The Arverne East development in the Rockaways is moving forward with its transformational project bringing 1,650 units of housing to abandoned waterfront land.
Developers of Arverne East moving forward with
the fi rst phase of megaproject in the Rockaways
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.2 COM | DEC. 31, 2021 - JAN. 6, 2022
Photo courtesy of Local Offi ce Landscape/Bernheimer Architecture
BY BILL PARRY
The massive Arverne East
project in the Rockaways is
moving forward after L+M
Development Partners, the
Bluestone Organization and
Triangle Equities closed
on $30.3 million in financing
for the first phase of the
megadevelopment on a vacant
116-acre oceanfront site.
The Arverne East development
will include 1,650 units
of housing — 80% affordable
and 20% market-rate — serving
low-income to middle-income
individuals and families, on
city-owned land that has been
vacant and dilapidated for
more than 40 years.
“As committed members
of the Arverne and Edgemere
communities for over a decade,
we are proud to bring this site
to life through a project that
will set a new standard for
sustainable and resilient development,”
L+M Development
Partners Senior Director Sara
Levenson said. “Arverne East
will provide a host of longawaited
neighborhood resources
and further support the
economic revitalization of the
central and eastern sections of
the Rockaway Peninsula.”
Queens Borough President
Donovan Richards grew up
across the street in the Ocean
Villages apartments staring
at the blighted oceanfront parcel
of land. He supported the
Arverne East project saying it
would bring “an economic justice”
solution to the Rockaways,
which have seen far more development
in the western portion
of the peninsula in recent
years.
“Arverne East is a true
community-first and environmentally
friendly project
that will bring much-needed
housing, stores, community
space and other amenities to a
long-neglected neighborhood,”
Richards said. “The fact that
Arverne East will include an
innovative nature preserve
and be the city’s first net-zero
community makes this development
truly transformational
in every sense of the word. I
am very pleased to see that
this ambitious project is moving
forward quickly, and I look
forward to seeing the residents
of the Rockaways enjoy all of its
benefits.”
The project’s first phase
includes a 35-acre nature preserve
between Beach 44th
Street and Beach 56th Place.
The project’s main retail corridor
will connect the 36th Street
A train subway station to the
beach, and it will be anchored
by a new full production brewery
and restaurant to be operated
by the Rockaway Brewing
Company as well as a beachfront
hotel.
“This project is extremely
important to the development
of Arverne by getting rid of
the vacant properties which
have been a blight to the community,”
state Senator Joseph
Addabbo said. “It creates jobs
through the construction of the
project and with the new retail
space that will be coming. As
we head into 2022, I will continue
to work with my colleagues
in government to ensure that
this project progresses and is
completed on time.”
Assemblyman Khaleel Anderson
said he is looking forward
to the expansion of “truly
affordable housing” and homeownership
opportunities for
families on Far Rockaway.
“My role as an Assembly
member is to ensure that the
developers honor their commitments
to our community in prioritizing
affordable housing,
homeownership, local hiring
and environmental sustainability,”
Anderson said. “I look
forward to continued partnership
with my colleagues in
government, the Arverne East
Community Advisory Board,
and the developers to ensure
the community has a voice in
this project.”
Funding for the first phase
was provided by the city Department
of Housing Preservation
and Development.
“In moving forward with
this long-envisioned plan
for Arverne East, we are
ushering in a more resilient
and inclusive future for the
Rockaway community,” HPD
Commissioner Louise Carroll
said. “More than 1,300
affordable homes will follow
the nature preserve, breathing
new life into a site that has
gone undeveloped and unused
for decades. We’re proud of the
hard work and ingenuity from
our development partners and
staff that went into making
this possible.”
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