10 THE QUEENS COURIER • DECEMBER 9, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Aff ordable housing development opens in downtown Jamaica
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Southeast Queens lawmakers and community
members celebrated the opening
of Archer Green, a new aff ordable housing
complex to benefi t residents and families
in downtown Jamaica, with a ribboncutting
ceremony on Wednesday, Dec. 1.
The New York City Economic
Development Corporation (NYCEDC),
Department of Housing Preservation
and Development (HPD), Housing
Development Corporation (HDC) and
Omni New York LLC were also in attendance
for the opening of the building,
located at 92-23 168th St.
Th e transformational project born out
of the Jamaica NOW Action Plan delivers
a 387-unit apartment complex that
includes a 15,000-square-foot community
facility and a 70,000-square-foot commercial
space, which will be home to
Aldi, a low-cost grocery store that will
bring high-quality fresh food and produce
to the neighborhood.
Queens Borough President Donovan
Richards and Councilman I. Daneek
Miller spoke about their work to help
the project across the fi nish line.
Richards said Archer Green will
make a massive diff erence in the
lives of hundreds o f
Queens families.
“The opening
of Archer Green
is nothing short of
a tremendous victo- ry for
the families of Jamaica as we
welcome nearly 400 units of 100%
aff ordable housing, as well as a muchneeded
grocery store and signifi cant
community space, to one of Queens’
most historic and fastest-growing
communities,” Richards said.
Th e ribbon-cutting of Archer Green
represents years of hard work and negotiations,
according to Miller, who said they
worked to ensure that the development
featured 100% aff ordable units, using all of
the tools at their disposal at the Council to
secure fi nancing for the project.
“We appreciate the partnership with the
city and EDC to ensure that MWBE participation
was a priority for this project,
and are incredibly excited about adding
more aff ordable housing to Downtown
Jamaica,” Miller said. “With the impacts
of the pandemic, it’s more important than
ever that folks have access to apartments
like these, which are not only aff ordable,
but off er top-of-the-line amenities as well.”
Th e residential building includes a variety
of amenities such as a fi tness room,
outdoor terrace, community lounge, children’s
playroom, media and co-working
space, package lockers and bike storage.
Th e building will also achieve LEED
gold status and incorporate several green
technologies that will improve building
operations and increase resiliency,
including a state-of-the-art battery energy
storage system that can provide backup
power in the event of a black out;
solar panels; a Combined Heat and
Power (CHP) system that generates
electricity and captures heat that would
otherwise be wasted; electric vehicle
charging stations; and energy effi cient
appliances and fi xtures.
Th e redevelopment project arose
from the Jamaica NOW Action Plan,
a $153 million neighborhood revitalization
initiative announced in 2015
by the de Blasio administration, former
Queens Borough President Melinda Katz
and NYCEDC. Th e plan aimed to economically
revitalize Jamaica by increasing
access to quality jobs and small business
support, promoting commercial
growth, improving livability and increasing
awareness of Jamaica.
Justin Rodgers, interim president and
CEO of the Greater Jamaica Development
Corporation, said Archer Green demonstrates
the great things that come from
public-private partnerships.
“Th e revitalization of this long-underutilized
lot begins the transformation
of the 168th Street corridor with aff ordable
housing, jobs, community space and
retail. Hats off to the city offi cials and the
development team at Omni New York for
their great collaboration,” Rodgers said.
Eugene Schneur, managing director of
Omni New York LLC, said they’re thrilled
to celebrate the completion of the 100 percent
aff ordable housing and mixed-use
development.
Construction on the project began in
2018 to redevelop the former New York
Police Department parking garage and
created more than 1,900 construction
jobs. It is also expected to create more
than 200 permanent jobs.
“What was once an NYPD garage, is
now nearly 400 aff ordable homes, plus a
new grocery store and additional retail —
yet another example of how the city has
been pushing to use public sites to develop
aff ordable housing,” said Louise Carroll,
HPD commissioner.
Rachel Loeb, president and CEO of
NYCEDC, thanked their city partners,
local elected offi cials, the development
team, community members, and all
who helped NYCEDC in reaching the
tremendous milestone.
“Archer Green will create much-needed
aff ordable housing and good-paying jobs,
which will help spur a thriving local economy
in Jamaica, Queens,” Loeb said.
Senator Leroy Comrie, who recalled
standing with his colleagues at the groundbreaking
in 2019, said despite the challenges
posed by the past 18 months due
to the pandemic, it is encouraging to see
that the city agencies continue to fi nd fi nd
a way to move forward working in collaboration
with the private sector to provide
much-needed aff ordable housing.
“Th e development of downtown Jamaica
with aff ordable housing, a community
facility and commercial space is critical to
our economic recovery, and I commend
everyone that took the recommendations
of the Jamaica NOW Action Plan and
helped make them a reality,” Comrie said.
Councilwoman Adrienne Adams said
the opening of Archer Green marks a
major milestone in the revitalization of
downtown Jamaica.
“Th e addition of nearly 400 units of
aff ordable housing, community facility
space, a new grocery store and environmental
benefi ts will be a boon for our
community,” Adams said. “As a former
co-chair of the Jamaica NOW Leadership
Council, I am excited that the Action Plan
we announced in 2015 is already delivering
results and benefi ts for the residents of
southeast Queens.”
Community Board 12 District Manager
Yvonne Reddick thanked their partners,
city agencies and elected offi cials for their
collaboration and continued support to
bring new aff ordable housing and commercial
space to the neighborhood.
“We are thrilled to see Archer Green go
from a proposal to a reality,” Reddick said.
“Th e new buildings are beautiful and will
make a big diff erence in this community.”
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards speaks
during the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Photos courtesy of NYCEDC
Southeast Queens elected offi cials and community members cut the ribbon at Archer Green, a new
aff ordable housing development in downtown Jamaica, on Dec. 1.
Elected offi cials and community leaders at the ribbon-cutting of Archer Green, the new aff ordable
housing development in Jamaica.
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