Kaiser Park

How did this site become a park?
In 1934 Parks acquired the first portion of this property and the park opened in 1935.The park expanded in 1937 and was known as Coney Island Lots. In 1951 the park was renamed for Dr. Leon S. Kaiser (1884-1951), a dedicated educator and community leader who served as Mark Twain Junior High School’s first principal. This walkway was named for Gene Ritter in 2024.

Who is this park named for?
Gene Ritter (1959-2018) was an environmental advocate, diver, and educator in Coney Island and greater New York.

A Brooklyn native, Ritter grew up on West 16th Street near Coney Island Creek. As a teen, Ritter became a certified diver and later founded the Cultural Research Divers, an organization focused on recovering underwater artifacts and making them accessible to students across the city. One of Ritter’s most noted finds was the Dreamland Bell, which welcomed steamship riders to the New Iron Pier but disappeared in the Dreamland Park fire in 1911. In 2009, after twenty years of searching, he located the bell offshore, and it was put back on public display.

Ritter also created Its My Estuary Day in Kaiser Park to promote the importance of keeping the water and land clean for wildlife. Ritter died in 2018 but his advocacy for New York and Coney Island’s waterfront environment will last for generations.