The Department City Planning (DCP) certified a plan to transform the five-acre Municipal Lot 1 in downtown Flushing – officially starting the clock on the seven-month public review process for the long-awaited, mixed-use development project.
“After years of hard work and community involvement, the Department of City Planning has begun the public review process for the Flushing Commons project, an $800 million privately financed project that will transform a five-acre parking lot into a dynamic mixed-use, LEED-certified urban center that will include housing, new retail options, improved parking facilities, hotel or office space, and a new state-of-the-art YMCA, all anchored by a 1.5-acre landscaped ‘town square,’” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Monday, January 25. “Together with the Macedonian African Methodist Episcopal Church’s affordable housing component of the development, it will create approximately 2,000 permanent jobs and 2,600 construction jobs, mostly for local residents.”
Flushing Commons, a joint venture of TDC Development and the Rockefeller Group, has been in a holding pattern publically since April 2007 – the last time the developers presented plans to the community. Since that time, the developers have updated their plans including completing the draft Environmental Impact Statement, resolving design issues with the DCP and finalizing a deal with the Flushing YMCA to bring them into the development.
Now, the clock will start on the seven-month Uniformed Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), which will begin with presentations, meetings and debate at Community Board 7. During those meetings, parking is expected to be a hot-button issue with the community as some members already expressed concern over the number and price of parking spaces at the site.
After the Community Board issues its advisory recommendation on the project, it will go to the Queens Borough President’s Office then back to the City Planning Commission. If it receives approval, it would then be voted on by the City Council and ultimately go to the Mayor, who has expressed his support for the project.
“The continued input from city representatives, local elected officials and community leaders, combined with the commitment from the developer, which is investing more than $800 million in private capital, is a great example of what can be accomplished when the public and private sector collaborate,” Bloomberg said.
