Long Island City

August 21, 2019

JetBlue installs its logo on Long Island City’s landmarked Pepsi-Cola sign

The iconic red Pepsi-Cola sign in Long Island City got a new look on Tuesday. In partnership with the soda company, JetBlue began installing this week an illuminated logo, a blue arrow, and a picture of an airplane on the sign that overlooks the East River, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The signage, which will only be up until Oct. 1, advertises the airline's switch from serving Coca-Cola to PepsiCo products earlier this summer.
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Uncategorized

Waitlist reopens for ‘moderate-income’ rentals in Long Island City, with units up to $5,183/month

Via Flickr cc

August 19, 2019

Waitlist reopens for ‘moderate-income’ rentals in Long Island City, with units up to $5,183/month

By Devin Gannon

Applications are currently being accepted to replenish the waitlist for moderate-income apartments at two Long Island City buildings. Located across from the newly opened Hunter's Point South Park, the towers at 1-50 50th Avenue and 1-55 Borden Avenue were developed in 2013 as part of the neighborhood's waterfront redevelopment, with a majority of the apartments set aside low- and middle-income households. But apartments available through the current waitlist are for households earning between $104,538 and $278,300 annually with units ranging from a $2,992/month one-bedroom to a $5,183/month three-bedroom. In 2017, the median household income in Queens was just over $64,500 per year.
Do you qualify?

Affordable Housing

James Turrell installation reopens at MoMA PS1 after nearby construction impedes views

Image via Flickr cc

August 6, 2019

James Turrell installation reopens at MoMA PS1 after nearby construction impedes views

By Alexandra Alexa

James Turrell's celebrated Skyspace installation at MoMA PS1 is open to the public again after views from a high-rise construction encroached on the piece and forced a temporary closure back in January. Meeting is a site-specific, permanent installation that was installed in the museum in the 1980s and offers a simple pleasure: gazing upwards toward an unobstructed view of the sky. The aperture is framed by LED lights that change over the course of the day, creating interesting optical effects between the color of the sky and that of the room.
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Events & Things To Do

Deluge of dirty water from construction site next door floods Queens subway station

Image courtesy of @subwaycreatures via Youtube.

July 19, 2019

Deluge of dirty water from construction site next door floods Queens subway station

By Michelle Cohen

A rush of brown water flooded into the Court Square-23rd Street station in Long Island City Wednesday night, making for a soggy commute–and a dangerous one for one passenger who was nearly swept onto the tracks. The MTA said the unfortunate overflow was caused by a plywood construction wall in a nearby building site, where the skyscraper known as Skyline Tower is rising, giving way in the recent downpour, the Daily News reports.
More subway surfing, this way

Queens’ priciest condo ups asking price to $3.9M

Photo courtesy of Compass

July 17, 2019

Queens’ priciest condo ups asking price to $3.9M

By Devin Gannon

The most expensive condo in Queens just raised its asking price. The penthouse at 46-30 Center Boulevard in Long Island City made news last year when its price actually dropped from $4.25 million to $3.65 million during the so-called Amazon effect, a time when condo prices soared in the neighborhood as the tech giant prepared to move there. Sticking with its outlier trend, the penthouse is now listed for $3.988 million, despite Amazon pulling out of its planned headquarters in LIC earlier this year.
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Photo: © Rafael Gamo courtesy of MoMA PS1.

