future, it's unclear whether the park will reopen next year. Today at noon, there will be a demonstration to urge Thor to extend the Astroland lease. In an AP article,......

Supporters of Astroland will be gathering tomorrow at the Surf Ave. entrance of Astroland in a rally to save the boardwalk amusement park from shuttering for good. Sunday is the last day of the season for the park and unless Thor Equities extends its lease for another year, Astroland will be closing for good. One supporter recommend showing up early and will be providing foamboard and markers to make signs. PDF posters for printing......

While the future of Coney Island is still up in the air, some rides are already closing for good. The Post reports that the Spider and Zipper were packed up for the last time in their Coney Island location. Without an extension of their leases for 2008 from Thor Equities, the new owners of the land, workers began dismantling the two rides yesterday. The rides were sold by their owner and are destined for warmer......

Astroland's stay of execution may have hit a snag. While there were hopes that Thor Equities, the developer who has purchased the amusement park for $30 million as part of its ambitious Coney Island development plans, and Astroland operators could work out a deal, the Post reports that Thor is looking for an increase on the order of 17 times the current rent. That means the park operator would have to pay $3 million for......

This morning the video mentioned in this Metro piece was up on YouTube. Now it's missing and all that's left is a message reading it "has been removed by the user." The video was posted by Coney Island developer Thor Equities’ and portrayed a clearly scripted and favorably edited scene from the Mermaid Parade. The clip, which opens and closes with the Mermaid Parade logo, features costumed revelers professing their love of Coney Island and......

After the Daily News broke news that the city was unhappy with developer Thor Equities' $1.5 billion plan to revitalize Coney Island (an anonymous city official calling the plan "dead in the water"), the Post gets its own tidbit. Apparently Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff is offering to swap some land with Thor to keep Thor in the general Coney Island mix, but not right on Stillwell Avenue. Under Doctoroff's compromise, Sitt would give the city......

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 Cole Bros. Circus is in town...at Coney Island for the first time since 1938! The troupe has set up camp through August 5th, an event that was announced not long ago by Thor Equities. The Ringmaster Chris Connors told NY1: "We have performers from the Ukraine, from Brazil, from China, you know we have it all here. Different cultures – we are a giant melting pot on wheels, just like New York City, and......

Ooh. The Post reports that Economic Development Corporation president Robert Lieber flew to Denmark to met with representatives of Tivoli Gardens, the 164-year-old Copenhagen amusement park, about the possibility of some Tivoli Gardens action in Brooklyn. The Post's headline? "TASTY APPLE DANISH FOR CONEY IS." Lieber says that Tivoli management is interested in Coney Island and that he and other EDC officials wanted to from Tivoli's success. He said a Tivoli branch in Coney......

There is a silver lining to all the talk of Coney Island redevelopment. With everyone worrying whether this may (or may not) be the last season of the Coney Island we all know and love, people are making sure to head there and enjoy it while it lasts! The Post reports that 11 of 12 businesses it surveyed have been doing great business. Astroland is up 5% while Wonder Wheel Park is up 15%.......

Hold on, hold on. After yesterday's reports that City Councilman Domenic Recchia was working on a deal to keep Coney Island's Astroland amusement park in place for the 2008 season, it turns out that the negotiations may have hit a snag. AM New York reports that Astroland has not received a lease extension. Owner Carol Albert said, "Of course, if Thor Equities wishes to provide a lease, under reasonable terms, Astroland would be very......

If you like your Astroland, there's some good news. The Post is reporting that the Coney Island amusement park will be open for another summer. Apparently, Councilman Domenic Recchia Jr. is brokering a deal to keep the park open through the 2008 season. Astroland's operators are working out details of the deal, including compensation, with Thor Equities As you know, Thor has grand plans for the Astroland site. After purchasing it for $30 million......

Jill Cunniff keeps a blog (a "MamaLog") about being a mom and a musician in New York, but you probably know her best as the lead singer and bass player of early-90s band Luscious Jackson. The band broke up in 2000, but Jill is still creating and performing music - all while being a mom, a wife, and doing her part to clean up New York's beaches. This weekend she'll perform at the Mermaid Parade......

With Astroland making way for Thor Equities' development of Coney Island, the amusement park is selling off its rides in an auction. Amusement ride broker Ital International is handling the sale of about two dozen rides. The Daily News is reporting that while many rides are expected to garner bids in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, rides like bumper cars or little boats could be had for under $15,000. The rides are low-priced because......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a power outage on Beach Channel Drive in Queens, a shooting on Hale Ave. in Brooklyn, and a shooting at East 157th St. and Cortland Ave. in the Bronx. The Gowanus Lounge has a post on the giant inflatable water slide that Thor Equities intends to erect at Coney Island. The slide manufacturer's web site advertises that when it comes to entertaining children "size does matter," so good luck......

While it just opened for the season on Sunday, it looks like Astroland has a chance at staying open beyond the 2007 season. That's if Thor Equities, the company that purchased the land Astroland sits on, doesn't get its way on development plans. Astroland's status now depends on whether there are any delays to Thor's future plans. Joe Sitt of Thor told The Post that he's "willing to keep Astroland open" and "the last thing......

A true sign that spring is here: Inspectors from the Department of Buildings were at Astroland Amusement Park in Coney Island yesterday, checking rides (like the Water Flume), before this weekend's opening. Opening day is April 1, and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz will be there at 11:30AM to perform the ceremonial christening with a bottle of chocolate egg cream. Astroland is getting ready for its final season, as Thor Equities works on its......