City Council approves Flushing Creek luxury housing and hotel plan

 

 QNS

The City Council’s Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises and its Committee on Land Use on Wednesday, Dec. 9, voted in favor of approving the Special Flushing Waterfront District — a 29-acre proposal that would bring waterfront access, environmental cleanup and new development to a decades-long isolated and polluted section of downtown Flushing.

The proposal will now move forward to the full council for a final vote on Thursday, Dec. 10. 

After delaying the vote on the matter in recent days, the council’s Subcommittee on Zoning had announced reaching a deal with the labor unions, Hotel Trades Council (HTC) and SEIU 32BJ, to ensure good jobs, community benefits and more for the Special Flushing Waterfront District (SFWD).

According to Councilman Francisco Moya, chair of the Subcommittee on Zoning, it was imperative for the committee to reach a deal that met with the union’s demands. 

“As I stated from the very beginning, it would have been irresponsible to approve this application without commitments to provide good-paying jobs for local community members and deep community benefits like real affordable housing,” Moya said. “I have always stood by my brothers and sisters in labor, 32BJ and HTC.” 

The developers of SFWD — F&T Group, Young Nian Group, United Construction and Development Group known as FWRA LLC. — said they have worked tirelessly with community members for years to activate what is currently an empty and polluted waterfront and finally give Flushing the future it deserves.

“This is a pivotal vote for New York City’s economic recovery, especially for a hardworking immigrant community like Flushing,” the group said in a statement. “We deeply appreciate the Council members’ support in moving Flushing forward, particularly the leadership of Council member Peter Koo, Chairs Francisco Moya and Rafael Salamanca, and Speaker Corey Johnson.”

 That hotel might actually come in handy with all the homeless people that will be produced from the gentrification this will cause. Especially with rents going up in Flushing during a pandemic. Happy Holidays.

Peter Koo got mugged

AM New York

A Queens lawmaker who was assaulted and mugged by three masked assailants is offering his gratitude to local authorities for taking swift action in arresting the individuals. 

On Thursday, April 9, as he was returning to his Downtown Flushing home from a walk, City Councilman Peter Koo was confronted by the three attackers in the lobby of his building. 

As words were exchanged and Koo attempted to call 911, the assailants tried to steal his phone, according to the councilman. Koo held on to his phone and continued to scream at the muggers, at which point they ran off. 

After contacting the 109th Precinct, officers later arrested two of the assailants shortly after they robbed another person several blocks away. 

Describing it as a “frightening encounter” Koo said he maintained his composure to the best of his ability and contacted the police immediately with the descriptions and the direction they were heading. 

Illegal truck lot was very bad neighbor

From the Times Ledger:

From December 2017 to March 2018 there were several complaints made to the city Department of Buildings regarding illegal commercial vehicle storage.

Hollingworth said he and neighbors, who are mostly elderly, did not know who to turn to. He said they felt hopeless when 311 was not taking action. Hollingworth contacted Times Ledger on March 14 where he was directed to DOB and City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) for further assistance. Two days later on March 16 DOB inspected the lot and issued violations for illegal commercial use of the property in a residential area. The violations had a cure date of April 25 or a date by which the property owner was compelled to correct the violating conditions. DOB’s padlock unit also sent a warning letter to the property owner April 17 directing him to cease illegal use of the lot.

Neighbors speculate that Frank Camisi loaned the lot to Arnoldo and told him if he cleaned the lot out for him, he would be able to park his trucks there for free or at a low rate.

On April 22 neighbors said the the truckers were gone from the lot, but debris remained that reminded them of their misery.

Video Voter Guide: Council Districts 20 & 23

These 2 incumbents are presented without their challengers, who failed to record videos for the voter guide.

What killed the Flushing Creek fish?

From the Queens Tribune:

With reports last week of “thousands of dead fish” floating in Flushing Creek, the city’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) placed the blame on predatory TK fish, which the agency said chased the defenseless fish into low-oxygen areas where they ultimately died.

But Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) and local environmentalists tell a different story, blaming the deaths of the fish on the polluted conditions in the creek, where the city is currently looking to reduce combined sewage overflows (CSOs). These are instances where, during heavy rainfall, sewage-treatment plants cannot handle the increased load, and a combination of excess rainwater and untreated sewage seeps into local waterways.

