22 THE QUEENS COURIER • FEBRUARY 21, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Amazon demise may cause real estate ‘whiplash’ in LIC
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
edavenport@qns.com
@QNS
In the wake of Amazon’s announcement
to back out of their Long Island City
headquarters deal, a local real estate website
believes that real estate interests will
shift in the neighborhood.
Th e New York City real estate website
StreetEasy has been tracking interest in
price growth in the area since Amazon
announced their intention to bring their
new headquarters to Long Island City in
November.
Following the company’s Feb. 14
announcement that they are backing
out of their plans, StreetEasy believes
that Long Island City will see a dramatic
change in area interest compared to
Amazon’s original announcement.
“Long Island City’s housing market
will likely experience a bit of whiplash
as a result of this latest news,” said
Nancy Wu, StreetEasy’s Economic Data
Analyst. “In the weeks aft er the initial
announcement that Amazon would be
coming to Queens, we saw sellers in the
area increase their asking prices, interest
from buyers and investors spike to new
highs, and for-sale listings beyond Long
Island City – in areas like Midtown and
Astoria – tout their proximity to the new
Amazon campus.”
According to StreetEasy, aft er the news
of Amazon’s potential decision to bring
the HQ2 to Long Island City, interest
in the area skyrocketed. From Nov. 5-7,
StreetEasy’s searches went up 283 percent
compared to same three days in
the prior week (Oct. 29-31). Th e next
week, when the news was confi rmed by
Amazon, interest shot up 519 percent in
search traffi c between Nov. 12-14, compared
to Oct. 29-31.
Following the increased interest in the
area, prices in Long Island City began
to soar. In the fi ve weeks following the
announcement, 18.8 percent of homes
for sale in Long Island City increased
their price. In the fi ve weeks prior to the
announcement, no listing in Long Island
City raised its price.
Long Island City also saw a decrease
in price cuts following the announcement.
Compared to the fi ve weeks prior,
StreetEasy found that only fi ve listings in
Long Island City cut their price in the fi ve
weeks aft er the announcement.
According to StreetEasy, over 75 homes
that were for sale in 48 buildings touted
their proximity to the planned Amazon
HQ2 site. However, the majority of listings
mentioned their proximity to the
HQ2 campus were in Midtown East (42
listings). Th ere were only 3 listings in
Long Island City touting their proximity
to the new Amazon headquarters.
Now with Amazon’s intentions of pulling
out of the deal, StreetEasy expects
that prices and buyer interest in Long
Island City should return to normal.
“Now that the company has decided
against setting up their new headquarters
in Queens, we expect asking prices
and buyer interest to fairly quickly
revert back to their pre-announcement
levels,” said Wu. “Th e Amazon reversal
highlights the risk inherent in speculative
investment in real estate in the city.
While the city has enjoyed swift economic
growth, turning a quick profi t remains
diffi cult, particularly in areas dense with
new development.”
in Queens
Some call it a thrilling victory, others say it’s a massive defeat
BY BILL PARRY AND ROBERT
POZARYCKI
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Opponents of the Amazon HQ2 project
in Long Island City got their wish
last week when the retail giant withdrew
its plans — but supporters of the project
warned that they should have been careful
of what they wished for.
One of the most vocal opponents, state
Senator Michael Gianaris, told Th e New
York Times that he believed Amazon was
acting like a “petulant child” by backing
out of the deal.
“Even by their own words,’’ he told the
Times, referring to the Amazon statement,
“Amazon admits they will grow their presence
in New York without their promised
subsidies. So what was all this really about?”
In a separate statement, Gianaris said
that Amazon’s behavior “shows why they
would have been a bad partner for New
York in any event. Rather than seriously
engage with the community they proposed
to profoundly change, Amazon continued
its eff ort to shakedown governments
to get its way. It is time for a national dialogue
about the perils of these types of corporate
subsidies.”
Van Bramer struck up a more celebratory
tone, saying, “when our community
fi ghts together, anything is possible, even
when we’re up against the biggest corporation
in the world. I am proud that we
fought for our values, which is a fi ght for
working families, immigrants, and organized
labor.”
“Defeating an anti-union corporation
that mistreats workers and assists ICE in
terrorizing immigrant communities is a
victory,” Van Bramer said. “Defeating an
unprecedented act of corporate welfare is
a triumph that should change the way we
do economic development deals in our city
and state forever.”
City Councilman Costa Constantinides,
who represents nearby Astoria, said that
fl awed process to lure Amazon to western
Queens “ignored the community and proposed
a giveaway” of taxpayer money that
was intolerable in his view, and the view
of others.
State Senator Jessica Ramos said that the
deal would have “set a dangerous precedent
that circumvented the public review
process to welcome one of the biggest corporations
of our time that pays zero taxes
already.”
But another Queens rep — City
Councilman Eric Ulrich, a supporter of the
Amazon project — was more blunt in his
assessment of Amazon’s decision.
“It never ceases to amaze me how the
loud voices of a few, could destroy the
chance at a better life for so many. Amazon
had big plans in store for the borough of
Queens, and we blew it!” Ulrich said in
a statement. “Th ey were going to invest
in our future, hire locally, contribute to
the community, and make the greatest
city in the world even greater. I doubt the
NIMBYs have another company willing
to create 25,000 good paying jobs. Th is
sets a bad precedent moving forward and
will deter other companies from setting up
shop in our city.”
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney
tweeted out her frustration over the dead
deal.
“Disappointed that NYC wont be home
to 25K+ new jobs from HQ2 & that LIC
will lose out on infrastructure improvements
that would have accompanied this
project. Th is is not the Valentine that NY
needed,” she wrote.
City Councilman Paul Vallone of northeast
Queens went even further, suggesting
that “this could very well go down in the
history books as the greatest economic loss
and missed opportunity ever for Queens
and the entire city.”
“Th e economic impact Amazon would
have had for our future generations cannot
be easily replaced,” Vallone said in a statement.
“On the other hand, Amazon should
have certainly done better homework on
the need for community and City Council
outreach and involvement with a project
of this scope. Now we are left to pick up
the pieces.”
Congressman Tom Suozzi lamented the
loss of Amazon not just for Queens but also
for Long Island; he represents a district covering
northeast Queens, northern Nassau
and northwestern Suff olk counties.
“When you are from Michigan, you
do not attack the automakers; when you
are from Iowa, you do not attack the
corn industry; and when you are from
California, you do not attack Silicon
Valley. Yet, in New York we are very cavalier
and short-sighted in attacking these
job creators and state revenue generators,”
Suozzi said.
Photo courtesy of Flickr/Gabe Shore
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