Thursday, August 28, 2008

A moment we've all been waiting for

Miss Heather brings us word that the ugliest building in Queens - the parking garage at Queens Plaza - is about to be demolished.

Hip, hip, hooray!

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yea, and what is going into its place?

A monster of a building on one of the busiest intersections in the boro of Queens.

Lets see a rendering Crappy so they know what I am talking about.

Anonymous said...

don't know that I've ever hada prayer answered before so specifically, but I shudder to think what they'll replace it with.

Anonymous said...

Why are you all so afraid of big buildings? Really NYC may not for be for you.

Anonymous said...

We grew up with tall buildings. in Manhattan. Queens was always low rise and enjoyable. Once you go big, there's no going back.

Anonymous said...

This is a terrible thing. Tishman Speyer plans to build a 20 floor glass skyscraper. I think its asinine to replace a parking lot with a building that is going to bring more cars to the area. As developer Joshua Muss once said "A footstep has been set in Queens, it can never be taken back" Once skyscrapers go up, they don't come down because it is very expensive to bring them down. This is the beginning of the end for the area, pretty soon no individual will be able to afford to buy a parcel of property there just like in Manhattan.
Thanks a lot Bloomberg

Anonymous said...

The structure that destoyed and contiues to blight Queensboro Plaza is the elevated "sub"way. Has anyone every seen photos of the grand sweeping open space that was the 'plaza before the tracks went up? it was truly the gatewat to Queens. And had the city not brought mass transporation to in, at least not that way, Queens would be a very different place today. For better or worse.

Anonymous said...

Why are you all so afraid of big buildings? Really NYC may not for be for you.Skyscrapers have the nasty tenancy of skyrocketing property values into a very high range. Most New Yorkers (with the average income being around 48K) will be priced out of this and even the affluent will have to settle for renting or sharing ownership in some overpriced shoebox condominium. New York was structured in a very efficient manner, where the skyscrapers were all in Manhattan. And the outer boroughs were mostly low rise and affordable residential. Due to massive real estate speculation the developers are being priced out of Manhattan. The construction of these buildings will set a precedent for further development within the affected borough and the Manhattan speculation problem will spread to the other boroughs. Maybe they should try to fix the problem rather than spreading it to the outer boroughs and making this city unaffordable to most of its residents.

Anonymous said...

Why are you all so afraid of big buildings? Really NYC may not for be for you.

once upon a time, sonny, they were planned.

we dont plan these days.

all they do is divert city resources (read my taxes) to make someone rich.

they dont do a thing for me.

kapish?

Anonymous said...

"Skyscrapers have the nasty tenancy of skyrocketing property values into a very high range."

Yes, I own property, so I'm looking forward to that. Sucks to be a renter though...

The fix to the problem is building more high ride buildings. Its simple supply and demand. The greater the supply of apartments, the lower the cost will be. NYC is a very desirable place to live. We need places to house the future lawyers, bankers, hedge fund managers, etc. that make this city run. Two story houses are not desirable and will not solve the problem.

Anonymous said...

That argument would make sense if we knew how many people were here, how many were moving in and if pat experience proved your point true. But we just went through the biggest building boom since the early 20th century and prices are through the roof. Building luxury condos doesn't help house people who need it most.

Anonymous said...

"Yes, I own property, so I'm looking forward to that. Sucks to be a renter though..."

Are you also looking forward to your property taxes quadrupling? This overdevelopment hurts everyone's pocketbook.

Anonymous said...

"Are you also looking forward to your property taxes quadrupling? This overdevelopment hurts everyone's pocketbook."

When property values go up RE taxes typically move up as well. Small price to pay for the additional equity I'm building. If RE taxes were going down I'd be worried. My pocketbook is looking pretty good as a result of developemnt. Property I bought 10 years ago is now worth 10 times what I paid for it today. I will retire off this money. Every day a developer is knock on my door asking me to sell. Let them build!

Anonymous said...

