I have been resisting the urge to say anything about that other Coney Island -- the big one -- in New York?
But a friend who grew up in Michigan told me she recently went to New York, saw a sign for Coney Island and said to herself, "Oh! They have a Coney Island, too?"
To clarify, New York's Coney Island, a big amusement park with a hot dog vendor by the name of Nathan, is the namesake for the hundreds of Coney Island restaurants around Detroit and the others scattered around the country. The dogs are different -- ours are more of the chili-dog variety -- but there is a connection.
The news at Coney Island, New York, this week, is that the park has opened for what may be its last season as a park with character. Developers plan to turn it into a glitzy, Vegas-like attraction, which will cost Coney its quirky character. If you want to see it before it gets urbanized, go this summer.
There have been protests, petitions, the works.
You can follow some of it at Kinetic Carnival, one of several blogs about the situation.
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