July 10, 2019

Immersive installation with hammocks and a waterfall has arrived at MoMA PS1

By Michelle Cohen

Back in March, as 6sqft reported, MoMA PS1 revealed the winning design in the museum's 20th annual Young Architects Program. This year’s winning architectural installation, “Hórama Rama” by Pedro & Juana, a Mexico City-based studio founded by Ana Paula Ruiz Galindo and Mecky Reuss, is an immersive “junglescape” with a cyclorama perched atop the museum courtyard's concrete walls. The 40-foot-tall, 90-foot-wide structure now floats over this year's Warm Up outdoor dance music series which kicked off on July 6.
See more pictures of the 40-foot

Events & Things To Do

Rockaway Brewery’s ‘Brew Cruiser’ offers express bus trips to the beach with beer on board

Via Flickr

June 21, 2019

Rockaway Brewery’s ‘Brew Cruiser’ offers express bus trips to the beach with beer on board

By Devin Gannon

Skip the ferry lines and stuffy subway cars and ride to the beach in air-conditioned style. Long Island City-based Rockaway Brewery Co. has launched a mini-coach bus that travels between their tap room and Rockaway Beach every Saturday until Labor Day. The "Brew Cruiser" costs $20 for round trip service.
Start planning

Events & Things To Do

May 2, 2019

Skyline Tower, Queens’ tallest building, launches first sales

By Alexandra Alexa

Queens’ Skyline Tower has launched its first 20 listings, providing a glimpse of what we can expect when the official sales gallery opens up later this spring (h/t Curbed). In addition to taking the title of 6sqft’s 2018 Building of the Year, the 67-story building caused a stir last year for its notable height—it will be the tallest in the borough—and proximity to Amazon’s planned HQ in Long Island City, leading to a record-breaking $1 billion sellout. When complete, the Hill West Architects-designed, 778-foot-tall tower will house 802 condos. The 20 live listings include studio- to three-bedroom units, ranging in price from $660,400 for a studio to $2,325,610 for a three-bedroom with outdoor space.
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Noguchi Museum to expand LIC campus, open the sculptor’s studio to the public for the first time

Rendering of the Noguchi Museum campus by Büro Koray Duman

April 26, 2019

Noguchi Museum to expand LIC campus, open the sculptor’s studio to the public for the first time

By Devin Gannon

The original studio and pied-à-terre of Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi will open to the public for the first time as part of a new unified campus, the Noguchi Museum announced earlier this month. The Long Island City museum plans to expand its existing museum and sculpture garden, founded by Noguchi in 1985, by adding a new 6,000-square-foot building and restoring the sculptor's studio.
Get the details

Long Island City library may be evicted from Queens tower after Amazon debacle

image via Google Earth

April 25, 2019

Long Island City library may be evicted from Queens tower after Amazon debacle

By Michelle Cohen

Two months after mega-retailer Amazon announced it was walking away from a lease at One Court Square, a Long Island City library branch that occupies space on the ground floor of the 53-story Citigroup building is facing the possibility of eviction according to non-profit publication The City. The lease on the 3,200-square-foot One Court Square branch of the Queens Public Library expires on August 31. The library has paid an annual rent of $1 since the building opened in 1989 as part of a deal with Citigroup, whose lease on the space ends in May of 2020, but a spokesperson for the library has said that the building's owner has “indicated it is seeking market rent for the library space.” Last year, building owner Savanna was reportedly seeking $55 to $65 per square foot for space in the building.
A valuable community service in jeopardy

City Living

April 10, 2019

Former 19th-century cigar factory in Long Island City becomes a haven for creatives

By Devin Gannon

A former 19th-century cigar factory in Long Island City has been reimagined as mixed-use office space fit for creative companies. The four-story loft building on 35th Avenue offers tenants super high ceilings, exposed beams, and arched windows. Aptly dubbed "The Cigar Factory," the over 120,000-square-foot building also boasts a private landscaped courtyard.
See it here

New Developments

1,200-unit Hunters Point development breaks ground and reveals new looks

New rendering by ODA Architects for TF Cornerstone

April 5, 2019

1,200-unit Hunters Point development breaks ground and reveals new looks

By Devin Gannon

Developer TF Cornerstone officially broke ground Friday on its mixed-use, affordable housing development in Long Island City, a plan that began nearly six years prior. The project, which consists of 1,194 new apartments across two buildings on Center Boulevard, falls under the city's redevelopment of Hunter's Point South, a proposal with the goal of bringing 5,000 units of new housing to the area first backed by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In addition to the residences, the project includes construction of a community center, local retail, a new public park designed by Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects, and a K-8 school. A pair of new renderings highlights the open space planned between the new towers.
Get the details

