Here comes gentrification

 

 NY Post

There’s a new contender for the hottest borough in town. 

A report released this week by listings portal StreetEasy predicts that this year will see Queens beat out ever-trendy Brooklyn in terms of residential interest. 

“Queens will reign supreme in 2024 after a record-breaking year for the borough in 2023, as both renters and would-be buyers looked farther from Manhattan in search of more affordability,” begins StreetEasy’s “10 NYC Neighborhoods to Watch in 2024”  survey, which lists the New York areas that saw the largest increase in searches on the website from buyers and renters between 2022 to 2023. 

In first place is Ridgewood, a Queens neighborhood adjacent to Bushwick that offers comparatively quiet, residential vibes and a median asking rent of $3,000 — 8% less than Bushwick’s median of $3,250. 

Ridgewood is one of five Queens neighborhoods to rank in StreetEasy’s top 10, with others including Jackson Heights — which is famed for its wonderfully diverse food offerings, from Indian to Tibetan — Kew Gardens and Woodside. Ridgewood saw buyer and renter searches rise by 10.7% from 2022 to 2023, showing its surging popularity among locals looking for a home. What helps in that end is the neighborhood’s collection of restaurants and bars, as well as vintage stores and art galleries.

High rise Hunters Point most expensive place to live in Queens...where rents are still rising

 

 Queens Post

Real estate firm PropertyShark ranked New York City as the city with the largest concentration of expensive ZIP codes in the U.S. by closed home sales.

In PropertyShark’s report, the ZIP code for Hunters Point in Queens,11109, was cited as one of the eight New York City locations to rank in the top 100 priciest ZIP codes.

Hunters Point’s ZIP code was ranked as having the fifth-highest median sale price, at $2.09 million. The only zip codes that had a higher median sale price were 10282 (Battery Park City) at $3.4 million, 10007 (Tribeca) at $3.09 million, 10013 (Tribeca/Hudson Square) at $2.97 million and 10069 (Upper West Side) at $2.17 million. Hunters Point is the lone neighborhood within the top five not located in Manhattan.

Other ZIP codes within New York City that made PropertyShark’s top 100 for most expensive ZIP codes in the U.S. include 10012 (SoHo/NoHo/NoLita) at $1.95 million, 10028 (Upper East Side) at $1.84 million and 11231 (Red Hook), also at $1.84 million. The latter ZIP code is the lone Brooklyn neighborhood to be cited as a main contributor.

When it came to the list for the 100 most expensive ZIP codes, Battery Park City’s 10282 ranked 20th, Tribeca’s 10007 came in 24th, Tribeca and Hudson Square’s 10013 ranked 27th, the Upper West Side’s 10069 came in 65th, Hunters Point ranked 72nd, SoHo, NoHo and NoLita’s 10012 was 87th, the Upper East Side’s 10028 ranked 97th and Red Hook’s 11231 was ranked 98th.

This year’s study marked the first time that New York City ranked as the epicenter of expensive zip codes since 2016.

 QNS

There was a 2.94% increase in the average rental price in Queens in October 2023 compared to the same month last year, according to a report from the MNS Real Estate firm.

The year-over-year increase came despite the fact that rental prices for two-bedroom units actually went down 0.48%, from $3,441 to $3,424. This is largely due to more significant increases experienced with studio (5.40%) and one-bedroom (5.46%) units. Rental prices increased in studio units from $2,140 to $2,256 and in one-bedroom units from $2,588 to $2,729.

Despite the significant increase in the average rental price by the end of October this year compared to the same time last year, there was very little change compared to September 2023. Month-over-month, there was a 0.06% decrease in average rental price, from $2,804.94 to $2,803.12.

Month-over-month, the average rental price of studio units increased 1.5% from $2,222.19 to $2,255.57. However, the average rental price for one-bedroom and two-bedroom units both went down. There was a 0.67%, decrease for one-bedroom units, from $2,747.66 to $2,729.38. Two-bedroom units experienced a 0.60% decrease in average rental price, from $3,444.97 to $3,424.40.

