Connor Adams Sheets
The City Planning Commission voted Wednesday morning to approve plans for the $850 million Flushing Commons mixed-use project and Macedonia Plaza affordable housing building to be built in downtown Flushing.
A protest was held in Manhattan to urge the commission to vote against the proposals, but proponents highlighted its benefits to the community and the estimated 2,000 permanent jobs and 2,600 construction jobs it could bring to Flushing.
“Today’s vote by the City Planning Commission to approve the Flushing Commons and Macedonia Plaza projects moves us one step closer to reinvigorating downtown Flushing with new housing and retail options, hotel or office space, and much-needed additional parking for the area’s residents and visitors,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a statement after the vote. “The transformation of an under-utilized, five-acre parking lot into a mixed-use urban center will establish a new center of activity for this vibrant community.”
Now that the commission has approved the proposals by a vote of 10-1, and will now go before the City Council. If the Council approves the projects, the plans will be sent to Bloomberg for final approval.
Reach reporter Connor Adams Sheets by e-mail at csheets@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4538.