On Aug. 11, Koo used the deaths of the fish as evidence that the city should rethink its long-term control plan for Flushing Creek and Flushing Bay—which is the DEP’s plan to reduce CSOs. Alongside environmentalists, Koo argued that the plan’s use of chlorine to disinfect the waters could have a negative impact on the waters’ ecosystems, and that the city should invest in increasing the capacity of the area’s sewage infrastructure.

The DEP also says it sampled the waters the Monday before the fish kill, which occurred on Aug. 9, and found sufficient oxygen to support marine life. Additionally, it says the rain that occurred that Monday was all captured by the $350 million sewer overflow tank. It argues that fish kills like this have happened before, and if the water conditions were at fault, the predatory fish would be dying as well. The DEP is building green infrastructure in the area to capture stormwater before it enters the sewer system.

But marine immunologist James Cervino, who is the chairman of Community Board 7’s environmental committee, said that he analyzed the dead fish and concluded that the fish were killed by polluted waters. He said that had the fish been killed off in a predatory event, there would be “massive lesions and bitemarks.”

“There [are] no bitemarks,” he said. “Some of the fish have been eaten by blue fish and chased, which is a normal process, but a majority of fish that died off were due to a harmful algal bloom.”

What the hell is a TK fish?

Part 1 of Queens Tribune's city council debate

Featuring: Hiram Monseratte, Rory Lancman, Peter Koo, Alison Tan, Paul Vallone, Paul Graziano, Elizabeth Crowley and Robert Holden

Downtown Flushing is more chaotic than ever

From NBC:

Downtown Flushing — already teeming with people and vehicles on sidewalks and streets — has become all the more chaotic amid simultaneous work on sidewalks and a sinkhole.

Two major construction projects are happening in the vicinity of Main Street and Kissena Boulevard. Nearly two dozen bus lines roll through the bustling area.

The city is making emergency sewer repairs to fix the sinkhole. The DEP showed up last week, and with no notice, brought a backhoe and jackhammer to fix the mess. The result: absolute gridlock.

Flushing Councilman Peter Koo said he called the commissioner of the city’s Department of Environmental Protection. That call, and others, convinced the DEP to switch gears within 24 hours. Now the repair work is being done overnight when streets are less busy.

Amid the effort to fix the sinkhole, crews are working on widening the area’s sidewalks. The result has been a dizzying mishmash of bodies, vehicles, signs, detours and construction cones.

Ron Kim's wife is challenging Peter Koo

From the Times Ledger:

Alison Tan, wife of Assemblyman Ron Kim (D-Flushing), surprised many when she announced her run for City Council at Community Board 7’s May meeting.

The managing director of Ackman-Ziff Real Estate Group has no political experience, but plans to challenge two-term Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) in the September primaries. She has listed quality-of-life issues as her main platform.

The 20th District covers Flushing, Auburndale and part of Whitestone.

Tan has lived in Flushing with her husband for six years. She said raising two daughters in the area inspired her to run and fix issues she believes Koo won’t address.

“I have friends who have had to move out of the district because living here is unbearable,” she said in an interview with TimesLedger Newspapers. “Koo is not a strong advocate, Koo doesn’t fight for quality-of-life issues. Our district deserves better. All you have to do is look around us and you can see how he failed. He’s been councilman for eight years, and what do we have to show for it? Flushing is more polluted than ever, we don’t have the resources to survive, we deserve a better public advocate in City Hall.”

As for Koo, he has welcomed the competition from Tan and said he has been endorsed by her husband.

Tan said working in the private sector as a manager has prepared her for City Council. Tan was responsible for billions of dollars in development and was held accountable for her performance.

The Ackman-Ziff website says Tan has handled over $7 billion in commercial real estate capital market transactions.

Bowne Street Church designated a landmark by LPC

From the Queens Tribune:

The Bowne Street Community Church is en route to being landmarked by the city after a decade-long wait.

The City Council’s Landmarks Committee, led by Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing), unanimously voted on Tuesday to approve the church’s designation. That was followed by a vote of approval by the Council’s Land Use Committee on Wednesday. The decision will be finalized with a full City Council vote next week, where the measure is expected to pass.

The designation was first sought by members of the community in 2002 after the church’s building committee proposed demolishing the building to allow the development of a 20-story residential building in exchange for a new church and a $1 million payment, according to Koo’s office. It was initially slated for designation in 2003 by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), but had been delayed over negotiations and backlogged until this past December, when the LPC voted in favor of designation.

