February 14, 2007

Suozzi and Scannell Announce New Home for Nunley's Carousel

-- Beloved Ride to Become Museum Row Attraction

Uniondale, N.Y. - Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi and Nassau County Legislator Joe Scannell today announced that the historic Nunley’s Carousel will re-open on Nassau County’s Museum Row.

The carousel has been in storage since it was closed and dismantled in 1995 at its Baldwin location, where it had been a fixture since 1939. The county purchased the ride for $854,400 in 1998 to save it from being auctioned off horse by horse.

“This one-of-a-kind carousel has a special place in so many people’s hearts, and I am thrilled that we will be getting it back in operation in a centrally located new home so that all the residents of Nassau County can enjoy it,” Suozzi said. “Nunley’s will be joining our all-star lineup on Museum Row, giving people yet another great reason to visit.”

Museum Row, on Charles Lindbergh Blvd. in Garden City, is also home to the Cradle of Aviation Museum, the Children’s Museum of Long Island, the Long Island Museum for Science and Technology and the Nassau County Firefighter’s Museum.

“I am excited that the money has been allocated and the project is moving forward,” Scannell said. “An icon of Long Island history will be restored.”

Suozzi praised Scannell’s efforts to move the project forward. “Joe Scannell has represented his community’s interests vigorously while finding common ground to make the Nunley’s re-opening a reality,” Suozzi said.

Some $450,000 in discretionary capital funds has been earmarked for the restoration. Additionally, $1 million in capital funds is proposed to build the structure to house the carousel, and is awaiting legislative approval. The county is currently seeking bids to do the restoration work, which is scheduled to take 18 months.

The ride – which has 41 horses, one lion, two chariots and a Wurlitzer 153-band organ – was built in 1912 by the noted carousel building team of Stein and Goldstein, and its first home was an amusement park in Canarsie. Of the 17 carousels built by Stein and Goldstein, Nunley’s is one of just three that remain.

Nassau County’s students have played a crucial role in preserving the carousel. Rachel Obergh, a student at the Progressive School of Long Island in Merrick, started a fund-raising campaign last year to pay for Nunley’s restoration. So far, 14 schools have each raised $2,000 in the Pennies for Ponies campaign, enough money to restore 14 ponies.