There’s a giant hole in the Coney Island boardwalk.
That’s because the planks in front of the amusement rides are gone.
The city Parks Department removed the damaged planks for the second phase of a three part project to install new synthetic planks on the most dilapidated sections of the Riegelman Boardwalk.
“They promised that it would be done before Palm Sunday because we have the annual blessing of the rides,” said Marion Cleaver, chair of Community Board 13.
The first phase of the project was completed last month. The Parks Department installed planks made of synthetic lumber on the pier. Beach visitors have long complained that the planks on the pier are often raised or broken.
The Parks Department is placing concrete planks that are colored to look like wood on the boardwalk from Stillwell Avenue to West 15th Street.
For the final phase of the project, the Parks Department will install tropical hardwood from West 10th Street to Stillwell Avenue. This is the same material that was previously used along different sections of the boardwalk.
The city is moving away from wood planks for environmental reasons and because the planks can weaken over time.
Cleaver hopes the Parks Department will finish the project before April.
“I think they’re going to make it,” she said. “From what I heard, they finished the pier. That was their first test. So if they already finished the pier, they’re right on schedule.”
