NEW YORK | Willets Point Development (Flushing)

[sparkling]

New York City Declines to Fight in Court for Complex Near Citi Field

CHARLES V. BAGLI
AUG. 19, 2015

Plans to transform Willets Point, a crumbling collection of auto repair shops on 62 acres next to Citi Field in Queens, into a bustling neighborhood with a hotel, office space, housing and a large mall, have followed a tortuous path over the past decade.

In early June, the development hit a roadblock when a state court ruled that New York City could not use a parking lot next to the stadium for the planned one-million-square-foot mall.

The project suffered another setback on Wednesday, as negotiations broke down between the city and the developers that had been selected by the Bloomberg administration to build the project.

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[eleven=11]

I wonder what Donald Trump would think of this?
besides stupid

[chris08876]

Uncertainty Clouds Future of Willets Point and Its Oil-Stained Streets

Uncertainty and frustration hang heavy over Willets Point these days as the once-thriving ecosystem of body shops, salvage lots, tire warehouses and windshield-repair workshops in the lee of Citi Field has been eroded by evictions, property transfers and condemnations amid a city-backed plan to redevelop the area.

A mall and 2,500 new apartments are part of plans for Willets Point, near Citi Field in Queens, where many shops have shuttered.New York City Declines to Fight in Court for Complex Near Citi FieldAUG. 19, 2015
The project — which would include construction of a mall, hotel, convention center and housing — suffered a setback in early June when a state court ruled that the city could not build the mall on parkland next to the baseball stadium. The plan was thrown into further question last week when the city declined to appeal the ruling.

The developers behind the project — Related Companies and Sterling Equities, which were chosen by the Bloomberg administration — filed an appeal on their own to the state’s highest court. The city’s withdrawal, however, could undermine the developers’ case and ultimately lead to the scope and terms of the project being renegotiated more in keeping with the priorities of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration.

But in the rutted, unpaved streets of the auto-repair district east of Citi Field — a sector affectionately known to its denizens as the Iron Triangle — news of the city’s decision last week barely registered. Few people, it seemed, had heard about it; fewer still knew what it meant. And nobody much cared.

In interviews this week, the consensus seemed to be that even if the current plan collapsed, another would prevail eventually. The end result for the community of repair shops and junkyards would be the same: gone.

“Let me tell you something: They’re not going to leave the project like that,” Arturo Olaya, an upholstery specialist, said. As the president of a local business group, the Willets Point Defense Committee, he was more attuned than most to the recent legal developments.

Mr. Olaya pointed out that the city had already spent $400 million to buy land and make other preparations for the development. “Let me tell you something,” he added, “the city is saying that because they’re probably doing a trick.”

The 13-block zone has been a de facto auto repair district for decades, but it has also been a canvas for redevelopment fantasies for a succession of mayoral administrations. It also stands as an example of municipal neglect, as the unpaved, pitted and frequently flooded streets attest.

The Bloomberg administration first approved the the neighborhood’s redevelopment in 2008. Four years later it struck a development deal with Related Companies and Sterling Equities.

Since then, at least a third of the businesses by some estimates, mainly those in so-called Phase 1 of the redevelopment area, have closed as the city bought out landowners and offered tenants incentives to leave.

Some businesses have moved elsewhere in the area; others have simply vanished, workers and business owners said.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/28/ny...eets.html?_r=0

[NorthernDancer]

Originally Posted by sparkling

New York City Declines to Fight in Court for Complex Near Citi Field

CHARLES V. BAGLI
AUG. 19, 2015

Wow. That is monumental incompetence.

[chris08876]

Sky View Parc Update:

Original Post: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...&postcount=192

==========================

Onex secures $152.5M construction loan for Flushing site

*

Onex Real Estate Partners scored $152.5 million in construction financing from the Bank of the Ozarks for a Flushing development site. The site is located at 135-10 Roosevelt Avenue, between Prince and Main streets — several blocks from Onex’s Sky View Parc complex along College Point Boulevard and 40th Road. Property records reveal the vacant land is part of the second phase of development for the Sky View Parc project, although it’s not clear what Onex has planned for the site. While no permits have been filed for the address, the vacant land can allow for a 170,000-square-foot building. Blackstone recently closed on the $400 million purchase of the 560,000-square-foot retail mall and 2,500-car parking garage at the complex. A representative for Onex was not immediately available for comment.