Rentar Plaza on Metropolitan is a WAY bigger piece of shit than this parking garage could have ever dreamed to be.

"My pocketbook is looking pretty good as a result of developemnt. Property I bought 10 years ago is now worth 10 times what I paid for it today. I will retire off this money. Every day a developer is knock on my door asking me to sell. Let them build!"

People like this definitley ensure a healthy future for your neighborhoods. Please sell your current properties and move to Transylvania. I hear you can make a bundle down there flipping land with all the real estate speculators looking for that final dream castle to retire to.

Anonymous said...

Every day a developer is knock on my door asking me to sell. Let them build
*******

KMA !
When they come to my door tell them to go F- themselves not for sale.
The Asians been knocking on all the doors from Little Neck to Port Washington.

My school tax went from $1800 in 1990 to $7200 in 2007 due to all this building and influx of Illegel Lat-tweeders that cant control themselves or use birth control.

I couldnt cash a check in Bank of America, all the tellers were busy helping perhaps 50 Lat-tweeders read and fill out Money Orders to Mexico and Centeral America.
I got so pissed I closed my account and demanded my $$ in cash.

Try retiring in N Carolina or Florida...all rednecks golfers, ex- Wall a**holes and golfers down there.
I rather live and die in Jackson Heights befor that route.

No more building !!
The more they build the more people come.
Who TF wants Queens and Nassau county to become another Los Angelos.

----Sit in yout car 4 hours a day to do anything.
Look at the working women over there. There asses are all wide and flat !!
The ocean waters are all polluted from LAX to Magic Mountain in Ventura.
Its a fact

These is where this island is headed

Anonymous said...

We need places to house the future lawyers, bankers, hedge fund managers, etc. that make this city run.

Excuse YOU, anonymous, but those people do NOT make ths city run! They make MONEY run. People who make this city run are small business owners, property owners who CARE about the community in which they own their property (i.e. they LIVE on the property they own), and others who actually contribute to their community.

I bet you live miles away from the property you own as an investment, and couldn't care less what it looks like as long as you're making money from it.

Ugh.

Anonymous said...

Rising property values and the rising taxes that come along with them are fine if you're planning to sell out and move somewhere else. If you actually like New York, if you like your community, they're generally a disaster. I don't know how long the boom is going to be sustained here, though. If you're selling, I'd sell now.

Anonymous said...

Lawyers, bankers, hedge fund managers do make this city run. Without them who would buy all the good and services that support the blue collar jobs in the area? There was a recent study that says one of those white collar jobs support like 5-10 other blue collar jobs. Chances are your job is directly dependant on some hedge fund manager blowing his 7-figure bonus. If they left NYC would quickly revert back to what it looked like in the 1970s.

Anonymous said...

I am sad to see it go. As strange as it looked, it blended in with the scenery. They built the Citicorp building just up the road and that didn't thing too much. I wonder if Rikers will still dump the inmates off @ 5am once the area gets built up...

Anonymous said...

The city needs people of all incomes and social strata. Acting like you're better than someone else because of the car you drive or where you live is really petty and just shows you have a serious ego problem that you should get help for.

Anonymous said...

Hey, it's not tall buildings that suck, its thoughtless, poorly planned, designed and thought out buildings that get MY goat. The two new ones over in Eastern LIC with concrete walls facing Queens are my latest humbugs. Building can be imaginative and creative, but these days it is base avarice.

once upon a time, sonny, they were planned.
we don't plan these days.
all they do is divert city resources

Anonymous said...

The fix to the problem is building more high ride buildings. Its simple supply and demand. The greater the supply of apartments, the lower the cost will be. NYC is a very desirable place to live. We need places to house the future lawyers, bankers, hedge fund managers, etc. that make this city run. Two story houses are not desirable and will not solve the problem.
-----------

There was a time, sonny, when the streets would be clogged with traffic.

Ya know what they did?

Well they added two lanes.

Ya know what happened?

The four lanes became clogged.

Ya know what they did?

Well they added two more lanes.

