Critics of Flushing waterfront rezoning
proposal rally ahead of City Council vote
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Dueling protests were held on Tuesday,
Nov. 17, as groups of supporters
and opponents of the Special Flushing
Waterfront District (SFWD) voiced
their concerns before the City Council
Subcommittee vote on the rezoning application.
Tenants, workers, small business
owners and elected officials were gathered
outside by Starside Drugs, located
at 136-36 39th Ave. in Flushing, to discuss
the damages they believe will occur
if the City Council votes in favor of
the application.
Opponents of the SFWD include
the MinKwon Center, Flushing Workers,
Flushing Bay Alliance, Chhaya
CDC and the Greater Flushing Chamber
of Commerce. They’re demanding
that Councilman Peter Koo — who expressed
strong support for the SFWD
rezoning during the City Council Zoning
and Franchises Subcommittee
public hearing on Nov. 9 — oppose the
plan.
“We’re here because Councilman
Peter Koo has failed us. Flushing is
being actively gentrified and Councilman
Koo is siding with developers for
more displacement, congestion and
pollution,” an organizer said.
Meanwhile, across the street, counterprotesters
were wearing hard hats,
appearing as if they had come directly
from a construction site, repeatedly
chanting, “Peter Koo.”
“Flushing has had so much positive
progress because Council member
Koo supports small businesses,” said
George Xu, founder of Century Development
Group, an integrated real estate
development company.
Xu, who is the brother of one of the
three developers of the project, said
construction companies and small
businesses are the reason why Flushing
has come a long way.
“We need to keep supporting construction,
development and small businesses,
and Council member Koo, so
that we can continue to move Flushing
forward,” Xu said.
The three developers behind the
Special Flushing Waterfront Development
include F&T Group, United Construction
& Development Group and
Young Nian Group, known collectively
as FWRA LLC.
The SFWD proposal seeks to revitalize
29 acres of inactive and underutilized
land that the developers
say will provide substantial public
benefits such as a privately funded
and maintained road network and a
160,000-square-foot waterfront promenade
along Flushing Creek that will
both be publicly accessible.
The plan also includes 1,725 residential
units, including affordable housing,
879 hotel keys, office and community
facilities, retail space and parking
spaces to help alleviate traffic along
College Point Boulevard.
“Those who oppose the Special
Flushing Waterfront District claim to
want to see Flushing thrive. However,
they have no plan or means to bring
Flushing the jobs, affordable housing
and public space they want,” the developers
said in a statement to QNS. “As
evidenced on social media, many who
oppose this project are not even from
Flushing, but rather from other neighborhoods
in NYC such as Sunnyside,
Woodside and Brooklyn. They are woefully
misinformed – the issues they are
protesting are exactly the problems the
SFWD will solve.”
According to the developers, they
have heard from hundreds of residents,
community organizations and
business owners, who want to see the
project succeed for the benefit of the
community. They have garnered the
support of City Council Hearing speakers,
more than 300 letters written to
the Council in favor of the project, and
an overwhelmingly positive vote from
Community Board 7 and the City Planning
Commission.
While opponents of the SFWD
claimed that the counterprotesters
were paid to attend the rally, the developers
said it is “entirely false and that
all who attended were there of their
own accord.”
“As for the protest itself, it is despicable
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.2 COM | NOV. 27-DEC. 3, 2020
to intentionally cause harm to a
small business like Council member
Koo’s, particularly to a neighborhood
pharmacy which aids the elderly and
sick in our community, and particularly
now when Flushing’s businesses
need only unwavering support,” the
developers said. “Our project aims to
support small businesses and it seems
the opposition is determined to rob
Flushing of that opportunity.”
Opponents of the SFWD are receiving
support from City Council
members, such as Councilman Carlos
Menchacha, who fought back against
the Industry City rezoning in Sunset
Park.
“Sunset Park is with you every single
way because we just fought our own
battle. You heard about Industry City,
and just like John said, this rezoning
will come crashing down in flames,”
said Councilman Carlos Menchacha.
“Industry City went down crashing in
flames. How did that happen? Because
community came together and all its
power and solidarity, and I am seeing
it here, will bring it down in flames.
Protect Flushing!”
During the rally, Hailie Kim, who
is running to represent City Council
District 26, recalled the development of
the Long Island City towers.
“When I started school, I saw the
towers in Long Island City start to go
up, and the rents went up with them.
One by one, all of the kids I went to elementary
school came up to me and told
me, ‘My mom and dad can’t afford to
live in Sunnyside anymore, so we have
to move away,’” Kim said. “It’s really
Photo by Dean Moses
disturbing to watch the same patterns
unfold here in Flushing today.”
Tiffany Cabán, who is running to
represent City Council District 22, is
calling for a “No” vote on the Flushing
rezoning.
“This corporate redevelopment project
is going to displace working class
immigrant families in the middle of
an unprecedented global pandemic in
a community that is experiencing the
racial and economic disparities disproportionately,
quite honestly, than other
parts of our city,” Cabán said.
On Wednesday, Nov. 18, Councilman
Francisco Moya, chair of the Subcommittee
on Zoning and Franchises,
issued a joint statement signed by 11
Council members saying that approving
the rezoning as it currently stands
would be a “grave mistake.”
“We believe that it would be irresponsible
to approve the application
without deep community benefits like
real affordable housing and commitments
to provide good jobs for local
community members,” the Council
said. “The ongoing economic crisis
fueled by a global pandemic continues
to strain Flushing as community
members face xenophobic backlash,
housing instability and unemployment
— all with the looming and constant
threat of illness. This year has forced
us to examine the needs of our working
class communities in a deeper and
more holistic way.”
Reach reporter Carlotta Mohamed
by e-mail at cmohamed@schnepsmedia.
com or by phone at (718) 260–4526.
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