Wednesday, July 12, 2017

63-story skyscraper next to clock tower

From the Queens Gazette:

The Durst Organization has filed plans to develop a 63-story tower in a lot next door to the landmarked Clock Tower Building at Queens Plaza in Long Island City.

The new tower will feature 763 residential units and a public park, plans show. The Durst Organization acquired the parcel from Property Markets Group in December 2016 for $173.5 million., contingent on the renewal of the New York State 421-a tax program that offers tax breaks to developers in exchange for the creation of affordable housing.

State lawmakers approved a new version of the program in spring 2017. Under the program, developers will set aside at least 28 per cent of the Durst tower’s 763 apartments as affordable housing.

An item on the Real Deal website in December said developer Kevin Maloney, of Property Markets Group, indicated that an acquisition note on the clock tower project was coming due, so he felt it was time to sell the property.

The new, 63-story Super Tower will rise 710-feet from ground level and will feature 8,702-square-feet of retail space, according to the plans.

The Durst Organization is not planning any changes to the Clock Tower building, which was awarded landmark status by the city in 2015, a spokesperson for the Durst Organization said.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is a crazy idea.

Res Ipsa said...

And where is the plan for additional infrastructure (including transit) for this area?

Anonymous said...

Wonderful more people to stick on the trains. If mayor dumbdumb really thinks he's fixing the housing problem, he really isnt! More people will just keep moving in. What needs to happen is that the DOB needs to do their jobs better and maybe we should have some kind of "housing ticket" that people should be getting just to live here. I heard in one of the European countries, they have something like this. Also, if we started deporting and started getting a grip on all the legal immigrants coming into this country and trying to move to the big cities, that wouldnt hurt either! Even if perhaps the government made some way to enforce where legal immigrants can live in America (for at least perhaps 5 years) then maybe that would help too. Too many foreigners pack into big cities and its just getting ridiculous now. Also, I would like to see all these non new yorker homeless people get thrown back into their own states and let them take care of them. But of course, all of this is just a dream because nobody in government wants to help us.

Anonymous said...

Expect another glass box tower.

Anonymous said...

They should rename the area Erection City because that's what developers get when they can easily seduce elected city officials.

ron s said...

What happens when the extreme overbuilding of LIC ends, and the rentals are not filled?

Anonymous said...

Look the only real player here is city council and the actions of the constituents to control people on their payroll on that council.

Since the public will do nothing, or worse, get themselves duped into supporting this - or saying there is nothing you can do about fighting city hall - this is really not a problem.

Don't blame the agency, don't blame city planning, don't even blame the mayor or governor or president. It is the fault of the community that is too damn lazy (or with the millennials entitled) to do anything.

Hell there is a reason this is happening here in Astoria. Half the community see no problem and would do the same thing if they could. The other half just want to have fun and drink craft beer.

Anonymous said...

"The other half just want to have fun and drink craft beer."
And our politicians tell us it's raining out while they piss on us !

Anonymous said...

What did you all expect....a one story single family ranch house from the 50s?
This is an ultra density zone building area.
Get over it. It's over!

Anonymous said...

Get over it. It's over!
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This ain't the Soviet Union or a third world tin horn dictatorship.

The only thing that will be over is this Keystone Kops farce that both parties are doing to this country when the American public has finally decided its had enough. When that happens Mr Politician you can sell the sh*thouse cause they will get your *ss.

Anonymous said...

>What happens when the extreme overbuilding of LIC ends, and the rentals are not filled?

Unless the economy totally crashes and 70s-80s level crime makes a comeback, that's not going to happen.

Anonymous said...

Once that building is up the clock tower will no longer be a tower, it will look like a cuckoo clock. So much for Landmark status.