FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JANUARY 19, 2017 • WHITESTONE • THE QUEENS COURIER 39 living in college point & whitestone COLLEGE POINT’S EDUCATIONAL ROOTS BY THE QUEENS COURIER STAFF editorial@QNS.com/@QNS It has a name bearing the pinnacle of education, but College Point isn’t your average American college town. Situated on a peninsula bordered by the East and Flushing rivers, College Point was named for St. Paul’s College, which was founded in 1839 by Rev. William Augustus Muhlenberg of St. George’s Church in Flushing. Th e college closed 10 years later, and its remaining structures were used by the community for religious services, as private residences and as a small school. Th e city purchased the former St. Paul’s College site in 1930 to make way for what is now the neighborhood’s most prominent green space, MacNeil Park. According to the College Point Civic Association, the population grew during the 1850s as real estate developers marketed the area as an aff ordable place to live. One of the settlers was successful manufacturer Conrad Poppenhusen, who contributed much to the public during his time. Th e downtown shop district in College Point was created mainly to serve workers at his nearby rubber plant, who made up a sizable portion of the local population. Poppenhusen also connected College Point to the larger community by building a cobblestone road to Flushing which would later become College Point Boulevard and founded a Northside Railroad and the Poppenhusen Institute — which hosted free adult education programs for all and the country’s fi rst free kindergarten program. College Point was created on relatively narrow streets, with most commercial activity located along the main stretch, College Point Boulevard. According to the Department of City Planning, recent development has centered on replacing older, detached buildings with semi-detached or attached structures. Th e city approved a zoning change in 2005 to preserve the low-density area and limit new development to be consistent with traditional, predominantly detached building types. Much development has also occurred near the former site of Flushing Airport, which last operated in 1984. Its future has been up in the air since that time, especially as the former airfi eld has predominantly reverted into the marshy wetland prior to the airport’s development. Part of the airport has been transformed into athletic fi elds, and the portion of Linden Place that had run through the airport grounds and was closed for years is fi nally reopen to traffi c. College Point continues to thrive as a working-class community in Queens, off ering a lesson to us all that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Quick College Point facts Note: Census fi gures for the 11356 ZIP code Population: 24,631 Median age: 35.6 Male population: 12,338 (50.1%) Female population: 12,293 (49.9%) Average household size: 3.02 Total housing units: 8,366 Occupied units: 7,712 (92.2%) Median household income: $57,194 Foreign-born population: 11,577 (47%) Individuals below poverty level: 12.3% Students attaining at least a high school diploma: 80.4% NYPD 109th Precinct 37-05 Union St., Flushing, Phone 718-321-2250 Representatives in government Congress: Joe Crowley Assembly: Michael Simanowitz State Senate: Tony Avella City Council: Paul Vallone
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