JOINT STATEMENT OF BROOKLYN BOROUGH PRESIDENT MARKOWITZ AND SEASIDE SUMMER CONCERT SERIES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/PRODUCER DEBRA GARCIA ON NEW LOCATION FOR THIS SUMMER’S CONCERT SERIES

“We are excited to announce that the Seaside Summer Concert Series has reached a one year agreement to host its performances at W. 21st Street in Coney Island, at the former site of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. While the shows are in a slightly different location, tens of thousands of Brooklynites and all New Yorkers will still get the same high quality, free concerts on Thursday evenings this summer. Mayor Bloomberg, the City Council led by Speaker Quinn and Coney Island’s own Councilman Domenic Recchia were unwavering partners in our efforts to keep the concerts in Coney Island. We could not have done this without the great team at Taconic Investment Partners, who own the site that will host the shows. Their generosity and hard work were instrumental in making sure that the shows will go on this summer in Coney Island. All of this hard work was necessary because a spiteful minority oppose a renovation that would provide Asser Levy Park with a full refurbishment and a state-of-the-art bandshell with covered seating for use during the summer. As it stands, permits are already being denied to neighborhood groups that have hosted events in the park for years. If these few opponents have their way, the park will lay unused all summer long.”