8 The QUENS Courier • MARCH 17, 2016 for breaking news visit www.qns.com COMMUNITY BOARD 7 GIVES THUMBS-DOWN TO ‘ONE FLUSHING’ By Raisa Camargo rcamargo@qns.com/@QueensCourier While part of a citywide push for more affordable ONSITE DOCTORS • EYE EXAMS • CONTACTS • 1 HOUR SERVICE • VISION PLANS ACCEPTED • SUNGLASSES • LOWEST PRICES st of the 2013 THE QUEENS QueensCourier.com Place WE ARE A GVS & DAVIS VISION PROVIDER Amazing Savings! • Love Your Eyes BAY TERRACE SHOPPING CENTER 211-51 26 AVENUE • BAYSIDE, NY 11360 718.631.3699 *FREE Eye Exam with the purchase of glasses. Contact Lens Exam and fitting add’l. *See store for details. $8999 NO-LINE BIFOCAL EYEGLASSES Includes: EYE EXAM, No-Line Bifocal Lenses & Frame Select frame with select clear plastic no-line bifocal lenses\ +/- 4 sph., 2cyl. up to 2.50 add. Not valid with any other offers, sales, vision plans or packages. Must present prior to purchase. Some restrictions apply, see store for details. Offer valid at this location only. Expires 4/15/16 $99 DISPOSABLE CONTACTS Includes: EYE EXAM, 2 Boxes of Lenses Clear Soft brand clear sphericalLenses/ *Contact lens fitting additional. Not valid with any other offers, sales, vision plans or packages. Must present prior to purchase. Offer valid at this location only. Some restrictions apply, see store for details. Expires 4/15/16 $6999 2 PAIRS OF EYEGLASSES Includes: EYE EXAM,Frames & Lenses Select frames with clear plastic, single vision lenses+/- 4 sph., 2 cyl. Not valid with any other offers, sales, vision plans or packages. Must present prior to purchase. Offer valid at this location only. Some restrictions apply, see store for details Expires 4/15/16 $100 OFF Buy 1 Pair of Prescription Glasses and GET 2nd Pair FREE Includes: EYE EXAM. (From select group) Some restrictions apply. See Store for details. In stock items only. Expires 4/15/16 Varilux Progressive Lenses Includes: EYE EXAM (no-line Bifocals) w/metal frames $16599 Select frames with clear plastic no line lenses +/-4 sph., 2 cyl. Not valid with any other offers, sales, vision plans or packages. Must present prior to purchase. Offer valid at this location only. Some restrictions apply, see store for details. Expires 4/15/16 housing, a mixed-use residential development project in downtown Flushing, Queens, got the thumbs-down from Community Board 7 at its March 14 meeting. The vote echoed concerns from local residents about construction in the already crowded area, adding that while the area needs affordable housing, the project belonged somewhere else. “It’s become very crowded,” said Katherine, a longtime resident of College Point. “You need some place where you can go that you can afford to live.” The Brooklyn-based residential contractor Monadnock Development expects to begin construction on a city-owned public parking lot at 133-55 41st Ave. this summer or fall. Plans for the dubbed “One Flushing” project were filed with the city’s Department of Buildings last week. The apartments would provide affordable housing for middle-income and low-income families and seniors. Nearly 184,000 square feet of residential space would be used to hold 208 apartments. The One Flushing project would replace a public parking garage that holds 229 spaces. Along with retail development, the mixed-use building would also include 150 replacement parking spaces. The project will also feature a community facility program, a rooftop farm and weatherization services for residents. The developers are seeking a special permit from the city’s Board of Standards and Appeals to rezone the site to the adjacent district. CB 7 members recommended that the permit be denied until the developers reconsider its recommendations on altering the plan. CB 7 Land Use Chair Chuck Apelian said during the meeting that the board also disagrees with providing a mayoral zoning override for a loading berth and a designated zoning requirement known as mandatory inclusionary housing that would specify the units as permanently affordable housing. “Unless somebody listens to us, that project should not go through,” Chairperson Eugene Kelty said. The community board agreed not to move forward provisionally with the plan until the changes were made. However, there was general consensus that affordable housing is much needed in an area with increasing development. First look at WeWork’s newest coworking location in Astoria By Angela Matua amatua@qns.com/@AngelaMatua Businesses, startups and freelancers just got a new space to collaborate in Queens. WeWork, the co-working space with 63 locations around the world, recently opened its Astoria location at 35-37 36th St., right across the street from Kaufman Astoria studios. The 60,000-square-foot space is the company’s first location in Queens and boasts a beer garden and rooftop space as well as five floors of offices, lounges and kitchen space. There are 50,000 WeWork members across all locations and about 700 will rent space from the Astoria location, dubbed Studio Square. Chief Operating Officer and President Artie Minson, a Rockaway native, said the company chose Astoria as its first Queens location for its strong sense of community. “We think that Astoria as a creative center continues to grow and I also think Astoria has always been a place where community is important,” Minson said. I think bringing that sense of community in the work place to a part of Queens that has always had a passionate community, I think its a very good thing.” A wide range of companies have already moved in including real estate companies, graphic design companies, nonprofits and a lingerie design business. George Eliopoulos, who has been working in Astoria for more than 20 years, started Velios Capital, a commercial real estate finance consulting firm, with three other people in December 2015. He heard that WeWork was moving to Astoria and was the first person to take a tour of the space and first company to move in on March 1. “I consider this the hippest building in the hippest neighborhood,” Elipoulos said. He said using WeWork allows his startup to cut costs and also collaborate with other businesses. “There’s a sense of camaraderie,” he said. “It’s not like your typical office building where people go into their little cubbie holes and disappear and they reemerge at 5 p.m.” Docs for Tots, a nonprofit led by pediatricians that aims to promote practices and policies for improved healthcare for children, rents space for a four-person team. Though most of the team is not based in Queens, the organization implements many of its programs, including developmental screenings, on Long Island. “We chose Queens specifically because a lot of our projects are being implemented on Long Island but a lot of us are in New York City, so it provides a really smooth segue,” said Ikadshi Thukral, project assistant for Docs for Tots. “I like the fact that it’s really open and you get to be outside if you do choose to.” Clients have the option of renting a shared office desk or private offices for up to 45 people. Each office comes equipped with printing capabilities and lounges on each floor. The glass screens surrounding each office encourages collaboration and there are also private rooms with landlines for sensitive calls, according to Stephanie Carino, community manager at WeWork. Those we rent space have access to the kitchen, which provides tea, coffee and local beer on tap. For pricing and other information about WeWork’s locations, visit wework.com. Photo courtesy of WeWork
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