The original 2003 proposal would have designated the entire lot, including a parking lot and annex. That became a point of discussion throughout the church’s designation process as Koo worked with LPC to redraw the designation map to exclude the parking lot and annex, leaving the church with 100,000 square feet of potential development rights and still preserving the original structure of the Bowne Street Church. The current designation applies only to the exterior walls and windows of the church.

Taking out the trash in Flushing

From the Queens Chronicle:

Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) announced that Flushing’s “Restaurant Row” — a block of 40th Road between Prince Street and Main Street — will receive 150 45-gallon pails from Crown Container Company on Tuesday to help clean it up.

“40th Road has always been a challenging part of Flushing,” Koo said. “Crown Container has been an outstanding partner in Flushing, and we are grateful that they have supplied these waste receptacles and new trucks to address the sanitation problems of 40th Road.”

Distribution of the pails began on Monday.

The container company recently bought $300,000 worth of equipment for sanitation on 40th Road and other sections of the neighborhood. Crown also will begin to use a new truck that has a cart tipper which will work to keep the containers from spilling. The collections will happen at 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.

So this company is helping clean up NYC, yet NYC still wants to take away their land for a shitty Willets Point project that will never happen. Okay.

Management company taken to task

From the Queens Tribune:

Residents from across seven Flushing buildings gathered at St. George’s Episcopal Church to voice concerns over recent actions by New Jersey-based development company Treetop Development, which owns the buildings in question. The corporation has been exploiting loopholes to raise rents and drive low-income residents out of their apartments in order to begin gentrifying the area, the residents argued.

The meeting was organized by the Flushing Rezoning Community Alliance. Faith in New York, an interfaith organization, was also in attendance. Andrew Hausermann, the director of Organizing for Faith in New York, explained that the organization had heard many complaints from residents in the seven buildings, which Treetop purchased six months ago.

“This company, Treetop, has a bad history,” Hausermann said to the hundred or so residents in attendance. “They have a history of buying rent-stabilized units in neighborhoods that they say are soon upcoming neighborhoods, might be gentrifying neighborhoods, and they’ll buy these rent-stabilized buildings, run out the low-income tenants and then sell the buildings for a big profit.”

Hausermann also said that the company was accused of similar practices in Williamsburg and Harlem.

Among the chief complaints raised by residents is what they say is a loophole in New York State law that allows for permanent rent increases in rent-stabilized units. Landlords can implement these raises to fund construction projects called major capital improvements. These MCI increases are problematic, Hausermann explained, because even after the project is funded, the rent increase can remain in place, which could drive low-income tenants out. When the rent reaches a certain threshold, it eliminates the rent-stabilization designation, Hausermann said. These concerns have been raised in the wake of a high level of construction going on around the buildings.

One building in question, 132-40 Sanford Ave., received a stop-work order after Councilmember Peter Koo (D-Flushing) voiced concerns raised by constituents. A June stop-work order complaint on the Department of Buildings website said that workers were “removing asbestos without protection” and cited debris in the hallway. Another complaint from July said that work resumed at the site despite the stop-work order.

Flushing West seems to be permanently dead

From the Times Ledger:

The city’s abrupt decision to withdraw its plans to rezone Flushing West, which would have brought 1,600 units of housing to the downtown area, has drawn mixed reactions from the community.

Some say it was a good move due to key infrastructural problems for which the city did not have concrete solutions, while others say it was a missed opportunity for the community.

Mayor Bill de Blasio’s proposal sought to clean up and rezone 60 acres on the Flushing waterfront and form a planned community with waterfront access for housing and commercial space.

Although State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) was the first elected official to oppose the plan and was joined by state Assemblyman Ron Kim (D-Flushing), the project fell apart when Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) asked for it to be withdrawn in a May 27 letter to City Planning Chairman Carl Weisbrod.

Koo cited the ongoing problems with airplane noise from LaGuardia Airport and the need for remediation in Flushing Creek as the key factors motivating his shift in opinion. He alsmo mentioned other issues, such as the proposed development’s proximity to the overcrowded No. 7 train.

He said the city could decide to pursue the proposal again in a year or two if tangible solutions are made to fix the problems.

“The residents would be very unhappy if they lived there, all these airplanes coming in the morning — it would drive them crazy,” he said. “Flushing Creek is so dirty. I wouldn’t want to stay there for 10 minutes, let alone 24 hours and every day.”

