Coney Island Development Misgivings Make Hyperbole Inescapable

I don’t know if “the mayor and his developer cronies are doing a hell of a better job destroying New York than al-Qaeda could ever dream of,” but the news that a mall may arrive on the Coney Island Boardwalk is surely disturbing — especially to the New York Press:

This may well be the last summer to experience Coney Island in a form that even vaguely resembles what we’ve all come to think of as “Coney Island.” It’s looking as if by summer 2006, much of it will be gone, and gone forever.

UWS Bitchiness

The Times’ Jennifer Steinhauer presents a sort of monograph of one of the bitchiest neighborhoods in the city — “Sometimes, the West Side Is Just Plain Grouchy”:

The Upper West Side, like all New York neighborhoods, moves to its own rhythms, fueled in large part by population density, acute parenting, entitlement and retail. Some weeks, you feel there is something in the air, a pinched intensity pushing everyone within a 20-block radius just an inch off the platform of reasonable behavior.

On Monday, on Broadway near 90th Street, a mother in low-rise jeans stood waiting for the light lecturing her son, who appeared to be about 5 years old. “If you want to root for the Red Sox, that is your choice,” the mother said, “but you may not sit with the rest of the family during the games.”

The pained child protested. “But we are Yankees fans,” mom replied, ticking off the names of each member of the family as they hurried across the street. The child tripped, fell and dissolved into tears. Mom scooped him up. They made the light.

Kerrey: Not Running For Mayor

New School President, 911 Commission Member and former Senator Bob Kerrey yesterday confirmed that he is not running for mayor, leading one to wonder what purpose it served to say what he said the other day.

The Times article suggests that he may have had a Wesley Clark-esque problem in praising his potential opponent before damning him:

And though his potential candidacy had clearly excited some Democrats in the city, there was no clear groundswell of calls for him to enter the race – perhaps because he had potentially undercut his candidacy with positive comments about the mayor.

I wonder if this actually helps Bloomberg though — a feint by a presumably well-respected political figure to underscore the defects of the other candidates. Who knows . . .

“Source”: HoJo Gone By New Year

The Post reports that the the Times Square site on which the Howard Johnson’s restaurant sits has been sold and the restaurant will likely be gone by the new year:

Times Square’s Howard Johnson’s, a neon-lit, fast-food landmark in the Crossroads of the World for 50 years, will soon be razed to make way for a glamorous new retail development, The Post has learned.

No closing date has been set, but the favorite eatery of Times Square sentimentalists “will not likely see another New Year’s Eve ball-drop,” a source said yesterday.

The four-story building with the winking blue and orange lights at Broadway and 46th Street “will soon come down,” confirmed Cushman & Wakefield real-estate broker C. Bradley Mendelson, who represents the new owner, Jeff Sutton’s Wharton Acquisitions.

Longtime owner Kenneth Rubinstein and his family just sold the HoJo’s site at 1551 Broadway, next-door 1555 Broadway, and a building on West 34th Street to Sutton for “more than $100 million,” Mendelson said.

And by “glamorous new retail development” they mean a box-like Toys-“R”-Us-type store. Glamorous, indeed:

Don’t expect another low-cost eatery: Sutton is the owner of such “trophy” retail venues as the Fifth Avenue sites of Hugo Boss, American Girl Place, and the new Abercrombie & Fitch.

Sources said he plans to level both Broadway buildings and construct a gleaming new “retail box,” similar to the nearby Toys “R” Us, that will “offer a world-class branding opportunity for international or Fortune 500 companies.”

Personally, I’m holding out for the return of the WWF restaurant, or better digs for the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company.

The Post, unable to veil its extreme partisan bent, notes that what really is at stake here is a storied tradition of cheap drinks and fried clams:

Its blue-and-brown booths, old-fashioned counter and bar serving $3.75 cocktails — “except premium brands” — seems an anachronism amidst the “new” Times Square’s concentration of media and financial skyscrapers, hip hotels and bright electronic displays.

The grungy but cozy spot for fried clams and open-faced tuna sandwiches is flanked by more recent landmarks, such as the giant Bank of America supersign, the W Hotel and Toys “R” Us with its indoor Ferris wheel.

Carpetbaggers

Following Bob Kerrey’s provocative statement this weekend that he may just be crazy enough to run for mayor (how did that 911 Commission work out for you, Senator?), the Times investigates the history of carpetbaggers in New York politics. They use the euphemism “recent transplant” instead of the obvious moniker.