Five Queens neighborhoods tracked in the report, Astoria (1.93%), Rego Park (1.5%), Forest Hills (0.28%), Elmhurst (0.89%) and Sunnyside (0.95%), experienced an increase in the average rental price in October compared to September. The remaining six Queens neighborhoods, Long Island City (0.99%), Ridgewood (0.97%), Flushing (0.35%), Jackson Heights (1.41%), Jamaica (1.11%) and Woodside/Maspeth (0.66%), had a decrease over that same period of time.

Astoria saw the largest month-over-month increase in studio units, rising 12.8%, from $2,090 to $2,358. The most significant decrease during this same period of time was seen with studio units in Elmhurst, which went down 12%, from $1,988 to $1,749.

Long Island City had the most expensive studio ($3,418), one-bedroom ($4,145) and two-bedroom ($5,756) units in terms of average price. Flushing had the cheapest studio units ($1,679) and Elmhurst had the least expensive one-bedroom ($2,275) and two-bedroom ($2,845) units.

 

EDC destruction of park space for new ferry landing gets kiboshed by CB

Queens Post 

Community Board 2 has rejected a city plan to demolish the existing ferry terminal at Hunter Points South Park and build a new dock about 300 feet away in front of the main boardwalk by the Oval.

The board voted against the project, in a 20 to 8 vote, at its monthly meeting Thursday via Zoom following a presentation of the plan by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC), which oversees the city’s ferry routes.

The plans call for the construction of a large floating barge about 100 feet out from the boardwalk. Two boats would be able to dock at the barge with the EDC looking to begin construction in the fall of 2023.

The CB2 vote is merely advisory but sends a clear message to the city that the local board opposes the plan.

The board said it rejected the overall plan and objected to a new ferry landing being placed in front of the Oval. The vote came after board members and residents voiced fears of increased pollution spewing onto the Oval and that the new ferry landing structure — and its docked boats — may block the waterfront views.

The board’s motion added that the EDC and Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) – which is responsible for approving a permit for the project – should consider all the concerns of the community and be more transparent about the process.

In rejecting the plan, many board members said they were unhappy about the conduct of the EDC, saying the plan was essentially finalized well in advance of Thursday’s meeting and that the EDC had sought to limit its public engagement.

“What do we have to contribute to this discussion because it seems like you have it all wrapped up already,” Lisa Deller, CB2 2nd Vice Chair, said to the EDC representatives. “This is kind of like window dressing to come to the Community Board because it’s not a real dialogue.”

Thursday’s presentation was the first time the EDC had presented its plans publicly, although it met with CB2’s Transportation Committee in June to discuss the project. It also notified Councilmember Julie Won about the plans in June – while Jimmy Van Bramer was also told about the project when he was in office.

The EDC then filed permits with the Army Corps of Engineers on Oct. 18 with the ACE issuing an initial deadline of Nov. 18 for public comments to be submitted.

Economic Development Corporation gets funding to destroy Hunters Point park space for new NYC Ferry dock

 

Queens Post 

The New York City Economic Development Corporation plans to demolish the existing ferry terminal at Hunter Points South Park and build a new dock about 300 feet away in front of the main boardwalk by the Oval.

The EDC, which oversees the city’s ferry routes, filed permits on Oct. 18 to build a floating dock in front of the boardwalk that runs parallel to the outdoor dining area near the Oval. If all goes to plan, the new dock would be completed by 2023.

The new ferry terminal would allow for an expansion of ferry operations at the site with the landing being able to accommodate two ferries simultaneously, according to the permit application. The current terminal can only handle one boat at a time.

The plans would see the construction of a large floating barge about 100 feet out from the boardwalk. Two boats would be able to dock at the barge.

A concrete platform would be built directly adjacent to the boardwalk and a long footbridge, known as a gangway, would then connect the platform to the floating barge.