Ya know what happened?

They became clogged.

Ya know wha they did?

They wised up. They realized that you could never build enough highways to satisfy the needs of cars.

Now substitute cars for people.

Anonymous said...

There was a recent study that says one of those white collar jobs support like 5-10 other blue collar jobs.

I would love to see a link to that study or whatever article you saw it mentioned in, so I could decide for myself whether it was valid or not. Just because you read something in the newspaper (or a blog) doesn't make it true.

Chances are your job is directly dependant on some hedge fund manager blowing his 7-figure bonus.

No, actually I work in the music publishing industry and my job is dependent on people receiving decent educations that include the arts. Some of our customers may have 7-figure bonuses, but we would be out of business if we depended on the country's top 5% of salary earners. Actually, I can only think of one friend/relative whose job is really dependent on hedge funds, and she works for the Ford Foundation. At least they are giving back to the larger community with their work.

If they left NYC would quickly revert back to what it looked like in the 1970s.

I doubt that. If the NYSE up and moved to Schenectady or something, NYC would definitely go through a transitory period, but more likely it would end up being a more manageable city, like Milwaukee or Kansas City or Pittsburgh. Those are much more humane places to live. Having been born and raised in NYC, traveling for work has opened my eyes to urban living that doesn't have to be so ugly and stressful. So until I decide to move away from my hometown, I'm going to work to make it a more humane and liveable place. Life should NOT just be about bigger, better, faster, more. Sorry for being on the pulpit.

Anonymous said...

There was a recent study that says one of those white collar jobs support like 5-10 other blue collar jobs.
-------------

Ummm, not sure exactly how you're figuring all this into your argument, but most white collar jobs don't have salaries with 7-figure bonues. Think: entry-level and middle management jobs in any office.

So yeah, many blue collar jobs are probably supported by white collar jobs, but not just highly paid lawyers, etc. I mean, firemen, policemen and sanitation workers are all blue collar jobs, but they're supported by taxpayers, not by the wealthy.

Anonymous said...

"I mean, firemen, policemen and sanitation workers are all blue collar jobs, but they're supported by taxpayers, not by the wealthy."

Who do you think pays the most taxes? The top 10% of income earners pay 70% of taxes. Take that away and watch how many firemen and policemen start getting laid off.

Trust me if NYC no longer took care of the yuppies, the city would really go to hell in a handbasket. Its real popular and cute to bash them, but they play a pivotal role in NYCs economic engine.

Anonymous said...

Milwaukee or Kansas City or Pittsburgh????? Urg. You can keep it. Please hurry up and move away. Is that really what Queens Crappers want???

Anonymous said...

The top 10% of income earners pay 70% of taxes.

Puhleez.

The top 10% of income earners have tax people who they pay to find ways NOT to pay taxes.

Milwaukee or Kansas City or Pittsburgh????? Urg.

Yeah, I'm so sure you've visited each of them recently so you're making an informed opinion. Good job!

Anonymous said...

I cant wait for this ugly thing to comedown. Hallelujah!! As for the building I heard it was going to be mostly government occupied, however I'm hoping for a grocery store and restaurants on the first floor.

Anonymous said...

but more likely it would end up being a more manageable city, like Milwaukee or Kansas City or Pittsburgh. Those are much more humane places to live.
.......
Having been born in Pittsburgh when it was the 10th largest city (and remembering with pride that it has the largest number of golf courses of any metro area and Brooks Brothers had branches only in New York, Chicago, and Pittsburgh), it is painful to watch its slow decline - there are entire commnities where the average age is 60-70.

They are closing firehouses and shutting down police stations and abondoning schools.

Hell its so bad, its one of the largest urban centers with almost no immigration.There has been no work for decades there.

Anonymous said...

"They are closing firehouses and shutting down police stations and abondoning schools."

Closing firehouses and high schools? Sounds like Queens. We didn't shut down police stations here, though, we just gave them an unlivable wage. God bless Bloomberg...