A thousand reasons to love Long Island City. Tips: Editor@LICtalk.com
Thanks to an intervention by family and friends, I am no longer addicted to Pokemon Go, and back at my desk to faithfully report to you. On day two of my sobriety, I am happy to announce that it appears we haven’t missed much news-wise.
Oh wait, it seems there was a coup in Turkey, a horrific attack in Nice, and a new vice president in-waiting. Wow, my former dependency induced a complete blackout of the real world! Anyway, the best we could muster locally [Read more…] about LIC GO
Back in early March, we noted that Tishman Speyer announced they were planning a big office tower in Queens Plaza of about a million square feet, and that WeWorks was penciled in to take 250,000 of it. Monday they confirmed that they were going ahead with the project as they had found a financial partner, a Qatari fund, and had lease commitments of 800K sq. ft. Finally, yesterday Crain’s revealed that the extra 550K sq. ft. will be taken by Bloomingdale’s. Phew, what a process!
Anyway, in addition to adding another silhouette to the LIC skyline (27 stories), the interesting part of this development is [Read more…] about BLOOMINGDALE’S TO TAKE 550K SQ FT IN NEW LIC OFFICE TOWER
There’s one thing we’ve got in this country and that’s ways of fightin’ back. Gettin’ the facts to the public. Testifyin’ for what you know is right against what you know is wrong. Now what’s ratting to them is telling the truth for you. Now can’t you see that? Can’t you see that?
Two local stories about construction labor in the past ten days caught my eye. The first reported that four non-union steamfitters walked off the humongous 1,800-unit Tishman Speyer residential project on Jackson due to low pay.
In this case, that happens to be between $16-$33 an hour for an occupation whose definition is:
“one that installs or repairs equipment (as steam pipes) for heating, ventilating, or refrigerating systems”
In other words, not quite the same level of skills and knowledge as a brain surgeon, but far from grunt work. According to the union representative, this type of occupation in this city should receive $110 an hour. Thus there seems to be a pretty wide chasm, one that makes both developers and unions suspect.
Which leads to story number two, first reported by Bill Parry at the TimesLedger on July 1, about a labor conflict going on at the infamous 5Pointz site. The developer, Jerry Wolkoff, is admittedly using some non-union labor, despite an apparent gentleman’s agreement with …well, we’re not really sure with whom, in order to receive a variance to build his towers higher than existing zoning codes allow. Nevertheless:
“Look, I’ve got nothing against the unions, believe me, but it has to make sense. I have to be able to build at an affordable cost,” Wolkoff said. “I wouldn’t sign a PLA {Project Labor Agreement} that would let them tell me who to hire and who to fire. In this game you’ve got a few chiefs and a lot of Indians when it comes to the unions. Say you’ve got a job for 40 workers and they’ll bring eight supervisors just to watch them. It gets silly and remember, I’ve got to build all those extra affordable units.”
Don’t weep for Jerry, those extra affordable units were a term agreed to in the contract which granted him the variance. As for the labor picture, the ball seems to have been dropped somewhere. Either way, just like with the steamfitter story, nobody comes out smelling too good. Furthermore, given how far this project has already progressed, they shoulda had class, there shoulda been a school here. [Read more…] about TROUBLES OFF THE WATERFRONT & MUCHO 3-BR’s COMING TO LIC
There’s nothing more underwhelming than cellphone pictures of fireworks. Except cellphone video of fireworks. Instead, it’s the out of body experience of being in LIC during the lockdown period in the morning and early afternoon of the Fourth, followed by the massive invasion of outsiders – and the actual people themselves coming to attend the Macy’s fireworks shows, who transform our everyday locales into packed staging grounds.
Excluding a half-hour of moderate rainfall prior to the fireworks, this year’s show [Read more…] about JULY 4 DONE, COME AND GONE, MY OH MY
As everyone in Long Island City knows, July 4th weekend officially begins with the delivery of Porta Potties to Gantry Park – because how can you have fireworks without Porta Potties? They have arrived, so everyone but The Editor is now free to leave work.
Not that it’s really kept many from already departing, as LIC began getting quiet yesterday. A trend that will continue throughout the weekend until it becomes downright eerie and Scooby-Doo-ville by Monday morning as all the cars are removed from the streets.
Then a crescendo begins to build in the afternoon, reaching its climax at 9pm July 4th evening. If you want an idea of exactly what to expect on that day, here is last years coverage and pics.
//New Ice Cream Shop on Vernon is called ‘Something Sweet’ and will open [Read more…] about JULY 4TH WEEKEND HAS ARRIVED IN LIC