Sample the wares and see what’s new at NYC’s top flea and food markets

Image courtesy of Brooklyn Flea; photo credit: Scott Lynch

April 5, 2019

Sample the wares and see what’s new at NYC’s top flea and food markets

By Michelle Cohen

The city's local flea and food markets set up shop in springtime, bringing irresistible edibles and covetable goods to a neighborhood near you. Though dates and locations vary and favorite vendors come and go, the mighty market phenomenon keeps growing. The shop-and-nosh mecca Brooklyn Flea again changes locations (hello, WTC!), a favorite night market returns in Queens, and the Manhattan classics are back to offer more of what you didn't know you couldn't live without. Some of the best fairs are the most fleeting, and one-offs like the annual Renegade Arts and Crafts Fair are always worth the trip. The list below rounds up the city's top food and flea picks. Let the hunting and gathering begin!
Plan your market strategy

Events & Things To Do

A hotel in Long Island City will be converted into a ‘short stay’ co-living spot

Via The Collective

March 20, 2019

A hotel in Long Island City will be converted into a ‘short stay’ co-living spot

By Devin Gannon

London-based communal living company The Collective has purchased a hotel in Long Island City with plans to convert the building into a space for co-living. The Paper Factory Hotel, located at 37-06 36th Street near the Astoria border, will be transformed into a space for "short-stay" co-living, which the company says will give members more flexibility in the length of their stay. The first phase of the conversion adds cultural and educational space to the building's ground floor; the second phase adds 100 more bedrooms to the hotel's existing 125 rooms.
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Real Estate Trends

Two-thirds of voters say losing Amazon deal was bad for New York

Image via NYCEDC

March 19, 2019

Two-thirds of voters say losing Amazon deal was bad for New York

By Alexandra Alexa

According to a new poll conducted by the Siena College Research Institute, nearly two-thirds of New York state registered voters think Amazon’s decision to cancel its plans for a second headquarters in Queens was bad for New York. Sixty-one percent of the people who were polled say they would approve of the deal—in which Amazon would receive up to $3 billion in state and city incentives and create up to 25,000 jobs—if the company were to reconsider. The results are clear: “While some may have celebrated Amazon’s announcement to pull the plug, the vast majority of New Yorkers of every stripe thought it was bad for the Empire State,” said Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg.
More info

Policy

An interactive ‘junglescape’ is coming to the courtyard of MoMA PS1 this summer

Hórama Rama by Pedro & Juana, winner of the 2019 Young Architects Program. Ana Paula Ruiz Galindo & Mecky Reuss. Mexico City, Mexico

March 8, 2019

An interactive ‘junglescape’ is coming to the courtyard of MoMA PS1 this summer

By Devin Gannon

Serving as the light at the end of winter's tunnel, MoMA PS1 unveiled this week the winning design for its popular summer outdoor music series Warm Up. The installation "Hórama Rama" by Pedro & Juana (a Mexico City-based studio founded by Ana Paula Ruiz Galindo and Mecky Reuss) will bring an immersive "junglescape" with a cyclorama that sits on top of the concrete courtyard walls. "Hórama Rama" will feature a 40-foot-tall, 90-foot-wide structure that floats over the courtyard space, with hammocks and a functioning, two-story waterfall contributing to the wilderness vibe. The temporary exhibit accompanies the outdoor music series that runs from June to September.
See the winning design

