FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM DECEMBER 26, 2019 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3
City certifi es proposal to begin ULURP process
for Flushing waterfront development project
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e City Planning Commission on
Monday certifi ed a proposal by Th e
Flushing Willets Point – Corona Local
Development Corporation (FWCLDC) to
begin the ULURP process of the redevelopment
of the Special Flushing Waterfront
District.
Th e proposals were draft ed in collaboration
with Langan Engineering and
Environmental Services and contain new
renderings from Hill West Architects
off ering a fi rst look at the future redeveloped
site, according to New York Yimby.
Th e project area is bound by 40th Road
to the south, College Point Boulevard to
the east, 36th Avenue to the north, and
Flushing Creek to the west. Th e proposal
includes nine buildings spread across four
neighboring sites.
“Th is is a very good project and will
benefi t the neighborhood,” said Claire
Shulman, of Th e Flushing Willets Point-
Corona Local Development Corporation.
Th e Flushing Willets Point – Corona
Local Development Corporation aims to
transform the underutilized, vacant, and
environmentally-challenged areas into a
vibrant, new mixed-use community.
New York Yimby reported that the overall
project will comprise of 1,725 apartments,
1,397,040 square-feet of commercial
area, and 21,913 square-feet of community
facilities. Commercial components
will include 298,811 square-feet of
retail, a 714,588 square-foot hotel, and
383,641 square-feet of offi ce space. Th ere
will also be 1,533 parking spaces and a
total of 3.14 acres of publicly accessible
open space.
According to Shulman, they are also
working on a project to construct a promenade
from Roosevelt Avenue to Northern
Boulevard that will eventually connect to
the Skyview Flushing Creek promenade.
“Th e 40 acres will be developed and
we’re doing a lot of things to clean up the
water so we can have modest maritime
use off the promenade,” Shulman said.
In 2010, Th e Flushing Willets Point –
Corona Local Development Corporation
received a $1,505,700 grant under the
New York State Brownfi eld Opportunity
Areas Program (BOA) to develop plans
to revitalize the Flushing waterfront area,
according to Schulman.
In 2018, Th e Flushing Waterfront BOA
received offi cial BOA Designation from
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s offi ce. Th e New
York Department of State, which administers
the program, determined if the project
met the necessary requirements and
criteria for designation.
According to the City Planning
Department, now that the project
has begun public review, it will go to
Community Board 7 for a public hearing
and vote, followed by the Borough
President. Both Community Board 7 and
the Borough President will issue advisory
recommendations on the proposal. Aft er
that, the proposal will return to the City
Planning Commission for a public hearing
and a binding vote. If the CPC votes
to approve or modify the application, it
will then go to the City Council for a public
hearing and vote.
Rendering courtesy of Department of City Planning
Astoria Blvd. station reopens after nine months of renovations
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
The MTA reopened the Astoria
Boulevard subway station following a
nine-month closure and marking the
on-time completion of the fi rst phase of
critical work that will eventually include
four new elevators and other accessibility
features.
During the closure, work crews safely
demolished and rebuilt the station’s mezzanine
with more clearance to prevent
strikes by trucks traveling beneath the
station structure. Th e station will remain
open to the public as work on the broader
accessibility components continue with a
full completion of the station expected in
the fall of next year.
“Our customers were absolutely thrilled
to return to the station last night and I’m
thrilled for them,” New York City Transit
President Andy Byford said. “”I’m proud
of the team that delivered this complicated
phase of the project safely, on time and
on budget, and excited for when we fi nish
the job with complete accessibility at
the station.”
When the entire project at the
Astoria Boulevard station, which began
in September of 2018, it will have two
street-to-mezzanine elevators and
two mezzanine-to-platform elevators.
Additional accessibility features, rebuilt
elevated walkways, new benches, fi nished
platform stair enclosures, new digital service
information signage, and a pair of
new street-to-mezzanine staircases are
also set to be incorporated by the time the
project is completed.
Stations along the N/W subway line
have not had such renovations since
they opened more than 100 years ago in
1917. So far, NYC Transit has completed
much-needed repairs and renovations at
the 30 Avenue, 36 Avenue, 39 Av-Dutch
Kills, Broadway and Ditmars Boulevard
stations. Crews replaced thousands of feet
of track and 10 switches along the line to
address deteriorating track components
and reduce train noise.
Age and increasingly extreme weather
have taken their toll at each of the stations
along the elevated line to the point
where deteriorated steel and concrete had
to be replaced.
“Our commitment to upgrading the
infrastructure throughout this area of
Queens is a huge win for local residents
and will vastly improve the customer
experience,” Byford said.
Since the Astoria Boulevard station was
closed in March, workers also strengthened
column foundations, built four new
mezzanine-to-platform staircases, rehabilitated
platforms, installed new LED
lighting and canopy roofs. Artists also
completed work on new glass at both the
mezzanine and the platform level stair
enclosures.
City Councilman Costa Constantinides
has long called on the MTA to install elevators
at every station along the Astoria
line, and the agency announced plans to
build them at some stations in the coming
years, aft er losing a lawsuit charging the
MTA was not ADA-compliant.
“Last night, trains offi cially began to
stop at Astoria Boulevard again. Th is has
been a long few months for a lot of us
who use this station, but I’m glad to see
the authority kept its word on fi nishing
this December,” Constantinides said.
“Our community will continue to hold
them accountable, however, to ensure the
elevators are installed on time. Astoria
has been an accessibility desert for faro
too long, and we won’t stop fi ghting until
every station in western Queens can be
used by everyone.”
State Senator Michael Gianaris, a frequent
critic of the MTA, said, “I am
pleased the Astoria Boulevard station has
fi nally re-opened. It provides an important
service to thousands of western
Queens commuters each day. I look forward
to the long awaited elevators being
completed in the coming months.”
Meanwhile, Gianaris said he “celebrated”
the MTA’s announcement Th ursday
that they plan on adding elevators to three
stations in western Queens, at the 33rd
Street-Rawson Avenue and the 46th Street
stations on the 7 line in Sunnyside and the
Court Square/23rd Street station on the
E/M line in Long Island City as part of the
next capital plan.
“Aft er years of pushing for accessibility
improvements, the MTA listened to western
Queens residents, activists, and elected
leaders advocating for better subway
access,” Gianaris said. “Th ese improvements
will go a long way to making our
subway accessible to all. While there is
still a long way to go in making the entire
subway system 100% accessible, these elevators
represent a critical step forward.”
The Astoria Boulevard station on the N/W subway
line is back in service after a nine-month
renovation.
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