Crappifying Jamaica Estates

Slightly more affordable, diverse, and accessible than Forest Hills Gardens, Jamaica Estates breaks the boring Queens street grid with gently curving streets that follow topographical contours.
The crappy structure on the left boasts exposed water meters, and three parked cars on its property. At least the tree was spared from becoming another parking spot
For now, most homeowners in Jamaica Estates care about their homes. Most lawns remain unpaved and unfenced. Most trees remain untouched.
Some streets don't even have sidewalks! It feels like being on the edge of a city.
You be the judge - is this home an example of Queens or crap? Water meters and wires are not exposed; the lawn is green; the height is the same as its neighbors. On the other hand, the pink color makes the home look like a life-size dollhouse. - by mazeartist

What $720 million will get us

More of our tax dollars at work:

Take Me Out to the Mall Game

So will this stadium's revenue go toward fixing up Flushing Meadows, or is the plan to continue to use the grass as a parking lot on game days?

As a side note, the Voice is also declaring that the next Mickey Mantle plays in Queens:

Inheriting the Mantle

Illustration from ProjectBallpark.org

A letter to Councilman Monserrate

Date: Wed 28 Mar 11:46:55 EDT 2007
From: Kevin Walsh
Subject: The "Real" Flushing Meadows
To: monserrate@council.nyc.ny.us

Dear Councilmember Monserrate:

I am Kevin Walsh, author of the book Forgotten New York (HarperCollins, 2006) and webmaster of the site on which it is based, www.forgotten-ny.com.

Many of my readers have reacted to a recent page I posted about the disgraceful conditions in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, including this forwarded message (see below). The park should be Queens' crown jewel, but its abandonment and neglect by the Parks Department is a shame.

Action is desperately needed in the park, which serves a vast area including Corona and Flushing. Please help make the necessary repairs happen.

Sincerely,

Kevin Walsh

-----Forwarded Message-----
From: Michael Texier
Sent: Mar 28, 2007 8:25 AM
To: Kevin Walsh
Subject: The Real Flushing Meadows

I just wanted to drop a note to tell you how great your posting on the real Flushing Meadows is. It's so good that you are helping to bring to light this forgotten treasure.

The World's Fairs represent an amazing time in New York City and it's tragic that the site is so neglected. I remember my incredible disappointment when after having read a story about the Fountain Of The Planets I went out to Flushing Meadows the following weekend for the first time hoping to see this incredible sight along with the other bits and pieces left over from the fairs. Seeing the sad remains was a total let down. Sometimes ruins can be grand, but in this case it is only decrepit.

I really hope your story gets picked up and more people realize what is being lost. Just because it isn't Central Park and it isn't in Manhattan doesn't mean we shouldn't care about something that is such an important piece of New York history.

Yours,
Mike Texier

Will the Councilman reply? We'll let you know.

Pollution threatens 380,000 Queens lives

Because it sits just off the Long Island Expressway, a spacious city playground sat empty one recent weekday morning.

Pollution and the constant drone of speeding cars from the thoroughfare keeps children and their parents away, locals said...

Play's grounded at city park

According to the findings, 380,000 people, or about 17% of Queens residents live within 500 feet - two city blocks - of a busy road. Tailpipe pollution poses serious health risks to residents living within that zone, including heart and lung diseases and asthma attacks.

Health-risk zones tied to traffic: study

Two health studies Environmental Defense examined found a 50% rise in the risk of asthma for children living within 250 feet of a busy road.

The risk of heart disease jumped 85%...

"The impact is significantly higher the closer you are to the road," said Andy Darrell of Environmental Defense. "There is a 500-foot risk zone around busy, congested roadways. That is a conservative estimate."

The Environmental Defense report is available here: Heavy New York Traffic Puts Health at Risk.

Photo from NY Daily News

Your tax dollars at work, continued

Comptroller William Thompson has made at least one asinine decision in his career:

Parks Dept. Pays $1,100 To Plant a Single Sapling

This man wants to be mayor.

Set Up For a Fall

The Daily News today has an excellent series of maps showing exactly where the subprime mortgage victims are likely to be:
Set Up For a Fall

"Since most people in foreclosure end up losing their homes, some of these worst affected neighborhoods are going to be devastated..."

Perhaps, but that's all the better for the developers.

8th photo of Spring

Squirrel eating french fry at Flushing Meadows
Pitch and Putt Golf Course

These are NOT new buildings

73-41 to 73-47 53rd Avenue, Maspeth. These were formerly small one family houses like the ones next to them further down the street, built in 1935.
What am I saying, these are still small one family houses. They've just had some minor alterations. No, these definitely aren't new buildings.
Believe me now? Told you these are alterations. I repeat, these are NOT new buildings.

Building Collapse in East Harlem

1010 WINS reports that a building at 1861 Lexington Avenue in Manhattan partially collapsed around 11:30 this morning. The building was under "renovation." No injuries were reported.

"There were work crews inside the building at the time of the collapse. Welders working on the first floor heard a rumble and saw dust and just ran for it, 1010 WINS Juliet Papa reported. No one was living in the building at the time, and all 12 workers have been accounted for."

Interesting thing is that the DOB website reports that the cause was "FAILURE TO CARRY OUT DEMO IN SAFE & PROPER MANNER," however, the permits applied for were alteration permits.

Not to worry...the DOB Command Team is on the case...

And one final thing: The person who owns the property is a Forest Hills developer, and this was a self-certified job.

