City Neglecting Coney Island Boardwalk Outside Of Tourist Area, Activists Say

While millions were spent to turn a part of the iconic wooden boardwalk along Coney Island and Brighton Beach into concrete, the boardwalk westward remains neglected and in disrepair.

Activists claim that an area outside of the normal tourist route is “dangerous.” Todd Dobrin, president of Friends of the Boardwalk, has said that between West 23rd Street and W27th Street the boardwalk is ripe for pedestrian accidents.

In some parts, the boards are loose due to missing screws, splintered from wear and tear and in some cases, completely missing.

“This is an emergency situation,” said Dobrin.

“It seems like they only fix where the tourists visit,” said Rodney Thurston, who lives in city housing development Carey Gardens at West 23rd Street, to the New York Daily News.

The area borders apartment buildings and several city housing projects.

Recently, a woman walking along the boardwalk on West 17th was injured when she stepped on a loose plank. Her leg was caught in between the wooden slates and it took rescuers 15 minutes to free her.

“Her leg was very red and swollen,” said an onlooker to the New York Post.

Vickie Karp, a spokeswoman for The Parks Department , said they have $30 million in funding for Coney Island Boardwalk renovations. Whether that would go towards repairs and upkeep of the iconic wooden boardwalk was not made clear.

Councilman Domenic Recchia said he is also on board to try and fix the unsafe parts of the boardwalk.