Coney Island Hot Dog Stand

Coney Island Colorado (commonly The Coney Island) in Bailey, Colorado is a 1950s diner shaped like a giant hot dog, with toppings. The building has been called "the best example of roadside architecture in the state".[1]

Coney Island
Re-opening on July 4, 2007 in Bailey, Colorado.
General information
Architectural styleProgrammatic novelty architecture
Town or cityBailey, Colorado
CountryUnited States
Completed1966
Technical details
Structural systemironwork
Design and construction
ArchitectLloyd Williams

The diner has indoor seating, courtyard seating and riverside picnic table seating. The bun is 35 feet (10.67 m) long, and the hot dog 42 feet (12.8 m); the entire building weighs 18 short tons (16.1 long tons; 16.3 t).

It was originally built in 1966 on Colfax Ave. in Denver, named The Boardwalk at Coney Island. The first owner, Marcus Shannon had intended to start a chain of eateries around the concept, and obtained a patent for the design,[2] but the eatery closed in 1969.[3]

In 1970, under new ownership, the stand was moved to the Rocky Mountain town of Aspen Park, along U.S. 285.[4] Initially called Coney Island Dairy Land, it later dropped the last part of the name.[4] Despite initial opposition, when it was put up for sale in 1999, a local campaign began to designate it a landmark and save it from destruction. The present owner purchased it for about $150,000 and added a state-of-the-art water purification system, a new secondary kitchen area and a complete restoration of the interior kitchen.

The popularity of the stand was such that its last day open in Aspen Park, "the waiting line extended literally for miles".[3] On March 18, 2006, to make way for a bank, the stand was moved again, 17 miles down U.S. Highway 285 to its present location in Bailey, close to Pike National Forest.

Coney Island Dairyland in Aspen Park, 1980
Coney Island Hot Dog Stand in Aspen Park location, 1991.

Appearances in media

The restaurant made an appearance on one of Dana Atchley's "Digital Postcards" titled "World's Largest". "World's Largest" and 6 more of Dana Atchley's "Digital Postcards" were later included as viewable clips on "Kid Pix Studio's" "Wacky TV" feature.[5]

It appeared in the 1999 television documentary A Hot Dog Program and on the 2004 television program Hot Dog Heavens.

On September 22, 2003 it was featured in the nationally syndicated newspaper comic Zippy the Pinhead.

There is a 1/6 scale model of the Coney Island stand at Tiny Town, in Morrison, Colorado.

See also

References
  1. Thomas J. Noel (1997). Buildings of Colorado. Oxford University Press. Noel is Professor of History at the University of Colorado in Denver.
  2. "RESTAURANT BUILDING". United States Patent Office. April 12, 1966. Retrieved 2007-02-20.
  3. Pam Grout (2006). Colorado Curiosities. Globe Pequot. ISBN 0-7627-3978-9.
  4. Jerome Pohlen (2002). Oddball Colorado: A Guide to Some Really Strange Places. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 1-55652-460-9.
  5. Stern, Michelle (May 13, 1996). "Software That Goes Beyond Coloring Books' Boundaries : Art Programs Let Kids Get Creative, Have Fun". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 22 March 2015.

Further reading
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