The new ferry terminal would replace the current landing structure that is located in front of the beach volleyball court. The current terminal, which includes a 20-foot-wide floating barge, would be torn down should the project be approved.

The city has authorized $12.2 million in funding for the project, according to the EDC.

The plans, which were filed with the US Army Corps of Engineers, would bring about significant change to the waterfront. They have already drawn criticism.

For instance, the Hunters Point Parks Conservancy, a volunteer group that helps with the upkeep of the waterfront parks, is opposed to the project arguing it would spoil the view of the Manhattan skyline and fill the boardwalk with hundreds of passengers.

The group was also critical of the EDC, saying that it did not consult them about the plans when they were filed last month.

Meanwhile, Councilmember Julie Won, who has been briefed on the plans, said she has not yet taken a position on the matter and is waiting to hear community feedback.

Long Island Fear City

 

Queens Post 

 The recent surge in assaults, burglaries and other violent crimes is spurring the Long Island City community into action.

Residents will take part in a public meeting with members of the 108th Precinct this week to discuss soaring crime rates in the area while a local group is planning to bring back private security to the Hunters Point waterfront when the weather heats up.

The public meeting will take place Thursday at Renew Queens, a community center located at 10-15 46^th Rd., and Deputy Inspector Lavonda Wise – along with the 108th Precinct’s Neighborhood Coordination Officers and Crime Prevention Unit – will be in attendance. The gathering is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. and finish at 7:30 p.m.

The event is being organized by Johanna Carmona, a former prosecutor running for the Assembly District 37 seat, and aims to provide residents with an opportunity to have their say about the uptick in lawlessness plaguing the area. She expects up to 40 people to attend.

“There is a lot of concern about an increase in crime in the area, it’s pretty bad and very alarming,” Carmona said.

In the 108th precinct—which serves Long Island City, Sunnyside and Woodside—crime is up 42 percent for the year through April 3, compared to the same period a year ago, according to NYPD data. Robberies are up 108 percent, grand larceny is up 71 percent, while burglaries are up 16 percent.

 

Pathetic 5G pole position

THE CITY 

Supertall 5G-transmitting “smart poles” destined to sit atop LinkNYC kiosks won’t roll out until later this spring, but one early version of the 32-foot-tall towers stands alone on a quiet street in Queens, offering a first glimpse of how hundreds more could pockmark the city.

The new structure in Long Island City is dystopian future chic, with its steely exterior and technical components emitting vibes both familiar and alien to passersby.

“After like a day or two of walking around it, it blends in,” said Walter Cannon, vice president for business development at ZenFi Networks, a digital infrastructure company investing $200 million in CityBridge LLC, the private consortium behind LinkNYC and its successor, Link5G.

The city’s only Link5G so far, at the corner of 30th Place and Hunters Point Avenue, is just used for testing, Cannon explained. It doesn’t have a screen for digital advertisements like the 1,816 LinkNYC kiosks citywide, but future versions will.

The installation of Link5G in commercial and manufacturing zones could begin as early as April, May or June, Cannon noted.

The reboot of LinkNYC will add fifth-generation cellular network technology, on top of existing features like free Wi-Fi, a 911 button and USB chargers. Multiple telecom companies are in talks to house their 5G equipment in compartments in the upper chambers of the poles, Cannon said.

In addition to selling ads as it has been, CityBridge is also poised to make money by selling space to telecommunications giants — like AT&T and Verizon — to house their speedy 5G tech.

But unlike the free Wi-Fi, consumers will have to pay for service via their data plans. And under an amendment to the deal signed last year, the city is promised a much smaller cut — as little as $3 million a year — after CityBridge fell far short on past revenue projections.

Reps from the city Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT) emphasize that Link5G-funded expansion of Wi-Fi and other LinkNYC services to neighborhoods that have not been served before comes “free” of charge to taxpayers, and that CityBridge agreed to pay the city for the privilege of providing the service.

“Importantly, and key to understanding why DoITT ultimately chose to reboot the program, the city has never spent a dime on the program,” said Brett Sikoff, a DoITT official, during a presentation on Link5G at the Public Design Commission meeting in December.

