Monday, October 8, 2007

QBG will restore part of Flushing River

This is in response to my recent post on the Flushing River. Having taken today's Open House tour of the Queens Botanical Garden's new administration building, I was impressed by their master plan, which would include partially restoring the section of Kissena Creek that runs through the QBG property.

Their new building is one of only 16 in the nation that has a Platinum LEED designation for sustainability. 20 percent of its energy comes from the sun. Its green rooftop is some 50 degrees cooler than a conventional black tar rooftop. (85F compared to 140F on a summer day)

-mazeartist

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

The problem is.....
QBG's plan isn't exactly cost effective
in the long run.

Ask any expert.....the high cost of keeping up
this state of the art facility will outweigh
any savings.

Don't worry.....it will probably all get passed along
to the taxpayers.

Maybe Susan Lacerte might agree to cut her....
was it $95,000..... yearly salary
by a third to help defer the future cost of hiring
a technical staff that will be required
to maintain this operation.

Anonymous said...

Oh.....I get it.....
the new QBG will serve as Flushing's toilet !

Pull the handle....and....
Baaa-wooosh....flush that river clean !

Anonymous said...

it's great that the QBG's new administrative building will be environmentally friendly but not so cool that it will be taking up additional park land. If officials needed a place to sip lattes they could've just walked down to Main Street.

Anonymous said...

Experts were consulted on this master plan. It appears that the QBG is becoming more than a botanical garden, but also a showcase of sustainable architecture and landscaping. Unlike the sprawling NYBG, the QBG's land is limited.

Nevertheless, the QBG wants to compete with the Brooklyn BG and NYBG for visitors and attention. The new building will put the QBG on the AIA Guide, among other NYC guide books.

Maybe at some point in the future, the much larger and unused Kissena Park Corridor can be put to use as an expansion of the Botanical Garden.

Anyway, for now, the QBG provides a stark contrast with the growing skyline of downtown Flushing. The Kissena Corridor was recently turned into a hospital parking lot. Another reason to appreciate the beauty of QBG.

Anonymous said...

The "experts" that QBG hired "Mazeartist".
They sure weren't independent consultants!

And leave Kissena Corridor alone.....
except that they could daylight the streams
that run through it to Kissena Park Lake.

Anonymous said...

Does the last "anonymous" prefer that the QBG not built anything? There is a reason why Queens is often an afterthought on the architectural and tourist trails of NYC.

With its new landmark building, the QBG will put Queens on the map.

Anonymous said...

SK,

The Kissena Corridor park was paved over. I guess you think that was a good idea. And why do you think that this building in a botanical garden that most New Yorkers don't even know exists will put Queens on the map?

Anonymous said...

"The new building will put the QBG on the AIA Guide, among other NYC guide books."

The AIA Guide is a joke. You should see some of the ugly pieces of crap it lists. Like a boring fugly one-story bank on 48th Street in Woodside.

georgetheatheist said...

I can't wait for the new pool to open.

[Maybe they can throw Helen Marshall and Claire Shulman in it after the ribbon-cutting?]

Anonymous said...

Dear, "SK".....
I prefer that QBG build something
that is TRULY SELF MAINTAINING....
and not cost a bundle to retrofit 10 years down the line.

You really DON'T KNOW
anything about aquatic engineering do you ? !!!

Anonymous said...

Hey..."SK"....it's build not "built".

Can't you even use proper English?

Anonymous said...

Why do they have such a hard time
keeping staff at QBG ?

Anonymous said...

wow, these anonymous posters are tougher critics than Simon Cowell! If they have their own architectural designs, let them post it.

Anonymous said...

simon cowell, hmmm? Well M. could've compared us to Paula -- which would've been worse.

ps good post anyway Maze. Though I disagree with your assessment of the QBG building it was an interesting read.

Anonymous said...

Hey...."maze......
why don't you post your plans
where the sun doesn't shine !

Anonymous said...

mazeartist or BS artist ?
Somebody's up somebody's ass !