Site Description
(drawings and photos available for download to registered participants)

The Parachute Pavilion will be located between West 16th and West 17th Streets, at the intersection of the Riegelmann Boardwalk, KeySpan Park’s Surf Avenue-to-Boardwalk path, the Parachute Jump and the Steeplechase Pier. The competition site is adjacent to the Parachute Jump’s fence, and is bounded by the Riegelmann Boardwalk to the south, a smaller boardwalk path connecting the Boardwalk to the stadium to the east, KeySpan Park’s parking lot to the west and KeySpan Park itself to the north. The footprint of the competition site is approximately 7,800 SF.

Directly east of the KeySpan Park-to-Boardwalk path are two youth softball/soccer fields, which are bordered by West 16th Street, now closed to vehicular traffic. Beyond West 16th Street to the east is an empty lot. The heart of the amusement area as it stands today begins at West 15th Street and continues on to West 8th Street.

The site is near the western edge of the amusement area, and is bordered on the west by the heavily used Abe Stark Ice Rink, which together with the boardwalk, beach and Steeplechase Pier, is owned and maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. West of the Ice Rink are several large vacant lots, as well as the recently landmarked Child’s Restaurant.

Across Surf Avenue to the north, there is a cluster of city-owned vacant parcels of land. For the most part, the activity along Surf Avenue is retail and concessions, although many of the buildings lining Surf Avenue are presently vacant.

KeySpan Park holds 7,500 seats and is accessible from the boardwalk directly east of the competition site, as well as from Surf Avenue. The Park is the site of year-round activity— not only baseball games, but community events and concerts. It also includes a restaurant, Peggy O’Neill’s, and the Brooklyn Baseball Gallery (for more information, visit www.brooklyncyclones.net). The Abe Stark Ice Rink to the west and Steeplechase Pier, a popular fishing destination across the boardwalk from KeySpan Park and the Parachute Jump, are also used year-round.

The 262-foot-high Parachute Jump, the tallest structure in Coney Island, has not been in operation since 1968. It is now closed off from the public by a low fence. It is the last surviving amusement ride from Coney Island's Steeplechase Park, and is a very effective symbol of Coney Island’s heyday. The jump recently underwent an extensive structural refurbishment and repainting.

The Riegelmann Boardwalk is raised approximately 8 feet from street and beach level. The Boardwalk is accessed via stairs and ramps at the end of each north-south street, as well as by the Surf Avenue-to-Boardwalk path on the KeySpan Park site. Additional stairs bring visitors from the Boardwalk down to the beach.

Vehicular access to Coney Island is via the Shore (Belt) Parkway, Ocean Parkway and Cropsey Avenue, a north-south road that connects the Shore (Belt) Parkway to Neptune Avenue, two blocks north of Surf Avenue. Surf Avenue is the main east-west vehicular artery of downtown Coney Island. Stillwell Avenue, east of West 15th Street, is the primary road on the north-south axis within the amusement area. The closest subway stop to the Parachute Pavilion site is the recently refurbished Stillwell Avenue station at the corner of Stillwell and Surf avenues, serviced by the D, F, N and W lines. The area also has a D-and F-line subway stop at West 8th Street.