Photo from 1010Wins.com

7th photo of Spring

Jamaica Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Broad Channel

Preservationists Rallying Cry

The NY Times has run a piece on pending legislation in the council aimed at revoking existing building permits for calendared and designated properties:

Preservationists’ Rallying Cry

Cartoon from NY Times

Korean War Memorial debate rages on

The debate continues over a war memorial in Flushing's Kissena Park:

“Many people in the Parks forestry offices struggle every day to protect trees, (but) when it comes to capital division projects, they are told to shut up and stay out of it.”

Arborist and Flushing resident Carsten Glaeser documented 89 trees he said were damaged during the Kissena Lake restoration project in 2005.

Even Johnny Liu has injected himself into the controversy:

For a War Rarely Honored, a Disputed Memorial

“That just doesn’t make sense — a grass that’s more conducive to people or animals urinating,” [John Liu] said. “I don’t know of any grasses that have more of a diuretic effect than others.”

QC agrees, John, your quote just doesn't make sense.

Parks Defends Memorial’s Tree Plan

Congratulations, Astoria!

You're the laughingstock of the city for welcoming architecture like this:

Open House Report: Astoria Windsor's Dose of Blue

"It's sandwiched between a car detailer and a ramshackle freestanding house, and right across the street from the Sunoco station in what is, at best, an "okay" neighborhood."

Now Curbed's readers are generally pro-development, but the comments on their thread (as of the posting of this entry) are unanimous in the sentiment that what's being built in Astoria is quite fugly.

Of course, there are always the people out there who think this stuff is fantastic and improves the neighborhood.

Photo from Curbed

Let's play a game...part 1

64-15 102 Street

One of these things doesn't belong here
The rest of these things look kind of the same
Can you guess which one just doesn't belong here
Guess before my song is done...
And now my song is done.

So let's see...we have:
- A 1940s rowhouse where the garage was replaced with a dwelling unit
- Cars parked on the space in front of the ground floor apartment
- The front of the building built out further than its neighbors
- The contiguous roofline altered
- The hideous balcony/ballustrade and stuccoed facade.
- A slew of violations
- A self-certified job

All the makings of a piece of Queens Crap!

Photo courtesy of mazeartist
Ditty courtesy of Sesame Street

6th photo of Spring

Tulips in Middle Village

Now NYC wants to save churches?

Now here's an interesting article:

On Churches, Some See Increased Preservation Effort

Except in Queens, where they can't be torn down fast enough to make way for housing, be it luxury condos or senior apartments. This happens right after the LPC looks at the request to evaluate it for designation, sees a Queens address, has a good laugh, and chucks it in their circular file.

Photo of Astoria Presbyterian Church from Greater Astoria Historical Society

Chuck vs. lenders

The NY Post reports today that 91,000 New Yorkers, like the man profiled in this article, may lose their homes soon due to predatory lending practices:

HOME $ICK NYERS

It's nice that Senator Schumer is concerned about this, but why did he wait so long to do something about it? It's not like this practice and its consequences were a big secret. Do you ever wonder if politicians intentionally allow problems to fester so that they can appear as though they have ridden into town on a white horse and saved the day?

Yuppie Baby Boom

Notice how the map accompanying this NY Times article shows that the median household income of Queens parents has been steadily middle class; percent change in median household income of people with children has seen modest increases in most Queens neighborhoods with a sharp decrease in northwestern Queens neighborhoods:

In Surge in Manhattan Toddlers, Rich White Families Lead Way

Compare to Manhattan, where rich folks seem to be having a lot more kids than the rest of the city. They'll soon be the only people who can afford to raise them.

Maspeth Mystery Building

At 64-49 56 Drive in Maspeth you will find the essence of Queens Crap - even appropriately colored in brown. You get the feeling the builder was influenced by a variety of architectural styles here. Traditional windows are installed right next to a big glass block window. Red awnings seemingly stolen from a 1905 townhouse are right next to a larger crap-colored awning that covers a large outdoor staircase - borrowed from the side of a theater, perhaps. And of course the building showcases the mandatory Fedders-under-the-window, and cars parked on what should be the yard.

We call it the "Maspeth mystery building" because DOB does not have any new building permits filed for it under its address. City planning records indicate it contains 9 "residential units" but has 15 "total units." Use the city map and enter this address and you will see what we mean. City planning also says that the building was built in 1986, however neighbors will tell you that it definitely was completed sometime during the Bloomberg administration.

Carnegie Library set for crap pile

The Queens Chronicle reports that the Elmhurst library will be demolished and a new, larger structure will be built in its place:

"The original library is one of 1,689 free public libraries built in the country between 1883 and 1929 through funds provided by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Each boasts a distinct architectural style that was based on the community it was in.

The Elmhurst Library was opened in 1906 and cost about $46,000 to build."

Modern Building Eyed For Elmhurst Library

Sadly, it comes as no surpise that the city wants to destroy another beautiful building in Elmhurst. Next thing you know, they'll want to tear down Newtown High School - thank God at least that's landmarked and can't be replaced with a cinderblock piece of shit.

Here is a suggestion from Queens Crap - instead of tearing this building down, why not just expand the library into the latest piece of Huang family crap across the street and next to the Dutch Reformed Church? Since the city seems to allow them to build whatever they want regardless of the zoning code, and their latest Elmhurst creation certainly has the sought after 29,600 square feet, it would be a match appropriately made in hell.

First photo from Forgotten NY.