Variance for hotel granted

Owner claimed that lot’s irregular shape and close proximity to Queensboro Bridge entrance ramp limited development choices. Royal One Real Estate LLC applied to BSA for a variance to build a 12-story, 99-unit hotel at 42-59 Crescent Street, an irregularly shaped vacant lot in Long Island City, Queens. During the hearing process, the owner modified and reduced the 35,109 sq.ft. project in order to build a 10-story building with 88 hotel units. The owner still … <Read More>


EDC plan for 30-acre waterfront development approved

Council approved plan after EDC made further concessions on affordable housing. On November 13, 2008, the City Council voted to approve the NYC Economic Development Corporation’s Hunter’s Point South plan, a mixed-income 30-acre waterfront development in Long Island City, Queens. The project met with controversy at Council’s October 24th Zoning & Franchises Subcommittee public hearing and at the City Planning Commission’s August 13th public hearing. Opponents testified that the project lacked a sufficient amount of … <Read More>


Dutch Kills rezoning modified by Council

Dutch Kills proposed zoning. image: Courtesy NYC Department of City Planning.

Responding to business community concerns, the Council increased FAR in portions of Dutch Kills Subdistrict. On October 7, 2008, the City Council modified the Department of City Planning’s proposed rezoning for the Dutch Kills area of Long Island City, Queens. The plan impacts 40 blocks near the Queensboro Bridge, and establishes the 36-block Dutch Kills Subdistrict. To encourage new residential development and promote the … <Read More>


Commission modifies rezoning plan for LIC’s Dutch Kills

Proposed Dutch Kills Rezoning. Rezoning Map used with permission of the New York City Department of City Planning. All rights reserved.

FAR increased for certain uses after Community Board and Borough President raised concern over proposed limits on commercial and industrial growth. On September 8, 2008, the City Planning Commission approved, with one modification, the Department of City Planning’s proposed rezoning and text amendment for the Dutch Kills area of Long Island City, Queens.

The … <Read More>


IDA approves $46M in tax and other benefits

Proposed office tower for 125th St. Image: Swanke Hayden Connell Architects.

Major League Baseball project in Harlem is among the beneficiaries. On March 6, 2008, the New York City Industrial Development Agency held a public hearing on proposed public subsidies to private entities, including a joint venture between Vornado Realty Trust and California Urban Investment Partners. The joint venture was established to build a 21-story office tower on 125th Street and Park Avenue, directly southwest … <Read More>


Piano factory designated after new owner purchased

Landmarks unanimously designated the 1886 piano factory. On February 27, 2007, Landmarks voted to designate the Sohmer Piano Factory in Long Island City, Queens as an individual landmark. The architectural firm of Berger and Baylies designed the factory as well as many of the warehouses and lofts in Tribeca historic districts.

Though not as well known as the nearby Steinway Piano Factory in Astoria, Sohmer was a significant manufacturer in the late nineteenth and early … <Read More>