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ALSO COVERING ELMHURST, JACKSON HEIGHTS, LONG ISLAND CITY, MASPETH, MIDDLE VILLAGE, REGO PARK, SUNNYSIDE
July 10-16, 2020
Developers unveil plan to bring $2B hub to Astoria
BY BILL PARRY
A consortium of developers
has unveiled an ambitious $2
billion plan to remake a fiveblock
section of Astoria in a
neighborhood-focused initiative
dubbed “Innovation QNS.”
Kaufman Astoria Studios,
Silverstein Properties and Bed-
Rock Real Estate Partners presented
their working plan to
Community Board 1 Land Use
Committee Wednesday detailing
the project’s 2,700 units of
mixed-income housing, some
700 of which will be permanently
affordable, as well as 200,000
square feet of retail and 250,000
square feet of space for creative
industries and other small
businesses. There was considerable
concern from committee
members over the density and
scale of the complex especially
a series of towers, the tallest of
which would be 26 stories high.
“I am proud that Kaufman
Astoria Studios has acted as an
economic driver, rejuvenating
our immediate neighborhood
through smart, thought-out
development, and look forward
to what we started,” KAS President
and CEO Hal Rosenbluth
said. “Working together with
our partners and our community,
which is filled with vibrant
cultural institutions, fast-growing
creative industries, and diverse
hard-working neighbors,
we can continue to mature,
assuring the sustainability of
what has been created.”
A $2 billion plan to build a mixed-use district in a “dormant” section of Astoria would jumpstart the
economy impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to developers. Courtesy of ODA Architecture
The project, funded by private
investment, centered on
five blocks at the intersection
of Steinway Street and 35th Avenue
south to Northern Boulevard,
will replace a “dormant
and unwelcoming” section of
the neighborhood with a “vibrant
and walkable” one with
nearly two acres of open space,
pedestrian walkways and plazas,
community health and
wellness facilities, dedicated
senior housing, an arts and
culture hub, a state-of-the-art
multiplex cinema, a new fullservice
grocery store and enhanced
streetscapes.
“I’m very excited by the
opportunity to work with
such great partners and local
stakeholders to reactivate this
part of Astoria as a district
that will improve the quality
of life, not just for the people
who will live, learn, shop and
visit there, but for everyone
who currently lives in the immediate
surroundings,” Silverstein
Properties Chairman
and Founder Larry Silverstein
said. “This is a time when people
desperately need jobs, and
this project will serve as an
enormously important stimulus
for Astoria and New York
City. Astoria embodies the
audacity and determination
that has defined our city time
and time again. We will meet
this moment with resolve,
ambition and ingenuity, and
emerge stronger than ever,
just as we have always done.”
The project will create 5,400
onsite jobs, 3,700 construction
jobs and 1,700 permanent jobs;
it will not displace residents or
take away parking, but some
businesses will be relocated.
“The havoc created by
COVID-19 hit Queens harder
than any community in the
nation. As we look to rebound,
the partnership behind Innovation
QNS is well-positioned
to contribute meaningfully to
our recovery, as its partners
have led historic revitalization
initiatives before, including
here in Astoria,” Queens
Chamber of Commerce President
and CEO Tom Grech
said. “Through the substantial
private investment in
Astoria, it is proposing, this
uniquely experienced team
will benefit the residents of
Queens County. To ensure
our communities emerge from
this crisis stronger than before,
I would encourage all
to support this effort to revitalize
a key economic corridor
in western Queens along
Steinway Street.”
The partnership will continue
to broaden its dialogue
with neighbors, other community
stakeholders and the Department
of City Planning to
advance the plan with a goal
of beginning public review in
2021. Construction is anticipated
to start in 2023 with an
initial activation in 2025. The
developers believe Innovation
QNS could be completed within
a decade and complement
and build upon the Kaufman
Arts District that was established
in 2014.
Vol. 8 No. 28 32 total pages
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