There will be no pedestrian bridge to Roosevelt Island, nor will there be a community center. TF Cornerstone was selected by NYC officials to develop the Water’s Edge site and their plan largely adheres to the bells and whistles in the RFP put out almost a year and a half ago by the city. In fact the only one who seems to be surprised that it will have a token industrial component is The New York Times reporter who broke the story. He obviously must not have bothered reading his colleague’s lengthy story from over a year ago which touted this novelty plan in the development site.
In fact the biggest thing that will differentiate the pair of towers on this plot from their brethren further south along the waterfront in LIC is their massive heights of 50 and 65 stories. Of course that too is more of a confirmation than a surprise. Oh sure, there will be some setbacks on these towers – unlike most of their southern LIC neighbors, and that too was already shared by his colleague over a year ago. Unfortunately I imagine that that will be the only aesthetic “surprise” and Long Island City will once again get the short end of the stick when it comes to architecture, unlike the adjacent towns in Brooklyn: Greenpoint and Williamsburg, whose waterfront buildings (and inland too) are imaginative and varied. I don’t blame the developer in this case, I blame the decision-makers in the city – none of whom seem to reside in Queens.
More importantly, and equally blameful, is the lack of consideration given to those currently living in Long Island City. Oh they’re going to build a school? We knew that already and moreover there are going to be 1000+ new apartments on site to fill that school, plus 10,000 more all over LIC by it’s expected completion in 2022. In other words, nothing in this plan was unexpected. Unless it seems, you were the author who got the scoop from the city and spoon fed it as urban ambrosia to the masses, or maybe it was amnesia?
//DREAM Hotel Scrapped – The Real Deal is reporting that the Dream Hotel slated for 44th Drive will be scrapped for an office building. Something seems fishy here as the new plans are only three stories versus 8-11 prior, no one gives up that kind of square footage. Plus despite all the hotel rooms being built in LIC and city-wide, placing a newly-built stubby office building so far from the subway doesn’t make sense. I’m still holding out for doing body shots with Vikram and friends and gorging on $60 plates of truffle-drenched pasta on Vernon.
Queens High Rises to Have Industrial Space Downstairs – coulda wrote that a year ago
Experiment on Queens Waterfront Would Mix Manufacturers and Dwellers – April 18, 2016, or maybe it’s plagiarism?
It Was All a Dream, LIC Hotel Scrapped In Favor of a Office Building – say it ain’t so Vikram!
After a Decade in the Making, LIC Development Unveils It’s Last Rental Building – and it’s not Hunters Point South
MTA’s Fix For Overcrowded Subways – Tear Out the Seats – growth at what price?
City Council Committee Approves Midtown East Rezoning = bigger buildings allowed near Grand Central
Old Kosciuszko Bridge Dismantled in One Piece and Sent Down River for Recycling – check out the pic
Watch One Ton of Ivory Get Crushed in Central Park – ever wonder what happened to the illegal ivory confiscated from an LIC Gallery? See it get crushed on Aug. 3
[…] Development Corp (EDC) in a report by AM New York. Known as the Water’s Edge location, the confirmed pre-Amazon plans included a pair of massive towers (potentially 65 and 50 stories) that would bring 1000+ additional […]