Developers had begun but not completed foundations when the Council approved rezoning proposal. On June 24, 2011, the owner of a corner lot at 64-01 Woodside Avenue in Woodside, Queens obtained a foundation permit to begin construction on a proposed seven-story, 24,022 sq.ft. building with 27 apartments. On July 26, 2011, the owner of two lots at 69- 17 and 69-19 38th Avenue in Woodside obtained building permits to build two four-story buildings with a combined eight apartments.   (read more…)

Modification established 80-foot building height limit along portion of Queens Boulevard. On June 23, 2011, the City Council’s Land Use Committee modified the Department of City Planning’s rezoning proposal for the Sunnyside and Woodside sections of Queens. The plan would impact 130 blocks in western Queens south of the Sunnyside Rail Yard and east of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Sunnyside, bisected by Queens Boulevard in the western portion of the rezoning area, is predominantly characterized by large residential and commercial buildings. Woodside, in contrast, is characterized by one- and two-family detached and semi-detached homes and low-rise apartment buildings. The populations of both neighborhoods have increased during the past two decades, and subsequent out-of-scale development has disrupted street wall continuity and led to inappropriate commercial uses on residential side streets.

Planning’s proposal would replace the study area’s 50-year old zoning with contextual zoning districts to establish building heights, reinforce existing development patterns, and provide residential development opportunities along appropriate corridors. Accompanying zoning text amendments would alter sidewalk cafe regulations along Queens Boulevard and Skillman Avenue and apply the City’s Inclusionary Housing Program along a portion of Queens Boulevard in Woodside. (read more…)