That should raise red flags, concerned observers warn, considering the history of LinkNYC, which has seen several snafus since it started in 2016 with promises of bridging the digital divide.

“There’s a cost of free things,” said Sean Khorsandi, executive director of the Manhattan-based neighborhood preservation group Landmarks West!, which opposed LinkNYC and now opposes Link5G for the kiosks’ size, look and tendency to attract loiterers.

“There’s ways of integrating this type of equipment on existing infrastructure,” said Khorsandi, who teaches design and architecture at the New York Institute of Technology. “You don’t need to build these lollipops in the middle of the street.”

Luxury public housing apartments lottery open for Hunters Point towers

QNS 

New renderings for the upcoming dual-tower residential project, Gotham Point, located in the Hunters Point South neighborhood of Long Island City, were unveiled and the affordable housing lottery application has opened.

The development, announced two years ago, consists of two towers that will include 1,132 total residences with 75% of units priced at affordable rates, senior housing, shared amenities, community facility and retail space. Gotham Point’s South Tower, or Parcel G, will be 33 stories tall and is estimated to be completed in late 2021 between Second Street and Newtown Creek.

The North Tower, or Parcel F, will stand at 57 stories and is expected to be completed in 2022.

Gotham Organization and RiseBoro Community Partnership, the developers, envisioned Gotham Point to be a mixed-income, multigenerational residential community.

The 847 rent-stabilized units will be available to a wide range of incomes, with maximum income limits ranging from $25,080 to $137,940 for an individual and from $35,790 to $196,845 for a household of four. Minimum income limits range from $15,806 to $73,166 for an individual and from $23,692 to $126,686 for a household of four.

 According to YIMBY, a total of 98 homes will be set aside for low-income seniors in an 11-story dedicated wing, equipped with its own personal lobby space, a lounge and laundry room on each floor, as well as a library and a community room with a shared pantry. RiseBoro will also be leading special programming for the senior community, with senior residences available to individuals across income levels from $15,806 to $85,920.

Two more luxury public housing towers being squeezed in on Hunters Point

 

NY YIMBY

The Gotham Organization and RiseBoro Community Partnership have revealed a collection of new renderings for Gotham Point, a dual-tower residential project located within the Hunters Point South mega-development. The property is positioned on Parcel F and Parcel G of Hunter’s Point South, which is among the largest mixed-use residential developments in Long Island City, Queens.

This latest component will include 1,132 rental apartments, 75 percent of which will debut as affordable housing units and age-restricted homes for seniors. Additional components include a publicly accessible underground parking garage, ground-floor retail in the north tower, and a 3,000-square-foot community facility in the south tower. The latter will debut as a new permanent home for Flux Factory, a non-profit organization that provides affordable exhibition and collaborative spaces for new and emerging artists.

“After an incredibly difficult year, New York City seniors deserve to have access to affordable homes with integrated services,” said Scott Short, CEO of RiseBoro. “Gotham Point accomplishes that goal within an iconic project on the LIC waterfront. We look forward to bringing this critical resource to the community and sustaining it for years to come.”

 The south tower at Parcel G topped out earlier this year at 33 stories and is expected to debut in late 2021. The north tower, or Parcel F, will stand 57 stories above ground and is expected to open in 2022. When complete, the project will yield 847 rent-stabilized units with income limits ranging from $15,806 to $137,940 for an individual. Income limits for a four-person household range from $23,692 to $196,845.

A total of 98 homes will be set aside for low-income seniors in an 11-story dedicated wing with its own personal lobby space, a lounge and laundry room on each floor, a library, and a community room with a shared pantry. RiseBoro will be leading special programming for the senior community. These residences will be available to individuals across income levels from $15,806 to $85,920.

Luxury public housing apartments available at twin towers at Hunters Point

 

Queens Post

 

TF Cornerstone has extended the deadline for applicants looking to snag an affordable housing unit in one of its towers on the Long Island City waterfront.

