Queens home sales increased in volume in May despite the tight mortgage market, according to a new report by George Herrera of brokerage Keller Williams. The number of sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 698, an increase of 10.8 percent from the prior year. It was the fastest sales pace since 2009, when the federal government offered a tax credit for first time homebuyers. The median home price was $360,000, up 4.3 percent from the prior year. It was the seventh consecutive month of year-over-year gains – a trend that hasn’t happened since the housing bubble in 2005 to 2006. The report attributed low inventory and tight credit as obstacles for more sales.
A massive, 49,412-square-foot lot on the corner of Steinway Street and Northern Boulevard just hit the market for $17,000,000 — that’s more than an acre of land up for grabs. It’s comprised of five separate tax lots, from 36-12 to 36-38 Steinway Street and 38-17 to 38-23 Northern Boulevard. The zoning, currently with allowances for a mixed-use building, allows for approximately 117,614 buildable square feet. And, according to the listing, “this is one of the only 100K + square foot development sites available in the LIC/Astoria market.” Think it’s worth $17,000,000? The parcels, some of which have buildings on them, some of which have parking lots, will be delivered without tenants. 36-12 – 36-38 Steinway Street & 38-17 – 38-23 Northern Boulevard [CPEX]
The subway rumbles above Queens Plaza on a twisted track of steel and wire. An endless stream of cars flows below, zipping by the new manicured public park. But a few blocks away, all is serene. The new rental building 27 on 27th, at 42-17 27th Street, is a glassy temple of luxury, insulated from the hustle and bustle by a 27-floor curtain wall.
Long Island-based Heatherwood Properties developed the building, and after opening leasing in January, 131 of 142 units have been rented. Following the steps of Williamsburg, Dumbo and Hoboken, Queens Plaza and the rest of Long Island City are benefiting enormously from its proximity to the job nexus that is Manhattan. “I think this is going to be the next new place to be,” said Jeanine Castellano, senior project manager at aptsandlofts.com, the building’s brokerage.
On this particular afternoon, that famous skyline is shrouded in a humid haze, but the implications are apparent: you might be able to see your office building, but you aren’t paying Manhattan rents. Studios start at around $2,025 and penthouse 1B, with its city-sweeping corner views, is $3,845 per month. Lower in the building is a movie screening room, a bar, and there are two outdoor terraces with tan chairs and tables. Renters have come from Boston, London, Queens.
But it is still a neighborhood in transition. Tishman Speyer, the landlord of Rockefeller Center, has a new gleaming office building next door, but many of the nearby business are delis, auto repair shops and halal carts. Grocery stores are scarce in the neighborhood, but the building receives Fresh Direct delivery and there’s a nearby Key Foods. The Queensbridge Houses are visible from the roof, peaking out through trees.
Queens Plaza doesn’t have strong name recognition yet, but it has already made a mark on the skyline. GMAP
A liquor store plans to open at a former garage and gas station at Cooper Avenue and Metropolitan Avenue in Middle Village,  Times Newsweekly reported. The 5,000-square-foot store would open in a space that has been vacant for years. A spokesman for City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley said nearby liquor store owners in have expressed concerns that the new store would take away business. The owners may have hired an attorney to oppose a liquor license application. GMAP
The City and locals disagree over what to do with a recently freed up school site in College Point. Parents want a new middle school at the former St. Fidelis School building at 124-06 14th Avenue, but the city is considering putting an elementary school there instead, The Daily News reported. State Senator Tony Avella is also calling for a middle school. Right now, parents have to send their kids to Whitestone or Flushing for junior high. On the other hand, the two elementary schools, P.S. 129 and P.S. 29, are both over 100 percent capacity. The Department of Education is still reviewing the site. GMAP
Gantry Park Landing is one of the new rentals in the Long Island City area at 50-01 Second Street. David Maundrell, president of the Gantry’s brokerage aptsandlofts.com, just posted a new photo of the building’s courtyard, above. The Lightstone Group is the developer. Gantry Park Landing is 12 stories and 199 units. The facade is concrete with opaque glass windows, and leasing is expected to begin this summer. A rendering of the full building after the jump. (more…)
Two stories offer conflicting views of the future of New York City. The City’s population will swell by one million new residents by 2040 and there won’t be any room for them “unless a small city of new housing is built,” according to a report from the Center for Urban Real Estate at Columbia University cited in an article in The Wall Street Journal. The report says waterfront neighborhoods such as Long Island City and Willets Point are the most logical places to build new housing. At the same time, the city faces an increased risk of flooding and severe weather thanks to climate change. By 2050, the number of New Yorkers living in flood areas will double, according to a warning issued by the Bloomberg administration, based on data from its New York City Panel on Climate Change, The New York Times reported. Since the 1970s, New York City has had an average of 18 days a year with temperatures above 89 degrees. By 202o, the number could rise to 33 days, and by 2050, to 57 days. The biggest increase in flood zones was in Brooklyn, where the number of buildings considered at risk has increased by 253 percent to 25,800. New developments are taking pains to flood proof their construction, but the prospect of significantly hotter and wetter weather does make prewar housing sound less appealing. At the same time, such an enormous increase in population can only push real estate prices up even further. What’s your take?
There are 6,000 bikes imprinted with Citibank logos in downtown Manhattan and a few neighborhoods in Brooklyn. There are zero in Queens. The Wall Street Journal reports that the program is concentrated in some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the city, although a DOT spokesman counters that those are also some of the most densely populated areas as well. And the program won’t be expanding until more funds are raised.
Unlike some other cities, New York’s bike share program is entirely funded by corporations: Citibank Inc. (whose logo also appears on a certain tower in Long Island City) and Mastercard. That’s good news for cash-strapped transit agencies like the Port Authority and MTA, but it infuses the program with a heavy dose of capitalism. And the patterns of heavy ridership tend to mimic those of gentrification. It’s hard to imagine that Williamsburg (where, full disclosure, this writer lives) would have the bike program if Bedford Avenue and its surroundings weren’t such a magnet for tourists, which is fueled in part by its proximity to Manhattan and a substantial influx of new affluent residents.
City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer of Long Island City told Capital that residents in Western Queens feel “left out.” Do you?
SITE NYC, a boutique at 35-11 34th Avenue in Astoria, is moving to a nearby storefront and rebranding as Lockwood Shop, DNAinfo reported. The gift shop will have three times the space at 32-15 33rd Street, above, which used to house a liquor store. Owner Mackenzi Farquer told DNAinfo that she plans to hold workshops, classes and parties in the new location, which will have a basement and backyard. Farquer, who runs the blog We Heart Astoria, also plans to host art exhibits. SITE NYC is closing on July 31, and the new store will open in September. GMAP
Foodcellar, one of the few grocery stores in Long Island City, is opening a second spot at Rockrose’s Linc LIC, the Queens Courier reported. The new location, at 43-10 Crescent Street, will be around 24,000 square feet on two levels. The The store has natural and organic foods and has been open since August 2008 in its original location at 4-85 47th Road. GMAP
