By Dustin Brown
Though their musicians may be more accustomed to the grandeur of the concert hall, the administrative staff of the Queens Symphony Orchestra has discovered the ideal office space in an unlikely location — a Glendale industrial park.
The orchestra moved from its Long Island City offices to the Atlas Terminals in late March, supplying the company with much-needed space while furthering the expansion of the terminals beyond their industrial origins.
Executive Director Sophia Foglia describes QSO as “the borough’s orchestra, just as Brooklyn Philharmonic is to Brooklyn and the New York Philharmonic is to Manhattan.” Founded nearly 50 years ago, the orchestra plays seven masterworks concerts each season in venues across the borough in addition to outdoor summer performances through a parks series.
The 25 acres of Atlas Terminals, which stretches along Cooper Avenue in Glendale from 80th Street to 88th Street, were originally purchased by Henry Hemmerdinger to house his Atlas Waste Manufacturing Company in the 1920s. As more and more manufacturers began building facilities on the property, “they realized they were no longer in the waste manufacturing business— they were in the real estate business,” said George Rozansky, vice president of industrial properties for Atco Properties and Management, Inc., which runs the facility.
For the past 15 years, Rozansky said the terminals have begun courting a more diverse collection of tenants, and its management hopes “to accelerate that type of diversity.”
Although the terminals are already home to a number of retail tenants — including pet store K-9 Caterers and the Brewed Awakening coffee bar— most have entrances along Cooper Avenue and other streets that cut along the terminals, where the complex’s industrial interior is well-hidden behind a clean brown facade.
Reaching the symphony offices is a bit more of a challenge. Located on the top floor of Building No. 22, the offices are set a few hundred meters from the Cooper Avenue exit through which countless trucks leave the facility every day.
“It really is very industrial,” Foglia said. “You would never think there is a Queens Symphony Orchestra office in it when you first see it.”
The door is marked by a plain sign that says Queens Symphony Orchestra, hanging conspicuously against the backdrop of loading docks and rugged brick walls that surround it.
“They want to change this whole area, so we’re sort of on that threshold of bringing the arts into the community,” Foglia said. “It shows business and the arts working together so we can do these things.”
Although the Long Island City office was sufficient to accommodate four staff members, it had no space to fit a conference room or music library, both of which QSO has added to its new offices.
“The music is in citywide storage,” Foglia said, showing off the spare room that will be transformed into a library once the symphony receives appropriate grant money. “We want to have our music with us.”
The symphony was introduced to Atlas by Drew Manger and QSO board member Joe Murphy, both of whom are employees of Con Edison. The move was made possible by a $5,000 grant from the Astoria Federal Savings Bank.
The offices were furnished through an in-kind gift by Chase Manhattan Bank, arranged by QSO board member Wingson Wong.
“To us, the furniture is like winning the lotto,” Foglia said.
Although the interior of the terminals was designed for industrial rather than commercial use, Rozansky said the facility will likely evolve to better accommodate its increased variety of uses.
“Plans right now are being formulated to continue the metamorphosis and redesign many of the aspects of the terminal,” Rozansky said.
Once such plans are put in place, perhaps QSO staff members will no longer have to yelp “Watch out for the truck” as they venture out to Cooper Avenue. But to the symphony’s executive director, such concerns are inconsequential compared to the net benefit enjoyed by QSO.
“We love our space here,” Foglia said.
Reach reporter Dustin Brown by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 154.
