Coney Island End Of An Era

Continuing with the summer New York City beach theme from earlier this week here is a photograph of Coney Island, the landscape of which is to change dramatically in the coming years. This could be the last summer for Coney Island as we know it.

Developers have been buying up land to build hotels, shopping malls and new amusement rides ala Vegas style. The plans, which keep changing, are wrought with controversy and drama that will likely drag on for years. For the tangled low down check out Kinetic Carnival.

But for now it is still urban Americana personified—Nathan’s Hot Dogs, The Cyclone and Sideshows By the Seashore—to name a few. It’s a great place to spend a day photographing.

Coney Island’s lifecycle so far has seen it go from the glory resort days of early last century, the urban decay and gangs depicted in the cult classic The Warriors and a revitalization that started in the 1990s. Whatever transition comes next, I hope that its unique personality isn’t completely wiped out.