Went to Astoria the other day with the family to get some lunch at Astor Bake Shop. After eating, took a walk up the hill past the current abomination that is St. George's Church (replete with Fedder-box'd senior center literally attached to the amazing 19th-century church ...), with the intention of visiting one of my favorite homes still standing form the Old Astoria and saw this right next to my favorite house.
For-Sale signs up, it's not hard to wonder what will soon be there, other than more of just went up next door.
This city sucks. It literally hates anything of beauty. - anonymous
Guess which council member shot down the contextual rezoning proposal for Old Astoria?
13 comments:
Small potatoes!
Take a look at what was once the most glorious nabes in Flushing..."Waldheim" is a ghost of the late Victorian treasure trove it once was.
Astoria is far too close to Manhattan.
Get used to this kind of thing.
It will soon be obliterated by a tsunami
of over development overspill.
Move further way out east.
At least the destruction won't reach there
for at least 60 years hence.
Blame the owners too.
They're the ones that are putting this home up for sale.
But only a dope would put a deed restriction...protecting the home from demolition...
into a sale contract and devalue their property.
Sorry, asshat -
This "dope" is happy with having put a deed restriction on his house and property, protecting it from being destroyed by developers should I decide to sell it. It honors the wishes of the previous owner and his family, who graciously sold it to me for well under market rate.
There ARE things more important than money to some people...obviously not to this disgruntled troll who left town in a hurry (and probably sold his house to a developer) and lives in exile somewhere, fulminating about his lost life by writing bitter statements about how everyone should give up like he did.
Get a life!
Paul Graziano
This is a fault of preservation community.
They need Vallone's vote to approve their districts, so they are MIA when it comes to providing this community information and help.
Contrast the Landmark Conservancy and Historic Districts Council with other citywide groups like Transportation Alternatives and Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance that get their local agendas addressed (think Newtown Road 'public plaza') even against opposition, or since its Astoria, widespread community apathy.
Check out the pictures of the inside. WOW.
http://www.redfin.com/NY/Long-Island-City/2629-14th-St-11102/home/20948283
It cracks me up how people are in such a hurry to leave Queens and sell their house to the highest bidding developer, then they spend their lives on Facebook and other websites, remeniscing with the other white-flighters about "the good old days in the old neighborhood".
Nice house and taxes are only 3,500.
INDEED...
there is certainly more to life than money...
as many of you bitter greedy old trolls will soon discover, when it comes your time to leave it.
This is a unique and beautifully handcrafted home...
unlike the shoddy shit that's adjacent to it.
It well deserves...and is strong enough to stand
for years and years to come...as an example of our human capacity to create such wonders.
A haunting question lingers in my mind.
Where was the Greater Ass-toria Hysterical Society
when this kind of crap was starting to happen?
Did they help drop the (wrecking?) ball
on Old Astoria village by sitting on the side lines?.
Maybe they were too busy avoiding making waves with the Vallone dynasty who supports this kind of destruction and development.
The fear of losing political funding syndrome
keeps most historical societies mute.
Behave yourself and get money.
These kind of emasculated historical orgs
make me puke!
Every time a see a Vallone I need a Vallium.
That scurvy family have been Astoria's undertakers.
They've helped bury a lot of great architecture
in exchange for their personal political gain
and developers' campaign contributions.
BTW...WTF is going on with the Steinway Mansion?
We don't see any of the Vallones supporting NYC buying it at the bargain price that's being asked.
Those phony Valloneys
have been screwing Astoria for years!
Every request by the community for landmark designation is rejected.
Every request.
The landmarks law should be overturned - it is discriminatory.
It sounds like Mr. B.S. throwing some of his usual BS again from the tone of that last comment.
But what has the Greater Astoria Historical Society
actually accomplished in the past...
that was genuinely proactive
in pushing for landmarking in their nabe?
Very little that we can see...judging by all of the tear-downs within their territory.
Have they even spoken up
to stop the destructive trend?
We can't hear you boys and girls!
They'll not ruffle the Vallones' feathers.
That would be their death knell.
Mounting exhibits...book sales...holding meetings...
compiling surveys...are the bulk of such
do-very-little groups.
It's ineffective groups like this
that need to be de-funded...instead of overturning of the landmarks law.
I just bought this house. Consider it saved. A developer will destroy it over my dead body.
Post a Comment