Coney Island condo plan beached BY RACHEL MONAHAN and JOTHAM SEDERSTROM DAILY NEWS WRITERS Monday, June 18th 2007, 4:00 AM
You can forget about oceanfront views from high-rise balconies and takeout from Nathan's Famous. Mega-developer Thor Equities, which has reportedly laid out more than $100 million so far to rejuvenate Coney Island, has given up on plans for a highly profitable residential component to its Las Vegas-style amusement park project. "Thor has believed from the beginning that the amusement and entertainment aspect of the project was the most important aspect of the project," Thor spokesman Lee Silberstein said, noting more amusements would be included in a revised version of the 22-acre plan. The controversial $2 billion project - which had come under fire from city officials and residents, because, they said, it would destroy Coney Island's character by including waterfront housing - had originally earmarked 950,000 square feet for residential space. Now, the plan will have no residential component and no 50-story tower on Stillwell Ave., as had been proposed, Silberstein said. "It's significantly smaller," Silberstein said of the overall project. He refused to divulge specifics of a revised plan or to say how Thor would profit without the sale of luxury condos. Carol Hill Albert, who in November sold the legendary Astroland amusement park to Thor, sighed in relief when told about the project's hairpin turn. "Nobody has ever thought it was a good idea to have condos south of Surf Ave.," said Albert, who hopes to relocate her 45-year-old family-owned amusement park elsewhere along the Coney Island waterfront. "It's all beachfront." Coney Island USA founder Dick Zigun agreed. "This is the big break we've all been waiting for," said Zigun, the unofficial mayor of Coney Island. "We're not against development. Thor just needed to accept the fact that at the core area, it should be tourism and entertainment." Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/