pleasure beach

Plan to revive Pleasure Beach

By Jack Cavanaugh

March 6, 1988 - New York Times

 

AS do many other longtime residents of Bridgeport, Joseph D'Amicol has fond memories of Pleasure Beach from the 1920's to the 50's, when it was one of the best-known amusement parks in New England.
''I remember the happy days I spent there as a kid, riding the roller-coaster, the carousel and a lot of the other rides,'' said Mr. D'Amicol, who is president of the Bridgeport Board of Park Commissioners. ''Then, later, I recall dancing to bands like Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, Harry James and Guy Lombardo.''

Devastating fires along with dwindling attendance and the demise of the big-band era led to the closing of the amusement park in the mid-60's. Since then, the area has deteriorated. The 63-acre peninsula, which connects to Stratford, has become a virtual ghost town haunted by memories of its past.

In an attempt to lure people back to the beach, the city has built a bathing pavilion, concession stand, boardwalk and fishing pier, all of which are scheduled to open next summer.

Also, the ancient wood bridge leading to the beach is being repaired, with the aid of $500,000 from the state. The bridge is expected to be ready before the start of the summer season.

In an effort to recapture even more of the heyday of the beach, a volunteer group, Long Island Sound America Inc., is proposing to establish an amusement and recreational area, along with an educational program on maritime life, focusing on the Sound, in particular, by the summer of next year.
The plan, which has been approved, in principal, by the Park Board, would be cost-free for the city, which is suffering a fiscal crisis. All the rides, exhibitions and other features would be built and operated by entrepreneurs, and corporate support would be sought, according to the commodore and founder of the Sound group, Morgan Kaolian.

''You couldn't have a better site than Pleasure Beach for what we're proposing,'' said Mr. Kaolian, manager of Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford and traffic reporter for WICC-AM. ''We're talking about combining fun, recreation and education, with an emphasis on the sea around us, in this case, Long Island Sound.''

''We feel that Bridgeport would benefit tremendously, both from entertainment and educational standpoints, if our plan to build what we're calling Amazement Park goes through,'' the president of the Sound group, Roger Treese, said.
The organization sponsors such actitivies as the Flight of the Beautiful Balloons across the Sound from Norwalk in late summer.

 

The Amazement Park proposal faces a stumbling block in that the administration of Mayor Thomas W. Bucci is considering selling the beach to the state.

''We're in the process of having the island appraised by a Cheshire firm,'' the administrative assistant to Mr. Bucci, John Norko, said. ''If, say, we find it's only worth $3 million, we probably would keep it. But if it's worth $20 million or more, we might try to sell it.

''At that price, though, the state might be reluctant to buy it, unless a special act was approved by the legislature. Whatever happens, we want to see it used for park purposes. It's a valuable resource with a history of neglect that's been underutilized and underdeveloped for years.''

Under the City Charter, a sale would have to be approved by the Park Commission and the Common Council.

Mr. D'Amicol said the funds from a sale would go to the Park Development Fund. He added that he and the other seven commission members were highly enthusiastic about the Long Island Sound America proposal.

''It seems like a wonderful idea, and we think it would be good for the city of Bridgeport,'' Mr. D'Amicol said. ''I personally think it's going to happen.''

In addition to the amusement area, Amazement Park would include ecology and sea-life exhibitions, classrooms to study oceanography, sailing and seamanship classes, boat-building, live-animal displays, theatrical presentations and restaurants.

Officials of the Sound group said Amazement Park would be open from the Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day. Most of the exhibitions and rides would be mobile, to be dismantled at the end of the season.

''What we're talking about is a family oriented entertainment park that would be unlike anything else available in Connecticut,'' Mr. Treese said. ''In addition to the facilities that would be built, we'd also have special events such as fireworks, concerts and food festivals. And now that ballroom dancing is getting popular again, we might even bring back some of the big-bands.''

If the proposal is approved, the group would seek bids from operators and vendors.

''We would coordinate the entire project, act as the promoter and provide the necessary security,'' Mr. Treese said. ''Everything else would be operated by private interests. All of the operators would be charged a fee, with a percentage going to LISA and to the City of Bridgeport.''

The city's Community Facilities Director, Dennis Dean, who has been negotiating with the Sound group, said:

''I think it's great. It would bring life to an area that has been dormant for so many years. Just imagine what it would mean to the City of Bridgeport.''

He added that an arrangement would have to be worked out for the city's share of revenues.

Access to the park would be on the wood bridge, a five-minute ride from the Stratford Avenue exit of Interstate 95, and a shuttle-boat service connecting to the Bridgeport-Port Jefferson, L.I., Ferry, a trip that would take 15 minutes.

''We had hoped that we could get the ferry to stop at the new pier, as the old ferries, the Park City and the Brinkerhoff, did years ago,'' Mr. Treese said. ''But the ferry company said that wouldn't be feasible. However, we think the shuttle service will be a very effective way to get people from Long Island to come to Amazement Park.''

The fun and games trace their origin to 1892, when an amusement park was established at the beach. In 1919, the city bought the property, then known as Steeplechase Island, for $200,000. It included a scenic railroad, carousel, other rides and a ballroom.
The park, which included a well-known bicycle course and motorcycle track, thrived. It began to slip in the 50's, and in June 1953, a fire destroyed many buildings.

Some were rebuilt. But, after the city had transferred operation of the park to an entrepreneur, the park closed for the last time in 1966, according to Mary Witkowski, assistant head of historical collections at the Bridgeport Public Library. Another fire destroyed the ballroom, the largest in New England, on May 5, 1973.

Just a handful of bathers and fishermen have used the beach recently. Most people from Bridgeport prefer to swim and sunbathe at Seaside Park.

However, the peninsula, with its mile-and-a-half beachfront, has attracted the interest of developers. Over the last decade, Mrs. Witkowski said, proposals have been made for condominiums, a hotel and marina, a gambling casino, a racetrack and a nudist colony.

Mrs. Witkowski said, ''One developer even suggested 'doming' the entire island, so that it could be used for recreational purposes all year-round.''

 

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