===================
http://therealdeal.com/blog/2015/08/....doPEkYZF.dpuf

Rendering: http://www.chinesehomebuyer.com/list...shing-skyview/ *

[chris08876]

Stretch of Willets Point Demolished for Start of Development Project

Demolition work began last week on a section of Willets Point, the first sign of progress on a multi-billion dollar overhaul from the city and private developers.

The strip of closed auto body shops along 126th Street between 38th and Roosevelt avenues was completely demolished by Tuesday morning by Tully Construction, the project's general contractor.

Workers at shops nearby that are still open said the work began about a week ago, but the main demolition started within the last two days.

The demolished shops have been empty for months, and construction fences for the project went up in April.

Demolition is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, according to the city.

===============================
https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/201...opment-project

[eleven=11]

are the Mets still building a shopping mall thing?

[chris08876]

Flushing’s growing pains

Driven largely by a skyrocketing Chinese population, the Queens neighborhood has seen an explosion in luxury condos, retail and office space, and upscale hotels. Since 2010, over 2,600 condominium apartments have hit the market, and between 2,400 and 2,800 more are expected to follow by 2021, according to public-records data compiled by the real estate consultant Nancy Packes. During that same time period, the average price per square foot of a one-bedroom condo in Flushing increased 39 percent to $748 per square foot.

The largest of the megaprojects under development, Onex Real Estate Partners’ Sky View Parc, has set the stage for the neighborhood’s glossy makeover. The three-building condo project, which sits atop a retail mall adjacent to the 7 train line, opened in 2011 with 448 units. The next phase, dubbed Grand at Sky View Parc, is currently under construction and will add three condo towers with 750 units.

Closer to the neighborhood’s main retail drag lies Flushing Commons — a $1 billion, 1.8 million-square-foot office, residential and retail complex developed by F&T Group, along with the Rockefeller Group and AECOM Capital. The project is expected to bring 600 condos to the market by 2021.
Not surprisingly, all the success has fed on itself, spurring plans for even more growth. In September, The Real Deal reported that Queens-based developer Wing-Fung Realty Group, led by Andy Chau, filed plans to build a three-building, 326-unit development complex at Flushing Point Plaza, down the road from Sky View Parc, after he snagged the site from Sam Chang’s McSam Group last year for $44.5 million. And just this past August, Beijing-based developer Xinyuan Real Estate plunked down $66 million for RKO Keith’s Theater, a landmark movie palace it plans to convert into 269 apartments.

But the rapid expansion has also fueled growing concerns, especially as the overall New York City market slows. Stephen Preuss, a director at Cushman & Wakefield who brokered the RKO deal, said he can understand the demand for the first several thousand units. When Grand at Sky View Parc’s second tower, Grand Two, launched sales in the fall of 2015, $85 million in contracts sold in the first week, Onex reported at the time. The average starting price for a condo at Sky View’s trio of Grand buildings ranges from $1,029 to $1,210 per square foot.

But it’s been roughly a year since the market was tested in this way — while there’s plenty in the pipeline, the majority of new condo units aren’t set to be released until 2019, at what may be a very different point in the cycle.

===========================
http://therealdeal.com/issues_articl...growing-pains/

[NYguy]

This is starting to heat up again. The first of many parcels to be developed...



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[Crawford]

Finally! Willets Point has taken forever to get going.

Nice to see this gigantic site is finally moving forward.

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by Crawford

Finally! Willets Point has taken forever to get going.

Nice to see this gigantic site is finally moving forward.

The early designs aren't horrible either. Density is what Willets needs.







https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/n...?adppopup=true




https://www.storyblocks.com/video/st...pxjhcuka18kxr0

[NYguy]

https://therealdeal.com/2022/11/08/r...oints-housing/

Related, Sterling file first plans for Willets Points housing


BY PAT RALPH | RESEARCH BY JAY YOUNG
NOV 8, 2022

Related Companies and the Wilpon family’s Sterling Equities filed plans for a pair of large affordable housing projects on land next to Citi Field.

