Unwelcome: Jane’s Carousel?

By on February 22, 2010 11:14 pm in DUMBO

Photo by Kaitlin Foley

Photo by Kaitlin Foley

“Jane’s Carousel”, the 1920s vintage merry-go-round restored under the auspices of Jane Walentas, wife of developer David Walentas, and now housed in a building on Water Street in DUMBO, is slated to be moved across the street and into what is now Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park, itself to be incorporated into Brooklyn Bridge Park, sometime within the next year. The carousel is to be covered by an enclosure designed by Jean Nouvel, the cost of which will be paid by Walentas. However, not everyone is happy with this arrangement, as this story on the New York Post’s Brooklyn Blog reports:

A state plan to relocate an exquisitely restored 1920s carousel to popular waterfront parkland in DUMBO is infuriating local civic groups, who say it’s a bad fit that isn’t worth losing trees and lawn space over.
…
Doreen Gallo, executive director of the DUMBO Neighborhood Association said “We all love the carousel; we just think it belongs in another part of Brooklyn Bridge Park.”

Other groups named as opposing the siting of the carousel are the Brooklyn Bridge Park Defense Fund, the Fulton Ferry Landing Association, and the Vinegar Hill Association.

Brownstoner and Curbed also have posts about this controversy.

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  • my2cents

    Wow…talk about looking a gift horse in the mouth…

  • Publius

    Payback for Dock Street.

  • anon

    Whoa–a local group wants to say “neigh” to a bunch of gift horses? Oh, I’m sure the local press will make hay over this one. I suspect this will stall, or at least stomp out the project, and the local politicos will ride this for all its worth to get the brass ring of free publicity. By then, the local kids will have grown long in the tooth, with sad and long faces for all.

    Claude-you made this too much easy. I’d go on, but I want to leave the good stuff for the 10pm show. I’m here all weeks folks and don’t forget to tip your waitresses.

  • http://instaputz.blogspot.com Norman E-Mailer

    Doreen Gallo, executive director of the DUMBO Neighborhood Association said “We all love the carousel; we just think it belongs in another part of Brooklyn Bridge Park.”

    Oh, STFU Doreen. Maybe you wanna help get the damn thing open before complaining about the placement of carousel?

    Whiner.

  • AEB

    Let it be, please. Please.

  • harumph

    Crimony. It’s a carousel for goodness sake. And a gift to the community. Why is what the “executive director of the Dumbo Neighborhood ASSociation” say make news – does he really have that much pull?

  • harumph

    Here’s one for you anon: So a horse walks up to the bar and the bartender says to him – “why the long face”? ba-dum.

  • nabeguy

    anon, they have to reign in the opposition and harness some good will.

  • nabeguy

    And stop going around in circles.

  • http://inklake.typepad.com Peter Kaufman

    Doreen needs go get off her high horse.

    Sweet, merciful crap. Only in New York does someone have to FIGHT to donate a beautiful carousel to a park.

  • my2cents

    Yes, let’s hope that the project doesn’t end up slipshod. These Dumbo folks really know how to stirrup some controversy.

  • Iago

    The carousel is beautiful. I think the plan to place it in the cove portion of the park is perfectly right. It is the ideal location for it, much better than in a storefront. And the fact that a world-famous architect will design the pavilion is just like an urban dream come true.

  • nabeguy

    Why am I detecting a certain thread in this? Can’t get your building proposal to fly? Offer a school space. Can’t figure out how to off-load a carousel that’s eating up valuable development real estate? Donate it to a public space right across the street. Perhaps I’m finding a non-existant tether between the noses and tails of these wooden equines, but my nose detects some horse apples afoot.

  • my2cents

    come on, nabeguy. I don’t think the walentas’ are tryign to foist the carousel on anyone. It’s not eating up valuable real estate. They could put it in storage somewhere if they were that desperate to free up that space. They are trying to be generous in this case, and of course there is an ego side to it. They are the Lord and Lady of Dumboshire. This is meant to be a present to the peons, but it is a nice gift. I don’t mind having a Nouvel building nearby, either. Man are people spoiled to want to turn this gesture into a negative!

