It's only July and already the so-called "Summer of Hope" is winding down on Coney Island.

Gowanus Lounge is reporting that the various rides and attractions touted by controversial developer Joe Sitt back in April are currently being dismantled, apparently headed to some other carnival site in Tennessee.

Back in April, as I was trying to figure out how the hell to get out to Glendale for my interview with the Cash Giveaway King of Queens, Damon Hemmerdinger, development director for the Shops at Atlas Park, I asked his rep:

"Think ol' Dale [Hemmerdinger, M.T.A. chairman and also Damon's father] can hook me up with a closer subway stop?"

"Funny!" she said. "But the bus stop right in front is relatively new so consider yourself lucky!"

Luck is one way to put it. Some city officials call it fishy.  read more »

According to Friday's Metro, City Council members are upset about the new bus service, ]]> http://www.observer.com/2008/bus-ted-city-council-blasts-mta-expanded-service-atlas-park#comments Real Estate Dale Hemmerdinger Damon Hemmerdinger Glendale Metropolitan Transit Authority PUBLIC POLICY Queens Retail The Shops at Atlas Park Fri, 20 Jun 2008 13:34:57 -0400 Chris Shott 71016 at http://www.observer.com http://www.observer.com/2008/battle-powerfuls-daniel-boyle-vs-giuseppe-cipriani

A fierce standoff between two New York titans, both ranked on The Observer's recent 100 Most Powerful People In Real Estate, wrapped up an indecisive first-round yesterday.

Dapper restaurateur Giuseppe Cipriani (ranked No. 97) had offered up $500,000 to settle his dispute with the State Liquor Authority (S.L.A.).  read more »

Activists targeted hotelier Hank Freid last week as the focal point for their campaign against illegal hotel conversions citywide, calling the much-maligned developer a "scamlord" and picketing his Broadway Hotel this past Saturday.

Mr. Freid's lawyer chimed in this week to make a point -- those hotels aren't actually illegal:  read more »

A new city rule requiring chain restaurants to post the calorie content of their menu items actually takes effect on Friday, April 25--not today, as other news outlets are reporting.  read more »

Still reeling from the fallout of its highly publicized 2007 prostitution bust, embattled Manhattan strip club Scores West has filed for bankruptcy.

Court papers filed on Friday point to "mounting tax debt" and a "loss in sales" at the voluptuous 10,000-square-foot venue at 536 W. 28th St. "as a result of the actions by the New York State Liquor Authority proceeding against the [club] to revoke its liquor license."  read more »

A documentary on the city's waterfront fights, City of Water, premieres this Saturday, April 19, at 1:30 p.m. on local PBS Channel 13. (Check out the trailer here.)

According to the Municipal Art Society:   read more »

Assemblyman Richard Gottfried has come out against Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel’s tower planned to rise next to the Museum of Modern Art, joining neighbors and State Senator Liz Krueger in their opposition to the project.  read more »

Coney Island merchants sent out a terse press release Friday afternoon in response to "an ominous fence which is obstructing the entrances to an entire block of businesses on the boardwalk."

The Parks Department, which erected the fence a day earlier, issued the following explanation via email to The Observer:

The Parks Department is currently doing maintenance work along the boardwalk including the area between West 12th Street and Stillwell Avenue to reinforce its support structures and repair decking material. The affected areas will be repaired or replaced, and fencing will be removed, prior to the start of the busy beach season. While we regret any inconvenience this may present to adjacent business owners, safer structures will be a benefit in the long run and, in the meantime, we are preserving access wherever possible.

Seaside merchants have long complained about the sorry state of Coney Island's rickety boardwalk.

And some say the city's latest attempt to address the situation isn't really helping:

"Instead of fixing the boardwalk in front of the businesses that go from Stillwell [Avenue] to 12th Street, the Parks Department decided to build this enormous barricade in front of all our stores," said Dianna Carlin, owner of the Lola Starr Souvenir Boutique. "So now all of our businesses are completely blocked in by this wall, which they say will be there all summer."