The developer announced Tuesday that applications are now being accepted through Sept. 13 to enter the lottery for one of its 534 affordable apartments on offer at 52-03 Center Blvd. The previous deadline was Aug. 31.

The units are located in one of TF Cornerstone’s two towers going up next to Hunters Point South Park. The apartments are in the developer’s 800-unit north tower. The 55-story north tower also includes 266 market rate units.

The south tower, located next door at 52-41 Center Blvd., is 44-stories high and contains 394 units–185 of which are designated as affordable. The application period for those affordable units ended last year.

The 534 affordable apartments now on offer include studios, one-bedrooms and two-bedrooms and are available to people who make a variety of incomes — from as low as 40 percent of the area median income (AMI) to as high as 165 percent of the AMI (see chart below).

Applicants who meet the eligibility requirements will be entered into the lottery for a unit.

Half of the affordable units are being set aside for residents of Queens Community Board 2, which covers Sunnyside, Woodside and Long Island City. Furthermore, 100 units are being designated for low-income seniors aged 62 and older.

 

Hunters Point residents hopes the NYPD stops the noise this year

 

LIC Post

 This year it will be different.

That was the message from officials at a virtual public meeting Wednesday who plan to make sure that there isn’t a repeat of the unruly activity that took place along the Long Island City waterfront last summer.

The meeting, which was organized by the non-profit Hunters Point Parks Conservancy, brought together elected officials, city and state park representatives as well as local law enforcement.

Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer and State Senator Michael Gianaris spoke at the meeting, along with representatives for U.S. Congress Member Carolyn Maloney and Assembly Member Cathy Nolan.

Around 150 residents were on a Zoom call that lasted nearly two hours.

“What happened last year… was wholly unacceptable,” Gianaris said, referring to the late-night booze parties, illegal fireworks and dangerous drag racing that took place in the area.

“This is a neighborhood with a lot of families, a lot of young children and the kind of activity that was going on… cannot be allowed to happen again,” Gianaris said.

A record number of parkgoers visited the waterfront parks last year, according to the HPPC, with many discarding litter—leading to piles of trash. Food vendors also stayed open late to serve large crowds.

Police Officer Andrew Diaz, who represented the NYPD 108th Precinct at the meeting, said that the entire force was overstretched last summer – given the outbreak of COVID-19 and civil unrest across the city. He assured residents that there would be more boots on the ground to tackle any problems like those that surfaced last year.

“Last year was a perfect storm with the pandemic and protests – we didn’t have enough police officers to address these issues and we apologize,” Diaz said. “But this year will be different.”

He said that Capt. Lavonda Wise, the NYPD 108th Precinct’s new commanding officer, has made Center Boulevard a policing priority.

Diaz said that the precinct is also changing the work hours of its officers—to ensure that more cops will be available on weekends.

He said there will be a greater “uniform presence” with a lot of NYPD auxiliary officers also on patrol this summer.

Did Gianaris, Jimmy V and any of these tower people ever consider that these violators could be their tower neighbors? 

NYC Housing official brazenly applied for job with developer while their building was under review

Daily News

A finance director for the city’s Housing Preservation and Development Department interviewed for and accepted a job with a politically-connected Brooklyn non-profit while considering a development application submitted to the city by the same entity.

Jonathan Beuttler was serving as HPD’s director of Mixed Income Programs in its New Construction Finance Division in 2016 and 2017 when he sat on a review committee for a Queens development that Riseboro Community Partnership sought to win, the city Conflicts of Interest Board revealed Tuesday.

Beuttler failed to recuse himself despite the fact that he was in talks with to Riseboro about a job as its director of real estate development.

He began discussing a job with the non-profit in February 2017, continued those discussions over his HPD email address and a month later accepted an offer.

The application in question, for a development in Hunter’s Point South, came from Gotham Organization, which listed Riseboro Community Partnership as a member of its team.