  • Arch Stanton

    nabeguy, I think you hit the nail on the head…

  • HeightsDiva

    I love it. It doesn’t matter where they put it!

  • fulton ferry res

    Stop horsing around!

    And now for something completely different: some facts. Jane and David Walentas have wanted the carousel to be at that exact location since they bought it in Ohio in 1984. His grandiose plan for the waterfront, called Fulton Landing, was detailed in this cover story of the May 27, 1985 edition of New York magazine:
    http://books.google.com/books?id=ybUBAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA32&lpg=PA32
    The carousel is discussed in the last two paragraphs of the article, and can be seen in the photo of the model of the project on page 37. While you are there, notice that the beautiful cove area was planned to be a marina, and what is now park and “beach” under the Manhattan Bridge was to be restaurants and stores.
    Walentas resurrected this plan in 1999, but made it even more commercial. This is David speaking at a presentation on April 24, 2000: “The third major piece to our plan is the redevelopment of the City-owned parking lot by the Manhattan Bridge. For that Jean Nouvel has designed we think on of the great new modern buildings anywhere, which is a 250-room hotel with a 16-screen multiplex at the base… There are two parking garages planned under the bridges. Under the Brooklyn Bridge is currently a DGS garage, Department of General Services garage…that would be replaced by a thousand-car garage. And another garage under the Manhattan Bridge.”

    So, do read the article and know the history of this man and this waterfront area. The neighboring community associations do not object to the carousel placed in Brooklyn Bridge Park. What we object to is the gift of the carousel with STRINGS attached (I must be able to see it from my window). The cove is full of shoreline birds that visit the area, and it is unique as an educational resource, as well as an astounding experience. With a carousel placed at the water’s edge, the experience of this habitat type and its creatures, whether for enjoyment or for education, will be seriously compromised and diminished.

    And when you imagine what the Nouvel building housing the carousel will look like at that location, think also of the fact that had the surrounding communities not fought the Walentas plan in 1999, we would have a movie multiplex and a parking garage where a park and accessible shoreline exist today.

  • tb

    My kids just want to ride on the thing. And then I tell them no.. it’s just to look at. Then they start to cry.

  • anon

    @harumph-thanks, but I knew of the horse joke. I thought of adding it, but it didn’t flow in my paean to puns.

    @fulton ferry res-fascinating NY Magazine article and kudos for bringing it up. All who are fascinated with DUMBO should read it for the history of the location and players.

  • nabeguy

    my2, I’m just hoping these horses are not of the Trojan variety.

  • anon

    nabeguy, if we’re going to start to do Trojan jokes, well lets just say I have a whole pack of ’em…

  • nabeguy

    But would they fit on this site, anon?

  • AEB

    That would be a stretch, nabe.

  • nabeguy

    I’m not worried AEB. I’m sure Homer has a reservoir tip. Okay, enough if this!

  • my2cents

    Thanks for the article fulton ferry res. I love the part about the parking garage under the bridge….ahh the old pre-9/11 days….

  • Arch Stanton

    fulton ferry res, Thanks for the link to the article…. Some conspiracy theorist could have a field day with that one… Suicide or defenestration?

  • Andrew Porter

    Has anyone here bothered to ride the carrousel in Prospect Park? It’s just south of the Zoo and across the street from the Botanic Garden. Take your kids *there*.

  • anon

    The question of where to place the carousel, what will happen to the proceeds (will they go to the park which needs lots of money) and if there was any public process to discuss it
    all make sense . What is wrong with a public disucssion of this?
    What we do not need are publicity seeking loudmouths who only represent themselves .Enough of Judi Francis… lets get some leaders that actually represent someone other than themselves

  • ABC

    andrew, by your logic I could take my kids to prospect park and we could skip building this park altogether. YOU can go to prospect park too.

    anon, quite sure the proceeds just cover expense of carousel. Rides were proposed to be 25 cents or similar. Much like the Prospect Park and Byrant Park carousel.

  • anon1

    Doesn’t the carousel have to move because its current building will be flattened for the Dock Street project? I recall the moving of the carousel was announced within days after Dock Street was approved.

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