The filing by Queens Development Corp, a joint venture of the firms, calls for two 12-story mixed-use developments at 126-43 and 126-55 39th Avenue in Willets Point.

With 881 affordable apartments between them, the buildings represent the bulk of the 1,100 such units promised when city officials announced in February 2018 a deal for the first phase of the broader redevelopment of the area. Plans for a third affordable building have yet to be filed.

The building at 126-43 39th Avenue would consist of 534 affordable units across 521,000 square feet. About 447,000 square feet would be dedicated to residential and 74,000 to retail. The development would include a 186-spot parking garage.

The other building would be 347 units and 329,000 square feet — 284,000 residential and 43,000 commercial. The development would also have a 2,200-square-foot community facility and 136 parking spots.

City officials insisted the affordable housing be built before the profitable components of the sweeping redevelopment of Willets Point, an edgy industrial area with convenient access to highways, the No. 7 train and the Long Island Rail Road, but also significant ground contamination.

When the Queens Borough Board approved the Willets Point redevelopment last year, the plans called for 1,100 affordable residential units across three buildings, 25,000 square feet of retail, one acre of public space, a 650-seat public elementary school, a 3,000-square-foot community facility and roughly 300 parking spaces. Construction was slated to begin in 2024 on the six-acre lot next to Citi Field, home to the New York Mets.

A 25,000-seat soccer stadium could be built for Major League Soccer club NYCFC on land leased by Related and Sterling within the 61-acre Special Willets Point District. The Wilpons and Saul Katz sold the Mets for $2.4 billion in 2020 to investor Steve Cohen.

[Busy Bee]

"Edgy" is one way of describing it.


12 floors seems a little short though even for the LGA FAA limits. That's practically the same height as Citi and shorter than the ongoing development on the other side of Flushing Creek.

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by Busy Bee

"Edgy" is one way of describing it.


12 floors seems a little short though even for the LGA FAA limits. That's practically the same height as Citi and shorter than the ongoing development on the other side of Flushing Creek.

That’s the way it was set up. Shorter towers on the perimeter. I’m not sure where this new stadium plan fits in. We’ll have to wait for the details.

[NYguy]

In addition to this first phase will be a new soccer stadium (from the soccer stadium thread)…




https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/15/n...c-willets.html

[MAC123]

That stadium is obviously a place holder. I wonder what the design will be? So excited. Also hopefully some of that horrendous parking lot for Citi field is used for something else. Maybe more entertainment destinations? Not just stadiums but all kinds of different stuff.

Maybe if they win that casino bid as well. Go kart racing? Laser tag? Movie theaters (though those aren't that popular these days). Maybe a park running throughout. Just ideas running wild in my head.

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by MAC123

That stadium is obviously a place holder. I wonder what the design will be? So excited. Also hopefully some of that horrendous parking lot for Citi field is used for something else. Maybe more entertainment destinations? Not just stadiums but all kinds of different stuff.

Maybe if they win that casino bid as well. Go kart racing? Laser tag? Movie theaters (though those aren't that popular these days). Maybe a park running throughout. Just ideas running wild in my head.

That parking lot was the site of a proposed large shopping mall by Related, but was objected to by locals because it’s technically parkland. They love the parking lot as is.

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/queens/news/...longer-proceed

[MAC123]

Originally Posted by NYguy

That parking lot was the site of a proposed large shopping mall by Related, but was objected to by locals because it’s technically parkland. They love the parking lot as is.

https://www.ny1.com/nyc/queens/news/...longer-proceed

"Winning this case not only saves parkland, but it sends a powerful message across the entire state that parkland is not up for sale," Avella said.

It's a parking lot ffs. These people...

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by MAC123

"Winning this case not only saves parkland, but it sends a powerful message across the entire state that parkland is not up for sale," Avella said.

It's a parking lot ffs. These people...

And you can clearly see the difference between there, and being in the "actual" park. But it's a loophole people can use to stop any development there.

But on the other hand, the outdoor amusement area at Coney Island was mapped as parkland to keep those parcels development free and only for amusements. But that's a rare win.

[RobEss]

I think it's pretty obvious that the locals aren't trying to preserve a parking lot, but rather the potential for building actual parkland on the site instead of just putting up another depressing mall.