Events & Things To Do

Image via CityRealty

March 1, 2019

Cuomo pleads with Amazon to reconsider Long Island City deal

By Michelle Cohen

Update 3/1/19, 1:10pm: According to Crain's, Governor Cuomo said today on WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show, "They have given no indication that they would reconsider. I have no reason to believe that Amazon is reconsidering. Would I like them to? Certainly. But I have no reason to believe that." Amazon's Valentine's Day breakup with New York City has been rough on Governor Andrew Cuomo; the New York Times reports that Cuomo has continued to beseech the retail giant to build one of its two new headquarters in Long Island City, Queens, as it had announced plans to do last November. According to the Times, Cuomo has privately assured Amazon officials that he would ease the company's path to any needed approvals and is "working intensely behind the scenes"–including a personal pitch to founder Jeff Bezos–to get Amazon to reconsider.
Baby, come back

Policy

Long Island City restaurant owner traveled to Seattle in an attempt to revive Amazon deal

John Brown Smokehouse on 44th Drive in LIC via Flickr

February 28, 2019

Long Island City restaurant owner traveled to Seattle in an attempt to revive Amazon deal

By Devin Gannon

The owner of a Long Island City barbecue restaurant flew to Seattle on Monday in an attempt to revive the city's deal with Amazon. Josh Bowen, who owns neighborhood joint John Brown Smokehouse, met with executives from the company for two hours, according to Qns.com. Earlier this month, Amazon announced it would no longer open a headquarters at the proposed waterfront location in Queens after facing resistance from local politicians and activist groups. During the meeting, the businessman asked if they would reconsider their decision to pull out of the project. Their response? "Never say never," the executives told him, according to Bowen.
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Policy

Plan for affordable housing and industrial space back on the table for ex-Amazon site in LIC

A rendering from 2017 depicting the proposed mixed-use site; courtesy of TF Cornerstone

February 25, 2019

Plan for affordable housing and industrial space back on the table for ex-Amazon site in LIC

By Devin Gannon

The city's plan to bring a thousand residential units and a mix of industrial space to Long Island City is back on the table after Amazon last month announced it will not open a complex in the neighborhood. James Patchett, the president of the city's Economic Development Corporation, said during the Crain's New York Business breakfast on Thursday that the city will forge ahead with its original plan of bringing a mix of businesses and homes to the Queens neighborhood, Gothamist reported.
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Affordable Housing

Via CityRealty

February 14, 2019

Amazon will not move to Long Island City

By Devin Gannon

Amazon said on Thursday it will no longer build a new headquarters in Long Island City, the New York Times reported. The online retail giant selected the Queens neighborhood last year for its "HQ2" campus following a 14-month nationwide contest. Amazon had promised to bring 25,000 jobs to New York City in exchange for nearly $3 billion in state and city incentives. In a statement, the company said it does not plan to look for another location at this time.
Details here

Policy

Timber bridge between Greenpoint and Long Island City gets support from local politicians

Rendering via CRÈME / Jun Aizaki Architecture and Design

February 14, 2019

Timber bridge between Greenpoint and Long Island City gets support from local politicians

By Michelle Cohen

6sqft reported last May on a proposal for a civic design project aimed at reconnecting the neighborhoods of Greenpoint and Long Island City. Brooklyn-based studio CRÈME's concept, called Timber Bridge at LongPoint Corridor, calls for constructing a floating bridge made of durable timber that would span Newtown Creek and expand past it to the LIRR rail yard in LIC. Not only would the new bridge provide greater access to transit options, but, according to the design team, Timber Bridge would give cyclists and pedestrians a safer commute than the car-jammed Pulaski Bridge. The Brooklyn Eagle reports that this grassroots initiative is now just a bit closer to becoming a reality with the creation of a nonprofit and new support from local civic leaders.
Bridge love, this way

Architecture And Design

A majority of New Yorkers want Amazon in Queens, new poll shows

Rendering via NYCEDC

February 12, 2019

A majority of New Yorkers want Amazon in Queens, new poll shows

By Devin Gannon

News broke last week that Amazon was reconsidering its move to New York City after facing opposition from residents and local officials. But a new poll released on Tuesday shows a majority of New York voters actually support the deal for the tech company to open its headquarters in Queens. According to the Siena College Research Institute, 56 percent of voters in the state back the project, while 36 percent disapprove. City residents support the Amazon deal even more, with 58 percent approving, according to the poll.
Details here

