Most of the new buildings planned for Ravenswood—a little industrial neighborhood on the East River between Astoria and Long Island City—are hotels. But on Friday, a new building application was filed for an unusual 10-story commercial project at 37-24 10th Street, between 37th and 38th Avenues.
The 149-foot-tall structure would have 37,000 square feet of commercial space and 10,437 square feet devoted to community facilities. Parking would occupy the cellar and parts of the first and second floors, and there would also be ground floor retail. The next three floors would be warehouse space, and a “club community facility” would occupy the sixth and seventh floors. Offices would fill floors eight and nine, and the top floor would have a restaurant.
The development would also include 45 parking spaces.
Xinos Construction Corporation, based in College Point, is the developer, and they’ve hired Jakov Saric of Node Consulting and Engineering to handle the design. Andon Iksino, who owns Xinos Construction, first bought the property for an undisclosed amount in 1999.
A collection of low-slung warehouses currently occupy the 7,500-square-foot lot. Demolition plans haven’t been filed yet.
In the last year, several hotels have been filed in the neighborhood between Ravenswood Houses and Queensbridge Houses. Most recently, it was a 13-story hotel at 37-35 21st Street, a few blocks north of the 21st Street-Queensbridge F stop.
Although the hotels will help inject new life into a relatively unpopulated section of Long Island City, it’s getting harder and harder to justify Ravenswood’s industrial zoning. Property owners will continue selling to hotel developers, because that’s the most profitable use for M1-zoned land. We wonder if the city will consider rezoning this area for residential or mixed-use development. Some blocks do have small apartment buildings and homes that predate the industrial zoning, and residents could likely use better retail options that would come with new development.
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