20 THE QUEENS COURIER • JANUARY 17, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
LOST IN DOUGLASTON
Lowe’s still hasn’t opened after other businesses closed
BY MARK HALLUM
mhallum@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Get in or get out of the way, one real
estate developer is saying to Lowe’s Home
Improvement, which has been slated to
open at Douglaston Plaza for months.
From the outside, nothing has changed
at the location formerly occupied by
Macy’s and MovieWorld in Douglaston
Plaza months aft er Community Board 11
approved the renovations at a February
2017 meeting that would eventually allow
Lowe’s Home Improvement to do business
in the shopping center.
Alexander DiMopoulis from East Coast
Realtors claims to have a big-box client
interested in space who is looking
to move into the space, but claimed that
building owners, Ashkenazy Acquisition
Corporation, is being tight-lipped on
what seems to be the hold up the renovation
for Lowe’s.
“I can’t even get the setup to give my
client any information on the property,
they’re interested,” DiMopoulos said.
He added that there is currently a “for
rent” sign on the property though this
has not been confi rmed and apart from a
September 2018 complaint there has been
no other action on the city Department of
Buildings website for the address.
Jon Popin, an attorney with Duane
Morris, which represents Ashkenazy
Acquisition Corporation, argued at the
February 2018 CB11 meeting that it was
paramount for the variance allowing
Lowe’s to move into Douglaston Plaza to
prevent the shopping center from turning
into a ghost town.
Representatives for Duane Morris and
Ashkenazy did not immediately respond
to a request for comment regarding an
update on the renovation.
But the only way Lowe’s could utilize
the space formerly occupied by Macy’s,
Photo courtesy of Ashkenazy Acquisition Corporation
which shuttered in December 2016,
would be if the footprint of the store was
expanded to consume the neighboring
business: MovieWorld. Th e theater closed
last July.
Popin said the variance came with
the support of Douglaston Townhouse
Condominiums Association, which worried
that property values would drop with
an adjacent shopping center in decline.
“We didn’t know how this would play
out because this is going to be a newbuilt,
large format hardware store coming
almost into their back fence,” Popin
told TimesLedger in a July interview.
“Th ey were very concerned with Macy’s
going out and Macy’s being really the
main anchor — the only anchor — at
the shopping center that if Lowe’s didn’t
come in and no one else really wanted to,
that it was really going to become a darkened
site and aff ect their property values
ultimately. Maybe it was economic reason
that drove their support more than
friendly neighborliness, but both of the
issues were defi nitely at play.”
Th e space in which Macy’s operated
was 157,000 square feet, but Popin said
that Lowe’s needs 250,000 to operate.
Th e BSA granted a variance allowing
for a 15,000-square-foot extension of the
sub-cellar, which was approved in March
2018.
At the February 2018 Board 11 meeting
in which the advisory body approved the
variance, those in favor argued that the
nearest large hardware store was 10 miles
away while opposition gave passionate
testimony to how important the movie
theater was to the surrounding communities
off ering the cheapest prices in the city.
With fi ve years still on its lease,
MovieWorld owner Russell Levinson said
their contract with Ashkenazy included
the right of the shopping center to
buy them out, which paved the way for
MovieWorld’s closure last summer.
New program to replace signage for businesses on Flushing street
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Mom-and-pop businesses along Union
Street in Flushing will be provided fi nancial
assistance under a new program by
the Asian American Federation to replace
costly signs aft er fearing the anti-awning
ticket blitz that has swept across the city.
Th e Asian American Federation, a nonprofi
t organization working to advance
the civic voice of Asian Americans in the
New York Metropolitan area, launched
the Signage Replacement Program on
Jan. 11 for long-time small businesses on
Union Street.
Prior to the New York City Council
passing the Awnings Act on Jan. 9, business
owners removed their store signs in
fear of having to pay costly fi nes to the
city, leaving the once vibrant commercial
area starkly barren, and without any store
identifi cation.
Funds for business owners to replace
their store signs will be secured by City
Councilman Peter Koo from the New
York City Economic Development
Corporation (EDC) to assist merchants.
“We have been working with the EDC
to identify the most eff ective assistance
for the merchants that can remain a legacy
long aft er our small business assistance
program ends,” said Jo-Ann Yoo, executive
director of AAF. “Many of the business
owners are struggling to keep afl oat,
and they have told us that it is impossible
to come up with the $8,000-$10,000
to pay for the new signs. By subsidizing a
good chunk of the costs, we are proud to
give the merchants a fi nancial breather,
and take away from their worries.”
AAF’s plans for the new signs include
a standard look for commercial signs on
Union Street to give it a unique character
that draws shoppers back to the neighborhood.
Th e new signage is expected to be
installed in three to fi ve months.
Meanwhile, the organization is working
with business owners to put up temporary
banners to identify their stores until the
permanent signs are ready.
Th e Signage Replacement Program will
be a life-saver for mom-and-pop businesses
as they move to come into compliance
without suff ering from the deluge
of fi nes and penalties by the city, according
to Koo.
“I am proud to have secured this
needed funding to help revitalize this
vibrant shopping corridor, and I’d like to
thank Asian American Federation for its
staunch advocacy on behalf of these businesses,”
he said.
Ikhwan Rim, president of the Union
Street Small Business Association, said
they have been hosting multiple meetings
in search of a solution to the signage issue
over a year.
“Our small businesses are competing
with the big box stores moving in to our
areas, and times are hard for all of us!
But, we also think this is an opportunity
for our merchants to hang signs that are
uniform in design that will refresh Union
Street, and attract more customers and
provide a better environment for the merchants,”
said Rim.
Photo via Google Maps
Many sign-less storefronts on Union Street in Flushing.
Douglaston Plaza Shopping Center.
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