Coney Island - A Major Brooklyn Neighborhood

For more than 100 years, Coney Island has captured the imagination of people worldwide who are familiar with its history as a major resort that catered to the masses by offering amusement parks such as Dreamland, Luna Park, and Steeplechase Park, a beach along the Atlantic Ocean where millions of bathers frolicked, and the hot dog, which restaurateur Charles Feltman invented around 1867 and Nathan Handwerker popularized when in 1916 he opened Nathan's Famous hot dog stand, now a New York institution and international franchise.

Today an estimated visitors still descend on Coney Island each season to visit the boardwalk, beach, the original Nathan's Famous hot dog stand, Deno's Wonder Wheel Amusement Park, the Cyclone roller coaster at Astroland, New York Aquarium, on the former site of Dreamland, the annual Mermaid Parade, and other attractions.

In September 2005, Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveiled the Coney Island Strategic Plan with the vision of making Coney Island a year-round destination, possibly adding a hotel and spa, and developing new cultural activities along the boardwalk. In addition to introducing enhanced entertainment venues, plans call for strengthening the residential community by increasing affordable housing on vacant City-owned land and introducing a job training and recreation center.