FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM FEBRUARY 15, 2018 • THE QUEENS COURIER 23
City to establish new one-way
streets around Whitestone schools
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Streets surrounding two Whitestone
schools will see some long-awaited traffi c
changes soon.
Th e following neighborhood streets
around JHS 194 and Saint Luke’s School
will undergo one-way conversions:
• 17th Avenue from Clintonville Street to
Francis Lewis Boulevard
• 17th Road from 157th Street to
Clintonville Street
• 157th Street from 16th Road to 17th
Road
• 154th Street from Clintonville Street
onto 17th Avenue
At their February meeting, Community
Board 7 voted overwhelmingly in favor
of the traffi c fl ow changes proposed by
the city Department of Transportation
(DOT), with the exception of a proposal
to completely close the 154th Street slip
at 17th Avenue.
Members said the school and the surrounding
residential community has
been waiting years for relief. According
to Transportation Committee Chair Nick
Corrado, constituents reached out to
Councilman Paul Vallone’s offi ce about
traffi c concerns in the area. Th e lawmaker
then reached out to DOT, which agreed
to perform a study.
Th e narrow width of 17th Avenue
makes it diffi cult for two opposing vehicles
to pass each other, city offi cials said.
School drop-off and pick-up conditions
were another noted concern.
DOT recommended the changes on the
grounds they would “improve safety and
traffi c conditions in the area.”
“It’s a huge concern for the safety of the
kids. Th at’s basically what we’re talking
about here,” Corrado said. “Th e school’s
been waiting for this a long time.”
A total of 149 surveys were mailed out
to residents in the surrounding area, with
21 replying in favor and four not in favor.
Th e board received no response from the
remaining residents.
“Honestly, the committee does not feel
that people can’t get around and get to their
house,” he said of the new confi guration.
Residents who responded to the board
also noted that truck traffi c in the area is
an issue.
“Th e trucks that are coming off Francis
Lewis Boulevard now are not going to be
able to turn in and have as much access,”
Corrado said. “Th is is actually going to
stop that, too.”
Sales underway at new One Flushing building
Photo courtesy of Monadnock Development
Rendering of the retail space at One Flushing
Photo via Google Maps
One of the Whitestone roadways by JHS 194 that will undergo a one-way conversion
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Over 20,000 square feet of retail space
is up for grabs at an under-construction
downtown Flushing building.
Developers for the mixed-use One
Flushing development at 133-45 41st
Ave. are now looking for commercial
tenants to fi ll 22,000 square feet of
available retail space. All retail spaces
are located at street level and range
from 300 square feet to 6,000 square
feet.
Th e development also contains 232
aff ordable residential apartment units,
a 156-car public parking garage and
20,000 square feet reserved for a community
space.
Th e building is being erected on a
city-owned public parking lot, known
as Municipal Parking Lot 3. Th e New
York City Department of Housing
Preservation and Development released
a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the
site in 2014. It is being developed under
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s “Housing New
York” plan.
Construction on the building is ongoing
and expected to be completed in
early 2019. Th e development is adjacent
to the Flushing-Main Street LIRR
Station and around the corner from
the 7 train.
Renaissance Economic Development
Corporation, an affi liate of group Asian
Americans for Equality, has allocated
up to $2 million to fi nance qualifi
ed small businesses interested in moving
into the site. HANAC Inc. and
Monadnock Development are also
part of the One Flushing development
group.
“One Flushing represents an incredible
opportunity for the neighborhood
to bring community, commerce, and
convenience together around a transit
hub,” said Frank Dubinsky, vice
president of Monadnock Development.
“We’re thrilled to open One Flushing in
early 2019 and look forward to welcoming
retail tenants that contribute to its
vibrancy and the Flushing community.”
Th e space is represented by Fultonex
Realty’s Bill Seto, who called One
Flushing “a new wave of retail in
Flushing.”
“With a great location in an incredible
building with a live-in audience,
parking and some of New York’s busiest
streets, the shops at One Flushing
will become a destination for residents,
tourists and the neighborhood alike,”
he said.