City Planning said it could revisit Flushing West if those issues are resolved.

And I'm sure Flushing Creek will be cleaned up and LaGuardia Airport will close soon.

Major construction coming to Main Street

From DNA Info:

The city is launching a nearly $8 million project to widen bustling Main Street, one of the busiest pedestrian corridors in the five boroughs, officials said.

The roadway will also be resurfaced and rebuilt, and manholes, fire hydrants, sewers and water mains will be replaced — the first overhaul in two decades, according to officials.

During the construction project — which begins Monday, July 25, and will last approximately a year — the community will experience inconveniences and changes, Councilman Peter Koo warned.

But the major revamp will have more long-term benefits to everyone, including adding as much as 8 feet of space on some sidewalks, he said.

Flushing West dead

From the Crains:

The de Blasio administration abruptly scrapped plans to rezone a portion of Flushing, Queens, last week in response to problems with the proposal. The neighborhood was set to be one of 15 areas that would be targeted for residential development in order to advance the mayor’s affordable-housing agenda.

On Friday, City Councilman Peter Koo, who represents the area, sent a letter to the Department of City Planning outlining his objections to turning 11 industrial blocks between the polluted Flushing Creek and the terminus of the No. 7 train into a new neighborhood, Flushing West, that would include retail, open space and affordable apartments. That same day, the head of the department wrote back that the city shared many of his concerns, and would withdraw its plan.

"We will turn our attention and our priority to planning efforts to other neighborhoods," wrote Carl Weisbrod, head of the planning department.

The about-face means that the city will have to look for another neighborhood to be part of the 15 rezonings Mayor Bill de Blasio promised in the spring of 2014, when he announced his Housing New York plan. So far, the city has approved its first overhaul in Brooklyn's East New York and has announced similar intentions for a handful of other areas in the city.

A rezoned Flushing West would have potentially sprouted 1,600 apartments, affordable and market-rate. But Koo envisioned a number of complications along with strains on the area’s infrastructure and transportation, some of which resonated with city officials.

Ok, so does Shulman have to give back her grant money now?

Kim & Koo want filthy Flushing LIRR station cleaned

From the Queens Chronicle:

“This is one of the worst Long Island Rail Road stations,” Koo said. “Our station doesn’t match the quality of life we deserve.”

The grassy area below the station, as anyone who’s been to the depot knows, is littered with trash.

“So, I’m asking the MTA representative here to relay my message to the MTA: Keep the station clean! Maintain it!” the councilman said, looking at Baptitse. “Look at the trash here! It’s a disgrace to our community!”

Koo, who added that when he rides the train, other passengers complain to him about the station’s issues, clarified that his anger was not directed at the project manager personally.

“I know you’re just the messenger. I am not blaming it on you but please relay my concern,” the councilman said. “I have been talking about this since I came into office.”

After the press conference, Koo directed heated words at the station’s manager, too.

“This is a great disgrace to our community, that we have such a lousy station here,” Koo told the Queens Chronicle, adding that he would follow up with MTA. “I want to put them on notice that we want this station cleaned.”

Speaking to reporters after the photo op, Kim also expressed concern about the trash at the station, but voiced confidence that it will be fixed in the future.

“Flushing produces the most jobs than any neighborhood in the city of New York,” Kim said. “Once we upgrade the entire station, I’m confident that all of this stuff will go away.”

Still, he added, reaching out to the MTA to make sure that the station’s trash is cleaned up will be the “next move.”

“And then, we have to follow up with education and outreach and making sure people maintain it and making sure we have enough MTA workers to maintain it,” Kim added.

Take over our parkland, please!

From the Daily News:

Several Queens lawmakers are throwing their support behind a controversial plan to rent out Flushing Meadows Corona Park for a Coachella-like music festival next summer, the Daily News has learned.

“The Panorama Music Festival will provide a fantastic opportunity for Queens to take its rightful place as a New York City showcase,” U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-Queens) said in a statement.

Several promoters, including concert giant AEG, have asked the city for permits to hold music festivals in the sprawling park that hosted both the 1939 and 1964 World’s Fairs. The Parks Department said it is reviewing all of the applications and has not made a final decision on any of them.

