Long View Rendering of 126th Street and Citi Field. Image Credit: NYC EDC.
Legislative approval would be needed in order to build retail stores, restaurants and a movie theater on Willets West parkland. The Special Willets Point District was approved by the City Council in 2008. The rezoning was controversial; area businesses and residents were concerned over the relocation of businesses, the possibility of eminent domain, and traffic congestion. As a result, a lawsuit was filed against the City by business owners and residents but was dismissed by the New York County Supreme Court in 2010. EDC published a request for proposals in May 2011, asking developers to propose plans for Phase 1 of the development. In June 2012, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that the City had come to an agreement with the Queens Development Group for Phase 1 of the development plans. (more…)
Long View Rendering of 126th Street and Citi Field. Image Credit: NYC EDC.
Appellate panel found the authorization for private construction on parkland did not extend to a shopping mall. On October 9, 2013, the City Council approved Queens Development Group’s planned 10-story, 200-room hotel and 30,000-square foot mall complex on the Willets Point West site, formerly the location of Shea Stadium. The site was once the north end of Flushing Meadows Park until the state legislature authorized the stadium’s construction in 1961. The development would anchor further construction of infrastructure improvements, mixed-income housing, and a school. Since the stadium’s demolition in 2009, the site has served as a parking lot for Citi Field, but remains classified as parkland.
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Long View Rendering of 126th Street and Citi Field. Image Credit: NYC EDC.
Public trust doctrine did not apply to Willets Point West development project. On August 15, 2014, the New York Supreme Court in Manhattan denied petitions for declarative and injunctive relief against the Willets Point Development Project in Queens. The petitions were brought by a coalition led by New York State Senator Tony Avella, The City Club of New York, and New York City Park Advocates. The petitioners argued that constructing a shopping mall and hotel was an improper use of the Willets Point West parkland, and that it should remain open for public events including circus performances and concerts.
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Long View Rendering of 126th Street and Citi Field. Image Credit: NYC EDC.
Council Member Julissa Ferreras praised for her successful efforts in the negotiations for a balanced transformation of the Valley of the Ashes. On October 9, 2013, the Land Use Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises voted unanimously to approve the Willets Point Development Project application. The application was a modification of the original 2008 Willets Point application. (See CityLand’s past coverage here). Before the Subcommittee vote, Council Member Julissa Ferreras gave a statement highlighting all of the items that were finalized after extensive negotiations with the City and developers.
Council Member Ferreras began by thanking everyone involved in this lengthy process, and stated that “this deal is a win for her constituents, a win for Willets Point, and a win for New York City.” Willets Point, known as the “Iron Triangle” or the “Valley of Ashes,” has gone “for years without many of the resources that the rest of the City has received, such as sanitation, paved roads, sewage, and flood drainage.” As a result of negotiations from this application, in addition to the 35% of housing dedicated to be affordable, the City has now “agreed to release a request for proposals for two lots of land” in and around her district to construct additional affordable housing. This will bring the total affordable housing number to just over 1,000 units. Council Member Ferreras noted that this is the largest dedication of affordable housing that Queens City Council District 21 has seen. (more…)
Long View Rendering of 126th Street and Citi Field. Image Credit: NYC EDC.
Council Members voiced concern over the City’s applications to facilitate Phase 1 of the Willets’ Point Development Project. The City Council’s Land Use Zoning and Franchises subcommittee held a public hearing on September 3, 2013 on Phase 1A of the $3 billion Willets Point Development Project. The applicants, New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and Queens Development Group, a joint venture of Related Companies and Sterling Equities, testified. The application is a modification of the original 2008 proposal, and seeks a zoning resolution amendment and special permits to allow the City Planning Commission (CPC) to permit the development of up to 2,833 parking spaces and recreational area in a temporary lot within the Willets Point District. (more…)
