It’s been a decade since Thor Equities demolished the iconic Revere Sugar Refinery on the Red Hook waterfront. Now, they’ve finally filed plans for a five-story office building on the huge lot at 270 Richards Street, between Van Brunt and Dwight streets.
Although we’d love to see more residential development in downtown Jamaica, much of the new construction in the eastern Queens neighborhood is tied to hotels and tourism. The latest new hotel is coming to 97-26 147th Place, on a lot a few blocks south of the Jamaica LIRR station.
It was revealed in May of 2015 that New Jersey-based Steiner Equities Group, selected by the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, would be redeveloping the corner of Flushing Avenue and Navy Street into a multi-building commercial complex. Now, the developer has filed applications for three of the four planned buildings. At the corner of Flushing and Navy, filed under 1 Flushing Avenue, a new single-story, 12,600-square-foot retail building is planned. Directly to the east, at 3 Flushing Avenue, a two-story, 36,645-square-foot retail building is in the works. To the north of 1 Flushing Avenue along Navy Street, at 25 Navy Street, another two-story retail building measuring 41,200 square feet is planned. A fourth building, this one five stories in height, is planned at 21 Flushing Avenue. That structure, to total 248,489 square feet, will include a 74,000-square-foot Wegmans market and 126,000 square feet of industrial space. S9 Architecture is the design architect. Steiner is ground-leasing the property in a 96-year lease, which is currently scattered with the crumbling remains of Admiral’s Row. Two of the dilapidated buildings along the corridor are being restored, but the rest are to be demolished. Completion is expected in 2017.
A new free-standing, 20,000-square-foot museum is being developed at the Statue of Liberty National Monument, located on Liberty Island in New York Harbor. The museum would replace the one currently located at the base of the statue, according to the Wall Street Journal. It would be able to accommodate 1,000 to 1,200 visitors per hour, and will include a gallery area, a theater, a bookstore, and administrative offices. FXFOWLE Architects has already been tasked to design the the museum, while ESI Design will be responsible for the interiors and exhibition space. The new building first has to be approved, and construction is estimated to take roughly two years. It would be built to the northwest of Flagpole Plaza on a vacant swath of land. Financing is being raised through the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation. The National Park Service (NPS) maintains the property.
As befitting one of the planet’s key engines of economic and cultural motion, New York City exists in a state of constant change. This is particularly true for the city’s older, centrally located neighborhoods, such as TriBeCa. Over the past two centuries, its western portion along West Street has been repeatedly transformed beyond recognition, particularly by the 1960s urban renewal program that completely cleared dozens of formerly-vibrant blocks. But even there, a 32-year building life span is short by any measure.
