Flushing Commons is one step closer to reality.
On Tuesday, April 27, Queens Borough President Helen Marshall approved the mixed-use development at the site of Municipal Lot 1 in downtown Flushing and released recommendations on what she would like to see going forward with the project.
“Borough President Helen Marshall is a tireless advocate for what is best for Queens and the borough’s neighborhoods, so it is an incredible honor to have earned her support and it says a lot about the positive impact Flushing Commons will have in the community,” said Michael Meyer of TDC Development, who is developing the site in partnership with the Rockefeller Group Development Corporation.
The project, which was overwhelmingly approved by Community Board 7, will now go to the city Planning Commission pursuant to the Uniformed Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP).
“Today’s approval of Flushing Commons by Queens Borough President Helen Marshall shows growing momentum for the transformation of a five-acre parking lot into a vibrant urban center for Downtown Flushing that will offer new housing and retail options, hotel or office space, and more parking,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The project, which has been in its planning stages for a number of years, will be a vibrant, mixed use, 1.1 million square-foot, LEED-certified urban center with more than 600 upscale residential condominiums, 275,000 square feet of new retail space, hotel and/or office uses, a 1,600-space parking garage and a new state-of-the-art home for the Flushing YMCA. The centerpiece of the development will be The Green at Flushing Commons, approximately1.5 acres of landscaped public open space that will become a new “town square” for Downtown Flushing.
After her review of the project, Marshall listed a number of recommendations including establishing a Downtown Flushing Traffic Task Force, which she and Councilmember Peter Koo would chair. The task force would hold monthly meetings – during and after development – with the developers, representatives from the Department of Transportation, Fire Department, NYPD and community members to discuss any traffic-related problems that may arise.
During the Community Board review of the project, a number of residents voiced concerns about the number of parking spaces as well as their affordability.
After the City Planning Commission votes on the project, it will be sent to the City Council and then Bloomberg.
