Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Mayor Mamdani launches $1M Coney Island Business Improvement District
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Feb 15, 2026
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Sergi Reboredo/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Feb 15, 2026
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Sunday signed the certificate of incorporation creating a new Business Improvement District in Coney Island with a first-year operating budget of up to $1 million.
Speaking on the boardwalk, Mamdani called the move the start of a new chapter for the waterfront neighborhood.
“The launch of the Coney Island Business Improvement District marks a new era of investment in this beloved community,” he said.
The mayor said the BID would bring supplemental sanitation, marketing and business support to the neighborhood ahead of the 2026 summer season, when officials say the area draws more than 5 million visitors each year.
Coney Island will become Brooklyn’s 24th BID and the city’s 78th overall, according to the Department of Small Business Services.
New York City BIDs collectively receive about $207 million annually for services across the five boroughs, according to city data.
The up to $1 million allocated for Coney Island is in addition to the more than $850,000 the city said it has already invested in the neighborhood to support commercial revitalization and merchant organizing.
“By strengthening sanitation, public space, and business support along Mermaid and Surf Avenues, we’re building a Coney Island where local commerce thrives, corridors are cleaner and safer, and economic opportunity is rooted in the community,” Mamdani said in a statement.
The district is expected to fund sanitation, landscaping and marketing efforts along Surf and Mermaid avenues.
“That means a variety of sanitation and beautification efforts, from the development of marketing materials to power wash shared spaces, to touches like potted plants and festive lights lining Mermaid Avenue during the holidays,” Mamdani said Sunday.
Dennis Vourderis, vice president of Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park, said business owners have been pushing for more reliable services.
“The most important thing that the BID will provide is consistent supplemental sanitation, which is so important,” he said.
According to the city, BIDs collectively reported collecting an average of 10,421 trash bags and removing graffiti 2,227 times per day during fiscal year 2024. The city also reported an average of 11 public events and 2,796 marketing materials distributed daily across BID districts.
The Coney Island BID will include storefronts and properties along Surf and Mermaid avenues and is expected to be operational by July, city officials said.
Tagged
Politics
brooklyn
economy
Giulia Heyward
Giulia Heyward is a breaking news reporter on the Day-Of desk. She previously worked at NPR, as a breaking news reporter, and the New York Times, as a reporting fellow on the national desk. Her work has also appeared in CNN, The Atlantic and Politico. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or more securely on signal at 917-715-1458.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
People who said they knew her described her as an artist and a familiar presence in the Ramble.
By
Charles Lane
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 7:04 p.m. ET
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .