Queens
SHOPPING DESTINATIONS n
Tomorrow Envisioning the future of America’s most diverse communities
building momentum buoys the borough Major projects on course as hospitals, art groups expand Long Island City, spurred on by the success of the Queens West waterfront project, has a revitalized Queens Plaza and a new Hunters Point residential district on the horizon. Photo by Christina Santucci 2009
Queens Tomorrow
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2009
SHOPPING DESTINATIONS n Photo: Christina Santucci
Inside this issue 4. Full steam ahead
Undaunted by the recession, major projects are moving forward in Willets Point, downtown Flushing and Long Island City.
6. Come out and play
With a brand-new baseball stadium, revamped parks, beaches and a racetrack, Queens has you covered when it comes to your leisure time.
8. Healthy increase
Faced with three Queens hospitals closings, other health-care institutions are expanding their services and facilities to bridge the coverage gap.
13. New faces
Queens’ population growth outstrips all projections as arriving immigrants continue to flock to thriving ethnic enclaves.
18. Welcome change
At the foot of the Queensboro Bridge, long-neglected Queens Plaza is getting a makeover befitting the borough’s gateway from Midtown.
23. Road relief
City leaders tackle traffic with plans for faster buses, more trains, safer sidewalks and new ferries across the East River.
14. Arts on the move It’s not just a buyer’s market for houses — a new music school, a planned rock club, an artists’ collective and the Queens Council on the Arts are all finding new homes in the borough.
16. Educated workforce
An influx of new students hits CUNY as the dried-up job market sends Queens residents to school.
Ralph D’onofrio
V.P Advertising
26. Numbers game
The facts and figures behind the people, places and projects shaping the future of the borough.
lorens morris
Layout Manager
Ian MacFarland Managing Editor
For advertising information call 718.229.0300 2009
Queens Tomorrow
As recently as a few months ago, we worried that this year’s edition of Queens Tomorrow would wind up looking like Queens Yesterday — 1929 Edition. But things are picking up. While the struggling economy has posed a stiff challenge, the pace of progress shows no sign of flagging. The streets of Astoria, Flushing, Jamaica and Bayside are home to an ever-increasing number of dream-chasing immigrants and house-hunting newlyweds. Where will these newcomers live? Perhaps in the towering edifices of residential projects such as Hunters Point South, Skyview Parc and Willets Point, sprawling complexes years in the making that will transform the landscape of the borough. Where will they relax? From Citi Field and the beaches of the Rockaways to the gambler’s paradise of Aqueduct Racetrack and the smorgasbord of Flushing Meadows Corona Park, they’ll have plenty of options. Where will they be creative? Queens’ burgeoning community of artists continues to grow. A new music school has opened in Flushing, a rock club is on its way to Hunters Point and Long Island City is a hub for all things artistic. Where will they be healed? Amid worries that a rash of hospital closures would cripple the borough’s ability to care for its sick, the remaining medical centers are stepping in with ambitious expansion plans to stop people’s well-being from slipping through the cracks. Where will they be educated? More and more, the answer is CUNY. The borough’s public colleges have seen their student bodies mushroom as the tight job market sends workers back to school for a re-education and keeps new graduates on track for advanced degrees. But how will they get there? Queens’ legendary congestion is a marvel of civic engineering, but that may be changing as well. On the roads, rails and rivers, new programs are underway to put commuters on boats, trains and even buses that run on time. All in all, despite the doom and gloom we’ve been hearing from all quarters over the past year, Queens Tomorrow is still a day we’re looking forward to.
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nfull steam ahead
Developers see deep freeze starting to melt Optimism keeps major projects afloat in Long Island City, Flushing, Willets Point By Stephen Stirling
Though evaporating financing and ultra-cautious lending during the nationwide economic crisis have brought many construction projects in Queens to a standstill, city officials say they are now optimistic the boroughwide freeze on development may be beginning to thaw. A hotbed for development in recent years, Queens has been shrouded in a cloud of uncertainty over the last year as its major development projects face the realities of a wounded economy. Large packages of financing have been hard to come by after investment firms such as Lehman Brothers folded, leaving the city to rethink multibillion-dollar undertakings, such as the redevelopment of Willets Point. According to figures from the U.S. Census, Queens had 38 new residential housing permits filed for 121 units in February, compared with 72 permits for 257 units in February 2008, a drop of 48 percent. For the first two months of the year, there were 56 new permits for 243 units filed in Queens, a decline of 61 percent from the 142 permits filed for 424 units during the same stretch of 2008.
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But during an interview with TimesLedger Newspapers recently, city Economic Development Corp. President Seth Pinsky said while the weak economy is affecting how the city approaches its projects, the majority have weathered the storm so far. “Obviously, the economy is affecting every one of our projects, so we’ve been looking at different ways we can approach this,” Pinsky said. “But we’re seeing financing slowly starting to become available again, so we’re optimistic. Very few of our projects that we’ve planned are on hold.” Pinsky runs the city’s nonprofit development arm, which is responsible for managing several major planned construction projects in the borough, such as the redevelopment of Willets Point, Hunters Point, Flushing Commons and renovations at Queensborough Plaza. He said, however, the economic situation has forced the EDC to shy away from the allat-once approach to some of its largest developments. “We have been open to looking at phasing projects because it’s still very difficult to get large chunks of financing right now,” he said. Pinsky said this applies
City Economic Development Corp. President Seth Pinsky (at podium) City’s waterfront.
The largest middle-income housing development since the ’70s will be built in particular to Willets Point, where the city had initially hoped a single developer would tackle the $4 billion plan to transform the 62-acre site into a sprawling residential and commercial neighborhood at the same time. “It’s not a phased approach, but it’s a roll-out approach. What we want to see happen is we’ll have a developer start with one portion of the site, likely the southwestern portion, and then as that’s finished we’ll be working on starting the
Queens Tomorrow
next segment,” he said. “This way we can keep our original vision and time frame intact. But we’re doing this because it’d be almost impossible to get financing for a 62-acre project right now. The endgame is exactly the same, though.” He said he expects construction to begin on off-site infrastructure as early as year’s end. Bids on $150 million in off-site infrastructure at the site were due May 22, the main purpose of which will be to give Willets Point access to city ser2009
Full steam aheadn
Residential buildings in Queens West, the first phase of the large-scale Hunters Point redevelopment, are steps away from Gantry Plaza State Park Photo by Christina Santucci and the East River.
announces a plan to add more than 6,500 housing units on Long Island Photo by Christina Santucci
on 30 acres in Long Island City. vices, such as storm and waste sewer systems, and to improve transportation connections to the surrounding area. Flushing has been an epicenter for development in Queens during the last 10 years and two other projects in the area also appear to be forging ahead. Pinsky said he expects a contract to be finalized with TDC Development for its Flushing Commons project by the end of the year. Since 2005 rising construction costs have kept the lid 2009
Rendering courtesy of the mayor’s office
on the city’s plan to turn Municipal Lot 1 in Flushing into a “town center” consisting of mixed-use development featuring 500 residential units, 350,000 square feet of retail space, a 50,000-square-foot youth center and 2,000 below-market-rate parking spaces. But TDC President Michael Meyer said despite the delays and some uncertainty from the community, he is confident that 2009 will be the year the ball gets rolling on the project. “Absolutely,” he said. “I
think when we go into the ULURP process, into the public hearings, the community will recognize the value of the project.” Muss Development’s Sky View Parc project has also overcome significant financial troubles during the last year and appears to be on track to open the first phases of its mega-development along Flushing Creek by the fall. Muss Development said it recently signed a 20-year lease with BJ’s for 121,000 square feet of the 800,000 planned square feet of retail space at Sky View Center, a large shopping center destined for the development. The Forest Hills-based developer said restaurant franchise Applebee’s also signed a lease for 6,500 square feet of space. “BJ’s and Applebee’s are a perfect complement to the diverse retail mix that we will offer at Sky View Center,” said Jim Jarosik, senior vice president of Muss Development. “This unique project provides a tremendous opportunity for retailers to be part of a worldclass shopping destination in New York City’s most underretailed borough.” Both the retail center and first residential tower, which has some 120 apartments, are more than 70 percent sold or
Queens Tomorrow
leased and are expected to open by year’s end. Pinsky said the optimism extends to another of Queens’ centers for new development: Long Island City. He said plans to redevelop Queensborough Plaza are back on track after the project got a big boost from more than $40 million in federal stimulus money that will be used to transform the largely asphalt transit hub in Long Island City into a more welcoming destination, complete with more than 1.5 acres of parkland. Construction on a planned 662,000-square-foot, 21-story tower known as the Gotham Center, located nearby at the corner of Queens Plaza and 28th Street, is also underway and is expected to be occupied by 2011, Pinsky said. The EDC’s planned Hunters Point project, which will create more than 6,500 housing units on Long Island City’s waterfront, also took a major step forward in the last year when it was approved by the City Council in the fall. “We have to be careful about what we say definitively because everything kind of fell off a cliff at one time …. But I feel pretty good about where most of these projects are right now,” he said.
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ncome out and play
Boro a playground for beach bums, bettors By Jeremy Walsh
In addition to being the most geographically vast borough of the city, Queens is also increasingly the hot — or cool — spot for recreational activities. Those seeking solace from the summer heat might find their salvation in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, where the city just completed the World Ice Arena. The $66 million, 110,000-square-foot facility opened its doors in February, boasting an NHL regulation-size rink as well as an Olympic-size pool. “I think it’s safe to say the people in CB 7 have the best sports facilities in the city,” city Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe said during the opening ceremony in April. “Flushing Meadows has become a sports mecca for the city.” Borough President Helen Marshall praised the facility’s potential for cultivating local athletes. “Who knows the number of future Olympians that live right in the borough?” she said. Matthew Sapolin, commissioner of the mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, praised the city Parks Department for working to make the facility accessible to the disabled. “I am proud to say that this arena is built for sled hockey,” he said, referring to the devices used by paraplegic hockey players on the rink. A few hundred yards away, baseball fans got a big boost from the grand opening of the Mets’ new $1 billion home, Citi Field. The 45,000-seat stadium 6
Horses are released from the starting gate at Aqueduct Race Track. got largely positive reviews the expansive promenade, a from the crowds who flocked to die-hard Mets fan can sit back the sold-out Mets home opener down at his seat with a tray of sushi and a cup of imported in April. Rosedale resident Yveto beer and boo the Phillies to his Gaboton, 30, recalled fond cultured heart’s content. The construction practicmemories of the old stadium, like the Mets’ 2006 victory es used to build the field should over the St. Louis Cardinals in also appeal to the enlightened the sixth game of the Ameri- baseball aficionado. Some 95 can League Championship Se- percent of the 12,500 tons of ries. But he was enthusiastic structural steel used in the staabout Citi Field as he stood in dium is recycled, a process that front of the giant sculpture of consumes less energy than rethe number 42, worn by base- fining steel from scratch. The ball legend Jackie Robinson Mets also installed waterless and enshrined in the new sta- urinals in all bathrooms and a green roof. dium’s rotunda. Farther south, Ozone “I love Shea, but a new stadium will definitely help the Park’s Aqueduct racetrack Mets’ fans look a lot better,” he offers residents a chance to watch the halsaid. “It’s an exlowed sport of citing time.” horse racing. The The ballpark 114-year-old faciloffers a more ity boasts three intimate atmodifferent tracks sphere than Shea and a total attendid, with seating dance capacity of angled toward 40,000. Aqueduct the infield and set suffered a setback down closer to the earlier this year field. when a company Citi Field also includes a Mets fan Pablo Saavedra selected by the host of gourmet watches people file into state to install Citi Field during the Mets’ video lottery terfood stands. Afhome opener in April. ter a trip around Photo by Christina Santucci minals there was Queens Tomorrow
Photo by Christina Santucci
unable to fulfill its $370 million contract, but Gov. David Paterson reopened the bidding process. “We remain absolutely committed to bringing a VLT facility to Aqueduct, which will provide much-needed economic development to the racetrack, and critical funding for education in New York,” the governor said in a statement. Yet farther to the southeast, summer revelers can seek out the pleasures of Rockaway Beach, which opened May 23. Lifeguards are on duty daily between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. from now until the end of the Labor Day weekend, the Parks Department said. Those looking for more attractions than just swimming or sunbathing can check out the annual sandcastle contest July 26 and the Rockaway Beachside Festival Aug. 1. The city is also offering several movie nights and canoeing. The exercise-minded can also enjoy the scenery with Rockaway’s Wake Up and Stretch Programs, Boogie Woogie Weight Loss and Dancing under the Stars, all on select days in June, July and August. 2009
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nhealthy increase
Hospitals build to close coverage gap NYHQ, North Shore-LIJ move ahead with big plans after two centers shuttered BY HOWARD KOPLOWITZ AND STEPHEN STIRLING
The borough’s hospitals are doing their part to fill the void left by the closing of two Queens institutions with hundreds of millions of dollars of construction projects in the works at a number of health care centers. The recent closures of St. John’s and Mary Immaculate hospitals have placed an added burden on New York Hospital Queens in Flushing, but Chief Executive Officer Stephen Mills said despite the hardship, there is reason to look toward the future with optimism. “Growing pains cause stress on any system and infrastructure, but they are also a sign of health and progress,” Mills said in an interview. “Growth in health care is based on development of new programs and recruiting new people to provide greater accessibility to health care and ultimately greater accessibility to health care in this community.” Mills’ hospital is currently on track to complete a $200 million modernization program by next spring. It includes a new wing to give New York Hospital Queens 80 additional beds and an expanded cardiology department, which could open by the end of 2009. “Because we’ve carefully managed our finances, we’ve been able to afford this kind of investment, while other hospitals have had to wait or do without,” Mills said. “In a highly competitive environment, hospitals must invest in
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Nurse Manager Laura Giles (l.) reviews medical information with ER technician Jagoda Apelian in New York Hospital Photo by Christina Santucci Queens’ emergency room. growth, new facilities, innovative programs and a high-quality staff.” He also said the hospital has been able to add more than $900 million annually to the state economy while operating on a budget of about $600 million and still increase its services and staff. At Schneider Children’s Hospital in New Hyde Park, L.I., construction is being finalized on a new pediatric chemotherapy unit, according to North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System spokesman Terry Lynam. Fund-raising is ongoing for a four-story, 100,000-square-foot pavilion at Schneider that will house a 50-bed, dedicated pediatric emergency center, Lynam said. Construction is expected to start on the $130 million project next year. Late last year North ShoreLIJ opened a new $23 million
neonatal intensive care unit at the children’s hospital that added 24 neonatal intensive care beds to Schneider, Lynam said. The children’s hospital is also putting the final touches on a four-story, 20,000-square-foot, glass-enclosed atrium that will feature a performance stage and interactive entertainment for patients. At LIJ construction is underway on the $30 million Katz Women’s Hospital — a 10-story pavilion featuring 88 private patient rooms with capacity for an additional 60 medical-surgical beds, Lynam said. The 88 rooms are all singleoccupancy — a trend usually seen in Sun Belt states like Arizona, where newer hospitals are being built, Lynam said. “Patients have higher expectations than they did 10 years ago,” he said. “They want privacy, they want comfort. They want enough space for
Queens Tomorrow
their family members to stay overnight.” Another Katz Women’s Hospital — named after donors Saul and Iris Katz — has already been built at North Shore University Hospital and is going through a $48 million renovation to create an additional 73 private rooms, Lynam said.. “The idea here is kind of like a brand so the rooms will have all the same look, feel and design,” Lynam said. At Zucker Hillside Hospital — the health system’s mental health facility — North ShoreLIJ is looking at constructing a new inpatient pavilion to replace the current 50-year-old structure, Lynam said. North Shore-LIJ is in the midst of phasing in a $150 million medical record system that lets the health system’s physicians write prescriptions electronically. 2009
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2009
Some people would call it Pride. We’d prefer to think of it as Satisfaction.
100% of St. Francis Prep’s Class of 2009 will be heading off to college this Fall with scholarship awards exceeding $35 million. Many of our seniors will be attending some of the best colleges and universities in the country. But we take greater satisfaction in knowing that they have also developed spiritually, physically and emotionally during their four years at St. Francis Prep.
The St. Francis Prep Class of 2009 upheld the tradition of academic excellence, school spirit, and service to others which the Franciscan Brothers of Brooklyn began 150 years ago. And it is for that reason that we are proud of their achievements.
Congratulations to the Class of 2009!
Our students learned the value of hard work in their academic endeavors; the significance of teamwork in athletic competition; the virtue of discipline when rehearsing music, writing an essay or creating artwork. Moreover, they learned the importance of community service as volunteers, tutors, mentors and retreat leaders.
2009
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nSHOPPING DESTINATIONS
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Queens Tomorrow
2009
new facesn
Foreign-born: Near majority in Queens BY HOWARD KOPLOWITZ
The borough’s population is growing at such a rapid pace that Queens is giving extra work to prognosticators at the Department of City Planning. At 2.29 million residents, the borough has shattered the estimate for the number of residents populating Queens by 2010. Raechele Raynoff, a spokeswoman for City Planning, said the agency will be tweaking its numbers for next year after it estimated Queens’ population in 2010 at 2.28 million — a number off by more than 13,000 people. “Queens has already exceeded those projections,” she said. Based on the new figures, the agency expects the borough’s population to grow by more than a quarter of a million people by 2030, according to City Planning projections. No data is available estimating where those 250,000 people will come from or what percentage is expected to be immigrants or what countries they will come from. City Planning does not project races or ethnicities of future populations because that information has no bearing on how the city will accommodate them, according to Raynoff. But she said with populations increasing in Mexico and Asian countries, particularly China, it is a good guess that Queens will see an influx of immigrants from those nations. In 2007, the most recent year for which U.S. Census data is available, the Mexican community in Queens was the 2009
Wearing traditional Mexican garb, Devon Yuan (l. to r.), Miguel Remy, Stefano Figueroa, Elizabeth Reyes and Sandra Velasquez celebrate after performing in the Cinco de Mayo festivities at the ARROW Community Center in Astoria. Photo by Christina Santucci
fourth-largest Hispanic group, with more than 72,000 Mexicans in the borough. The largest Hispanic population in that year was Puerto Ricans at 111,110 residents, according to Census data. The Chinese population in Queens represented the largest percentage of Asian residents at more than 170,000, followed by Indians at more than 150,000. No other Asian group had a population of more than 60,000. In 2007, the borough had nearly as many foreign-born residents — 1.09 million — as it did native-born at 1.17 million. The borough’s foreignborn residents were virtually split between naturalized citizens — more than 568,406 — and non-citizens — 525,216. Almost half of Queens’ foreign-born population in 2007 hailed from Latin America at 537,244 residents, followed by Asians at 34 percent and European immigrants at about 15 percent, according to Census data. Queens also has more households that speak a lan-
guage other than English — 54.5 percent — than ones where only English is spoken — 45.5 percent. The 2030 projections predict more than a 20 percent increase among the borough’s older residents between 50 and 74 years old. Projections for 2030 show a minimal change among the child population between birth and 9 years old, according to the estimates, while the rest of the population is expected to grow by between 5 percent and
20 percent. Among women, high growth is estimated among those between 55 and 74 years old, with moderate growth between the ages of 15-29, 45-54 and 75-84. All other ranges are projected for minimal change. Among men, either high or moderate growth is projected for every age category besides birth to 4 and 5-9. High growth is expected in the population of men in the 45-79 range, for example.
William Lin, a Chinese worker, watches as a customer scoops herbs at the Photo by Christina Santucci Flushing shop where he works.
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nArts on the move
Boro arts scene gets groovier
New conservatory, rock club, galleries and Arts Council office in the works By Nathan Duke
The city’s budget may be shrinking, but the arts in Queens are expanding with four major projects in various stages of development, including a Flushing school that focuses on musical instruction, a performance space in Hunters Point and the relocation of two prominent arts institutions to new sites in western Queens. The directors of Flushing’s Center Stage, Hunters Point’s Queensbridge Theater, the Queens Council on the Arts and Long Island City’s Flux Factory all concede that obtaining funds for the arts in the current economic climate is daunting. But all four institutions are moving full speed ahead with major projects that will keep the arts thriving in Queens. Center Stage, operated out of St. George’s Episcopal Church at 135-32 38th Ave. in Flushing, opened in midMarch following the closure of the neighborhood’s BrooklynQueens Conservatory earlier this year. The new school, dedicated to providing instruction in musical performance and dance, eventually wants to become a charter school with its own building and a fully performing arts curriculum, said 14
Barbara Speedling, executive director of the school. “Our plans are to go beyond what the conservatory was for Flushing,” she said. “Our dream is to be a charter school and in the fall we hope to be open all day. We feel that music is a universal language and is truly healing. Our schools are letting us down and not exposing kids to music.” The school has 17 instructors and 70 students ranging in age from 2 to 92, who take classes in various types of music, such as classical, jazz, world music, senior citizen choirs, “American Idol” training, Broadway performance or reggae, Speedling said. The site currently offers afterschool and Saturday programs, but its summer session, which runs from June 29 to Aug. 20, will keep the center open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. “If you want to learn a type of music, we’ll teach it to you — whatever your style is, from Bach to Frank Zappa,” she said. “We also want people to have the opportunity to be a well-rounded performer. We want to show people how to carry themselves and connect with their audience.” Speedling said she hopes the school will eventually triple its current enrollment and
Performers from Chinese Theatre Works appear at the Jackson Heights style of Peking Opera that told the story of the Monkey King, a popular
Students (l. to r. ) Janet Suh, Lu Chang Wang, Stephanie Zepeda and Mario Villacreses make sculptures during a program organized by the Queens Photo by Christina Santucci. Council on the Arts. offer a six-day program. Hunters Point will be getting a different type of performance space when the Queensbridge Theater opens at 31-37 10th St. in Long Island City. The seven-story building will include a 5,000-square-foot theater that seats an estimated 400 people as well as several floors of loft space for commercial use and a restaurant that
Queens Tomorrow
serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, said Robert Prichard, the theater’s proprietor. The club, which was originally scheduled to open last year, is being developed by Michael Waldman, head of the North Manhattan Construction Corp. Construction on the building is in the midst of being completed, which could allow for the theater to open next 2009
Arts on the move n
library. The group presented a show choreographed by Zhigang Liu in the Photo by Christina Santucci Chinese hero.
Nicole Gozar plays the violin during Lance Murphy, an instructor at a performance of “Canon in D” at the CenterStage, plays the saxophone opening of Center Stage in Flushing. during the opening night concert in Photo by Christina Santucci Flushing. Photo by Christina Santucci year, Prichard said. “When the economy collapsed, our credit dried up, so we’re in the process of putting assets on the market to finish up,” he said. “We hope to open before 2010, but I honestly can’t say. If the credit market opens back up again, we’re ready to go.” 2009
Prichard said the theater’s size would be comparable to Manhattan’s Knitting Factory and would include performances by rock ‘n’ roll, jazz, samba and classical musicians as well as circus acts and theater. The venue would also provide space for art programs, conferences and after-school
programs. The theater, which will have a cabaret license, will be open 20 hours a day and a 10-minute walk from Long Island City’s F train. The Queens Council on the Arts will move out of its current locale at Forest Park in Woodhaven to a new Long Island City building that will house hundreds of City University of New York students in the fall of 2011, Executive Director Hoong Yee Lee Krakauer said. Soil remediation of the site, on Fifth Street at 47th Avenue in Long Island City, will begin in June and end in the fall. Construction on the project will begin early next year and culminate in summer 2011, Krakauer said. “We’re very inaccessible where we are right now,” she said. “So we’ve been looking at a lot of different spaces. And through a combination of research and serendipity, it seems like we were the perfect nonprofit for this communitybased development.” The council’s administrative offices will occupy 5,000 square feet on the ground floor of the 12-story building, which is estimated at $130 million, Krakauer said. “We did a survey about three years ago and canvassed the artists and organizations we service, asking them what they’d like to see for our new space,” Krakauer said. “People said they wanted a place to come together and network, where they would have the flexibility to show and share their work — not necessarily like a museum, but more like an incubated space.” In the meantime, the council is presenting the Queens Art Express, which includes cultural performances and exhibits underneath the borough’s No. 7 train as well
Queens Tomorrow
as its Live at the Gantry program, which features 10 performances along the western Queens waterfront from June 14 to Aug. 18. The council, which funds an estimated 200 to 300 borough artists, will also provide space for art exhibitions, fundraisers or corporate parties at its new locale. Long Island City’s Flux Factory is also in the process of moving into a new space in the western Queens neighborhood. The collective art space, which began in 1994 at a former Williamsburg spice factory, became a nonprofit in 2002 and evolved into a site for art events and performances. The factory launched the move from its former digs on 43rd Street to an 8,000-squarefoot building at 39-31 29th St. in Long Island City in April and is expected to fully occupy the site in July, curator Chen Tamir said. The new site will have 13 work studios for artists, two exhibition spaces and administrative offices. “We’re seeing this as a growth opportunity and we’re looking to expand,” Tamir said. “The bad economy can push people to be resourceful and artists are some of the most resourceful people around. So, we’re optimistic.” The factory’s exhibit space will mostly feature interactive installations and thematic group shows. In the meantime, the collective is hosting offsite projects, such as free bus tours throughout New York and neighboring states that are planned by artists associated with the factory as well as a photographic memoir exhibit titled “An African in Greenland” that will be on display at Manhattan’s Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts this fall. 15
neducated workforce
Borough’s colleges booming Enrollment skyrockets as CUNY schools attract laid off workers, recent graduates By Anna Gustafson Queens’ educational landscape is quickly changing with a spike in students clamoring to get into the borough’s public colleges in a trend that officials say is helping to restore the country’s fragile economy. As the economy has tanked, residents have flocked to CUNY’s two community and two senior colleges in Queens to beef up their résumés before jumping into an intimidatingly unfriendly job market. Students fresh out of high school who are now finding private universities’ price tags too steep are applying in increasing numbers to more affordable CUNY schools. College officials point to the fact that students at community colleges receive the training they need to enter the workforce for the first time or learn new skills after being laid off, emphasizing the role the institutions play in reconstructing a fallen economy. “Community colleges are the hottest thing in higher education since the end of the second World War,” said Queensborough Community College President Eduardo Marti. “Clearly, President Obama has been very instrumental in recognizing the potential of community colleges being an important component in the economic recovery of our nation. There is a network of 1,200 community colleges across the country, and we’re all locally based and all designed to provide an education and training to prepare for the workforce.” At Queensborough in 16
Queensborough Community College graduates, including Corona resident Awudu Shaibu (c.), celebrate their graduation in May. Queensborough has seen a 57 percent increase in new applications for next fall compared to last year. Photo by Christina Santucci
Bayside, there has been a 57 percent increase in new applications. So far applications for the fall semester are at 4,400. At this time last year, there were about 2,800 applications for fall 2008. Winston Yarde, the director of admissions at Queensborough, said the twoyear college does not have a planned number of seats for fall 2009, but he did say the school will likely have about 15,000 students next year, some 1,000 more than the 14,000 students who attended this year. The number of students applying to LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City has followed the same trend, and college officials say they expect a 10 percent rise in overall applications next fall, increasing from about 7,300 to more than 8,000 last year. LaGuardia had 3,150 freshmen and transfer students apply as of April, up 20 percent from the
same period in 2008. The college enrolled 4,062 freshmen and transfer students in the fall of 2008, and it has planned for 4,248 freshmen and transfer students to be admitted this fall. Queens College, the jewel in the CUNY crown, has also experienced a spike in applications. The school’s population has grown from 15,000 students six years ago to about 20,000 last year, and Queens College President James Muyskens said he expects that number to move higher next year. As of late May, Queens College had received approximately 20,000 applications, a 15 percent increase from last year, when the Flushing institution enrolled 1,600 freshmen. This year the senior college will likely enroll closer to 1,800 students. “The economic downturn is a difficult time for many
Queens Tomorrow
families,” said Muyskens. “Families that aspire to send their children to more expensive, private institutions are looking at their budgets and saying maybe this is not the right time to do that. At $4,600 [a year], Queens College is very affordable.” York College in Jamaica has seen its population skyrocket over the years, growing from an entering class of 371 students in 1967 to its current enrollment of a little under 7,000 — up from about 6,150 pupils four years ago. York, the other senior CUNY college in Queens, did not return phone calls about admissions. College officials have quickly responded to the surge in interest in their schools, providing everything from career workshops to new programs geared to land students jobs in fields that have openings. “We’re focusing on health 2009
SHOPPING DESTINATIONS n
2009
Queens Tomorrow
17
nwelcome change
Cleaning up the gateway to Queens Luxury developments help gritty Queens Plaza build reputation beyond strip joints By Jeremy Walsh
Prostitutes and potholes are being replaced by doormen and dahlias as the renaissance of a plaza known as the gateway to Queens kicks into full swing. Queens Plaza, located at the foot of the Queensboro Bridge in Long Island City, is rapidly evolving as the neighborhood’s housing boom converges with a city-funded street renovation. Aesthetics were not high on the priorities list around Queens Plaza as factories flourished in the area during the 20th century. It was a den of prostitution and strip clubs as recently as 2004, when a topless bar worker was shot and killed while waiting for a cab minutes after punching out of Scandals at 24-03 Queens Plaza. But now the city is paying more attention to the longneglected area, allocating $135 million for a major, two-phase roadway upgrade to take place over the next two years. The cluttered, trafficchoked intersection was a far cry from what the area looked like in 1909, when the Queensboro Bridge was finished. Bridge Plaza, as it was then known, was devoid of clattering elevated rail lines and vehicle traffic. A crescent sat in a neatly landscaped planter at the foot of the bridge. The first elevated trains came in five years later, and the area rapidly developed as the number of cars crossing the bridge exploded from less than 500 to 85,000 in the first two decades of use. Now the city Department of Transportation, funded in part
18
Bicyclists and pedestrians may find a more welcoming environment when they get off the Queensboro Bridge at Queens Plaza now that the city is Photo by Christina Santucci planning to extend bike lanes and add planters. by $37 million in federal stimu- phase of the project, known as lus money, is preparing to reha- Two Gotham Center, will be a 21-story bilitate the area, including the 662,000-square-foot, construction of new sidewalks tower on the corner of Queens and landscaping along Queens Plaza and 28th Street anchored Plaza North and Queens Plaza by the new headquarters of the South between Jackson Avenue city Health Department. The $316 million tower, deand Vernon Boulevard and the continuation of a bikeway be- signed by the architecture firm tween 21st and 23rd streets. It Moed De Armas & Shannon, will also create a public plaza. will incorporate green building Bidding is expected later this technology and achieve LEED Silver Certiyear, with the fication from completion date the U.S. Green set for 2011. Buildings CounAnother cil for its interimajor upgrade ors. It will also will come as include about real estate gi9,400 square feet ant Tishman of ground floor Speyer comretail space and pletes its masmore than 180 sive, mixed-use parking spaces. Gotham Center “Gotham at the site of Center will the old Queens transform the Plaza MuniciThe multimillion-dollar revamp to pal Garage. of Queens Plaza at the foot of the gateway Island C o n s t r u c t i o n Queensboro Bridge accompanies Long City’s commerbegan in Octo- a recent boom in development. Photo by Christina Santucci cial core while ber. The first Queens Tomorrow
catalyzing private investments and bringing much-needed retail amenities to the area,” said Deputy Mayor Robert Lieber in a statement. City Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside), whose district includes part of Queens Plaza, also hailed the redevelopment. “As the city grows, we must look to neighborhoods outside Midtown or Downtown for offices,” he said in a statement. “And Long Island City, close to mass transit and in the midst of an economic, residential and cultural renaissance, is where we should be growing.” The city had planned to tear down the old garage, long cited as one of the ugliest buildings in the borough, since 2000, when a request for bids was first issued. Major residential development has come to the area in recent years, including Packard Square and View 59, both of which were completed in the last two years, and the Queens Plaza Condos, which was still under construction in May. Hotels have also boomed in the area, including the 63-room Ravel Hotel at 808 Queens Plaza South, which opened last June, and the 100-room Z Hotel, still under construction at 43rd Avenue and 11th Street. But the recent economic downturn has affected some developments. A project called Aloft By the Bridge at the corner of 41st Avenue and Queens Plaza East was announced in 2007, but the boutique hotel was stuck in limbo after U.S. Bank sued the developers in April to recover a $17 million loan plus interest. 2009
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Queens Tomorrow
2009
road relief n
Getting there may be less of a battle By Ivan Pereira
Queens has a lot to offer, but that also means a lot of ground to cover. With an area of roughly 109 square miles, the borough is the largest in the city. Although there are numerous options for getting around the streets of neighborhoods like Jamaica, Flushing and Astoria, city leaders say more can be done to make travel efficient. “It is not as easy as it should be to travel in Queens. There are traffic bottlenecks everywhere,” said City Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing), who chairs the Council’s Transportation Committee. “We need to provide better services to Queens.” Fortunately, several city agencies are implementing new programs to add, enhance and change the way New Yorkers travel within the borough. Underground Queens is filled with miles of subway track and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority is in the process of bringing more service to already existing routes, Liu said. The agency is considering adding more trains to the No. 7 line and the F line, one of the borough’s express routes. The extra trains would provide commuters with less crowded trips without sacrificing their safety, according to Liu. “Computers would track the subway and allow subway trains to run closer to each other,” the councilman said. Queens commuters who use the Long Island Rail Road are also in store for a better commute around 2015 when service is launched to Grand Central Terminal as part of the East Side Access project. The only Manhattan stop for LIRR riders today is Penn Station. For years, the city Department of Transportation and MTA have been trying to improve service on the borough’s nearly 100 bus routes. The Bus Rapid Transit System plan, which the agencies want to implement on major thoroughfares such as Union Turnpike, Jamaica Avenue and parts of East Elmhurst, would create special bus lanes. 2009
Queens’ many highways are congested with thousands of motorists traveling within the borough Photo by Christina Santucci and to Manhattan.
The Long Island City Water Taxi brings commuters to Manhattan by traveling down the East River. Photo by Christina Santucci
Kelly D’Antonio enjoys her trip on the Rockaway Ferry with her dog, Tino. Photo by Christina Santucci Queens Tomorrow
Commuters would ride in larger, fuel-efficient buses and pay before boarding. “It essentially is a system that allows buses to cut through gridlock on major commercial districts,” Liu said. The DOT and MTA are also embarking on a study to improve the traffic flow in downtown Flushing, which is clogged with both pedestrian and vehicular traffic. One of the plan’s goals is to reorganize Main Street and Union Turnpike, according to Liu. The DOT is in the process of adding a signalled walkway and green pedestrian islands to the section of Jackson Avenue near the Pulaski Bridge in Long Island City, where there have been numerous pedestrian and vehicle accidents. With so many streets, subway stops and highways, it is easy to forget Queens is surrounded by water. City Councilmen Liu, James Sanders (D-Laurelton) and Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside) have pushed for the city to take advantage of that geographical feature by implementing commuter ferry service for residents who live near the coasts. Last year the DOT began a two-year pilot program for ferry service in the Rockaways. The ferry charges commuters anywhere from $6 for one-way trips to Lower Manhattan or $216 for 40 trips and takes less than an hour — less time than commuting on a city bus or the LIRR, according to Sanders. In western Queens, New York Waterways runs a water taxi between Hunters Point in Long Island City and Manhattan during the spring and summer. The ferry service charges riders $4.50 for a one-way ticket, $40.50 for a 10-trip book or $139 for a monthly pass. Gioia has long advocated that the water taxi be included in the MTA’s jurisdiction to allow commuters to swipe their MetroCards instead of paying a separate fee. Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 146. 23
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2009
Queens Tomorrow
25
nnumbers game
Queens by the numbers
200-300
Number of borough artists funded by Queens Council on the Arts.
2.29 million Number of Queens residents in latest Census.
72,000 Size of the Mexican community in Queens.
138
Number of languages spoken in Queens.
54.5 percent
48.5
Number of households in Queens where a language other than English is spoken.
Percentage of Queens residents who are foreign-born.
$4 billion
16
Price tag on the ambitious Willets Point development project.
Number of police precincts in Queens.
28
$4,600
Percentage of Queens residents with college bachelor degrees or higher.
830,000
Annual tuition at Queens College. Photo: Christina Santucci
80
Number of buildings in scale model of New York City at Queens Museum of Art in Flushing Meadow Corona Park.
Additional beds planned for New York Hospital Queens’ new wing.
74.3
21
Number of minutes Rosedale commuters spend traveling to Manhattan, according to U.S. Census Bureau.
The number of stories in an office tower planned for Queens Plaza to house the new city Health Department.
28.2
110,000
Percentage of Queens residents who spend half their income on housing.
The square footage of the World Ice Arena is Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
747,403
Total motor vehicle registrations in Queens in 2008, third highest in New York state after Suffolk and Nassau counties.
45,000 Seats in the Mets’ new Citi Field stadium.
20,409
109,000
Number of residents per square mile in Queens.
Square miles in Queens, making it the city’s largest borough.
201
$4.50
Miles of waterfront in Queens.
Photo: Christina Santucci
26
Queens Tomorrow
Cost of a one-way ticket on the water taxi from Hunters Point to Manhattan. 2009
SHOPPING DESTINATIONS n
2009
Queens Tomorrow
27
Safe You can feel safe in the care of our team. From primary care to surgery and over 30 different medical specialties, Mount Sinai Queens recruits the best from around the world, who are committed to providing excellent care always. We offer a full spectrum of leading-edge services in the hospital, as well as at our convenient Family Health and Physician Associate practices, giving you access to world-class care that's close to home.
Call 718.267.4333 to learn more, or visit www.mshq.org.
10 YEARS MOUNT SINAI. 100 YEARS OF CARING. 28
Queens Tomorrow
2009