Policy

Via CityRealty

February 11, 2019

Learning from Seattle: How Amazon could shape NYC real estate

By Cait Etherington

Since Amazon announced it had selected Long Island City for its new headquarters last fall, a lot of people have wondered what will happen to the neighborhood and its surrounding communities. While LIC has already undergone a series of radical changes of the past two decades—first there was an influx of artists seeking larger live-work spaces and later a wave of condo developments—the arrival of Amazon promises to have an even deeper impact on LIC. And the potential negative effect of the tech giant moving into town has not gone unnoticed by public officials and locals, who have led a strong opposition campaign. It was reported on Friday that Amazon was reconsidering its plan to move to the neighborhood after facing an intense backlash from those who fear increased rents and even more congestion. But with no plan to officially abandon Queens, it's important to understand what could happen if Amazon does put down roots in LIC by first looking at how the company has already changed Seattle, where it first set up shop back in 1994.
More on the effect

Amazon is rethinking its move to Long Island City

Via Wikimedia

February 8, 2019

Amazon is rethinking its move to Long Island City

By Devin Gannon

After facing months of intense backlash from residents and local officials, Amazon is rethinking its plan to open a massive complex in the Queens neighborhood of Long Island City, the Washington Post reported on Friday. Sources told the newspaper, which is owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, that executives at the tech company have had discussions to reassess the plan to open its "HQ2" in New York City. "The question is whether it's worth it if the politicians in New York don't want the project, especially with how people in Virginia and Nashville have been so welcoming," a source told the Post.
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Policy

Amazon will fight efforts to unionize by NYC workforce

A rendering of One Court Square in LIC, where Amazon will temporarily move this year; via NYCEDC

January 31, 2019

Amazon will fight efforts to unionize by NYC workforce

By Devin Gannon

During a heated City Council hearing on Wednesday, Amazon said it will oppose efforts by its New York City workforce to unionize. Speaker Corey Johnson asked Brian Huseman, the public policy vice president for Amazon, if the company would allow workers to unionize while remaining neutral during the process. Huseman responded, "No, sir," establishing a tense tone for the rest of the hearing, the Daily News reported.
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Policy

January 16, 2019

Amazon fuels HQ2 buzz with shiny new job postings

By Michelle Cohen

A pair of job postings listed by online retail giant Amazon kicked the excitement level up a notch in anticipation of the company's new "HQ2" headed for Long Island City, Queens. According to Bloomberg, the ads, seeking a software development manager and software engineer, referred to the company's impending New York expansion by saying the new HQ would be the site of a 50-person team starting in 2019 as part of its Intelligent Cloud Control group. Following a flurry of press inquiries, Amazon quickly added that though they would begin hiring for HQ2 later in 2019, the listings were for positions in an already-existing office.
More Amazon excitement this way

City Living

FDNY says Amazon’s HQ2 may overwhelm an already stretched LIC fire department

Google Street View of Long Island City’s engine 261

January 15, 2019

FDNY says Amazon’s HQ2 may overwhelm an already stretched LIC fire department

By Michelle Cohen

Google Street View of Long Island City's engine 261 In 2003, when then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg shuttered six city firehouses including Engine Company 261 at 37-20 29th Street in Long Island City, the growing neighborhood was nowhere near its current density. Since then, a veritable mini-city of high-rise residential towers has sprung up in the once-industrial Queens neighborhood; the FDNY has been considering the need for more firepower to keep the mini-metropolis safe. The recent announcement of Amazon's impending arrival with 25,000 jobs in tow has given more urgency to concerns about the increased demand for emergency services, according to the Wall Street Journal.
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Policy

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