Rendering from TF Cornerstone via the New York Times
July 31, 2017 By Nathaly Pesantez
The Long Island City waterfront is slated to see further development in the coming years, as the city announced a fleshed out proposal for a massive project by Anable Basin.
The New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) has selected TF Cornerstone, the Manhattan-based real-estate firm, to develop a 1.524 million-square foot area in a mixed-use project, which is set to include nearly 1,000 residential units, a public school, and thousands of square feet of office and industrial space.
The two locations targeted for development by the EDC are a DOT site housing roadway repair units, and a waterfront site currently in use as a parking lot. Both sites are near 44th Drive and 5th Street, in the Anable Basin inlet, which the EDC describes as “just a stone’s throw away from the new Cornell Tech campus rising at Roosevelt Island.”
The announcement comes over a year after the EDC issued a request for proposal (RFP) for developers to come up with a plan for the 4.5-acre site that features affordable housing, a school, public spaces, and commercial spaces to stimulate job growth.
“One of the primary goals of this project is to support the commercial, technology, artisan and industrial businesses of Long Island City, while also balancing that work environment with market and affordable housing,” said Jake Elghanayan, a principal and senior vice president of TFC, in a statement.
Two towers, expected to rise 650 feet and 500 feet, are set to house the approximately 1,000 units—from studios to three-bedrooms—in an area covering close to one million square feet, according to a spokesperson for TF Cornerstone.
The price range for the units have not been revealed, but of the estimated 1,000 apartments, 25 percent of them will fall under affordable housing.
In accordance to the RFP released Feb. 2016, an 80,000-square-foot public school with seats for 600 students is also included in TF Cornerstone’s development.
The plan features 100,000 square feet of light industrial space, including 50,000 square feet of affordable space. Additionally, 400,000-square-feet is reserved for office space for tech start-ups and other industries as well as classroom space for workforce training in arts, technology, and manufacturing.
A one-acre park for the public is also included in the project, along with a performing arts training center and retail space.
The cost for the entire project is expected to cost $925 million, a TC Cornerstone spokesperson said.
The EDC has directed development in the area to compliment the emerging technology and creative hub of Long Island City and the neighboring Roosevelt Island all while retaining the industrial character of the waterfront sites.
TF Cornerstone devised its plans with three development partners—the Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center (GMDC), the Coalition for Queens (C4Q), and BJH Advisors.
Plans for the massive development, however, are contingent on whether the area, currently a manufacturing zone, can endure a lengthy public process to be successfully rezoned.
If the zoning change approval goes through, the development is expected to be completed in 2022, according to TF Cornerstone.
The two sites slated for development by the EDC.
6 Comments
Relax folks, this will take time. A long way from now is 2022. What we also need is a big Muni parking lot with all this development.
When will the OVER development of LIC ever END. Where will these people fit on already crowded 7 train & buses. The EDC is choking everyone together. and not one person or elected official seems to CARE..
Natural selection. Survival of the fittest. See ya on the other side! Politicians please stay out of it!
I’m pretty sure what you see is what you’re getting, based on the renderings published.
Is there a word yet for the experience, common in LIC, of having your great view usurped by a new building blocking the way? If not, any suggestions? Opticlipse?
Are there any examples of new view-blocking units later having their own view blocked by yet another tower?
What about shadows? The rising shadow rate in LIC is out of control, and nobody talks about it. Skinny’s on Center used to have its outdoor seating sun-drenched, but now is in the perpetual shadow of the new library. Who knows how tall that building will get, once they starting locking in additional blocks of floors into those big slots?
I have already had to reposition my DIRECTV dish. Not getting a signal due to new building blocking it. And soon the new position will be blocked.