Historian Michael Immerso, author of “Coney Island: The People’s Playground,” has penned an op ed in the Wall Street Journal urging the preservation of Coney Island’s endangered historic buildings:

In crafting its Strategic Plan for Coney Island, the city made a commitment to “restore and construct historic and new features to anchor new development and preserve Coney Island’s character.” The Surf Avenue buildings certainly embody that historic character and surely merit preservation. They were the first sights of Coney Island viewed by tens of millions of visitors disembarking at the Stillwell Avenue subway station in the ’20s, ’30s and every decade since. They mark Coney Island as a historic destination. They have the potential to become economic assets to anchor Coney Island’s resurgence and draw tourists to an expanded amusement district. The city should do all it can to preserve them.