City wants to buy 11 acres in Coney Island

The Bloomberg administration is in negotiations to buy 10.5 acres of land in Coney Island, which developer Joseph Sitt of Thor Equities is offering to sell instead of building the $1.5 billion Vegas-style entertainment complex he had planned. Sitt is expected to charge $200 million to $250 million for the land. If the deal goes through, the city would become the owner of Astroland Park, which is in the process of closing, in addition to other parcels of land in Coney Island. The city would also be able to proceed with Bloomberg’s Coney Island rezoning plan, which includes an amusement park.