After years of decline, Coney Island, Brooklyn — home of the Cyclone roller coaster and annual hot dog eating contest — has started to see a mini development boom. Nearly 2,000 apartments are expected over the next several years along with new office space, storefronts and retail tenants.
“With now 18 million visitors from around the world, the incredible foot traffic that Coney Island and Coney Art Walls has attracted over the past few years is extremely exciting and we are looking forward to the future,” Sitt said. “At some point we will be looking for investors to execute Phase 3 of Coney Island with us.”
While Sitt’s full vision for the neighborhood didn’t pan out yet, the city’s investment and rezoning made other developers take notice of the area. And after seeing the success of Muss Development and AvalonBay’s condominium and rental project in nearby Sheepshead Bay, many started to seriously consider Coney Island, said Daniel Lebor, a partner at brokerage TerraCRG.
“AvalonBay was able to sell the market,” he said. The 180-unit lower portion of the building, dubbed Avalon Brooklyn Bay, is dedicated to rentals with prices starting at $2,200 for studios and rising to $5,070.
What’s key for the new developments in Coney Island is not just that they’re bringing an influx of new residents but adding retailers and jobs that have been missing from a neighborhood that was “designed for people visiting the amusement park,” said Lebor.
“They’re bringing bodies to fill in the offices, they’re bringing in businesses there,” he said. “This is a real live-work-play neighborhood now.”
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