As part of an agreement with the conflicts board, Beuttler admitted wrongdoing and agreed to pay a $4,000 fine.

4,000 bucks, the cost of networking yourself while serving taxpaying citizens.

Hunters Point library besieged with delays

From the LIC Post:

The Hunters Point Library will not open until the summer of 2019 as the project continues to be besieged by construction delays.

The city agency in charge of overseeing the construction estimates that the library will be completed by the end of the year, with the Queens Library taking an additional three to six months to get it ready for opening.

The 22,000-square foot library, which has been under construction since 2015, was expected to open in the first half of 2017. However, between the complex design and issues with the general contractor it continues to be behind schedule.

The major source of the delays can be attributed to the performance of the general contractor, Triton Structural, according to Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer. “The contractor has essentially defaulted on the project.”

Waterfront library's opening pushed back to 2019

From LIC Post:

Construction on the the Hunters Point Library is delayed once more, and is expected to be completed in August 2018 with a possible opening in 2019.

The update on the $40 million project was announced on Dec. 18, when the Department of Design and Construction and the Queens Public Library testified on the progress of several library projects during the City Council Subcommittee on Libraries meeting, chaired by Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Long Island City).

“It is a unique design,” Walcott said at the meeting. “When we talk about outfitting a normal library it can be three to four months. With Hunters Point we are saying six months.”

Van Bramer questioned the DDC and the QPL on the series of “horrific” mistakes that have led to the project’s multiple delays, including the fiasco involving the glass used for the library’s windows.

The architect, Steven Holl, insisted that a specific type of glass be used for the building due to its lighting and heat features. The glass chosen was manufactured in Germany, glazed in Spain, and eventually exported to Connecticut before reaching Long Island City. The glass was held up in Spain, however, due to a strike by dock workers at a port.

Only "under two years" of additional delays? It's a Festivus miracle!

Hunters Point South still waiting on sign offs

From Crains:

One of the final large-scale projects of the Bloomberg administration is languishing on the Queens waterfront despite its having been approved three and a half years ago. But there are signs that the development may finally be moving forward.

TF Cornerstone was selected in December 2013 to build a 1,197-unit apartment complex as part of the Hunters Point South complex on the Long Island City coast. Such projects typically take two or three years to complete, yet this one's design hasn't been finalized.

Sources with knowledge of the development told Crain's that delays piled up because of the tangle of utility lines and a train tunnel that run beneath the site. The complications of accommodating these subterranean obstacles was not initially apparent and led TF Cornerstone to alter its design of the building last year.

"The plan changed, and it needed to change based on what they discovered underneath the site," City Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer said at the time.

But changing the blueprints was not enough. Both Amtrak, which owns the rail tunnel running beneath the East River, and the New York Power Authority, which controls underground electrical lines, must also sign off on an agreement covering the building's design and construction to ensure no harm comes to their infrastructure.

Negotiations with Amtrak began more than two years ago, a spokesman for the rail line said, and are ongoing. However, project insiders said that a resolution is nearly at hand and other aspects of the project are now moving forward rapidly, suggesting that the building may get off the ground early next year.

Hideous LIC library experiencing delays

From Curbed:

Just when it seemed like Hunters Point’s zany library was on track for its opening this year, the project has been delayed yet again. This time it’s because the project is waiting on a glass shipment from Spain, where a workers strike has delayed delivery, DNAinfo reports.

The Steven Holl Architects-designed library was once set to open by the end of 2014. Budgeting concerns delayed the project and construction only got underway in March 2015. There’s been steady progress since, with the library being fitted with its concrete facade last fall.

Now this latest setback means the library’s opening could be delayed to the end of this year or early next year. A spokesperson for the city’s Department of Design and Construction told DNAinfo that the project is expected to be complete by September.

But the Queens Library will take another four months after construction wraps to actually get the library ready to open to the public. It’s not yet clear if this delay will also escalate costs on the $38 million project, but it wouldn’t be a first for big name-architect-designed project funded by the city.Just when it seemed like Hunters Point’s zany library was on track for its opening this year, the project has been delayed yet again. This time it’s because the project is waiting on a glass shipment from Spain, where a workers strike has delayed delivery, DNAinfo reports.

