By Rebecca Henely
• Technion-Cornell Innovation Institute — Before Cornell University and the Technion Institute of Technology won the city Economic Development Corp.’s contest to build a higher education tech campus in the city, Long Island City legislators and business leaders lobbied successfully for Roosevelt Island to become the chosen site. A subway stop away, the school is expected to bring economic development to western Queens.
• Hunters Point South — Potential residents may have their eyes on the middle-income housing that will be part of this mixed-use development under construction along 50th Avenue and 2nd Street, but the community is also looking forward to the 11 acres of waterfront, the 1,100-seat IS/HS 404 and the library, the plans of which won a Public Design Commission Award last year.
• The future of 5Pointz — Is this former factory on Jackson Avenue and Davis Street a mecca for “aerosol artists” or a graffiti-ridden eyesore? Developer Jerry Wolkoff said he plans to build condominiums in the space, leaving just a wall for spray painters, but concrete plans have not yet surfaced. Lovers and haters wonder what will happen next.
• The return of M. Wells — This Quebecois-style diner, pioneered by husband and wife team Hugue Dufor and Sarah Obratis, became a foodie favorite when it opened in June 2010 but was forced to close when the couple could not reach an agreement with their landlord. Dufor and Obratis now take their twists on popular American favorites to food festivals, but many wonder when they will have their own place again.
