Community District
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Queens CD07 Projects
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Queens Community District 07
133-32 41st Road - Suite 3B
Flushing, NY 11355
Phone: 718.359.2800
Fax: 718.463.3891
Email: qn07@cb.nyc.gov
College Point Police Academy
The Bloomberg administration has announced plans to consolidate the New York City Police Academy on a new campus in College Point, Queens at the present site of the city’s largest auto pound. The new campus will occupy a lot bounded by College Point Boulevard, 28th Avenue, 31st Avenue and Ulmer Street in a largely industrial area near Shea Stadium. The yet to be designed complex will include an elaborate firing range, a 12-acre field for emergency-vehicle training, a 450,000 square-foot physical training area, 250 wireless classrooms, a 100,000 square-foot “tactical village” with a subway car and mock street scenes, and 250 beds for visiting law enforcement agencies. The administration has allocated $1 billion in the capital budget for the campus and expects construction to begin in the fall of 2009, after the completion of the city’s land use review process. When completed, the complex will replace the crumbling Academy on East 20th Street, between Second and Third Avenues, the firing range at Rodman’s Neck in the Bronx, and the vehicle training facility at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn.
Recent headlines
Architect Chosen for College Point Police Academy
June 18, 2008
Busniess Wire
Perkins+Will Architects to Design College Point Police Academy
May 19, 2008
New York Times
New Police Academy Will Be LEED Silver Certified
May 19, 2008
Other
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Leviev Boymelgreen RKO Plaza Design
New York City Economic Development Corporation Project Description
Flushing Development
The Flushing neighborhood of Queens has seen a significant increase in development in recent years, transforming the neighborhood into a major housing and commercial center. The 450,000-square-foot Flushing Promenade has been completed, including five buildings of retail and housing. The future will bring the mixed-use Flushing Town Center and Flushing Commons developments, each of which will cost over $500 million and will bring a total of 1,500 residential units and 1,100,000-square-feet of retail development to the region. Significant work is also being done on Flushing’s waterfront; in accordance with the city’s Waterfront Access Plan, new walkways and bicycle paths have been built along the city-owned portions of Flushing’s waterfront. Also of note, a new 17-story building will be built at the site of Flushing’s historic RKO Keith’s theater. The grand lobby of the theater, however, will be preserved.
Recent headlines
Waldheim Rezoning Plan Moves Forward
April 29, 2008
New York Daily News
Downtown Flushing Sees Immense Growth
April 18, 2008
New York Daily News
Rent-Stabilized Flushing Properties Attract Buyers
March 17, 2008
New York Daily News
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Kissena Park Rezoning
On May 11, 2005, New York's City Council approved the zoning map amendments for 40 blocks in the Kissena Park neighborhood in northern Queens, Community District 7. The rezoning will support and reinforce the detached, low-density character of the neighborhood and ensure that future residential development will be consistent in scale and context with the area's detached one- and two-family homes.
The NYC Department of City Planning undertook the initial zoning study at the request of the Kissena Park Civic Association and the local Councilmember. The proposals respond to community concerns about the changes in their neighborhood brought about by as-of-right construction of multifamily houses. Under the existing R3-2 zoning, which permits all types of housing including row houses and apartment buildings, detached one-family homes have been demolished and replaced with semi-detached, two-family or multi-family structures.
Recent headlines
City Council Approves Downzones in Queens
March 9, 2007
Queens Courier
Queens Council Member Attempts To Halt McMansions
November 29, 2006
Queens Gazette
Flushing Homeowners Press For Landmark Status
April 11, 2006
Queens Botanical Garden
The Queens Botanical Garden, home to a network of diverse plant ecosystems with intertwining pathways, went under significant renovation in August 2006, and has become the first major development project in Queens to earn platinum honors in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) from the US Green Building Council. With the opening of the new visitor center and administrative building in September 2007, the Botanical Garden now has one of the greenest buildings in the city.
Implementation of phase I of the garden’s new master plan cost over $17 million, largely due to the fact the garden was first built as a part of the 1939 World’s Fair in Queens and was in need of modernization. The construction of their Sustainable Landscapes and Building Project involves green design throughout the Garden including two new buildings, one for horticulture and maintenance and another for visitors and administrative services, as well as a parking garden and a number of community gardens incorporating all native plants and innovative water maintenance techniques.
Some of the Garden’s special features, which helped it earn the highest LEED distinction possible, include: the use of local and recycled materials for construction, a green roof, and a geothermal energy system that uses the earth's temperature to heat and cool the building, thereby lowering energy costs by up to $7000 a year. Almost all of the wood used to construct both buildings has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, which means that the wood was extracted from forests in a sustainable manner. The recycling of gray water from the building's sinks and shower as well as storm water off the roof filtered through a constructed wetland and special absorbent cleansing bio-tape is another aspect that has drawn much attention. Once the water is naturally cleaned it is filtered back into the buildings for use in the toilets and in water channels and fountains throughout the Garden, reducing costly development impact on the city's wastewater treatment. The Garden's Master Plan, which includes additional renovations/construction will be fully realized in 2015.
Recent headlines
Green buildings at Queens Botanical Garden to help realize Planyc 2030
September 28, 2007
New York Daily News
Whitestone Rezoning
On December 21, 2005, the City Council adopted the zoning changes, and they now are in effect. The rezoning covers 311 blocks in the Whitestone area of Queens to "preserve the traditional scale of mostly single-family character and preserve the low density and the green space." Similar rezoning was enacted in 2005 for nearby College Point.
Recent headlines
College Point Expansion Possible
March 21, 2007
Queens Gazette
Tension Grows Between Queens Community Board and EDC
March 9, 2007
Queens Tribune
Downzoning Of Whitestone Is Approved By City Council
January 2, 2006
Queens Chronicle
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Willets Point Industry and Realty Association
Willets Point Development District - New York City Economic Development Corporation
Comments on Generic Environmental Impact Statement - Municipal Art Society
Willets Point Development
Willets Point, also known as the Iron Triangle, is a 13-block area located near the Flushing and Corona neighborhoods in Queens consisting largely of auto repair shops, junkyards, and other industrial and small businesses. As of the 2000 census it had a population of one. Given its prime location near Shea Stadium and the currently under construction Citi Field (slated to arrive in 2009), as well as its access to a variety of transit options, the City is targeting Willets Point for major redevelopment. The City’s plans, led by the Economic Development Corporation (EDC), call for a $3 billion development over 60 acres, including over one million square feet in retail space, a hotel, and a convention center.
Although the area has few residents, local businesses are being affected by the redevelopment plans. The City is in negotiations with area business owners about relocation, and will consider the use of eminent domain if agreements cannot be reached. The displacement of these businesses has been a point of contention between City officials and members of Community Board 7, who will be reviewing the plan as part of the Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP). In response to workers and businesses’ concerns, the City has designated LaGuardia College in Long Island City to develop an educational program for the estimated 1,300 workers in the area to help train and place them in the new jobs that the redevelopment will create.
Recent headlines
Leading Willets Point Opponent May Miss Council Vote
August 22, 2008
The Real Deal
Agreement Reached for Willets Point Owner
August 22, 2008
Crain's New York Business
Legislation Introduced that Would Require Financial Report before Eminent Domain Used
August 14, 2008
Crain's New York Business