But AEG’s Goldenvoice division won over Crowley, along with City Council members Julissa Ferreras Copeland, Karen Koslowitz and Peter Koo, after promising to donate a portion of ticket sales to the newly formed Flushing Meadows Corona Park Alliance.

Did you notice that 2 of these are the same pols who sponsored the council legislation for the amicus brief in favor of taking away parkland for a mall? Why do Koslowitz and Koo want money toward the Alliance that they have been frozen out of?

Does anything these people do make sense?

No high school for Linden Place

From the Times Ledger:

City Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña has decided the city Department of Education will no longer be placing a high school inside its building at 30-48 Linden Place after significant community opposition to the proposal, elected officials and community leaders said Friday.

After receiving confirmation in July from DOE staff that the site would be used for a high school for more than 450 students, City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) met with Farina to express his opposition to the proposal due to student safety and traffic congestion concerns.

Koo made the announcement at a news conference in front of the building Friday afternoon, along with state Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Flushing); Arlene Fleishman, president of the Mitchell-Linden Civic Association; and Chuck Apelian, first vice chairman of Community Board 7.

“Maybe the chancellor realized this is not a good place to put a high school,” Koo said.

At the meeting, Fariña told Koo the plans to build a high school would no longer go forward. Koo’s office received written confirmation from DOE staff.

Koo asks FAA to divert flight paths

From the Times Ledger:

City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) is calling on the Department of City Planning to work with the Federal Aviation Administration to consider reverting to LaGuardia Airport’s old flight paths if it cannot resolve the airplane noise issue.

Before 2012, flight paths were routed over Citi field, the tennis stadium and Flushing Meadows Corona Park but would be diverted over Flushing during the US Open. But in 2012, the FAA approved the Flushing flight path for general use.

In a response dated Dec. 2, to a draft document of the environmental impact statement for the proposed Flushing West waterfront development plan, Koo said low- flying planes and the noise have caused health concerns for residents in his district. He noted that the proposed development area would be directly under LGA’s current flight pattern.

Koo, who lives in downtown Flushing, said the FAA has not conducted a comprehensive review of the flight paths approved in 2012 and said he keeps his patio door closed because of the noise.

Because what Flushing needs is hordes more people

From the Times Ledger:

At a public scoping meeting hosted by the Department of City Planning on the Flushing West rezoning proposal last week, City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) expressed concerns about many aspects of the project.

The Flushing West plan would create opportunities for mixed-income housing, community facilities, economic development and new public access areas along the Flushing Creek waterfront within a roughly 11-block area in the western portion of downtown Flushing, according to the City Planning document outlining the rezoning proposal.

The 47-acre area is bounded by Northern Boulevard, Prince Street, Roosevelt Avenue, College Point Boulevard, 40th Road and Flushing Creek, the document states.

Koo said the de Blasio’s administra­tion’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing tool could help create more than 500 additional affordable housing units, but it is unclear how the policy would benefit the variety of income levels in downtown Flushing.

Koo not sold on Flushing West project

From the Queens Tribune:

At a public scoping meeting on Tuesday, Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) said the pollution of Flushing Creek was a huge concern for the Flushing West Rezoning Proposal.

The Department of City Planning is proposing zoning changes to a portion of Downtown Flushing along Flushing Creek, which they say will increase affordable housing and create a pedestrian-friendly waterfront.

But Koo said he feared no one would want to live in the area, or utilize the waterfront for recreational purposes, if the creek was not cleaned up.

“As we know, the creek is basically a cesspool that fills up whenever it rains. No one wants to go near it, because it stinks. I still haven’t heard a real solution for a sustainable creek. I expected Flushing West will change that, otherwise, who wants to live there?” he said.

Currently, the Tallman Island Wastewater Treatment Plant handles Flushing’s sewage. But the facility works over capacity, so when rainstorms flood the City’s sewer lines, the combined sewage and run-off from city streets is dumped straight into the Creek without being treated.

Koo said city planners had to address the root of the problem.

“The ongoing dredging of the Creek is great, but it’s only a temporary fix to an ongoing problem. The entire creek must be dredged, and more importantly, new capacity must be built,” he said. “We need to be sure that the department of environmental protection and the army core of engineers are involved in the planning and implementation of Flushing West.”

He also cautioned against overly sweet deals for developers, who would already be attracted to the area. “The challenge here is not getting the market to invest, but to make sure the investments meet the needs of the community,” he said.