A Frank Lloyd Crap special?

You might want to check out the progress of the construction of the Hunters Point Library over at Curbed. The photos are quite something.

Amtrak tunnel takes developer by surprise

From Crains:

A Manhattan-based developer has reconfigured its planned 1,197-unit Hunters Point South apartment complex after learning an Amtrak tunnel and power lines ran under the city-owned project site, Crain's has learned. As part of the new design, developer TF Cornerstone will include a 600-seat school for the rapidly growing neighborhood on the Queens waterfront.

In 2013, the Bloomberg administration selected the developer and nonprofit partner Selfhelp to build an ODA Architects-designed residential project, including 700 affordable apartments, on part of the Queens peninsula dubbed Hunters Point South.

Nearly two and a half years later, though, blueprints have yet to be finalized. Amtrak and the New York Power Authority have been negotiating with TF Cornerstone since March 2015 to ensure construction doesn't damage the rail tunnel or the power lines.

It is not clear why the underground infrastructure took the developers by surprise, given that plans for the peninsula released in 2008 indicated whoever controlled the site would have to build around multiple easements.

Infrastructure upgrades for the tower people

From LIC Post:

The Long Island City/Hunters Point area is about to get a $40 million infrastructure and roadway upgrade through funding allocated by Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Most of the roadways in the Hunters Point area have not been reconstructed since the beginning of the 20th Century, according to Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg. With Long Island City’s explosion of residential and commercial growth, plus the City’s emphasis on traffic safety stemming from Vision Zero, this area was identified as due for a makeover.

Well this should be applied to the entire borough, if not the city, no? Infrastructure everywhere is shot and overdevelopment is everywhere.

Also, in years long past, the infrastructure upgrades were put in BEFORE upzoning, not as an afterthought.

Hunters Point South phase 2 breaks ground

From the Daily News:

City officials broke ground Monday on the latest phase of a massive affordable housing complex on a former industrial site in Long Island City.

Hunter’s Point South II will feature 3,000 new apartments on some of the priciest real estate in New York City. But Mayor de Blasio said at least 60% of the units will be set aside for low, moderate and middle-income families.

The completed project — which includes several buildings under phase one — is expected to create 5,000 units of housing.

“This will make it the largest affordable housing development to be built in New York City since the 1970s,” said de Blasio, who attended the ceremonial groundbreaking. “People want to see big solutions, it doesn’t get bigger than Hunter’s Point South.”

The development was started during the Bloomberg Administration and will include new commercial space and parkland along a stretch of East River waterfront once dominated by factories and warehouses.

Affordable LIC housing used as AirBnB rental

From LIC Post:

The Hunters Point South development, which tax-subsidized residents started moving into in May, is already being gamed for profit by renters using Airbnb.

Lottery recipients who received luxury Manhattan-view waterfront apartments, with the help of taxpayer subsidies, are now renting them out for as much as $500 a night.

A unit in one of the two Hunters Point South affordable buildings was highly sought after last year. More than 92,700 people applied to snag one of the 925 units that were on offer. The chance to win was 1 in 100.

“This is the best apartment deal in New York City,” Frank Monterisi, the senior vice president of the Related Companies that developed the building, said at a meeting last year.

The development contains amenities such as an outdoor roof deck, rooftop garden, a fitness center and a children’s playroom.

Three residents were found to be cashing in on their affordable apartment deal on the controversial Airbnb site earlier this week.

One tenant, who went by the name Nathalye, advertized her two-bedroom apartment for $500 per night, with the headline “Luxury Apartment with great Manhattan views.” With a cleaning and service fee, a five-night stay comes to $2,809.

The apartment is located at 1-55 Borden Ave. and can sleep up to six guests, according to the ad. The Venezuelan native, who moved to the U.S. three years ago, has two reviews, according to her profile.