Sunday, January 17, 2016

More crap headed to Whitestone


Dear Crappie,

There goes another one in the neighborhood! I just found out that a lovely looking house that has been sitting vacant in Whitestone is going to bite the dust very soon. Take a look on the Department of Buildings site and look up 145-37 24th Avenue. They owners have been sitting on the house for nearly a year and went through multiple buildings and zoning applications to tear down a 1-family house and put a 2-family dwelling in its place. The approvals finally went through this week and they're going to gear up to start tearing down this house! Of course all of this is done under the guise of A1 minor alterations with some interior renovations but lets not kid ourselves. We all know that they're going to tear down all but half a wall and rebuild a giant house in its place with no yards and concrete everywhere.

Here's the kicker...punch in that same address on Google Street View and you'll see that the entire block is nothing but similar looking houses all built in the 30's with massive London Plane trees lining the entire block. This is a scene that is harder and harder to find in North Queens and now that this house mid-block has been approved for demolition, I see nothing but a domino effect on its way to take down this area.

I hope you shine a spotlight on this on your blog like you have in the past showing how great looking areas of Queens are turning crappy. I'll try to get pics of construction as it happens, since I'm sure they'll start tearing down within a few weeks.

Keep up the good work.

-James

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

If you are not located within a NYC historic district, expect change...and not for the better.
I'm in contract to sell my Beechurst home and have just put a deposit on a Criwn Heights 1880s historic townhouse.
Goodbye dull boring Queens!

(sarc) said...

However, I will wager that the new structure will be much more energy efficient than the existing old, cold, damp, and drafty houses that are there now...

Anonymous said...

Oh you don't know that this is the new new york now? Where we have to house all of china and korea?

Anonymous said...

Nevermind Whitestone. Look further west in Queens and you'll see how shitty the neighbirhoods are getting. Nothing but crappy poorly built brick boxes with windows and balconies. You can thank chinese investors and the city's building department for making it possible.

Anonymous said...

Make sure no one votes for DiBlasio EVER AGAIN!! He has done nothing but destroy any sort of beauty or architecturally significant homes and neighborhoods in Queens.

Anonymous said...

New York Values ?
Maybe Cruz had a point.

Anonymous said...

Please see 32nd Avenue from 205 to 202 streets? How about Corner of Corporal Kennedy and 38th Avenue?
How can DOB snd DEP and even FDNY, approve these with a straight face? Sewer cannot take in change from single to 4-Family home. The corruption in these city departmenta is untolerable.

Shan said...

House to small and no like sweep from tree. Americans have same opportunity to make money but no use it.

-Shan

Anonymous said...

This is a total ignominy because once that street is "block busted" with one zoning for a cement shitbox the Asian cash will swarm in and pickup the rest.
And make no oversight that nice big tree will be poisoned by spring.
R.I.P Whitestone, in 10 years that neighborhood will be un-recognizable.
This is what happens when people sit at home are watching ballgames when they should be at meetings, fighting, picketing, raising hell. A couple elderly folks with blue hair alone can not raise the bane needed to keep these corrupt politicians in check, It a lost sinking ship now.
These people should capture the cash money and sprint like hell because in most cases the kids can’t afford (or don wish) to live in Queens of the future anyway. 700K -900K can buy a Mansion on 5 acres in Sarasota, Texas, Louisiana. Low taxes, few democrats & immigrants and you don’t freeze you ass off with $1000 heating bills 4 months a year. That’s something to think about

Anonymous said...

Maybe Cruz had a point.

He is a total asshole. Goldman Sachs has his balls.

Anonymous said...

The corruption in these city departmenta is untolerable.

Bingo! And they start doing studies why the congestion.
Not to mention they take the increased property taxes, but the businesses being run out of residential areas pay $0 taxes otherwise.
The progressive liberals a dumber than doorknobs when it comes to math.

Anonymous said...

Oh you don't know that this is the new new york now? Where we have to house all of china and korea

Not sure about Korea, but the Chinese government is definitely involved with the Flooshing real estate transactions.
These peasants with no education and no big money businesses are not paying the asking prices.
Some of them are here for less than 5 years.
So where is the money coming from?
Could it be that China is the USA's largest creditor and they calling in the chips?
Just wondering.

Anonymous said...

A friend went to a 50 Anniversary Meeting for Landmarks held in Queens. Held at that money pit owned by shadowy Kaufman Organization (google the principals and you find ... nothing!) which is odd as it was not a landmarked building. Almost no one around the table was from Queens (except for a few token reps from Jimmy.)

Clair's name was mentioned as being one of the backers of the Kaufman District (to polite applause of those present)

Our boro historian, who has done nothing to promote the group to the boro was there 'representing' you and me and was asked to give a sketch on the entertainment industry in Queens - which was mercifully stopped in the 1930s so we could move on to other topics like saving the Frick Museum and a concert in an East Side Church.

The takeaway from this farce was that there is no place for Queens at the community preservation table. You all have to be aware of this and resolve to change this.

Start with that boro historian.

Anonymous said...

Please see 32nd Avenue from 205 to 202 streets? How about Corner of Corporal Kennedy and 38th Avenue?
How can DOB snd DEP and even FDNY, approve these with a straight face? Sewer cannot take in change from single to 4-Family home. The corruption in these city departmenta is untolerable.
----

That is why you have elected officials to represent you and your interests. The city will do what it knows it can do. Its your fault for being too damn polite with those in office and those in the media for running nothing but dreck on pols and developers.

Anonymous said...

Some of central and most of eastern Queens has the most suburban style, and architecturally desirable R1 and R2 zoned neighborhoods in all of NYC.
Don't take them for granted. They must be preserved. Don't complain, work to change NYC's archaic laws that allow for destroying and reducing the quality of life in these areas.

Anonymous said...

Don't complain, work to change NYC's archaic laws that allow for destroying and reducing the quality of life in these area.
-----
blah blah bullshit. don't play urban planner. they will waste your time running around in circles. they get paid to keep you out of the picture so donors take the stage.

DEMAND things change with your electeds and let them sweat the details. Go after them hammer and tongs publicly. and stop being so freakin polite to them!

Anonymous said...

need fit 16 relatives and only 3 will have job, so no can buy bigger house!

ps: me no like tree!

Anonymous said...

In the 1950s the typical racist joke was to ask how many Puerto Ricans could inhabit one apartment?
The answer usually was, about thirty.
In Victorian times the extended family usually lived in one big home.
We are returning to that pattern.
A lot of these smaller homes served the needs of only the immediate family.
Are they becoming obsolete to the new living patters?
Maybe. Zoning can change from bad to better and then be reversed back to worse as time goes by.
The precious R1-2A could be altered again in the future.
Remember how the 1961 zoning resolution , under Robert Moses, changed the face of residential neighborhoods?
It could happen again depending on who get elected to office.
Zoning does not guarantee protection. Only a smart active civic association does!

Anonymous said...

but the Chinese government is definitely involved with the Flooshing real estate transactions. These peasants with no education and no big money businesses are not paying the asking prices. Some of them are here for less than 5 years.
So where is the money coming from?


That's where looks can be deceiving.. They look like peasant but some are richer than donald trump.. especially when you say came here for 5 years or less. They have businesses in China and importing the money here. why else can they buy 1 million bucks home ALL CASH.